Private Beauty is in the Bod of the Beholder

[Daiya]

BodylassTM: Tats & Mods Shop
M I S E R Y - U P O N - D R E A M
Seven Corners, Denon​

Body modification were just part of the life and culture of Denon. The city world was home to billions of denizens, some of whom wanted some way to stand out in the crowds. Plenty more wanted ways to get the edge up on everyone else. There were a dozen other reasons, and Daiya had heard most of them at some point or another in her young life. Growing up on the planet, everyone knew someone with a tat or implant of some kind.

Which was why Daiya found it odd for her new friend to be asking her where to go for them.

In the past, the girl had been called 'vanilla,' and not for her fair skin or blonde hair. She was just unmodified, without the tattoos or cybernetic implants that marked the bodies of others around her. That wasn't necessarily by choice for her, but Tawrro had quickly shot down the idea years ago when she had casually wished for something. She was a little older, and a lot freer to make her own choices now, but also more knowledgeable about what those mods involved. Daiya didn't think she was very interested anymore. Still, that didn't mean she didn't know where to go to get modded.

BodylassTM was the place most trusted and referred to her by anyone she knew, especially those with implants. She knew the outfit was run by a pair of women, founded as a safe place where fellow women could get body mods without getting taken advantage of while at their most vulnerable. That seemed wise enough to Daiya, so that was the place she recommended to Xan without a moment's hesitation.

She just didn't know why the woman wanted her to go along. Daiya found body mods to be pretty cool, and she was incredibly jealous of the increased acuity and dexterity they could provide. Plus, they were a pretty surefire way to cement identity and power in the often-anonymous crowds. Except that the girl already felt like she had her way to stand out, with her pink and blue hair highlights. That had been enough to sate the teen's desire for a couple years, anyway.

Maybe this invitation was a good excuse for a change.

Daiya had a lock of hair wrapped around her finger as she browsed the shop. She twirled it absentmindedly while her eyes scanned the highlighted products. Xan had gone straight for the tattoo parlor wing, but the implants had caught the morbid fascination of the teen's eyes. The eyes stared back at her, too, disembodied cybernetics waiting to be implanted into someone's skull. Daiya shuddered at the thought of it.

The teen tore herself away from it. A friendlier sight greeted her at the other end of the shop, with the masked face of Xan peering over the tattoo options. Her eyes only came to shoulder level of her friend, so Daiya stood on her tiptoes to peer over it, nestling her chin on the woman's shoulder to get a better perch. "Whatcha thinkin' about getting?"

Her eyes looked down at the designs the woman was considering, until they caught sight of one that drew her fascination. Daiya cooed at it, wrapping her arm around to point, "Oooo, Xan, you should get one of those. Like in pink to match your hair!"

Xan Deesa​

 

[Xan Deesa]

It had been a while since Xan had gotten anything done to her body that wasn't simple makeup. But the style and culture of Denon was getting to her. It was noticeable in the slight changes of her accent, it was noticeable in her apartment... and not it was going to be noticeable in her appearance. She had been wanting to get a tattoo for a while now but old habits kept getting in the way. It was still getting in the way now... but she saw nothing wrong with a temporary one for now. But this was more than simply kitting herself out with glowing ink. This was an opportunity for her to learn a bit more about a colleague of hers.

She was thankful that Daiya managed to show her where a good parlour was and was already browsing some of their wares. This place was also great for getting a few other things she had on her mind as well. Things that were a lot more permanent and a lot more advantageous for her work. Her thoughts were focused on the examples of E-ink they had on display, but she was quickly brought back to reality when she felt Daiya's chin on her shoulder. She smirked at the girl's suggestions as she looked down at her before looking back to the examples in front of her. "Definitely some of this E-ink... but I'm not sure about pink. I kinda like that white I've seen peeps sportin' around town. But these'll only be temporary for now. Wanna get a feel of how they look and stuff." she admitted with a shrug as she turned to look at Daiya. "What about you? Ever thought about getting one? Just a temp one. I'll even pay for ya if you want one." she offered her with a smile on her mask as she gestured to the examples.

When the artist asked about what they wanted, Xan handed him her datapad, showing what she had in mind. First was the skull on her back. The familiar picture of a certain helmet was going to adorn the left side of her stomach, while another art piece would go on her left forearm. Lastly was a wheel that would go on her left shoulder. Each one meant something to her and that was the most important aspect for her.

