Private Neon Hairballs [Shot Sutaz, and Xan Deesa celebrate my Birthday]

[Kadora'Tra]

Altier
Sometime after the joyride...
​

---

TO: Captain Kadora'Tra​

FROM: Diviak Manfloon​

SUBJECT: Performance Review​

​

Captain,​

​

I've received your reports on the situation regarding Altier. You've done exemplary, but your unusual request to extend the operation time of your present mission is denied. The clandestine mission you've been assigned to is over, and funds for further contractor support is rescinded. The Mining Union and its CorpSec contingent will now oversee operations directly. It may be in need of a Captain to ensure a smooth transition from paid thuggery to proper Corporate Protection. I have a few candidates in mind, yourself included, for the task.​

​

It will take some time for myself and my aides to come to a decision, and will require an in-depth Performance Review that may take some time to complete. If it is your inclination to remain on Altier anyway, you are free to take shore leave there while we process your review. It's been some time since you've last taken leave, and we wouldn't want to break company policy by accruing too much, now would we?​

​

DM​

---

Kadora'Tra read the message again and again, unable to, or unwilling to figure out what it meant for her and how she felt about it. She had thoroughly enjoyed her time on Altier, pretending to be someone she wasn't. At least, on the outside. Being "Breela" of the Kyber Kahns had been a liberating experience alongside her contracted body guard Sarvod Dravis , who seemed to relish the experience in a similar way she had. Or perhaps she was projecting her own feelings on the hired help. Yet she could never shake the feeling that Altier was somehow intended to have been a punishment for her.

On the surface, it made sense. Altier was a wasteland and cesspit of scum and drugs, the worst position a CorpSec officer aught to be in, especially considering she worked at the Denon Headquarters directly under the command of one of the five most powerful people in Authority space. This wasn't even to mention her checkered mission history being full justification for a "lateral demotion" to a place like Altier. So on the one hand, her ambitious side, she felt terrible about the situation. But the other side, the one that relished in the demolishment of rules, Altier felt like home.

Assuming she wasn't put under even more pressure to succeed than she ever felt on Denon...

Her future was uncertain, but one thing Diviak made very clear, she was to stay on Altier until he wanted her back. So that's what she would do, and to spite she would enjoy it. She'd go wild, crazy, maybe even... celebratory. She paused in her moping for a moment, overlooking the expanse of trash across the fields of Altier's landscape, the sun setting along the horizon with an eerie red glow. She lifted her head up from its resting place on her arms, which crossed over her tucked in knees. It occurred to her it wasn't something she ever really did on her own, to celebrate. All of the usual celebratory functions she's been to were things she was ordered to attend, for things that weren't hers to celebrate. There were anniversaries of when she became an employee of course, but that wasn't really something you celebrated... or were even allowed to. There were precious few privilege's as a Cadet beyond a cot, three meals a day, and the promise that one day you'd be allowed some measure of authority over others. Oh, and the ability to beat people up on a whim, but they usually refrained from saying it out right near any nearby auditory recorders.

Thinking about the past made her think about how old she was, and realized that she'd recently passed her tenth anniversary. There had been a few hazy - years? - before that she had been wandering around Denon after her parents died. She supposed it had been 18 years since she was born, and yet she couldn't remember a single time she had ever celebrated a birthday. It couldn't be right, of course, surely her parents must have before she died, and maybe there had been a night or two when she was alone she made herself a cake out of scraps and called it a birthday... but she simply had not recollection at all.

None.

So... why not now? She was on vacation, she'd never had one before. Who would she even invite? What would she even do? She didn't care, it was high time that she, and everybody else she cared to know...


... celebrate her first birthday.

Shot Sutaz Xan Deesa

Spoiler

I have to stop here for tonight, so if you have any questions about details, just PM me.

 

[Shot Sutaz]

Sutaz was ecstatic when she got that message. Sutaz had tried to celebrate the cat's supposed birthday a few times when they were younger, but they never had the times or means. Especially since she was handling so much tech, In comparison to most of the tech staff they had, she was a genius, thus she ended up with a large workload pretty often. She was just happy to have a home at the time, but over the years, she's come to regard Diviak with the utmost disgust. Either way, she came to the disclosed location without question. She'd always come if Kadora asked. She hoped that Kadora would do the same someday. She wanted to tell Kadora that she didn't abandon her, that she didn't drop out of the program, that she didn't fail. She wanted to, so bad. But Kadora had a stable life, and it was far from Sutaz's right to ruin it. Soon after her fighter landed, a simple souped up X-wing painted purple. With her keen eyes, she had seen Kadora sitting on that scaffolding. as she was going in to land. She knew where to go.

