Good Karma

[Judah Lesan]

Quint had been getting restless. There were too many things people expected of a tattoo artist sometimes, and other times it was dead. The dead seasons were when Quint usually closed up and ran a smuggling job or two, there was only one problem, his usual comrades hadn't been heard from in a while. The Scarlett twins were a set of fraternal twin Zeltrons Quint was known to run around with. Inna and Jess were quite the pair, and Quint found himself in this on again off again relationship with the younger of the two.

There was nothing to do but read, so Quint sat in one of the chairs and worked on catching up on his fiction. He liked reading but had little time for it. The life he lived was a busy one, it kept him out of trouble. His sign read that the shop was open, so he felt like he had to be there. Boredom also meant he had an ale and cigar close by. He didn't smoke often, but did like a good cigar.

"Could the night go any slower," he said aloud to himself as he watched potential customers walk right on by.

Business had been slow since the crazy night he had the other day. Yeah, he didn't need to relive that night anytime soon. What he needed was a nice normal customer, one like the gal he tattooed after hours later that night. Yeah, a nice pace, or a private job, would be nice.

[member="Karma Jayne"]

 

[Karma Jayne]

A nice, normal customer, quiet pace, private job… Unfortunately for Quint Salis, only one of the three would be walking through his door tonight, and it wasn’t the first two.

Karma Jayne didn’t do quiet or normal, especially while on Zeltros.

The doors to Salis Tattoos parted and in she swayed, back-lit by the glowing sherbet skies of twilight. The honeyed air of Paradise City drifted into the shop, carrying on its breath the heady scent of freshly blooming exotic flora and the powerfully inebriating cocktail of pheromones that smothered the party planet night and day. Sapphire eyes swept the ink parlor with curiosity, admiring the pristine brown-white tiles and dark wood tattoo stalls. The funky, mismatched tattoo art on the stone walls gave it character, the old fashioned red leather chairs added a touch of class, and…was that cigar smoke? Karma inhaled. Rich, earthy, pungent. The place had come highly recommended in many circles, and while tonight was more of a business venture for the Zeltron 'in disguise', she'd definitely be coming back for her own pleasure.

The entrance swished closed behind her, the air catching her hair as it hurried to get in before the doors sealed. She'd left her locks free and wild today, the colored waves tumbling down her back like a runaway Zeltros sunset. Her heels clicked delicately on the tiled flooring, silk chiffon dress fluttering around her legs. The deep blush-champagne ensemble tied at the waist, with a plummeting v-neckline and a side slit that ran all the way up past her hip, revealing one too many provocative curves for a business meeting but not enough for a night at the club. A thin pink garter encircled her exposed thigh, and tucked between fabric and bronzy flesh was a small scrap of paper.

"Quint Salis?" came the lively voice, clipped with a crisp, refined accent. She honed in on his form, sitting in one of the tattoo chairs reading. Karma came towards him, stride confident, smile bright. "The man of my hour. It's been said you're the best in Paradise City for tattooed art, piercings…and discretion, when needed." She thought briefly about sitting in on the artists stool next to the chair, but decided that was a sacred place just for the artist, instead hoisting herself up and perching on the lip of the wooden tattoo stall he occupied. Karma cocked her head in consideration, watching him, the tiny magenta star tattoo on her cheekbone winking mysteriously at Quint. Her smile shifted, lips quirked in a little smirk. "So? Are you the best, Mr. Salis?"

<3 [Member=Quint Salis] <3

 

[Judah Lesan]

The sound of the front door opening and closing stole his attention away from the work he was reading. His green eyes drank in the extremely curvaceous figure. His eyes stopped at the plunging neckline which did not do much to hide her breasts. Yeah, those were nice, hopefully she was here to get some work done, though he'd hate to wreck a pair of breast with ink. He put his cigar out and met her eyes.

"The best... that would be the word on the streets wouldn't it miss..."

She had his name, but he would love to have hers. Standing from the chair, he stood and leaned his elbows on the lip of the stall the woman was sitting on. Inhaling he caught the distinct scent of pheromones. Odd, she was not Zeltron, or was she. It was rare they were not pink in tone and Caucasian in appearance. However she was certainky producing enough to make him feel a buzz.

"So what can I do you for?"