Looking back to Daiya, she flashed a smirk and gave her a bump on the shoulder. "So? You gonna get one too?" she asked her casually.

Daiya

 

[Daiya]

Xan's picks for artwork were pretty incredible. The girl couldn't help but admire the artistic skill, and idly she wondered if the woman had designed them herself. A couple of the styles lent themselves to the e-ink aesthetic she had seen on others, highlighting circuitry and digital effects. She had seen plenty of that around Denon, especially along the mid-levels where modders and hackers tended to make their living. The last one was just a helmet design that looked cute, even if a bit macabre.

"Just temporary? Then you should definitely try one in pink!" Daiya giggled, teasing the other shadowrunner. The woman was no stranger to loud colors and clothes, one more color wasn't going to be that big of a deal, right? The teen certainly didn't think so, but she wasn't the one getting the tattoos.

"Me?!" the girl recoiled as if shot. She cast a wary eye to other patrons of the store nearby, sitting quietly as a needle plunged through their skin. Daiya shuddered, an unsettling tingle running along her skin, forming goosebumps as it went. "I dunno, Xan..."

The young shadowrunner was eager to flex her new agency, freed of a guardian watching and second-guessing her every move. She just wasn't so sure that the pain of a tattoo was the first way she wanted to prove it to herself.

"Umm," she started, her eyes darting toward the door. They caught sight of the shelves of implants, and the girl gripped her arm in a tense pose. She couldn't understand someone actually wanting to rip off their own limbs to replace them. Glancing back at the tattoo area of the shop felt like a relief in comparison. It was only a little ink under the skin, right?

Even so, Daiya was still pretty apprehensive about the whole idea. "Can I watch you get one first?"

Xan Deesa​

 

[Xan Deesa]

Xan chuckled at Daiya's insistence of getting a pink tattoo. AS she sat down she glanced at the girl and then at the artist. "Make the skull pink, please." she requested as she pointed to her back. Glancing back at Daiya, she flashed a wink then got rid of her tank top and jacket. Sitting half naked in the seat, she brought up her datapad for the artist to see. "One other thing. A permanent one this time. I need you to tattoo this onto my right index finger. These exact specifications." she explained as she showed her schematics of her tattoo. "And when we're done, I've got some more serious request for that side of the building." she continued, pointing to the cybernetics part of the shop.

Looking back to Daiya, she could see that the girl was uncomfortable. When she asked if she could see the procedure first, Xan nodded. "Of course. It might get uncomfortable, but it's nothing serious." she reassured the girl.

With that, she sat back and got comfortable as the artist got to work. Her higher pain tolerance likely played into it, but she never flinched or looked uncomfortable for even a second. She moved and positioned as the artist requested and sat still as a statue as the tattoo gun buzzed away. After quite a while, the artist was done and Xan got up. With a big smile she got up and looked herself over in a mirror. "And how does the pink skull look?" she asked Daiya as she arched her back and displayed the tattoo for her.

When it was Daiya's turn, Xan pulled a chair closer and sat next to her as she fiddled with her datapad. She drew up a list of the cybernetics she wanted. She bookmarked eye implants and subdermal armour. With everything set, she put her datapad away and turned her attention back to Daiya, removing her mask to give her a gentle smile.

Daiya

 

[Daiya]

Daiya clapped her hands with glee as the neon woman agreed to get one of her designs done in pink. She grinned at the thought of it, lightening her previous mood. Turning back, she saw Xan giving the tattoo artist instructions for another design, but the teen was shocked to see that the woman had taken off her shirt! Her eyes traced over the woman's torso in silence, feeling herself blush at the realization of what she was doing.

"Whoa, I didn't know you had to get naked for this..." the girl intoned, her voice still laced with surprise. She giggled in hopes of covering up her own uncertainty, but Xan didn't seem bothered by the situation. After a moment Daiya found her own sense of alarm fading. It was replaced, instead, with a growing feeling of inadequacy compared to the woman's more endowed figure and courage.

She swallowed, trying not to feel out of place. The young shadowrunner never would have been allowed to go to a place like this before, nor would she have been interested. Being here only seemed to confirm what she felt, Daiya didn't really fit in.

No one said a word about it, however. And the more others went about their business, accepting her presence without a glance, the less she worried about it. With Xan easily submitting to the tattoo instrument under the skillful guidance of the artist, Daiya started to feel more at ease. She found herself eagerly leaning over the woman's body to watch the process more closely.

