It is currently just past noon where you are on Eden. The weather is, as usual, quite hot, leaving most of the people walking by barely dressed, with some forgoing clothes entirely save for a purse or pack.
You are, for the moment, in The Tilted Tumbler, a pleasant and lightly air conditioned bar and strip club. There aren't too many people in there at this hour-two women and one man at the poles, another man behind the bar, three small groups of people, two individuals nursing drinks by themselves, and a singular Draal in the corner, their eyes keen on the women at the poles.
Kelly was by her lonesome, for the moment, and nursing a drink. The pink and blue haired girl had scored a seat right close to one of the poles, and was rather loathed to give it up. She lounged in her seat, legs over one armrest, and drank slowly, enjoying the show. Her eyes followed every movement of the woman she was ogling, and the alcohol slowly worming its way into her brain was nudging her to get a more private show. Her wallet on the other hand was arguing quite well against the notion, and for the moment at least, was winning the debate.
Kelly wore her usual outfit, a tight grey and blue jumpsuit, high heeled boots, and a pink crop top jacket the same shade as part of her hair. It was a rather eye catching outfit, but in here it would be those lacking outfits that would catch the eye. Her backpack was on the floor by her seat, with her laser rifle safely inside. Probably not a good idea to walk into a strip club with a weapon visible after all. And a worse idea to go completely unarmed. With Kelly's current state of mind, it being in her bag was probably the safest place for it.
Rose was seated by the bar, her bare back to the performers as she worked her way through some cheap cocktails and unloaded her problems on the poor bartender every time he had a free moment.
The young woman was in her late twenties, but she had a delicate face and a pair of wide, innocent green eyes that tended to make people guess younger. Her hair was a very pale, almost ethereal blonde that she kept relatively short, hugging her cheeks. She wore a kind of shawl-like wrap around her upper arms that pulled tight over her breasts, leaving her shoulders and most of her torso bare. Her lower body was covered by a pair of thin long veils that hung from the front and back of a slender girdle around her waist, her legs bare on either side — except for a gun holster strapped to her right thigh (currently empty, as she’d surrendered her weapon on entry).
Both veils and shawl were made of a pale, almost transparent material that shimmered as she moved. When the light caught it just right, you could see straight through to her body — and the small white thong which was all she wore underneath, protecting at least a little of her modesty. It was a far more daring outfit than she’d ever owned back on Tarxsis, and it still made her blush whenever she caught sight of her reflection, but that was part of the point of this trip, wasn’t it? To get outside of her comfort zone and experience another culture?
That, and even the lightest clothing she’d brought with her was still way too warm for this planet.
“And it just makes me feel ungrateful, you know?” Rose was saying, her latest cocktail half drained in front of her. She’d kept the exact name of her school and the fact that she was a psychic to herself — not that those were a secret, but some people tended to get antsy when you mentioned it — but other than that, she’d given the bartender the gist of her story over the last hour or so. “Like, everyone keeps telling me, “You’ve got it made, Rose, just stick it out a few more years and you’ll have your choice of hospitals, you can work anywhere in the system!”, but like, what if that’s not what I want? What if I want to make my own damn choices?”
She took another long pull from her drink, then grimaced as she set it back down on the bar and saw how much was left. Damn. She’d just ordered that one, hadn’t she?
OOC: Should note that Rose isn't wearing her Secure Clothing here, just regular clothes.
Sat at the bar, a figure in far-and-away much more clothing than most on Eden, what with her openly worn armor with the Eridanus Royal Family, not that the name matters at all on a planet so far away from home. She was between jobs, but it was much too hot to be walking around clad in armor like so. Sadly, to present oneself as a merc, it'd be bad to go around without showing you actually mean business. She does, at least, have the decency not to walk around with her spear, though she did leave her stun baton at the door. Taking the time to actually look around the place after having rushed in for something to drink, Maeve would find herself in a strip club's bar. She huffs, and start to fan herself. The place was nice, but it was too damn hot.
As such, Maeve begins to strip off the armored plates of her suit, resting them on the floor against her stool as she unzips the baggier part of the armor made to hold the plates down to her waist. She slips her helmet off and then shrugs off the baggier underlayer of the armor, and is left in a bodysuit that serves as undergarments. Not that it's doing too well, as it's basically sheer with how she'd already sweat through it, giving the bartender a show that's altogether not uncommon on Eden.
