Va'ynna is currently standing behind the counter, pouring a drink for a human patron. She's in her dark-green dress. The bar is rather calm, though a little busier than usual at this time.
#Miner'sRespite – February 23, 2014
Jason struts through the front door with his omni-tool open. A scowl is on his face as he slowly pokes at the interface with a single finger. After a few steps of going back-and-forth between watching in front of him and watching what he's typing, he finally decides to stop in place and finish whatever business he has with his omni-tool. A moment later, the interface dissipates and he continues towards the counter, replacing his scowl with a lopsided smirk as he spots Va'ynna. "Hey, V!" he greets, taking a seat on an open stool, "How's it going?"
Va'ynna places the drink on the counter as she hears a familiar voice, and a smile creeps onto her face. She makes her way over to just across the counter from him. "Hey," she says. "I'm... alright. I'm back to work fully now, but I take more shifts in the kitchen."
Jason sets his hands on the counter in front of him. "That's great. How is the kitchen working out for ya?" he asks, recalling their earlier conversation. "Oh... Rum and coke." he orders with a shrug, "When you get the chance."
Va'ynna nods, heading over to pick up the bottles whose location she knows very well by now. "It's... well enough," she says, placing them on the counter. "I usually get the easy orders or clean up." She fills a glass with ice cubes and pours the bottles with her usual ratio.
Jason scoops up the drink and takes a small sip. "Are you getting the hang of it, though?" he asks, "Something you can see yourself enjoying?"
Va'ynna frowns thoughtfully. "I don't really know," she says. "I'm learning... fast according to one of the others, but I can't really make the more complicated things yet. I suppose it's a good job, considering... my qualifications."
Ilyna descends the staircase to the first floor, looking towards the bar as she does so. A small smile appear at the sight of two familiar faces and she makes her way towards them. Ilyna's wearing her familiar kind of dress in a dark gray color with blue trims. "Afternoon," she says as she takes the seat beside Jason, though she waits for acknowledgmenet to not interrupt their conversation.
Jason nods, "You'll get the hang of it, V. Just stick with it." he says as Ilyna approaches. "Oh, there she is." he says with a smirk, tilting his head to face Ilyna. "I was planning on making a stop upstairs to deliver your ass kicking as soon as I was done with my drink." he jokes.
Va'ynna nods, "Yeah, I suppose so." She looks at the new arrival, smiling. "Hey," she says. "Can I get you something,... Ilyna?"
Ilyna chuckles "Oh?" she says with a tilt of her head. "Wasn't that if you didn't hear from me in weeks?" She glances towards the bartender. "Serrice ice, please."
Jason gives a shrug, "I'm not operating on any specific schedule, here. If it feels right, that's good enough for me." he teases, "And you've kept me waiting long enough."
Ilyna nods. "I'm sorry, then... won't happen again," she says, not too seriously. "Just had a bit to do in the last few days." She looks towards the other asari. "You hear that? Do you have to deal with such... abuse too?" she jokes.
Va'ynna nods at the order, remaining there for a little bit. "No, I don't," she says, giggling a little as she goes to fetch the bottle, finding it somewhat quickly.
Jason points to Va'ynna as she goes to work. "She doesn't leave me hanging for days at a time!" he insists, clearly kidding, "She's reliable! Always here for me. You just go galavanting about and forget alllll about me!" He takes a swig of his drink and sets it back on the counter, "I'm the victim here!"
Ilyna can't help but burst out in laughter. "Goddess, I'm that bad?" she says as she manages to compose herself. "And that says the one threatening to kick my ass..." She is joking.
Jason chuckles and pats Ilyna on the shoulder, "Nah, it's alright. I've actually been pretty busy myself." he admits, "Work has been a bit hectic lately."
Va'ynna returns to the counter, pouring the brandy into an empty glass. She places the glass on the counter before Ilyna before taking a step back.
Ilyna nods to the other asari as she takes the glass, "Thank you, Va'ynna." she says. She looks back at Jason. "I take it everything's alright with your work, then?"
Jason sighs and gives a quick shrug, "I don't know. It's nothing we can't survive, but it's looking more and more like we might end up losing a big contract." He leans forward, resting an elbow against the counter, "We're doing our best to avoid it, but a lot of it is out of our hands."
