A/N
Well, I have good news, the second half of my university semester is half of the work load. Also, there are high chances that all of my classes will be returning to online format. Personally, I really hate the online shooling, but if things do return to online then I'll have way more free time (and I also won't have to spend so much money on gas).
The next arc of Tigress is in the works - but I plan to have one or two more non-action chapters to set up some new characters before the next major fight scenes. Designing supporting characters has always been a challenge for this story, mainly because the narrative focuses entirely on Ashley; so I want to make sure that I'm giving myself enough time to work out any problems before I put figurative pen to paper.
The re-write of Team MARS Part 3 is progressing, albeit slowly. The new re-write is essentially just a trimmed down version of what I had before, but there will be some drastic changes from the original plot. Assuming you followed the previous story, you might have been alerted by that the epilogue for Team MARS Part 2 has been replaced. I'll save you the time by telling you that I removed the entire Adjudicator teaser from epilogue, nothing else has changed.
Chances are that Team MARS Part 3 is going to recieve the Team MARS Part 1 treatment. As in, I'll probably finish all of most of the story before it is released. That being said, I'll be releasing the story's chapter in large "batches", meaning that there will be no weekly updates like before. Of course, this might all be subject to change.
Anyways...
Chapter 60…
Ashley's back and neck were killing her - which wasn't surprising, considering that she had spent the last few hours comatose on a hardwood floor.
At least… she was pretty sure that she was lying on a hardwood floor…
Her time estimation of a few hours was also a bit shoddy. In truth, the dark-haired woman had no idea what time it was; she also wasn't sure exactly how much time she had spent unconscious…
Licking her dry lips and keeping her eyes glued to the ceiling above her, Ashley tried to reflect on the events of the night before. Of what few flashes and glimpses that she could recall, she remembered alcohol… and yelling… and a bull…?
Ashley frowned.
'A bull? The fuck…?'
Letting loose a quiet groan, the woman began to shift her body and move. The muscles in her back and shoulders felt indescribably tight, feeling almost akin to chilled rubber.
Ashley's dark eyes widened in surprise when an arm that was not her own dragged against her stomach. The dark haired woman flung her own arm down to snatch the offending limb.
Following the unfamiliar arm up towards its source, Ashley found an unfamiliar man sleeping on the floor next to her. Her heart rate quickening, Ashley used her free hand to quickly pat down and scan the rest of her body.
Her green Militia uniform was still hanging off of her. The central zipper which dangled from her collar was still tightly fastened where she had left it. From what Ashley could see, she was still fully dressed.
The dark-haired woman considered batting the man's arm away, but instead placed it gently on the floor and continued to get up. One quick glance around the rest of the room revealed many others, like her, who had spent the night passed out in the bar. Close to a dozen other mercenaries were propped up against tables or leaning over the bar counter.
Everyone was still comatose…
Save for one…
Ashley narrowed her eyes at the lone man standing behind the bar. Barker, the only other conscious person in her local vicinity, offered Ashley an infuriating wink as he raised his finger to his lips in a silent gesture.
Quietly grunting to herself as she stood up to full height, Ashley began to stumble over to the bar. The muscles in her thighs felt stiff, forcing the dark haired woman into a shaky hobble.
"What time is it…?" Ashley whispered.
"Sheesh…" Barker quietly huffed. The man's hands were preoccupied - busy stirring some ghastly looking concoction in a pot positioned over a hot plate. "Good morning to you too, 'Kara…"
Ashley resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "It's anything but a good morning…"
"Headache?"
"Obviously."
"Well…" Barker cracked a sly grin, his hands still wrapped around a ladle. "Maybe if you didn't drink so much you wouldn't have a hangover…"
"Give me a break…" Ashley sighed as she crumpled into a vacant bar stool, resting her arms atop the bar and leaning forwards. Black wisps of hair fell into the woman's eyes, and Ashley suddenly realised that her hair had fallen completely loose from its tail.
"You're the one who insisted on an initiation…" Ashley grumbled as she began to struggle with her unwashed hair. For a moment, the woman paused, her fingers still intertwined with the black strands. "I don't remember much… How did I end up on the floor? I think there was a bull… or something?"
"A bull?" Barker snorted. "Watch your tone. Disrespect like that will get you gored. I think that you meant to say the bull…"
Barker removed one hand from the ladle he was gripping and pointed to the far corner of the bar. In a small clearing, just past a weathered looking pool table, was the mechanical bull that had sent Ashley into orbit the night before.
"Right…" Ashley drawled as she observed the mechanical monstrosity. "The bull…"
"Found it in a junkyard here on Harmony," Barker spoke proudly, resuming the stirring of the nasty concoction in the pot. "It needed a new motor. I considered touching up the paint but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I didn't want to steal away its unique identity."
