Post by Anais Achae on Feb 18, 2015 15:55:08 GMT -7
A safehouse? Why would she need to go to a safehouse? Anais worked for the planetary government to circumvent threats to the peace, like an arms smuggling ring in the middle of an industrial sector. If anything, when the police showed up, she'd want to be there to debrief them. In fact...
When they'd properly crossed the open area outside the warehouse, Anais managed to speak through gritted teeth. "Oh no, I'm not going anywhere. Police reaction time may be pretty slow to a bunch of explosions, but they will be here, and they need to be briefed so they don't send any officers in there to get themselves killed fighting a bunch of panicked mercenaries." Looking over her shoulder to make sure they weren't being followed, Anais found herself a place to sit out of the direct firing line. Low wall near the overlook.
"Besides, it's SOP to dispatch paramedics. You should stay and get checked out, too. Unless you're not supposed to be here." She had no idea exactly how on-the-level her partner's mission was. Wouldn't do to cause an incident. "In which case you were never here, I did this alone, and you should meet me at the Sunrise bar in Commercial 3.5e later for drinks."
Provided whatever the medics put into her to fortify her ribs allowed her to drink, at any rate.
Post by Anden Teigert on Feb 18, 2015 16:27:39 GMT -7
His mission wasn't necessarily a secret. Who was doing it, however, was. That was the nature of Black Ops. One could know the Systems Alliance was involved, but they couldn't know who was carrying out the orders. That was just how it had to be. Still, he favored her with a hint of a chuckle that was almost not picked up by his helmet. "Naw, I'm supposed to be here... I'm just, ya know, well..." He snorted and shook his head. "I'M not supposed to be here."
Standing up and looking about, he gave a faint shrug of his massive shoulders. "Hell, reckon I wouldn't be surprised if the CO done told the paramedics what they was walkin' intah. Or, tah be more precise, who they'd be walkin' intah. Namely a lone Asari. Tell them you did it, don't matter to me none. Blue Suns will probably still spout about an Alliance brute and a nimble Asari Commando anyway." There was a smirk to that voice. "I'll see ye there, 2200 sharp."
Late enough he could stand to get plastered, early enough the really bad bar crowd wouldn't be there; namely anyone who was related to the mercenaries they'd just hung out to dry. With a faint wave of an armored hand, he disappeared off the bridge and out of sight. It also gave her a few hours to get composed and not entirely broken.
------------------
Sunrise Bar Commercial 3.5e 2148 Hours Local
Anden had gone to the safehouse alright, and then stowed and secured his gear nice and safe and away from prying eyes. While he wasn't exactly one to blend in, it was much easier on a world like this. Folk walking around in armor - new or otherwise - didn't attract much attention. But what did generally attract attention was a fish out of water; that's exactly what Anden in a bar on an Asari planet was. He'd never been... to bars on Asari planets specifically, that is.
Seedy bars? Sure. On human colonies.
Not fancy bars in Commercial Districts on a world run by a feminine race of ferociously skilled diplomats.
So there he was, propped up against a wall outside the bar with his arms folded across his chest. A faded old ballcap was pulled low on his brow, and a zip-up Systems Alliance hoodie was wrapped around his frame, zipped up to his sternum. Beyond that, he was wearing his fatigue pants and combat boots - half on duty clothes, half off. Beard too. Not your typical human soldier with their baby smooth cheeks and short hair. The tips of vaguely curled strands of coffee shaded hair poked out from under the cap, hooded eyes scanning the area for a particular Asari with violet eyes.
...and probably some bandages if she didn't stay in that leather.
Not that there was a shortage of Asari in leather on this world.
Post by Anais Achae on Feb 18, 2015 17:20:10 GMT -7
Catching the locals up to speed on the dangerous, very stressed mercenaries inside the industrial compound that she had just besieged took Anais probably five to ten minutes. The paramedics didn't wait for her to stop to get to their jobs...or even wait for her identification, actually. Turns out that medical staff don't really care so much who you are as they do whether or not you're hurt. For the police, a simple ID file and mission statement were enough to get even a young huntress her space.
And what of her ally? "It was a co-op with a foreign military agency as a show of solidarity. I'm afraid I can't say any more than that." You don't ask questions on Illium, unless you want to know things that you really didn't want to know.
