EXTRAVAGANZAPALOOZA!!! (open)

Schmidt Solution was a small shop that blended in with the other on that level. It wasn't particular notable, but also not particular invisibale either.
A large note said "All weapons on display are non-functional show models with accurate recoil simulation. Your purchases will be delivered to you via mailorder." But its was overshadowed by larger ones that advertised the ongoing sale and tiny "help wanted" note was entirely out-shined.
The ad-campaing had been running for the better part of the last weekend and now, now is the time to face the hordes.

Jaquento was walking up and down each aisle, correcting minor flaws here and there.
Now standing be hind the counter he went down his mental checklist a last time.
Ad-signs in place... check.
VI settings... check.
Handheld taser... check.
Omni-tool... check.
He took a deep breath and...
"Eva, execute command set extravaganzapalooza and open the store."
The lights every where went on, holiday related holograms decorated the store's front and interior and in the background a collection of christmas songs played over the loudspeakers and holographic snow began to fall.

Jaquento sat down on a chair behind the counter and waited for the hordes to arrive.

Sure enough, Sarah Thompson was there within the hour. She skipped around the counter, gave Jaquento a quick hug, and put her hands on her hips. She appeared more chipper than usual, moving to hang up her jacket. She owed Jaquento- And this was a good way of paying her dues with him, she thought. "Hey, 'boss', here to put my hours in!"

Jaquento returned the hug.
"Hey Sarah, I am glad that you are here. Things have yet to run hot, but I expect more than the usual in the next days. You sure this is ok with your new job?"
He gave her a smile. Having a helping hand around to deal with the custumers would help him much.
"What are you doing now anyway?"
His voice showed nothing but genuine interest.

She held her hands against her lower back and gave a nod. "I'm doing fine. You're looking at the Alliance's newest second lieutenant." She briefly scratched at her nose, then turned to look out at the passing customers on the citadel ward, then back to Jaquento. "How are -you- doing? The store looks like it's doing well."

Jaquento nodded.
"The alliance, and as a 2nd LT. I have to salute to you. I am sure you will be a boon for them. So what are you doing? Marines?"
He looked to the side to the shop's front.
"It started slow, but during the last months business started to pick up, I barely have time to work on the custom mods anymore, but at the end, the number in black gets a little bigger each week. I also enrolled Haliat Armory's associated vendors programme. That means I am still independent, but I have to give Haliat stuff and custumers how bought them preffered treatment."
He absently-minded scratched his back. He clearly wasn't quite comfortable with this agreement.
"I don't have to advertise them directly, but if let's say. one custumer wants his gun or omni-tool from Haliat fixed, they get priority. In return, I can buy from them cheaper and I am listed in their licensed vendor register. Oh, and when I run discounts programs... well, you saw the ad. They can't make me to plug their stuff directly to the custumer and I intend to continue to give fair evaluations when advising them in person."

He emphasized the last part.

"Hey, you do what you can to get by. Chris's restaurant has deals with various food suppliers on Earth and Palaven- We're working on a very good shipment deal with that-" She snaps her fingers, trying to think. "It's that one company that- Oh. Sueanna's, that pie and cake company? We're working on getting a licence from them, but she's got the head for that, and her business partner is better at managing than I am. I'm just around to look pretty and taste test, and I'm only getting one of those right." She wandered over to a weapons rack, picking a mentioned Haliat weapon and peering down the sights.

"You look pretty, I am sure of that. Should I stay away from your cooking?" Jaquento joked.
Meanwhile a pair of young turians in boot-camp colors made their way through the door and started to look through the selection of omni-tools. Jaquento couldn't place their face-paint, but right now he didn't care. They didn't seem to need much help anyway.
"Still have no luck finding a suitable help. My insurer requiers that my employees have valid gun permits for safety and reasons and C-Sec doesn't hand them out like candy."
He looked at the gun Sarah picked up.
"Modified phaeston, multi-species stock and handle, multi-language read-out and the optics can adapt to different eyes. Buying hierachy surplus and reworking them for the galactic market is their specialty. The quality is good, but in my opinion nothing special. Through numbers they are nearly as cheap to buy as the form the orginial manufacturer."

She hoisted the weapon vertically, resting it against her forearm, the stock against her bicep. "I've ..not really held a turian rifle before. I've seen a few in my time. High rate of fire, right?" She leveled it and aimed down the sights, pulling the trigger at the wall. The gun simulated recoil- and she'd simply put it back where it belonged.

Jaquento nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, even the dumbest recruit can be turned into a killer machine if he can send enough bullets down the line. Not my philosophy but if you conscript nearly everyone, you will have a few duds among them."
The two turians shot an annoyed look in Jaquento's direction.
"No offense guys, I am sure your shots hit the bullseye all the time."