Before having gone to celebrate, Sutaz of course picked up a few gifts, but those would await to be seen. Once the ship was landed, she got out, lips pursed in concern as she gazed around at the inhabitants of the hangar area. A planet of scum and villainy, just like the info said. She made sure to store the gifts in her satchel instead of leaving them on the ship, and even locked the ship's cockpit shut with a literal padlock along with the internal locks. She wasn't going to lose her baby. With all that done. she hurried off to her next destination.

Kadora would hear the approach before she arrived, the sound of metal dinging as someone scaled their way up the scaffolding. If she looked down, she would spot a familiar Nautolan, not climbing as finely as the cat herself could, but managing nonetheless, jumping large distances in between hand holds using those prosthetic legs. With relative ease, she pulls herself up onto the main platform, those block colored eyes drifting to Kadora as she takes a moment to catch her breath, moving to sit beside her with feet dangling over the edge.

Finally, she spoke words she'd been waiting to say for a years. "Happy birthday." She stated with a pleased grin on her face. She was dressed as usual. A short white button up coat with a pair of jeans, and a black environmental suit under that which she used to stay nice and cool. Along with those long fingerless gloves, the usual attire really. One can notice the lines in her skin when she's this close, the seams between organic and inorganic matter, and the plates between tech. It's visible all over her hair, and its obvious she uses the gloves and environmental suit to hide it on her arms. She doesn't seem happy with it, as if she never wanted to be mostly machine.

Kadora'Tra

 

[Xan Deesa]

Through the scope of her fully assembled A-180 Xan carefully watched Kadora's movements. She had seen her strutting around the facility but never got around to actually going after her. Every time she wanted to corner the Farghul, something came in the way. With a sigh the Shadowrunner adjusted her position on a junk pile as she watched the Corpo kitty sit on some elevation as the sun went down.

She had no desire to kill the girl. Not yet, anyway, but she had questions that needed answering. She was getting ready to move in on the girl when a message suddenly buzzed on her datapad. She blinked in surprise when she saw who it came from. Her gaze moved to look at Kadora's silhouette as a look of sympathy crawled onto her face.

It was the cat's birthday. She didn't understand why Kadora even asked her to attend this little party idea, but she had mixed feelings over attending it. She needed to press this girl for answers... but it didn't feel right to ruin what was likely a very rare occasion for her. They were likely kindred spirits in a sense. Xan also couldn't recall a time where she or the others celebrated their birthdays. The idea of it still felt strange for her.

With another heavy sigh she packed up her gear and made her way towards Kadora's location. In the distance she noticed another person join them. A rather familiar Nautolan.

She finally approached from behind, not even trying to mask her presence. "Should have said something earlier. I could've organized cake and everything." she quipped as she approached the two, resting her hands on the railing.

Shot Sutaz Kadora'Tra

 

[Kadora'Tra]

Good things didn't happen to Kadora'Tra.

Her whole life was just a series of bad things that she refused to die from. First, her parents immigrated from their own home in search of a better life and chose the worst possible candidate in Denon. Then, they both died in a humancentric xenophobic slum, leaving her all alone. Next, she spent the next half of her childhood living on her own, surviving on scraps and avoiding notice because her senses were better than any humans even at her young age. Finally, when it seemed like she was destined to spend her shortened life on the streets forever, she got picked up by CorpSec to be groomed and domesticated into a petite young officer with big fangs, or die in trying.

In every case, she should have died somewhere, but she was a stubborn animal, and clawed through every available opportunity sent her way to live instead of starve. They owned her like a fish on a hook, and they had gotten so confident that she would always come back that they let her roam free in their rat infested backyard.

Her oversight was away, so now the cat would play.

"Happy Birthday." A familiar voice said from behind her, and Kadora'Tra's hair stood on end as she leapt to her feet on the edge of the platform, before realizing that the metallic clanging earlier had belonged to a person, and not the wind. She shouldn't be so easily surprised, but she genuinely didn't expect anyone to be around her at this time... especially not someone so familiar. Being lost in thought may have also pleasantly distracted her.

"Shot? How are you here?" She asked, surprised to see her. Kadora'Tra didn't bother asking why, she had a hunch she already knew, but had no explanation for her speedy arrival. Not long afterwards, she found another familiar face she hadn't expected.

"Xan??" She said with an even more confused look. Her face was heating up a bit from all of the unexpected attention.

"Should have said something earlier. I could've organized cake and everything." Her former "co-worker" on the Peekablue Lake mission said.