Not a few minutes after the sirens showed up, the local law enforcement had established a perimeter and were issuing ultimatums to the mercenaries inside. Anais had some medigel soaked bandages wrapped around her cracked but not broken ribs, and a letter to take it easy until she could have a calcium paste injection soon. Neither of these things would stop her from treating the poor human who she'd just dragged through hell to a slightly more relaxing evening than how it had started out.
---
Sunrise Bar Commercial District 3.5e 2155 local time
A more modest individual might have decided to dress herself to conceal the medical tape wrapped around her torso. Anais was not a more modest individual, and instead bore it proudly along with the rest of her bluish, vaguely-purple midriff. Of course she was still packing, because she'd just taken out a Blue Suns stronghold and it would be insane to leave herself defenseless after that. She didn't need more than her knife and a decent pistol, though. Enough to make sure that if a bunch of merc thugs started shooting the place up, she wouldn't have to rely on biotics alone to prevent civilian casualties.
As she approached Sunrise, one of her favorite haunts, Anais noticed the most amusing sight she'd seen all day. She couldn't help but giggle. "Oh wow. You really do look ridiculous," the young Asari managed to get out between snickers. "What, did they not include specialist training in relaxation in your latest refresher?"
Post by Anden Teigert on Feb 18, 2015 17:41:01 GMT -7
If one were to anticipate Asari dress based on the fantasies of teenage human males, what Anais chose to wear was probably at least #2 on the list of material for when parents weren't around. Giving her a slow once over with a raised brow and a smirk, the man gave a faint bit of a chuckle to go along with a wide, toothy grin. He felt fine wearing this, and frankly... "Well, the closet was a bit... understocked. I had to make do with what was provided." So basically his options at that point had been armor, full uniform, or half-uniform with the hoodie provided to keep you warm should the heat go out.
At least that's what he was assuming it was for.
"Naw." He drawls, chuckling at himself along with her before his gaze lifted to scan the street with a practiced sweep of his eyes. "Only thing they taught me how to do was be stiff and loose at the same time." Rolling a shoulder, he pushed himself from the wall and stuffed his hands into the pockets on the front of the hoodie. It tugged it down tight across his frame; he'd always been more comfortable in tighter bodywear. Ironic, really. "C'mon." He adds, turning and revealing that he'd kept his Executioner on his right hip, "Let's get yah some drinks to make up for that crap ya got grippin' yer torsah."
Post by Anais Achae on Feb 18, 2015 18:09:33 GMT -7
"Hah!" A loud cackle found its way out of Anais' throat while she followed Teigert in once more. "Battle scars, sweetie. Battle scars." She was young. She hadn't had time to develop the same number of blemishes that her squadmates had, and this was a great head start on catching up. "Nothing to make up for when I'm gonna elicit stares of awe." On the downside, it meant she wasn't getting any tonight, or if she did, it'd have to be a lot softer than she usually looked for.
Inside Sunrise was the whole reason Anais liked it so much. Sure, every sector on Ilium was either "commercial," "industrial," or "private." That didn't mean that all of them were stuffy, clean, and white. Sunrise was a warm, neon-lit combination of bar and dance club. The pub catered to the Asari working class with things that the average Illium citizen cared about playing on the holos, and the main area sported normally a half-dozen blue dancers and a house DJ to help take a load off after a long day.
The fact that it was a bar-plus-nightclub called "Sunrise" never escaped any drunken wit therein.
Anais gave a quick wave to the blue darling at the door, bouncing past to the beat of the electronica pumping from the floor. She eagerly took a spot at the bar and grinned back towards the door for Anden. "C'mon, Army. Pull up a seat and forget about all that industrial crap." Normally she'd only be stopping by the bar long enough to get something stiff to lower her inhibitions (as if she needed the help), but tonight, she was in pain. Dancing was not on her list of Fun Things To Do.
Post by Anden Teigert on Feb 18, 2015 18:30:27 GMT -7
There was a half-scoff and a laugh, "Maybe we can compare scars sometime." Always leave it to a soldier to turn anything into a measuring contest. He'd win, probably. His stomach was basically a giant burn scar, and peppered along his left flank was the imprint of the shrapnel from a grenade that had come a little too close to taking his life. Between the bubbly Asari and the electronica, he couldn't get further out of what he was used to than if they'd dropped him into a Salarian hatchery.... or whatever passed for their spawning grounds.