Ilyna frowns, patting his shoulder. "Oh, that... sounds bad," she says. "Why are they ending the contract, if I may ask?"
Jason shakes his head, "Because they're assholes." he says with a smirk, "Nah... They're not flat out ending it. Just asking for more than we agreed on. If we're unable to provide them with what they're asking..." he sighs, "I'm just worried they won't renew their contract when the time comes."
Jason shakes his head once again, "No, of course not. Not directly, anyways. But once it comes time for them to renew their contract, they're free to end our business together if they choose. They've already casually reminded me multiple times that the terms of our contract comes to an end in a couple of months. They're not going to flat out say it, but I can get the hint." He slugs back a bit more of his drink. "It's essentially blackmail." he adds.
Ilyna frowns. "I'm sorry to hear that," she says. "Would not getting the contract renewed harm the agency, and do they know that?"
Jason nods, "Yeah... Of course it would hurt the agency. We've only managed a single one-off contract. It paid pretty well, but that's not the kind of work that sustains a business. We need to hold onto our contracts that provide a constant income. We pay our employees a steady monthly pay, as well as a bonus based on the contracts they've worked on throughout the month. We can't really expect them to just stand idly by without any sort of payment while we hunt for some big job that might never come." he sighs, "So contracts like this? They keep the business going by covering our monthly costs."
Ilyna nods. "Yeah, and they're probably not as risk as these one-off jobs can be... from my experience with them," she says. "Are there others that would be able to offer a contract like that in case it doesn't go well?"
Va'ynna stands back, not attending to any patrons at the moment. She is outside earshot of Ilyna and Jason, though.
Jason gives a shrug, "I don't know. Linda has been working on finding us more steady work, but as I'm sure you've noticed, Freedom Falls isn't the biggest town. Not many places willing and able to pay what it would cost to be profitable for us." he raises an eyebrow as he seems to remember something. He slaps a gauntleted hand against the counter, hoping to get Va'ynna's attention, "Hey V!" he calls out, "How did everything go yesterday?"
Va'ynna looks towards him. "Hm?" she says as she takes a few quick steps towards where the two are. "Um, the security agent? D'Inea helped him, I was in the kitchen at the time."
Ilyna nods. "Yeah, I think I've seen quite a bit of it when walking around," she says, but keeps quiet as the other asari speaks.
Jason gives a shrug at Va'ynna's response, "Well, I haven't heard anything, so I guess that means everything went alright." he says before returning his attention to Ilyna. "So you've been exploring the town, huh?" he asks with a smirk, "See anything interesting?"
Ilyna shakes her head. "It's a nice town to live in, I suppose," she begins, "but it doesn't really have anything that stood out. There's quite a few good options if I need something to eat or a snack while walking around, though."
Jason nods a few times, "Yeah, it's not bad." he says, his smile growing, "See? You could just settle down here for a while. Take some time off all this studying nonsense!"
Ilyna returns the smile. "I'm not very against the idea, but," she says, "what do you suggest I do for a living here?"
Jason raises an eyebrow, a little caught off guard at how receptive the asari is to the suggestion, "Uhh... I-... I don't know." he says, straightening up in his seat, "I'm sure you can find something out here. I mean, I know working back with me isn't an option..." he pauses for a moment, searching Ilyna's face for any sort of sign that she may be open to the possibility, "But... There's plenty of smaller shops around town, you know?"
Ilyna nods. "I'll think about it," she says, "but I really promised my mother I would go through with my studies." Ilyna pauses. "As well as giving up on my mercenary career."
Jason 's smile widens, "That's all I ask. Think about it." he nods. "Besides... What about office work?" he asks, "Doesn't really count as mercenary work if you're handling things around the office, right?"
Ilyna hums thoughtfully. "I guess it wouldn't," she says, "Do you mean the agency might have some place I could work?"
