Blizzard
Inactive Member
Anbruch - Cabin B6
All was silent aboard the Anbruch as the ship screamed inexoribly towards its destination. Most of the crew had likely retired to their respective quarters. The only noise was the low hum of the engines.
But then, a quiet knock at the door filled the room.
Ash looked up from her work. She had since put most of her possessions away into various places around the room. Her trenchcoat was hung up in the closet and both of her pistols hung off the end of the top bunk from their holsters. Various devices were set out on display on the dresser and her duffel bag sat in the corner, still full of random bits of tech she had scavenged.
She was currently fiddling with the battery of a NSP Type 28 that she had found, but the pistol was set aside for the moment; who could be at her door at this hour? The Captain?
Ash rose to her feet and pushed the door button, the door sliding smoothly open and the light from her stateroom cascading out into the dimmed hallway. Ash wore black athletic shorts and a tight blue t-shirt with a white origin logo stretched across the chest. She placed her hands on her hips when she saw who was at her door.
Adiel; the one person on the ship she wanted to see the least. She furrowed her brow and her lips turned into a scowl.
"What?" asked Ash, clearly not thrilled at the Elysian's appearance.
Much to her annoyance, Adiel didn't seem to care. His amused grin only broadened. He himself was still dressed in the same, navy suit as before, but this time the tie was removed, and the first few buttons were unlatched. He held something behind his back.
"I've come to apologize," said the bird plainly. His eyes scanned up and down. "Make amends- that sort of thing- and my word! You should forego your trenchcoat more often! I must say, you look positively stunning! It's the shirt. It really brings out your figure."
This was the true Adiel, the one not being hunted by cops and criminals alike, the aloof millionaire playboy with a fast whit and tongue to match.
From behind his back, he revealed what he was carrying: two glasses and a bottle that Ash no doubt recognized- Mazrit brandy. Some of it was already gone; Adiel needed some convincing to do this, apparently.
"May I come in?" he asked with his devilish smirk, lightly waving the bottle and glasses around for emphasis.
Ash subconsciously blushed at the compliment, but her expression remained the same. Until she saw what Adiel brought with him; that certainly made her raise an eyebrow.
"Is...is that Mazrit?" she asked in astonishment. She paused for a moment, then sighed.
"Come on in. Pardon the clutter. Just give me a moment," said Ash, turning around and heading back in. She knelt by the small table in the center of the room and folded up a bundle of cloth with a small pistol and a myriad of parts on it. She placed the folded bundle neatly up on the top bunk. Aside from a collection of devices on the dresser, the room was nearly sterile in its cleanliness. Ash sat on the bottom bunk and looked up at Adiel.
"Well...if you came to apologize, Adiel, a bottle of Mazrit is certainly a start. How did you even obtain a bottle all the way out here? The Rot Mädchen?"
The only other seating arrangement was a spot on the bunk next to Ash.
Adiel stepped into the room and set his bottle and glasses on the small table. He poured two half-glasses.
"I didn't know if there would be alchohol available onboard while we were out on assignment, so I called in a small favor," Adiel replied cryptically with a wry smile. He sat next to her and handed her a glass. He took a sip from his own. "Honestly, Mazrit one of my favorites. The effects are more enjoyable than that of regular brandy."
Ash took the offered glass, holding it with both hands on her lap.
Alas, Adiel stopped beating around the bush. Business first, fun later. He looked Ash dead in the eyes with a serious expression.
"I realize I have treated you quite poorly since the day we met. I hope you will understand, I have been under a lot of pressure for the past several months. You interupting what was to be a flawless escape was, as they say, the straw that broke the camel's back.
"I snapped, and for a moment, I believed that you meant to sully my reputation with Ms. Dunst. I see now that you, like me, are just another disparaged soul trying to get by. I hope that we may move past this and at the very least, have a respectful, professional relationship free of tension. It seems that, given the danger we face, group cohesion will be a priority."
