|32|
"There's plumbing in the ship," Wrex called behind him as he heard someone rummaging through the connector, "…I stole it from some idiot who thought it would be a good idea to trust a krogan corpse he'd dragged in to stripsearch…Body's somewhere….Anyway, over there by your right," he saw Miranda giving him a strange look as she slid the rusty door wide, gasped, then went in as though she were walking through fire, "…Yeah, it probably needs to be cleaned."
Casnar took his walk through the ship, seeing what it had to offer and leaving behind the others in the bay. Tapping one of the walls, he listened to the hauler's noises as they flew out of Grim Reaper, and he thought about the shuttle they'd left behind, the magnetic storm, other things….Was Lothiraxl really a place no one could leave, and why had Kaidan been permitted, was Braith really free of the pio inside her…What would happen now it was out—she didn't look like she was close to falling apart…Rubbing his hands together, he turned at the noise of someone coming down the hallway, "…Hey." Catherine was holding her zonepad open, the light in her eyes aglow with the connectivity.
"Having a look to find what network's available," she said, stopping next to him, "…I'm getting a faint wireless, but it's so old, and there's not much more than logs for where the ship's been," she blinked, blocking the light momentarily…That from the zonepad itself warmed under her neck and jaw.
"You think I could use that—"
"I'd have to dial you in physically through my eye, so no," she gave him a perfect smile, which lined out, "…Will we be accepted on Rakhana?"
"May take some adjustment but based on what I've seen of your interactions," Casnar slipped his hands on his waist over the business shirt, "…I know you'll do fine, Cat…" She held him in her gaze for a second before shutting off the connection with her zonepad and turning it against her waist and holding it with both hands crossed.
"Casnar…Are there any humans on Rakhana?"
"I can't say…I'm not in charge of everything and I don't have eyes over it the way you possibly could with that zonepad….But why do you—There's Braith, Goto, and Lawson, she's a bitch sometimes but—"
"I haven't had sex in ten years…Longer….I'm going to be right out with it—do you know of anyone willing to have sex with a human?"
His mouth hung slightly open, "…Umm, yes, no….Human with human or drell with—"
"I saw you with Braith and I'm happy for you two….I can't sleep with Sieis….But I do need a release."
"I would have to ask round once we get there, but do you—"
"I have little experience with drells, much more likely I'll be able to fit with my own species and I have something to take that will work as a contraceptive method in my hardpack, but are drells close to human men in genitalia?"
He was silent…Catherine blinked and waited, "…This is probably odd of me to ask….Purely scientific and, yes, my own education—"
"Maybe you should ask me instead of him," Miranda came through and put her hand on Casnar's shoulder, "…I'll help you—again," and walking Catherine back to the bay, Casnar stared at the bulkhead and grabbed hold of the railing of pipes above to steady himself. He looked down towards the women blocking the light of the exit briefly, then went in the opposite direction to find Wrex.
"Small ship," Wrex said, turning so that his muzzle could be seen and part of a red eye that was more benign than hostile, "…Conversations can be heard especially in the connector hallway, like a funnel can from one end to the other….Did she just ask what I think I heard?" Casnar braced his arm against the bulkhead and blew a whistle…
"If I weren't with Braith, I would have offered myself," he caught a grimace from Wrex, "…What do you know about sex appeal…You could grab a tortoise and probably know no difference—"
"Just because I'm a krogan doesn't mean I don't have taste—or sense for the matter….That Assembly human…She doesn't smell like Shepard or the others….There's something off about her, and you should know being a drell….Smell's different…Can't trust it," he turned forward and flicked a switch to brighten the hold.
"I suppose her teeth are a little too clean for being a tunnel rat with those bantons for years, and she somehow manages to connect with that zonepad of hers to whatever system….Yes, but she's got some allure about her—can't put my fingers on it—"
"Shepard would break them, you cheat on her," Wrex gave him a warning smile full of teeth, "…You know she was married to another drell…They weren't separable until he died."
"I've no intention of it," Casnar snapped, "…Can't blame a male for looking, much less entertaining the idea….She's come to me for questions about fucking someone, mithras' sake," he scowled towards the connector entrance, "…Setting me up….Miranda actually did me a favor for once…"
"You two have history….What would Lawson want from your family?" Wrex clearly wanted to move off the topic of sex between other species and Casnar was only too willing to oblige…
"We have an alliance with a species that helps us manufacture the tech in my family's city….Place is well isolated and people don't mess with them—my family—too often….But I've explained to Cat there's checks and balances with the others that enjoy some rule over the separate countries…What….Oh, right, you aren't technically a welcome sort on Rakhana—"
"Because I'm krogan?"
