The dogfight had been brutal. The flight of four Falcon class heavy fighters over NZ8-257 were spotted by long range probes and investigated by a pair of Valkyrie class interceptors piloted by Lieutenant Jason "Friday" MacKenzie and Lieutenant(J.G.) Ryan "Rash" Rasher, who took them down in a heated battle.
During the skirmish, the Romulan flight leader sent a distress call to the cloaked Romulan Carrier hiding in the Neutral Zone, and was answered by Commander Delaara and her wingman in two Kestrel class light fighters. They arrived just as Jason blasted the last falcon out of the sky, and engaged the Valkyries in a pitched fight. Rash's ship was severely damaged during the fight, and Jason sent him home while he dealt with the last Romulan. Their game of Chicken ended with both pilots being shot down in the upper atmosphere of the planet, crashlanding on a deserted island....
*****
Rash stomped down the hall to the Captain's Quarters in a rage. His blond hair still a mess from the flight helmet he carried under his arm. Without even bothering to knock, he barged in on Captain Rachael Thatcher and glared at her as she sat at her desk.
"Captain, with all due respect, we have to go back for Friday! At least give me a few Valkyries as backup!" Rash nearly yelled at his C.O.
Captain Thatcher turned in her seat and eyed the young pilot from head to toe. She stood and after making sure her door was secured, stated "Stand down, Rash. We're needed in the Belaeus system. We've engaged Warp, and we'll come back as soon as that mission is over."
Ryan hung his head. He closed his eyes and asked "How long until we reach Belaeus?"
"ETA is 21 hours at maximum Warp, Rash. Don't worry. We'll come back for him as soon as possible. He's a big boy and can take care of himself." Rachael smiled at him. Rachael Thatcher was a beautiful woman, but had been given command of one of the Federation's newest Carriers on her merits as an officer. She ran a fairly informal ship, and didn't mind if the crew fraternized with each other.
Ryan looked at her and smiled back into her bright green eyes. He knew what she said was true, and said "Permission to kiss the Captain, sir?"
"Permission granted, Ace." She knew he loved it when she called him that and slid her arms around his neck as one of her most junior officers kissed her deeply and lovingly. They both knew that this was a fling, and just enjoyed each other while it lasted. During times of war, stress had to be released. Ryan and Rachael just found a tried and true method and stuck with it.
*****
Jason and Delaara sat on the beach on their shared Federation sleeping pad and laughed as they talked about everything under the stars.
"So Rash goes up to the Captain and said 'I wonder if the Klingons know you've escaped. I hear they like to capture angels' so she smacked him so hard every guy in the bar could feel it." Jason laughed as he recounted his wingman's failed attempt to seduce their Captain in the 11Forward bar onboard the Nimitz.
Delaara laughed and snuggled into her new lover. She thought back to how they had met and had to mentally shake her head. She knew as soon as she saw him that she had finally found a worthy mate, even if it took him longer to see it in her. Little did she know that he had felt the same way since he pulled her from her capsized and rapidly sinking fighter. He had performed standard rescue breathing on her to stop her from drowning, and they had spent the rest of that day talking, arguing, and finally fucking their brains out as the sun dipped below the horizon.
Having no moon to control the tides, NZ8-257 had no high or low tide, and very little inclement weather in this part of the western equatorial hemisphere. If it wasn't so close to the Romulan Neutral Zone, the Federation probably would have colonized it and given it a real name by now.
"Well, when I first got promoted to Centurion, our ship's Subcommander came up to me and propositioned me. I looked him square in the eye and told him that he wasn't man enough. He raised his hand to strike me, but our Commander stopped him and executed him on the spot." She laughed at Jason's expression at that. "Just kidding. You don't know much about Romulans, do you?"
"Well, I know that you are related to Vulcans on a genetic level, but embraced emotions instead of suppressing them. Other than that, not much." He shrugged and said "But I'm enjoying learning more" and kissed her.
They sat together for a bit longer under the stars and snuggled close.
"Delaara, what was your wingman's name?" His question caught her offguard a bit.
"Stovral."
"Was he a good man?"
