Tankards of Ale

Posted on Sat Mar 7th, 2020 @ 4:20am by Lieutenant Colonel Tragg Highmountain & Company Sergeant Major Jeffery "The Mountain" Duval

Mission: Mission 74: The War Within, The War Without
Location: Various Locations - USS Argonne
Timeline: 1400Hrs - March 25th, 2392

The doors opened and in walked Major Tragg Highmountain, he looked around as he spotted almost all of his guys were already waiting within, he noticed a few were missing and that was fine by him. He went over to Duval. "Hey Sarge.." he commented with a soft snort.

"Major." Duval looked leery with all these marines present, as he regarded the massive being before him. "What's up?"

"I need a favor... I need for you to close this place for several hours so my guys can get shitfaced and blow off some steam... I know this is not normally how this is done but I'm desperate... My guys have never known decent leadership and they deserve better then they shit they got up to now... I do this for my guys... As much booze as they can drink and all the food they can stuff.. How much will this cost me?"

Duval laughed softly before he slowly stopped laughing. "You're serious about this?"

"My unit is a trainwreck Gunny.... I need to clean up a very large and ugly mess Gunny. I... I don't know how to fix this one..." Highmountain admitted.

Duval nodded as he responded. "Well, I have made quite a decent living recently... So... for you... I'll charge your unit a hundred bars of latinum." he paused. "Even if they demolish everything in here... I'm still cutting you a heck of a bargain..."

"Done," Highmountain responded quietly. He knew that Duval was indeed cutting him a bargain on the matter at hand, what he was about to buy was worth several times what he was paying.

"Alright.." Duval paused. "Everyone... Can I have your attention, please... This establishment is being closed for renovation. Also, I'd like all the marines to remain please..."

The four hundred or so marines all began looking around as the few starfleet people finished their meals and departed without fuss, they figured out that something was going on and they would hear about it soon. Duval tapped the display which changed the display from 'OPEN' to 'CLOSED'

"Alright... All you Marines... step forward and order your drinks... Please have a little patience so I can fill all of your orders...my staff and I will try our best to serve you but this is a last minute kinda thing so... be gentle and please be patient.." before he turned. "Bring every bottle we got forward. I want every last bottle of booze up here guys."

"You got it Gunny." and with that the three guys went off to bring all of the booze they had.

Duval regarded the small sergent major. "Hello Sergeant Major. I am Jeff Duval." he introduced himself as Tragg Highmountain stood nearby. "Will you object if anyone broke anything?"

Duval shook his head. "No." he answered. "I'll just bill your unit for it but... Frankly. I have the feeling that your unit needs to get a little unwrapped so.. Yeah."

Highmountain nodded as he plucked two bottles of wine and handed them to two nearby marines. "Can I have your attention please..." he called out loudly, raising his voice to ensure he had the attention of everyone in the room. "Now you are all not to go back to work for the next three days... I am ordering you all... That means every single last person in this room... to get hammered and skunk drunk.."

The various marines in the room all shared uneasy looks with each other as some wondered why they were here and others simply shrugged and began helping themselves to bottles of booze which were appearing on the lounge bar top counter, as Duval and his guys began emptying the storerooms of old booze that nobody wanted.

Highmountain meanwhile was delivering bottles of booze, six each per table. "Here you guys go... All of it is generic so I'm bringing them to each table."

"Thanks skipper." One marine accepted a bottle, pulled the lid off and with that he looked at his tablemates. "I never ever thought I'd be sitting here, being ordered to get drunk." as he then shrugged. "So.. what do we drink to?" Private James Blair inquired.

"The Corps!" the guy on the privates immediately left cheered.

"Fuck the corps.. They sent us all to this shitheap of a ship." said the man across from him.

"Hey. the skipper seems alright.. I mean how does one avoid angering someone who could put fist through a console with one go..." the first guy spoke. "I mean I'm just here to fight.. This unit got a lot of work.. but hey, if the skipper does this more often, maybe he's worth it.."

"Yeah... He doesn't demand stupid shit off of us... not like that Klink.. Ro'chuck.."

The various marines in earshot cringed. "Yeah. recall how he'd always wear dress Aay's?" someone asked as the first private sighed. "He wouldn't let anyone but himself sign us out of the brig and then he'd make us run ten laps around deck ten... screaming at us and making us feel we were all back in boot at the same time.."

The second marine chuckled softly. "Tienn was never that bad... She reversed many of idiot's flaws and tried somewhat... But she couldn't do it... I mean she got shafted royally on the details.."

Blair sighed. "I mean she didn't scream at people and she didn't demand we all salute at the drop of a hat... She was a right welcome relief from the insanity we dealt with under Nye and his fucksticks... Then she did somethiojng stupid and got herself shitcanned for it..."

Private Ronald Greer sighed. "Yeah... Its a fucking shame man. The sergeant Major... Lets not even discuss her.."

"Yeah... Some people... shouldn't be marines.." Private Alex Jones growled. "She's just a fucking ragecase and I have had it with ragecases.."

James Blair shrugged as he added his two cents to the chat "I read her file... What parts I could anyway... in her native military, she was a hell of a Marine.."

"So what the fuck is she doing here?" Greer responded, a trifle hotly.

"I honestly don't know.. and honestly.. I don't really give a rats ass either." Private Alex Jones added. "She came in as an exchange officer from their military but... Honestly.. I don't like to think about it... I can't take her seriously."

James Blair drained a mouthful of wine from the bottle. "Hey... The skipper was willing to give us three days when we did nothing to earn it and let us all drink the units money away... Can he be a bad thing?"

"Maybe... Then again... maybe not.." Alex Jones shrugged, like he didn't care which at the present time, he didn't care. "I tell ya what... If he doesn't call us in at all for the rest of today or tomorrow.. then I'll revise my opinion... I keep expecting the other shoe to drop... Y'know?"

The other three marines around the table all knew what he was getting at, they all nodded in agreement. "Hey... Lets just sit back and enjoy what we have... It doesn't come every day... and if the skipper.. the Exec or the Sergeant Major are willing to drink with us... then that makes them worth something and... Maybe this unit is worth saving from the shitheap the rest of this battalion is already stuck in.."

"Yeah.." the three marines all agreed slowly as they all began to drink the wine in the bottles they had all been handed earlier.