No longer hidden under her armor, she doesn't look like she could be any older than thirty. In what was effectively a second skin with how little it left to the imagination, Maeve showed off to the bar a figure that - while curvy - was clearly toned from actual battle. And, from how her legs dangled from the stool, she wasn't all too tall, either. A strange combination for what seemed to be a fighter that primarily used melee armaments. The armor she took off didn't look any fancier than any security officers, but anyone familiar with her homeworld, Eridani, and the royal family therein would recognize the crest.
"'That's a bit better..." The merc shivers, a surprisingly pleasant feeling on this overly heated planet. Even though the AC wasn't cranked as low as she wanted, it was bliss in comparison to when she had the armor on fully, and all the sweat was real good at picking up the cold. The merc orders another glass of water and as she waits, she lets her platinum blonde - almost white in the right light - hair down and takes a look around the bar. Her eyes quickly turn over to the woman drowning the bartender in her woes, and would share a grimace with the man, before turn the stool around to look between them.
"Maybe, rather'n moping, you should try'n cheer yourself up. Drinkin's a fine enough way to do that, but if you're already sad and stayin' in that headspace, the drink'll only take ya lower. Anything good happen to ya of late? Either of ya?" Maeve looks to the bartender with a pointed look, as if saying this was his best chance to stop having to deal with a downer. "I'm sure you see enough crazy stuff here, don't ya barkeep? Anything interesting happen of late 'round this bar? Anything for a merc, or a uh... medical student in doubt of her career choice? Maybe something just to lift the mood? Sure seems like we could need it." She kicks her feet under the bar and leans onto it as she rests her head on her hand, waiting for their responses.
The barkeep gives a small snort when Maeve butts in, but also shoots her a small and grateful look. "Well, on my end, my boyfriend proposed over the weekend. Been riding that high for a little bit now," he says, showing a simple ring on his hand. "Been dating him for four cycles now. If you need work, though, Mr. Draggy in the corner was in need of some assistance," he adds, gesturing to the Draal in the corner.
On the stage, the two women move towards one another, their lips and nips briefly touching before they dance away.
Kelly's eyes went wide as dinner plates when she saw the two on stage kiss. Suddenly, the short woman was rather light headed. Whether that was the heat, the alcohol, or because all her blood had suddenly rushed to places other than her head was not for her to say. Regardless, she stared for a long moment before downing the rest of her drink in one gulp.
It took Kelly a moment to get her bearings again, and she didn't quite trust her legs to work properly, but eventually she stood with as much grace as she could manage. Blinking a few times, she glanced over to the strippers and smirked.
"It's been a pleasure ladies." She said, blowing them a kiss before grabbing her bag and heading to the bar. Her face was beet red, covered in sweat, and she was grinning from ear to ear.
"Just water this time.. I think my breakfast wants to make an appearance." She said, setting her glass on the counter, before leaning on it herself. As she waited, Kelly looked over the other patrons. At first she didn't recognize Maeve, but after a moment she waved and walked over to the mercenary.
"Oh hey! I remember you from the ship!" She said, her voice a bit louder than was required.
“I’m not moping,” Rose protested sulkily into her drink. She shot a quick glance sideways at the woman who’d joined her, eyes trailing over her toned arms — her tight-clinging bodysuit — and then down to the armour by her feet. Rose’s brow narrowed for a moment as she spotted the crest. It looked familiar. Eridani, wasn’t it? There was some relationship. between their royal family and the Tarxsians. What was it again?
The young woman shook her head slightly as she tried to dig through fog-filled memories and came up empty. Her instructors would have been disappointed. Foreign relations weren’t exactly her field, but when it came to the royal family, students were expected to know these things.
Maybe the stranger was right. Maybe she had had enough. Not that a little drunkenness was a real problem for her, exactly, but, well… her credit chip was getting a little dry.
Rose let out a soft sigh, and didn’t really offer much of a reply. Her mood did pick up a little as the bartender showed off his new ring, though, a smile making its way onto her face as she made a genuine effort to pull herself up from the dumps. “Oh, that is exciting. Congratulations… and, uh, thanks for listening.”
