Ilyna gives a brief, smug smile at the unsubtle change of topic; silently claiming the victory. Her smile does get more genuine when the stalling ends and he gets back on topic. "I'm glad I built up the courage to contact you again, Jason," she says in barely above a whisper. "I didn't expect I'd be fighting with you again when I wrote that message, though."
#RedrockAgency – September 1, 2019
Jason's gaze turns to the hand on his knee and he places his free hand over it but Ilyna's words cause him to look back her way. "You and me, both." he expresses in response to her first sentiment, smile spreading a bit further across his features, though it slips back a hair as she continues, causing him to draw in a breath. "Yeah..." he says softly. Seems like fighting is all they've done over this past year. "Kinda feels like
there's been a..." he interrupts himself with an exasperated little snicker and a shake of his head, "...black cloud following us around, huh?" he asks. "Ever since the-... uhh-..." he swallows, fighting off that tightness in his throat that seems to occur anytime the name comes to him, "...the Evening Star." Just saying it aloud causes him to turn his attention back to Vasquez, studying her face. Truthfully, the cloud
that hung over him manifested long before that. But the Evening Star was different. It changed-... well, everything. Nobody involved was the same after they returned. That is, those that returned at all. But that's not why he brought it up. He brought it up because, at some point over the past week, that name lost a little bit of the power it had over him and the shivver that ran up his spine any time he thought of it
felt a little less sharp. "But the Collectors are finally gone." The thought causes his blue eyes to turn back to the glass in his hand, studying it in distant thought for a moment before giving another shake of his head and bringing it to his lips for a sip. "So-... so it might be time for us to start working on putting all of that behind us." he continues, gaze once more turning to Vasquez as his thoughts return to the
Vasquez ' smile wavers as Jason names the start of their shared nightmare, her gaze falling away for a moment as she swallows, but as he continues she looks back to him with a nod, drawing in a long breath and reminding herself that it's over. That they can finally move forward. "Yes." she agrees, looking Ilyna's way. "We've lived long enough in that shadow. Between the end of the Collector threat and..." Her gaze falls down and a
smile crosses her lips as her other hand crosses her belly with a little shrug. "...well, our new circumstances..." she decides, looking back to the asari. She's unable to keep that smile from tugging at the corners of her mouth even as she goes into business-mode. "...it's gonna be time for change. For us and for Redrock. We can't keep going like we have, barely scraping by job to job, taking whatever we can find, half
our team injured or-... or worse." A brief pause, the last traces of the smile slipping away as she takes a breath. "We can't afford to be reckless anymore. It's time to... stabilize. Proper training. Restructuring. New equipment. Stronger branding. Better client vetting. No high-risk off-world gambles. Prioritizing reliable, local contracts." she lists off - from her tone of her voice it's obvious that this is something
Ilyna frowns as the evening star is brought up. What a start to her mercenary career that was. Was it not for its consequences bringing them together, it would most likely have been the end of her career as well. But Jason was right, the Collectors went from the biggest threat to their future to nothing so fast that it was difficult to believe. She listens in silence to their plans for the agency. With the
recent unauthorized mission and them still being enemies with the people that defeated the Collectors, it may not be as easy. However, without the Collectors, these goals seem actually achiavable. Ilyna returns the smile when Vasquez mention their similar circumstances, and does cast a quick glance at the doorway. "I have told Jason that we needed proper training for our employees before, but... we did not
have the time for that then," she says, looking at Vasquez. She leaves out what made the time limited, however, as this was in the wake of their losses on the Di Yu mission. "But now we do."