Once finished, Adiel took another sip of his drink, possibly rewarding himself for the display. He usually wasn't the type to swallow his pride.
Ash met Adiel's gaze for a moment before taking a sip from her glass. Tasting Mazrit Brandy again was like drinking liquid nostalgia; she had not tasted it for nearly nine standard years. Memories came flooding back; memories of family, memories of friends, of times shared back on Mazerin. And then as quickly as they came, the memories were gone.
"Mmmm," said Ash as she savored her sip of Mazrit. "Apology accepted," she replied, meeting Adiel's gaze again.
"I was the one that stole your wallet. Understandably, you were upset. But yes, I stole it out of necessity. I was stuck on that station for one standard year and barely scraping by. I know this was not your intention, but you pulled me out of that cesspool. I'm here on the Anbruch because of you. So I thank you for that."
She glanced at the bottle of brandy and took another sip from her glass.
"So there is no way I will be able to help you finish that bottle," said Ash, pointing at it.
"Iromakuanhe absorb alcohol much quicker than most species. I would be running around the ship completely delirious; smashed from the alcohol and hyped up from the buzz."
'Is that a bad thing?' Adiel thought dryly.
"Honestly, Mazrit straight-up was never my favorite. But Hot Mazrit on the other hand was quite popular at home. Never figured you as one for sweet stuff." Ash rose from her place on the bunk and then grabbed the bottle with her free hand.
'You'd be surprised how much I love "sweet stuff"...'
"Time for a trip to the galley; I am going to make you some Hot Mazrit, the way it is meant to be enjoyed."
Ash walked over to the door and opened it.
"Plus, both of us talking late at night in the galley is less interesting gossip than you staying in my cabin for a few hours after dark," she said with a sly wink.
Adiel chuckled lowly.
"Your denial barely masks your desire." he teased with a roll of his eyes.
And then she was off towards the galley, up the spiral staircase and down the hallway.
Upon entering the galley, Ash turned on the lights and then began to rummage around in the cabinets for a suitable pot for boiling.
Adiel strolled in after her and lazily leaned forward over the countertop, resting his chin on his hands. His eyes followed Ash as she searched.
"So, do tell me," said the angel softly. "How does an Iroma find her way to Dawn Station? Who is Ashtoreth?
"Don't be shy now! How about a trade? Sob story for sob story? That is what new pals do when they drink together, right? Confide their woes to each other?" he joked, looking away in a dreamy fashion.
"I know who I am. It is a question of who I was, she said.
Ash located a decent sized pot and went and put it on one of the stovetops. After locating the correct knob Ash turned the stove on to start boiling the Mazrit. She set her glass to the side and poured out a decent amount of the dark liquid from the bottle into the pot.
"Just have to bring it to a boil," she muttered. Ash leaned against the wall facing the countertop and crossed both arms across herself.
"You are lucky, Adiel. I have just enough Mazrit in me that I feel like talking about it."
"To start with, I grew up on Mazerin. Part of the Astral Commonwealth, it is a harsh world covered with tundra, save for the equator. I grew up in one of the arcologies out in the tundra wastes."
"I wanted to follow in my father's footsteps and be an engineer for the Solani Shipyards. But suffice to say I could not live up to my parents' high expectations. So I left; signed on a salvage ship named the Skyfish and did not look back."
"Until..." Ash hesitates.
"Until we met the Blood Wolves."
Ash returned to the stove and fiddled with the pot to see the progress of the boil. Her expression was blank and her eyes had glazed over, as if she was reliving her own personal hell.
"They spaced the men, along with Captain Umar."
"Myself and the other women became slaves; playthings."
"I was the lucky one. The Blood Wolves Admiral chose me as his favorite. I never saw the other women again."
Ash walked over to the refrigerator and opened it, looking for some creme.
"After a time, I began to...enjoy my position. The Admiral took care of me and protected from the rest of the crew."
Ash found a small container of dairy creme and placed it out onto the counter, letting the refrigerator door close behind her.
