King's Gambit Pt 1

Posted on Sat Aug 30th, 2025 @ 10:49pm by Ensign Henry Taylor & Cass'e'Indira & Tessa di'Orion

Mission: Lower Decks
Location: Mess Hall
Timeline: A few days before In the Ocean

Life had a different feel to it when one stares death in the face. Food tastes better, colors are more vibrant. The fact that Henry had gotten a good night's sleep for the first time in nearly a month probably had something to do with it too.

He'd been a bit distracted at work the whole day. Doctor Kellerman had commented on it, and he'd apologized. She gave him a grin and told him she understood. He didn't dignify her with a response.

He was most stressed about his dinner with Tessa. He was relatively sure he'd made a good first impression with her, less so with her bodyguard, but he wanted to continue to do so, and he wanted her to have a happy birthday. Cass might think that a weak, Human tradition, but he was ready to go head-to-head with her about it.

The only thing he wasn't sure on was a gift. On the one hand, he'd already given her two gifts. On the other hand, birthday gifts were a human tradition, and knowing how important traditions were to her people, he didn't want to ignore one of his own. He had a few ideas, and in the end, he decided tradition was the way to go, although he was prepared for some eye-rolling.

He sat by the windows. He had moved a couple of tables together, creating a somewhat long, rectangular dining space of light and dark-topped tables, and had nearby tables moved away, giving them a quiet semi private corner and a view of the stars. He tapped his fingers on the tablecloth he'd replicated, resisting the urge to continually check the chronometer.

The two women walked in, first the armed (oh yes, very well armed) Cass in a light array of armor, before she cleared the way for the figure in white and gold. It was a relatively simple sleeveless white dress accented in gold that ended at her knees in a pleated fashion, though it extended down to mid-calf behind her. shoulderless, except for a loop that crossed her chest and hung around her neck. Her ‘standard’ sandals that were very strapped around her lower legs. A white, unfamiliar, flower was perched in her hair above her right ear, giving a slightly exotic look. Her eyes brightened as she saw Henry, giving Cass a gesture, which appeared to go unnoticed as the bodyguard continued to follow her charge.

Being 6'3" means that some things are easy to accomplish, and some are more difficult. Getting things off a high shelf is one of the easy things. Standing up quickly without knocking over a table is one of the difficult. Henry quickly reached out and prevented the tables from shifting and knocking the stand next to him, then turned and took a step forward, giving a slight bow. "Wow," he breathed, looking at Tessa. "You look amazing." He blushed when Cass cleared her throat and he realized he was staring, adrift in the ocean again. "Please, sit," he said, pulling a chair out for her.

Tessa stared for a few moments as she saw the attended chair, giving him a confused look before she realized what he was doing. As gracefully as she could, she smiled at him as she allowed him to settle her into her spot, “Thank you, this isn’t… Normal at home, but I’m sure there are many differences.

"My father taught me that a gentleman always escorts a lady to her chair on a first date." He pushed her chair in gently and then pulled out a second chair at the far end of the tables for Cass. "Please, be comfortable," he said.

The daggers in Cass’s eyes were muted, but they were still there. She grabbed the chair from him, then spun it around and straddled it almost defiantly, throwing a brief glare at Tessa as well as Henry.

Henry returned to his seat across from Tessa and reached for the bottle stand next to him. "You mentioned traditions are very important to your people," he said. "Humans have a number of traditions as well. I thought that tonight, I could show you a few birthday traditions, and you could tell me more about your world."

He put three champagne flutes on the table and reached for a bottle, taking it from a bucket of ice and wrapping a cloth around the top. He gave a twist and a pull, and, with a pop that he prayed wouldn't make Cass pull a knife, removed the cork.

He quickly poured three glasses and gave one to Tessa, then one to Cass, then one to himself. "Our first tradition: A birthday toast." He held up his glass. "May each birthday be the best one you ever have, and may the next one be even better." He leaned his glass forward to tap it against Tessa's, and offered his to Cass as well.

Cass didn’t even pick up the glass, leaving it on the table in front of them, though Tessa did pick hers up and tapped his glass before taking a sip, giggling with the bubbles of the alcoholic drink, but made no comment of the taste, “Oh, I like this! The bubbles tickle!”

