Anna poured another glass and looked up at the doors when a woman pushed in, arguing with the man behind her. Anna nudged William and he ducked out of the way as she hit the button to a bottle to tip off the top shelf and fall into her waiting hands. She pulled the cork and kicked the stand to send two glasses shooting into the air. Catching both she filled them and set them at the bar as the arguing couple sat.

"Mary, Matthew, wonderful to have you."

"And the business of a hundred overly raunchy workers, I'm sure." Mary sipped at her glass as Anna pushed a man off the bar, stopping him reaching underneath while arguing with William about the price of a full bottle.

"We've all got to make a living. Not everyone can run an asteroid mining operation."

"We work in shipping." Mary downed the rest of her glass and held it out.

"And mining." Anna argued, topping Mary off as Matthew drank more slowly.

"Family business," Mary sighed into her glass, "And it's driving me to drink."

"Everything's free until you're third." Anna winked at Mary's scowl and turned back to the determined drunk. "Sit down or lose an eye."

The man hung his head and slunk off to a far table. Anna grabbed a rag, wiping her hands on it, "How goes the business otherwise?"

"We're making progress but with the government making their stand against the union we'll probably be hip deep in trouble in a few months." Mary drained her glass but waved off Anna's attempted to refill. "I think I'll take my two free drinks and be satisfied."

"Suit yourself." Anna went back to checking glasses when the door to the bar opened. Her breath caught in her throat when he saw John walking through the doors. His head swiveled to take in the room before catching her eye. Anna smiled at him and he returned the gesture, taking a stool.

"I heard this place offered drinks and rooms at fair and honest prices." He winked at her, "If the offer is still open."

"I run a business, Mr. Bates. The offer for more business is always open." Anna ducked behind the bar a moment and when she emerged Matthew had scooted his way down the line of stools.

"Sorry to intrude on the conversation but did you say your name was Bates?" Matthew moved some hair out of his face, "As in John Bates, the war satirist."

"Used to be." John extended a hand, "Pleasure to meet you I'm sure. Takes quite the individual to recognize my work."

"Matthew Crawley. I studied it at Academy. Your satire changed the face of the battle on Monte Cristo."

"I don't think I did anything but tell the truth in a way that people cared to hear." Anna noted how John shifted on his seat, "It was a war over sodding carbon. I didn't think killing the natives of Monte Cristo was worth it."

"So you admit everything changed after your satire got published on Londinum? The movements you started were unprecedented."

"I think something happened there but I don't think I started any movement." John's hand flitted toward his leg and Anna narrowed her eyes. "Whatever the government decided to do after I published or the people rioted, that was on them."

"But you don't understand," Matthew put out a hand, "You saved lives. Hundreds, maybe even thousands. And that's not including the natives."

"I didn't save any lives."

"You did." Matthew insisted, "Your work stopped the war. Mothers praised your name for days when their children came home."

"Mothers on Londinium maybe."

"Mothers everywhere."

John pursed his lips and faced Matthew, "Did they tell what happened to Monte Cristo after my work got published?"

Matthew blinked, "How'd you mean?"

"Did your class or your studies include the details of Monte Cristo after the government told everyone they wanted to pack up and ship home?"

Matthew shrugged, "We moved on. The colonizers left and the government changed tactics. It's all pretty obvious."

"I'm talking about what wasn't obvious. What they didn't make into the newscasts."

"What didn't make it in?"

"The reality that pack up wasn't all they did." John pulled something from his bag and swiped the screen before passing it to Matthew. "They bombed Monte Cristo to hell. They lost a lot of carbon on the way but they exterminated the people there to prevent any further problems with the natives."

"They wouldn't do that."

"Wouldn't they?" John scoffed, "For all your talk about what my writing did to save lives the truth is the opposite. All my work did, satirizing the pointlessness of fighting a war where the locals hid in caves we could never find, was tell the government only an extinction level event could get them what they wanted."

Anna saw how Matthew's eyes widened, flicking through the images. "This can't be. They would've said something."

"History is written by the winners, sir." John took the device back, tucking it away, "The government will go back in ten, maybe fifteen years and colonize what they'll advertised as an abandoned planet to a generation that has no idea a war was even fought there. They'll stake their flag in the ashes of a civilization with a language we never truly learned to understand and a musical communication network that rivaled anything we could find in the empire."