Following his gesture, she glanced back to the Draal in the corner — and found herself instantly curious. Despite coming here to learn about the Draal, she hadn’t had much contact with them yet. And maybe a chance to make some credits? Well, maybe the mercenary was right. Maybe this is what she needed.
Making up her mind, Rose was about to stand and suggest going to speak with him — but before she could move, a blushing, pink-and-blue haired girl called out to join them. It seemed rude to slip away and speak to the Draal alone while the mercenary was distracted, so Rose settled back onto her stool and turned towards the newcomer, sipping at the last of her drink as she waited to see how the mercenary would respond.
Maeve would raise an eyebrow at Rose replying in such a weak way, but says nothing as she's looked over. Taking the time to reciprocate, the merc could see that she was definitely more in line with the rest of this planet's dress style. Once again Maeve was wondering if it was even worth it to try to keep up the appearance of a soldier for seeking these jobs. This place was just not suited for that, and she was pretty sure she'd seen security around here even forgoing such armor for the same reasons. It felt wrong to go against her prior judgement, but it honestly wasn't worth sticking out in comparison to others in this way with how untenable this place was.
But her thoughts are disrupted as the bartender actually does open up with some good. "Ah, well ain't that all well 'n' good? Congratulations! Always somethin' nice just 'round the corner, ya gotta look for it, though." As if proving herself right again, the man offers that the Draal seemed to have some work as well. Maeve turns to look at the tauric being much more interested in the poles and their dancers. "I see, might be worth it to ask him, then..."
Before she can go anywhere though, a somewhat familiar face to the merc pops on over. Maeve couldn't really place it until Kelly herself called out that she remembered her from the ship. It was surprising to see her here, of all places, but that was unimportant. "Ah, yeah you were the uh... the pilot, right? Mentioned somethin' about work troubles. Guess I got some myself too, though. Apparently big guy over there's lookin' for people for some sorta job. Was about to head over there, but more hands make light work 'n' all."
Hopping off the stool, the merc would bend over to pull off the rest of the suit and armor, just leaving her in her bodysuit as she stuffs it into her pack, and begins to walk over, looking back for a moment to see if others were following, but turning back once she reached the Draal. "Heard from the barkeep you were lookin' for work. Name's Maeve, I'm a merc that's generally willin' to take on any sorta job." She pokes a thumb back towards the bar she arrived from, "He called ya 'Mr. Draggy', this your name, or should I be referrin' to ya someway else?"
Kelly smiled and nodded as Maeve remembered her, giving the mercenary a tired thumbs up while she gulped down a large glass of water. After getting a refill from the bartender she turned back to the mercenary.
"Yep, the liner's getting serviced, there's no freight runs for now, and no race scene.. so I'm shit outta luck for work at the moment." She said, sounding rather annoyed. "Better the ship gets serviced than falling apart don't get me wrong, but it means I don't get paid for a fucking long time. Reckon it'll be cheaper for the company to have me killed than pay up." She added.
With a second glass of water in hand, Kelly looked over to Rose and gave her a friendly wave, then toasted the bartender and gave them both a bright smile. The short woman seemed rather resistant to the heat here, she was sweaty, but was able to function in her jumpsuit seemingly without too much discomfort.
At the mention of the Draal maybe having work, Kelly quickly turned to follow Maeve.
"Hope you don't mind me tagging along. I'm not the worst shot in the world if it comes down to that." She chirped, then smiled to the draal, letting Maeve do the talking as she hung a step back and sipped her second glass of water more slowly. Her eyes darted between Rose, the draal, and Maeve, wondering about the company she found herself in.
The Draal responds, his voice a sonorous bass. "Draggy is a fine name to call me," he begins. "We are indeed in need of some assistance. I am sure you are familiar with my kind's usual attitudes?"
You all respond in the affirmative. Draal are, generally, not known for their hospitality or peaceful natures.
"Here on Eden, there is something... Peaceful, about the whole world. A calming presence that lets us respond with less hostility. But some of our kind view that poorly. Normally, that is fine-they live on other planets. They can have their own ways, and we will have ours. But there have been those who come to Eden with intent to disrupt the truce-including a large group that are making planetfall soon," Draggy tells you. "Less pressingly, I am also a biologist, and am interested in some of the habits of humans. That, for example," he gestures to the stage, where now the man is lying down, one woman fellating him, the other woman sitting on his face. "It is confusing."