He took his glass back and drank a sip, then reached over to the stand again, pulling out a bowl with a cover. He removed it, revealing a pile of ruby red, rounded objects.

at the sight, Tessa’s eyes opened wide, recognizing them as fruits of some kind, because they were dimpled with what were obviously seeds, but still lustrous. “What are they?”

"Jewels of Earth's produce," Henry said. "Strawberries. Perhaps one of the greatest creations Earth has ever given to the galaxy, and they go well with champagne." He offered them to both women, but only had eyes for one. "I didn't want to replicate dinner without asking about you first. So, we should begin with what kinds of things do you like to eat?"

The first noise from Cass came out at that point and it was a snicker, “She’ll eat anything that stays still enough to stab with a fork or the patience to stay in a spoon.” She laughed even more at the expression on Tessa’s face, “What? You said you were going to answer all his questions, I’m just making sure you’re not going to leave anything out!” Cass grinned, an actual wide grin, “Her Grace is a pig, Milord, that’s what you call it, she’s a true omnivore and has never heard of the word ‘diet’.”

“With how much you work with me on my training, who would need one.” Tessa pouted, but still reached out to grab a strawberry delicately and took a bite of it, the juices flowing through her mouth at the first taste, “Sweet and tart all at the same time! Delicious!” The rest of the strawberry vanished after a few more seconds, “But its base libel, I don’t have any allergies to your foods, Lady Kellerman ran me through the allergen tests early on to be sure of that.”

"I know, I checked," Henry said. "I didn't want to risk any harm from this." He ignored Cass, but her words weren't sitting well with him. "And I very much still wish to hear your answer to my question. I don't want you to worry about allergies, I want you to tell me what you enjoy. It's your birthday, what are you in the mood for?"

“Honestly?” Tessa asked, also doing her best to ignore Cass, but it was harder for her. “What I really miss is a cream gravy with bits of vostrilla and fragrant herbs cooked up and mixed in, over freshly baked biscuits. I know it’s really simple, but it always hit the spot after a tough day. Besides, the cooks always had something like that going of one sort or another.”

"What is vostrilla?" Henry said.

“One of our farm animals we raised for the meat. It’s a rather fatty meat which makes crumbling it up and using the grease to add flavor is really good.” Tessa tried her best to describe it.

Henry's eyes lit up. "I think we can accommodate," he said. He looked towards Cass. "And you, madam? What can I get for you?"

“I’m fine, Milord, thank you.” It was a modicum of civility, but she just showed that she had no intention of moving, “I’m just here to make sure neither of you try to do something foolish. A chaperone, as you said.”

Henry gave Cass a long look, then smiled at Tessa. "I'll be right back," he said. He stood and walked to the nearest replicator. A moment later, he returned with three deep dishes, one on his arm. He set the first one down in front of Tessa, one in front of Cass, and then one for himself, along with three sets of rolled silverware in napkins. "Biscuits and sausage gravy," he said. "Evidently something our cultures have in common."

Cass rolled her eyes at the uninvited meal that was put in front of her and made no move to touch it. If he thought that he could ‘sweet-talk’ or ‘be kind’ his way into getting her approval, he’d have another think coming. In the meantime, Tessa had gracefully unrolled the silverware and settled the napkin in properly to protect the dress, just as a noble lady of good birth was supposed to. She delicately used her fork to cut into the gravy covered biscuit and cut out a bite-sized piece before equally delicately sliding it in her mouth to chew. That only lasted a few moments, however as her eyes opened wide at the taste, “This is really close! It’s got a bit more spice to it, something woodsy-smoky,” She was describing the black pepper, then scooped up a far bigger piece and stuffed it in her mouth, to the sly smile on Cass’s face, “But very close!”

Henry gave a chuckle, happy she was happy. "Humans call this kind of thing 'comfort food.' It doesn't matter that it's simple, so long as it's good tasting and makes you feel good eating it." He took a bite. It wasn't his usual fare, but he liked it. "My go-to is this French onion flatbread dish my mother used to make. I keep tweaking the replicator to try to get it as good as hers but..." he shrugged, smiling sadly. "What about you? Now that you're almost home, are you happy to be seeing your family? I'd love to hear about them."

