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#Miner'sRespite – June 18, 2017
It's late evening of the 16th. There's a decent amount of people inside the Respite drinking. It's certainly not packed, but the cold doesn't seem to be keeping the drinkers out. Jason is seated in a booth near the wall with a pitcher of beer on the table in front of him, drink-in-synthetic-hand. He's dressed in his usual attire: White long-sleeved shirt, black military cargo pants and boots. His jacket is tossed aside lazily beside him.
Across from him is an olive-skinned woman with a shaved head. Burns adorn the right side of her body. She reaches for the pitcher and begins to fill the glass in her hand.
There's a slight rumbling outside, muffled through the walls, as an industrial six-wheeler truck rumbles just past the Respite and stops further up the street, and about two minutes later the doors to the bar open, but without much fanfare. It seems Vas isn't one for grand enterances as the tall man walks through it, wearing a long navy blue coat and a matching beanie. His beard seems
to have grown a little more since he began his self-inflicted exile, and his look is completed by a pair of aviator sunglasses. He heads directly to the back, hefting a duffle bag on his back a little as he walks, and takes a seat at the bar. He blends in quite well with the other patrons, obviously not wanting to draw any attention to himself. He orders a bottle of beer and sighs to
himself, just happy to be out of the cold. He thought that considering his upbringing he'd be fine with the cold, but... maybe not quite.
Jason converses with the woman for a moment before catching notice of Vasili. He raises a hand into the air in an attempt at getting his attention and waving him over.
Vasili catches the hand but waits but a moment, then he produces his credit chit for the barmaid. The timid one, if he recalls correctly, but he'd hoped by now he'd proven himself to not be a threat. Then again, with his appearance, the best he could hope for was only slight scepticism. After paying, he picks up his beer and bags and moves over to Jason, his steps carefully placed to
not make too much noise. "Privet," he says in his native tongue as he gets to the table. "I hope I am not interrupting?"
Jason has returned his attention to the woman at his table by the time Vas has arrived. "Don't you have to work tonight?" he asks with a nod towards the beer in her hand. A smug grin crosses his face, as if to say 'gotcha!'
Jessica frowns as she sets the pitcher back down once her glass is filled. "Is my day off!" she says defensively. "You are not even knowing when your own people work? You are shit at your job." she sighs.
Jason rolls his eyes. As Vas makes his appearance, he leans forward, shoo'ing Jessica off. "Alright, whatever. Just go drink somewhere else." he says dismissively, though it's pretty clear by their tone that it's just some fun ribbing rather than an actual argument. "Seriously. I've got business to handle, Jess." he explains, gesturing to Vasili. "No, not at all, Vas. She was just leaving." he says pointedly, with a glance back
Jessica pouts for a moment, but complies. She rises from her seat, beer-in-hand, and steps aside. "Whatever." she mutters to herself before looking to Vasili. "Careful. He is in a little bitch mood tonight." she informs the new arrival before looking back to Jason with a grin.
Vasili lets out a small, deep chuckle. "I am used to bitch moods. You should see roommate," he says before Jess leaves the pair. He slips into her freshly vacated seat and puts his duffel down, and judging by the dull wump of a sound it makes as it's let go, it must hold all of his worldly posessions. "Jason," he says before lifting his bottle. "You must not hear this often, but it is
good to see you." It seems he's testing the waters, seeing what level of banter Jason would be comfortable with.
Jason deadpans Vasili. "Not you, too, Vas." he groans. Something seems to occur to Jason and he looks to Jessica once more, who has only gotten a few steps away by this point. "Bring the glass back, you asshole! I didn't say you could make off with my beer!" he calls out to her, seemingly little worry about who may be offended by his language.
Jessica stops in place and lets out a deep sigh before turning back around. "Fiiiine." she growls, returning to the side of the table. Rather than just setting the beer down, however, she first slugs it back, chugging the entire glass much to Jason's frustration. Once finished, she wipes at her mouth with the sleeve of her jacket and slams the glass down. "There. You are welcome." she says, seemingly pleased with herself as she
Jason merely shakes his head at her antics, though he's unable to suppress a smirk for too long, implying he may not be in quite as bad of a mood as suggested. "I'm sorry about that, Vas. Employee. It's been a-..." he sucks in a breath as he leans back in his seat, "...Long day."