For her part, Xan was doing a good job of distracting her from the case of nerves she had acquired. Daiya poked her head close to inspect the skull, done in pink as she suggested, that now adorned the woman's back. "It looks a-mazing, Xan. I wish I was this good of an artist."

The girl had some sketches in her holojournal that she liked, but they were nowhere close to the level of artistry that Xan's tattoos commanded. Daiya was happy that she wasn't the one trying to recreate them with a needle on skin, either.

She grinned blissfully at the outcome of Xan's tattoos. Daiya was glad she had come along after all, the shop was really chill and put her at a strange kind of ease. But that mood all disappeared when Xan got up to let the girl sit down.

As Daiya settled uneasily into the chair, she looked at Xan. For the first time, the woman was showing her whole face to the girl to share a reassuring smile. It didn't make it much easier for the girl. "Umm, I don't even know what to look for Xan."

The tattoo artist gave her a datapad with a catalogue of options, but even that was overwhelming. She had so many doubts. Flipping through the catalogue, she asked, "What would look good on me?" Glancing over herself, the girl wondered, "Where would I put it?" She eyed the shorts and long-sleeved shirt she had on, "I don't have to take off anything important, do I?" And most importantly Daiya had to know, "Will it hurt?"

Xan Deesa​

 

[Xan Deesa]

Understandably Daiya seemed to panic when Xan made room for her to get her own tattoo. She bombarded the Shadowrunner with questions and Xan could clearly see that she wasn't ready or comfortable for this type of thing.

Taking hold of her arm and giving it a light squeeze, she sat down next to the girl with a gentle smile on her face. "Hey. Take a deep breath... then let it out. Relax." she instructed gently. "If you don't want one, then you don't have to. If you do, though, they can put a temporary one on that'll last a few days at most before falling off. But for real, Daiya, you really don't have to if you don't want to." she reassured the girl.

"As for what you're looking for... go for something that means a lot to you. Each one I got means something to me. If you got an idea in your head, describe it to the artist. She can draw up a few examples for you." she continued as she lightly patted the girl's arm.

Sitting back, she glanced at the body mod part of the shop. She wanted to get the procedures done but she wasn't going to leave Daiya alone in a situation like this.

Looking back to her, she gently punched her shoulder with a smirk. "So, you wanna try it out or rather not? And you don't need to get it in a weird place like me if you feel uncomfortable getting rid of any clothing." she continued to try and comfort her.

Daiya

 

[Daiya]

Daiya had witnessed Xan being an absolute badass on couple occasions in the past, so seeing the tender side of the normally-masked woman was new to the girl. She looked down at her arm as Xan squeezed it, talking the teen through her anxiety. It made her feel worse for a moment, that she had taken the older shadowrunner away from her dreams for the day.

Yet Xan kept patting her arm, and reassuring her with a gentle smile. Daiya felt herself relax, mirroring the smile back at the woman.

"Okay," the girl said, taking that deep breath at last. She wasn't about to disappoint Xan, or herself, today. "I'll get a temporary one, then."

Daiya started looking through the options on the artist's datapad, flipping quickly past pages with crude artwork and violent depictions. None of that seemed very appealing to her. Eventually, she landed on a beautiful piece of artwork that she took an instant liking to.

Turning to Xan, the girl rocked as her shoulder took a playful hit from the woman. She grinned at Xan's gentle touch, and pointed to the illustration of a Vulptex that she'd found.

"How about something like that?!" Daiya asked boldly. It reminded her of another design she had drawn once, though she wasn't proud enough of her skill to want it on her body forever. The question now was placement. "No-where super flashy like yours. Maybe just my shoulder?"

Xan Deesa​

 

[Xan Deesa]

To Xan's delight, Daiya agreed to getting a temporary one. She sat back with a smile as she waited for Daiya to choose what she wanted. She was taken by surprise when the girl chose a piece that even she was hesitant about getting.

"Ummm..." she hummed with uncertainty as she studied the picture with raised eyebrows. "I mean... it's a solid piece, not gonna lie. But uh... don't you think that's a little extreme for your first one. Plus I'm not sure where you wanna put such a detailed picture that isn't your back." she voiced her concerns as she tapped her chin. But as she looked up at Daiya, she started to doubt her words. "Unless you like going all-in. It's a beautiful picture and it can look good on you. It all depends on what you want." she quickly continued as she looked at tbe picture then to Daiya.