John sighed, "But none of that matters. We needed the carbon and that was the end of it. That's all that ever mattered in the end. Lives are nothing to the steam powered future."

"I disagree I think-" Matthew had his hand flat toward the table like he wanted to marshal his forces for a second assault in the argument.

Anna waved a hand toward Mary as Matthew went continue. Mary put her hand on Matthew's arm and spoke up, "Darling I think we'd best leave this man to whatever drink Anna finally decides to pour him."

Matthew went to say something else but Mary's grip tightened on his arm. He sighed and followed her to the door. Anna waved them out and then clapped her hands on the bar in front of John.

"What'll you have?" Anna tried to smile at John but noted the way his face seemed to harden. "Why don't I choose for you?"

She went to pick something when his voice came like a whisper, "Hard as you have and then double it."

Anna turned and raised an eyebrow, "I don't think you should knock that kind of drink back in your state."

"Why not?" He turned up to face her, "Think I might find myself struggling to hold it down?"

"No," She shook her head, "Because I think you want something hard enough to send you back to whatever dark place you just flirted with there."

"You don't know that."

"I've got a bar and patrons I've been serving for ten years here," Anna flipped a bottle up and popped the lid before handing it over, "I know very well the faces of men and women when they look into the abyss of their souls and see what they don't like there. I also know what it looks like when they want to fall headlong into it. It was written all over your face that you were standing there, staring down."

"Why do you think they keep staring?" John had his hands around the bottle but had yet to drink from it.

Anna shrugged, "I imagine it's like watching an asteroid burn up in the atmosphere. It'll get destroyed, we know that. We start with the end in mind, that we're watching destruction, but we can't tear ourselves away. There's a gross beauty in all that chaos. In a world like the one we live we can't stop ourselves wondering if the burning of it all really has a point."

"I think you missed your true calling Ms. Smith." John swigged from the bottle and Anna snorted.

"Do you now?"

"I do," He nodded, setting the bottle back on the bar, "I truly do."

"And what, Mr. Bates, do you think I should've done with my life?"

"Been a poet."

"I'm not one for musing on subjects." Anna flipped a glass and filled it before sliding it down the bar to a waiting hand. "I prefer action."

"And what kind of action do you prefer?"

"The kind that takes ten minutes in the back room as an appetizer." She shrugged, "But not everyone wants that."

"I can't imagine you put that idea forward and get many refusals." John ran his tongue over his lips, "I'd like to think it'd take longer than ten minutes."

"That confident are you?"

He leaned forward slightly on the bar, "Exceedingly."

Anna grinned at him, "I guess you really have made your way around the galaxy."

"You learn a few things." John settled back, fingering the bottle in his hands, "But you've obviously used this as your school."

"Tricks of the trade Mr. Bates. You learn to read people. You serve them the right drink, you listen to their story, and you serve them a drink or two more. A good barkeep's got an ear to everyone and a drink to suit their needs."

"You don't hand out any for trips to the abyss though."

"I don't fancy anyone taking a running leap off the top of my building nor do I particularly hold with the idea that anyone decides to dangle themselves from the ceiling of any of my rooms because the abyss called a little too loudly for them to ignore." Anna put a hand on the bar and the other on her hip, "I've talked more than a few people off the ledge."

"I'm sure they're grateful."

"Don't know," Anna raised her hand, "I only ever saw them once."

"And you cared that much?"

"That's my job, Mr. Bates, to care. They're here, in that state, because no one else would listen. They only need someone to hear them for a moment and it changes their lives." She pointed to the back room as William balanced a load of glasses on a tray. "Imagine if someone had listened to them earlier."

"There'd be less people pitching themselves from rooftops in Londinium."

"Or anywhere else in this ever large and intimidating galaxy." Anna flicked her finger on his bottle, "Should I get you another or you ready to move on to happier thoughts?"

He smiled, "Are you talking about a go in your backroom?"

"If one's amenable I never refuse an offer." Anna smirked, "But I'm not as interested in that as I am your leg."

"Fetish?"

"Excuse me?"

"You mentioned at the dock you've got a thing for cyborgs." John tipped his head like he wanted to share a secret with her, "Is it a fetish?"

"No," Anna laughed him off, "I just find it a fascinating leap in science."

"It creaks in the rain and occasionally overheats if I haven't vented the steam properly but I guess we leap where we can and walk where we can't."