Vasili smirks and chuckles again at Jason's reaction, then once again at the interaction between the two. "I can see this," he says before taking a swig from his bottle. "But it is not a problem. You should see the friend I have been staying with, she can be a handful, I am used to this by now." He looks to Jessica as leaves once again, then back to Jason. "It is good to be back in
civilisation," he finally says after a brief pause. "Life is boring in the frontier without work to do. Just tinkering and studying... it was boring." He looks from his bottle to Jason, a man he thinks is getting closer to being more a friend than acquaintance. "I have good news about my situation, which is why I am back."
Jason rests his hand against his own glass as he listens to Vasili speak. "Good news is always-... good." he says, ever the wordsmith. Clearing his throat to cover up his inelegance, he briefly takes a sip from his drink. "Were you able to find a connection between the Dunkirk's crew listing and the people giving you trouble...?" he asks, hopeful that the small amount of intel he was able to provide may have been helpful.
Vasili looks over his bottle for a few moments, possibly translating what he knew into English. "Not much, but yes," he finally says. "We have found that it is a high ranking officer on board. We only have a partial crew roster, these things are not easy to get, and I've been reading through it. Nothing jumps out," he says before putting his bottle down before leaning forward. "But my
contact is combing through datamined files still. There is reference to an O'Brien, perhaps a member we did not get information on. If he is high ranking, this is the only one so far who may be after me." He sits back again and smirks. "But it is not certain. The good new is that the people he paid to get to me will not be coming for some time," he adds. "Apparently the money was frozen
mid-transfer by authorities watching them, but also because of a territory dispute with other mercenaries. They will be busy for a time."
Jason gives a couple of nods, his gaze briefly moving to his drink. "That buys you some time, but it won't last forever, Vas. What about Commander McDougal?" he asks, looking back to Vasili once more. "The Alliance wouldn't be down with one of their own going out and hiring a group of cleaners to handle some personal vendetta of his. Everything I could pull up seemed to imply McDougal is on the level. If you can dig up some
information on this 'O'Brien'-... some real evidence..." he pauses, giving a quick shrug of his shoulders, "...It could be enough for the Alliance to launch an investigation. Keep those frozen assets frozen until O'Brien is in a cell. Mercenaries don't work for free..." He rests a hand against the table. It's a longshot, but it's a chance to resolve things without bloodshed finding its way to Freedom Falls once again.
Vasili nods slowly as Jason speaks, then looks him in the eye again. "This would be good, but it will take time," he says in a quiet tone. "We are working on this, but the territory war and frozen assets gives me lots of time, time I will not take for granted." He looks over the label of the beer, taking note so he can order it again. Its really not bad for local stuff. "So, for now,
I am back. I can fly again and I can continue to work on pet projects. This just leaves my income." He puts the bottle down and looks to Jason. "Would Redrock be looking for a recon expert, pilot, or drone operator any time soon?" he asks with a raised eyebrow. "I'm tired of contract work. Would be nice to have colleagues for longer than a month."
Jason cracks a lopsided smirk. So that was the reason for the meeting. Job hunting. "You sly dog. Making me think shit was about to hit the fan when all you really wanted was a job." he says. In jest, of course. "Unfortunately we've already got as many pilots as we've got equipment that requires pilots." he explains with a snicker. Glancing back to the table, he slowly taps his synthetic fingers against it, producing and
unnatural click. He falls silent for a moment as he attempts to search for an excuse to give the man a job. Maybe they don't know each other too well, but there was something about Vasili. Something honest. And it showed through. "However..." he finally continues, "...We did recently decide to branch out a bit. Running cargo to and from Council space. Means one of our pilots can be out-of-action for long stretches..."
