He nods. "It's hard to find a place you belong. Leaving it behind or having it taken away isn't easy." He pokes her nose lightly. "And you tend to daydream. Mostly when we're near Malta. So it's pretty obvious to see whats going on."
He leans back into his seat, focusing on Valdez. "It's good to have a dream, Eliza."
Eliza smiled wider, closed her eyes and arced her head back, opening them only when she was already looking up at the biodome's transparent ceiling. The dark void above them looked peaceful as ever. Turning her gaze back at Nick she replied.
"It's funny, Nick. When I was little I always dreamed of leaving Malta and exploring the stars. And now look at me - I yearn for that little green-lit world. It's vast orange fields, the gentle autumn wind..."
Daydreaming again and she wasn't even near Malta at that. Thankfully the girl realized it in time to snap out of it before Stenn was forced to wave his hands in front of her in hopes to draw her attention back into the mortal plane.
The silence after her question lingers for a moment. "You know I haven't ever been through Alpha in a peaceful capacity. It's not like any of my past lives had me getting along with the Outcasts." He lets out a small shrug. "Besides, I'm not sure if I'm ready for a cardamine dependency yet. Haven't met a situation that would warrant its use."
He eats a bite of the steak, savoring the flavor. "Why? Want to give me the tour?"
Perhaps that was a dumb question, she thought to herself. Of course Nick hasn't been on her homeworld. It made her wonder how he ever got along with her in the first place. Her memory of it was a bit foggy, perhaps it was the Glen' negotiations? Eliza looked at the food Stenn was already munching. It definitely looked better than lettuce.
"Well... I'm an 'Outcast' and we get along, right?"
Preparing to dig into her steak as well she added:
"I want to show you a certain vista near my old home. It's been my favorite place on Malta ever since I was little. My father used to take me there in the evenings and it was really tranquil and beautiful."
With that said the Maltese quickly got to work on the food that had almost made her drool by now. Better not let it cool.
A vista on Malta. "Allies of convenience turned friends." Curious, he leans forward. "Won't Malta end up addicting me? I'm not too sure I'm cybernetic enough to resist it."
He continues to eat his food, lazily finishing it up. "Dessert?"
Eliza paused her meal, carefully placing the cutlery on the dish before entertaining Nick's curiosity.
"Depends how long you stay. The dosage of cardamine in the air is quite low so it'll take you a while to get really addicted. You'll be safe if you stay only for a couple of hours. It's also too low to really get you high either. The orange decks on Barrier Gate are kind of the same, low enough amount of cardamine that druggies don't get their kick but high enough to keep us from withdrawal."
With the answer provided, Eliza smiled and got back to finishing her meal. There was no way though that she could match Nick's speed at taking care of that steak so at the time he proclaimed his victory over the dish and offered dessert she simply capitulated over what was still left in hers.
"Sure. But please something more light! I feel that if I try to match your eating any longer my stomach would explode."
He frowns at her half-finished food. He wasn't used to having to match speeds with other people, and the last time he had eaten with the knights, they'd all been 20 minutes from an operation, so that food had been wolfed down in seconds. "Ah, sorry. I hadn't realized you hadn't finished yet." He awkwardly toys with his utensils for a moment, before looking up at her. "You know, I had this dumb idea the other day. Remember that day we were patrolling Theta?"
He leans back, considering his options for a moment. "Maybe we should head back out there, for old times sake. See the sights, take in the views. A break from work for once." Well, a short break at least. This one as well was only temporary before he got right back into the game. At least this time he was unmarked. Eliza would probably try to stab him if she knew what the next contract was.
The evening was still fairly young and Freeport 11 had it's history of being a bad place to stay for too long else one risked witnessing it being besieged by the force of evil of the day. As such Eliza did not really mind the idea of stretching her legs to Theta, so to speak. Her eyes locked on Stenn's. Even so, Nick wanting a break from work was unexpected and only stoked her curiosity. The girl had no idea what he really had in mind and there was one sure way to find out.
"Sounds like a lovely idea. How do you plan getting there? I wonder if Kappa's jump hole to it is still stable. It's really been a while since I've traversed the southern Omicrons."
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