Jason gives a few small nods as Vasquez begins to run through their plans. He's unable to fight the smirk tugging at his lips when her hand turns to her belly. He holds her gaze up until Ilyna speaks up again, pulling his attention her way. The asari's garner another nod from him, this one a bit more firm. "Yeah..." he draws in a breath, giving Vasquez' hand a gentle squeeze, "...Nothing but time..." he agrees softly. The thought
causes him to draw in a deep breath. "Time to start doing things right. We've got families to think about now." His gaze once more slips over to Vasquez. "Kids to raise." That still hasn't quite set in yet, causing him to pull in another breath and give a shake of his head, culminating in a nervous snicker. "We're gonna have enough to worry about with our little monster, you've got Li, and, hell, raising Tarkus takes a whole
village." he muses, slipping some humor in to try and shake loose the terror that still tugs at him every time he considers the fact that he's about to be a father. "Time to start taking care of ourselves... I-.. uhh-... I think we've earned it..." he settles on, the words soft, weighed down by the heaviness of the past few years.
Vasquez ' gaze goes Jason's way, and her smile returns as she listens to him, nodding softly in agreement with his words, thumb still stroking gently back and forth. The mention of Tarkus elicits an exasperated snort, but as he continues she nods. "We have." she says quietly, seeking Jason's gaze to reinforce her words, the vulnerability she was during their honeymoon fresh in her mind. She swallows before turning her attention
back to Ilyna. "You've been going out there for Redrock, because we needed you, even though I know that's not what you've wanted. You want to be here, with Li. You've made that clear. And... you're right. And it's my hope that we can make that a reality. Get Redrock to a stable enough point that you don't have to go in the field." she explains. She hesitates for a moment before speaking again. "We've, uh... we've also been
talking about-..." She glances back towards Jason as if seeking confirmation that he's alright with sharing this, giving his knee a squeeze as she does. "Well, you obviously know that I've taken a step back from field work, and... once we have everything sorted, we... both feel the time might be coming for Jason to do the same." she says softly, unable to suppress the small, relieved smile that accompanies those words.
Ilyna listens to the other two speak, looking down at her glass in thought. There's a small smile at the mention of their little monster, followed by a look of understanding as she recalls being around for her two little sisters' first years. The joke at Tarkus' expense does cause a soft laugh before she looks up Vasquez as she's addressed. "We have earned that," she says after Vasquez finishes speaking. "And
with our change of focus, I don't think anyone would disagree with us stepping down." She lets out a small sigh as she goes back to the earlier topic. "And Li, she... after everything, the last thing I want for her is to worry about when... or worse, if I'm coming home." She takes a quiet, but deep breath as the thought of that causes a lump to form in her throat. "And I'm sure your 'little monster' will
appreciate having both of you, because,...." She then looks at Jason with a small grin, "Jason needs to be there to undermine your important efforts to instill proper discipline and nutrition."
Jason remains silent as Vasquez reveals their plans for him to take a more hands-off role. The thought digs a hole into the pit into his stomach. He's defined himself as a soldier for so much of his life. It's what he knows. What he's good at. Take it away and what's left? Disappointing son and nephew? Failed fiance? Let down of a husband? Drunk? Will 'deadbeat father' be added to that list soon? Maybe it runs in his blood... He
pushes those thoughts aside. Tonight isn't the night to let those insecurities get the best of him. And the sense of relief that Vasquez seems to get from the thought of him taking a less active role in field work- written plain as day across her face- helps to calm his nerves. Helps to remind him that it's a sacrifice worth making. Ilyna's additional comment prompts a snort, his smirk resurfacing in full effect. "We're
hoping that when that time comes..." he gives a small, unassuming tilt of his head, "...the three of us won't even be needed out there anymore." he finally agrees, holding Vasquez' gaze for a moment as if to reinforce that he believes that this is the right call. It is the right call. Even if it scares the ever loving hell out of him, he knows that much. It's the only road that leads to him living long enough to be a part
of his child's life. He exhales any worries picking at him as he turns his attention back to Ilyna. "If we stick to contract work-... no more of this one-sided, 'Go out there and get our asses shot off for someone else' bullshit-... Just security. Maybe even-..." he shoots a brief glance back Vasquez' way, clearly out of his element when it comes to talking business plans. She's the brains. The one who knows what's feasible.
