Prospects...

Posted on Sun Mar 27th, 2022 @ 8:40pm by Senior Chief Petty Officer Mason Malone & Ensign George Paxton

Mission: Character Development
Location: Engineering/gym
2307 words - 4.6 OF Standard Post Measure

"George?"

Mason walked into engineering, hoping to spot the man he'd had a sort of -perhaps not quite- date with only several days prior. Engineering wasn't a place he ventured to often, if ever really, and he made a point of staying well clear of the sheer drop around the warp core -or rather, one of the three the ship possessed. "George, you here?" he called again, looking around the busy bee hive that was engineering.

Finn noticed Mason looking somewhat like a lost puppy searching for George. She pushed away from the pool table in the center and walked up. "You know we have combadges for calling people right?" She chuckled. "He's on the other side of the warp core, he probably can't hear you from over there." She pointed over before being called away by another engineer. "Good luck," her hand waved as she walked away.

"Thanks..." Mason cast her a small smile as he took a wide berth around the core. He did indeed find the subject of his attention on the other side, though..he seemed preoccupied with something inside one of the bulkheads. "Not hunting mice, are you?" He asked casually, crouching beside man to draw his attention.

George flinched slightly, not expecting company, but smiled when he realized it was Mason. "No, just mapping out some wiring that's due for replacement soon. What are you doing in here?"

"What do you think? Looking for you, obviously..." Mason smiled as he sat down on the deck, crossing his legs. "I was wondering if you're up for some sparring?"

"Oh," George smiled. "I can't say I've ever been a huge fan of sparring. Alligators are one thing, but people are another. I guess I can give it a try, but I can't promise I'll be any good at it."

"Anything you'd prefer in terms of keeping fit?" Mason asked, "it's a security requirement, keeping fit, but it doesn't specify how I maintain that."

"I usually just workout at the gym or on one of the holodeck programs. I'm pretty boring really," George chuckled softly. "We can give sparring a try though. If I'm absolutely awful then maybe we can switch to something else." He gave a genuine smile. The rumors of Teyo and Mason had flown around engineering the days before and truthfully George felt bad for Mason. He had made mistakes too, everyone did. That didn't mean he couldn't be understanding and supportive of his new friend, even if the whole ordeal did muddy the waters for their potential connection.

"That's a good idea. If it doesn't work we'll find something else." He grinned openly. "There's always Finn's program that needs completion. And we can always find something else we both may like. As long as we get a workout?" He climbed back to his feet, holding out his hand to help the other up. "Got time now or shall I meet you in the gym in a few?

George accepted the help and moved to stand. "Give me just a second," he input a few commands into a window next to them and replaced the cover on the bulkhead he was working in. "Now I'm ready," he said, a wide grin beaming on his face.

The two walked out of engineering and George slowed down. "Are we doing a sparring program or just sparring each other in the gym?" A hint of worry entered his voice. He had assumed they would be running a program, but as they exited the thought occurred that they could be sparring each other and that wasn't ideal. George liked Mason, the last thing he wanted to do was to try to punch him in the face.

"Well my thought was each other," Mason started, seeing the worry on the other's face, "the way I see it people do need training in hand to hand combat, and I do need to keep my training up as well, so why not two birds in one stone? I help you, and you help me? Who knows maybe some day you can upgrade my knowledge on radio systems or something. I used to be a radioman... communications systems I did know my way around. Now, not so much anymore I'm afraid."

"Well I don't normally go around punching friends, but we'll give a try. I take it we're headed to the gym then instead of the holodeck," George turned down the appropriate corridor and into the turbolift.

"Yeah gym," Mason answered, "and if done correctly we don't land any punches. I mean...if we keep our guard up that is..."

It was a short walk to the gym and George immediately made his way over to the sparring gear as they entered. He apprehensively put it on and then walked to the center of the room to wait for Mason. "Are we just sparring or are we keeping score?"

"Let's keep it fun," Mason suggested as he walked around George to check his gear for safety, after putting his own gear on. It wouldn't do to get hurt and he could just imagine his new boss getting very cross if he did. "Sticks?" He asked, nodding over to the 'weaponry', "or do you prefer wrestling or boxing?"

"I'd say I'm already pretty good at wrestling," he chuckled referring to their run in with the gator from before. "I can't say I've had much experience with the sticks though so let's give that a go."

"Neither do I," Mason laughed as he picked one up and tossed a second over to his partner. "Well not much anyway, I suppose I may have a mean swing.." He took a few experimental swings, then stopped a few paces away. "Head and neck are off limit, anywhere else fair game?"

"Sounds good," George took the appropriate stance, and never being one to offensively strike, he waited for Mason to make the first move.

The way he held his stick did give away his preferred side, but Mason didn't seem to care. He studied his opponent for a moment, then stepped out to swing at George's right shoulder. He didn't use his full strength, not wanting to hurt him.

George instinctively lifted his stick to counter and then rotated from his left arm, striking out, back towards Mason.

Mason was still moving from his swing, but the stick caught him right across his right side. "Oofff..." he exclaimed, rubbing his side despite the protective padding. He shifted, continuing to circle his opponent, now taking a low swipe towards his calves, hoping to knock him off of his feet. It showed he still had a great deal to learn when it came to not being reckless, despite his ongoing efforts in recon.

George jumped up, avoiding the low blow. If there was one thing he had learned in the swamps of Louisiana, it was to watch your feet. As soon as he landed, George swung the stick in a predictable move forward towards Mason's right leg.