Jason tilts his head back and forth, weighing his options. "I'm saying... I'm sure Linda could use a bit of help. She spends all day making calls and stressing out over this stuff. And then I have to listen to her go on and on about it..." he shrugs, "Might make things easier on her if there was someone else to share the workload with. We've almost got our first shuttle up and running, and we'll be able to branch out and take some contracts outside of Freedom Falls, so it's only going to get worse. We're going to need to increase staff..." he begins counting on his fingers, "...Find more long-term contracts. Scour the extra-net for one-off jobs. On top of ordering equipment, staying on top of any fees, and making sure everyone gets paid? She's definitely going to have her hands full."
Ilyna listens carefully to what he says, then nods. "It's that much?" she says. "I'd love to help out with it, but I can't really leave Thessia for long until around Janiris." She picks up her drink and takes a long sip of it. "After that, I'll consider it, but aren't there qualifications I'd need?"
Jason chuckles to himself and shakes his head, "You have no idea. There's a lot that goes into it." he says, "As for qualifications, sure. Don't be a jackass." He leans back on his stool and rubs at his chin for a moment with a serious expression, as if assessing Ilyna, "Yep." he continues, straightening up, "You seem qualified." His smile returns, "Look... We have no idea what we're doing, Ilyna... We're just making it up as we go as best as we can. We're no more qualified to be doing this than you are."
Ilyna chuckles at his assessment. "You weren't entirely sure?" she asks jokingly with a tilt of her head. "Anyway, yeah, I'll see how I can make that work with my studies... and talk about it with my family."
Jason nods and reaches for his drink. "Hey, gotta be sure about these things." he says with a smirk before slugging back the remaining liquid in his glass, "But yeah... That sounds fair. It's just hard keeping this whole thing above water without branching out. And branching out requires so much more work, it'll be impossible unless we hire on more people." he shrugs, "But I guess we'll just do what we have to do. Plenty of hungry mercs looking for work out here." He sighs and gives Va'ynna a quick wave, indicating he'd like a refill. "So far we've been able to be pretty strict. Everyone working for us was hand picked. I don't want to start letting the wrong people through the door."
Ilyna picks up her glass and takes a sip. "I met one of your employees here a few days ago...," she says, her tone not indicating much. "Have you had any luck finding enough people, while still being strict about it?"
Jason gives a shrug, "It's slow coming... You know how most mercs are. All that matters is the credits. That's not what we're trying to build, ya know? Our most recent recruit seems a bit iffy to me, but one of our other employees is vouching for him... So we'll see." He slides his empty glass further away from himself, "So who did you run into anyways?" he asks curiously.
Ilyna considers it for a moment. "Victoria," she answers. "She was... I don't know. I think her kind of jokes... is a little too much for me."
Va'ynna returns to the counter after getting the bottles, and refills Jason's glass with the same ratio. "Here," she says as she places the glass on the counter.
Ilyna chuckles. "She... well, she did tell me she had a passion for asari." She looks a little sheepish, not really sure if she want to go into detail.
Jason smiles at Va'ynna, "Thanks, V." he says, sliding a credit chit across the counter, "That should cover my tab. There's a bit extra on there for you. I figure I owe you a bit in back tips." Upon hearing Ilyna, he quickly rotates on his stool, "Go on." he says, his smile brightening up.
Va'ynna picks up the credit chit and charges the sum from it. "Th-thank you," she says with a smile, though looks a little conflicted; not sure what else to say.
Ilyna glances to the side for a moment, looking a little purple around the cheeks. "It...," she looks back at him. "It got a little awkward, okay?"
Jason gives Va'ynna a nod, "Don't mention it." he insists, but quickly bursts into laughter once Ilyna speaks up. "Yeah... Awkward. That seems to be her way." he says, brimming from ear to ear with a smile, "So... Exactly how awkward did it get?" he asks, playing it up by leaning an elbow against the counter, giving the asari his full attention, "Spare no details."
Ilyna sighs. "She.... I'll put it simply, she hit on me. And not subtly so," she says, trying to get away with as little as possible. She takes a long sip of her drink.
Va'ynna brings a hand up to her lips to cover a slightly amused grin, looking a little embarrased. She don't have anything she wants to add to the topic, though.
Jason looks slightly disappointed at the lack of anything incriminating. "Well, at least we know she has good taste." he says, before correcting himself, "Err... I guess that's not entirely true either. Seems like she'll take whatever she can get, really. Just managed to set her sights a bit higher this time, I guess." he teases.
