(no subject)

[boldygoing]

James T. Kirk absolutely loves marketplaces.

It's not necessarily because he's looking for anything, per se, although he does often keep an eye out for interesting books to add to his collection, or maybe a bottle of some kind of exotic alcohol, or some kind of pointless alien gizmo with which to annoy Spock with its purposeless existence. No, he just loves the sheer diversity each bazaar brings to the table.

No two markets have ever been alike, in his experience. Sure, it's not quite as exciting and mysterious as exploring deep space, but it's something of a microcosm of the same, all sorts of goods and cultures thrown into close quarters, and one never knows what one might find just down the street.

His shipboard gold uniform may stand out a bit in the crowd as he meanders along, a faint smile on his face as he leans in to examine someone's wares on display, just enjoying being out and about in the fresh air.


[OOC: Retconning Jim eating bacon in this thread. Hadn't fully considered some of the elements in his backstory at the time.]

Comments

[boldygoing]

Jim nods a little. "And the xenolinguistics, actually."

[onemorebounty]

Helpful for picking out the subtle nuance between "I surrender" and "I will eat your organs," hmm?

[boldygoing]

"Sure," he agrees with a small grin. "Or the difference between 'sorry, let me buy you another drink' and 'your mother has a smooth forehead.'"

[onemorebounty]

A difference worth knowing.

*She sighs wistfully.*

I cleared quite a few bars when I was younger. I didn't even drink, I was just after my prey.

[boldygoing]

Speaking of, his glass is empty, so he steps over to the bar to order another round for the both of them. She got the last two, after all. "I'd say that's really cliche but I don't have any room to talk either."

[onemorebounty]

*That's nice of him. It earns him a nod, and a raised glass.*

So what's your preferred mode of engagement for fighting in a bar? Not that I suggest we demonstrate.

[boldygoing]

He leans against the bar, sipping at his own drink. And quite honestly, he's considering whether to see if he can get some to take back home, because it's pretty good stuff. "You mean strategy, or picking the fight in the first place?"

[onemorebounty]

Yes.

*Perhaps he should. Apparently drinks that glow aren't that unusual where he's from.*

[boldygoing]

The mathematician's answer, always a favorite. That draws a lightly amused look out of him. "I think about two-thirds of the fights I was in started because I flirted with the wrong person. I always found it more fun to try to get somebody to hit me first. I was a bit of an asshole." Not to say he isn't still one, in some ways, but at least he's self-aware about it now, and making a conscious effort not to be as big of a douche. "Then it was usually just good old-fashioned fisticuffs. And occasionally throwing chairs or tables."

[onemorebounty]

*She tilts her head slightly to one side as she listens, considering, and nods once when he's done.*

Getting them to strike first isn't a bad idea. Puts the greater share of blame on them, in most jurisdictions I've known, gives you the Advantage of the Second Mover, not a bad general strategy.

[boldygoing]

"Exactly," he agrees, and laughs a little, because this is still kind of unbelievable to him four years later. "Usually all it got me was a stay in the drunk tank overnight, but the last time actually got me recruited into Starfleet. Right place, right time."

[onemorebounty]

*That gets a raised brow of inquiry.*

What did you do, punch an admiral's annoying in-law?

[boldygoing]

He actually laughs out loud at that. "Oh my god, I wish." He shakes his head a little, smiling at the thought. "Nah, I got ganged up on by four cadets who figured they were defending another cadet's honor or something. So Captain Pike walks into the middle of all this and sees four of his guys beating the shit out of some 'poor defenseless civilian,' and then he finds out whose son I am and throws the whole recruitment spiel at me. Literally dared me to stop being such a fuckup and do better than my dad did." Normally he wouldn't admit to that, but she dragged far worse out of him earlier, so he doesn't mind as much.

http://i.imgur.com/qlYtJk0.mp4

[onemorebounty]

Hmm. Not the pitch I would have made, but it seems to have worked.

[boldygoing]

Jim shrugs a little "I honestly considered just blowing it off, but it wasn't like I had anything better to do with my life." He pauses a moment, then adds, "And I really wanted to see the looks on those cadets' faces when I got on the shuttle."

[onemorebounty]

*She pauses, considering that, then shrugs.*

Alright, that's a bit of an inducement.

[boldygoing]

He nods, taking a deeper sip from his drink before using it to gesture vaguely in her direction. "So what about you? As far as bar fights, I mean."

[onemorebounty]

Well, given the choice, I go in armored. My suit's fairly distinctive, most people know by now not to start something with me, and most of those who don't have warrants out. If that's not an option for some reason, I'll prepare the ground--either create a distraction or get two factions of patrons poised to go off at each other. Then it's simply a matter of using the chaos for cover and controlling the rate of engagement through maneuvering. Almost textbook.

[boldygoing]

"Strategic. I like it." He can't help but imagine, though, how things might go down if she does manage to track down Kodos. Will he try to flee? Fight back? Jim has told her live capture is preferred, but he said nothing about uninjured.

But maybe it's better not to ask. Not until it matters.

[onemorebounty]

I had tactical and strategic thinking drilled into me every day for nine years, and I've spent the time since honing my craft. If I ever do something that's not strategic? Knock me out, lock me in a box, and wait for the real me to turn up.

*She smiles again, that lopsided smile that pulls the left side of her mouth up more than the right. As for Kodos, well... the harder he struggles, the worse it'll be, but if he even knows she's coming she'll have made at least one mistake already.*

[boldygoing]

He gives her a slightly wry smile, and he doesn't even have to try to come up with examples that prove her point from the very short time he's spent in her company. "Yeah, I noticed that. I'll keep that in mind. You ever have that problem? Having a double running around, that is." He's heard it happens here, though he hasn't seen any duplicates of anyone as of yet. Not that he's noticed, anyway.

[onemorebounty]

*Samus sighs, rolling her head back on her shoulders before returning her gaze to Jim with a rueful smirk.*

All too often--and that's not counting the alternates I've met in here. It's usually been some minor grifter trying to fake more muscle than they could afford, for whatever reason. A couple of times, though...

*She grows solemn, and if not for the drinks and her own self-control, she might even be somber.*

A couple of times it was worse. Much worse.

[boldygoing]

Oh. Well that's... ominous. He's not sure what 'worse' might encompass, but he decides that enough uncomfortable and traumatic secrets have been dragged into the light today, so he's not gonna ask unless she wants to tell. "Here's hoping those don't happen again, then."

[onemorebounty]

*Good call, Jim, it's ominous. There are some deeply, deeply ominous things in this woman's past, real good old-fashioned nightmare fuel kinds of stuff. It's no bad thing to leave some of it undisturbed for today.*

Indeed.

*She rallies back to wry, though, with a conclusion.*

I'm not sure how many more like that my insurance could take.

[boldygoing]

Jim assumes she means repair bills, rather than medical insurance, a concept that's pretty much completely outside of his realm of experience. "May we all have to deal with less paperwork," he says in a sort of half-assed toast.