[member="Karma Jayne"]

 

[Karma Jayne]

"Sorry, manners. I'm Karma. Karma Jayne." The woman crossed her legs, plucking the small scrap of paper from the garter clinging to her thigh and holding it out to Quint. "And as for what you can 'do me for'…" She smiled, ever so innocently. "…I need you to put this design," Karma wiggled the paper, "on a…friend of mine with a special kind of ink, and very few questions asked."

The design was bizarrely simple. Three tiny triangle outlines arranged vertically, with a single dot in the center of each. Karma reeled in her pheromones. She curious to see how he'd react without the convincing qualities of her sexually-tormenting chemicals, but she also didn't want to give her true nature away, at least not immediately. She studied Quint, gaze keen, voice clear and encouraging. "I realize it's a tall order, but I was assured you were familiar with the kind of business my clients operate, and that you'd—"

The doors opened once more. Karma lifted a hand, beckoning to the newcomer. She didn't bother looking back. She knew who it was. She could feel his hair-trigger rage from across the room. "—Ah, right on time. Cole?"

He wasn't tall or particularly large of frame, but the man gave off a dangerous 'prison yard' vibe. He stalked, not walked, dark gaze brutal, intimidating, like he could cut through your defenses and peel away your confidence with one look. Dark tattoos covered most of his body, some of them strange in design, winding around his exposed arms and neck, and the way he carried himself and the expression he wore gave off the impression he was a caged animal, ready to maul anything and everything given the chance.

He was something Karma would usually find exciting; hazardous and unpredictable, possessive, dominant, violent, and more than a little crazy. For some reason, though, the ex-con routine just wasn't doing it for her this time around. At all. Perhaps because she wasn't 'babysitting' him by choice. She'd racked up her fair share of debts over the last three years, and paying them off was proving to be…well, taxing.

Or maybe she had a taste for something with a little more…substance.

Cole immediately honed in on Quint, sizing him up and eyeing the space between Karma and Quint.

She gestured to the tattoo artist. "Cole, this is Quint Salis. We were just—" Karma cut off with a tiny, surprised but displeased sound as Cole came up behind her, one arm tightly encircling her waist, forcing her to lean back on his chest as she sat on the wooden stall. Cole gave Quint a reverse nod, chin lifted authoritatively. Karma rolled her eyes a little. "—discussing the details. Could you give us a moment?"

Cole didn’t move.

Karma didn't push him. If it was one thing she'd learned about Red Grid initiates over the past few weeks, it was that none of them should be underestimated. Cole wasn't quite as smart as the others, far more susceptible to her manipulation as long as she warmed his bed when he wanted, but she'd seen him rage. There was a reason the Red Grid had recruited him.

She sighed a little, giving Quint an apologetic look. "As I was saying, you're fairly well respected in certain circles that are familiar with your past. You'll be very well compensated for your time…and silence."

<3 [member="Quint Salis"] <3

 

[Judah Lesan]

He sighed. This was a job that was going to be off the books, and resulted in the ties he still had to the criminal element. As much as he wanted to be free, Quint still found those he wanted to find him could. At least they didn't want him smuggling drugs anymore. Now he marked property. This particular mark was one he didn't recognize, but that didn't matter. These groups always paid well, and with Inna and Jess missing, Quint needed the credits he was missing out on by not making a smuggling run with them. He took the paper as the sound of the door caused him to look again.

Meatheads, thugs, hired muscles, they were all the same, and this guy for the profile. Cole, the name even worked for the whole thing. His chin was out, and he clung to Karma like a dog asserting his dominance, or marking the woman as his. Quint knew men like him, and they only irritated him. Any man who felt he needed to mark his claim, stalk a woman, keep other men away from her, was on who clearly did not trust his woman, or knew all to well that the feelings were strictly one way. Looking at Cole, Quint narrowed his eyes just slightly.

"Cole is it? I'll say this once rather slowly so you hear it all. You will notice I have no bouncer in here, that is not because I cannot afford one, I don't need one. Most of your ink is prison ink, like most of cover ups, but your face isn't one I remember from my time on Kessel. I survived Kessel, and I'm guessing your crimes were a bit more minor than mine. If you don't behave I will throw you out of my shop, and it will more painful than anything you've experienced in your life. Sit in that chair, and keep your hands off the lady as we are discussing business. Don't forget she's your handler, not the other way around. That means at the end of the day your her queen, not the other way around."