Ilyna chuckles. "I did offer her a hug when I... let her down," she says, lowering her voice. "You'd probably laugh at the look on my face at what she said in return... that it was fine if we were both... without clothes and in her room. I... think she was joking, but I'm not sure."
Jason shakes his head, deadpanning the asari. "She wasn't joking." he says, "Trust me... She wasn't joking."
Va'ynna can't help but let out a giggle at what she's hearing, blushing a little. She manages to compose herself as she makes her way along the bar to serve a patron that's signalling for her.
Ilyna glances up at the other asari but looks back at Jason. "Oh...," she says. "She did say she wouldn't pursue it afterwards, but yeah, it was awkward."
Jason glances towards Va'ynna as she makes her escape, "I hear you, V!" he shouts, "Don't worry, I'll send Victoria back up here for you." he threatens, clearly joking.
Jason chuckles as he turns back to Ilyna. "She's harmless." he says, "Well... Mostly harmless anyway. I wouldn't worry about it too much. If you want, I can talk to her, though, tell her to take it down a level?"
Ilyna shakes her head. "You know me...," she says. "So, I guess it's probably not necessary. Maybe if you hear the same from someone else."
Va'ynna glances over her shoulder at his joking threat, with an expression that pretty much says 'oh no' by itself, but she gives no verbal response. She returns her gaze forward as she attends to the other patron.
Jason nods. "Yeah... Of course. I guess I just forget how capable you are when you're all dressed up like this." he says, giving the asari a quick scan from top to bottom, "No hardsuit. No weapon holstered." He shrugs, "Sorry. I'll try to remember who I'm dealing with here." he adds with a smirk.
Ilyna chuckles. "Hey, that's not what I meant," she says, "but fine. I'm not going to assault your employees. Don't worry." Her tone wasn't too serious.
Jason puts his hands up defensively. "I'm not opposed to the idea of you knocking some sense into Victoria." he chuckles, "Just leave her in well enough shape to pilot our shuttle. That's all I ask."
Ilyna tilts her head. "Hey, I'm not a violent person," she says. "I may... have done something like that back on Omega, but that's it." She looks away for a moment, before sipping her drink.
Jason raises an eyebrow. "Uh huh..." he says, not sounding too convinced, "You're not fooling anyone. I know, somewhere deep inside, the old Ilyna is just waiting for the chance to hop out and toss a fool across the room." he says. He grabs his drink and takes a large swig before adding with a smile, "You can take the asari out of Omega, but you'll never take the Omega out of the asari."
Ilyna chuckles, sipping her drink. "Maybe, but I leave my amp in my room when down here," she says, not too seriously. "I spent only a month or so on Omega, though, so there's not much Omega in me."
Jason shrugs and looks towards his drink with a nod. "Doesn't take much." he says with a dry smirk. "I went back." he adds without much context. He takes another sip of his drink before continuing, "To Omega, I mean. Thought about trying to get in touch with you, but so much time had passed... And I wasn't sure what you were up to. Didn't seem right to get you wrangled up in everything."
Ilyna frowns. "I... went back once, but... I don't want to talk about that," she says. "Anyway, what brought you back there, if I may ask?" She takes another sip of her drink.
Jason snorts loudly in contempt. "Barkan." he says, pulling his drink in close, "Went back for the batarian..."
Ilyna titls her head, looking thoughtful. "Why... does that name sound familiar?" she says. "Why... did you go after him?"
Jason continues to stare at his drink. "Blue Suns..." he says, "Bela was working for him for a while." he glances at the asari momentarily, "I didn't have much choice in the matter. There's some history between the two of us... But what matters is, Barkan got ahold of a friend of mine. I wasn't about to let anything happen to him..."
Ilyna frowns, looking a little concerned. "Did you...?" she asks, not sure how to phrase the rest of it.
Jason nods slowly. "Get there in time? Yeah... We tore his whole operation apart." he says, looking up at Ilyna with a slightly sad smile. "That batarian, though..." He shakes his head, "He just-... He has a way about him. Even when he loses, he somehow manages to win. He made it out without a scratch on him, and I lost my oldest friend that day." He breaks eye contact and looks at his glass intently, as if inspecting the contents.
