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Adventures on the Lost Continent (Midnight Lass x Blood Red Romeo)

Orson nodded at the debriefing. It was true that many members of his crew probably didn’t expect to be where they now found themselves. So it would be hard to pick who would be suitable ahead of time. “Would you mind introducing me to her? It may end up not being much, but knowing something is better than knowing nothing,” he explained to the doctor. “Ah, pardon me. I believe I have a meeting,” he told the women when he saw Luisa and Maria enter the room. He approached them, putting on a sociable smile.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you as well. Please, sit down,” he said, gesturing for her to join him at the table. “I heard about you from both Luisa and Miharu. They both say that you’re an accomplished outdoorswoman. Has Luisa caught you up to what we’re doing on this ship?”
 
"Si," Maria answered. "Luisa and I have discussed it. Something like I have done for Miss Miharu, except with more danger, and more reward. And probably with some mopping in between," she added with a laugh, which produced a shy giggle from Luisa. "So I am ready to go on this trip, Captain James," Maria said decisively.

* * * * *

A few glasses of wine later, Tamra had convinced Ninah and Cimonah to return to the Midnight Curse. Neither one was ready to call it "forgive and forget" with Captain James yet, but they weren't planning to stay mad at him forever either. Tamra convinced the two to just return to the ship, and find some spot in the crawl ways where they could keep to themselves until she got back.

With that, Tamra went looking for the warehouse where Lauren Evans kept her store, and see if her diplomatic skills could fix what her Captain had already caused.
 
“We’re more than happy to have you,” he replied, reaching out and taking her hand in his. Honestly, it felt good to seal the deal after his screw up earlier. “I hope you and Luisa make yourselves at home here. You too, Dr. Dubois,” he added, aiming it at the professor. Luisa and Maria were on, so Sabrina had to follow. Things were getting better.

“Miharu,” he said, drawing the attention of the Japanese woman. “I have important business to handle in my cabin. If you could send Tamra there when she gets back, I’d be very appreciative,” he explained before leaving the mess hall. He had his own mess. Now he’d at least try to fix it.
 
If there was one thing more dangerous than a woman scorned, Tamra decided, it was a woman who was scorned and knew how to haggle.

Such was the case with Lauren Evans.

There were quite a few things that Tamra liked about the woman. She was personable, resilient, brilliant, adaptive...the list of qualities she could list about the woman was seemingly endless.

Lauren was a courageous, inventive woman in a world where men wanted her to stay in her corner, and she fought them every step of the way.

Tamra sighed as she thought about how, when Lauren defied a system that wanted to prevent her from being the courageous, resourceful woman that she was, her Captain's reaction was to tell Lauren to knuckle under, because Lauren's wanting to live her life on her terms was inconvenient to him.

Lauren mentally sighed, wondering if her Captain realized just how close his idiocy came to losing him his entire crew. And it wasn't like the women of his crew didn't have alternatives. Tamra had even momentarily toyed with the idea of going to the twins' guardian and getting an airship. Safa had the resources to bankroll an expedition, and would support her.

Tamra looked around Lauren's warehouse, sighing again. Lauren had everything the modern adventurer would want. Well, the pacifist adventurer, i.e., the one who went out of their way to avoid violence when getting their adrenaline fix. Lauren had even come up with one device that was an archaeologist's dream come true.

There were so many things here that Tamra wanted, and just not parachutes for emergencies. And more importantly, she needed to get Lauren receptive to the idea of accepting her Captain's apology. Because if she didn't, this thing would eat away at the de la Vega twins, and that would unravel the entire expedition before it left.

But after a lot of haggling, Tamra and Lauren came to an agreement.

Now she could only hope that her Captain didn't have another case of idiocy again.

* * * * *

Miharu and Saki followed Orson into the corridor as he headed toward his cabin. Both look concerned.

"Is there anything we can do, Captain James?" Miharu asked.
 
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Orson looked back at the girls, still having trouble processing all that had happened. “I think you’re fine for now. Other than telling Tamra where she can find me, there’s not much else.” Orson just wanted to stop feeling bad, but there wasn’t much he could do in regards to that. Honestly, he really wanted to ask for another hug, but he didn’t want to bother the girls. Plus, if he was honest, he didn’t deserve it.

“Unless there’s anything you need from me. If so, I’m happy to help. Otherwise, you’re free to do what you want. I’m going to wait in my cabin.”
 
An hour later, Tamra announced her presence by knocking on the door to Orson's cabin.

"Captain, I understand you were waiting for my return?" she called through the door.
 