That would ruffle feathers, but Cole would get the message. He'd look for the bouncer because types always did. Slowly he'd measuremwhether Quint could follow through on the threat, and realize he could. Cole would be pissed, but he'd put up with it, ego bruised that he'd been subdued with words, but less wounded than having his ass handed to him by someone smaller. Without missing a beat, Quint eyed Karma.

"I have the ink, and the job can be done in thirty minutes. Cole goes in a private stall in the back, and you pretend to work the counter as my clerk in case any customers walk in. This isn't an after hours job you have approached me for it seems as long as you call pull it off. Which I'm sure you could, otherwise you wouldn't be here. Your employers are dealing in direct credits, which I don't see a purse on you so I'm guessing you'll bring those by later, or have they already shown up in my account?"

[member="Karma Jayne"]

 

[Karma Jayne]

Cole definitely got the message. Cole was definitely pissed. And Cole definitely gave no kriffs that Quint would've won the fight.

He let go of Karma, eyes blazing as he took a step towards Quint, but she'd been waiting for this since Quint's first sentence and was well prepared. Any other day, she'd subtlety encourage a fight, and she wouldn't deny watching Quint subdue Cole would be a few different kinds of exciting, but business first. She grabbed Cole's wrist, feeding his feelings with a more positive emotion, her pheromones winding their way up his arm like invisible tattoos. She caught his eyes as he looked back, annoyed at her interference at first, but she was hard to resist when she laid it on thick. Karma shook her head, adding a promising smile, and slowly but surely Cole's rage went from boiling to simmering.

"The money will appear as soon as we leave, straight into your accounts," she informed Quint, letting go of Cole. The silent initiate stalked off to the stall, knocking Quint's shoulder as he went. Karma shot Cole a disapproving look, sliding off her perch. "I'd be happy to play 'counter clerk' for you in the meantime. Maybe I'll even pencil myself in for some work…" She stepped into his personal space and reached around him, picking up his glass of ale and raising it to her mouth, sapphire eyes watching him over the top of the mug as she took a sip. "Mmm, good choice," she murmured in approval, placing it back where it sat next to the smoldering cigar and licking her lips. Karma gave Quint a cheeky smile. "So, boss, just show me where to properly 'clerk' and I'll let you get that tattoo started. Just make sure it's here," she said, flipping her hair out of the way and turning her head a bit, brushing a finger along the skin behind her ear, "or I'll be in trouble."

<3 [member="Quint Salis"] <3

 

[Judah Lesan]

”Looks like someone doesn’t recognize his place…” he replied when Cole was no longer in ear shot. ”I bet there is a story there as to why you got stuck being his handler which I would be happy to hear if you write yourself in for some work.”

Quint offered his hand to help the woman off the lip of the open stall he had been occupying while waiting for customers, and motioned to the glass counter which had all kinds of piercing studs inside the case as well as all some models of all the different things he could do with those piercing studs. Karma didn’t move right away though, instead she got into his personal space, grabbing his ale and took a drink.

He smirked at how forward she carried herself. One thing was quite clear with this woman, she had no allegiance to the man who sought to possess her. When she flipped her hair Quint caught another whiff of the pheromones she naturally produced. Had be been a full blooded Zeltron it would not have been enough to do anything to him, but he was not, and it sent him into a momentary high of sexual angst.

”The counter right over there, and don’t worry,” he said as he leaned in closer to her, his lips close to her ear, whispering as his warm breath tickled her ear lobe, ”I will make sure to put it exactly where it is supposed to be,” he managed to say before kissing her in the exact place she had indicated for the tattoo.

Moving away before he got too carried away, Quint motioned to the glass counter once again. He showed Karma his scheduling book, old fashioned and not digital. It was easier to hide off the books work this way when everything else was digital.

”If anyone comes in have them wait there, or schedule them for later this afternoon. It will take me a half hour, but block me out an hour. I’m sure you’ll handle anyone walking in here just fine.”

Quint headed back to the private room where he would attend to a rather cranky and grumpy Cole. The tattoo was in a painful place for the work, but Quint didn’t care. He was going to enjoy this actually. The gloves were on, and the ink was out. A special pair of glasses were put on so Quint could see the ink as he worked on the tattoo. Once the outline was on his skin, Quint got to work.

[member="Karma Jayne"]