[center][i]Day 1 - Shore Leave - Real Subtle
[sub]A [@DearTrickster] & [@Mortarion] Collabo-Supremo[/sub][/i][/center]
[hr]
[b]Time: Morning
Location: Hydroponic Gardens, Nexus[/b]

The quiet rumblings of a small group of protestors were met with a couple militia personal telling them to break it up. They argued back and forth, the same old peaceful protesting versus disturbance and disruption. Concerned citizens puffing up their chests, raising their voices over the calm albeit frustrated personnel. The artificial light of the Nexus was softly bright. 

Dex sat astride one of the benches, dressed in her civvies. A dark blue sweater, with dark black pants. A scarf draped along her neck sitting outside her cowl. The hood was pulled up, as turian style forgoes covering the back of the head it snuggly sat behind her mandibles. Sleeves rolled up to the elbow. She watched with mild interest while the small discreet camera perched on her shoulder pad recorded. She didn’t know why she was recording, it was really none of her business. Later she’d reason it’d be for understanding the breakdown between the Nexus and the Exiles, keeping a stiff eye on security.

She saw, quite possibly the lone batarian wandering through, off kilter. She squinted watching him. Seeing the red limb she knew it was Khosin. “[color=007236]Hey! Khosin! C’mere.[/color]” She called to him, waving him over.

Being one of the few Batarians on the station, and even more rarely one of the fewer that had been thawed off before the arrival of Ark Hyperion, Khosin had grown accustomed to the feeling of being watched by everyone, and would have most likely kept going towards his quarters were it not by the voice that beckoned him over.

“[i]Dex.[/i]” He thought, immediately recognising the voice. He turned his head around towards the source of her voice and easily found her, the cybernetic prosthesis with which she was waving him over was an easy enough tell for him to recognise her amongst the crowd of protesters and militia personnel that had gathered in the hydroponic gardens. 

“Hey Dex, making a documentary?” He asked jokingly once he arrived to the spot where she was sitting, somewhat discreetly motioning to the camera that was perched on her shoulder. Without waiting for her reply, he took a seat next to her and took a drink from the hip flask that he was nowadays carrying near-constantly when he was outside of his quarters and not at the Vortex Lounge. “It’s been a while since we talked, huh?” He started, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly, unsure of how to start the conversation. 

“[color=007236]You look like shit.[/color]” She leaned forward taking a strong whiff of what she knew was alcohol. “[color=007236]For fuckssakes Khosin. You [i]can[/i] drink the water here. Might be lacking in a few sand grains but you don’t have to be drunk before Noon.[/color]”

She elbowed him, “[color=007236]Try to be a bit more subtle about the camera huh? Still can’t keep a secret worth a damn.[/color]”

Dex rumbled through her sub harmonics, looking to the protestors. “[color=007236]I leave and suddenly everyone thinks cybernetics and losing limbs is the cool new thing.[/color]” She shook her head, eyeing him. “[color=007236]Even if you’re not in one piece... Good to see you.[/color]”

“Hmmm, what’s new under the sun?” Khosin asked, chuckling, in response to Dex’s astute observation about how he looked. He shook his head a bit about her comment about him drinking water and not needing to be drunk before noon “Hmm, I’m afraid that water doesn’t helps much with what’s here.” He said, tapping his head briefly in manner of explanation before he took another sip. 

“Sorry about that, but I have gotten a bit better. If I was that bad I wouldn’t be here, would I? It’s not like I have the cleanest record.” He said with a low whisper, massaging the spot where she had elbowed him with his natural hand.

 “Ah, yeah, you never knew how I lost my forearm.” He said, falling silent for a few seconds “My mind wasn’t in the game and I fucked up, let's put it that way.” Spoke the Batarian, it wasn’t exactly a full explanation but Dex was smart and she’d be able to figure out what he meant. “It’s good to see you too here Dex, I know I’ve...well, I haven’t been exactly the most warm guy ever, it's not like I went to talk with you or any of the other ex-Riggers after that stint on Site 1, but I’m glad that you are here.” 

