HMS Resolute Victory

1.11

The mess was busy with activity, the captain was eating something too thick to be soup from a bowl which he was holding in one hand, he was also half-talking half-shouting to the cook about alcohol stock. The two lads, who Sarah presumed to be Ukrainian, but in actual fact are Russian, were sitting facing each other a small table occasionally glancing round to the very animated captain. Sarah could get a good look at their faces now, although the mess was not lit well. They could’ve been brothers, but not twins, their dark hair was worn in the same style, short but a little heavier on top, a reserved crew cut which looked good if not a little boring against their slightly tanned skin and strong jawlines. Two other men who looked a bit older from behind were standing facing the far wall, they looked to be inspecting a panel of some kind and talking between themselves.

Jeremy wasn’t in the room. Sarah was wondering if Jeremy was actually Ukrainian too, she hadn’t heard him speak much, but she was sure he had an English accent.

Sarah and Symon sat down to a meal of soup, well that’s what they called it, it looked more like a stew to Sarah.

“You drink coffee, yes?” Symon insisted giving Sarah a cup.

“Um.. Sometimes, yeah. Thank you.”

After enjoying the lunch, it tasted a lot nicer than it looked, and having a brief chat with Symon about the other members of the crew, they left the mess.

"I'll show you to your quarters. You are very lucky, you have one of the guest rooms."

After a short walk Symon turned slightly gesturing toward a door. "Here we are, you should find your luggage and key inside. The showers and toilets are at the end of this hallway. No ensuite I'm afraid!"

Symon started back in the direction they'd come from and added,

"Feel free to explore the ship and introduce yourself to everyone once you are unpacked. Until later." He walked off.

Introduce myself? Everyone is busy working this afternoon and I don't speak Ukrainian, how am I supposed to introduce myself.

Sarah thought nervously as she unpacked her clothes, she had a couple of drawers and a wardrobe which was more of a cupboard due to the angular shape of the wall it was against. On her bed, which looked comfier than a camping bed, she saw her room key, it was attached with a short ropey cord to a tennis ball.

That is not going to fit in any of my pockets.

The conversation with Symon over lunch had done little to inform Sarah of the other crew members, he’d reeled through their names so quickly that she could only remember that one of the younger lads was called Alex. He mentioned a resident electrician, but she couldn’t remember his name, he was one of the two people in the mess looking at a panel on the wall. The other was the ship’s navigator, also missing a name so far, who Symon said was a close personal friend of the captain.

Maybe I’ll just wander around the ship and hope I bump into somebody who I can chat with a bit.