Rose returned the newcomer’s friendly wave with a small nod and slight smile of her own, then drained the last of her cocktail and stood to follow the mercenary. She wobbled a little as she climbed to her feet, and leant on the bar for support — but after taking a moment to steady herself, she convinced herself that she was ok. Just lightheaded.
“I’m Rose,” she introduced herself softly to the pilot as they trailed after the mercenary. “Rose Evergold. Um… medic, I guess.”
She raised a slender eyebrow as the pilot mentioned being a good shot. Was that the kind of work she was walking into? She supposed that made sense, given the mercenary’s obvious occupation… and she found to her surprise that she wasn’t opposed to the idea. She did carry a gun herself, after all, and knew how to use it, even if she didn’t generally intend to. Maybe it was just the alcohol talking, but there was actually something exciting about the idea.
When they reached the Draal, Rose kept quiet at first. The mercenary — Maeve — obviously knew what she was doing, so it just made sense to let her handle this. Once the conversation turned to the act on stage, however, Rose followed his gesture and couldn’t help but let out a short, embarrassed laugh. She hadn’t realized how much the performance had escalated while she’d been drinking.
“Oh, that? That’s, a, uh… a simulated sexual act, sort of,” she explained, her cheeks flushed. Talking about bodily functions didn’t really embarrass her often anymore, but in this particular context she couldn’t help it. It wasn’t exactly how she’d imagined her first real conversation with an alien going. “Certain parts of the human anatomy are very sensitive, particularly when aroused. Stimulating them can feel… well, really, really good.”
Her eyes drifted back over to the stage again as she spoke, and the young woman subconsciously bit her lip. She could feel her face growing warmer, and that wasn’t just down to the alcohol. “Honestly, just watching others go at it can be kind of… distracting.” One of her hands had fallen to her thigh, resting just on the border between her veil and her leg, and was lightly gripping the fabric. Her other arm was wrapped around her waist. “Is it… not the same for Draal?”
"Reproduction is a service, not a pleasure. Off Eden, it is mandated to keep forces of soldiers intact," Draggy replies. "It is not something I have had the chance to experience myself-for duty or, perhaps, pleasure."
One of his arms reaches to the glass in front of him, and he takes a drink of some kind of golden liquid, viscous like syrup. "I have spent much of my life away from home, away from others of my kind. It can be lonely, at times. But as I said-the scholarly part is not the urgent bit."
"That does sound lonely..." Rose muttered, her eyes still on the performers. She didn't just mean Draggy's story. The thought of sex and reproduction being a state-mandated act, something someone did out of a sense of duty and obligation instead of love or joy... well, it hit a little close to home for the runaway psychic.
It took her a moment to realize that what she'd said might be insulting to their potential patron. She shook herself, forcing her eyes off the stage, and slipped into a seat at his table to try and force her attention onto the conversation. "Sorry," she said apologetically, both to the Draal and to her companions. She looked to Maeve to lead the conversation again, as she smoothed out her front veil. "We were talking about a hostile group?"
To see Rose following her, Maeve would want to speak some cautions, but decides against it. Hearing about a mission doesn't mean taking it, and honestly she could probably wheedle her way out by explaining her drunkenness. To see Kelly following had Maeve thinking her worries were pointlessly spent before. In her eyes, though, people can do what they want. She did say more hands made lighter work, but as she was listening to Draggy's proposition, she was a bit confused on what the actual mission was.
It definitely didn't help that he then sidelined himself to point over to the pole dancers, who were moving onto a much more... intimate show, perhaps now that more people had walked on in. As Rose goes to explain, the merc counts herself lucky to not have to explain the concept of sex among humans. The way Draggy described things being for Draal reproduction was a bit surprising to Maeve, as it seemed like just about every other human on this planet was way more hornier than any she'd met back home. Maybe this was related to what Draggy had mentioned about the peculiarities on Eden, and it only affects humans in this way? No way for her to really know, so no reason to dwell on it. When both the Draal and the medic seemed to wish to move onto the topic of the actual mission, Maeve let out a small cough and nodded.
