Connections

Posted on Tue Jul 4, 2017 @ 5:15pm by Commander Caleb Ryan & Civilian 'Key Holder' Yolanthe Ibalin & Civilian Ricardo Draxx

1,877 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Rumours
Location: The Box of Delights
Timeline: MD 6 23:00

ON:

Draxx didn't frequent Yolanthe’s joint often, but had been convinced to come tonight by an old colleague Hepzibah P’Rurr.

"She's scared of this thing between us," Draxx joked in answer to why he rarely came here. "The owner. Plus she could kill me with her pinky if she desired it."

The long-haired, white-furred Caitian lounging across the table smirked. “So could I, Draxx. So could I,” the felinoid reminded with a low, throaty purr. She wore knee high black heeled boots, tight black leather pants, and a red leather corset that enhanced her generous furred cleavage. Draxx could tell the corset had a polycarbonite weave in the material, giving her a modicum of body armor without appearing to do so. Her white fur was pristine and well cared for, and her long white hair hung down loose and free to her waist since she wasn’t working. Her muscles were lean and tight beneath the fur. An empty holster showed where security had relieved her of her sidearm when she came aboard the station. Draxx would be foolish to think she didn’t have some scanner-resistant blades secreted about her person, however, or maybe a scanner resistant Type I phaser down that impressive cleavage.

“And this...thing between you?” Hepzibah asked, waving around the glass of whisky and milk she cupped in her fine-boned hand. “Is it? Or did I fly all this way for nothing.” She gave him a teasing pout. “I seem to remember some interesting...things between us on occasion,” the Caitian teased. “After all, you know my philosophy on mixing business with pleasure. Always.” She gave Drax a wink.

"Oh, I remember," he chuckled. "It's a good philosophy." He wasn't sure if he was up for one of those occasions at present, not so close to the whole Romulan spy debacle.

Draxx sauntered up to the bar. "So Is it safe to get a drink, or am I getting another wrenched shoulder and losing a lot of money this evening?" he asked the colour-changing alien, nodding to the last time he had seen her at the poker game.

Yolanthe saw the swaggering Human man approach the bar, brimming with his usual self-confidence. "Ricardo Draxx." she said. "I do believe the one does not preclude the other in any way," she answered his question with tartness in her tone.

"Well, the night's still young," Draxx said with a smile. "Two of your finest kanars please, Princess, and one for yourself of course. A double," he said at the unimpressed and usual look on her face.

She turned to the bar and produced a slim bottle with the classic twisted shape, putting out the glasses and free-pouring three large doubles of the dark, syrupy liquor. Then she held the payment padd out to Draxx. "One last thing." The little screen blinked with a yellow square for his thumbprint.

"Like I would dare try to get away with that," Draxx chuckled pressing his thumb to the screen. "Oh, take a tip too." He pressed buttons on the padd and gave her a 20% gratuity. "Feel like joining us, Princess?" he tried his luck.

"I think you've got all the trouble you can handle," Yolanthe demurred.

Turning back to Hepzibah, Draxx said, "So you said someone wanted to talk business. Here. Who is it?"

Hepzibah shrugged a slender shoulder. “I never met them,” she said. “Tiral called me. Ketacyn set it up,” she said, referring to the voluptuous blonde El-Aurian information broker Ketacyn Aumar and her beautiful Vulcan security chief Tiral. “I mentioned to her I had a bunch of merchandise I found myself in need of unloading.” She shook her head and tossed back the last of her milk and whiskey before picking up the kanar. “Ever since that bastard Torm got his ticket punched, the market’s just been a free-for-all. Even heard Daimon Dys is back in the business,” she said with distaste. “Now all we need is Moia Ilmater to come out of whatever hole she’s hiding and it will be just like old times.” She grinned at Dax, lifting her glass to him.

"I liked Dys. Well, a hell of a lot more than Torm. And his egg sucking. Ah, to old times." He raised his glass and clinked hers.

"I remember Moia. Bloody hell, I would have been just sixteen when I got involved with her, a year after we started in this racket. Biggs always fancied her, you know. If she pops back up at least he will be happy," Draxx chuckled. "Tell me if Ketacyn still as gorgeous as ever?”

“Moia was seductive as a viper and just as deadly,” Hepzibah said. “Can’t blame Biggs. But she was fair.” The Caitian purred a bit. “Ket is,” she agreed with a grin. “She says you should come out her way again sometime.” Hepzibah lounged back and sipped her kanar.

"That's them," Draxx said suddenly, indicating to his right. "Thought she was eying me up for my manly good looks when we first walked in, but she's been watching both of us since we sat down, sussing us out before approaching. The Bajoran."

Sure enough, the petite brunette Bajoran seemed to realise it was time to make her debut. She sauntered over in a very tight revealing purple dress and high heels. Draxx groaned as his eyes followed those legs all the way up to the bottom of the dress.

