Krotazi. Sascha carefully cocked her head to one side, craning in eir claws. That was most assuredly different from genetically modified snake; any of the creatures she'd run into while...on the run. Did that mean xe wasn't working for the corporation? If Fate was apologizing rather than pulling the whole front wall off the place or blowing out the lighting...perhaps she had misjudged the situation. A creature could be entirely imposing, invoke concern, and command a room while still being as genial as a courtesy droid, right?
Then again, she considered as she watched the glowing bottle come tauntingly closer, offering her rum as a consolation prize before allowing her to run right back out into whatever Hunters remained--calculating. That's what xe was. And Sascha was so, so tired of trying to outguess, outsmart, outrun, out-survive the whole fragging station.
"Last time I met a scaly...person...she was corporate. Wanted to rummage through my head for information then rewire it & give me entirely new memories and she wasn't nearly as..." Large. Very, very large with sharp claws and a smile that didn't feel like a smile. "Grand as you." Sascha shrugged. "I guess it made me a little tail shy."
She held out her hand for the Venusian delicacy then, bringing her chin upward. "I would like my drink, yes. Not the running, but the drink."
---
He caught her explanation and groaned. He'd been offline during the incident in mention. One more thing he owed her, one more terror she'd faced down alone. Her eyes would've been heartbreaking and wide then too.
Squinting at the display as the picture moved and won him an eyeful of the slick fabric Sass had tied over her chest, he let out a loud snort. It was so much worse than any stash bag he could've filled, which of course meant the next pack he made for her--and there would be more, damn it--would sport handy gear in a similar style.
Stash bags took money and planning. So did dealing with corporations, known foes, and unknown Krotazi who he'd unwittingly ruffled. Fate hated that he was so low on funds and resources post-move. Truthfully, the last job should have set him and Sass both up for life, but. But! There was the small matter of funneling money back into Radius for repairs. The arduous wrangling to pay off the Heat through proper gang channels. The annoyance of removing the less committed Hunters from play by bringing up some ill-invested accounts. There was a public transit station and vehicle to replace entirely, and someone had to take care of the slotted housing upset that had displaced almost an entire block. With all those chits in motion he had no way to make sweeping gestures.
Fate hated even more that Grilka was right: the Hunters might have been down, but they were not out--the bounty was too large to simply wipe off the boards through electronic means. Sascha would forever be on the run, at least here on station. The bot he'd sent to the doorway froze there instead of barging through as it dawned on him that someone who had so much power could indeed be a force to help give his friend some breathing room.
And he'd have been able to speak to that, perhaps, if he hadn't blown a hole in eir property.
"The perimeter was secure, toots--you'll notice no bounty hunters came tumbling through the rafters," Fate explained quietly, trying not to trigger feedback on the device, "Besides. You wouldn't let me render medical attention. And I owed you that beer soup. You earned it, you know. And it's important," he finished as if offering someone a beer for running from accidental target practice was a sacred vow, "to keep promises."
Not that Kreska had apparently needed his help at all. Not when her backup meant Grilka.
Why had he thought helping a flexible little scrap of green across the underbelly of the station was a good idea? Oh right. Boredom. He flexed his fingers. Definitely not boring now.
>>This is as close as my friends get.
Which wasn't strictly true, as it seemed to firstly include Grilka in that number and secondly ignore the fact that Sascha had indeed crashed on his couch. Multiple times. But his acquaintances--certainly he had a very closed door, off-grid policy. Less chance any of his gigs could be compromised, less chance of the outside world coming inside.
He tried very hard not to respond during the Krotazi's guessing game. The only kind of baiting Fate normally fell into headfirst was code-based, but xe made it difficult when xe was referring to his inability to protect that which was his. Sass, too, made it difficult, as she seemed to be accepting whatever tentacled sort of olive branch Grilka was offering. Fate hoped she was just playing along. But she'd been through so much and the slump in her shoulders made him feel like, whether through her own volition or her body's surrender to sleep, she was on the edge of giving up entirely.
Giving up on him?
Would she?
Fate ran a hand over the stubble on his jaw and sighed. No, Sass was trying to keep him safe, even after she'd been through hell. And someone had to tell Grilka something.
>>There was trouble.
>>I helped.
>>It's a thing I do.
>>Without needing to be asked.
He tugged on a dreadlock and frowned, knowing however he responded next would be swooped down on like he'd left a massive hole in his defenses. But Kreska's whole 'all the information in the galaxy' plan wouldn't work now. They'd all seen the ceiling. It hadn't been mentioned, which meant the Krotazi was far too interested in the reason rather than the damages, and xe wasn't falling for the disconnected strangers approach. And possibly that the other shoe--insomuch as Krotazi had shoes--hadn't yet dropped.
>>What does that entail, exactly, and does it involve more tasting?
>>She doesn't like that.
Dreams come in a size too big so we can grow into them.
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