Vasili gives another chuckle. "Njet, but I saw an oppurtunity to ask, so here we are." He pauses and nods slightly, putting his thoughts to words. "It is always good to have a backup pilot and ship," he says with a smirk before giving his beer another swig. "I can pilot other ships as well if your other pilots are not available for cargo work. If a pilot is not needed at all, I have
other skills to offer. Eyes wherever you need them, ground-side recon... I can even do engineering work. Plumbing, electrical work, construction, among other things." He puts his beer down and smiles an honest smile. "I can help. Well, as long as you do not ask me to cook."
Jason snickers at Vasili's final comment. "Well, shit. Guess the kitchen is gonna be closed for a little longer." he jokes. He leans forward, setting his drink back down and resting both forearms against the table. "Can you handle a weapon?" he asks. "I mean, don't get me wrong. That's an impressive set of skills you've got. But, unfortunately, we're not really in the business of installing lights or building bridges. It's always
nice to have somebody on-hand who knows how to pick up the pieces when things go wrong back at the agency, but we've already got a damn good engineer so I've got to consider whether or not I'll be able to put you to work in the day-to-day rotation. As it stands, we rely on security contracts around town to keep our overhead low. Keeps everyone paid." he explains. "It's nothing dangerous, but I need to know you'd be able to
Vasili chuckles with Jason about the first bit. "Unless you like toast," he finally adds before things get serious. "Da, I can handle weapon. I have training in assault rifles and personal defence submachine guns, and I can also operate offense UAVs of many sizes," he says, listing off his resume. "I can work and fight on both the ground and the air, in my former line of work, you
either do both or die. I am not in the business of dying." He sits back in his chair and sighs a little. "I have a few designs bought from friends and... other sources, if I can build them, I can provide equipment to support people with positive FOF tags. Shield boosters, this kind of thing. "
Jason gives a nod in turn. "Well, we've got a pretty well equipped garage. Can't guarantee we'll have everything you need but, at the very least? We can probably get our hands on most of it." He gives a glance towards a patron that enters the bar and waves in their direction. Jason raises his drink in return. When you spend so much time in a place, it's only natural for the regulars to come to know you. He doesn't let it
distract him for too long, however, and quickly returns his attention to Vasili. "Alright, I'm gonna go out on a limb here and guess you don't exactly have the paperwork to back up said training?" he asks through a smirk. Given everything he knows about the man, it seems more likely that they're talents aquired through need rather than through any sort of official training. "So how about you drop by the Agency sometime this
week? I'll set you up on the range and you can show me what you can do. If I can fit you into the security rotation, I can't see any reason not to welcome you onboard." Given the need to up the security at the Respite recently, more hands on deck was definitely needed, too.
Vasili nods firmly and with a growing smile, thankful for the oppurtunity presented to him. "Very well," he says, opening his omnitool and pulling up his calender. "I am available whenever, let me know when is best for you, yes?" he asks, making a note of it, then closing again. He'd just shift it to a better day when Jason lets him know. "I will bring some of my 'toys' as well, show
you I can do with them. This is okay as well, yes?" He picks up his beer again and lifts it a little. "I am looking forward to it. I will say, I am getting excited by this oppurtunity, Jason. It is a fresh start for me, one I will not take for granted."
Jason's smirk grows a bit and he gives a nod. "Sure. Wouldn't mind seeing what those things can do myself." he admits. "As for when? Give me a few days. Like I said. Long day. One of my people were attacked today-..." he puts a hand up, waving off any concerns, "He's fine but, you know, have a few things to handle in the aftermath. And I've got family arriving for the wedding... more wedding planning...." he trails off, deciding
to take a long draw from his drink rather than continue to list the many hurdles he has to jump. As he sets his glass back down he looks back across to Vasili, forcing a smile back into place to hide the strain and exhaustion. "Busy times. But drop me a message in a few days and I'll see what I can do, alright?"