"I saw you touch it when Matthew mentioned Monte Cristo." Anna saw the dark tinge at the corner of John's eyes, "Is that where you lost it?"

"Yes and no." Anna raised an eyebrow and John took a breath, "I lost it because of what happened on Monte Cristo. Let's just say it wasn't an accidental loss."

"Not accidental?"

"The government needed their pound of flesh."

"I didn't think the government was so upset about your work they'd take your leg for it." Anna bit at her cheek, "That seems low."

"That's the government for you."

"Maybe it was their mistake letting you publish in the first place. If they wanted to stop they should've stopped the story before you published… not taken your leg later."

"They didn't stop me publishing because they didn't think anyone would care." John shook his head, "They thought my work would get lost in the shuffle but they forgot two things."

"Which were?"

"First," John held up a finger, "People never want the truth as the truth. They ignored all the reports because that was inconvenient. They wanted the satire because that was light and fun. What they didn't expect was number two."

"That people don't like laughing at death?"

"No," John shook his head again, "People love laughing at death. Number two is that once people perceive an injustice they think they can solve by dinner they'll rally behind it. People don't want difficulty any more than they want truth. I gave them something funny instead of the bloody, awful truth, and then they rallied behind the easy victory."

"Forget local poverty and starvation, we want to take part in a battle that only effects our lives because we say it should?" Anna offered and John nodded.

"Exactly that."

Anna blew out, eyes wandering her raucous bar, "Sounds about right."

"See," John pulled at his drink, "You'd make a fantastic philosopher."

"I don't think I want to leave a lucrative business to sleep my way across the galaxy on cargo ships and short distance transports thank you." Anna stood straight, "I'd rather earn my living from the vice that buries sorrows, troubles, and fears if only for an hour."

"You ever bury yourself from those things." John finished his bottle and chucked it into the container for recycling, smiling at the satisfying ding when it landed inside.

Anna eyed him, "I bury my troubles in other ways, Mr. Bates?"

"Does it involve other people burying themselves in you?" Anna smiled at his risk and he shrugged a shoulder, "If you have any troubles to bury, that is."

"Even if I didn't," She leaned forward on the bar, giving him a view she knew he appreciated by the hitch in his breathing, "I'd still like the experience. I tend to relish those."

"Adventure seeker?"

"I moved to a moon that orbits a gas giant in the middle of the Yorkshire Run," Anna lifted her hands, "What do you think?"

"I think I'd like to inquire as to which bed you're offering me for the night."

"There's an empty room on the second floor." Anna moved to whisper in his ear, "Or there's a less empty bed on my floor."

"I think I could squeeze in to share." His breath was hot against her ear, "If you'd want the pleasure of my company I'd be happy to give it."

"Pleasure given is pleasure gotten," Anna drew back, running the back of her finger along his cheekbone, "Mr. Bates."

"So it's reciprocal."

"I said earlier, I believe in sharing."

He cleared his throat, "I don't suppose you close before midnight."

"Why, too tired to wait?"

"I wouldn't want to distract you from your guests."

Anna peeked over his shoulder at the room, "I think they'll manage."

John grabbed his bag and Anna lifted up part of the bar for him to duck under. She pointed him toward the elevator and waited for William to come to the bar. "I'm taking a break. Won't be more than an hour."

"I've got this Ms. Smith."

"I know you do William." Anna patted his shoulder and went to the elevator. It opened and they shuffled inside, Anna holding the button for the doors to close.

The moment the doors closed he was on her faster than she could prepare. His hands held her face and her neck as he ravaged her mouth. Anna immediately gave in to the persistent presses of his tongue and moaned at the feeling of him there. One of his hands drifted down, digging his fingers into the skin of her waist to hold her in place as he shifted her head to the side to take more of her mouth with his.

Anna's hands moved to his shoulders, grabbed at his shirt to hold herself in place before running one hand to the back of his neck to keep him locked in his current position. His hand at her waist slipped down to her leg, lifting it to wrap over his hip. She pulled him toward her with it, listening to the squeal of his cybernetic foot on the metal of the elevator.

His fist punched out, hitting the emergency stop and the elevator jerked to a halt but it just thrust his hips to hers and Anna groaned. She could already feel him and used her hands at his shoulders to lift herself. Her other leg wrapped around his waist and tightened, grinding down on his arousal through their clothing while he grunted into their kiss.