"After a while I wanted a piece of the action myself. I managed to survive the...initiation into the Blood Wolves and be counted among their number."
Ash's expression broke into one of sorrow.
"I killed people...some of them pirates...some of them just people caught in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"That was when I gained my tattoos; marks of my status as a full member."
"Eventually the reality of my situation began to sink in. No longer solely dependant on the Admiral for my survival, I realized the kind of people I was consorting with. So when I had the chance to escape, I took it."
Ash began to rummage around in the cabinets again and found two mugs. She placed them onto the countertop next to the bottle of dairy creme.
"I disabled the Admiral's ship and took a shuttle out into the Pirate's Nebula, managing to avoid the Wolves for about a week before I limped to Dawn Station. I was there on the station for nearly a year before you ran into me."
"But that's my story."
Seeing that the Mazrit was at a boil, Ash turned off the stove and then grabbed both of the mugs. Grabbing a thermal mitten, Ash lifted the pot by the handle and carefully poured its contents into both mugs. She did spill some of the Mazrit on the counter, but it was not the easiest task in the world when the pot was right off the stove.
"Ancestors!" exclaimed Ash when she spilled some of the liquid. She put down the pot and glanced frantically around for a towel of some kind to clean up the mess.
"Pirates... nasty little fiends, those ones." he muttered solemnly, noting Ash's expression.
Adiel couldn't help but feel guilty for asking. He looked at her with a trace of pitty. Out of all the shady groups he dealt with, he liked pirates the least. They were usually the most sadistic, the most ignorant of the laws of man and dignity. He dared not hurt her further by asking for details.
He grabbed two rags, glad for the distraction, and handed one of them to her. Ash accepted the offered rag and wiped the outside of both mugs clean.
"About that," he began as he scrubbed away the spilled brandy. "I wasn't the only wealthy-looking businessman aboard that tram. Out of curiosity, why did you choose me specifically? My dashing good looks? These massive, black feather-dusters? Cosmic roll of the dice?" he asked, fluttering his wings a little.
"Maybe it was fate. Maybe you just had the most expensive-looking suit," said Ash with a shrug.
She turned and placed both mugs onto the countertop and then poured a small amount of creme into each mug. She then picked up both mugs, handing one to Adiel.
"So, what's your story, then?"
Adiel sipped the newfound concoction and raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Not bad..." the angel muttered to Ash. He leaned against the wall. "Fair enough. A deal's a deal.
"In order to understand my tale, Ashtoreth, you must first understand Elysian culture.
"Elysians follow a strict hierarchy based on religion and lineage. According to the old book, only Elysians are destined for salvation. However, even amongst Elysians, there are classes based upon the purity of one's blood- Plebian, Caelisolan, and Patrician. Plebians are the most impure, and resemble malnourished humans with deformed wings. Plebians are the cogs in the machine, good for nothing more than manual labor in service of the Patricians. I wasn't always this statuesque paradigm of strength and grace. I too once toiled like a common animal."
His look of calm flickered a little, but he continued.
"Caelisolans are in the middle. Still below Patrician, but no longer outcasted and downtrodden, or at least, less so. Caelisolans are artificial, and Plebians get the 'privelege' of being transfered into a greater body. Last, but not least, are the Patricians. I myself resemble a below-average patrician..."
His face flickered once more.
"...In body. I just need longer hair, and a pretty dress." Adiel chuckled humorlessly. "Patricians, by right of birth, are too 'esteemed' for manual labor. They are better suited for the 'noble' pursuits of politics, acadamia, clergy, and walking around with their noses in the air."
"So you had your consciousness transfered to another body to raise yourself to another caste?" asked Ash. She took a generous sip from her steaming mug.
"Precisely," Adiel replied. "It all began, long ago, when the Yamataians drove my people from our homes during one of several petty conflicts that sprung up as a result of the Patricians being unable to swallow their pride. A mass exodus occured to New Elysia.