Jason shrugs, "Nah... Don't be. The irony?" he offers with a short chuckle, "It wasn't even the batarian's fault." He furrows his brow and takes a quick sip of his drink before setting the glass back down on the counter. "It's a long story." he adds, implying he's not too keen on explaining any further.
Ilyna considers it for a moment. "And one you don't want to tell, I'm assuming," she says, offering a slight smile. "I won't pry any more." She sips the remainder of her drink and places the empty glass on the counter.
Va'ynna is still behind the bar, but out of earshot of the two familiar faces. She's currently not attending to any of the other patrons.
Jason nods a few times. "Appreciate it." he says. "Just been an all around shitty year." he adds, "But it seems like things might be looking up. I mean, as stressful as all this Redrock stuff is, it's good to have something going on to take my mind off-... Well, everything else. You know what I mean?"
Ilyna nods. "I think I get what you're saying," she says. "Getting home... and starting wtih the studies helped me get back... to normal after the year before last."
Jason empties the last of his drink and pushes the empty glass across to the other side of the counter. "Yeah, it helps to just stay busy." he agrees, "Eventually things slow down, though... And you just need to find a way to come to terms with everything. But I guess we can cross that bridge when we get to it." he smiles.
Ilyna returns the smile. "We will," she says. "I'm not sure what to make of that year, yet, to be honest. I don't regret leaving the military, only how. I don't miss that life."
Jason shrugs, rotating in his seat to fully face Ilyna. "You can't dwell on any of that now." he says, "What's done is done, right? Besides, you seem to be doing alright these days."
Ilyna nods "I am," she says. "In the end, I think that year was... valuable. The people I met, the good moments, what I've learned..." She smiles. "And I think the calm year on Thessia has done good, too... except for being to embarrassed to contact you, of course."
Jason 's smile widens in response, "And that's been taken care of, right?" he asks, taking on a playful threatening tone, "Or else-...?" he continues, waiting for the asari to finish his sentence.
Ilyna | "...you'll kick my ass?" she says with a chuckle, hands up in mock surrender. "Yeah, that's taken care of, I promise."
Jason gives the asari a wink, "You got it." he says, "But seriously... I'm glad to have you around. I'm sick of losing friends." he sighs, "It's a nice change of pace to get one back."
Ilyna nods. "I'm glad I contacted you," she says. "Believe me, behind that little message was days of doubting whether I should... and a few unfinished messages." She smiles sheepishly. Her omni-tool gives a repeating notification and comes to life. She supresses the sound after a glance at the interface. "Oh, I've got to get back to my room."
Jason stands from his seat with a sigh. "Yeah, that makes two of us." he says, trying to get Va'ynna's attention with a wave. "You're still gonna be on Aite for a while longer, right?" he asks.
Ilyna nods, standing up as well. "I've got three days left on the room," she says, "but I'm thinking of staying a little longer."
Va'ynna makes her way over to Jason as she notices the wave. "Anything I do for you?" she asks as she's just across the counter.
Jason smiles and pulls the asari into a hug without warning, "Great!" he says enthusiastically, giving her a squeeze, "We've still got too much to catch up on." Upon hearing Va'ynna, Jason rotates in place, maintaining the hug and rotating Ilyna as well until he's looking over her shoulder at Va'ynna. "About to head out, V. Just wanted to say my goodbyes." he says awkwardly.
Ilyna gasps as she's hugged without much notice, but wraps her arms around him. "That we do," she says with a smile. She's a little off-balance by him rotating the both of them, but manages to stand upright.
Jason releases the hug and nods to Va'ynna. "Alright, Ilyna. Send me a message when you wanna get a drink... Or grab a bite to eat. Something. Alright?"
Ilyna nods. "I will," she says, smile still there. "I can make time for it most of the day, so you could do it when you feel up for it too." She glances at her omni-tool. "I don't think I should keep my mother on hold much longer," she says before she looks towards the bartender. "I'll see you, Va'ynna."
Jason gives Ilyna a nod and takes a couple steps back, waving towards Va'ynna, "Alright... I'll see you both later." he says before turning on his heels and heading for the door.