AN: So, sorry. Uploaded it last night, but didn't check it. Hopefully it's cleaned up and easier to read now. This is my first fic, so please let me know how it is.
The base pounding in his blood, the smell of alcohol and sweat, the slow burn of the alcohol he drank sliding down his throat, the sight of the tiny asari dancing in his arms grinding her hips against his as she ran her fingers along the underside of his fringe. Nihlus Kyrik loved nights like tonight.
For just a few hours he could forget all of the expectations the counsel and his mother placed on him. He could forget all the faces of those that had died that paved the way to his spectacular spectre career. He could just forget...
The asari, Zalai, grabbed a hold of his mandibles and dragged his face down towards hers.
"You're with me, but so far away. You alright, Nih?" Zalai asked pressing her breasts into his chest as she wrapped her arms around his waist.
He growled as the smell of her salty, musky arousal reached his nose. He deeply chuckled as he leaned down and licked her bottom lip. "Did someone miss me?"
She punched his arm. "Asshole! Of course I did. You were gone so long What if that pilot bitch decided to move in on you. And me stuck here on the citadel unable to protect you from her!"
Nihlus took hold of Zalai's shoulders and shoved her away. "Z! I've told you this is Not serious! Even IF there was something between Cora and I, it does not concern you. But there is not." He gently ran his talon along her left cheek and watched in pleasure as a pink blush spread across her cheeks and her pink eyes darkened in lust. "So, just stop making everything about you!" He turned away from her heading back to their table.
Nihlus winked towards his ship's batarian engineer, Brax Korax, as he began to stroll back towards their table. He smirked even larger when he felt Zalai's arms wrap around him from behind "I'm sorry! Please don't go! I have missed you! I just..." she sobbed against his back.
Nihlus couldn't help the grin that spread as Brax rolled all four of his eyes at him. His face turned serious as he turned back towards her slowly and deliberately. "Just..." he paused and cocked his head to the side. "What, Zalai?" he whispered as he leaned in close to her.
"Come home with me! Wash away my pain!" He was hoping for the invite back to her apartment, but her second statement sent his mind spinning in panic.
His talons gripped her shoulders and he pushed her away from him "Z... I don't... I...I..I can't..."
Nihlus saw the flash of pain in her pink eyes before she turned away. He began to reach out to her and watched as her back stiffened. "Well here comes the bitch." He looked over his shoulder and saw his ship's pilot shoving a krogan out of her way. Her blue eyes blazing furiously.
Brax scrambled to get in her way and was shoved aside as well. Nihlus groaned as he pulled Zalai behind his back and faced toward the storming woman.
"Cora, I hope there is a reason for your rudeness." She scoffed at him as she stormed forward digging her finger in between his cowl and soft skin of his neck. "What the fuck, Cora!"
She glared around him at Zalai and then back to Nihlus, "You realize it's the middle of the afternoon!"
"Oh, come on, Sill'a! We've been out for months in the vacuum of space. Time has no meaning for us!" Nihlus exclaimed throwing his arms out.
Corainzia T'Vari was one of the best pilots he had ever come across and was one of only three people he trusted.
She placed her hands on her hips and was shaking her head at him in her patronizing way. "Unless you are going by galactic standard time and waiting for a meeting with the counsel."
His mandibles went slack as he stared at her in disbelieve. "But... we just got back!"
Cora's expression softened towards him as Brax walked over. "We moving out?" His gruff voice asked to Nihlus' left.
Nihlus growled and turned toward Zalai. "I guess we will have to wait for next time, dear." He couldn't help but feel a stab of guilt when she wouldn't meet his eyes. She merely nodded and walked off to the bar still glancing back his way as if to make sure he hadn't changed his mind. He couldn't feel too bad. She did lighten him by over 500 credits for their dance and if anything the counsel saved him the credits for buying her for the night.
Leaving the club with his crew mates, Nihlus could feel Cora's eyes glaring a hole in the back of his head "What is it?" He looking over at the asari.
"Something's not right with her, Nih. I would recommened that you stop all communication with her." Cora stated looking back over her shoulder.
Nihlus also looked back and saw Zalai standing outside the club watching the trio leave. When their eyes met, she blew him a kiss and turned to walk off into the shadows He sighed and shook his head as he stepped up to a transportation hub to summon a skycar. "Z is alright Cora. I am the one that has the issues."
He hated the counsel's chamber. The way the counsel stood above him in the massive chamber just reminded him of all the pressure that was placed on him to be their perfect spectre. He always wished that he could be like his mentor, Saren, and just not give a fuck as long as he got the job done. Nihlus tried to be as ruthless, to live up to the legend of his mentor, but found it impossible when he had to report back to his uncle, Sparatus.
Even now his uncle glowered down at him. The salarian councillor was the first to speak. "We have recently received all the reports of your last mission, Agent Kyrik, and are very alarmed by the amount of information you neglected to inform this counsel of in your report."
Nihlus swallowed the growl building in his throat and placed his hands on the railing leaning towards the counsel. "I apologize, however I Just returned to the citadel, and was taking a little r&r with my crew before I submitted my full report." He still couldn't help the raise in volume to his voice.
Sparatus slammed his fist down "And you didn't think it pertinent information to inform the counsel of Cerberus buying from batarian slavers."
"I took care of it, sir." Nihlus answered "Oh, yes. You killed all the slavers and Cerberus operatives and received no information as to the why's of the situation, AGAIN!" The turian councillor yelled, his mandibles spread wide and teeth gnashing. Councillor Tevos gently laid her hand on Sparatus' arm and amazingly silenced him.
She looked towards Nihlus, "We didn't summon you here to lecture you on what you should already know is your job, spectre." Tevos had the great ability to turn Nihlus back into a 12 year old having his father catch him stealing some fresh made lakal before dinner. "This counsel has been lenient towards you, because you are one of our top agents and there is no denying your effectiveness at your duty. That is why the counsel must request your services for another mission."
Nihlus felt his jaw drop "but... I just got back from 7 months out!"
The asari councillor met his eyes and nodded "We are perfectly aware, however your ship is the only one at our disposal with effective enough stealth capabilities."
Nihlus hung his head. He should have known that eventually the counsel would see the effectiveness of his small ship. "What is the mission?"
Sparatus raised his omni-tool and a recorded message began playing. "This is Dr. Masara K'Tar at Ventarlik station. We are under attack by Cerberus! Please, if anyone gets this, there are a few of us left." There was the sound of gun fire in the background of the transmission and a piercing scream. Nihlus could hear the heavy breathing of the doctor as she was running for her life. There was a thud and silence for a few moments, "Please. Someone help us!" and then silence filled the large room as the recording ended.