Anna risked a hand south, playing with his belt buckled before releasing it. John broke from their kiss to suck at her neck. His tongue trailed to the top of her corset and licked over the exposed portions of her chest. Her arms held tighter at his shoulders, keeping him in place as his hands smoothed down her skirt and then slid up her thighs.

She rutted her hips against his, finally moving to free his trouser fastenings. They fell down his legs and Anna wrapped her hand around him. John's head came up and a muscle throbbed in his jaw. She tightened her grip on him and his fingers gripped her waist under her skirt. Another pull and she heard a tearing sound before her knickers fell to the floor of the elevator.

"How far do you want this to go?" John growled against her neck, hips jerking in her grip.

"Far as you can." Anna gasped out when his fingers played over her before sinking deep.

"Then I'll take that challenge." He thrust into her and Anna ground her hips down on his fingers, her own clutching at his shoulder.

She tried to match his rhythm but her hand was no match for his and soon she broke in his arms against the elevator wall. Anna sobbed out her end and felt his fingers withdraw just before he stepped closer to tease at her entrance. She looked up as he held his hand up by her face. Even in the flickering gaslights of the elevator she could see the glisten there.

He bared his teeth at her before sucking all three digits into his mouth. Her head went back and he thrust in at the same time. Anna shrieked as he pumped into her, moving quickly but efficiently. She snatched his hand away from his lips and took his mouth to hers, her hips responding as much as she could, sucking at his tongue to catch their tangling flavors.

John's hand at her waist slipped to her thigh, holding in place while his other hand pressed flat to the wall behind her. Anna heard the sound them echoing in the metal of the elevator and keened at her own rising pleasure again. She snuck a hand between them and ran it over her nerves, pressing and rubbing in time with his movements. When her fingers slipped and touched him John's eyes flared open.

He broke away from the kiss and lost all rhythm and finesse, driving into her frantically like it was all he could do. Anna panted, her hand still between them, and shattered as he emptied himself inside her.

John hung his head by her shoulder, dragging air into his lungs in time with the whir of his cybernetic leg. Anna lowered one leg and then the other as she slid to her feet. For a moment the only sound was their harsh breathing before Anna let out a laugh.

"I'll take that appetizer any day." She looked over at John, "Any complaints?"

He could only shake his head, hands buried in his hair as he sucked more air into his lungs. Anna reached around him and released the emergency stop. The elevator shook a moment and finished its ascent while they tried to arrange their clothing so anyone on the other side wouldn't be immediately alerted to the shag fest that just happened in the elevator.

The doors dinged open and Anna led John to her room. She opened the door and showed him into the small space. "It's not much but it's a bed."

"Doesn't have to be much," He dropped his bag, reaching for her, "As long as you're filing it."

"I guess I left you satisfied in the elevator?" Anna tried to joke but John put a finger to her lips, shaking his head.

"More than. That's why you'd be enough."

"Enough for now, anyway," Anna escaped his grip. "Make yourself comfortable. I've got to return to my patrons."

She reached the door when she heard him call out, "I hope you don't think I'm doing this for a free bed."

Anna turned and raised an eyebrow at him, "What would give you that impression?"

"You shagged me in the elevator."

"I think we shagged each other, in the elevator." Anna folded her arms over her chest, "You're here for a few days, I'm here, and I don't see why we can't enjoy one another's company in a more carnal sense while we're in the same vicinity."

"Because I'm a cyborg?"

"Because I think a man who stares into the abyss and doesn't fall in, or who wanders the universe looking to right the wrongs he finds there, or became a different man when he saw what his actions caused is a man worth knowing." Anna jerked her head, "Even if for a few nights."

"Then I'm more than an appetizer?" John's eyes lit up and Anna took his face in her hands.

"An appetizer is the back closet behind the bar for ten minutes." She stroked his cheekbones, "I'd say you're more of a seven course meal that I'd want again if you find your way back here."

"Not sure I could stay away for long now that I know you're here." John stole a kiss, "I better not keep you from the job paying for the bed."

"Best not." Anna walked back to the door, "I've never had a poet philosopher before."

"I've never had a compassionate barkeep."

"I guess we'll both get something new."

"Pleasure gotten is pleasure given." John called out as Anna closed the door and went back to the elevator.