Vasili smirks and gives a small huff of amusement before giving him a small wave. "Of course, of course," he says, his accent thick as ever. "Planning weddings... I am a man of many talents, but this is something I do not ever want to be a part of. I can fly through tight canyons, but planning weddings would be too stressful." He taps his bottle against Jason's glass gently before
speaking again. "And congradulations again, if I have not said before." He settles back and looks around the room, lifting a gloved hand to scratch at his bushy beard. "In the mean time... I shall go about getting accomodation again, see who is still around..." He pulls his attention back to Jason. "Do you know if the janitor Quarian is still here? I have oil stain in flight suit that
Jason's smile grows as Vasili speaks. Truth be told, planning a wedding is the last thing he wants to be doing, too. But he can't just put that all on Vasquez. "Appreciate it." he says in regard to the congratulations as his glass clangs against Vasili's bottle. As is custom, he takes a large swig of his drink after the cheers. "Me and Linda have been to hell and back these past few years. I know a ring doesn't really change
anything but-..." his gaze lowers momentarily and a legitimate flash of happiness shines through his smile as he gives a shake of his head, "...I don't know. Just feels nice to make the whole thing official, you know?" He gives a quick glance around for the aforementioned quarian before giving a shrug, "As for quarian janitors? You might have better luck asking Va'ynna."
Vasili can't help but smile back. It was nice to see such happiness every once in a while, he didn't get to see much of it with his line of work. "Here's to many happy years for the pair of you," he says before swigging his beer. "I am sure they will be filled with more happiness... and probably more wading through hell. Especially if you decide to have kids, oy..." he mutters something
in Russian while rolling his eyes before taking another swig. "But this is a discussion for a different time with a different person. In the mean time, I am happy for you, chuvak." He goes to say something else, but a sudden clatter of buckets emenates from Shyva's janitor closet, and out stumbles the quarian, chasing a run-away can of disinfectant. "...and that answers one question,"
Jason lowers his gaze once more at the mention of kids and his smile begins to waver. Vasquez' pregnancy is constantly at the forefront of his mind and all of the complications that come with it. As the man said, though, a discussion for a different time. And at that, he props back up that smirk-shaped mask he so often wears when his mind wanders. The commotion is a welcome interruption and Jason cranes his neck to see what's
going on. "Mystery solved." he chimes in before finishing the contents of his glass and setting it back down on the table and pouring himself a refill from the pitcher.
Vasili chuckles and swigs his beer once again before taking off his beanie, revealing a close, number 2 shave, a distinct clash from his old, longer style and his current beard. "Is good to be back..." he fainlly says after a small silence. "To be among normal people, people I may consider friends. The friend I was staying with is..." he lets out a single, small laugh. "She is nice
person, but not normal. Perhaps a screw or two loose, if that is the right expression." He picks up his beer once again and downs the rest of it before placing the bottle back on the table. "Are you having a busy night tonight, Wolfe?" he asks. "Perhaps I shouldn't keep you?"
Jason snickers at Vasili's description of his friend. "Nah. It's too late to be productive tonight." he says. Not that his usual daily workload- which mostly consists of watching videos of varrens doing tricks on the extranet- would be considered productive by most people. "And I should probably warn you... If steering clear of lunatics is the goal, then I'm not sure Redrock is the right fit for you, Vas." he teases as he
finishes refilling his glass and sets the pitcher aside. "I'm not sure a sane person can do what we do." he continues, "But we've got a good team." He tilts his head to the side and gives a glance at the glass left behind by Jessica. "...Most of them." he decides through a smirk.
Vasili can't help but let out another chuckle. "Oh no no, you misunderstand," he says, his hand on the neck of his beer and spinning it slowly. "If I wanted to steer clear of crazies, I would not have put my saftey in the hands of one by staying with them in the middle of nowhere." He shakes his head smirks. "No, my life has revolved around crazies. Lunatics, sociopaths, psychopaths,
I've worked with them all. The people here? They are considered normal by my standards." He looks around the room fondly as he speaks before turning his attention back. "I have seen many of your crew in this bar when I lived here. They are a good bunch, they do not cause trouble. I like this about them." He leans in a little, a little more level headed. "And I am used to doing things
Jason gives a few nods, an undeniable feeling of pride bubbling up at the compliment towards his people. "They are a good bunch." he agrees, leaving it at that for the moment as he takes another long sip from his drink. He considers for a moment asking about these 'things' Vasili has had to do, but decides against it. He certainly has his own fair share of skeletons in closets. Besides, there's no reason to sour the mood.