Tidal estuary maybe?
Following in after her and pulling his hat off as he did so, he clenched the bill together and stuffed it into his back pocket so that it hung out limply but was secure enough that it wouldn't fall. "Anden, Anais." He says with a hint of a smirk before settling himself onto the bar next to her and waiting for the tender to come around before getting himself some brandy. Turian brandy. Something he'd developed a taste for at some point he couldn't really imagine. Still, a thumb rose to brush across the strip of flesh between his lower lip and chin in thought as he looked over to her.
"I get tha impression yer usually here tah dance, but ya ain't tonight." That slightly protruding lower lip of his came from a bit too long on the chew, not that he'd done it in years, but it was something that stuck around for a bit. It definitely affected his pronunciation. "Take it, though, the rib ain't broken what since ye came here all bouncy and giggly." And, although he didn't realize it, his head was bobbing along a bit to the pounding of the music and his foot was following suit too.
Not his usual shtick, but he could appreciate it more than the hard nosed stuff usually favored on human colonies.
Post by Anais Achae on Feb 18, 2015 19:51:55 GMT -7
Of course she knew what his name was! That didn't mean she was going to use it to address him. Anais tapped the bar to order up something that was probably quite a bit harder than she could actually handle. Appearances to keep, and all that. Ordering something that sounded Krogan was an easy way to make yourself seem cool. Even if it turned out it was Drell and you were just really bad at guessing.
"When we're not on exercises or deploy, sometimes I drop by here and have a few rounds," she replied with a little grin towards the stage at the end of the dance...vault? "Lotta people land in Nos Astra, so we get a bunch of tourists running through here looking to sample the 'Illium nightlife.' You can meet some really interesting types if you know where to look."
Her ribs? Oh hell, they still hurt, but not nearly as much. In fact, they were quite tingly. Probably had something to do with the medication she got slapped with. "Nothing's broken. Just cracked. They've got me on enough painkillers to make me fly, which is a little like getting a doctor's prescription for red sand." Her drink showed up just as she let out a little snicker.
That sound quickly turned into a cough when she actually took a drink of what she'd ordered. It wasn't the strength so much as the flavor, which she was not expecting. Asari weren't insectivores. This tasted like the underside of a log smelled. Oh well! Try something new and you might not like it! "Whew! Thaaat's an interesting flavor!"
Post by Anden Teigert on Feb 18, 2015 20:12:08 GMT -7
There was a knowing look to the mans features as he cast a glance towards the door at the word 'tourists.' "I gather yah know where all the interestin' types hide away at?" That was probably putting it lightly. If she frequented the bar as much as he thought she did... well, she'd know every interesting person, creature, drink and curiously communicable disease that came through here; which was probably quite a good deal, all told. But he couldn't suppress the grin at the mental image of her that cropped up in his mind.
Her, entirely wasted, gyrating out on the dance floor like a complete loon, but, more importantly, looking like she was actually having 'a few rounds' with the dance floor. Well, in fairness, his grin was more a reserved upward turning of his lips, but the point was the same.
The image was downright hilarious. It elicited a low chuckle. But she took her drink, downed it, and then did about what he expected she'd do - cough and look like a fool. Taking a quiet sip of his brandy, he wet his lips, gave a faint cough, and then took a much larger gulp before giving a satisfied noise from the back of his throat. "I'm going to assume by interesting you mean 'not at all what I expected, please help me.'"
Head pulling back so he could crane his neck to look at the massive area - well, massive to his eyes anyway - that comprised the dance floor, he couldn't help but shake his head. "Ya know, ya did the one thing no one has ever gotten me to do. Yah found a place with the sort of music that makes me want tah dance." And that was a scary thought.
Post by Anais Achae on Feb 18, 2015 21:12:07 GMT -7
Anais cleared her throat a bit and shook her head, leaning her back against the bar for support. "Interesting doesn't always mean bad. I'm okay with trying a new flavor that isn't my favorite. It lets me know what I won't get next time." No need to save her from a temporary experience, after all. Someone in the galaxy liked it, and if she drank it all night, maybe she'd figure out why.