"Except, my family did not get to go to New Elysia. Ships to such a wonderful paradise were reserved for Patricians. The lesser beings got to go to smaller, industrial centers such as the mining colony of Minyas.
"After the exodus, us Elysians entered into a famine," Adiel recounted with a dark scowl. "Let me rephrase that! Us Plebians entered into a famine! The Patricians were too busy lazing about, drinking fine wines and toiling at lavish parties to pay mind to us. All the while, my father nearly killed himself working in a mine owned by one such Patrician. I myself was constantly reminded by Patrician and Plebian alike that slavery was an honorable way to affirm your faith."
What had started as a calm retelling began to slowly become bitter and angry.
"Fast forward several years to the Second Mishu War. I joined the Elysian Navy so that I could escape the mines. My service was hardly noteworthy, but it was at the beginning of my tenure that I became a Caelisolan.
"It was there, standing at the same post, day after day, year after year, that I finally became free and saw this backwards system for what it really was!
"I saved, I bided my time, and when I was released from my chains, I left. I changed my name to Adiel Avraham- Plebians were not allowed to hold such prestigious names as Adiel, and last names were reserved for only those of bloodlines worth naming. My old name... was Isaaphon. Just that- Isaaphon. A slave's name. A name for a lesser creature."
That last part seemed to be more for him than anyone else.
"I left for Nepleslia. I studied what I could, and I tried so desperately to make something for myself in the corporate world- to do what the Patricians said was unbecoming of my class. Sadly, due to the Patricians' arrogant ways, Elysians were not welcome in Nepleslia. Super plagues introduced by a foreign species have a peculiar way of pissing people off.
"So, I went a little less legal. I work mostly as a middle man between the larger criminal elements of the galaxy. It's a double edged sword. I have money, reputation, and power, but I also recieve pressure from the law. This ship is my solution to that particular problem, and I was aboard Dawn station tieing up loose ends when I met you."
Ash nodded, taking his whole story in.
"No offense, Adiel, but your people sound...terrible. Herdtitan dung, I would not have blamed you for wanting to better yourself; for wanting to find a way out of that system. I suppose if that is the way your culture has always accepted things, then that makes sense that it would seem normal. Mazerinii are very traditional as well, but more in the family sense. I am...was close with my family."
"But the good news is here we are on the Anbruch, with the galaxy at our fingertips, and nothing to hold us back!"
Ash raised her mug to toast.
Adiel took a breath and smiled, raising his glass as well.
"Thank you, Ash, for being cooperative. I had a feeling this whole 'apology' thing might have gone horribly awry."
He then proceeded to knock back the rest of the brandy.
Ash nodded.
"Not a problem. I would be a special kind of terrible if I did not let you apologize," she said before taking another sip from her mug.
"It is good to clear the air. As far as we know Captain Tanja could send both of us on a mission by ourselves. We need to be able to trust one another, because when things get sticky, trust is really all you have."
"Well said," Adiel affirmed. He waltzed over to the counter and retrieved his bottle. He stepped over to the door and looked over his shoulder.
"Good night, goat-woman." he sighed in farewell.
"Good night, bird-man," she replied with a smirk.
All was silent aboard the Anbruch as the ship screamed inexoribly towards its destination. Most of the crew had likely retired to their respective quarters. The only noise was the low hum of the engines.
But then, a quiet knock at the door filled the room.
Ash looked up from her work. She had since put most of her possessions away into various places around the room. Her trenchcoat was hung up in the closet and both of her pistols hung off the end of the top bunk from their holsters. Various devices were set out on display on the dresser and her duffel bag sat in the corner, still full of random bits of tech she had scavenged.
She was currently fiddling with the battery of a NSP Type 28 that she had found, but the pistol was set aside for the moment; who could be at her door at this hour? The Captain?
Ash rose to her feet and pushed the door button, the door sliding smoothly open and the light from her stateroom cascading out into the dimmed hallway. Ash wore black athletic shorts and a tight blue t-shirt with a white origin logo stretched across the chest. She placed her hands on her hips when she saw who was at her door.