What's realistic. "...I mean, we talked about maybe even leaning a bit heavier into cargo hauling. We've got the Siren and some shipping contracts, you know? Might be able to branch out a bit. Save a few credits by providing our own security and-... hell, I spent half my life on a ship, so I could train the security teams myself." he muses in a bit of a ramble before realizing he might be getting a little lost in the details
and reigning himself in with a slightly embarrassed snicker, head lulling back to rest against the wall. "Sorry, I just-... what I'm trying to say is we've got plans, Ilyna. Ones that don't involve putting ourselves through the meat grinder again, and again, and again. And you and Li are a part of these plans so-... so yeah." he gives a small nod. "It's gonna take a lot of hard work for all of us, but-..." his gaze settles
on Vasquez once more, smile softening as he gives her hand another squeeze, "...I think we've got all the motivation we need to make it happen."
Vasquez lets out a quiet snicker at Ilyna's final comment, but as Jason speaks her attention turns to him, her expression a careful one, concious of the fact that this change is a difficult one for him. She sucks in her lips slightly as he holds her gaze, offering a supportive nod and a brief flash of a smile. As he starts getting into specifics she can't help but smirk, and interject a "We'll get the details figured out later."
She's not prepared to give up all one-off jobs. That would be a betrayal of what Redrock was supposed to be. And although the Siren's Call has shown its value there's still some discomfort that lingers over the nominally reformed pirate crew. But there'll be plenty of time to figure those things out. As he finishes she shifts her hand to return the squeeze, nodding again. "We do. And we will." she agrees, glancing back
towards Ilyna with a smile. Discussing this with someone else makes it feel more real, and combined with patching things up with Ilyna it's a weight off her shoulders.
Ilyna listens to the two of them make plans with a small smile. They have had time to step back and think, which shows in the lopsided contribution to the plans. She nods as Vasquez closes the discussion of the specifics, and drinks the remainder of her drink. "We will," she repeats in agreement. Ilyna reaches out to take the bottle from Jason's side with an effortless biotic field instead of leaning forward to
take it. "I hope your plans also involve me and Li getting a vacation too," she says with a more light-hearted tone while pouring her glass. "After the Cree-...Christmas celebrations, of course."
Jason gives a small, slightly-embarrassed snicker as Vasquez gets out ahead of his aimless rambling. He watches as the bottle is plucked away in a small flash of blue and another snort erupts from him at Ilyna's comment. "Pretty sure we can swing that." he says, looking to Vasquez for confirmation. Despite whatever concerns he may have over their future- whatever worries- there's no denying that there's a certain excitement that
comes along with discussing it. A hopefulness that had been absent previously, buried beneath the laundry list of worries and threats that seemed to constantly follow them around. That Collector-shaped bomb that was slowly ticking down has been defused. "This stuff, by the way?" he continues, lifting the glass up for Vasquez to see, "Tastes like ass." A man of refined taste. "Expensive ass, but ass." He takes another sip
of the expensive ass and makes a face as if to prove his point, suddenly questioning his decision to go through the effort of ordering a couple of extra bottles with dinner back in Adrasteia (since Cross was footing the bill, of course) just to tuck away in his duffelbag. "Special occasion expensive ass..." he corrects which causes him to looks to the glass with renewed appreciation and take another quick sip.
Vasquez nods in agreement with Jason. "You've sure as hell earned it. I'll make sure it happens." she promises with a small smile to Ilyna. Jason's assessment of his drink causes a raised eyebrow and a hint of amusement as she glances his way. "...glad to know I'm not missing out?" she says questioningly, shaking her head slightly before looking back to Ilyna. "It'll be good to have you and Li over for Christmas." she says,
sincerely now, after the air has been cleared. "That girl deserves a chance to be spoiled for a bit..."
Ilyna shakes her head at Jason's admitted lack of proper taste, mock judgement written across her face. It fades the moment Vasquez affirms that she'll get her vacation, giving way to a smile. Though, that means she needs to figure out how make the most of that time, but problems like this reminds her of the time back on Thessia before Di Yu. The thought of spoiling Li does bring back the earlier concerns, but