The recent flashpoint in Munich had attracted revolutionary attention and now the once humble facility had to play host to an almost dizzying assortment of vertically inclined snubcraft, including a singular red Odin that had only just arrived. It bore the Coalition's coat of arms and the emblem of the McIntoshists, the most aggressive of the Coalition's wings. The Bundschuh were perhaps more familiar with Keller than the Hessians, they were afterall the ones that fostered him when he was nothing but a young activist trying to speak out against the State. To see him years later and how he'd changed was both impressive and frightening. It's almost hard for some to believe that the sweet green eyed boy with a stutter had killed his way into the highest military position in the Coalition, he even proved beyond recognition for some.
With the ship locked into a free hangar slot and his feet on the floor, Keller took steady strides into the moor's humble bar, a thump sounding out with his every step. He anticipated that his estranged comrade might be trying to rest there inbetween constant sorties.
"Knowing Humanity - We will be duty, bloody and unavoidable."
Ren would see Keller passing through corridor. She would keep a distance and follow him. Xiaolian was curious if he would mention her. Wings from all over Rheinland and Omegas were redeployed to take part in current operations. The overall force wasn't that massive but was formed of trusted and elite pilots. The station was quite busy during the recent events. But still, she was interested if he would be attentive enough. He wasn't, Lucas would simply walk towards the bar.
Ren would start walking faster to reach him, now when the little quest that she has wanted him to pass was failed. Reaching upon him, she would say mildly. Her voice was a bit too low, but melodic at the same time.
It wasn't often that people entirely eluded Keller's perception and got the drop on him. In fact he could count the occasions on one hand, at least until the present instance which necessitated using the other. "An astute observation. I was looking for you. But tell me, do you make a habit of sneaking up on high-ranking military officials or is my case unique?"
There was the slightest hint of annoyance in his tone but oddly enough amusement. Her guile didn't bode well for any future trust building, and in Keller's line of work trust was crucial. Ren represented an opportunity to mend burned bridges between former citizens and the Coalition. Ensuring such a thing would most certainly lend to Keller increased support and even the image of reliability when contrasted against other shady individuals such as the Eye. The more friends, the better.
From this close it was quite clear that Keller was a traditional soldier that served diligently. He had the posture and the physique expected of one, and perhaps his biggest advantage of the thousands of others in similar respects physically was his ability to resonate with people. Turning to face his acquaintance he'd offer her nothing but polite silence, seemingly curious what her response would be.
Ren would raise her eyebrows. Was that man really so easy to piss off? Because he clearly looked angry and annoyed for a moment. Ren did not quite see the reason to follow the formalities. He wasn't her superior, nor was it the official ceremony of any sort. Ren would look confused for a moment, trying to pick the best strategy. Keller looked young to be a person who would be spoiled by political power, so Ren concluded that it was his actual personality.
After a little bit of consideration, she would stand still and salute. Likely it was the best way to ease tension in the air.
-- Field Marshal Keller.
Saying now more firmly. In hope that it would stroke his ego enough. Her uniform had old insignia, oh though she was not acting brigadegeneral.
The decision to act in a formal capacity seemed to surprise him and elicit an exceptionally mild smile. Evidently his attempt at something along the lines of sarcasm had proved too literal and failed at its intended purpose. "The formality isn't necessary. I'm not your superior and neither are either of us acting in a professional capacity at the moment. I was trying to be somewhat humorous when I asked you that question, though admittedly I don't quite appreciate being snuck up on."
In contrast to his previous words Keller seemed more at ease now, perhaps he'd come to grips with the environment and attained some semblance of comfort and familiarity. Considering what he'd say next he even seemed apologetic. "Can we start over? I was hoping for this to be friendly."
Keller's attire was perhaps a little more simple. The black jumpsuit seemed almost standard issue for the Coalition's pilots, with the only distinction being the coat of arms and his rank insignia on either shoulder. Medals and other trivialities were reserved for his dress uniform while this one served a practical purpose. Though it would prove quite clear that he was still keeping his guard up to some degree, and she already had a fair bit of context as to why. To show that his previous words had weight he would reach his hand out to offer a handshake, wanting to establish that respect should go both ways.
Xiaolian was happy with the result, in the end, there was no better way to kill off all the formalities at the very beginning. With her hands slowly moving down from saluting to shaking a hand. Ren would gently place her hands in Keller's, applying minimal to none pressure. Ren's hand thought and felt fragile. Most of her hand wasn't too warm, tips of her fingers seemed to be even cold. She would not withdraw it until Keller would, not knowing much about the handshakes anyway.
-- Well, it's a pleasure to meet you.
Her voice and mimics indicated rather about calm coldness, as well as curiosity. Ren would mostly hold her look at his face.
In stark contrast to the moderate coldness and fragility of her hands his felt tough and comfortably warm. Where under normal circumstance a man's eyes would deviate, he kept perfect eye-contact while looking at her and withdrew his hand after a moment of the gesture being reciprocated. "Likewise." It was simple enough to admit that the interaction was mutually enjoyed, and it seemed to come with sincerity.
He gestured towards the area behind him. "Would you like to take a seat?" Standing around in the middle of the station's bar would likely bring unwanted attentions toward them, it would also be infinitely more comfortable if they had an extensive conversation while seated. It was a little strange meeting him outside his element, he almost seemed normal here.
Ren would take a moment to look around before replying. She wasn't down with playing games and decided to raise the tension a bit by making quite a long pause before reply. The awkward silence was becoming more and more pressure with every second passing.
-- Yeah, I suppose.
Xiaolian said at the very last second before it was possible to say if the pause was intentional or not.
The last time he'd been put under the pressure of the silent treatment was almost a decade ago in school, it was typical of the average girl to place pauses between responses to see how the other person reacted and if the pressure got to them. Given that he wasn't truly invested in the extraction of anything strictly intimate the only feedback provided would seem like mild impatience rather than outright anxiety. "I'm a little out of practice with people, so you'll have to forgive me. My schedule leaves little in the way of idle chat and the average Hessian these days would be more inclined to ignore me outside of professional matters." He took for granted she'd follow him to one of the tables so that they could sit down, but he'd still glance back to see if she'd actually done so once at the table and upon confirmation he'd seat himself. While it was usually expected of a man to pull out the seat for his guest. These booths however were firmly bolted into the floor, making any gesture of chivalry impossible.
At least from first impressions she seemed fairly normal and well-mannered, respectful of his position as well. It left several questions as to what exactly motivated the Coalition's status quo at the time to see her as a dissident and potential liability, going so far as to call her mental state into question. But before he asked any of the truly interesting questions it was important to settle into the environment and ensure that his curiosity didn't escalate into being offensive. With them both seated he remained silent so as to prompt her to steer the conversation into whatever direction she deemed appropriate under present circumstances.
He got a little more annoyed, well, that was about all effect she could reach for now. Being lightheaded about the whole situation. Ren seemed to not think much about what was happening. She was called to meet and felt herself in a defensive position. As long as there won't be any verbal or physical aggression towards her coming for Lucas, she would feel relaxed.
-- Don't worry, I am not going to steal more time than you have to spare.
Ren would stand next to a chair for a moment, then pulling it back slowly and with an audible noise. In the end, she would fall in chair gracefully, not crossing her legs.
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