Chapter 4- Service for the Community
For the first time in years, Kolyat did not want to get out of bed, 6:00 am was far to early this morning, he hit the snooze on his omni-tool and what seemed like seconds later it was going off again. Sitting up he feels his jaw and moves his head side to side, stretching his neck muscles. Standing he went to make a cup of tea and clean up before is day started, looking in the mirror, he had a rather nasty bruise on his left side of his chin, the events of the previous day flooded back into his mind. Shaking his head he chuckles to himself So...dumbass that is what it feels like to be...warned by Commander Shepard! He was pretty sure he would not be forgetting that any time soon, if ever.
Pulling out a clean pair of trousers and getting dressed he finished his tea and ran out the door putting on his coat. He was going to be late! Grabbing a cab would be a lot quicker than running all the way to C-Sec. So he did and arrived with only moments to spare.
" Almost didn't think you were going to make it." Bailey didn't even look up from his computer.
Grinning Kolyat sarcastically says, " Ah, plenty of time to spare."
That did make Bailey look up and pause his typing. Standing he smiled, " Well, aren't we chipper this morning. Good you are going to need that...Follow me."
Kolyat's smile faded slightly as they wound through the cells to two secluded ones in the back. " Ok, here you go son, the mop and cleaning supplies are right here in this closet on the right, here is the key. Start in that cell right there." Pausing he shouts at a cam up above their heads, " Trant! Open Number two, it is to be cleaned!"
" Yes, sir! Right away, Sir!" the female voice replies.
Smiling at Kolyat, Bailey chuckles, " There was a drunk Krogan in there over night, so it is going to be a little ripe. Might want to put on the mask and suit in the closet for this. Bailey backs away from the cell as the door opens and the most foul smell permeates the hall way. " And hurry up about it, because you are going to have to clean up the rest of them if the other drunks get a whiff."
Kolyat dives for the closet and the mask, pulling it on and the suit, as quickly as he could possibly move, while holding his breath, he grabs the supplies and looks at Bailey who had moved behind the glass separating these two cells from the rest of the block.
" Mother of all that is good! What the hell is that..." Kolyat says as he walks into the room, "OH GOD! That Krogan bastard shat everywhere!"
Bailey chuckles a little as he watches Kolyat disappear into the room. Hearing him cursing over the CCTV.
" Don't you think we should tell him about the sterilizer first, Captain?" Trant asks sympathizing for the young Drell.
" Maybe when he gets half-way through, if he makes it that far, Trant" Bailey chuckles.
"Remind me to never do anything that would qualify me for community service, Sir." Trant looks on horrified.
"Half- way through, Trant! Remember that!" Bailey chuckles to himself as he walks away and is still chuckling to himself when Kolyat emerges from the back, having to take a shower, after Trant actually told him about the sterilizer a little earlier than half-way though the cleaning of the cell. She was sure he was going to lose it in that suit if she didn't.
"That was not funny, Sir!" Kolyat looks at him glumly, "I can still smell that stench on me!"
"Yes, it was smart ass!" Baily quipped not even looking up from his Monitor, " Go home and take a shower...might want to throw away those clothes though, the smell will never come out. See you tomorrow at zero, seven- hundred, Sharp! We have some really important stuff to get done."
Groaning Kolyat, looks at him " No more Krogan shit please, Sir!"
"Planning on being a smart ass tomorrow?" Bailey pauses his typing and looks up at the young Drell.
" Is that what caused all of this?! Oh man! That was just..." Kolyat began
" Want some more tomorrow for whining?" Bailey gave him a cold and serious look.
"Nah, thanks I think I will pass and be early. Will make sure the smart ass stays home too." Kolyat knew he was defeated and he would just have to get through this and not be a smart ass, though with Bailey it was not going to be easy.
" See you tomorrow, Son!" Bailey smiled cheerfully and went back to his typing. Chuckling to himself.
He waived for a taxi and went to get in, the driver said "NO WAY! You stink like Krogan shit!" and closed the automatic doors. Kolyat would have to walk the whole way back to his apartment and just hope Bailey didn't get calls from decent people about a smelly Drell stinking up the walkway. The sick bastard would probably laugh his ass off! Kolyat thought to himself.
Arriving home with only a few people giving him a very wide berth, he strips off all of his clothing and stuffs them into the plastic bag he managed to grab from the little store across the street, before the owner ran him off. The day just couldn't get any worse. He thought. Tying the bag tight and wrapping a second and third bag around it he drops it into the garbage ejector to be taken to the extraction plant on the Citadel. All waste went in there and that certainly was wasted clothing!