"You know, if you're trying to negotiate a discount with me you're going the right way about it, sweetheart," Draxx stated, standing up and pulling a chair out for her to sit down in. He discreetly did a quick scan of her with a gadget Biggs had placed in his watch, something he kept telling him he should release to the authorities under a fake company and make a fortune, but then again it did make his life so much easier.

She was clean. Hepzibah, naturally, wasn't, he chuckled, tossing it her direction for the sheer fun of it. Knives. She always did love the stashed knives.

"Drink?" He indicated Yolanthe. "Hey, Princess, can I have four more doubles?"

"Coming right up." Yolanthe began to reach for glasses. "But call me Princess one more time and you'll be wearing them, not drinking them. Understand?"

"Okay, Princess," Draxx grinned. "If you want to waste damn good kanar by drizzling it all over my body, who am I to stop you?"

"You are assuming I'd be the one doing that," Yolanthe said, starting to turn a dark ochre. "Harry!" she called for the doorman. Eight hundred pounds of Gorn turned in their direction.

Draxx watched in amusement as Yolanthe handed a large drink to Harry, who promptly threw it all over him. When the Gorn smirked and turned on his tail, Draxx laughed out loud. "One day, Princess, one day you will give in to that burning fire of attraction you have for me." He grabbed a napkin and wiped the liquid stinging in his eyes.

Yolanthe gave him a flat look, and without turning from him addressed the doorman. "The next time I call it will because Mr Draxx still hasn't managed to amend his manners and you will be free to remove him from the premises, with alacrity and violence, if you please."

Draxx held his hands up. "Easy there, big guy. I'll behave." He shot Yolanthe a bemused look at her hiding behind her Gorn and wandered back to the table and back to the Bajoran who his colleague was eyeing up. "For now," he said in a low voice.

Hepzibah ran her own blue eyes up the Bajoran and smiled at her. Damn fine she was.

"Well, I do need to negotiate." The Bajoran smiled.

"Call off the stooge then," Draxx stated firmly. "Human bloke, ten o’clock. I've seen him. I'll talk to you, but you send him on his merry way. Or I'll get someone, possibly a Gorn, to do it. Unless you want the honors." He smiled at Hepzibah.

Hepzibah tossed a look the Human’s way. “Eh. Not my type. I’d have to leave him bloody in a side corridor, and really, blood is so hard to get out of my fur…”

The Bajoran's face lit up. "Oh, I have missed this." She wondered if he was as fun in this universe as hers. "Aren't you going to frisk me?"

Draxx's face lit up this time. "Well, there's really no need, but if you're offering, maybe later."

"I'll bear that in mind. So Ketacyn and Tiral contacted you. You know what I need?"

"Torm’s dead. Most of his previous clientele keep making an appearance," Draxx stated. He pushed a padd toward her. "Here's the pic-a-mix menu," he stated. Everything was in code, of course, lest one of the Texan’s lackeys descended on them. Doubtful, though, as he had Biggs monitoring the cowboy just as he kept trying to monitor everyone else. And right now he was too taken up with that jackass Ferengi's murder. Another one that someone seemed to be trying to pin or drag Yolanthe into, he mused.

"Everything bar the pear drops and popping candy I can get. She," he indicated Hepzibah, "can supply the rest. Just payment and scheduling to discuss, I guess."

“One bar of gold-pressed latinum for each case,” Hepzibah said. “I have five cases of each in sensor-masked containers that read as processed neutralite, complete with forged Federation Commerce Commission credentials, so should be able to pass through any customs inspection.”

"Oh, go on then," Draxx said, wringing his shirt out from the Cardassian liquid. It was now stuck to his chest, leaving nothing of his abs to the imagination. "I'll match her. One bar per case." He had enough money. He was really just keeping his toe in the water for the connections. "My first mate can rig the cases to look the same, or he might get creative. Just name the time and place. Place not on the station though," he stated firmly.

"Agreed," she said with a smile. "I'll take your five cases and everything you have," she told Draxx. Draxx cocked an eyebrow, not expecting that.

The Bajoran stood up again, Draxx rising also. "I'll be in touch as to the when and where," she told him. Draxx grabbed her hand and pulled it to his mouth, bestowing a kiss on it. "A pleasure." He draped his hand on her hip and steered her in the direction of the door.

Returning back to the table, he gave Hepzibah a look. "There's something damn odd about all that. We need to keep a close eye on her."

Hepzibah nodded. “That was too easy. No haggling. She’s either desperate, or we’re being set up. Odd. She didn’t smell like Security.” The white-furred Caitian drained her kanar and leaned forward, eying Draxx’s tight abs glistening with kanar.

“Now what say we get you cleaned up, pirate?” she asked. “I promise to use my tongue…”

Draxx smirked. It certainly didn't look like Yolanthe was warming up anyway. "Lead the way."

FIN

Ricardo Draxx
Privateer, DS5

Yolanthe Ibalin
Owner, the Box of Delights

Hepzibah
Freelancer
NPC Caleb Ryan

 

RSS Feed