She didn't want to discourage her now, but she also didn't want her to go for something too extreme for her first option. "Actually, you could take only a part of the picture. Like the bust. That way you can make it smaller as well." she suggested as she took the datapad and held it next to Daiya's arm. "You could always ask your Wookiee friend for his input if you want." she teased with a light nudge, unaware of what had transpired between the two.

Daiya

 

[Daiya]

The girl sucked in a breath as Xan started to voice her own uncertainty, and it echoed Daiya's sentiment from earlier so closely that she feared it had simply grown legs and leapt to a new host. The teen bit her lip as the woman began outlining just why her choice of artwork was a bad idea, even as the older shadowrunner praised the choice of it.

Daiya shook her head at the thought of a smaller, or partial version. It was the whole image she had taken a shine to, after all. "No, if it's too much then I'll just pick something else, like..."

She lost her train of thought abruptly as Xan made mention of her Wookiee friend. The woman meant Tawrrowaldr, and the girl realized that his lack of presence was still a new thing to everyone else. She was slowly getting used to not having him always lurking or shadowing her, but it must seem like a surprise to Xan. "Oh, umm, I don't work with him anymore. It's...complicated."

Like most of the other tattoo designs she was seeing. Daiya buried the awkward moment by burying her eyes in the datapad, flipping through more of the designs that would meet the same impossible barrier as the one she had just found. Xan was probably saying something about her comment, but she didn't pay much attention. The reminder of her missing partner had dampened the girl's mood, and letting her mind focus on the artwork was the only thing keeping her from replaying the events that had led to her decision to walk away.

The girl blinked and shook her head a few times while searching the images, whenever she felt her mind drifting away from the task, so it took a moment for her to recognize what she was seeing. Once she realized what it reminded her of, she set the datapad on the table to take out her own version. Pulling out the stylus and opening up the holojournal app, she set to work drawing the image that the stock artwork had inspired in her. She instantly knew where it would go, on the back of her left wrist, her favored hand and closest to her heart. Let no one say she wasn't a sentimental being.

When Daiya was finished, she turned her holojournal around to Xan so she could see the new design the girl had drawn. It was simple, maybe a little too simple for a permanent version, but its simplicity belied the depth of its meaning for her. "It's for the Blue Flame, get it? Where Shenn practically lives, and where I hang out with...where I used to hang out with Tawrrowaldr all the time. And, you know, it's just an a-mazing place."

She grinned at Xan, her cheer restored again. She knew the woman was eager to get started on her implants, so Daiya tried to imbue her renewed sense of confidence in her smile as implicit permission. It's not like she was going to need her hand held or something during the tattoo application, the teen wasn't a little girl anymore.

Xan Deesa​

 

[Xan Deesa]

To her quiet relief, Daiya decided on a more simplistic design. As she waited for the girl to choose a new design, she admitted that she wasn't working with her friend anymore. Xan blinked in surprise as she glanced away. It was hard to picture her without her hairy guardian tagging along with her. But she could see that it was a difficult subject, so she let it slide and sat back as she waited for Daiya's new choice.

She finally had a new design in mind and showed it to Xan, who nodded in agreement with a smile. "Great choice. Also a real nice touch. It's hard to picture our little slice of Denon without it." she commented as she smiled at Daiya. When everything was set, she rose from her seat and gave Daiya's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Okay. Since you're all set, I'm gonna get my own stuff done. See you in a bit." she spoke as she turned and followed a nearby doctor into a separate room. She couldn't deny that she was nervous. With her own implants already inside her, she wasn't sure how the new ones would react... especially her eyes. That was the scariest part for her. But she shoved those concerns down and started to undress for the procedure. These people might have a tattoo shop in the front, but every aspect of the operating room indicated that they were professionals.

Xan was put under and the procedures began. What was supposed to be a 'bit' turned into an operation that took a couple of hours. When the operation was finally done, Xan was woken up and carefully taken through the motions. She didn't feel any different, though her eyes felt weird. The doctor reassured her that it would pass within the next day or so, but she wanted to see for herself how much of a difference there was. She carefully walked over to a mirror and studied herself. "I don't look any different." she commented with a smile. She stared into her own eyes for several long moments, deciding to try out something. She focused hard as she stared, recoiling in surprise as her golden eyes turned into a deep blue. From there it turned into a pure white... then back to gold. "Holy shit..." she muttered, looking back to the woman who did the operation. "You're good." she complimented before getting dressed again.

