[Omega, Periwinkle Paradise] New Family

The night was hot and rank, befitting of Omega, I thought. Another sting of pain shot through my body from my fried out amp and I finished my cigarette, flicking the but at a trash mound and kneading my plate, trying to stub out the headache brewing. I sighed and walked a crossed the grimy street to the Paradise, heading in. Only glancing at the Asari dancers, I headed for the quiet end of the bar and sat down, my stool groaning at its sudden load. I waved a clawed hand at the barkeep, motioning her over.
"The strongest you've got." I said, looking her over with an appreciating eye.

Omega had been its usual self. Two batarian had a brawl down the street in front of the Periwinkle Paradise earlier that evening and it had ended with local authorities beating up both of them.

Sugar was polishing glasses as the night had little customers so far. Not unusual at this hour, she took the time to maintain stuff she would not have time for when the club got livelier. A handful humans and a salarian were sitting near the stage and more or less silently watching the show. Slow hours for the dancers as well.

There came a krogan. And he was headed for the bar.
“That would be ryncol for you, mister. Coming right up.”

She opened the small hatch below the bar with her omnitool. (a safety feature to store it after some idiot human has ended up burning a hole in his stomach just outside the club with the stuff. Strictly for krogan only in this club!)

She took out a bottle, moist from the icy dew on its surface. With a gentle push she slid it over the counter so it came to rest right in front of the krogan. She smiled contentedly.

"thanks"
I grunted out, taking a slow swig of the frosty Ryncol. The icy drink burned through me, its warm tendrils soothing the ache from my newest injury and putting a content buzz into my thoughts. I took another swig and looked around the club again, my attitude softened by the drink. The place was almost empty, and the dancers knew it, their performances almost half-assed.
"I smoke in here?"
I asked, checking out the attractive young human polishing glasses behind the bar and taking another deep drink of the quickly vanishing Ryncol.

Sugar switched the frontpage of the kiosk next to the krogan to the club rules site. She smiled at the customer as she narrated.
“Rated ‘regular’ or non-emitting cigarettes are okay. None of your tuchanka weed though, nothing toxic in genral. If you obstruct vision or people start complaining, you’re out.” You could never know what weird shit someone brought from the Terminus. In some cases, fumes could easily be toxic for other species. The ‘regular’ rating, while being a C-Space thing, at least ensured safety standards without people dropping left and right. That would be bad for business. While explaining, she cranked up the unoticable ionizer ventilation matrix over the bar.

Two turians were coming in and were obviously in a celebrative state already. The drell waitress rolled her eyes as she got up from her stool at the far end of the bar to take their orders near the stage.

"Fair enough"
I fished around in a pocket and pulled out two packs of smokes, drawing out a cigarette from the blue pack and slipping them both back into my pocket. I lit the cigarette and took a deep drag, all the while eyeballing the Turians, wary for trouble. I finished off the glass of Ryncol and blew out the smoke I'd been holding, waving for a refill. The cigarette burned lower and I watched the barkeep, fixing me another glass. I took the last drag and ground my cigarette but out as the door slid open again and an attractive, young, female Krogan sauntered in, looking around like she was looking for someone. Her eyes lit on me and she headed my way, perching on the stool to my right.
"Double his order."
She barked at the barkeep. I tensed and readied to call up (or try to) my barrier, smelling trouble.

The krogan seemed in the mood for a couple of those tonight and Sugar was willing to serve. As long as he didn’t start trouble she didn’t care how much he drank. She prepared the drinks for the newcomers for her waitress to bring over. The atmosphere got a bit livelier and by now Dove, the turian dancer had started her round, much to the appraisal of the guests.

But what the fuck. Sugar was sure this was the first krogan woman she had ever seen inside the Periwinkle Paradise. Rare as they were on the station anyway.

“Evening,” she greeted with a smile, while fetching another bottle from the fridge. “Here you go.”

Alil had returned with some more orders for the stage, so Sugar moved to the end of the bar and started preparing a few cocktails.

I sat quietly, muscles tense, drinking my drink and watching the Krogan next me.
"Your Tomaj Isadore, right?"
She asked me, looking me up and down.
My fears realized, I set my glass down and tried to call up my nebulous barrier and dropped my hand to the pommel of my well-hidden knife.
"Be easy elder Isadore, I bring no trouble."
she said, putting both clawed hands on the bar, empty. I looked her up and down, noting that she looked strangely familiar, before letting my wisp of a shield drop. I gasped at the sudden burst of pain and pitched forward, dizzy. My plate hit the counter with a crack and I groaned. Pushing myself back upright, I took a long draught of the Ryncol and sighed while it soothed away the pain, then I turned to the young Krogan before me
"Who are you?"
She fixed me with an eye that looked startlingly familiar,
"My name is Mahara."
I eyed her again,
"What does a young thing like you want with an old relic like me?"
She took another sip of her drink, she turned back to me,
"Isadore, do you remember about 400 years ago, a woman named Kern-"
I cut her off, unable to believe what I was hearing
"No, couldn't be! No, she didn't conceive. That cant be right."
I tried to deny what I was hearing, but even as the words came out of my mouth, I knew she was telling the truth, she was the spitting image of Kern, and she had my eyes, acid green with red and gold smatterings in them.
"Your my father, Isadore."
She said, fishing in my pocket for my cigarettes while I sat there, thinking. She put one in front of me then put th pack back into my pocket. I snapped out of my reverie and took the cigarette, lighting and taking a drag off it. I finished my glass of Ryncol and looked back at the girl calling herself my child. I swirled the last couple of drops in the glass and motioned for a refill.

