CHAPTER 7: HELLIUMS HAPPENING’S

Warfish flew off into the night by herself. She had spoken to Yesman about a small mission that required her to go to neutral lands and meet someone but it was meant to be in strictest confidence. She personally loved missions like this where she could go solo. It was the time she used to clear her mind. There was a special place called Hellium, in the neutral lands that was a type of underground bar and club that hosted illegal fights and gamboling . Here, there were no laws – so many who visited took extra caution to their surroundings. She flew in and docked her main fleet. She was dressed in exquisite, sleek and tight-fitting armor that resembled an indestructible leather suit, and a large black cloak that had a large hood. Her high-healed metallic black boots made an audible sound as she walked with determination down the station bar hallway. Warfish could feel the vibration from the blaring noise of the music behind the station bar door.

Her silhouette beamed through the doorway which closed behind her. She surveyed her surroundings and looked for the mysterious person she was to meet with on Yesmans orders. The bar had artificially built cybernetic women dancing on the stages around the bar. She stopped near one of the stages and became mesmerized and then recalled a time where she got into an argument with Shadowjack about what types of cybernetic women were the hottest. The lights flashed and the music had smoothly transitioned into a song that Warfish was fond of.

“Are you Warfish?” A masculine voice behind her attempted to speak over the intensely loud sounds and she felt a hand placed atop her left shoulder.

She quickly turned around and forced the hand off her, placing distance between this stranger until she could see who was behind her. There stood a man, also disguised in a large dark scarlet coat and incredibly designed armor she had never seen before. She looked him up and down, tilted her head and turned back around to look at the dancing AI.

“Yea. That’s me.”

He stood there awkwardly behind her as she remained fixated. A song that was only a mere 5 minutes felt like an hour while he stood there watching her watch the dancer. As the song ended, she turned around and dropped her hood.

“Yesman wanted us to speak?” She asked with incredulous eyes.

The mysterious person kept his hood on, covering his face. He straightened his posture which towered over her petite frame.

“Lets grab a drink and sit somewhere a little more quiet”. He turned around and began walking to the bar to order two drinks. Warfish couldn’t bare to withhold the smile on her face from the fact that this person just made the executive decision to buy the both of them drinks. He was speaking her language. Perplexed, she followed him to the bar as he motioned over a cybot to order two cocktails. She turned and looked around for a private table.

“I see a table over there – its behind the curtain and to the left. I’ll go grab it”. Warfish began to walk over to claim rightful ownership of said table as the mysterious man smiled watching their teamwork in action. He had heard many stories of Warfish. Some he figured were exaggerations and some potentially true. Unsure of what would come of their relationship – he remained curious. He grabbed the drinks and began to walk in a calm and sturdy posture towards the somewhat quiet and private table Warfish had managed to grab.

“SO! I know Yesman wants me to talk to you…CHEERS!” Warfish brought the glass up and tapped in on the table then took a sip. She coughed and pursed her lips as the liquor left her breath. Strong drink. Exactly how she likes them.

“I heard you like doubles”. He smiled and then took a sip of his cocktail. “Yes, Yesman wants us to talk. I’ve heard a lot about you guys.. and I am curious to know where you stand in the new galaxy?”

Straight to the point. Her kind of guy.

“Well…” she clutched her glass and swirled it to let the ice mix the drink in further, “…I am unconventional. But I had my sights on BU. I want them. I mean I want them for my team. But they have poor leadership… it’s a travesty really – but I want to train them!”

“Train them?” He leaned in closer. “And how do you plan to do that?” His eyebrows were raised. Warfish looked around the bar again. She was always on guard of her surroundings.

“Listen, I already said I’m not into the ‘conventional’ way of doing things…but I see promise in our future. I think we could really work together. So, I want to propose that we keep in contact and attempt to keep the door open for new possibilities….” She paused. “Is something wrong?”

“No. I think BU could use training as well.. If you promise you won’t be zeroing any stations… I think this could be a good idea”. He smiled as he took another sip of his drink. A song came on that light a fire in Warfish’s eyes.

“YOU WANT TO DANCE?” She exclaimed as she ran away from the table to the dance floor. He watched her dance and saw she had a free spirit. He was unsure of what would come of their relationship. But he was curious to see what would come from it. He sipped his drink slowly and felt subtly relaxed for the first time in a long time.