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[ Technically four days was longer than even he'd meant to take on it when he'd asked for time in the first place, and he threw himself into trying to actually prove that he could fix something, anything, just to see if it could happen. In doing so, he apparently totally missed that one of the Immune was abducted and hauled off, nobody but another Immune came to tell him about it, and then this conversation happened.
Immediately after it's over, he sends her a text. Technically it's in an old, like. 'Historical' old military cipher, part because it's the sort a machine wouldn't even look at and part just. Alpha likes to have fun sometimes, and she's probably one of a handful of people who will know what it means. The nine year old in him still perpetually stuck in history class is quietly pleased about the idea of sending real coded messages to Hob Ravani and yes, it's going to take a long time for him to stop saying her name in italics in his head, probably. At least completely.
Anyway, broken down, all the message says is ]
i'm in.
Immediately after it's over, he sends her a text. Technically it's in an old, like. 'Historical' old military cipher, part because it's the sort a machine wouldn't even look at and part just. Alpha likes to have fun sometimes, and she's probably one of a handful of people who will know what it means. The nine year old in him still perpetually stuck in history class is quietly pleased about the idea of sending real coded messages to Hob Ravani and yes, it's going to take a long time for him to stop saying her name in italics in his head, probably. At least completely.
Anyway, broken down, all the message says is ]
i'm in.
Alpha and Tony Stark told me to talk to you. Separately.
I want a job.
I want a job.
[ True to the Commander's order, Shepard arrived in her best, which was to say, a collared, button-down white shirt, pressed crisp with black slacks. She had to borrow clothes, on account of not arriving with her own personal military dress. Arriving fifteen minutes before 0830, she stood at attention. They were both commanders, sure, but Shepard was not a Callsign, nor was she a native of this place.
Those two advantages were reasons to be respectable. She didn't know what would happen from this, but running and hiding never was her style. ]
Those two advantages were reasons to be respectable. She didn't know what would happen from this, but running and hiding never was her style. ]
Hob sat behind her desk, the severed leg lamp behind her left shoulder. Today it wore a red beret at a jaunty angle. She stared at Shepherd from across her desk, leaning back in her chair. Smoke curled lazily from the cigarette between her lips.
"At ease," she finally said. "So. What's your fuckin' excuse for that shit show at the Hub?"
"At ease," she finally said. "So. What's your fuckin' excuse for that shit show at the Hub?"
Alright, so it took her mind a moment to parse that was a severed leg lamp. Both her brows rose minutely, but she kept from commenting on how it was macabrely familiar. Maybe it was her own personal way of displaying one of those ashes of problem student type of decorations.
She couldn't judge, however. She had a screaming husk head in her loft.
Easing, her shoulders spaced back a little, too used to standing at attention to really relax. "I wanted answers, and was compelled enough to do something about it." She wouldn't shy away from calling it reckless, and that was being politically correct. "I was not unaffected by what they're calling the Thanos Virus. But to say it wasn't of my own initiative would be lying." she never could lie well, anyway.
She couldn't judge, however. She had a screaming husk head in her loft.
Easing, her shoulders spaced back a little, too used to standing at attention to really relax. "I wanted answers, and was compelled enough to do something about it." She wouldn't shy away from calling it reckless, and that was being politically correct. "I was not unaffected by what they're calling the Thanos Virus. But to say it wasn't of my own initiative would be lying." she never could lie well, anyway.
"That we do," she did agree on that, many of the things here she wasn't entirely sure were truths at all. But if she kept on that line of thought, she'd become unhealthily paranoid.
"There's not much context I could use to piece together what I saw." Her recollection was clear, however, and she gave as concise an answer as she dared. "Props for the holidays, a projector VI, and a calendar. Haptic interface, binary. Spotless. Not somewhere you would find someone. Overall, underwhelming."
Her eyes couldn't help but settle on the leg lamp again. She knew it looked familiar, and it suddenly dawned on her.
"There's not much context I could use to piece together what I saw." Her recollection was clear, however, and she gave as concise an answer as she dared. "Props for the holidays, a projector VI, and a calendar. Haptic interface, binary. Spotless. Not somewhere you would find someone. Overall, underwhelming."
Her eyes couldn't help but settle on the leg lamp again. She knew it looked familiar, and it suddenly dawned on her.
"Approach from a different angle," which would make sense to anyone with two braincells to rub together. Commander Ravani wasn't here because she charmed her way up here. "There are still any number of possibilities, not enough to narrow down to a conclusion. More data is necessary."
She wondered if Mal knew his leg was up here. How was it avoiding decay? Perhaps she'd had it properly embalmed. The fact she was nonchalant about that kind of worried her.
"...There was a human film, back in the 20th century, which had a leg lamp in it. Is there something similar here in Sanctum?"