"So..." he continues, sitting back once again and changing the subject as he cradles his drink in his hand, "...How'd you manage to get by 'out there' anyway?" he asks, nodding arbitrarily towards the door. "Can't imagine it was too fun with this weather..."
Vasili shakes his head slowly. "I am used to cold. It is in my genes," he says, not needing to mention where exactly he was from. "But this is a new kind of cold. Alien cold. But, the person I was with has good heating. Her home is well maintained." He looks at his bottle again as he speaks. "She is crazy, yes, but she is very smart. Demolitions expert, a fellow contractor I met on
the job. She understands how a building works, mostly so she can knock it down." He looks back up to Jason. "She worked, brought in food, I helped out where I could. She was happy enough with the company and not having to fix whatever broke down. That was usually my job." He can't help but shrug. "She is a good friend, but I cannot live out in the wildnerness like she can. She has her...
Jason gives a few nods as he listens. "I feel ya. Fuck the wilderness." he says, taking another sip from his drink in solidarity. "Had a job go sideways a few weeks back. It was out on Rakhana. That's the drell homeworld." he explains with a confident nod as if he might be telling Vasili something he doesn't know. "Client turned on us. Things got ugly. Found ourselves stranded in the desert for nearly a week." He sighs and gives
a shake of his head, "You put an enemy in front of me? I'll figure it out. That's simple, right? That's a problem I can solve. But... but that?" he gives a shake of his head. "Worrying about where the next meal might come from? Wildlife? Shelter? The elements?" He gives a quick glance around the Respite before patting a hand against the table. "If that life works for your friend? More power to her. But I'm good right where
Vasili "You and I both," Vas says with a returning nod. "I had never heard of Rakhana, nor have I ever met a Drell. Heard many things, however, good things. They are a skilled people." And that's just about the extent of what he knows about them. "And that kissing one can make you high. An interesting biology." He looks around the bar as Jason mentions the desert, glad he never ended
up there. "I have never been in a desert, but I do not think I would enjoy. Too hot. I do not like too hot." He says, putting it simply. "I am glad you made it out. How did you manage?"
Jason considers the question for a moment. "Remained calm and kept my team together. Used my charm to win over the locals." he gives a wide smile. Perhaps the beer is beginning to get to him. "My wits to find us some solid shelter. My-... my outdoorsman....ship-... Is that a word?" he asks, narrowing his eyes, though he doesn't wait for a response, "...My rugged outdoorsmanship to find us some food. You know. I'm kind of
awesome." After a moment he snorts and lets out a long, drawn out sigh. "In other words, Linda swooped in and saved all of our asses. Seems to be a recurring theme in this relationship of ours." he says.
Vasili 's eyebrow slowly raises throughout his entire story, but then at the end, he lightens up, both eyebrow raising and a small huff leaving his nostrils. "And there it is," he says, stretching his fingers out. "I did not believe the story until end. Now? Much more believable." He scratches his beard gently in thought for a moment. "She is impressive woman. Your fiance, yes?" he
asks, not knowing Jason all too well. "Forgive me if I am wrong. Anyway, she is impressive. Sounds like a perfect match, perhaps now you will grow to an old age and retire, eh?"
Jason snickers along and nods to the first question. "She... is an impressive woman." he agrees. Grow old and retire. For people in their line of work, that may as well be a fantasy. It's a miracle either of them have survived as long as they have. But, as is his nature, Jason props his lopsided smirk right back up as he realizes his mind wandering to those places. "That's the plan." His attention is pulled to the window as the
snow starts to come down again and he takes another sip of his drink. "How about you? There a Miss Vas somewhere around town?"