Adiel; the one person on the ship she wanted to see the least. She furrowed her brow and her lips turned into a scowl.
"What?" asked Ash, clearly not thrilled at the Elysian's appearance.
Much to her annoyance, Adiel didn't seem to care. His amused grin only broadened. He himself was still dressed in the same, navy suit as before, but this time the tie was removed, and the first few buttons were unlatched. He held something behind his back.
"I've come to apologize," said the bird plainly. His eyes scanned up and down. "Make amends- that sort of thing- and my word! You should forego your trenchcoat more often! I must say, you look positively stunning! It's the shirt. It really brings out your figure."
This was the true Adiel, the one not being hunted by cops and criminals alike, the aloof millionaire playboy with a fast whit and tongue to match.
From behind his back, he revealed what he was carrying: two glasses and a bottle that Ash no doubt recognized- Mazrit brandy. Some of it was already gone; Adiel needed some convincing to do this, apparently.
"May I come in?" he asked with his devilish smirk, lightly waving the bottle and glasses around for emphasis.
Ash subconsciously blushed at the compliment, but her expression remained the same. Until she saw what Adiel brought with him; that certainly made her raise an eyebrow.
"Is...is that Mazrit?" she asked in astonishment. She paused for a moment, then sighed.
"Come on in. Pardon the clutter. Just give me a moment," said Ash, turning around and heading back in. She knelt by the small table in the center of the room and folded up a bundle of cloth with a small pistol and a myriad of parts on it. She placed the folded bundle neatly up on the top bunk. Aside from a collection of devices on the dresser, the room was nearly sterile in its cleanliness. Ash sat on the bottom bunk and looked up at Adiel.
"Well...if you came to apologize, Adiel, a bottle of Mazrit is certainly a start. How did you even obtain a bottle all the way out here? The Rot Mädchen?"
The only other seating arrangement was a spot on the bunk next to Ash.
Adiel stepped into the room and set his bottle and glasses on the small table. He poured two half-glasses.
"I didn't know if there would be alchohol available onboard while we were out on assignment, so I called in a small favor," Adiel replied cryptically with a wry smile. He sat next to her and handed her a glass. He took a sip from his own. "Honestly, Mazrit one of my favorites. The effects are more enjoyable than that of regular brandy."
Ash took the offered glass, holding it with both hands on her lap.
Alas, Adiel stopped beating around the bush. Business first, fun later. He looked Ash dead in the eyes with a serious expression.
"I realize I have treated you quite poorly since the day we met. I hope you will understand, I have been under a lot of pressure for the past several months. You interupting what was to be a flawless escape was, as they say, the straw that broke the camel's back.
"I snapped, and for a moment, I believed that you meant to sully my reputation with Ms. Dunst. I see now that you, like me, are just another disparaged soul trying to get by. I hope that we may move past this and at the very least, have a respectful, professional relationship free of tension. It seems that, given the danger we face, group cohesion will be a priority."
Once finished, Adiel took another sip of his drink, possibly rewarding himself for the display. He usually wasn't the type to swallow his pride.
Ash met Adiel's gaze for a moment before taking a sip from her glass. Tasting Mazrit Brandy again was like drinking liquid nostalgia; she had not tasted it for nearly nine standard years. Memories came flooding back; memories of family, memories of friends, of times shared back on Mazerin. And then as quickly as they came, the memories were gone.
"Mmmm," said Ash as she savored her sip of Mazrit. "Apology accepted," she replied, meeting Adiel's gaze again.
"I was the one that stole your wallet. Understandably, you were upset. But yes, I stole it out of necessity. I was stuck on that station for one standard year and barely scraping by. I know this was not your intention, but you pulled me out of that cesspool. I'm here on the Anbruch because of you. So I thank you for that."
She glanced at the bottle of brandy and took another sip from her glass.