She stared him down, rumbling continued out of her subharmonics. Her mandibles were pulled tight against her face, the epitome of stern for a turian. Taking a deep breath in through her nose, she huffed. She wasn’t done wringing him out yet. “[color=007236]Almost as cold as our team medic.[/color]”

“[color=007236]Slow down on drinking will you though? You’re poisoning your insides out with that shit, at the rate you’re going Andromeda will be the short stint before you’re dead or know the rest of us survive.[/color]” She paused thinking she was done, “[color=007236]And! I heard about your reckless bullshit stunt on Eos, if Lieutenant Tannyx hasn’t already told you as much.[/color]”

“[color=007236]Fuckssakes.[/color]” She said with a note of bitterness. [color=007236]You’re better than this.[/color]”

Khosin fell silent as Dex continued on with her tirade, letting her get it all out of her system before he spoke again. “I’m not.” He said quietly in response to her claim that he was better than this “What’s the better me Dex? Tell me.” He asked, a hint of bitterness creeping into his voice, “The attack dog of the Hegemony? The pirate attacking Alliance ships on behalf of the Hegemony? Or the slaver that went AWOL and participated in the Mindoir raid? Or maybe it’s the merc that I became when I had my little crisis of conscience a little too late?” He whispered quietly, the bitterness replaced with weariness by the end. 

“Let’s be honest Dex, I’ve never been better than this.” Khosin said, shoulders sagging slightly “I’m just a waste of space, going through life like some drone. About the only unambiguously good thing I’ve done in my life is my work with APEX right now.” He said with a sigh, shaking his head.

“So, what does it matters if I’m reckless? If I get hurt? Or if I’m drunk?” He said, shaking his hip-flask at the last bit of what he had said. “Please, do tell me because I don’t know.” Finished the Batarian, taking another swig of the alcohol on the hip-flask. 

Dex stared, slowly turning into a glare. The rumbling in her sub vocals increased. Words weren’t going to get blood flowing to his brain.

“[color=007236]I’m sorry for what is about to happen to your face.[/color]”

She grabbed the flask ripping it from his hand and crunching it in her prosthetic hand. She tossed it away then grabbed him by his scruff. She stood over him, Khosin looked up at her with eyes that were blank and fogged over. Swinging back her left fist she cracked it against his jaw, fast and hard. She let go of his scruff then sat down beside him once again.

“[color=007236]Listen here, asshole.[/color]” She snapped. “[color=007236]Don’t keep being an ass when you’re already in shit.[/color]”

“[color=007236]That’s a really shitty way to talk about my friend, comrade and fucking teammate. If you don’t value yourself - others do, like me.[/color]” She said. “[color=007236]Survive to see the Arks arriving, survive to see another settlement. Fucking survive in spite of all your bullshit.[/color]”

“Listen here Dex, I don’t mind the punch. I’ve gotten worse during my training in the Hegemony.” Khosin said, his demeanor suddenly growing serious as he sat upright, each of his four eyes bearing into Dex’s “Do you have any idea of what this ‘bullshit’, as you’ve put it, entails?” He said, his hands balling into fists, “Because, let me tell you, you have no idea.” He spoke, bitterness palpable in his voice.

She averted her gaze but stayed quiet, because she really hadn’t. 

“Have you seen packs of savage varren being released inside of hospitals? Have you seen hundreds of people’s corpses being used to feed varrens?” He whispered to her, “Have you seen whole schools slaughtered, just because someone didn’t feel like bothering rounding them up?” He hissed to her. “I [i]have[/i], and that shit follows me through all days and nights, so if I were you I’d be careful and not call that bullshit, because you’ve no idea the kind of guilt I’m carrying with me.” 

“And don’t worry about me dying anytime soon, I don’t plan to kick the bucket until I am sure that the Initiative is safe and sound in Heleus. You might not like it, but this is the sole good thing I’ve ever done and it’s why I get up every morning; to give people like you, people that still have the chance, the opportunity to have a new home.” 

She was silent for a few moments, still madder than hell. “[color=007236]Then how about this, pull your head out of your ass. The Khosin I knew back with the Riggers cared enough to not end everything prematurely by diving into a fight blindly. He cared enough to realize that being alive was more effective and [i]he[/i] still believed he had a fucking chance. Go looking for him at the bottom of a glass. I’m done.[/color]”

She stood kicking the ruined flask away. Not sparing a glance behind her.

“You know, before we left the Milky Way, my family hated me.” Khosin said quietly, uncaring if Dex heard him or not, “Disowned me, actually, they didn’t contact me ever after I got them out of Hegemony Space, not even when I told them that I was gonna join the Initiative.” He said quietly, his mood growing somber, “You know why? Because they found out.” He finished, looking down at the spot where his ruined flask had fallen before Dex kicked it away. 

She stopped dead in her tracks, turning on her heel. She marched back up to him, losing what little cool she was able to dignify walking away with. She screeched in his face at full volume. The sound she made was a mix of a gutteral hiss and bird-like growl. She stood back up to full height then finally walked away.

Protesters and militia alike were staring at her display, considering what was more important with a possible random fight breaking out. Dex’s swift exit helped them relax. What became of Khosin after she left was outside her current concerns.