Vasili looks back to his empty bottle as Jason speaks, thumb moving over the label, gently pulling at the condensation soaked thing. "No." Is his answer, quick and simple, to that last question. "There is not." He looks back up again and shrugs. "I have not had time to find companionship. For now it would not be a good idea anyway. I would not want to subject someone special to me to
whatever's coming my way, if I can not stop it coming," he says, simply enough. "I am in no rush to find companionship. Its just a luxury I can not afford."
Jason's smirk slowly fades and he gives an understanding nod. "...Yeah. I get that..." he says with a sigh, suddenly reminded of the trouble nipping at Vasili's heels and the potential collateral damage accompanying it. "Just.... keep doing what you're doing, Vas. Dig up whatever you can on this 'O'Brien' guy. I may not have much pull with the Alliance, but I can make sure whatever you find gets to Commander McDougal." He takes
another sip of his drink and then pauses, studying his glass for a moment. "...And if worse comes to worst? Well, if these people are as bad as you say they are, the last thing I want is them finding their way into Freedom Falls... If all else fails then we hit them before they hit you. Simple as that."
"If worse comes to worst," Vasili says, raising a correcting finger. "I will find my way off planet and make sure they follow. I do not want to put your men and women in danger on my behalf. If any of your people are to die, I would find it very hard to sleep at night." He gives a long sigh before shaking his head. "Jason, I am growing to find you as a friend. I do not have many friends,
and the ones I have, should not die for me." He looks from his beer and looks Jason in the eye. "Nobody should be willing to fight and die in a fight that is not theirs. I have seen it too often."
Jason furrows his brow as he studies Vasili. "Freedom Falls is your home, Vas. This is where you chose to start a new life. Hell, half the people in Redrock are out here to 'start a new life'." he explains. "I would be a hypocrite to believe they deserve the opportunity but not you. When we decided to come out here? Me and Linda? To make this the place we were going to call home? We did it with the intention of building
something good. Something safe." He brings his legs up onto the booth, putting his back against the wall as he looks out across the Respite, drink cradled on his lap. "Keep up your investigation, Vas. But if it comes down to it-..." he continues before clarifying, "If there's a threat to Freedom Falls? That is my fight. That is Redrock's fight." Truth be told, it isn't about Vas. Or Redrock. Or even Jason. It's that
nagging fear in the back of his mind that he might be unable to protect the child that he and Vasquez are bringing into this world. But that's an issue he's far from ready to face. "Besides. I'm terrible at dying." he jokes, casting a smirk Vasili's way, "Trust me. Plenty of people have tried. Damndest thing. It just never seems to take."
Vasili stares at the table while he listens to Jason's words and lets out one long heavy sigh after he was finished. "If I can leave here before they arrive, there will be no threat to Freedom Falls," he starts, then looks back up at the man across from him. Such tenacity and pride in his home, claiming to be a shield from the forces that would do harm. It was admirable. "If I can't
in time..." He considers his next words very carefully, pausing for a few moments before speaking again. "Then I suppose I will have no choice on if you fight or not. I will do everything in my power to stop them from arriving at this city, even if it means going into debt for the rest of my life in exchange for exceptionally expensive ordinance." His hand tightens around his bottle.
"I will not put your city in jeopardy. You have my word." At the last comment, he's tempted to make a pass at Jason's arms and a joke about how they almost did, but he feels its innapropriate.
Jason gives a single, stern nod. "Do what you can, Vas." he says, deciding little else needs to be said on the matter. He falls silent as he simply watches the room. After a few moments, he gestures towards the empty glass left behind by Jessica. "Alright. Enough depressing bullshit for one night. Pour yourself a glass. Just... you might wanna wipe the glass down first." he teases, Vasili's empty bottle not having gone unnoticed.
Vasili picks up the glass and looks it over before looking at Jason. He promptly slides out of the booth, returns to the bar, then comes back with a clean glass. "I am not going to risk," he says as he puts the glass down beside the pitcher, then fills it up. "I do not know this lady, but from what you say..." He pulls a 'yeesh' face before letting out a light chuckle. "Enough depressing