Chapter 8…
It hadn't even been ten minutes yet and Ashley was already feeling the urge to leave…
The worst part was she and Templeton weren't even in the mess hall yet…
The shorter man was a few steps ahead of her and occasionally glanced over his shoulder to make sure that she was still there. He hadn't said very much to her since inviting her out for a drink, which Ashley was very grateful for.
Ashley didn't hate Templeton, she didn't really dislike him either… in all honesty she didn't even know what his first name was. The only reason the dark haired woman had tagged along was the promise of a free drink, she didn't have any intention of sticking around after the alcohol had dried up.
Perhaps it was the monotony of walking that caused Ashley to delve back into her memories again, or perhaps she hadn't actually stopped mulling over the past at all.
Her mind was once again occupied by the image of her friend Colton. The soulless image of him that had flashed across her eyes before was now in focus, and from her memories Ashley tried her best to reconstruct his face. She could remember the even tone of his dark skin, the kind twinkle of his brown eyes and the way his gleaming white teeth would reflect light everytime he smiled…
He had always been smiling… even in the worst of conditions; Ashley had pretty clear memories of all that…
But while Ashley's mind was busy reconstructing an image of Colton's face, memories of her other squadmates began to emerge. First there was James, the taciturn team leader and a model soldier, in many ways the yin to Colton's yang. Second was Caleb, always quiet and secretive but the kind of guy you wanted in the foxhole next to you… assuming that you weren't too busy second-guessing everything he said.
Three squadmates… former squadmates… James, Colton and Caleb…
Ashley let out a huff of surprise when she stumbled into Templeton's back, pulling her away from her thoughts.
"You okay?" Templeton muttered, looking over his shoulder and giving Ashley a cautious look.
"Sorry!" Ashley spoke abruptly. "I didn't realize that you had stopped…"
Templeton looked away, hiding his face from Ashley. "It's fine… just watch where you're walking next time."
"Sure," Ashley frowned. The dark haired woman peered past Templeton to spot the closed door of the mess hall. "Are you going to go in?"
"Yeah," Templeton raised his hand up to manipulate the door keypad. "You might want to press down the collar on your jumpsuit by the way… it's a little stained."
Ashley angled her chin down and narrowed her eyes at the spot Templeton had indicated. Her dark eyes scanned the white fabric but she was unable to find any stains.
"What stain?" Ashley grumbled, turning her face up and meeting Templeton's eyes.
"You're too easy," Templeton grinned mischievously.
Ashley gave Templeton a flat look. "Really?"
"You were dead silent the way here," Templeton shrugged. "Had to test the waters a little…"
"Next time, don't…"
Templeton shrugged and entered the mess hall, lazily waving over his shoulder for Ashley to follow him. At the far end of the loud, busy room a small bar had been pushed into a tight corner. Occupying the barstools were several pilots, the only one Ashley somewhat recognized was "Dirge".
"And how is everyone tonight!?" Templeton got everyone's attention as he took a seat next to Dirge. "Look who I managed to drag in!"
Several pairs of eyes turned up to stare at Ashley, which made the dark haired woman uncomfortable. She settled on a non-verbal response, waving her hand and taking a seat on the stool on the far side of Templeton; this left a seat between them and another vacant seat on Ashley's left.
"Ashley Ishi-" Dirge began but stopped halfway, his small mouth contorting into an unpleasant shape. "Was it 'Kawa' or 'Kira'?"
Several pairs of eyes burrowed into Ashley again.
"Kara," the dark woman muttered with a barely suppressed frown. "You drunk?"
"Not enough," Dirge chuckled in response, taking a long sip from his drink.
Ashley didn't like how his dark eyes scanned her body up and down… she especially didn't like how his eyes settled on her chest.
"Don't be even more of an asshole, Dirge!" Templeton scoffed in response.
"Fuck you, Templeton," Dirge growled, slamming his cup back onto the bar.
"You wish you could!" Templeton leered. "For the first time in years you could give your hand a break!"
Dirge surged upwards in his seat and slammed his meaty fists onto the bar. To his credit Templeton didn't back down, he stood up slowly and gave Dirge a big grin.
The urge to leave was getting stronger… maybe Ashley could slip out while they were fighting? She hadn't had her free drink yet… but at least the night wouldn't be a total waste of time.
"Boys, please," another one of the pilots spoke up, rising from her seat. "You're both big scary mercenaries… should you really be beating each other the day before a mission?"
The unfamiliar pilot was a tall woman with an elegantly cut bob of wavy dark hair. Her face and chin looked delicate… as if she was a model or socialite… but certainly not a hired soldier. There was something about her dark brown eyes that made Ashley feel unsettled, but she couldn't put a finger on why.
"Sorry, Knife," Dirge grumbled, collapsing back into his barstool and wrapping his big hands around his drink.
"Sorry, Knife," Templeton mocked, rolling his eyes and turning to face the bartender. "I'll take a whiskey… you okay with whiskey, Ishikara?"
"Whiskey sounds good right about now," Ashley mumbled.
The bartender pulled out a bottle of the amber liquid, pouring a generous amount into two cups and sliding them across the bar to their intended recipients. Ashley accepted the liquid gracefully, raising it to her lips and taking a long sip.