"Wow…" Ashley grumbled, holding her throbbing forehead in her hands. "That's very interesting… but I don't really remember asking you…"
Barker offered a quiet chuckle in response.
"Y'know, assuming that you don't die horribly on an op… I think that acerbic wit of yours is going to grow on me…" Barker grinned. He looked even more unshaven, his facial hair having progressed overnight from a fashionable stubble to several whiskery patches.
"And perhaps your drunken unprofessionalism will grow on me…" Ashley replied, her face twisting into a scowl. "Maybe…"
"Sheesh," Barker waved a hand dismissively, a grin still stuck on his face. "Pot meet kettle…"
"Speaking of pots…" Ashley grimaced and gestured to the pot that Barker was busy stirring. Within, a noxious looking brown liquid churned and swirled.
"Oh, this?" Barker's eyes widened in surprise. "Just a little pick-me-up… I always brew some after a party."
"A pick-me-up?"
"A Barker Taube certified hangover cure," Barker spoke in a quiet, but proud tone. "Here…"
Withdrawing a cup from underneath the bar, Barker dipped the rim into the liquid and then handed the half-full cup to Ashley.
"Thanks…" Ashley's nose wrinkled as she gingerly accepted the cup. The brown liquid swished around inside and Ashley gave it a cautious sniff. She recoiled in disgust, the liquid smelling akin to stomach bile. "What the fuck is it?"
"It's better if I didn't tell you…" Barker grinned again, as he finally removed the ladle from the pot. He tapped the handle of the ladle against the rim of the pot two times in quick succession, flicking droplets of the pot's brown contents onto the surface of the bar. "It won't kill you though, if that's any consolation."
"Great, I feel so much better about it now."
"Just pinch your nose and gulp, gulp, gulp…" Barker quietly snapped his fingers every time he said "gulp".
Ashley looked down at the brown liquid and sighed. Pinching her nose as suggested, the woman raised the cup to her lips and began to drink. There was far too much to treat it like a shot, and the woman was forced to swallow multiple times to drain the cup.
It tasted sort of like how burning wires smelled…
Thankfully, the liquid was rather watery and went down easily. Ashley coughed as she swallowed for the last time, crudely wiping her upper lip with the sleeve of her uniform. The dark haired woman slammed the glass back onto the counter and pushed it in the direction of her employer.
"Well?" Barker asked in a quiet tone.
"What?" Ashley coughed a few more times, covering her mouth with her forearm.
The woman cracked open her eyes to find her employer leering over her. Barker had a curious look on his face, and was squinting his eyes as he scanned Ashley.
"Your head?" Barker clarified. "How is it?"
"Still-" Ashley froze, blinking in realization. She reached upwards to squeeze her temples and in an instant realized the absence of her headache. "I'm… actually feeling alright."
"Oh, good…" Barker nodded and finally relaxed. "Just wanted to make sure that I brewed it right. It's a finicky little recipe, I'm still experimenting with it."
"Right," Ashley cleared her throat.
Wordlessly, Barker withdrew his own cup from underneath the bar counter and scooped up a portion of the frothy liquid. The man swallowed the contents of his filled cup without a hint of hesitation - only sputtering slightly as he swallowed the last mouthful.
"Well, that's out of the way…" Barker cleared his throat and set his own cup down on the counter. "So… how'd you sleep?"
"Like I was lying on a hardwood floor… after being bucked by a mechanical bull…"
"Touche…" Barker sniffed. "S'fine. When you have a chance just go upstairs, find an empty bunk, and throw your shit onto it. Then it's yours, no contest."
"Good to know."
"Still so much to do for you…" Barker sighed and placed his hands on the counter. "I mean, you have that SMART pistol already, so I don't think we'll have to worry about arming you up."
"Fair."
"Then it's just a matter of getting you a titan," Barker frowned and tapped his fingers against the surface of the bar. "That'll be a-"
"No titan."
Barker stopped tapping his fingers against the bar. He gave Ashley an incredulous look. "What?"
"No titan," Ashley repeated herself, staring her new employer straight in the eyes. "I don't want one."
"Hey now-"
"And I don't need one," Ashley continued. "Case-closed."
"You don't get to decide that…" Barker sputtered. "A Pilot needs a titan…"
"This one doesn't…" Ashley's nostrils flared. "I don't want a titan."
Barker gave Ashley a long, unreadable look. The dark-eyed woman did not flinch under her employer's scrutinizing gaze.
"Look at it this way - one less expense," Ashley argued. "Hey?"
"Sure…" Barker licked his dry lips and shook his head.
"Let's move on…"
"Sure…" Barker repeated. "Forget I said anything about a titan. But let me know if you change your mind."
"Fair enough…"
Barker swept his hand in gesture towards the rest of the bar, and the dozen or so mercenaries still sleeping on the floor. "Once everyone wakes up they'll form a little ration line for my pick-me-up. Then once everyone is sober, that's when we conduct some business."