Stepping into the shower he scrubbed every single inch of himself twice and kept smelling himself to make sure the stench was gone. Finishing his hygiene he wraps a towel around himself and heads into the other room, catching a wiff of that nasty smell again! What the hell! He thinks to himself...groaning he realizes his boots were still in there and they had to be the source of the smell. Disposing of them the smell begins to subside.
Sitting down on the bed he realizes, he has no, boots, no clothes and no jacket either! He opens his Omni-tool and looks through the shops. Locating one that at least had something that would fit his lean frame he orders a new set of everything, which was promised for deliver with in 4 hours. Finally, something that may go right for him. Turning on the extranet monitor, he stands and looks through the food he had available to him and selects a ready meal, placing it into the microwave and making a cup of tea, he waits for them to finish and as soon as it had started to cool he wolfs the food down, he did not realize he was actually starving and barely tasted it. Grabbing another ready meal he stuffs it in the microwave and wolfs it down too. Finally full he flops down on his bed and quickly falls asleep.
The sound of his buzzer screaming startles him awake. He stumbles to the door and opens it, still in just a towel. He is greeted by a young human boy quite a bit younger than himself.
" Hi Delivery for Mr. Kolyat Krios?" the Human asks.
"Yes" Kolyat rubs his eyes as the boy shoves a data pad at him, checking the balance he realizes he just spent a little over 1000 creds on clothing and boots. Kolyat groans and shakes his head signing the data pad, taking the package and closing the door. He to the bathroom to see if they fit.
Looking in the mirror Kolyat grumbles about his old clothes and liking them. The trousers were comfortable but had that new feel to them, and the jacket was a light blue with a silver pattern. The boots fit perfectly. It was a good thing he was an average size for a Drell, everything fit well, not too tight and loose just where he needed them. Stripping off he puts them away and hangs his jacket in the closet. He reaches into the bag and grabs the pyjama pants and pulls them on. Comfortable! Why had he not thought of those before. Grabbing a human t-shirt from the bag he pulls it on and decides he is actually hungry...again! Putting the final ready-meal in the microwave, he makes a cup of tea and as soon as it is ready he wolfs down his food. He usually was a very slow eater taking hours to devour a meal. This new trend was not going to make his digestive system happy. Shrugging he puts his tea on the side table and flops down on the bed flipping through the channels on the extranet monitor. Settling on a supposed documentary on the Hanar.
The screaming of his Omni-tool marks another day and if he didn't hurry he would be cleaning another drunk tank today. He had the forethought to order a door to door cab this morning and as he waited he finished his tea, calmly. His Omni-tool pings and he heads out the door setting the empty cup in the sink as he walks past.
Bailey was his chipper self and sends Kolyat and Trant off giving them the name of someone that Bailey needed found. Kolyat nodded his head.
"Be careful kid. This guy is not a nice guy and if he doesn't want to be found, it is probably because he did something not nice." Bailey warned him.
Kolyat nodded again and Bailey hands him his pistol. " You might need that. Trant make sure he doesn't do anything I would get in trouble for." The Captain pats Kolyat on the shoulder and sits back down in his chair.
Turning, Kolyat notices that Officer Trant was in complete casual dress. A pair of denim trousers and a nice pink, fuzzy sweater that seemed more like a furry animal than a top. But Kolyat always wondered at the oddities of humans.
Kolyat and Trant tuck their pistols into a concealed spot, Trant puts her badge on the inside of her light jacket and they head off down to the Presidium to find this guy.
Trant synced her omni-tool with Kolyat's and shook her head saying, " You know kid, I don't know what you did to deserve this 'community service' but I think Bailey has taken a liking to you."
" We if cleaning Krogan shit is how he 'likes' people. I think I would rather he didn't like me." Kolyat grumbled.
Laughing Trant nods her head in agreement, " yeah I can see that. Hey why don't you settle in over there in that cafe and I will chill here on this bench. The guy is supposed to be coming with in the next hour or so. "
Kolyat hadn't eaten so he was up for that " Ok, I will grab a bite to eat and see what I can find out from some of the local people." With that Kolyat wandered over to the cafe and sits down in a wondow seat, back facing the wall and he could see Trant as well as the entrance into the building and still be comfortable.
His food arrived fairly quickly and he watched out the window. He notices a pretty blonde human sitting on a bench just outside his window, her form fitting dress was very appealing in a deep blue, showing just enough of her legs for Kolyat to admire the soft muscling.
"Hey, don ya know isst rude to stare at girls, Mister!" a familiar young female voice interrupts.
Kolyat turns to the sound of the voice and smiles, "Fancy, it is quite nice to see you." Waving his hand to the seat across from him he asks, " Hungry?"