Kayana rolled her eyes and stepped away from the display she'd been investigating, waving and trying to get attention before they started talking again. "Like, one question! Do you sell mod kits for a drell grip that are compatible with the Kassa Locust? Not multi-species."

"Duty calls. Oh and..." Jaquento's omni-tool flashed briefly. "I have reactivated your VI-account for the day, so you can operate the counter when things start to get really crowded."
Jaquento left Sarah with the Haliat stock and hurried over to Kayana to assist her.
He briefly looked over the Drell and in his mind a set of neurons triggered, but he decided not to act on it yet. Business first.
"Hello, just a second..." Jaquento opened his omni-tool and browsed his inventory and the Kassa extranet catalogue for spare parts for suitable parts, but with no success.
"Yeah, that's what I thought. Kassa doesn't make grips specificly for drell, the market simply isn't large enough I think. If the human one is really to much of a problem, there is a supplier that usually sells to the primarcy military that produces stocks and grips for drells. If you are willing to wait I can order one and fit it to a Locust until next week. Of course it is going to be expensive. Shipping, workhours, rarity, you know."
Jaquento looked over the drell a second time to be sure.
"I think I know you. You and I took part in several N7 operations together did we? In that case, I would only charge you for materials."

Michelle had taken 30 minutes to find the shop, for her it was progress. The petite, plump woman entered with a smile and her big black old timey glasses on her face.

She moved around, looking for things, with the unmistakable air of a person who has no idea what she's looking at but is still trying to look knowledgeable.

Then she caught Sarah, who may or may not have been avoiding her, and her faced brightened, she started waving at her like they were on opposite side of a street, and not in the same shop.

Sarah skipped behind the counter and logged herself in, then glanced over to Jaquento as he mentioned only charging for materials. The woman thought about her family's business, running a hand through her blonde crop of hair- Then Michelle's arrival set her on the defense. "Oh. Hi, would you like to buy anything? We've currently got an -" She paused, reading a note on the back of the terminal. "Extravaganzapalooza- Going on. Lots of reasonable rates and excellent product."

- Yeah yeah I saw that on the boards, that's why I'm here! And you're working here! So fancy seeing you here! Are you not alliance? Anyway, I just would like something simple to defend myself just in case, in my line of work as I mentioned it can get heated. I don't have firearm license nor do I want one, just something basic, non-lethal.


She had said all that without breathing once.

Sarah rubbed the back of her neck. "We sell a variety of non-lethal deterrent sprays." She stepped away from the counter, looking over various racks and displays of weapons. "Uh.. Here." She flipped a small canister free from a box and handed it to her.
"Multiple settings, works on levo and dextro non-lethally."

"From London? It's really alright..." Seriously, was he going to give every Reaper War vet a discount? That was quite a few people.

"But um, how expensive are we talking about?"

- That looks great Sarah thanks. What are the settings? Am I not in risk of gassing myself too in close quarter? How's the restaurant doing?

He had no idea why he was here. It wasn't like he had the paperwork to buy anything here. At best, he could browse. Still, it wasted time before the next flight to Arcturus. Three days the travel company said.
He grabbed a mock Mattock. It seemed lighter then his own back in Mombasa. Shinier too.
Recoil, he observed, was exactly the same however.
He heard about this place on that site. Seemed good enough. It wasted part of a afternoon at least. Just as long as no one noticed him.

"London, huh? I managed to knock myself out there. Probably not my smartest move."
Jaquento opened his omni-tool again, the display showed the page of Kahje Ergonomics Inc. and listed prices for various Drell-adapted parts.
"Let me see. Uhm, assuming you got a Locust that would be... about 150 credits for the stock and grip, 30 credits shipping to the Citadel from Kahje and I would need ca. 15 hours in work that equals 25 credits. Yeah, as I said, it isn't cheap. But I honor the people I fought with hence I give them a discount. Don't worry, it won't make me go out of business, if I do something pro bono once in a while."
He pressed some more buttons on the omni-tool and the image changed to a holographic model of the modded Locust.
"It should look like this when the work is done."
It wasn't a big change, the angle of the grip and stock were slightly changed to adapt to drell muscles and it offered better hold for the fused fingers.

The restaurant? W- Sarah shrugged. "It's going good. It's got a cone spray- It sprays at a triangle pattern in front of you. It's a 'spray and run away' thing, there's a video.." She turns, activating a screen on the wall. A weapons demonstration of the antipersonnel spray. "There you go, I'll ring you up if you choose to buy it."

She uncomfortably messed with the collar of her tee, giving the woman a quick once over, then politely passed her to stand behind the counter once again. Taking a flyer from the top of the counter, she crumpled it into a ball and flung it at the side of Jaquento's head, then acted as if she didn't do a thing.