Half of her dish was already empty as she attempted to balance stuffing her face with doing so with decorum, a dribble of the gravy working to escape the corner of her mouth, “Definitely looking forward to seeing them, yeth.” She spoke a bit too quickly, “But how to explain my family? It’s not like what Lady Kellerman’s sister is trying to do with Jadizon,” She used the name as if he were a commoner, “As Cass here said, we Korashe don’t do life-bonds. It’s simply not done, it’s… Toshra, our cultural tradition, but serves a purpose by not limiting our gene pool. The stories all say it never works, but those Korashe who are too selfish to bond to one another are typically cast out from their families and shunned as heretics. The Sentar would never take them in, though they will life-bond much more commonly.” She took another bite, a large one as she tried to figure out how to explain better.

Henry's brow furrowed as he looked momentarily confused. He wasn't sure if she meant some of that the way it sounded, but didn't want to darken the mood. He put it aside and instead redirected. "I kind of meant...tell me about them. Tell me about your family. Who are they? What are they like?"

“So, I was raised by my mother, Sera’e’Metel di’Orion, Baronness of Lights End, Priestess Fifth Class of Skull’a’Dea, because I was born a girl as well as the daughter of the Light of the Eastern Watch, but I’ll come back to that later.” Tessa made a sideways gesture with her fork before plunging it back into her biscuits and gravy, “Highborn, the Heir, all that, which just made me a target. My grandmother, who I never met obviously, was the previous Light of the E-W, and she’d tried to force my mother to become a war priestess when she wasn’t Chosen, but she was my age when she was Paired with my father. But, as I’m sure you heard,” She popped a smaller piece into one cheek, “She’s of Skull, our creator deity, the Builder, because once Grandmother was gone, she didn’t have to go through the Trials anymore, at the decree of the new Light. Mother is amazing, can be harsh when needed, merciless when threatened, but very understanding.” Tessa got another bite.

“I grew up alongside Sera, was one of her training partners. If Metel were still alive, this would never be happening, I guarantee it.” Cass interjected, “More reasons than just you.”

Henry glanced at Cass but didn't dignify her with a response.

“And then there’s my younger brother from my mother, Temer, always followed me around when he was a toddler, I used to watch over him a fair amount of the time, but he also wasn't Chosen when the time came. He, however, wants to become a war priest of his own volition, so he is undergoing training in order to submit himself to the Trials. Mother is worried about him, but has voiced her support for him. Perhaps he’ll change his mind, he still has a few years before he’s eligible.”

"Human mothers are like that too," Henry said. "They worry about us, but they always support us." He took another bite. "And your father? Dare I ask, what's he like?"

"That all depends on what he's dealing with." Tessa said very carefully, "He's judge, jury and sometimes executioner of the Eastern Watch, the single most powerful and dangerous person in the region." She mopped up the rest of the gravy from her own plate with the last bit of biscuit, "But with me? He's the reason why I was sent out on one of our exploration ships, because he wanted eyes he could trust to see outside the borders of our star system. At least, that's what he told me. He's also very much into giving me gifts and I think he'll be very happy to see me as well. Obviously you don't ever want to be on his bad side, but he's fair and doesn't overreact to much of anything." She eyed the still-untouched plate in front of Cass and reached out to grab it, sliding her own plate over in front of the warrior in return with a sheepish look, to which Cass responded with one full of gloating.

"I was going to ask if we should go for seconds," Henry said. "You beat me to it." He grinned at her. "But save room for dessert. I have something special for us." He finished his entree slowly. He hadn't made it obvious but his plate had had more in it. He hadn't expected her to match his appetite, but was glad he'd brought the third plate in the end.

"What do you do for fun on Tial? What hobbies do you pursue?" he said after another mouthful.

“Bottomless pit she is.” Cass commented, “She’ll have more than enough room for something sugary, fear not.”

Tess shot her another brief glare, clearly the ‘talk’ they’d had previously wasn’t going to stop her, “Leaving aside the combat training and medical training and studying, along with political lessons, other educational lessons, it doesn’t leave a whole lot of time to actually have hobbies. Being the Heir to Light’s End, Ligat Tovar should you ever hear that, means a lot of responsibilities. But, I always find time for games, board games mostly, though in the caverns some of our Skulls are working on some other ones using the computers there. Dancing is always fun, even if it’s supposed to be more formal for celebrations and the like, but don’t ask me to sing or play an instrument, because I’m pretty hopeless at those.. Cass says I’m handy with a staff, pathetic with a sword and middling with a bow, but look at her! She’s been in combat or training for it for what? Thirty years now?” She got a grudging nod from the dark-haired one.