The girl grins and her eyes light up, " Hell yeah! I am always hungry, mister"
He smiles and tells her to order what she liked, but that he may have to go in the middle of lunch so he would pay now.
" I likes you more and more" She grins at Kolyat.
Kolyat looks out for the girl again and she is just walking away, appreciating the view he watches and finally remembers Trant. Relieved she is over on her bench still, pulling open her onmi-tool, his pings. He opens it and reads the message from Trant.
" this is taking forever. Who is the kid and that girl was pretty you should have gotten her number!"
What the hell! Am I that obvious? He thinks. Looking over at Fancy he thinks for a moment.
" Hey Fancy, you don't happen to know a man named Jalid, do you?" Might as well give it a try, she seemed to know so many people in the Citadel.
" Jalid?" The little girl becomes nervous and looks directly at Kolyat, " He is a very bad man, mister and you should stay far away from him."
Her food arrives and she digs in. In her usual fashion. Kolyat lets her continue and sends Trant a message briefing her on what the kid said. Several groups of people walk by as Fancy eats, the streets seem to be getting busier and he occasionally loses sight of Trant. However he does see that girl again, she is talking to Trant. " Oh lord this can't be good." Kolyat says aloud.
" What?" Fancy looks out the window and asks again "WHAT!? Tell me."
"aw, nothing Fancy..." Kolyat looks at the girl again and asks " Fancy, I really need to find Jalid."
She finishes her food and looks at him while slurping up the last of her soda. Finished she leans forward and tells him, "Jalid is talking to your friend."
Hopping down she walks out the door, Kolyat looks for Trant she is sitting down on the bench. He looks around for Jalid and sees the blonde again talking to a well dressed Batarian. Pinging Trant's omni-tool he tells her the Batarian on her right with the Blonde.
He and Trant both walk up and very uneventfully arrest Jalid. The blonde was asked to come along as they were not sure what her tie in really was. Calling Bailey four more officers move in and take the group back to C-sec. The Batarian insists that he is innocent and just because his name was Jalid did not mean he had done anything. Captain Bailey was more than a little pleased and the fact that no one lost their life was a bonus.
"I did want to ask you about the girl, though." Bailey queried Kolyat and Trant.
" Sir, she had been hanging around the area and seemed to be waiting for someone. Then we spot her talking to Jalid. She may be involved in what ever it is you want him for." Trant spoke quickly to Bailey.
" Ah, I see." Bailey sits there thinking for a moment, " Trant go find out her involvement and get back to me. I need to spend a little time with Mr. Jalid.
" Yes sir!" Trant heads off to talk to the girl and Kolyat sits down and waits for either of them to let him know what to do next. Being bored he grabs the trash cans and takes them to the extraction area dumping them in and replacing them back where they belonged.
" We are done here Miss Serenya, I will call your parents, please have a seat." Trant was saying as she walked from the room. The girl was in tears and seemed to be genuinely upset over being arrested.
Sniffling she, settles into a seat trying her best to wipe her eyes with her already damp hands. Kolyat shakes his head and walks over to Bailey's desk grabbing a box of tissues, and sets them beside the girl.
" Are you ok?" He asks
" No, I am not ok!" she looks up at him, "I was arrested for talking to a stranger! AND now here I am talking to you who is stranger than he was! Will I be imprisoned for this now?" Bursting into a fresh set of tears, Kolyat really does feel bad for her and looks around for Trantt, who seems to be off doing something else.
" Hey there," He presses another tissue into her hand and kneels beside the girl, "you were not arrested for talking to a stranger. That was a very bad man and you are here for safety. I don't think that Officer Trant knew who you were and just was finding out."
"I had talked to her earlier! She had met me! She actually asked for my number for a survey, she said." The girl looks over at Kolyat no longer crying, " You have a beautiful skin colour." Just wanting to get her mind off the events of today.
Kolyat smiles and takes a seat near her. He really liked her smell, fresh and soft. " I am Kolyat" He offers her his gloved hand and her brow furrows, but she takes his hand shaking it and smiling.
Kolyat was hooked, right then and there that girl's smile was like the Sun and her deep blue eyes were the colour of the oceans he had visited occasionally on Kahje. She reminded him of home and he just wanted to be near her and to protect her from anything and everything bad in the world.
" I am Serenya and here with my parents. Hopefully they will be here very soon, I just want to go back to the hotel, take a nice hot bath and forget this place even exists, for a little while anyway." wiping her eyes again and placing all of the tissues in the waste bin she smiles at Kolyat again.
Kolyat's mind goes blank and he just listens to her for a moment wondering where she was from, "Where are you from?", he asks.
