Since there was still over two hours remaining until the scheduled start of the meeting, and Avatar’s attempts at speaking with anyone local had been unsuccessful, it remained with Voira, Raa, and RK. The group wandered for thirteen minutes before stopping in an area designated as the lounge, on the same deck as the airlocks through which they arrived. It had an arrangement of aged furniture, holographic screens projected on the walls, computer terminals which were entirely unused, and a self-serve bar containing food and drink. Many of the Citadel representatives and their security details were waiting in this location, conversing among one another about the upcoming meeting. In addition to Quarian, Turian, and Human representatives, the Council had sent a few Asari and Salarian representatives to aid in negotiations. Volus business interests were also present, though they had not sent a diplomat. 

Among the crowd at the lounge, Avatar saw only one group which it could not identify as a part of the Citadel delegation: two Turians, a Batarian, a Human, and an Asari. All but the Asari were in full combat armor that, unlike the group of Turians it had encountered before, was entirely uniform in model and design. Their armor was more modern than the previous group, and was all black with red accents. The violet-skinned Asari also wore combat armor, but it lacked a helmet and had a different aesthetic design. It was notably older than the other sets of armor, but with visible non-standard additions. It was primarily blue with white accents, and possessed hand-painted red designs on the chestplate similar to the white markings on her own face.

For approximately twenty-two minutes, the group stood by, silently watching the members of the Council delegation until the Asari seemed to receive a communication through her earpiece. Not many were actually paying attention to her, but Avatar could detect her response, even through the noise of the crowd. 

“Wait, what? No, they are [i]way[/i] too early. Just…I’ll deal with him later, let’s just get this going.” The Asari said before quickly prompting the rest of her group to follow her out of the lounge. Only a minute and forty-five seconds later, a Turian spoke up over the intercom system.

[b]Attention: due to time constraints, the meeting will begin in twenty minutes, in the previously designated area. Please make your way to the main chamber now.[/b]

The announcement sparked a brief moment of heightened conversation from the crowd. From the conversations it could pick out, Avatar noticed that many of the representatives found the sudden change of schedule odd, or even rude, but nevertheless, they all started heading in the direction of the elevators after a few moments. Both Avatar and Raa would be needed at the meeting as well, but for a few brief moments, Avatar stood silent, running calculations based on the new data.