"I believe there were some efforts to expand onto Rakhana, a few riots, plus you'll probably get upset when I tell you we entertain an alliance with rachni—my family does…" Casnar watched the krogan look away, "…It's something you'll have to accept….I'll do my best to get you cooperation and fair treatment from my city kin, but you'll have to make it easy on them—"
"What am I being punished for, I've never set foot on Rakhana—"
"You and I both know through Shepard why you're alone here on this shit hauler you hijacked to save yourself from exile on Tuchanka—yes, Braith told me—so maybe if you play right with them down there you'll be able to help your people with some ideas on how to expand without causing another Krogan Rebellion….This Trock sounds formidable if what you were in your glory days was taken down and made to plead on your knees," Wrex stood up, Casnar not stepping back as the maw came close to him, "…Lawson came to Rakhana once to dig up dirt on my family for the Craig….I've got a few cutthroats to deal with on account of my being an heir to the city and its wealth and that makes many hostile to me….It's why I left."
"Can't handle yourself in the black dart type of fighting, hmm…" Wrex growled, "…You don't like having to watch your back all the time?"
"I can handle myself," Casnar replied, "…It's the watching that gets tiresome…But not only watching my own back, watching those of others….My father has a weakness for females….My mother is sick and slowly loses her mind, but in the ficklest instant she can be sharp and clear as daylight," he paused, "…My sister was murdered and my half-brother forced to be my hunter th'ane, which means he loves me as much as he must to kill me when someone drops a finger….But what I descend from is my curse….I left to avoid it. All of it…I wanted a simple life, I tried working for the hanar, got tired of that, went on my own for a while, Reapers hit, landed on Earth and found other refugees and a common understanding with the humans….So that's where I was until a few weeks ago….Shepard happened to only talk to me then, too. I'll be straight with you because it will make things easier with us down on Rakhana—I dislike krogans, they threaten my rachni, and they want what they can't have….Selfish, territorial, idiotic tyrants that breed too quickly and destroy everything because they're crazy from the Genophage and whatever afflicted them even before that control—"
"The Genophage may have been one way to control us—"
"It's a moot point now, isn't it? Genophage is cured, so likely krogans like you and Trock are going to want to travel from that shit-poor planet you can't even call home anymore—" They fell into the connector way, krogan and drell kicking and punching, then when the order snapped down the hall for them to separate, with tears and tugs of clothes and arms did the two stand and push off each other.
"What is going on now," Braith came down the connector and situated herself between the two, "…We leap from one shitshow into another—why aren't you flying this thing, Wrex, and Casnar, get the fuck back into the bay…" He took a breath as Braith pushed his chest, the front loosened open from the tussle with Wrex…
"Getting things out into the air, Braith," he leaned over her shoulder to look at Wrex, "…I'm asking you this: when we reach Nualavera and go into the city, I need your eyes and your help to keep everyone accounted for and make sure anything that looks vile and suspicious be shared with me….We naturally dislike each other, I needed to see how much, but you're not a beaten animal, you still have fight—you want Tuchanka back, help me on Rakhana and watch my back. That means Shepard's too."
Wrex held a silent stare with them and turned with a violence that quickly simmered him into his seat again…Braith turned Casnar and pushed him down the connector way, not letting him turn back to get an answer from the krogan.
"Your pulse is beating through your scale, Casnar, what the heck are you trying to do, taking Wrex into a baiting like that—in close quarters, are you cra—hmmph," Braith fell against him in the hall, kissing him as his hands grabbed her to him and held her tight….They parted, his chest rising and falling slowly against the swell of her breasts, his fingers in her hair, holding her scalp, "….You're afraid…" Tilting her nose up to his, "….Why are you more afraid now than you were in Lothiraxl…"
Casnar sighed, "…I would really like it right now if we could go down on each other," he whispered in her ear, Braith's eyelids fluttering at the hard come-on.
"Okay…But where do you think we could get away with that…"
"Not here…This place is a tetanus shot and anti-vaccine with hepatitis waiting to happen," she chuckled at his opinion of the ship, "…I'm just trying to suggest to you what I'd really like if conditions were more ideal for us…Maybe once we're in Nualavera….But I've a feeling I've made a mistake in recommending we take Cat and the bantons there."
"Why don't we take them back to Earth—"
"I don't want to go there….Yet…This is probably something that has to happen….I'm out here, so we might as well use them as an excuse to go home—my real home, and check on things….Once I'm back on Earth with you," he tightened his fingers' hold in her hair and breathed hot on her ear lobe and neck, drawing a repressed gasp from the woman, "…I'm not going anywhere for a long time other than to shower myself and get back in bed with you."