"Care to tell me what's on the agenda today?" Ashley mumbled, tracing her finger around the rim of Barker's unattended cup.
"Why, you can't wait for everyone else to be up?"
"Barker," Ashley yawned. "I've been doing mercenary work for years… information is power…"
"This company isn't a competition."
"I never said that it was…" Ashley frowned. "I just want to know what I'm getting into."
"And how do you know that I've selected you for this job?" Barker raised an eyebrow and leaned atop the bar. "Maybe you're sitting out for this one…"
"No, I'm not…" Ashley withdrew her finger from the rim of the glass. "After all… you had to spend a lot of credits to get me to sign up with you. That, and I volunteered to take a pay-cut to pay you back…"
Barker's eyes shone with a greedy light. "All true…"
"So…" Ashley pushed the used glass in Barker's direction. "Tell me what I'm getting into."
"Well…" Barker jutted his jaw out in thought and looked around the bar. So far, none of the other mercenaries had stirred from their places. "How about this… do you like history?"
"That's a weird question…" Ashley frowned. "I've never given it much thought…"
"History…" Barker tilted his head to the side. "Archaeology…"
"History? Archaeology?" Ashley frowned. "Care to tell me more?"
"No."
"No?"
"I don't like having to explain things twice…" Barker yawned. "Once everyone else is awake and sober… that's when you get to know more."
"Really? You seem like you really love to hear the sound of your own voice."
Barker chuckled and reached his hand underneath the bar. "I now realise why I like you so much, the disgruntled misanthrope that you are… that wit of yours…"
Barker withdrew his hand from underneath the bar, the handle of a large brass bell now clenched in his fingers. Keeping the bell in his hand, Barker walked off to a far corner of the bar where a peculiar looking array of strings and bells had been set up. The array bordered the sides of the walls before disappearing around the staircase which led to the upper floors of the establishment.
"Wake up call!" Barker shouted as he simultaneously rang the brass bell and pulled the dangling string. Ashley fought the urge to cover her ears at the sudden racket that Barker was making.
After a few moments, the sounds of multiple people cursing filled the air. The dozen or so mercenaries currently sleeping on the floor or propped up against bar stools began to stir - all glaring daggers at their employer.
Overtop Ashley's head came the thumping noise of footsteps against the old wood of the upper floors. There were too many footsteps for Ashley to get a good idea of how many people there were.
"Well, they'll be down soon enough…" Barker yawned. "Alright everyone! Come get your morning pick-me-up! We've got business to conduct!"
Ashley felt herself wilting as more and more mercenaries piled into the bar. They began to form an orderly line, moaning and grumbling as they patiently waited for a swig of Barker's ghastly hangover cure.
"Better than an alarm system…" Barker grinned, thumping the bell back onto the counter. "Alright, line up! Your good buddy Barker's got what you need!"
As Ashley watched the mercenaries line up for a swig of Barker's hangover cure, she was reminded of the soup kitchens for the homeless back in Tokyo. As a young woman she had never once needed the services of such charities, but on multiple occasions she had been a server.
Not that younger Ashley had wanted to volunteer to hand out soup to the homeless. She had only ever been a server on court orders - punishment for her frequent acts of teenage delinquency.
It was better than jail time… somewhat…
The dark haired woman sat awkwardly at the bar as the last of the mercenaries received their cup of Barker's bile-scented concoction. Ashley drummed her fingers against the metal rim of her stool, hoping that none of the room's two-dozen or so occupants would notice her and try to make conversation.
"Alright…" Barker loudly yawned as he loudly scraped a metal ladle against the bottom of the pot. "Everyone's got a swig!?"
"Yes…" The occupants of the room answered in a tired, buzzing drone.
"Oh, don't sound so pathetic, you lot…" Barker scoffed, dropping the ladle into the pot with a metallic tapping noise. "If you all didn't drink so much you wouldn't have to get a hit of this crap…"
Picking up the pot with both hands, Barker slipped the metal vessel beneath the bar and out of sight.
"Alright, let's conduct business!" Barker spoke loudly.
Ashley watched in quiet fascination as the mercenaries got to work. Five surrounded the pool table and picked up the piece of furniture in a coordinated group effort. The small group carried the pool table towards the center of the bar - where a small clearing had been made by pushing apart the other tables. With a simultaneous huff from those carrying it, the pool table was set on the floor and a fabric cover was thrown overtop of it.
The interior of the bar was now characterized by a flurry of motion as the other mercenaries began to surround the pool table. Each carried their own chair or stool sourced from the bar's interior.
All in all, the process took a minute to accomplish - and was surprisingly well-coordinated considering that everyone in the room, Ashley included, was still somewhat hungover.
