The Alphabet Game: Part 1/2

Posted on Mon Aug 31st, 2026 @ 9:40am by Lieutenant JG Electra Drake & Sergeant Jace Morven

2,232 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Pilot - "The Gate"
Location: Drake's Quarters
Timeline: A few days after 'First Contact'

Jace Morven had taken the mint plant because Elen had looked at him like he had suggested attending a tactical briefing without boots. Apparently dinner required an offering. Not rations, not repair work...not a knife, which he had not suggested, but had been told anyway. 'Something domestic, Morven, for the love of all warp coils', had been the instructions.

It was how he found himself walking towards Counsellor Drake's quarters, wearing clean dark fatigues and a dark green jumper. Both were old but well maintained, the jumper having neat stitches at the sleeves that showed repair. The plant had been one of his...it had been two, but he had carefully split one to make a third. The pot was replicated, but he had spent time using his carving tools to make a pattern in the terracotta pot. It was small enough for him to hold it in one hand. Mint was useful. It was something he appreciated. Maybe the counsellor would too. She could add it to her sparkling water.

His fingers were careful around it, the old scars over his knuckles pale against the dark green leaves. Every few steps his thumb shifted minutely, adjusting his grip, not because it was heavy but because it was fragile and he had not yet decided what pressure counted as too much. He had carried wounded troopers under fire with less uncertainty. At the door, he stopped, checked the corridor once out of habit, then pressed the chime before he could talk himself out of it.

Barely half a second later, the door opened to a young girl who looked up to him with wide, excited eyes. She wore a red dress, her hair gathered in a ponytail and decorated with a matching ribbon. "We're having quesadillas. They're tasty, but Mummy hides vegetables in them," she warned.

He looked at her with surprise before he gave a nod, taking the intel in. "I brought a mint plant," he said, stating the obvious. "Elen said I should bring something."

"It's very kind, but you didn't have to," Lex assured as she joined them, smiling all the same as she took it. She lifted it to breathe in the scent before picking a leaf to give to Lucy, so the girl could roll it and smell it too. "Where is it from?"

Jace lowered his hands, moving them behind his back. "I was given a plant not long after I came to the Guinevere. It grew and this is...part of it."

"It's beautiful, thank you," Lex assured with a warm smile before motioning him inside. "Come in, make yourself comfortable. Dinner won't be long. I heard Lucy give you all the warnings..."

He gave a nod, looking at her before he walked in. His eyes took in the quarters, his eyes doing a sweep over the room. They landed on Lucy, considering something. "Are they spicy?"

"Not for us," Lucy moved to kneel at the coffee table, going back to the drawings she had spread across it. "I don't like spicy. I like tasty, not spicy. Mummy's good at that."

He nodded, standing there awkwardly for a moment, looking at the drawings. "Good," he finally said, but he was focused on what she was doing. He glanced towards the direction that Lex had gone before he moved to Lucy and crouched down by the coffee table. "You okay?" he asked, his voice hushed. Not a whisper, but not loud either.

Lucy thought seriously on the question for a long moment, carefully colouring the lake she'd drawn. "Mummy said the bad people are gone from the ship now."

"They are," he said as he looked at her, before he took a breath, thinking about it. "You were all brave. Stayed where you were, stayed quiet."

"Didn't feel brave," Lucy glanced his way for just a moment, but never stopped her colouring.

"You never do when you're in danger," he said quietly, shifting to sit next to her on the floor. He looked at the drawing, studying it. "But you listened. You moved. You survived. It was brave."

"Only cos you helped," she finally looked to him, the frown deep on her young features. "I wanted to hide."

"I hid...when I was your age," he said and tilted his head, not meeting her eyes, watching the paper. "All I could hear was my heart in my ears. Closed my eyes. You were brave, Lucy," he gave a nod and then briefly looked at her face. "I should have gone to you first. Next time, I will. I made a promise."

"Mummy said you have to look after the bridge and engineering first," Lucy said matter of factly, but she was watching his face now. "Did you help Elen?"

"No. Colonel Moriarty did," he said quietly, thinking about it for a long moment. "I went to sickbay with the Commodore. And then your Mummy told me to go to you." He glanced at her, seeing her looking at his face. "I was...glad you were safe."

"And you," Lucy replied honestly, considering before reaching out to touch his wrist, her fingers finding the friendship bracelet there.

He nodded, looking at her before he looked down at the crochet string tied around his wrist. "I'm very hard to hurt," he finally said. Maybe to reassure or, or...because for him hurt was...it was a bit of a strange one.

"You made of steel?" she asked, looking to him curiously at the claim. She had learnt anything was possible when it came to people on starships.

He shook his head, a soft breath escaping him, almost a huff of a chuckle. "It just...takes a lot to hurt me. I don't feel it easily," he admitted as he looked at the paper. "I am good at pushing it down. When other things are more important."

Lucy's eyes narrowed with suspicion. She watched him intently, determined to discover if it could be true. Without warning, she jabbed a finger into his arm....truth was, it barely indented the skin.

He looked at her before he raised an eyebrow. "We're not testing this theory at dinner," he concluded, but his blue eyes seemed warmer for a moment as he watched her.

"Boo...." Lucy sighed as she looked across to the dinner table that was now being covered in dishes. Phase two of the experiment was definitely going to be prodding him with her fork.

Jace looked at her drawing instead, deciding to let it go. "What is it?" he suddenly asked, trying to figure it out. He wasn't sure what he was seeing, or expecting.