Sugar was alarmed when the krogan started to fumble with shields. Her eyes went to the shotgun under the counter and back. don’t make a stupid move, space-turtle!. She never had to use the gun but she sure would not let two krogan get at each other. The bouncers were only an alarm button away…

When she overheard the conversation and the krogan head bang on the bar she made a very surprised face! For one because the counter was not cracked and secondly because of the family thing. She had never seen a krogan…’family’.

Guessing, she took two bottles of ryncol out and brought it over.
“Discount” she said, managing a wide smile (she was a pro at that) and booked only one bottle to the bill.

"Thank you."
I told the you human barkeep, thumbing the cap off the battle and pouring another glass-full. I downed half the glass and Mahara brought up her Omni-tool, doing a scan of myself and then her.
"Biometrics show a 98% match, Dad."
She said, using the title carefully, testing to see how I would react to it. I sighed and finished the cold beverage before me, then refilled it.
"That it does. How did you find me?"
I asked her, turning and giving her my full attention. She opened the frosty Ryncol bottle and took a gulp that would have left most male Krogan her age gasping. She set the half-empty bottle on the counter with a soft clink and looked at me evenly. I couldn't help but chuckle,
"If I had any doubt before, Its gone now, only my child could down a half bottle without a blink!"
Almost imperceptibly, she blushed, then nodded her head, accepting my praise.
"You have quite the bounty on your head."
She said, quietly enough so only I could hear.
"Is that so? How far behind me are they?"
I asked her, the mirth still in my voice, Id handled them single handedly with a burnt amp and a pistol, I could definitely do it with a shotgun and the chintz amp id cobbled together
I took another drink and looked back into her glowing green eyes, she was obviously happy, that much I could read from her body language, but I could sense a hint of fear or apprehension in her.
"I put out a false lead, they think your at a bar on the bottom level, shaking someone down.
She told me, finishing her bottle and waving for the barkeep,
"Something sweet, and non-alcoholic, if you have it?"

“Are you sure?” Sugar asked the krogan puzzeled. If one of them ordered something non alcoholic, that was an oddity. Not quite the league of a human ordering ryncol (that would be suicidal) but just as rare.

When the female nodded, Sugar thought for a moment.
“I’ll build you a Baror little Devil then” in no time she had the glass coming up, another bottle of ryncol for the male.

With an amused chuckle, Mahara turned to the human'
"You know, just because the men enjoy drinking so much, doesn't mean that the whole species does. I happen to like juice as a matter of fact."
"No doubt, you sound just like Kern."
I said, finishing the bottle and stretching. I lit another cigarette and poured another glass from the new bottle, slowly sipping the overfill. The human set the glass of still-swirling liquid in front of Mahara and she took a sip.
"Mmmm, thank you."
She said, obviously enjoying the simple Batarian drink
"So, now that you've found me, what'll you do?"
I asked her, weaving back and forth a bit from the alcohol's influence.
"I don't know, I hadn't thought about it."
Mahara told me, sipping her juice thoughtfully.
"Well, Il be shipping out to some colony or another, hunting for a Matriarch, tomorrow, your welcome to come with me if you like."
I offered, taking a drag and a small sip of my drink.
Her eyes widened and she looked around to see if anyone had heard
"Your not taking a bounty on a Matriarch are you!?"
I laughed in earnest, setting down my glass so I wouldn't spill it.
"No, no, Its nothing like that!"
I told her, showing her my burnt up amp and port
"Im going to get set up for a new biotic interface."
I told her. She sighed with relief and took another sip of ghther juice.
"But dad, that wll be extremely expensive, wont it?"
She asked, looking at me.
"I got quite the severance package when I left the Blue Suns, I should be able to afford it."p
I told her, sipping on my drink. She looked at my burnt up parts and pondered for a moment.
"By the void, that must be excruciating!"
She said, looking at me with concern. I sighed and gently massaged the burnt tissue around the amp..
"Are you going to come with me to look fot Matriarch Asentia?"
I asked her, taking another swig of the ryncol before me.
"Isnt she supposed to be in the traverse somewhere?"
Mahara asked me, scratching her plate, trying to pin down the cluster that sounded right. I finished off tmy bottleof ryncol and guaged my level of inebriation; sober enough to walk straight. I waved th barkeep over.
"What do i owe ya?"

By now Sugar had calmed down, the two calm krogan (what a reamark) didn't stir any trouble. By now the area near the stage had gotten livelier and more crowded and Alil was moving back and forth constantly with beer and cocktails.

When asked for the bill, she entered a code on her console behind the bar and the sum appeared on the kiosk, accompanied by a big smile of the human. "Have a nice evenig!"

A krogan family meeting. Something to remember in the history of the club.

I pulled out a chit and keyed in the tab with a generous tip, then stood shakily. Mahara finished her juice ad folloed suit, eyeing my instability. I straightened out and smiled at the barkeep. Turning to my daughter,

"Do you have a place here?"

I asked her, feeling the alcohal start to fade and walking more easily.

"Umm, no... i was hoping i could stay with you?"

Mahara said, embarassment showing in her face.

I laughed and fished smoke from the red pack, leaning against the wall next to the door (outside) and lighting the significantly more powerful Tuchankan razorweed cigarette. Smoke poured out with the minor has that followed. She looked at me worriedly.

"Sure, if you dont mind my girlfriend."

I told her, taking another slow drag. She looked a litte taken aback

"What, are you surprised your old man still has game?"

I laughed. At her suprised and slightly awkward expression..

"N-no, I just didn't expect..."

I fiddled with my faulty omnitool And brought up a flickering picture of a Krogan (me, obviously) and a drell, smiling and with my arm around her waist.

"Her name is Ariyah. She will play nice if you do."

Mahara studdied the picture then nodded.

"Im sure we will get along fine. Shall we go?"

I nodded to her and we headed for my apartment on the next level, talking about all things trivial