[Tayseri, Citadel] One False Move (closed)

"That's good work," Shank pocketed the credit chit. It was small time, damn was it small time, but it taught the rats to respect him or at least to fear him.

"Now next week I want 40 creds each." One of smaller rats wanted to say something, bet the turian 'leader' spoke up. "Ya can't do that, we said 35." Seconds later the small turian, found himself, his throat in a iron grip and held aloft above a drop.

"I said 35, and now I say 40. It is a new year, expenses have been made, If you don't like it here you can always move towards the presidium to that charity or join the hierachy, or find yourself some pervy sugardaddy, but in this little neck of the woods the rent is 40 each." He could feel the tension, he hoped one of them would do something so he could finally hit something with impunity, even if it wouldn't be much challenge.

"Of course if you really can't pay... well I can think of some jobs for your kind," he threw the kid back against the wall, "just ask me, and I'll give it, simple jobs too, just get or deliver a package, stuff like that. Do a good job and you'll even get money from me."

He adjusted his collar, "otherwise make sure you have the cash by next week," and walked away.

Kayana had received two separate complaints, one from a kid who'd been run off from where he'd been collecting salvage, one from Pickle-she wanted to wring his neck for offering the rape victim such a skeezy job.

She knew she wasn't supposed to care what species, but knowing he was also preying on his own kind-on top of being such an asshole, really, who likes to watch a member of their own species act like such a huge ass? Really, it made it way worse.

She'd dressed in an oversized, torn sweatshirt that hid the lines of her shoulders, switched from her usual bold eye makeup to something that softened her face and made her look younger.

Personally she thought she was getting too old for this ruse, but people kept falling for it. Quietly, she climbed down from the ledge where she'd been watching, jumping to the ground behind a dumpster. She would step out when he walked by.

Shank moved fast through the alley, pulling his hood over his face, hiding it in the shadows, before stuffing his hands back in the pockets of his long coat, fingers curled around a knife, just in case. Once he reached the crowded street, he would just blend into the crowd and disappear until next week when he would get some more credits out of the little rats. He checked over his shoulder just to make sure he wasn't followed. His steps on the ground were dexterous avoiding the puddle of god knows what without missing his stride.

He was so self-absorbed he didn't even spend time observing his environment and just passed the dumpster.

Kayana knew what vulnerable felt like. She called upon the appropriate memories, feeling the cold wind on the back of her neck as she shrunk down into her shirt and stepped out.

One hand wrapped around the extendable club she kept ready for trouble.

She also knew how the duct kids moved, so she did her best to mimic that. They'd know who he was, so she suddenly veered to the side, as if to avoid him.

She had a high opinion of her fellow drell. He probably wasn't going to fall for it like the turians did...

Shank stopped in his tracks, hands holding his knife tighter, the moment he saw the movement, he looked at her. He hadn't seen her yet but she clearly had heard about him. This would probably be easy.

Probably

"Why hello there, didn't your mom tell you it's dangerous to be on the street this time of day?"

Ah yes, life on the Citadel. Exposing her to every species' idiocy so she didn't get overproud.

She kept her shoulders scrunched up, not quite ready to tip her hand. She'd give him the one chance. "I...don't have any money right now."

He kept a step back, he looked at her for a sec and there was a sick grin on his face.
"yeah, well than you'll have to work for it," he brandished his knife, just letting it see it. "I got plenty of jobs, simple kind nothing big for ya. But, drop the kid act, it might work for the aliens ya scam or whatever, but I know the difference between a kid and an adult."

She did drop the act, her voice falling half an octave and a smirk appearing at the corner of her mouth. "They can't read our faces for shit, can they?"

She slouched back towards him-then spun around, drawing her baton and taking a swing to knock the knife out of his hands.

"Ripping off kids, bad. Ripping off drell kids, seriously?"

He blinked, and he had lost his knife as it scattered off along the alleyway.

"Well the little desertflower has spunk. Man got to make his money somehow." he tried to grab her arm with the baton, so at least she wouldn't hit him with it.

He managed to block it, but she still had a good grip. "Dude, if you weren't drell I would have just swung for your knees as you walked by."

"Don't you have any fucking pride? It's hard enough for independents. That you fuck over the kids?"

"Oh this is a drell thing," he let out a mock laugh while holding keeping her arm and baton away from him.