"I'll have to show you some of our games," Henry said. "I'm a fan of chess, myself. You'd enjoy it, it's very strategic. It teaches one to think ahead." He looked at Cass. "I need to go get the dessert. Come with me."

“Why?” Cass asked roughly, but Tessa reached out to give her a nudge and the war priestess sighed heavily and got to her feet to follow him.

Henry stood up carefully and stepped around the table, leading Cass to the replicator. He accessed his personal file and keyed in a code. A moment later, a rectangular, wooden object appeared. He took it out and flipped it over, revealing a picture of a pretty, brown-haired girl, smiling brightly, holding the most adorable toddler in the galaxy. He smiled at it for a moment, then turned it around and thrust it into Cass's hands.

"This," he said, "is Mary Wilson and her daughter, Samantha Wilson. Before Mary was 'life-bonded,' she was Mary Taylor, my older sister, and my best friend." He swallowed the lump in his throat that always appeared when he missed her, then pressed on. "And like every big sister and best friend, she took perverse delight in picking on me when I did something dumb. She'd needle me, tease me and lightly mock me any time I missed a dance step, hit a wrong note or made a bad chess move. But every time, there was love in her voice and laughter in her eyes." He glared at Cass, now no longer hiding his irritation behind his need to 'keep the peace.' "Do you know what she never did, though? She never tried to hurt me." He let the statement marinate for a moment. "If I had brought home a girl she hated, she might say it to my face, she might even try to sabotage our date to show me why that girl wasn't worthy of my time...but she would never hurt me in front of that girl. She'd never make me feel ashamed of myself to lower my value, because she was my big sister, and she loved me too much." He glanced at Tessa across the room, then back at Cass. "This should be a happy day for her, a day where we celebrate her and show her how much we care, and, instead, she's being systematically hurt by the person she loves most on this ship."

He smoothed his shirt and regained his composure. "So, you are going to come back with me to that table, you are going to sit down and you are going to show her that, at least for today, you love her more than you hate me. This isn't a request, nor is it a negotiation. This is what's going to happen, because I won't sit there and let you hurt her feelings again."

The expression on Cass’s face didn’t change at all, almost as if she couldn’t care less, then she opened her mouth and what didn’t show on her face came out in her voice, “She knows all I’m doing is teasing her, but what you don’t seem to understand is that all I am trying to do is protect her, and in a strange sense, you as well. What you and she would be is an illicit relationship, one that would never stand on her homeworld, not just because she is meant for some strategic pairings, but because you are not Korashe, nor even golden-haired. I didn’t say it in front of her, because the stories of Korashe life-bonding are bad enough. If a Korashe and a Sentar were to be in any sort of potentially sexual relationship, they would be lucky for either of them to even survive the ‘attempt’. You’re going to say, ‘But I’m not Tialan’ and were it up to ME? That would be enough, so long as Tessa was happy. But no matter what you think of me, that you believe I’m trying to sabotage whatever it is you think is going to go on, I’m going this because I love her and would do anything to let her survive. I know what it is to love someone, Henry, more than you can possibly understand. I was in an illicit relationship, with another woman, Tessa’s original maid. She doesn’t remember her, because she was four when she got a new one, but I remember Celes’e’Toren, and what they did to her as an ‘example.’ I was spared the same fate because I was uniquely valuable, one of the few Sentar War Priestesses, with a lot of potential. And I would rather die than share this with her because I want to spare her the horrors.”

Henry couldn't hide the look of shock on his face. He wanted to shout the word "hypocrite" so loud the bridge would hear it, but something other than rage was taking over: pity. He could hear the hurt in her voice underneath the anger and frustration. He wasn't always in tune with other people's feelings, but he got hers loud and clear.

"You and I," he said, his voice now gentler, "both want her to be safe and happy," he said. "You have my word, on my honor..." he paused. "No, that wouldn't mean much to you, would it...." he thought for a moment, then looked her in the eye. "I swear, on the grave of my Sainted Mother, that I will not attempt a sexual relationship with her before you return home. Her purity will remain intact. I only wish to make her final days here happy and less alone. Please help me do so."

"We can agree on that." Cass stated, glancing over at Tessa, "I fear for her, always."