Galaxy's Edge Space Bar

[Myitt]

"James," Myitt says with a snicker. "That's my brother's name. Sort of." She clears her throat. "Um. I am a little of both. Yeerk-and-human. My name is Myitt One-Nine-Five, and the woman you see here is named Tara." She reaches across to offer a firm handshake. "Not from around these parts, huh?" She snickers again, a bit wildly.

[Shenmue654]

"Uh, no. Not at all," says James. He's trying to crack a grin, but he's too nervous to come up with anything that actually works. The result is an awkward half-smile. He shakes the woman's hand anyway. "I don't think I've ever been to a part of the Local Group that had these Yeerks in it. Where I'm from humans are humans, usually. Unless you're mistaking another race for human."

[Aluminator (Kit)]

Elriss sits in the booth, willing her head to clear, staring blankly at the wall. She only half-listens to the conversations going on around her until the phrase "Visser forty-eight" drifts through the air. Instantly, she's staring raptly at the back of the head of the very well-groomed man speaking. The Light still technically answers to the Vissers, and for that reason alone, having one of them here makes her very uncomfortable. On the other hand, she's alone and cut off from the Empire; if this Visser still has access to his forces, maybe...

Something doesn't seem right about this situation, though. Nareth 577... the Visser had introduced himself as Nareth 577... she knows that name... but not as a Visser. She wracks her brain, trying to remember... Nareth... a name from a long time ago... an important name... she nearly misses the name 'Myitt.'

Further alarm bells go off in her head, and the hair on the back of her neck stands on end. A Nareth... a Myitt... and  talk of whether or not these are imperials...

It's her host, Rose, who figures it out first. <You idiot,> she laughs. <They're traitors. Host sympathizers. They're gonna kill you!> She says in a singsong voice, <They'll kill you, and I'll be free!>

<For how long?> grouses Elriss. <You know the Light can't let you go free, not with the knowledge you have.>

<You know what they say, honey. Better to be dead than a slave to a brain-stealing space-slug ****!> cackles Rose, practically dancing a jig inside her own head.

Elriss sighs and snaps, <Would you shut up? I need to think.> She forces her will on Rose-- a technique she's adapted from Vanress. Fight the host when it's not rebelling, and the host is forced to either fight back or back off. Rose instinctively backs further into her own mind-- she knows this is not a fight she can win-- but defiantly continues to imagine gruesome deaths for Elriss.

<Helpful,> comments Elriss distractedly. She feels at her waist for her holstered Dracon-- it appears to be missing. "Dapsen," she mutters, feeling underneath the bench on which she's sitting. There. That must be it.

The Dracon she pulls out is not, in fact, hers. It's an older model coated in something sticky. "Ugh." She's tempted to chuck it and go wash her hands, but the readout indicates that it has enough charge for a few shots, and this is not a moment she can allow to pass without taking action. A Visser who is, apparently, a traitor to the Empire, right here on her doorstep?

"I am gonna die," she mutters. She sets the sticky Dracon for heavy stun and stuffs it into her holster. She runs her fingers through her disheveled hair, decides it's a lost cause, and immediately pulls out a hairtie and throws it back into a quick, curly ponytail. She stands up, fights down a wave of nausea, does her best to still her pounding heart, and saunters towards the group at the bar.

"Hi there," she says in her sweetest, thickest southern accent. She steps up next to 'Nareth," and flashes her winning smile. She casts a glance at "Myitt" and at the man she's speaking to; her hand rests solidly on the grip of the Dracon.

[Chad32]

"It's still a choking hazard." Ike says.

He notices someone else come to the table that looks like she just woke up from a drunken stupor. She seemed familiar, like he had seen her the last time she was here. "Bartender, a glass of clean water for the lady, please." He said. The bartender filled a glass, and handed it over. It wasn't sparkly clear, but it was about as clean as anything got in this place.

[Terenia]

Nareth's gaze is pulled from the conversation by the arrival of a rather dishevelled looking young woman. His first inclination is to give her little more than a passing glance, but his eyes hold on her Imperial uniform. Tattered as it may be, the sight makes his skin pale.

<<Why is there an Imperial here?>> he demands silently to his host.

<<Besides you?>> Dom responds. <<I do not know. This place attracts all types.>>

<<But not Imperials,>> Nareth insists. <<Otherwise Myitt and the rest would have been captured ages ago.>>

Cursing silently to himself, he forces a confident smile. "Hello," he says, ****ing an eyebrow slightly, turning towards her so the 'Visser' insignia on his lapel is clearly visible. "Another member of the Empire? I did not expect to find anyone this far away from our jurisdiction." His smile fades ever so slightly and he sits back, assuming the casual air of arrogance that is so fitting for those of his rank. "I am Renlath Four-Seven-Two, or the Hrek Poret pool," he says easily. "You may, of course, refer to me as Visser Forty-Eight."

He looks away from the woman long enough to cast a significant look of warning in the direction of Ike and James. He can only hope that they pick up on the fact that he is using a different name with the woman, and that they will not mention it. Myitt, he trusts, will understand the implications immediately.

[Chad32]

Ike looks at "Nareth" quizzically as he introduces himself differently to the imperial, but after being given a look, he decides not to say anything in front of Elriss and continues sipping his drink. He wondered who this guy really was, and if he was even a Visser.

[Shenmue654]

James frowns at Nareth's sudden use of a different name, but Nareth's look tells James everything he needs to know. He makes no sign that he even registers what Nareth did. Aha. He's some sort of pirate. Or rebel. Or whatever the equivalent of those things are wherever it is I am.