She emerged from the operating room and looked around for Daiya. She hoped the girl didn't ditch her after such a long absence...

Daiya

 

[Daiya]

Her breath came in waves as her eyes watched the tattoo artist set up for another tattoo. One minute, the girl felt calm again, knowing she could handle whatever was coming her way. It couldn't be worse than a blaster wound, and she had taken one of those before in an arm. The next minute, she was close to hyperventilating, her eyes danced as they followed the woman's machinations and each moment drew the girl closer and closer to the tattoo's application, and its promise of pain.

Xan had walked away after putting her stamp of approval on Daiya's choice of tattoo. The girl knew this was the biggest part her companion had come for, a trustworthy place to get new implants. There were dozens of reputable tat shops all over Seven Corners alone, but the reputable mod shops were passed along by word of mouth. She knew it from the moment they walked into the shop, but her fluttering stomach and unending nerves made the girl wish that Xan wasn't leaving her alone now.

As the tattoo artist sat beside her, giving Daiya a reassuring smile as she donned the gloves for the job and took hold of the girl's arm, the teen could feel heat rising in her cheeks. She felt more like a small child than a woman half-grown, clenching her teeth to steel herself against the start of it all. She felt silly, and not a little stupid right now. But when the needle touched her skin, and the work of applying the design to the back of her wrist began, Daiya was glad she had prepared herself.

It didn't tickle, like she had heard from other veterans of the tattoo process before. The buzzing vibrated her arm, but she could distinctly feel the discomfort when the needle plunged into her skin repeatedly. It wasn't so bad, a dozen pinpricks a second, but the girl supposed her clenched teeth kept it from being a lot worse. Yet each time the needle passed over the ridge of a protruding vein, dipping in to drop blue ink on top of the natural blue of her anatomy there, she sucked in a breath. At one point, Daiya heard a whimper escape her lungs, and she bit on her lip instead to stay quiet. The tattoo itself might be temporary, within a few days the ink would fade back out of her skin or break down in her body, but even the limited pain right now was very real.

She was offered a break, but Daiya shook her head no. The teen wasn't about to let herself back down, even for a moment. She already knew she had nothing to prove to anyone else, not even the people in the shop, nor the now-absent Xan. But she had everything to prove to herself.

There came a time, at last, when the tattoo artist was done and she pulled away to start cleaning up the equipment. It seemed like forever had passed in her mind, but a glance at the chronometer told her it had been less than half an hour. After applying a cleaning wipe to Daiya's arm, and offering a pain compress to the girl, the woman moved off to tackle her next customer. With Xan still under the knife, that left the girl with a lot of time to kill and a very itchy arm she had been explicitly told to leave alone.

Daiya passed the hours trying to copy samples of tattoo art into her own holojournal, playing with lines and coloring to get the kinds of shading details their artists could do. Her crafted design was woefully simple, a hard gradient expanding out from a light blue to a dark blue within the flame shape. Xan's trepidation at the complexity of the vulptex design the girl had chosen first made her re-think the approach, but almost all of the designs in the sample catalogue had just as much depth.

By the end of the waiting period, the young shadowrunner was hardly any closer to mastering the techniques she saw. She only managed to copy some of the art in a close approximation, but the results were that of a hollow imposter compared to the real artists in the shop. Daiya was only too happy to put away her datapad and jump from her chair, curiously studying Xan as she approached while idly scraping her nails against the itching of her wrist.

"Whoa-kay, that's freaky!" Daiya exclaimed when she saw the color change of Xan's irises. The girl tried not to think of the implication of that, of how replacing the woman's eyes required first cutting and scooping out her own, natural eyeballs. Her scratching got a little faster as she tried to push that thought out of her mind.

"I don't see the others, what's changed? she asked Xan. The teen had been too focused on her own choices earlier to pay attention to what the older shadowrunner had ordered for cybernetics. "Do you feel any different?"

Xan Deesa​

 

[Xan Deesa]

To Xan's pleasant surprise, Daiya was by her side immediately. She smiled down at the girl as she asked about the implants. "Just a little. The eyes are gonna take a day or two. But the rest doesn't bother at all." she admitted, then leaned in closer to her. "Once we're done here, I'll let you be the first person to test out how effective the implants are." she whispered with a mischievous wink. She pulled back again then took hold of Daiya's arm to look at her tattoo. "Very nicely done. But just don't scratch it. We'll get you some lotion to help with the irritation." she complimented her before turning to leave.