"Right. Explanations of foreplay now aside, what exactly is the goal here? So presumably some rowdy Draal are to be makin' landfall, yeah? What do you mean by 'disrupt the truce'? Is it just a bit of violence on humans, or implorin' to speak with some leaders about 'weak acts of cowardice' or whatever-have-you? In either case, I doubt we can really establish ourselves as some policin' force that has any legitimate authority. What exactly are you hopin' to have happen with this job, Mr. Draggy? Just dissuade their efforts for awhile, see if Eden's natural whatever-it-has affects them, makes 'em less mad and the like? Or are you expectin' things to get messy? I am willing to be under fire, but up-and-killin' people who ain't already threatening me sounds a little more like assassination than mercenary work, in my opinion."
At this point, the lighter side that Maeve had showing was pushed back to a more serious attitude as the talk turned to work. She took a seat across from Draggy and fixed him with a somewhat intense stare, waiting for his own explanations.
"Truce... Perhaps peace is a better word? The state of things?" he says. "The miscreants contacted me in advance-they thought I'd be aligned to their ideals. Their plan, as much as they told me, was to destroy the hydroponics facilities of Shangri."
The city you are currently in. One of the largest on Eden.
"With food for the Draal, but not for the Humans that live amongst Shangri, they believe that those affected would turn on us and incite the whole of Eden to war-a war that they intend to win," Draggy continues. "I know when and where their first ship will arrive."
"Oh! I'm Kelly!" The short woman chirped as Rose introduced herself. She flashed Rose another smile, then her eyes slid over to the stage to watch the performance. Good thing the place wasn't cluttered or she would have definitely walked into multiple people. And the furniture.
Kelly had stayed quiet during the talks, and not just because her player had been asleep. Even as he spoke, Kelly's eyes kept flicking between Draggy and the stage. Only because he was talking about it, definitely only for that reason and no others.. definitely.
"Shame, I was hoping to get my head sandwiched in their tits... Might still be on the table." She pondered while Rose explained the concept of sexual pleasure.
"You know, now that I think about it.. this planet being sex central.. There's probably at least one company here who could make toys in Draal size. Maybe a bit expensive to get a custom job but could definitely be worth it if you're looking to explore the idea of.. pleasure in that sense." Kelly said.. then promptly turned very, very red as she realized what gad just come out of her mouth. She buried her face in her glass of water, and was rather grateful when the conversation turned to the job.
Kelly dcowled as Draggy explained the job and who they'd be going up against. She clenched a fist and nodded.
"Count me in. There's no way I'm getting stuck here during a race war." She said, downing the rest of her glass. "Do you know what kind of ships they'll use?"
Hearing the extent of what those who were making landfall soon worried Maeve. It seemed like a ridiculous plan. Effective maybe if there's no way to confirm it wasn't the new Draal arrivals, but a truly insane sorta plan to jump planets to start riots. "So, we're to be dealin' with terrorists, then? Do ya know how many there are that are comin' in that ship, because we ain't exactly an army."
Thinking on it a bit more, the merc does find this whole proposition a bit strange. The mercs reached out to a biologist? Sure, that could be useful if they were trying to mess with their own people to rile them up, but it was strange. Maybe most Draal got this invitation, but just refused. Something wasn't right. And besides that, this would likely turn into some sorta combat, anyway, especially with them intending to blow a place up. Humans and Draal would still end up fighting. In fact, it might be even worse since it could look like we started the whole thing...
Maeve sighs, and then looks over to Draggy, "Are we the first people hearin' 'bout this? The place is unlike many I've seen, but surely there's some sorta governance and policin' 'round here. Shouldn't they be the ones to take care of potential terrorists? If the goal for them is 'Humans fighting Draal', then they'll get it if we stop 'em by force, and it don't sound much like we can try and talk 'em down."
Draggy looks the other way. "Despite the peace we enjoy here, I've had too much bigotry shown to me to trust those in charge to do the right thing. I only tell you this because David directed you, and I trust David."
Anyone who looks over to the bartender sees him looking the other way now. Perhaps he didn't realize how much the Draal liked him.
Alexsis walks in the door with a purpose just about that time. Possibly it is her arrival the bartender anticipated with his look... With every step she takes on her heels, she is opening her top condition safety clothes, - must be just as air conditioned as the bar itself -, showing skin and a silver skintight coating, that maybe could be called a dress. Easily similar to something the dancing girls on the poles would wear until they wouldn't, but somehow still in a seemingly higher class... Maybe an imitation of a 'working girl', but definitely for a much richer clientele.