"Bloody hell!" Mason cursed, rubbing his thigh. "Are you sure you're not proficient with this?" He took a haphazard swing, more out of frustration than any calculated manner, then seemed to reconsider halfway through as he changed direction.

George chuckled. "Honestly, I expected you to block that last one. You're kind of cute when you're frustrated though," he winked at the handsome security officer.

"Oh, am I?" Mason muttered, visibly flustered at that comment. He gave a mild cry of triumph when he seemed to land a hit at last.

"Ouch!" George swung another blow, missing Mason completely. "See, I told you I'm not proficient," he shrugged. The first blows had truly been a coincidence. But now, having become more comfortable, George lunged at Mason locking their weapons in a battle of strength and will.

"Whoah," Mason exclaimed at the sudden attack, bringing up his 'weapon' and blocking the strike. "You're more proficient than you think there George," he praised, trying to push back and unsettle the man. It was obvious the man had way more upper body strength than he did, even though he himself did have a pretty strong left arm. A mischievous smile touched his face as he let go a little on his push, then sidestepped, lowering his weapon in the process and taking a swing at his upper legs.

"Oof!" George buckled at the blow dealt from Mason though he maintained a smile. Getting beat up wasn't so bad when it was done by someone as attractive as the security officer. "You flatter me. You're clearly the more talented one here." George swiftly stood up and swiveled to strike, only tripping on himself and stumbling partway across the floor. "I'd be better if I could just learn to not trip over my own damn feet!" The frustration rang clear in his voice.

"Maybe you need to learn to dance, before you learn to spar," Mason teased, dropping his weapon to catch the stumbling man and steady him.

"Oh? Are you going to teach me to waltz?" George asked, a twinkle in his eye as he re-entered his stance and waited for Mason to pick his weapon back up.

"Uhm... I could... I suppose..." Mason leaned down to pick up the stick he had dropped, giving it an experimental swing. "I'm not very good at the classical dances though... my sisters made me learn the basics so to not look the fool when I needed to well... dance... but I'm hardly an expert."

"I don't even know the basics," George took a swing towards Mason's middle only to be met with a deflection. "Maybe next time you can teach me. I'm not sure I'd be much good at it, but I think I'd enjoy doing it with you. Dancing, that is," his cheeks flushed red.

"We can certainly try," Mason agreed, smiling encouragingly. "But I've learned over time that sparring is kind of like dancing. Have you ever seen the chief counselor practice? Maybe you should some time... what he does, that's almost like a very deadly dance."

"I can't say I have. To be honest, I've only met the counselor once and that was when I first came on board," George confessed. "Maybe next time you can invite him and we'll all spar. Or dance, whichever you prefer." He chuckled, continuing to circle the room, waiting for Mason to strike.

"Yeah....I don't think the counselor bats in my team," Mason chuckled as he moved with the man, feigning a strike to one side, then changing his swing and pace at the last second, aiming it at his shoulder. "I've never spoken with him at that, only seen him practice from a distance."

"Damnit!" George fell for the fake and felt the sting as Mason's weapon made contact with his shoulder. "You're too good at this," George smiled. "Perhaps we should swap to wrestling. Might be the only sport I stand a chance against you."

"Sure... I've got nothing against a good work-out," Mason chuckled, "whatever it is... I can't play baseball for a while anyways."

Without another word, George threw aside his stick and immediately lunged at Mason. Years of experience kicked in as he deftly swung his leg at Mason's feet while twisting his upper half in a maneuver meant to knock him over.

Not having expected this swift a change or move, Mason was down before he even had any hope of responding. And having no wrestling experience whatsoever, he found himself pinned. "Ooff," he exclaimed as wind was knocked from his body.

"Oh! Sorry, didn't mean for you to drop so hard," George quickly got off of the security officer and offered a hand up. "Are you ok?" He asked, concern etched into his brow.

"Yeah I'm fine," Mason lied, not wanting to hurt his feelings, "it was a little unexpected... you sure are fast....how did you do that."

"Are you sure?" George looked him over to verify that no permanent damage had been done. "As for how I did that, it comes with the territory when you grow up in the swamps of Louisiana. You saw me wrestle that gator, humans tend to be easier. Plus I had a lot of practice with three older brothers." He took a step back from Mason, not wanting to get too close or make him uncomfortable. "Maybe we should take a break and do something else?"

Mason nodded, idly rubbing his already weakened shoulder. Though he had talks with the CMO about surgery, he still hadn't had the courage to actually do it. "Yeah, just a bruised ego," he promised. "What would you like to do instead?" He eyed their gathered crowd for a moment. "Elsewhere, maybe?"

"How about we settle for a quick run followed by some dinner maybe?" George didn't want to move too fast, but he would need dinner after their workout and he didn't want to cut his time with Mason short. Getting to know the security officer had so far, proved to be an enjoyable experience.

"A quick run through the halls?" He nodded towards their spectators. "I don't have any holodeck time booked today, so it'd have to be the corridors. Not really fancying being watched much longer, do you?"

"Oh, hmm, I guess not." George, being relatively indecisive, paused for a moment to consider the options. "Well, just dinner then maybe?" He asked, unsure of what other options there even were under the current circumstances.

"Dinner, definitely yes," Mason smiled, "mess hall or uhm... Mine or yours?"

"How about mine? I'm actually a decent cook, if you're up for trying some cajun food," George suggested.

"Certainly," Mason smiled, "meet you in thirty? I'd like to get freshened up first in that case."

"Oh, uh, sure! I'll see you in thirty," George replied.

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:: TBC ::