She paid for the entire endeavour with a few simple taps on her datapad. "A little pricey but worth every cred. Thanks, choom." she quipped with a casual salute as she made her way to the exit. She led the way through the streets, switching between the different vision modes to compare them. The more she used the features, the happier she was that she did it. "With these new implants I'm gonna be karking unstoppable. Almost feel like kicking in CorpSec's doors by myself..." she spoke as she slipped her mask back on. Once they reached a part of town that looked deserted for the most part, she led Daiya into an alley then faced her. "Alright, bear with me. The other implant I got is subdermal body armour. Supposedly nearly indestructible. I want you to test it out for me." she explained with a large grin displayed on her mask.

She knew that Daiya was going to get what she was suggesting. So after a few seconds, she tossed her jacket aside and held her arms out to her sides. "Target anywhere. Hell, target everywhere. I wanna make sure that the stuff works. And don't worry about hurting me. I can handle a little pain." she spoke with confidence as she patiently waited for Daiya to get to work.

"And don't hold back. You can go to town on me." she quipped with a chuckle.

Daiya

 

[Daiya]

Just when the girl was wondering if Xan had misunderstood her question, the woman leaned in close. Daiya could see the woman's new eyes in detail now, though besides the iris color she couldn't see much of a change yet. She could still seem them gleam with mischief, though, and when Xan winked at her, the girl's mouth twitched into an automatic smirk. "I know the perfect place to test them, too!"

A giggle bubbled out of her lips, transforming her smirk into a smile full of mirth while Daiya mentioned, "There's this holo-arcade I like, it's got a dozen games that should—"

Thoughts of beating the older shadowrunner a couple times before her implants adjusted faded back into the girl's mind as Xan took hold of Daiya's arm. She followed the woman's gaze down at the new temporary tattoo on the back of her wrist, which was already starting to show a few red trails leading to and from the design where the girl had been scratching. "Oh," Daiya said, and put her other palm over the tattoo to apply some pressure so it didn't itch so much. "Right, she told me that, too."

Daiya tossed her head toward the tattoo artist, who was working on someone else now. There was nothing left to do but pay and leave, and the girl was surprised to see Xan settling both of their bills with a tap of her cred chit. She gave the woman a broad smile, and for the gift of the tattoo and lotion to treat it well, she said, "Thanks!"

Elation brightened her path as the young shadowrunner skipped out the door after Xan, who wasn't being shy at all about the strength of her new implants. Daiya nodded along, still a little creeped out about the whole process of cybernetic implanting in the first place, but she could easily see why better eyes and bulletproof skin would be incredibly useful. Wondering if the woman was about to show off her new potential by accosting a mugger or group of gangsters, Daiya followed cautiously as Xan led her into an alley.

Her eyes grew wide as she realized what Xan wanted instead, and the girl's joy was quickly present on her face again. Daiya nodded eagerly, and shuffled through her satchel to grab out her 434 Heavy Blaster. Looking up curiously, she asked the woman just to be sure, "Really, go to town on you? In that case..."

Daiya returned her favorite blaster to pull out a new one instead. "I've been meaning to try this out, it's supposed to pack a mega punch." The girl turned over the Kusak Heavy Blaster in her hands, and then adjusted the settings on it. "But we can start low and work our way up, how 'bout that?"

Walking back several paces, the girl gave Xan another once-over look. The woman was very sure of her new implants, and was being incredibly trusting of Daiya right now. She shrugged, trying hard to rid her face of its smile so she could concentrate on her aim instead. Clearing her throat, the teen nodded to herself, and took up a good stance for shooting. Holding out the Kusak blaster, she took a shot at Xan's arm.

"Oh my stars, what did it do? Let me see!" Daiya couldn't help but rush forward, taking Xan's arm to turn it this way and that, examining the effects her blaster had on the woman's untouched skin. She marveled at the result, blown away by how effective the new implants were. "That's a-mazing! Let me turn up the power and keep going, okay?"

Daiya went back to her targeting spot, but with each shot and aim the girl stepped closer and changed locations, aiming for more vital parts with more extreme power. Her blaster should have easily killed Xan, but the older shadowrunner was still standing. The euphoria turned the girl's persistent giggle into an unstoppable cackle of glee.