"David, my dear, congratulations!" she started loud enough to be heard in the almost empty room, but then added in a lower voice "It is not easy to find anyone interested without positive proof." she pouted at the bartender, but maybe it was more about his disinterest in her looks "I had to come for a personal visit, maybe there would be more success that way..." with a light teasing touch and a playful pull on his clothes across the bar, Alexsis turns to look around the room at the bartender's nod in the others directions.
"Ah... Draggy the Draal... I see, already studying what is available..." she starts walking in their direction, eyeing everyone with curiosity, but without a real care for weapons or danger. Her presence commanding the whole room, but it is undefined, wild, and not suggesting anything to anyone, except what they already have in mind from her looks. "Hello everybody." she had still dismisses the others in favor of sashaying straight up to the Draal, just to whisper leaning on to the multilimbed alien "The higher ups need proof, nobody cares about mere rumours at this time..." then she pull back, and a little louder "... so, what would be your present interest, professor? Maybe a visit of the botanical garden with your new students?" with a fluorish she pulls out a VIP pass for the Green, a public place connected to the hydroponics of the city.
Of course she had to call in some favors, and it was not anything that was impossible to get, still, it was a show off of her connections that she got a rare visitor pass for the biologist - even more so that it had the Draal's ID picture and it was a teacher's pass for him and a small class...
Thinking that Alexsis was contacted by the bartender, who heard enough about the Draal's - and the city's - problem, hoping that any local authorities or at least the money people behind the supposed target would give some help... Unfortunately it was still under the table, and just rumours, it is hard to get anything moving - without any proof, and not informing the right authorities who would possibly start with rounding up Draggy first...
@Lord_Red : Alexsis has nothing else, just being Connected and Connect, so I think I leave it to you what she could get her hands on, and how useful it would be.
David nods a thanks towards Alexis. Grim potentials beside, he is now engaged.
Draggy gives an odd expression, one that those familiar with Draal can recognize as confusion. But it quickly changes to understanding. "Thank you, Alexis," he replies. "We should be off, then-no sense in wasting time."
Draggy stands from his resting position and moves the chair he displaced earlier back to the table before heading out. You all follow along, and once you're all outside, he adds some more details. "There are a few of the agitants arriving early, via commercial vessels. The rest will be arriving on a cargo hauler in two weeks, at the ancillary starport. The cargo hauler already has the falsified information needed to deliver a batch of 'seeds' to the hydroponics facility."
There was little more sobering than talk of a planet-wide race war. Rose lingered behind for a moment as the others departed, her eyes closed as she took a deep, steadying breath. It was hard to see in the light of the bar, but the tips of hair seemed to lift of their own accord, ignoring the gentle breeze of the filtered air as she counted slowly in time with her pulse. One, two…
When she hurried after the others a moment later, her steps were much more coordinated, her eyes sharper and more alert. She stopped only to pick up her gun from the bouncer — its weight at her side suddenly much more real than it had been when she entered — then stepped out into the city’s heat.
“These early arrivals,” she asked, as she caught up, “they’d be advanced scouts or something like that, right? Looking to secure a route into the facility for the others, maybe taking jobs as guards or workers or something to infiltrate the place?
“If we were able to capture one of them, get some concrete evidence of what they’re planning, would that be enough to force the authorities to take it seriously?”
Like Maeve, she didn’t much fancy trying to stop an entire terrorist group with just the three of them. Well, four. Five? Rose glanced over to the late arrival, unsure exactly what to make of her. Draggy’s financial backing for this plan? How involved did she plan to be, exactly?
Rose is committing two Effort to activate Psychic Succor for the scene, then to use Organic Purification Protocols to purge the alcohol out of her system.
Remaining Effort: 2/4
Maeve grimaces as Draggy responds in the negative to reaching out to authority. It made sense to not be trusting, but vigilante work had a real possibility of her getting shot at by the planet's government. It's happened before, and she would really like it to not have to happen again, but there's not really all too much she could do to stop it. However, as Alexsis walks in, and basically gives everyone but the bartender and the Draal the cold shoulder, alongside showing that she's done some moving and shaking herself to get them easy entry. It seemed at least someone knew how to grease the wheels.