"I... I don't even know what to say. I wasn't expecting anyone to come." She said with a finality to her sentence, then when she thought better of it to avoid social embarrassment, she added, "Uh, until tomorrow at least, that is." She rubbed her arm and averted her gaze a bit, letting out a half committal laugh.

Xan Deesa Shot Sutaz

 

[Shot Sutaz]

"I happened to be nearby. Plus I have a juicy hyperdrive full of mods that may or may not be legal." The nautolan cackles a bit. She'd never cared much about laws, even when she was a scrawny nerd instead of a muscular beauty. "I brought a gift too, you remember that-" Before she can finish, she instantly turns to face Xan, hand going to the pistol on her right thigh. She could feel vibrations more than most people could, due to being a creature of the water. She didn't hear Xan coming, but she felt it. Her serious features relax when she sees the girl, and her hand moves away from the pistol holster. "If it isn't the walking neon sign. Nice of you to join us." She grins.

Kadora then speaks once again, and the tentacles on the nautolan's head seem to squirm a bit as if to express discomfort. She reaches out to rest a hand on the farghul's shoulder, her lips formed into a comforting smile. Kadora had made a last minute addition to make it seem more ok, Sutaz knew what she meant. "Kadora I....." She sighs. "For a long time, I thought you didn't want me or need me around. You're strong, you'll never need me to be here. I know that much. This is the first time since....back in the old days...where you seemed to want me around and.." The Nautolan sighs. She was about to make a promise she couldn't keep. She had plans, and those plans would likely put them against eachother. "just...call me if you ever want to talk, or find yourself without a home...or a job. Ok? Now..." She waves a hand dismissively. "Enough sappy shit."

The Nautolan reaches into her coat, and pulls out a holostation switch, one of the later models. "I remember when these were first shown on the city billboards. You wanted to try out that one game? I think I found it. The strategy game with all the republic commandos from before the great plague? It's already installed on there...with another surprise." She giggles a bit.

Kadora'Tra Xan Deesa

 

[Xan Deesa]

Understandably Kadora was caught off guard by their sudden appearance. Xan would have been too if their roles were reversed. "Yeah well, had my crosshairs on you and I figured I'd pop in to borrow some sugar when I, saw your message." she casually admitted as she approached them.

Shot seemed to have a lot to say to the kitty and Xan kept quiet throughout the whole thing, though she couldn't hold a snicker back at the mention of Kadora not having a place to stay. "Unless I boot her out of her place, I doubt she'll lose her current quarters. Would still be fair in my books." she quipped as she leaned against the railing, glancing at them. She still wasn't sure about coming to the "party", with everything going on, but she felt bad for Kadora in a sense. So she decided to go with the flow for now.

The "flow" lost its appeal immediately after a solid 5 seconds. "Video games and no drinks or nothing? Come on! It's the KitKat's birthday after all. We should go celebrate her new drinking privileges, the town that corpo sellout gang attacked ain't too far from here." she suggested with enthusiasm as she glanced at the two teens.

Shot Sutaz Kadora'Tra

 

[Kadora'Tra]

"A gift?"

Why was it so surprising that there would be gifts involved with a Birthday party? She did the inviting, and while she didn't expect anyone to really show up, on the off chance they did (as it happened), it would have been an easy thing to expect a gift.

Then Xan, who Kadora'Tra did not forget openly admitted to tracking her down for some reason, joked about the feline losing her living situation. The Farghul smirked but narrowed her eyes, knowing it had something to do with her oft-cited grievance against Kadora'Tra. It was almost accurate though, if Diviak was as dissatisfied with her as she believed, that she would be kicked out of her living quarters... or worse.

"I dare you to try." She answered back, sticking out a tongue at Xan.

Shot handed over her the procured item and she looked it over. It felt so silly now, but she found herself smiling all the same. For the first time, in a long time, she was feeling grateful for Shot. She still had hang-ups about her former friend, but in the moment she allowed herself to forget things like the past. She wasn't really familiar with physical affection, but admitted that the hand on her shoulder felt nice, and offered a verbal gesture of appreciation.

"Thanks Shot-" She started, a small smile on her face and her eyes on the Nautolan, before five seconds later Xan Deesa absolutely could not stand all the mushy stuff she had found herself in, and suggested a drink. All of a sudden the cat let out a hefty laugh.

"Sure sure, new drinking privilege's!" Kadora'Tra was still giggling at the fact Xan didn't think she broke any laws just because she was CorpSec, "Yeah, let's get a drink. First round on you?" She winked at Xan, carrying the holostation in her hands as she prepared for the trek down.