Xan Deesa​

 

[Xan Deesa]

Xan listened as Daiya spoke, waiting patiently for the girl to start. She raised an eyebrow at the comment on the pistol but merely gave a silent shrug in response.

When the girl finally fired, Xan gave a bit of a flinch but not much else. It was reassuring when neither she nor Daiya saw any injuries where the bolt hit her. Armed with the new knowledge and confidence, Xan took up a proper stance and let Daiya fire as many rounds as she wanted to at her. However a dastardly plan crept into her mind as Daiya got closer with each shot.

When the last bolt hit her chest, she let out a grunt and dropped back onto the floor. Her eyes were glassed over and her chest stopped rising. She laid dead still on the ground, one hand laying over where the bolt it to sneakily cover up the fact that there was no damage whatsoever. Although she was rather miffed by the fact that her clothes were now full of holes. She waited patiently to see Daiya's reaction and for her to come closer... which she hoped she did.

Once the young girl was close enough, Xan suddenly grabbed hold of her wrists with a loud "BOO!" before laying back and cackling with laughter.

She finally got up and dusted herself off. "Sorry, I couldn't resist!" she managed to say through her laughter. "At least we know the armour works." she commented as she finally calmed down.

Daiya

 

[Daiya]

Daiya's fit of laughter continued for as long as she pulled the trigger. As macabre as it was, the teen couldn't rid herself of the euphoria that accompanied every shot that hit Xan and was harmlessly absorbed by the punk woman's subdermal armor implant. In another time, a particularly protective Wookiee would have been very upset with her for taking such glee in this, but he wasn't around and the girl felt no such rebuke from herself.

This was going to be a fun trick to pull at a party sometime.

As the girl crept closer, choosing her shots more and more recklessly, she should have been prepared for something to happen. Yet she was stunned into frozen shock, a morbid gasp sounding from her lips and the blaster clattering to the ground as she clasped her hands against her mouth. Tears welled in her eyes as she forced her feet to move forward, closing the short distance between the teen and the woman who had fallen to the ground, unmoving.

"Oh Xan, Oh Xan," the girl repeated as she drew closer to Xan's stilled body, tears freely streaming down her face now, "I'm so sorry. Oh Xan, I'm sorry, I thought that—"

Daiya shrieked as the body moved and she felt hands wrap around her wrists. Her eyes snapped down to her wrists, and then beyond them to see Xan cackling to herself with uproarious laughter. The girl's lungs seized as she forced out shuddering breaths, her cries melding with the relief of a few wry chuckles as the realization settled over her body. "You sleemo! I thought you were really gone for a moment!"

She wrested her wrists free, and then slapped away the woman's hands playfully. Her heaving chest and teary eyes refused to catch up as quickly, and the girl took a deep breath as she wiped her eyes away with her hands. Her tattooed wrist was tender again from Xan's grip, but she resisted the urge to scratch at it with her other hand, gently rubbing its thumb over it instead. "Feth it, Xan," Daiya chided sternly at the woman, who had risen to her full height now, "I was getting hungry, but now my stomach's all sore from being scared. You owe me a drink, probably something with ginger ale."

The girl returned a few paces back to retrieve her blaster, and then started briskly past Xan out of the alley. She called back to the woman, turning around and walking backwards so Xan could see the newly-returned grin on her face, "Actually, I'll take a burger or something first." Even if everything else had taken a moment to recover, her stomach seemed to bounce back fairly quickly. Or talking about it was enough to remind it of its own hunger demands after all. "Or something like it, there's gotta be a street vendor around her somewhere."

Turning back around, Daiya skipped forward on her way out of the alley, forcing Xan to catch up.

Xan Deesa​

 

[Xan Deesa]

Xan kept cackling away at Daiya's reaction. Her shouting certainly didn't help the situation. She smirked down at Daiya as she opted to rather get a drink instead. "Ain't you a little young to be drinking already?" she teased her before giving a shrug. "Preem, let's go get a drink, then." she agreed as she started to lead the way.

But just like that, Daiya was in the mood for food again. Xan shook her head with a snicker and tapped her shoulder to let her follow. "Let's go get a burger then. Stay close." she quipped as she walked through the crowd of pedestrians. Eventually they arrived at the infamous stall Xan kept promoting. There was a bit of a bustle, but nothing close to a major inconvenience. When their turn came, Xan ordered a bacon burger and fries for the both of them. With a nod the vendor took her credits and got to work on their meals.

