No Pain, No Gain

Posted on Fri Oct 12th, 2018 @ 2:14pm by Ensign Mark Cross & Lieutenant Commander Mariana Vaz

2,354 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Negotiations and Apothecaries
Location: Gym - Deck 5
Timeline: Current

"No pain...no gain..." Mark muttered to himself as he cranked out rep after rep. Often he came to the gym for the endorphin release and the thrill of personal improvement. This time, he had another motive, sleep.

Pushing the warp drive to the limits for days on end meant long hours, and with that came the consumption of excessive amounts of caffeine. His brain was wired to the point that the only way the sweet release of sleep would come would be creating some physical exhaustion.

Lowering his weights back to the rack, he modeled down the beads of sweat from his face before taking a long drink of cold water.

Mariana entered the gym, a room that had become one of the most familiar places for her since she'd come aboard, with a blue water bottle in hand. She moved with a deliberate elegance as her well-toned form shifted toward her goal. She was wearing a pale pink sports bra and tight black shorts that matched black and pink tennis shoes on her feet.

The room was typically full of people, particularly considering how fervently she'd been pushing her security officers to be in peak physical condition, but this evening, there was only one other person in the room. She lowered herself onto the ground and began to stretch her powerful caramel legs as her eyes drifted up to the man lifting weights.

Mark had been loosely aware of a newcomer to the gym. It had been his place of quiet reflection for some time, until suddenly it had been filled with Security personnel, frequently grumbling about the new regime. Probably one of those guys trying to get some extra credit with the Chief.

He could sense the eyes on him, and it was unnerving enough that he managed to miss his mouth with the bottle, pouring water onto his already sweat drenched shirt. Trying to style it out, he shrugged it off and went back to the rack.

"You work harder than my men, it seems." Mariana spoke, giving a solid stretch to her right leg. "And you're built like one too. What's your name, soldier?"

She watched him with intensity behind her brown eyes, noticing his technique and his movements. He was handsome and bulky and looked somewhat younger than herself. If she had to guess, he looked old enough to be a Lieutenant.

Mark joined the dots as he finished off the next set of reps. The new Chief of Security had just watched him dump water all over himself. Smooth. "Mark Cross" he replied, grabbing his towel again as he turned to the voice.

"Ensign in Engineering. The gym's been full of grumbling Security guys hogging the equipment lately, guess it's all connected?"

"I'm thinking about putting in a word with Operations to have a Security Exclusive gym installed. It might relieve some of the pressure." She replied in her Brazilian accented voice with a grin as she lifted herself onto her feet. She extended a hand to the man who had a solid eight inches on her in height.

"Mariana Vaz." she replied as her brown ponytail bobbed behind her. She into his piercing blue eyes as she smiled; her smile was a bit tight and uncomfortable. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ensign."

"And you..." Mark took the extended hand with a deliberately soft grip, pleased for an excuse to take a break. He was getting ever closer to that goal of draining his physical batteries, which was a good sign for his sleep plans.

"So how long do you think it'll take to get everyone in top shape?" He asked. From what he gathered, every new Department Head's first priority was to get everyone working their way.

Mariana noticed the solft grip of the handshake and, instantly, her smile drooped into an annoyed expression. No matter how fit she was, most men who were serious about their workout routine could match or beat her in upper-body strength. When men shook her hand gently, it only served as a reminder of this.

"With daily runs, weights, and thrice-weekly drills, I'm pushing them like I used to push my marine police." she said, forcing her irritation to the back of her mind. Starfleet Standards are a bit more lacks than I'm used to, so a few weeks will be needed."

Mark, not the most attuned to body language or emotional awareness, potentially just another one of those human male genetic traits, missed the blatantly obvious change in expression.

"The Chief at my last assignment was keen to recruit me for Security after my scores on the shooting range..." The Ensign enjoyed the target and the combat simulations, it was a great workout, and it made him all that more comfortable knowing he could hold his own if it all hit the fan. "Kind of takes the shine off if the standards are low!" He said with mock frustration.

"Well they aren't low here." she said matter-of-factly. "And I'll be having a discussion with my people about the 'grumbling' they've been doing."

She turned and walked toward the bench press, her shapely hips moving naturally as she went. "Would you spot me?"

Oh great, chances are they would know it was him now, especially if an engineer in better shape than them ever came up. Mark hadn't seen any other engineers there on the regular. He'd already had a few comments in jest about making people look bad. Maybe the security exclusive gym would be a great idea after all.

"Sure thing!" He followed a few steps behind. Please don't drop it, please don't drop it, he told himself as he took position behind the bar. "Ready when you are."

Mariana lay down on the bench, her long brown ponytail bobing several times before it touched the head rest. Once she was on her back, she bit her lower lip gently as she reached up to wrap her fingers around the cold metal bar. As she pushed up on it, she looked up at the man with observing eyes.

"Have you ever..." she began, lifting the bar with his help and then taking full control, guiding it down to her chest. "..seriously considered..." she lifted the bar again with a push of air and then brought it back down again. "..joining security?"

"I thought about it..." Mark was thankful he wasn't left doing most of the work like spotting duty often had a habit of involving. It gave him the energy to concentrate on the question. "I thought about all the department's when I joined the Academy, but Engineering is in my blood. My Dad was an engineer, before he joined Command. Nothing makes me happier than putting something back together again.

"So you're Starfleet through and through, huh?" she asked, pursing her lips and focusing on pushing the bar up again. "Don't be so sure you're staying where you are."