"Damn, Templeton," another one of the pilots joked. "Are you buying drinks for Ishikara? You trying to get in her pants?"
Ashley felt the burning hot whiskey get caught in her throat, leaving her unable to talk for a moment. To his credit, Templeton didn't take advantage of the situation.
"It's not like that," Templeton sipped his drink and waved off the accusation. "I offered to buy her a drink if she agreed to come… someone needed to break the ice a little bit."
Ashley wiped her mouth and said nothing, sinking deeper back into her seat. Her first opinion of Templeton was that he didn't have much backbone… but their recent interactions had disproved that a little bit.
The dark haired woman tuned out the conversation around her and let her mind wander again. She turned her obsidian coloured eyes to the vacant seat on her left, her vision slowly becoming occupied with another vision of Colton.
Ashley could imagine the man sitting next to her at the bar like they used to. Colton had never been one for drinking, Ashley had never seen hard alcohol even touch his lips. Instead he would order something ridiculous and effeminate sounding and lounge around to make conversation. Whenever he would speak to her he would prop up his head on his hand and place a long straw in his mouth to sip his fruity, colorful drink.
"I like it because it tastes like blueberries," Colton grinned, making Ashley scoff and look away. "Isn't it kinda funny? Seeing a big grown man sipping on some cocktail? Keeps people on their toes…"
To this day Ashley never understood how he managed to become a pilot. That wasn't an insult… he had been a damn good pilot, her statement hadn't been based on his skill. Colton had been kind to the point of overbearing, open and talkative to the point of nauseating… he had never cared much for discipline or strict military lingo.
It was what made him a breath of fresh air… and a pain in the ass, depending on the day.
Out of all the people Ashley knew, Colton was the only one she would want sitting at the bar with her, even if his antics were at times embarrassing.
"Look at this!" Colton chuckled. The man reached his dark hand towards his drink to remove the little novelty parasol. In a deft motion he tucked the little umbrella into his dark curly hair. "Am I not beautiful!?"
The feeling of pain and regret began to wallow in Ashley, it felt like a cold hand was squeezing the delicate tissue of her heart. Ashley desperately began looking around for some form of distraction- any distraction that would take her mind off the friend she had lost.
Thankfully, that distraction found her…
"Ishikara, right?" A female voice asked in a low, measured tone.
Ashley turned her head and craned her vision upwards to meet the two brown eyes of the woman speaking. "Pardon?"
"Your name is Ishikara, right?" The woman Ashley only knew as "Knife" asked again. "Would you mind if I take a seat?"
Ashley frowned and gestured with her hand at the vacant barstool between her and Templeton. "Knife" sat done gently, as if she was settling into a comfy and luxurious armchair rather than a squeaky barstool.
"Ishikara…?" The woman known as "Knife" drawled with the slightest hint of an accent, regarding Ashley with keen brown eyes. "That name… let me guess… Japanese?"
"Knife" propped herself up on one hand and bit her lower lip expectantly.
"Japanese," Ashley confirmed with a long sigh. "Yeah…"
"Interesting," the woman known as "Knife" answered, a delicate smile slowly crawling up the sides of her lips. "Have you ever been to Japan? Were you born there?"
Ashley shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "I was born there… but I left with the IMC to re-discover the frontier."
"Hmmph," the unfamiliar woman huffed. "Any family? Any plans to go back?"
Ashley felt the unpleasant feeling of anger and discomfort and began to coil in her gut at that particular question. She set her drink onto the smooth surface of the bar and twisted her torso to peer at "Knife" curiously.
"That's not a question I want to answer…"
"Then don't," the other woman shrugged.
"Why are you asking me this stuff anyways?" Ashley narrowed her eyes. "I don't even know your name…"
"I was simply curious… and you were willing to answer," the other woman drawled in a low tone. "Out of all the Pilots on this mission you are the only one I've never properly spoken too…"
"And your name?" Ashley pressed further.
"Cozbi Mentirosa," the now introduced woman smiled, holding out a delicate hand for Ashley to shake. "Most people around here call me Knife though…"
"I got that part," Ashley frowned, accepting the woman's handshake and then pulling away. "But why?"
"Why else? I'm good with knives…" Cozbi shrugged nonchalantly. "As nicknames go it's not the worst… take Dirge for example…"
"Dirge isn't his actual name?"
Cozbi scoffed and leaned back in her seat turning her head to peer at the man in question. "Dirge!"
The large man snapped to attention, his dark eyes settling on Ashley and Cozbi. "Yeah?"
"Ashley doesn't know about your nickname! Care to share?" Cozbi asked in a sugar sweet tone, jutting out one shoulder over the bar.
"Well!" Dirge stood up from his stool to his full imposing height, he jabbed one thumb against his chest. "They call me 'Dirge' because I'm the last thing those Militia fucks hear before I put 'em in the ground!"
All at once the other pilots at the bar began to snicker. Dirge looked indignant and slammed his fists on the bar. "What!?"