Now that. That was a fun mental image. Big, oafish ape attempting to boogie amid a bunch of precentennials. Anais giggled to herself just thinking about it, having to try very hard not to choke on her bug-ale. "Can't join you out there tonight, but I swear to the goddess, Army, if you do that I'll record it and stick it on the extranet."
Anden Teigert was surprisingly fun to hang out with. It was good to have someone to talk to when her unit was out and about, even if that someone was a mayfly human who would likely be dead before Anais had first felt the need to have a daughter. There really wasn't anything better than spending the crash after a nasty adrenaline rush with someone whose company you enjoyed.
Post by Anden Teigert on Feb 18, 2015 21:35:51 GMT -7
"I didn't say 'bad,'" he begins, "I simply said 'not what you expected.'" With a grin, he tipped back the remainder of his drink and shook his head. "I get the feeling you'll be out there before long." He says, unzipping his hoodie and throwing it around her shoulders like the towel one would wipe themselves down with after a trip to the gym. She'd done the worst thing possible - she told an SNCO that he couldn't do something. Or, at least, heavily implied he couldn't.
That was a challenge, and challenges had to be won.
Not overcome.
Won.
Growing up, he'd had a friend who liked to DJ on the weekends. Typical teenager dream, really, especially when one went to university - be a DJ. Either way, he'd been huge into the electronic scene and, during one of Anden's shore leaves at home, spent a weekend teaching him how to do some new dance craze thing that was sweeping its way through the schools. Frankly, Anden wasn't one to be entirely good at moving smoothly enough to make dancing look good, but his friend had confided in him a secret.
Don't move to the music, move with it. He could still remember the words - 'Every movement to the beat. Ride it.' It was a mantra, likely picked up from some guy who'd made a life out of dancing and become a motivational speaker. It didn't matter. If it was true, it was true. But Anden had always been a practice learner anyway, and once he'd gotten down how to do it to one song, it was rinse and repeat until it could be adjusted as necessary. A weekend wasn't enough to master it, but it was enough to be passable.
And so he went out to the dance floor and danced with the song, fitting in surprisingly well with the precentennials even if he wasn't as flexible or quite as smooth. Extranet eat your heart out; good, bad, or indifferent.
Post by Anais Achae on Feb 18, 2015 23:30:12 GMT -7
Oh no.
Oh he wasn't.
Oh he was.
True to her word, Anais immediately took her omnitool out and started recording. It would be shaky and probably a bit low-quality, though, because the poor girl was in stitches with raucous laughter. She couldn't breathe. Her ribs were hurting despite the ridiculous medications she'd been given and the medigel seeping into her skin. She was pretty sure she'd spilled her drink somewhere along the line, but she'd barely noticed because a big, oafish military ape was doing the shuffle.
Couldn't breathe. Taking a loud inhaling gasp, Anais tried her best to get herself under control...only to look back to the floor to see the man who had just been shotgunning Blue Suns wagging his legs in the air by the knees. She practically fell off of her stool, still roaring with a hiccuping, contralto cackle. To hell with the recording. She couldn't worry about that and her lungs at the same time.
Oh hot damn her ribs hurt. Ouch. "You cruel bastard!" She managed to shout out between laughs. "How could you torture my diaphragm at a time like this?!" Breeeathe, Anais. You need oxygen or you're going to pass out.
Post by Anden Teigert on Feb 18, 2015 23:51:46 GMT -7
She wasn't the only one overly amused. The other Asari who'd managed to make it to the floor already were grinning from ear to ear. Probably wasn't often some military oaf slid his way out on the dancefloor to piston his forearms around in random directions that only made sense to one who wasn't concerned which way his limbs were moving and why. Combat boots, surprisingly effective at moving on a dance floor. Not really, but he was used to them enough by now to make it work.
And that's precisely what he did until the song ended. Grinning ear to ear to the point it was curling up his eyes, he made his way back to the Asari who looked about ready to pass out. Definitely a young one... by Asari standards. Whatever recording she'd been trying to do failed a little too hard. "Any more?" He asks as he resumes his seat, pulling his hoodie up off the ground from where she'd thrown it off in her fit of laughter. There wasn't more to say, really.
Another challenge? That was it. That's all he wanted to know, even as he ordered himself some more brandy.