"I am a colony kid." She smiles, " Daddy is a Mechanical Engineer for Exogeni and Mom is a housewife. We actually live on Illium right now, but are supposed to be moving somewhere else. Exogeni moves us a lot."
She pauses and looks at him, " um, I hope this isn't rude but...what are you?"
Kolyat is a little taken aback. A colony kid that has never seen a Drell? Surely they weren't THAT rare.
"No it is not rude at all, my species are known as Drell. I am actually surprised that you had not studied my people in your schools. We were educated on all of the known species, some of their customs and even their languages. Just the basics so we could get to the bathroom or get medical assistance if needed. Now with Omni-tools we don't need to even know that anymore, because the translation is done for us."
Serenya smiles, " You have beautiful skin, can I touch it?" she raises her hand and Kolyat catches it in his. Looking down at the tiny fingers, he smiles, liking the feel of her hand in his.
" That would not be wise, unfortunately." Kolyat looks at her again, her hand still in his.
Serenya blushes," Oh I am sorry, I didn't mean to be rude."
Kolyat grins at her, " You weren't rude, my skin emits a toxin that could be very dangerous for you, and though I do use special creams and soaps to neutralize it, if you have never been exposed to the toxin, it could be very dangerous."
Serenya's eyes widen in surprise and she looks at his gloved hands, " That means you could never hold hands with a girl without gloves...or hug her?" blushing she smiles boldly"...or kiss her either?"
If Kolyat could have blushed, he would be as red as an impassioned Hanar, "" Ummm...well there are ways, like I said with cremes and soaps and stuff...uhhh..." he pauses, " but the kissing part..umm well, I have never tried with someone who was not Drell...so I don't know..." Oh he so wished he could just kiss this girl and find out, but it was not worth the risk to her.
" Serenya!" an older female walks in and rushes to her.
"Oh mom! I am so glad you are here" Serenya drops Kolyat's hand and rushes into her mother's waiting arms. Kolyat feels a deep tug at his heart and looks away. The woman fusses over her daughter saying that she was far too young to be wandering the Citadel and getting arrested.
Standing Kolyat smiles at the woman and interrupts, " Missus, she was only brought here for her protection, and she was quite distressed. I am glad they were able to locate you and reunite Miss Serenya with you." he pauses as the mother's look of disapproval disappeared and was replaced with concern.
" He was there when I was lost. Him and Officer Trant saved me from, a very bad man who was trying to talk to me and they brought me here to be safe mom. I am safe. By the way, This is Kolyat, he is a Drell !" Serenya beams at her mother.
" I know the species, Serenya." Her mother laughs and turns to Kolyat "Thank you for saving my daughter, Kolyat. I am Elise and this is my husband Kevin." Elise extends her hand to Kolyat.
Taking her hand Kolyat smiles, " I certainly wish we had met under better circumstances, however it is nice to meet you. To set the record straight, I did not rescue your daughter. I was just there and it was Officer Trant who rescued your daughter and made sure she was safe. Though I was there."
Bailey enters the room and takes Serenya's parents into a side room leaving them alone for a moment or two again. Serenya takes out a pen and paper from her little handbag and writes on it handing it to Kolyat, it was a series of numbers...HER numbers!
"My number, send me a message by omni-tool, if you want to chill or something. " Smiling at him she turns as her Parents enter the room. Her mother takes her gently by the arm as does her father and leave, with her in tow, she turns and waves at him through the glass window as they step into the cab.
Kolyat wonders if he would see her again, smiling to himself he tucks the number into this pocket, after adding it to his Omni-tool.
" What's that grin for young man" Bailey interrupting, Kolyat's thoughts.
"Oh she gave me her onmi-tool number so I can contact her... 'to chill or something' she said." Kolyat grins not too sure what that meant, but sure it was a good thing.
Captain Bailey chuckled and shook his head, " Well, that is a start, huh? Just make sure you are here on time, sonny and you don't lose focus. Go on, get out of here...see you in the morning." turning back to his duties on the computer.
Kolyat wondered if Bailey actually lived at the Headquarters as he walked out the door. He turns mid stride and asks, "Hey, Bailey...do you live here? I always see you right there, every single day...and even some evenings when I happen to pass by."
Captain Bailey pauses his typing and looks at the young man, " No, I do have an apartment and I do have days off. Not many, but I do get time to myself. " interlacing his fingers he rests his chin on them, " Are you concerned about me Kolyat?"
Kolyat grinned at him, " Just curious, " Maybe we could hit the bar for a drink sometime." With that he turned and walked out the door hoping like hell it didn't sound sarcastic.
"Sure, maybe..." Bailey grinned and turned back to his monitor and typing.