​

"Hey Shot, remember that time I smuggled in that green stuff into the Academy that you liked so much? I'm almost positive now that it was spiked thinking back on it." She laughed as she walked beside the pair towards the ramshackled town. Ordinarily, the trio would look like an odd bunch in a place like Denon, full of snobby humans and human-likes, but here on Altier it was full of refuse, not only of the physical variety, but the societal kind too. All sorts of unrecognizable alien forms, and weird mismatched droids could be spotted hiding behind corners or their houses, or even the occasional passerby.

Compared to Denon, this place was empty, and a part of Kadora'Tra liked that. Less irritating noises or the overpowering stench of overpopulation. This place still stunk of people and other crap, but it was whisked away more frequently by the natural winds still left untamed on the junk planet.

"You think that's a bar?" She pointed to a pathetic structure with a physical entryway and little more than pieces of scrap on double hinges blocking the view on the inside, a pathetic unlit sign above the only recognizable thing indicating the building was likely a Saloon. The text wasn't legible, either due to the choice of language, terrible hand-carved writing, environmental weather, or all of the above.

The Farghul looked to her birthday companions for guidance, with a short little smirk on her face, still carrying that holostation switch on her side.

Shot Sutaz Xan Deesa

 

[Shot Sutaz]

Sutaz nods enthusiastically when Kadora seems surprised by the gift. "Now that I know you're like...ok with seeing me, I have a birthday or two to make up for, don't ya think?" She grins widely. "Hope you like the game. Make sure to take it slow, enjoy it. The story is a slow burn. Not meant to be rushed." She says, nodding sagely to herself.

Then Xan begins speaking of how she tracked Kadora down. She was not a fan of the company that Kadora was apart of. If she ever got the chance, she would put diviak through a woodchipper. Then burn what comes out the other side. Despite this, she would not let Kadora be harmed. When Kadora turns to look at Xan, the nautolan meets Xan's eyes while behind the farghul, and uses two fingers to point at her own eyes before pointing at Xan. She had her eye on the glowstick.

Then Kadora looks over the gift, and Sutaz goes back to smiling once more. Hand resting on the Farghul's shoulder, she nods, satisfied that the gift was good. "Course. I'm glad you like the-" Xan speaks up before she can finish, and the Nautolan shrugs at the mention of alcohol. "I can have a bit of it, but not too much. Messes with the cybernetics that are in my head. I use some of those cybernetics to process info due to a...lack of the required parts to do so." She winces slightly, moving on to more positive things. "Anyways, lets get those drinks." With that, she would follow them down on the descent.

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"Oh yea, it was spiked. You think I didn't find myself more of that stuff?" She laughs. "I can't have it anymore these days though. Causes my tentacles to have a meltdown, makes them all twitchy and stuff." she sighs, her tentacles all rapidly twitching at once to emphasize her point. "Nowadays I smoke certain herbs from cathar...there are a few alderaanian things I can do as well. I just need to update my parts when I get some money." She knocks on the back half of the top of her head, causing a metal ding. "I've been putting off like...fifty system updates."

Sutaz liked the emptiness as well, it didn't overload her aquatic sensory organs as much as Denon. Not to many scents, noises, or vibrations. She always had trouble in clubs because she could feel the vibrations and thumping more than the average folk. It came in handy when in the water though.

When they arrive upon the run down establishment, she chuckles nervously. "it does look like a bar. certainly not a good bar, but a bar. Which is more than I expected for this place....but I can't help but feel cautious." She gestures to Xan. "You're the one who was spying on us. Go on, you walk in first, you owe us one." She says, grinning playfully.

Xan Deesa Kadora'Tra

 

[Xan Deesa]

Xan watched as Shot handed Kadora the gift, however her gaze shifted as the Nautolan gave a wordless warning. She merely stared back at her with indifference. Her grievance was with the Farghul. If Shot wanted to get between that, she wouldn't hesitate to turn her crosshairs on her as well. Luckily this day wasn't one for fighting. She was invited to celebrate Kadora's birthday and that was going to be her job for the day. Her smile returned when the both of them agreed to get a drink. "Of course first round's on me. I doubt the tip slips CorpSec gives you will cover a night out. Now let's go then!" she teased as she turned to descend the structure.

On the way to the bar, Xan listened as the two reminisced on some happy old memories. It was interesting to watch Kadora in this mood. She was used to the Farghul putting on the mask of a heartless soldier, not this happy and relaxed demeanour. It made her wonder what else really went on behind the mask. What she really was like when one stripped away CorpSec, the fighting and everything else. Some recon after this day might give her some insight...

"If you wanna do some extreme sports, update your systems without any secure connection. Bonus points if you get a virus and manage to remove it without losing functions." she quipped at Shot with a smirk. She came to a halt with the others as they studied the ramshackle building. "I was told it is." she shrugged as she glanced at them and then back to the building. Looking back to Shot, a daring grin formed on the devilish mask at the dare. "Fine then." she answered without hesitation as she made her way to the bar.

