01-09-2022, 03:42 PM
//No longer canon.
"So," Beige said, patting the bulletproof container's sealed lid, "big secret's inside here, huh?" He fixed Olivia with his eyes, crows feet forming at their corners as a grin snuck onto his face. He rested his hand on the crate and drummed his fingers against it, waiting for her to explain.
Olivia sighed, calming herself. She had spent the trip to Noshima Station mentally preparing herself for this moment, thinking about what to say, how to explain her mysterious cargo, even meditating to relax. Or trying to, at any rate. She never had been able to follow Maroon's lessons very well.
Here she was now, standing in a small room aboard one of the shadier stations in Kusari, getting ready to reveal her currently second biggest secret to a man she had known for years and hoped would not turn on her once the truth came to light. Of course, there was no way to predict his response with any degree of certainty. With Beige one never could be too sure how he might react to ... anything.
Taking a deep breath and standing up straighter, Olivia stepped to the small table the container stood on, reaching out with her right hand to swat away Beige's own. With the other, she pressed her thumb against the biometric scanner at the crate's latch, unsealing the lid. It hissed ominously as the insides pressurized. Olivia glanced at Beige, standing beside her with raised eyebrows, eyes now locked on the box. She did not miss the fact that his right hand had instinctively wandered down to the oversized sidearm that he kept strapped to his hip.
"Relax," Olivia whispered. "You're making me nervous." Beige chuckled in response, shoving his restless hand into his trouser pocket.
Steeling herself, Olivia lifted the lid and threw it back. Deep blue light washed over them, flooding the room and casting stark shadows across the steel walls. A sensation of blissful warmth embraced the mercenary, seeping into her body and mind, threatening to wash away her negative emotions; her anxiety, her restlessness, her worries. Olivia braced against it, resisting its attempts. Not this time. She would not let it take her again, cradling her in a false sense of comfort and security, no matter how much it tempted her.
Beige let out a low whistle. Olivia felt him place his free hand on her shoulder and realized that she had shut her eyes in an attempt to shut out the light and its effects. She opened them, turning again to face Beige and found him gazing back at her, the smile gone from his face. Instead he looked ... concerned? A rare emotion to see on the usually so carefree man.
"That's quite the secret you've been keeping," Beige said quietly.
Olivia sighed, calming herself. She had spent the trip to Noshima Station mentally preparing herself for this moment, thinking about what to say, how to explain her mysterious cargo, even meditating to relax. Or trying to, at any rate. She never had been able to follow Maroon's lessons very well.
Here she was now, standing in a small room aboard one of the shadier stations in Kusari, getting ready to reveal her currently second biggest secret to a man she had known for years and hoped would not turn on her once the truth came to light. Of course, there was no way to predict his response with any degree of certainty. With Beige one never could be too sure how he might react to ... anything.
Taking a deep breath and standing up straighter, Olivia stepped to the small table the container stood on, reaching out with her right hand to swat away Beige's own. With the other, she pressed her thumb against the biometric scanner at the crate's latch, unsealing the lid. It hissed ominously as the insides pressurized. Olivia glanced at Beige, standing beside her with raised eyebrows, eyes now locked on the box. She did not miss the fact that his right hand had instinctively wandered down to the oversized sidearm that he kept strapped to his hip.
"Relax," Olivia whispered. "You're making me nervous." Beige chuckled in response, shoving his restless hand into his trouser pocket.
Steeling herself, Olivia lifted the lid and threw it back. Deep blue light washed over them, flooding the room and casting stark shadows across the steel walls. A sensation of blissful warmth embraced the mercenary, seeping into her body and mind, threatening to wash away her negative emotions; her anxiety, her restlessness, her worries. Olivia braced against it, resisting its attempts. Not this time. She would not let it take her again, cradling her in a false sense of comfort and security, no matter how much it tempted her.
Beige let out a low whistle. Olivia felt him place his free hand on her shoulder and realized that she had shut her eyes in an attempt to shut out the light and its effects. She opened them, turning again to face Beige and found him gazing back at her, the smile gone from his face. Instead he looked ... concerned? A rare emotion to see on the usually so carefree man.
"That's quite the secret you've been keeping," Beige said quietly.