She wondered if Mal knew his leg was up here. How was it avoiding decay? Perhaps she'd had it properly embalmed. The fact she was nonchalant about that kind of worried her.
"...There was a human film, back in the 20th century, which had a leg lamp in it. Is there something similar here in Sanctum?"
"If you want something done right, you've got to do it yourself, sometimes."
One brow lowered at the offer to take a closer look, but her curiosity was stronger than her restraint in this respect, and she nodded, craning her head to look as she approached.
The moment she realizes it's not full of gore or, in fact, a human leg, she straightens and fights back the urge to chuckle. And here, she'd been convinced that anyone involved with Bifrons was potentially evil reincarnate. She had come here, herself to see what Commander Ravani was like, and she was not entirely convinced she had sold her soul to Bifrons.
"Casualties should be avoided if at all necessary. Even with volunteers, I don't carry the same jurisdiction here as I did as a Spectre or commander in the Alliance Navy. Commanding lives is a privilege, not a right."
One brow lowered at the offer to take a closer look, but her curiosity was stronger than her restraint in this respect, and she nodded, craning her head to look as she approached.
The moment she realizes it's not full of gore or, in fact, a human leg, she straightens and fights back the urge to chuckle. And here, she'd been convinced that anyone involved with Bifrons was potentially evil reincarnate. She had come here, herself to see what Commander Ravani was like, and she was not entirely convinced she had sold her soul to Bifrons.
"Casualties should be avoided if at all necessary. Even with volunteers, I don't carry the same jurisdiction here as I did as a Spectre or commander in the Alliance Navy. Commanding lives is a privilege, not a right."
"Cupcake, your jurisdiction here is precisely fuck all. You decide to go adventurin' again, you are treadin' on my dick. I hear y'all didn't really care for what happened the last time."
Pointed look at the severed leg armor.
"Now, you want to be a team player, mayhap there's sommat to talk about. But you wanna go play hero with your friends and cause trouble for all of us, not just Bifrons, we're gonna rumble. Loose canons don't do nothin' but hurt good folk that don't fuckin' deserve it, and there's been too much of that shit goin' on."
Pointed look at the severed leg armor.
"Now, you want to be a team player, mayhap there's sommat to talk about. But you wanna go play hero with your friends and cause trouble for all of us, not just Bifrons, we're gonna rumble. Loose canons don't do nothin' but hurt good folk that don't fuckin' deserve it, and there's been too much of that shit goin' on."
Being a team player had never been a problem. She'd fought and succeeded on uniting the galaxy to fight a common enemy. But that also meant 'fuck all' here, so she kept that to herself. "You're right," what was more important here was protecting the natives and the Immune brought here against their will.
"And I don't want to hurt good people, I want to help them. It's not an excuse, but if not for Thanos' influence, none of that would have happened." She turned to face the commander again, "we're just fortunate that our adventure didn't escalate to hurt more people than we did."
It bothered her, to be so easily influenced like that, used to being in full command of her will and intentions. But that wasn't what they were talking about, "What did you have in mind, commander?"
"And I don't want to hurt good people, I want to help them. It's not an excuse, but if not for Thanos' influence, none of that would have happened." She turned to face the commander again, "we're just fortunate that our adventure didn't escalate to hurt more people than we did."
It bothered her, to be so easily influenced like that, used to being in full command of her will and intentions. But that wasn't what they were talking about, "What did you have in mind, commander?"
"You want to come in and stop bein a loose cannon, we can talk. Means holdin you're nose about the paycheck, but it ain't no sin to take a bad man's money and do good with it." She doesn't have a good enough sense yet, on if she can trust this one with the plan early. But really, she wants people like North, who see the mission and agree without needing the details, or people like Tex, who ask the right questions and know their path is back into the army.
"Otherwise, you keep your nose clean, because I will not hesitate to aim the full force of my company at anyone who has grand ideas about makin a statement when those grand ideas come with a noncombatant body count or will get another hole put in everyone's brains. You hearin' me?"
"Otherwise, you keep your nose clean, because I will not hesitate to aim the full force of my company at anyone who has grand ideas about makin a statement when those grand ideas come with a noncombatant body count or will get another hole put in everyone's brains. You hearin' me?"
One thing she could rely on Shepard for was to avoid hurting people and lending a hand when it was needed. She would question missions, would constantly examine if it was the right thing, never comfortable with just following orders, even if she understood the means. "What sort of work are we talking about?"
They could at least agree their mutual interest was to avoid hurting innocents. She could work with that. But she had the impression she wasn't being trusted, and that was fine. She knew who she was, and in time, Ravani would, too. Earning trust wasn't something she was new to.
They could at least agree their mutual interest was to avoid hurting innocents. She could work with that. But she had the impression she wasn't being trusted, and that was fine. She knew who she was, and in time, Ravani would, too. Earning trust wasn't something she was new to.
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