Nonchalantly she entered the building and made her way to the bar, ignoring the stench and stares directed at her. "Sup, choom. I'll have three shots of your strongest." she ordered as she held out a handful of credits. The man studied her and her companions but did as he was told, quickly pouring three shots of something that looked and smelled more like a degreaser than liquor. She looked at the shots and then her two companions with a parsec-long grin. "There you go." she quipped, sliding s hot over to each of them as she removed her mask. Picking up her own glass, she held it out for a toast. "To the furball's birthday." she toasted before knocking back her drink.

She wasn't sure if she was losing her edge or if the shot was really that powerful. Regardless, this was the hardest she fought to keep a straight face in a long time.

"Another one?"

Shot Sutaz Kadora'Tra

 

[Kadora'Tra]

"Herbs, huh? Can't say I've ever tried. The thought of inhaling smoke on purpose kinda makes me want to gag." The Farghul laughed and her ears twitched slightly.

Kadora'Tra has certainly had a drink before. On Denon. Where it could trusted what you were drinking wasn't a sludge of crap. She also didn't really partake in the habit that often either, considering she was always so busy, and drinking with most co-workers sounded like the driest experience ever. So when Xan slid over the shot of... whatever it was that was in front of her, her foot seemed to be tapping on its own against the bar stool.

She raised her glass too and braved a smile, before likewise sending the concoction down her gullet. It was hard to describe the flavor much, but the burning was easy enough to experience. Alcohol wasn't new to her, but she quickly discovered her palate was almost certainly a light weights. This was certainly the strongest stuff she's ever had, and not at all fruity. She managed to endure the deluge of toxin into her digestive track, feeling the hairs in and on her nose sizzling slightly, and couldn't help but to give out a bit of a pant after setting down the shot abruptly.

"Wow," She managed with watery eyes, her voice sounding a bit more grizzled and worn, like the burning grease charred her vocal cords, or perhaps as if she had been talking without sufficient water for 12 hours and without sleep for 48. "This definitely isn't Denon." Laughing, Kadora'Tra wiped out the moisture from her eyes

"Yeah sure, this is how you celebrate right?" The young lady questioned earnestly.

Xan Deesa Shot Sutaz

 

[Shot Sutaz]

"Foolish of you to think I'm enough of a rookie to let a virus into my system." She quips in response to Xan. While the neon lady enters the bar, making sure it's safe just as Sutaz wanted, Sutax herself continues speaking with Kadora. "Mmmm, it's not exactly a smoke, it's more of a fume or a steam in composition. It's like plant steam, if that were a thing." She shrugs, chuckling slightly. "If you're ever open to try it, give me a call. I'll hook ya up." She says, nodding with understanding. Sutaz isn't an overly enthusiastic or happy person to most who know her. To most. she's efficient and sarcastic, eyes only lighting up when tech is involved. It's only with Kadora that her old self surfaces from the abyss, emotions pulled from happier times, or was it an illusion of happiness that she had back then? Sutaz couldn't honestly tell. Now in this day, Sutaz was more free than ever, and she loved freedom. She should feel happy, and there were times when she was happy. But nothing matched having people that could be called friends, even family. To this day, Kadora was somewhere within that category. She didn't know what she could call Kadora these days, but at least she knew her feelings towards the farghul were positive.

She goes silent for a moment to reflect on those very thoughts as she enters the bar. Her enhanced nostrils flare up at the smell of what's slid in front of her as they sit at the counter, causing quite the strange incident. That being the surprise of the smell causes all her tentacles to vibrate every so slightly, and some erratic code runs over the lenses of her eyes. She shivers slightly. "Ugh...that not a good sign." That display once again shows she's practically a droid by this point. Exactly how much was robotic? How much flesh is left? Seeing the rest taking the shot, Sutaz realizes she has to as well. "To an old friend's birthday." She states, pouring the fire down her throat quick as she can.

Some mechanical twitching is heard as the shot hits her like a train, and she holds out her arm to lean on the counter. The clear layer of skin that serves as her eyelid can be seen blinking a few times as her black eyes water. "There's some perks to this not being Denon." She mutters, sitting up once again. "I celebrate with a dark room all to myself and a movie night, maybe some video games. Definitely pizza." Sutaz does seem quite the loner these days. She realizes how negative that sounds, and turns her gaze to Kadora. "That aside, I'm happy to be here. It's good to talk to you again." She smiles warmly.

Kadora'Tra Xan Deesa