She lowered the bar and pushed it up again just as her arms were starting to shake a bit. With his help, she sat the bar back on its stand. "I was a Major in the marine corps a few days ago."

"A Major huh?" Mark resisted the urge to crack out his best salute. No wonder the Security department were being put through their paces. "I bet your file makes for some interesting reading...was that your choice or out of necessity?" He asked, passing Mariana her bottle of water from the floor.

She pulled herself up into a seated position and took a long drag from the bottle. "I went to the Academy right after I graduated High School. I was planning on being a marine until I couldn't anymore; some silver stars on my collar would have been nice too. The Fleet had been kicking down my door for the last two years for an assignment in this quadrant. I finally agreed when they promised I'd be able to come back to the corps if I chose in the future."

Putting the water bottle down on the floor beside her, she laid down again and lifted up the bar.

"Must be nice to feel wanted!" Mark chuckled as he took his position ready to spot again. "Son of two decorated officers? Just meant being held to a higher standard to other Cadets" he'd come close to the top of his class still, but he always got the impression it was never quite enough for his peers. His parents were super proud though, and that was his main priority.

"Why did you ask if it considered Security anyway?" The Ensign asked out of curiosity. He was determined to change the subject anyway, seemed like talk of coming out of the Corps had touched a nerve. Maybe a discussion for another time.

"Obviously, you care about your natural weapon." she began, pumping the bar up and down again. "People keep suggesting it...for a reason." she cleared her throat as sweat began to dot her brow. "Can you fight, or are you just for show?"

"And there was me thinking you wanted an excuse to see me around more often!" Mark laughed, finding his role as spotter fairly redundant until it came to racking the bar at the end of the set. "I know kickboxing and tai chi...don't ask...I'd probably get a few good swings in during a Klingon bar fight if nothing else"

Mariana brought the bar back into his hands and he helped her lower it onto the rack again. She pulled herself up with impressive poise into a standing position and took another long drag from her water bottle. As she lowered the bottle, a small stream of water dribbled past her lips and onto her sports bra, unnoticed. Her eyes drifted to the taller man's form yet again, this time dancing on his stocky build and handsome face; she'd seen many men like him, and yet the fact that he wasn't a marine or security lug-head did something for her. After a couple seconds, she caught herself and her eyes drifted back up to his.

"You're further along than many of my people." she said, forcing back a smile and assuming her typical deadpan. She spoke with command and confidence, yet in a gentle and accented tone. "You should reconsider."

Mark, having turned away after racking the bar to try and help decide if he wanted to get in any other equipment before he called the session a day, and had completely missed the few seconds of being checked out. To be honest though, apparently at the Academy a girl could stare at him across the room for a good minute and a half and he still wouldn't notice, so that wasn't much of a surprise.

"Give it a few weeks of whipping them into shape and you'll have them caught up in no time." he replied, although he wasn't sure how much he believed it. "But if you'd like to discuss it over dinner sometime, I'll at least consider reconsidering?"

Mark finished the last of his water. Ever the opportunist, and with a big dose of bigshot young officer, the question rolled off the tongue with relative ease.

Her eyebrows shot up in immediate surprise. She had such a tough reputation in her previous assignments that she never received anything more than a poorly-disguised stare. Was this man asking her out on a date? Honestly, she was conflicted. The rank difference made it a bit scandalous. She wondered how interested he would be if he knew she was a married woman.

She tried to remain serious and respectable, but her emotions got the best of her and her lips turned up into a smile. Immediately, she felt years younger..a woman she felt she hand't resembled in a long time. She angled her body and demurred like a girl, turning her head sideways and hating herself for it the whole time. "I'm not sure that would be...appropriate, Ensign." she said, though her body language didn't sing with her.

"Two officers discussing a Starfleet thing? I mean, that happens on a daily basis. I hope it does anyway" Mark shrugged. "And besides, we all need to eat." He began to collect up his towel and bottle, treating the question as casually as he'd delivered it. At the very least, it stopped the whole thing becoming super awkward. For him.

"Plus, that little smile suggests you've heard how good my pizza is. Apparently I'm starting to get a reputation for my cooking"

She gave a half giggled before getting control of herself. The sound stopped immediately and she stood up straighter. The smile remained faintly, but the girlishness was replaced by her typical gracefulness. "Two officers talking. That does happen all the time." she said, and then paused, raising a brow. "Why are you making pizza for everyone?"

"I made pizza for my cabinmate and his girlfriend for one of their date nights. Trouble is now they've told virtually the whole ship from what I gather, I keep getting stopped in the corridor asking for one. At least I've got a backup for a career if Starfleet fails" Mark slung his towel over his shoulder.

"So anyway, do we have a deal?"

"We'll have to schedule it for my cheat day, but yes." she said, her smile returning as she placed her hands on her hips.

"A cheat day?" Mark scratched the back of his head. Guessing it's a diet thing. "Alright, well feel free to send me through your eating schedule and we'll get something arranged. Anyway, I'd better get going, running the engines at near-maximum for days is a strain, never a dull moment in Engineering right now"

"That will work." she said, her grin fading under force of will. She lowered herself onto the floor and began to do some impressive ab workouts. "It was nice to meet you, Ensign."

"Likewise, Commander." Mark replied, taking one last check around to make sure he hadn't left any belongings, before he made tracks in the direction of his quarters.

 

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