"Well if you're concerned for tha' race, let's stop fighting and we can see if we can't have you pump out some little ones. Bet 'cha that ya don't wanne commit to that." He tried to push her off balance, to make her lose her grip or her footing.

"'cause that's how bitches do, yammer about the species but when it comes to doing their part it's all wailing 'cause they don't want to get knocked up. But let me reply, no, I'm not planning to fuck them over. I just want my little part of this big cake and I'll take what's mine, by force if I have to."

Kayana, who delayed childbearing because of the admittedly better sense of the men in her life, snorted and flicked her eyelids.

She stepped back, yanking on the baton as he pushed forward. "I guess independence means we have to self-police."

"What do you think should happen to people who rob and intimdate drell kids?" She stomped down on his shin.

"Your pride type always have the ans–" Shank suddenly howled when Kay's heavy boot stomped down on him, letting go of her arm he found himself on the ground.

He managed to turn to face her, "okay, you've beaten me, you want me gone, I'm gone, you won't see me on this ward again, you want credits I can get those, too... just stop." he reached towards his shin, feeling it, hoping she wouldn't notice his hold-out knife.

Kayana knew she hadn't inflicted enough pain to really scare him. Not when he'd pulled a knife on her so easily.

She didn't particularly like that she knew that. Blame the DLF, or the Reapers, or heck, maybe the Sundowners.

She slammed the baton down on his outstretched arm. "Don't FUCK with OUR kids!"

He considered himself a reasonable man, after all people got to live and he wasn't going to go and get a factory job or some other bullshit. Shank didn't try to resist the impact, instead he flowed with it, he rolled over the ground until he ended up facing her, crouching, his shank, at the ready.


"It's on now." and he growled as he leaped towards Kay.

"You were lying and going for a knife!" She stepped to the side, unable to completely get out of his way. "It was already on!"

She used her baton to push him back and gain a little space. It was good that he was attacking this angry. She'd take advantage of the next opening.

Shank continued to slash his blade widely towards the hand with the baton in it, ignoring the fact that his flank was exposed to pretty much any kind of attack that didn't involve the baton.

"you're the crazy psycho who attacks just 'cause some stupid kids."

"Weren't you just dissing me for being insufficiently maternal?" She kept her eyes up, using the extra range of the baton to protect her arms.

Then she unleashed that ridiculously high kick that was the trademark of drell martial artists. There was a reason they overused it to the point of parody-because it was impressive, and because when it hit it could send someone sprawling.

"I am a simple crazy psycho." She slammed the baton on the nearest limb (left arm) with a crunch. "I'd like it if you redeemed yourself entirely, but I'm not going to bet on it. So, just stay away from the drell kids."

As far as Shank was concerned he was standing one moment, then there was just blinding light, and the next moment he was on the ground with what felt like a broken rib and a broken arm. This wasn't how it was supposed to go, it was supposed to go with him towering over her and her being grateful that the only thing he took was her money. He considered that these might be his last moments, you never know with people like her. If these were his last words, he might as well make them count, besides he was feeling suicidal.

"You..." he inhaled deeply, trying to catch his breath. "you hypocrite protecting people that's just your excuse!"

He crawled towards a wall and rested against it. "At least I'm honest with myself and others about what I am and what I want. You like to think you're a guardian angel, you're not an angel, You're just a psycho, manipulating those around in believing you're some kind of good person and you're a self-righteous bitch who doesn't care about anyone or anything but herself and what she believes and seeks any excuse to beat people up, to meddle and destroy lives."

He felt the same way as when he was bluffing, going in, when playing cards. "Only way I spare drell is if you stop me permanently, there now you've got your excuse to beat me up or kill me, so... come on then, I'm here, defenseless, come-on and prove me right bitch so come on then, I'm here, weaponless, defenseless, so do your worse! You've got nothing on me."

Oh for the love of the gods.

Kayana pulled her tazer out of the holster at the small of her back, flipping it over and flicking the (aftermarket, oh-so-illegal) switch on the bottom.

Sure, if she was still trading punches with him she'd try and knock him out that way, but when you had control it was a stupid idea-for one, people's survival instinct tried to keep them conscious which meant you had to hit hard enough to risk real damage.

"Countryman, you're running a business and you don't want to deal with me again." She shot the tazer at him.

He did not die.