Orson was sitting at his table when she returned, looking over charts and plans while she had been gone. “Tamra, welcome back,” he said, looking hopefully at her. His table was covered in papers, but one more thing. There was a long and thin wooden case on there as well.

“How did the talks with the twins go? And with Lauren, if you found her?” he asked nervously. The fact that he had been worrying over this situatiom would be clear as day to anyone.
 
"I've actually got a bit more done than the twins and Lauren," Tamra began. "And there are a few things we need to talk about. Mind if I have a seat? And I think our engineers installed an intercom to the galley, if you'd like to order something."
 
Orson couldn’t deny that there was some relief in how she referred to them as the engineers, not the former engineers. That alone was enough to instill some hope in him. “That’s good to know for the future, but I’m afraid I don’t have much of an appetite at the moment,” he replied. “So, please, take a seat. I’d like to hear what you have to say.”
 
"I could use a drink," Tamra responded. Tamra tapped a button, and got a cheerful Vu in response. The two exchanged a conversation in Vietnamese, and within a couple of minutes, an equally cheerful Qui brought a tray with two ice filled glasses and a bottle of Scotch. Tamra thanked Qui politely (again, in Vietnamese), and the young woman smiled, said something in Vietnamese to both Orson and Tamra, then left the Captain's quarters.

Pouring a glass for herself and then for Orson, she began, "First thing I would tell you, is if your First Officer spent the day I did, was whether she was a woman or man, it would have been nice to offer her a drink when she came in," Tamra said with a laugh, after taking a sip of her Scotch.

"So let's get down to business," Tamra said, setting down her drink, "First off, you're the Captain, and you're in charge. And someone has to be in charge. This is your ship, you have the most experience with airships, so it only makes sense that you're in charge, and you act the part. You will find you have a crew that is wants to follow your lead, and is very happy you are in charge."

"That being said, you need to remember that the women who volunteered to be on the Midnight Curse did so for a variety of reasons, and not just to be water bearers for you," Tamra continued. "Each one of your crewmembers came on board with a particular ambition. So you may find that your crew, being women, will be even more dedicated to their duty, inasmuch as they are women, and are accustomed to working harder than men, because they are used to having their work dismissed if they don't. As the saying goes, a woman has to be twice as good as a man to be recognized as at least half as good."

"That being said, a number of your crew are academic and professionals, and even male members of their profession don't like to be treated familiarly by strangers and new acquaintances, unless they invite them to do so. Women, because they have had to fight to get to those positions, are even less receptive to casual familiarity," Tamra explained. "I met our Naturalist and aspiring journalist on the way back to the airship, and was given the proverbial earful."
 
Orson wanted to yell. If she wanted a scotch, why didn’t she say that when she brought up ordering something? Why did he have to guess at what she wanted? He calmed down quickly, thinking it to be something completely inconsequential. It was just something extra on top of what was turning into an awful day.

“Trust me, I noticed that earlier,” he replied. He hadn’t expected Jane to get so upset so quickly at him for using the wrong title. He had just assumed that since it was the three of them talking, them saying the other could use their first name, it was fine he coukd as well. That was an incorrect assumption, one he had walked back and intended to avoid in the future. But he had still earned the lecture. “It won’t be happening again. Trust me. I have no intention of driving away the crew.”
 
"Orson," Tamra said, a serious tone in her voice, "The only reason I emphasize this is that customs you and I might consider 'common sense' will be anything but in some of the cultures we might encounter on the Lost Continent. Consider Miharu and Saki, for example. They grew up in a culture where how far you bowed to another was determined with a precision that would have put Euclid to shame. Our two..." Tamra paused, remembering the Japanese word to describe the two Japanese women "...onna-bugeisha are probably feeling that they have landed in a society that has dissolved into complete anarchy and are enjoying every delicious moment of it. Especially Miharu," Tamra said with a chuckle. "But I guarantee you, if Miharu and Saki found themselves transported to the Japan of their fathers and grandfathers, they'd snap to that rigid formalism in a second, and would expect the rest of us to do the same."

"Lady Salvin," Tamra added, "Is a young woman who is straddling more than one world, and it's going to take some time for her to feel comfortable around you to the point that she can ease the formal structure she's had ingrained into her since birth."

"But enough on that," Tamra concluded. "Our engineers and Miss Evans are more than a little miffed at you, and it's understandable why. You've been reading the papers about the accusations and counter-accusations of intellectual theft that are being tossed around between Edison, Tesla and Marconi. That's not an isolated incident. A lot of young academics and inventors are finding their discoveries poached by established engineers and scholars who are feeling threatened. The de la Vega twins at least have their guardian to look out after them. Miss Evans is essentially fending for herself. However, the de la Vegas are willing to return for a price. And that price is you presenting your mea culpas to Miss Evans in front of the crew."