Xan turned to Daiya and gestured to a spot out of the way. "Trust me when I tell ya, this dude's food is amazing. Whenever I'm in the mood for junk food, I come here. Hopefully I can get him another loyal client after today." she quipped as she leaned against a wall.

The peaceful moment was interrupted when red and blue lights lit up the area. Xan watched as a CorpSec speeder slowly cruised through the street. The crowd got out of the way, however their faces were what caught Xan's attention. Some were terrified. But some seemed furious. Her gaze turned to the speeder when it came to a halt and the two officers approached the two Shadowrunners. "Can I help ya, choombas?" she quipped with a casual voice. The officers glanced at each other then at the two ladies again. "You two look familiar. Mercer, go get the wanted logs from the speeder." the one ordered the other. Xan glanced at Daiya with a parsec-long smirk displayed on her mask. "What are your names?" the cop asked as he waited for his colleague to return.

Daiya

 

[Daiya]

Daiya shot Xan a look at the woman's questioning statement. Who was really too young on Denon? She opened her mouth to say just that, but then Xan shrugged and moved on. The teen grinned at the cyborg woman as she passed by, scampering to follow after enjoying herself for a moment too long.

She was about to enjoy herself even more once Xan brought them to her favorite burger stall. There was a bit of a line, but before she knew it, Daiya was leaning up against a wall with Xan as they waited for their food. "A loyal client? What would Tel say if he knew I was here, betraying him to another cook. A street vendor no less!"

The girl's face of mock horror gave way to a mischievous grin. The Blue Flame's infamous cook would probably just say "Ooou" and then something about his latest food item. Too many thoughts of food. Daiya put a hand across her stomach, pressing in to stop it from grumbling.

As if that would have stopped the CorpSec speeder from doing its slow-float through the street, lights flashing and drawing attention to itself. A growling stomach was probably just enough justification for a Seccer to approach her, so Daiya was only half amused when she saw the speeder slow to a stop and its occupants start making their way over.

Xan started easy with them. Maybe a bit too easy, the teen considered. She wasn't all that interested in a pair of bootlickers interrupting her lunch, much less their day. It had been going so well, too! "My name?" Daiya hadn't lost her grin, "Don't you recognize us? I'm Corvus Raaf, and this is my big sister Taeli."

Xan Deesa​

 

[Xan Deesa]

Xan snickered at Daiya's comment, folding her arms across her chest and leaning back against the wall behind her. Understandably, the cop didn't seem too amused by the teen's comment. His helmet might have hidden his face, but the annoyance was still clear as day through the emotionless mask.

"So funny, I forgot to laugh." he spoke as he rested his hands on his hips. Xan's golden eyes calmly studied him as the tension grew between the trio. It finally broke when his partner came jogging over with a datapad in hand. "Here you go." he said as he handed the officer the datapad, watching the two girls as his superior scrolled through the list.

Xan's eyes narrowed when the man's head recoiled in surprise and he glanced up at the two. "You're u-" he was cut short when he suddenly went flying through the air towards their speeder, crashing into it with a loud grunt. Xan stood upright with two extended arms, her face contorted into a frown as she turned her gaze on the frozen partner.

The young officer reached for his pistol, but Xan's hands were wrapped around his wrist before he could lay it on target. With a simple twist she disarmed him and tossed his weapon over to Daiya before delivering a hard kick to the back of his legs. The man collapsed onto his knees and Xan quickly wrapped her arms around his neck in a headlock. "You and your partner are being attacked, officer. Are you gonna call it in or not?" she hissed in his ear as he atruggled to escape her iron grip. To help him out, she thumbed the button on his radio and held it up for him to speak.

"This is officer Mercer. We're being attacked by-" she quickly cut him off as she yanked the radio away from him. "You got an officer down. I'd suggest you try and help him out." she quipped, dropping the radio as she secured her hold on him. His partner's groans echoed past the radio chatter as he tried to push himself up to no avail.

Xan stared at Daiya with an empty gaze as she held the officer in place. "What now, kiddo? You gonna send a message or should I?" she asked her calmly. The poor man clawed at Xan's arms as he started to choke. Onlookers around them were watching with all manner of expressions among them. Xan's gaze didn't falter as she glared at Daiya. "Gotta make a choice quick, Daiya. Otherwise we're gonna have an entire CorpSec unit coming down on us." she continued.

Daiya