Post by Anais Achae on Feb 19, 2015 0:06:37 GMT -7
Oh mercy. He was done. The ability to respire had never before been a luxury, but now Anais truly understood how blessed she was to be able to inhale and exhale without having to worry about her sides splitting open with uncontrolled hysterics. As the blood and oxygen found its way back to her brain, the little huntress allowed herself to wind down into quiet, weak giggles. She barely had enough energy left for even that at this point.
"Not often I get to work with someone who's so bad at relaxing that he's accidentally great at it," she managed to choke out when she'd finished hyperventilating (and forgot how much ouch was currently coming out of her side). "You're alright, Army. Even if you don't get another mission here, hop on back to Illium whenever. Pretty sure the girls would have a blast with you."
Anais' unit was hardly formal. In fact, most Asari commando units were as far from conventional military as one could expect. The chain of command boiled down to seniority, when there was a chain of command at all. One of them normally took charge during firefights, but everyone's input on a tactical scenario was heard out and taken into account. If ever there was a more egalitarian species in the galaxy than the Asari, there certainly wasn't a more open-minded military. If it could even be called a "military."
Honestly, it was more like the single most dangerous militia force in the entire galaxy.
But "the girls" would get a kick out of Teigert. No sense of stealth, but plenty of wit and a proper understanding of tactics. Plus, how many heavy infantry did they know who could shuffle?
Post by Anden Teigert on Feb 19, 2015 0:13:08 GMT -7
There was a low chuckle as he stared into his glass, and careful fingers hefted it to tip the liquid back down his gullet before he shook his head. That was a thought, wasn't it? Visiting Illium just to shuffle with Asari that, were they human, would probably be in their mid-teens. Amusing, and, were he not used to the idea of their longevity by now, probably disturbing. Not anymore, though. Not anymore. Hell, he lived a fly's life comparatively. It happened so far as evolution was concerned.
Hell, Salarians were even worse than humans at staying alive into old age. Something about metabolisms? Something like that.
"Always did have a fancy for you Asari folk, just like most males in this galaxy. Sure they'd get a right kick outta me." He says, downing the glass again before looking over to her. "I'll drop ye a line next time I roll back through, yeah? Somethin' tells me you'd find a way to get me into more trouble. Not like that's a bad thing in the Terminus Systems."
"So how would the rest of yer night go? Come to the bar, get a drink? Go dance? Then what? Go harass the tourists as a gang of drunk, biotic amazonian women?"
Post by Anais Achae on Feb 19, 2015 0:36:04 GMT -7
Anais stood and left her drink right there on the bar, stretching her arms up above her and attempting to ignore her own pained whimper in the process. "The rest of my night right now is going to go to bed. It's a little early, but these anesthetics are seriously kicking my ass."
Making a motion with her hand, Anais held out one arm, orange solid light glowing around it. "Lemme see your omni." When he acquiesced, the little commando hit a button or two and pulled her hand back to crack a couple of knuckles. "Sent you my contact info. If you find yourself at my kind of party or if you're ever just in my neck of the woods, drop me a wave."
Ugh. Little wobbly. "And for now, this little Asari is going to bed. I think I just lost feeling in my fingers." And her sense of balance. Hopefully there was a taxi waiting outside.
Post by Anden Teigert on Feb 19, 2015 18:47:53 GMT -7
His left arm came up, giving her the omni as per her request, and sure enough, her information scrolled across his screen a few moments later. Man, he hadn't gotten a number that easy since he was a teenager - then again, she was a teenager so far as Asari were considered. At least he thought she was. He wasn't going to ask; that'd be rude. "That's not good." The man says with a shake of his head, pushing himself up and taking a firm grip on her arm to steady her as she goes to wobble a little far.
"Lemme getcha outside, that way ya don't fall on yer face on the way out." Least he could do, really. You didn't hang a woman out to dry like that, not where he'd grown up. "Just make sure tah get yer rest." He adds as he helps her stay steady until they were outside. The thoroughfare was as busy as he remembered it, but a few taxi stands stood vacant near the dropoff. A taxi would roll through soon enough, and she could get in and get home. He'd be her companion until then.
Then maybe he'd go back inside and get drunk. That sounded like a good plan to him.