Ever the pariah, Ashley realized that she was still sitting alone at the bar…
'Well, when in Rome…'
Standing up from the bar, Ashley picked up her stool by its metal rim and carried it over to the throng of mercenaries crowded around the pool table. To her surprise, they made space for her as she sat down on her stool and took a seat. Either they had no memory of the night before, which was likely considering the widespread alcohol consumption, or she was already considered a full-fledged member of the group.
"Settle down children, no pushing or shoving…" Barker loudly yawned as he squeezed through the group of seated mercenaries. The company leader had briefly disappeared into the back rooms behind the bar, only to reappear with a rather large stack of papers clenched in his right hand.
Barker fanned himself with the papers for a moment before he slapped the stack atop the covered surface of the pool table.
"So, our newest op is in the planning stages," Barker began. "And because we need to play fair, I'm rotating the roster from the last mission. Teams Two and Four will be running this operation and the rest of you are on standby…"
A chorus of groans broke out amongst the small crowd.
"Oh, don't give me that!" Barker snapped. "You all know the rules! Equal work opportunities for everyone!"
Pausing for a moment, the company leader began to shuffle his stack of papers.
"This payment for this job is coming from the Militia's pockets…" Barker paused. "And you all know my mantra when it comes to Militia jobs - 'maximum effort, but pad out the time, because we're being paid on the taxpayer dime'."
Several of the mercenaries surrounding the pool table quietly snickered.
"In addition, this operation is considered classified. So sit down, shut up, and none of you go flapping your fat gums to anyone outside this room," Barker warned, one outstretched finger wagging in the air. "Capiche? Good…"
Ashley frowned and looked around the bar - noting the complete lack of security. What kind of show was Barker running here?
Speaking of Barker, the man had withdrawn one piece of paper from the stack and held it above his head for the crowd to see. Squinting her eyes in the low-light of the bar, Ashley could spot a rather low resolution image of a small planet.
"This is Lyra-1…" Barker announced as he fluttered the piece of paper. "A teeny-tiny little moon. A satellite so insignificant that it's named after its planet, Lyra - which is also, coincidentally, an insignificant little planet in the middle of fucking nowhere."
Barker lowered the piece of paper displaying the image of the moon. Asher lifted her head and straightened her posture to get a better view. Despite Barker's rather crass description of the satellite, Ashley was pretty sure that she spotted a green surface - indicating either a gaseous atmosphere or foliage so thick that it could be seen from orbit.
"Now…" Barker yawned before recklessly spreading the rest of the papers across the table like a deck of cards. "Militia intelligence has determined that the IMC has some interest in Lyra-1. In particular, the ARES division…"
"Why?" One of the mercenaries spoke aloud. It was a woman with neatly cut brown hair; she had turned her chair backwards and was leaning her forearms across the backrest, observing Barker with inquisitive grey eyes.
"Fuck if I know…" Barker shrugged. Suddenly the man grew serious. "But… the Militia has reason to believe that it might be connected to the… Typhon… situation…"
Barker spoke the last few words with almost… reverence…
Ashley felt the entire mood of the bar shift. It felt as if the air had grown a few degrees cooler.
"Guess that explains why this is classified…" Muttered the same grey-eyed pilot from before.
"Yeah," Barker cleared his throat and patted at his clothes. "Anyways. The IMC seems to be digging for something deep inside Lyra-1's surface. What that something is, I don't know. But if the ARES division is there then it must be something important; Marder wouldn't waste the resources if it wasn't. Militia intelligence wants the dig site captured and the ARES researchers apprehended - nothing that our little motley crew can't handle. I also was told by Militia command that we are allowed to 'salvage' and 'appropriate' any surviving IMC hardware - which is fancy speak for we get to steal lots of cool shit."
Excited murmuring broke out amongst the room's occupants.
Barker straightened his back and planted his hands atop his hips. "Welp, we move out in three days, so get your shit in order and pack some shovels. All of you take a paper from this stack to read up on what's coming, Teams Two and Four in particular…"
For a moment, Barker pointed down at the spread pile of papers on the surface of the pool table. His attention then shifted, his hand articulating into an outstretched finger, which he pointed in Ashley's direction.
"Some of you might remember Ishikara from last night's initiation party…" Barker began, paying Ashley no mind as the dark eyed woman wilted under the sudden attention that she was receiving. "She'll be filling the vacant slot in Team Four… so all of you be nice and welcoming to her."
Barker swiveled his brown-eyed gaze in Ashley's direction. The look he was giving her was unreadable, but the dark-eyed woman felt her stomach coil when she spotted the grin pushing up the sides of his face.
"'Kara loves conversation and is a real team player…" Barker grinned. "So don't hesitate to go over and say hello, she's a talkative one…"
Ashley felt her face burning red as two dozen pairs of eyes began to stare down on her…
She was going to kill Barker…