Leaving with the rest, the merc grabs her stun baton from the front, and regretfully begins to put her armor back on as she walks outside. It feels a bit wrong to leave for what's almost assuredly a fight without her spear, but it's probably best just to have the stun baton. In any case, she would turn to Alexsis as she's slipping into the baggy suit and reattaching the plates of armor to it.
"Alexsis, was it? We ain't introduced, but I'm Maeve. It seems like you're well aware of what's goin' on, and you're the one greasin' the wheel, as it were." Taking a moment to hear Rose's idea, she nods, "Probably worth it to try and be as non-lethal as possible. Ain't exactly like a teacher and his students have leave to go 'bout the place killin' people. Definitely would be good if however many of us're combat capable aren't going up against large groups of insurgents. I ain't unfamiliar with a firefight, so I know well that if there's a lot more of 'em then us, all that's gonna happen is I get gunned down, and I ain't all too keen on that. So maybe we should formulate some kinda plan. We know that we're gonna be fightin' Draal, so maybe it'd be beneficial if our biologist here could let us know how best to dispatch our would-be terrorists while we try to figure somethin' out."
She looks to the others for any ideas for a plan, and then to Draggy to see if he's got any info to better help with dealing with the Draal.
"The government of Eden tends to listen to humans over my kind," he says as you walk, "but with sufficient evidence, especially presented publicly, they should act. As for attacking Draal," he continues, seeming a little hesitant. "I know the head is an especially vulnerable spot for Humans-Draal have less vital organs there. Sensory organs, yes, but a headshot is unlikely to kill. It may be preferable to aim there, though, if a fight does occur-I don't want to kill if we can avoid it. Additionally, the middle legs are the strongest, and the lower arms likewise."
If anyone wants to get more info or address anything else before arriving at the Botanical Gardens, lemme know, otherwise I'll scoot us ahead.
Kelly cocked an eyebrow at the new arrival, but had no intention of saying anything until she walked up and began talking to Draggy. She watched, curious and slighty taken aback at the brashness. Kelly didn't say a word, just shrugged her shoulders to settle her backpack more comfortably on her back, and followed the rest of the group. She scowled and raisd a hand to keep the sun out of her eyes when the oven-like heat of the city hit her. It was like being slammed into a wall of heat.
"Son of a bitch. I forgot how hot it is out here..." Kelly said, sliding her aviators on. Even through those she squinted for a moment to adjust to the baking sun.
The short woman listened to everyone else talk, taking it all in. At Draggy's words she thought of something.
"I'm guessing the 'seeds' are actually explosive or something like that?" She asked, wondering if the scouts would bring supplies in for the plan. At the mention of evidence and killing, she nodded.
"Oh, good thing you mentioned that. I was going to suggest ramming a drone into their ship as they enter atmosphere, or a bit before. A couple tons of metal and fusion fuel hitting after a few minutes or an hour of constant 10g acceleration would turn them into a Draal coloured mist at best." She said. "Probably a bad idea in that case." Kelly added, looking between everyone.
I'm good to move on, just wanted to catch up a little before things got too far ahead of me.
Also, apologies for just assuming ship engines work on fusion in this universe/setting. I know spike drives are a thing but I'll admit i haven't read up so I assumed fusion drives would be used for slower than light travel
"Oh, hey, Maeve..." the blonde turns to the obvious mercenary as she lags behind the already moving 'mob'. "Aren't you hot?" she looks up and down "Yeah, I am all for slickening up things to make them slide easier... Not sure what you will have to wade into, but I like nature and able to eat. These would be terrorists sounds a little too much destructive fun for me. By the way, call me Alexsis, hope we could go dancing afterwards..."
"But for now some ideas how to direct these youngsters energy to better things than blowing things up would be good." she looks at the short woman after a smile at the Draal's words "So basically hit them between the legs, just like it would work for any humans, other than slap hard them on the head..." she shook her head, not really knowing if she could do either of that forcefully enough. "Is there any sounds or smells, maybe chemicals that would make Draal dizzy or distracted? I am not sure I can get them to eat or drink anything... and where to get milk for that." but maybe what she heard about the effects of milk on Draals was just a rumour...
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