That momentarily terrified him. He had no idea where he really was, and how long it would take him to get back to Earth. That fight had gotten him very, very lost. It might take another gravitic warp tunnel to get him back. James glanced at the bartender, holding up his hand, and said, "Your strongest latte, please. If possible Arabian in style with fresh beans. I can't deal with anything stale right now."

He wasn't even sure if this Bar served coffee, but he had to try.

[Myitt]

Myitt looks James over once more. "Nope," she says with confidence. "I'm pretty sure we're the same kind of human, so to speak. This place attracts all sorts, heh. From all sorts of realities."

She catches the eye of the woman in the Imperial uniform, and instinctively puts up a mental shield, straightening her back.

Silently Myitt sips her drink, glancing at the woman, awaiting her reaction to Nareth.

<She's got a Dracon,> Tara whispers.

<Yes, I see it,> Myitt replies tersely, setting the drink down and wiping the condensation on her ratty jeans. As she does so, she rests her hand on the butt of her own Dracon in her hip holster.

[Aluminator (Kit)]

Elriss smiles coldly at 'Renlath.' Can she have simply misheard his name? Nobody seems to be saying anything about the 'new' name... is it just her imagination, or does everyone except the Visser look distinctly uncomfortable? Her head isn't completely put together, and this place seems to be making her paranoid...

"Elriss four-nine-zero of the Sulp Niar pool," she says by way of introduction. "Y'all can call me Temser Two, of the Light in the Darkness." Her arrogant demeanor as she says this reflects Renlath's own, though she doesn't seem quite as at-ease as he does.

"The Council's taken an interest in this place," she lies. "Word is it's a hideaway for all sorts of scum. We're here to see what can be done. It is good to see there are more loyal Imperials here." Her icy demeanor seems to cool a bit, and she smiles, looking sociably at the two members of the group she doesn't know. "Aren't you gonna introduce me to your friends?" she asks Renlath sweetly. She looks towards Ike and flashes her winning grin, "Hey, hon."

[Chad32]

"Hello. I am Ike of the Human Colonists." He felt like saying he was of the something, since the Yeerks seem to like doing it. It was true he was part of a group of Humans that set out to colonize space, though there wasn't a big distinction between people on Earth, and people out in space. "I'm a bit of a nomad, making friends and having good times. All drinks are on me." He was starting to sound and act tipsy. That point where you've become aware that you're drunk, and you need to decide to cut back, or just forge on ahead. Unfortunately this probably wasn't a good place to get really drunk. Unless being drunk would put people in a better mood to be converted.

[Terenia]

Forcing himself to remain relaxed, Nareth gives Elriss a small nod. "Well met, Elriss," he says formally, though inside he is balking. He has, of course, heard passing rumors about the Light, and he knows that they are somewhat closely associated with the Council. The last thing Nareth needs is the Council's scrutiny.

He moves his careless gaze to the others at the counter and lifts his shoulders in a shrug. "Hardly my friends, as I only just arrived," he says, waving a dismissive hand. "I have not had time to acquaint myself with anyone beyond Ike here." He does not mention Myitt, or acknowledge her, or even glance in her direction. Lifting his tumbler to his lips, he takes a sip, smaller than his last. He cannot afford to lose his presence of mind. "I am surprised to hear that the Council would bother with such a backwater piece of sranje as this," he murmurs mildly. "I only stopped here for a brief reprieve between assignments. Distasteful as it may be, it is difficult to get quality redin elsewhere."

[Myitt]

Myitt lowers her gaze to her drink, thumbing the edge of the tumbler. Her right hand is still at her side, though she allows herself to relax just a hair.

"If you'll excuse my overhearing, Elriss," she says, edging into the conversation. "I've never heard of such a rank."

A smile crosses her lips. "Forgive me, my name is Myitt." She lifts the glass in a toast. "And the redin here really is quite good."

[Aluminator (Kit)]

"Oh, I dunno," Elriss drawls in response to 'Renlath,' her hand never leaving the hilt of her Dracon. "I kinda like this place. Lots of places to hide, far from any prying eyes. Why, the first time I was here, we were chasing an idiot fugitive." She grins a nasty grin, "We had some trouble finding our way back, but if you've got a good way of getting here, the Light would love to know about it." She bats her eyelashes, and hopes she doesn't look too nervous. Bluffing like this... how the hell is she in a position where she needs to bluff!?

"You'll get used to the Temsers soon enough, I'm sure," she says haughtily towards 'Myitt.' Why does she know that name? She has only the vaguest idea that there's a bounty on a 'Myitt,' but she can't remember what for, or any detail that might actually prove that this is the Myitt in question.

Her stomach turns when Myitt toasts... not ready to start drinking again... "Best thing about this place," she agrees with a sickly smile. "We'll have to make sure to keep the redin around when we take over. It's far too hard to find these days. Blockade and all."

[Myitt]

Myitt smiles thinly over her glass.

"And just what, exactly, is a Temser rank?" She takes another sip. "Are you some sort of teacher?"

[Terenia]

Nareth does his best to look unconcerned, though his eyes dart downward, noting her hand on her weapon. <<She's suspicious,>> he murmurs, his internal thoughts far more anxious than his external demeanor.

"Well," he murmurs, burying his response in his tumbler as he takes a sip, "my experience with this place has been that it is notoriously difficult to find, particularly for loyal subjects of the Empire." He tries for a conspiratorial smile. "I suppose that means more for us, da?"