"A map," she replied, a little disheartened at him not realising it. "This is a lake..." she moved her finger over the blue splodge on the right hand side of the page. "And this is a walking path..." her fingertip traced the yellow lines. "There's going to be....a field of flowers here....woods there....a posh hotel on a road...."

He looked at it, tilting his head for a moment. "You need mountains," he finally said before he nodded, glancing at her. "It looks...like you're doing it not from above, but...angled at the side? The map?"

"Just a little," she relaxed at him realising that at least, her finger spiking where she'd draw flowers. "Then I can put the pretty things in too."

"That makes sense," he said and glanced at her, giving a nod. "It's a good map. When it's finished, can I see it again?"

"Sure," Lucy shrugged, moving her hand over it thoughtfully. "Mountains here?" she asked, her hand settling behind the lake.

He considered it before he nodded in agreement. "Yes. The rain water would run down the side, feed the lake," he said quietly.

She bit her lip, watching him with wide eyes, a small smile appearing at the idea. She loved making maps. It was even better when she could imagine them real.

"Come on, my cartographers, dinner time," Lex called, watching them with gentle amusement as she set the water down, having added mint and ice to Jace's and her own.

Jace pushed himself up to stand, stretching a little bit to loosen a muscle in his back before he looked at Lucy. He didn't move though...taking his cue from the child instead.

Lucy reached out and took hold of his sleeve, leading him to the table with her, humming lightly. "What's your favourite dinner?"

He followed, looking at her before he considered it. "Cheese and potato pie," he said, because it was the one thing he remembered. Moriarty had replicated him some and...well. It was comforting. He would have it again.

"That sounds yummy," Lucy had to agree as she took her seat, smiling as she carefully laid her napkin over her lap. "Cheese is one of the best foods ever. It's made my cows. Well...milk from cows...they don't...make cheese..." she frowned at how her words got tangled.

Jace sat down next to her, giving a small nod. "I don't know much about about...how to make food," he said and looked at the glass of water, at the mint and ice cubes floating there. "Replicators are...useful."

"Well they save my life every day, I'd have no idea how to actually cook," Lex chuckled softly as she joined them, motioning to the table. "Help yourself, please," she assured, but leant to help Lucy with her plate.

He looked at her for a moment before he put things on his own plate, subconsciously in the same pattern a replicator would. With some space between it all. He sat back, waiting, watching the interaction between Lex and Lucy.

Lucy took her knife and fork to cut her quesadilla carefully, not liking to touch her food. She tucked in eagerly though, humming with happiness. She looked to Jace though, giving a firm nod. "Definitely vegetables..."

He nodded, looking at her before he looked at Lex and then picked up his own knife and fork. "Thank you...for the invite," he said, haltingly. It was what Elen told him he should say. Thank the host. It felt awkward, bit social guidance was...better than nothing.

Lex blinked with surprise...it really didn't sound like something he'd say. "You're more than welcome. Not that it's anything better than what you'd get in the mess, I'm sure."

"The mess?" Lucy asked with confusion, trying to understand what mess had to do with dinner.

"Mess hall," Jace said and looked at her, before he tried some of the food. He tried to take his time with it, observing how Lucy ate. He swallowed.

"A hall....full of mess...." the child's disgruntled frown at the very concept only deepened with the words.

Jace shook his head, but there was a softening in his eyes. "It's...not that sort of mess. It's...it comes from a word in an Earth language meaning...portion of food" he glanced over at Lucy. "Time made us call it mess deck or mess hall. You could call it a canteen too."

"If I eat there, I want it to be the very very Clean Hall," the girl muttered before going back to her dinner, not seeing the way Lex was biting her lip to suppress her amusement.

"I am sure it is," Jace said and reached for the water. He took a sip, swallowing slowly. It...he could taste the hint of mint, but it wasn't as strong as with tea. His eyes went to Lex for a moment and he nodded, putting the glass down.

Lex gave a small smile at the acknowledgment. He had only ever had plain water when he had visited her. Every new thing he tried was a step towards being more relaxed with the world around him. "Do you like the meal?" she asked, casually, making sure not to put pressure on the question.

He looked down at it, as if to double check what it was. He nodded and looked at her. "Not spicy," he said, before he cut another piece. "Hidden vegetables. It's good."

Lucy smiled gently to herself, both relieved and proud that her new friend liked her home and her dinner. "Do you want to stay after? We could...draw stars...or play games...or make jewellery..."

His eyes went to Lex for a moment, almost as if to...figure out permissions. "For a bit," he said, because that way Lex could figure out...well, the length of that. "I don't know how to play games, so...we can do what you want."

Lucy paused, watching him with wide eyes that were full of confusion and horror. "You don't know how to play games?"

Jace shook his head, reaching for his water. "Not...something I learnt," he admitted and considered, briefly, that the direct way of communicating why may not be the best tactics. "Not when I was your age."

"Then I'll teach you," Lucy replied with a firm nod of determination, settling back to her meal, the decision making her feel better about it. And it wasn't an offer....it was a statement.


To be continued in part 2

--

Sergeant Jace Morven
Platoon Sergeant, Alpha Squad
Federation Ground Forces Detachment
USS Guinevere

Lieutenant JG Electra 'Lex' Drake
Counsellor
USS Guinevere

Lucy Drake
Civilian Child
USS Guinevere

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