"His real name is Horace," Cozbi whispered in Ashley's direction. "Don't use that name around him though…"
"I'll keep it in mind…" Ashley chuckled in a low tone, the feeling of dread in her chest beginning to lessen up somewhat. The dark haired woman downed the rest of her whiskey and quickly stood up. "I think that's it for me… have a good night, I guess…"
"Going so soon?" Cozbi tilted her head and chewed her lower lip for a moment. "Why? It's not that late…"
Ashley tapped two fingers against the bar. "Probably shouldn't be drinking hard liquor before a mission…"
"What if I buy you another one?" Cozbi offered. "Just one more… then you can leave…"
Ashley weighed her options… another drink did sound nice… the fact that she wouldn't have to pay for it was just an added bonus.
"Alright," Ashley settled down into her stool again and waved over the bartender. "Make it another whiskey… and this better not be an interrogation, got it?"
"I'll ask… you can choose to answer," Cozbi smiled. The brown eyed woman purchased Ashley another glass and waited for the dark haired woman to take a sip. "So… you were with the original fleet?"
"Mhmm," Ashley confirmed, setting her drink back down. "Things were good for a while…"
"Yes, until Demeter I suppose…" Cozbi spoke softly.
Ashley did her best to hide her discomfort at the mention of the planet's name. A vision of her old team flashed across her eyes again… and if she focused hard enough she could remember the smell of sulfur and gunpowder.
"That was a bad day," Ashley frowned and looked away.
"I was up on the orbital tethers," Cozbi frowned. "I had a front row seat…"
"I was on the ground…"
"Really?" Cozbi cocked her head, her brown eyes shining with curiosity. "How did you get off? I remember Spyglass denying evacuation…"
"That's a different story," Ashley turned her head and narrowed her eyes, fighting down the rising emotion in her throat. "One I don't want to answer…"
"Then don't," Cozbi raised her hands again. "How about I change the subject?"
"Silence works for me too…"
"You're at a bar Ish, silence isn't an option here," Cozbi smiled gently, resting her head on her hand and playing with her wavy hair. Cozbi was without a doubt quite attractive… but her mannerisms made Ashley feel even more uncomfortable.
"Ish?" Ashley frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"I think that might be your new nickname," Cozbi chuckled. "Or callsign… Ish is far easier to say than Ishikara."
"I don't think you have a skill for picking nicknames, Knife," a heavily accented voice interrupted, startling Ashley a little bit. The dark haired woman turned her head to find Kuben Blisk taking a seat on the vacant stool to her left.
Ashley wished he had sat elsewhere… the image of Colton that was still in her mind had vanished.
"Ashley's nickname and callsign is Tigress," Blisk grinned, simultaneously avoiding Ashley's glare. "And it's official because I'm the boss…"
"Oooh!" Templeton catcalled, getting everyone else's attention. "Bossman is picking names for Ishikara!? I wonder what that could mean!?"
The other pilots all began to snicker.
"Oi, shut up Templeton!" Blisk snapped at the still snickering pilot. "Or your nickname will be 'gutted'! I'll make it bloody literal too!"
"Alright boss," Templeton waved his hand. "Whatever you say…"
"Moron," Blisk hissed under his breath. He suddenly turned his attention away to focus on Cozbi and Ashley. "How are you two ladies doing?"
"My my Blisk…" Cozbi spoke in a low tone. The brown eyed woman crossed one leg over the other before continuing. "Calling us ladies? That's new…"
"Don't read into it," Blisk yawned.
"I was actually about to turn in," Ashley quickly interjected, snatching her still half-full cup of whiskey. "Goodnight…"
"Wait a moment," Blisk caught Ashley's arm, once again ignoring the woman's murderous glare. "You still have some whiskey in that cup… stay for a quick toast, hey?"
"Come on now, Tigress," Cozbi grinned. "One toast!? Blisk usually keeps them quick…"
Ashley's left eye twitched, the feeling of dread was beginning to spread in her chest again. "Fine… but keep it fast."
Blisk wordlessly smiled and stood up, quickly ordering a drink for himself from the bartender. Still standing, he loudly whistled to get everyone's attention.
"Hey you lot!" Blisk called the group of pilots. "Settle down! All of you!"
The mass of pilots all stood up, Ashley awkwardly standing along with them.
"Now I am not one for lengthy speeches," Blisk began. "And you know I never put much of my faith in luck! But I can put my faith in the group of mean looking bastards in front of me!"
The mass of pilots cheered, Ashley weakly joining in.
"Tomorrow we'll be dealing with a bunch of bloody idiots who are standing between us and a big pile of money! Are we going to let them!?"
"NO!" Roared the mass of mercenary pilots.
"That's the bloody spirit!" Blisk grinned. "I expect you all to be at the top of your game tomorrow! I don't just want soldiers, I want killers!"
Another cheer.
"So let's drink!" Blisk shouted. The mercenary followed this up by tilting back his cup and taking a long gulp. "For the dosh!"
"For the dosh!" The mass of pilots roared.
Ashley gulped the rest of her whiskey and slammed the cup on the counter. With her mind still occupied with thinking about what she had lost, she turned around and walked off before anyone could call her out.
The dark haired woman felt like she was being watched… perhaps by one person in particular.