"Miss Evans is willing to accept your apology, and even give us a pick of the inventions in her warehouse, some of which have archaeological applications you can't even begin to imagine, but also for a price. Besides paying for what we want from her collection, which Safa has agreed to do, she wants to come along on the expedition, with a full share in whatever we return with. And she wants Lady Salvin along as well, with Lady Salvin also getting a fair share of the expedition's return."

"And, before you worry about the fine you were given on Miss Evans' behalf, Safa has already arranged to pay that fine, as well as the entirety of Miss Evans' outstanding fines," Tamra added. "In Safa's words, your slow but teachable, so she was happy to do it. Actually, those weren't her exact words," Tamra laughed, "But it loses something in the translation."
 
“I’ve already agreed to bring Lady Salvin along and grant her a full cut, so there’s no difference there,” Orson replied. “I’m surprised Laur- Ms. Evans would want to come along, but if she wants to, I’m not going to stop her. If she’s as brilliant as she seems, I imagine she’ll be excellent help to the twins,” he said.

“I don’t know what mea culpas is, but I’m hoping it means an apology. In that case, I’d be happy to do so. That said, I can’t help but feel that just doing what they ask isn’t much of an apology, so I can make a request as well?” he asked. “I’ve saved up my own money for quite some time. I had been expecting to use it for supplies and hiring, none of which have been an issue so far, leaving me with much more money than I expected. So can I pay her fines? This is my mistake, so I want to pay for it. Safa’s generosity is more than appreciated. I just want to take responsibility for it,” he explained. “As to Ninah and Cimonah, I’ve only got one thing I could give them, but it might be useful.” Orson gently patted the long case next to him. “I think even they could learn something from it.”

He opened up the case just to show what he was talking about. A beautiful rifle lay inside, clearly maintained with great care. “Custom made by a master gunsmith. Easily the best gun I’ve ever fired. Nothing compares to it. I don’t know if it’s up their alley, but it all I got that I could give to them.”
 
"Your Japanese guardians would probably appreciate it more," Tamra said, admiring the wood and brass inlays. "Our engineers are the type that only appreciate things with gears and wires."

"Safa's already taken care of the fines," Tamra continued. "If the debt is paid by another woman, it's standing shoulder to shoulder, if you'll forgive the unionism. You paying for it, it could be interpreted as patronizing. That you're only giving lip service to her complaints. Besides, Captain, not to put too fine a point on it, but aren't your finances tied up in the Midnight Curse? If Safa and Mr. Tarloff are willing to take on the task of getting this airship equipped beyond the bare bones, you should let them."

"And speaking of money, did Dr. Dubois discuss with you about a Dr. Dimitriu giving us a lecture on darnium?"
 
Orson sighed, closing the box and putting it away. He had hoped this would be something the twins would like. It was brilliantly made, but he understood if it wasn’t in their wheelhouse. Even more than that, he had thought that offering to both apologize and pay was a form of showing that he’d do more than just say it. But apparently it wouldn’t come across that way. He couldn’t help it. He felt upset and angry that no matter what he did, he couldn’t do the right thing or have a good idea. He just wanted to make this right.

“I’ve been taking their help. That’s why I’ve got the extra money. I had initially budgeted for needing to buy all of this myself. But if you say it’s best not to pay it myself, I’ll trust you,” he explained. “As to the doctor, she did mention it. It sounds like a good idea. At least it’s something that could only be helpful,” he answered. “Did you hear more about it?”
 
"Actually," Tamra said with a smile, "Dr. Dimitriu is in our mess, waiting. Dr. Dubois contacted her after she and the graduate students left. Dr. Dimitriu is an odd woman, Orson. Eccentric, you might say. Once she heard an expedition might be looking for darnium deposits, she came to talk to us immediately. She's in the mess now, along with a good deal of our crew. How would you like to handle it?"
 
“Well, the first thing I want to do is apologize. I want to get that handled right away, if possible. Is Ms. Evans here? Or would it be better to apologize to the twins first? Or do you honestly think it’d be better to Dr. Dimitriu first? I don’t want to make it look like I’m avoiding the apology, but I want to trust your judgement on this,” he continued. He didn’t know what they would think and this was the best way to avoid anything getting worse.
 
"Why don't we do the apology first? Vu and Qui made spaghetti and meat sauce, salad and plenty of garlic toast. Simple, filling and puts everyone in a good mood!" Tamra said with a smile. "The twins are in the mess, along with Safa, Doctor Motwani and Nurse Costa, Miss Evans and Dr. Dimitriu. Oh, and of course Miharu and Saki," Tamra added. "I think Vu and Qui are taking feeding Miharu and Saki as personal challenges," Tamra said with a laugh.
 
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“Our biggest threat to survival might end up being their stomachs,” he tried to joke, but it was clear he wasn’t really energetic. “No time like the present,” he replied, standing from the desk as he put the case aside. If the the twins didn’t want it, then he’d keep Fenrich. After all, how else would he keep everyone safe?

Orson got up and left his cabin with his first mate. He couldn’t help but feel nervous. After all, he had already fucked up totally today. Here’s hoping he wouldn’t see a repeat of this whole affair and would instead put an end to it. With his resolve at its limit, he opened the door to mess.
 
Doctor Dimitrui was immediately noticeable in the gathering. She was the woman in the center of the room who was dressed stiffly and acting stiffly in the mess. Everyone else seemed to be in a relaxed and happy mood. Doctor Motwani was sitting next to Doctor Dimitrui, trying her best to draw the other woman out, but to no avail. Nurse Costa, Miss Evans and the de la Vega twins were in an animated conversation about something that must have center on the sketches they had made on the pile of napkins in front of them. Safa was busy mothering Miharu and Saki, cleaning up the splashes of spaghetti sauce on their faces. This delighted the Japanese cousins to no end, who were also involved in a conversation with Vu and Qui about their cooking.

All the conversations came to a halt as Orson and Tamra stepped into the room.

"Miss Evans, Ninah, Cimonah...our Captain has something he'd like to say to you," Tamra announced, before she stepped to one side.
 
Orson swallowed before stepping up to speak. He was going over what to say in his head as he did so. He wanted to explain himself, but he chose not to. Explanations could often be misinterpreted as excuses. It’d be better that they thought he was just being stupid then rather than think he was trying to excuse his behavior.

“Ms. Evans, Ninah, Cimonah,” he started. “I want to apologize to all of you. I didn’t think through or attempt to understand your situations. For that, I am sorry. I will reflect on what I’ve done and try my best not to repeat my actions. Again, I am sorry for what I did.” There. Short, simple, and clear. He had done his best to be sincere. He dreaded that he had someone done something else on top of that to make things even worse. He couldn’t think of anything. But, in the not-exact words of Safa, he was slow.
 
There was a few moments of silence, before Lauren Evans answered, "Works for me!"

Almost immediately, the mood in the room returned to its previous jovial atmosphere. Vu and Qui came over, plates of spaghetti and garlic toast in their hands, which they handed to Orson and Tamra.

"Captain James," Ayisha called, waving Orson over. "Allow me the pleasure of introducing you to Dr. Dimitrui."

"A pleasure," the other woman said, standing up and extending her hand. The woman spoke with a noticeable Eastern European accent and, like her posture, her English was very stiff. "I am told you wish to know more about darnium."
 
Orson couldn’t be more relieved at Lauren’s words. He immediately looked to the twins to see their reaction. He didn’t want them to remain angry at him as well.

When he was sitting next to Dr. Dimituri, he was happy to see she was unfazed by what had just happened. That was something at least. “It’s a pleasure to meet you as well,” he said, shaking her hand. “Yes, my crew is heads to lost continent. We heard reports that there is pure darnium there, so we were hoping to find some while we were there. However, as we lack any experts in the field, none of us are sure on how to locate it,” he explained.
 
The de la Vega twins had re-entered their animated discussion with Nurse Costa and Miss Evans. Although they weren't shooting the Captain glaring looks, neither did they look like they were trying to see how he had accepted Lauren Evans' accepting of his apology.

"There is appearance of ore, of course," Dr. Dimituri began, "Very unique coloring. Depending on atmospheric conditions and instrumentation you have on airship, you may be able to detect it from air, depending on size of deposit and location near surface. And device Alexander Graham Bell used on American President for removal of bullet would prove useful, if calibrated correctly. I have very good book I wrote, very good photo plates and illustrations, I will donate to your ship."
 
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“Oh, thank you,” he said, surprised at her generosity. “Luckily, we’ve got some brilliant minds aboard the ship. I’m sure they’ll be able to figure something out thanks to your book,” Orson continued. “If we find any darnium, we’ll be sure to send you a sample. Are there any other major things we should know about handling it? And you say it has unique coloring. What color is it?”
 
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