"So there is no way I will be able to help you finish that bottle," said Ash, pointing at it.
"Iromakuanhe absorb alcohol much quicker than most species. I would be running around the ship completely delirious; smashed from the alcohol and hyped up from the buzz."
'Is that a bad thing?' Adiel thought dryly.
"Honestly, Mazrit straight-up was never my favorite. But Hot Mazrit on the other hand was quite popular at home. Never figured you as one for sweet stuff." Ash rose from her place on the bunk and then grabbed the bottle with her free hand.
'You'd be surprised how much I love "sweet stuff"...'
"Time for a trip to the galley; I am going to make you some Hot Mazrit, the way it is meant to be enjoyed."
Ash walked over to the door and opened it.
"Plus, both of us talking late at night in the galley is less interesting gossip than you staying in my cabin for a few hours after dark," she said with a sly wink.
Adiel chuckled lowly.
"Your denial barely masks your desire." he teased with a roll of his eyes.
And then she was off towards the galley, up the spiral staircase and down the hallway.
Upon entering the galley, Ash turned on the lights and then began to rummage around in the cabinets for a suitable pot for boiling.
Adiel strolled in after her and lazily leaned forward over the countertop, resting his chin on his hands. His eyes followed Ash as she searched.
"So, do tell me," said the angel softly. "How does an Iroma find her way to Dawn Station? Who is Ashtoreth?
"Don't be shy now! How about a trade? Sob story for sob story? That is what new pals do when they drink together, right? Confide their woes to each other?" he joked, looking away in a dreamy fashion.
"I know who I am. It is a question of who I was, she said.
Ash located a decent sized pot and went and put it on one of the stovetops. After locating the correct knob Ash turned the stove on to start boiling the Mazrit. She set her glass to the side and poured out a decent amount of the dark liquid from the bottle into the pot.
"Just have to bring it to a boil," she muttered. Ash leaned against the wall facing the countertop and crossed both arms across herself.
"You are lucky, Adiel. I have just enough Mazrit in me that I feel like talking about it."
"To start with, I grew up on Mazerin. Part of the Astral Commonwealth, it is a harsh world covered with tundra, save for the equator. I grew up in one of the arcologies out in the tundra wastes."
"I wanted to follow in my father's footsteps and be an engineer for the Solani Shipyards. But suffice to say I could not live up to my parents' high expectations. So I left; signed on a salvage ship named the Skyfish and did not look back."
"Until..." Ash hesitates.
"Until we met the Blood Wolves."
Ash returned to the stove and fiddled with the pot to see the progress of the boil. Her expression was blank and her eyes had glazed over, as if she was reliving her own personal hell.
"They spaced the men, along with Captain Umar."
"Myself and the other women became slaves; playthings."
"I was the lucky one. The Blood Wolves Admiral chose me as his favorite. I never saw the other women again."
Ash walked over to the refrigerator and opened it, looking for some creme.
"After a time, I began to...enjoy my position. The Admiral took care of me and protected from the rest of the crew."
Ash found a small container of dairy creme and placed it out onto the counter, letting the refrigerator door close behind her.
"After a while I wanted a piece of the action myself. I managed to survive the...initiation into the Blood Wolves and be counted among their number."
Ash's expression broke into one of sorrow.
"I killed people...some of them pirates...some of them just people caught in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"That was when I gained my tattoos; marks of my status as a full member."
"Eventually the reality of my situation began to sink in. No longer solely dependant on the Admiral for my survival, I realized the kind of people I was consorting with. So when I had the chance to escape, I took it."
Ash began to rummage around in the cabinets again and found two mugs. She placed them onto the countertop next to the bottle of dairy creme.
"I disabled the Admiral's ship and took a shuttle out into the Pirate's Nebula, managing to avoid the Wolves for about a week before I limped to Dawn Station. I was there on the station for nearly a year before you ran into me."
"But that's my story."
Seeing that the Mazrit was at a boil, Ash turned off the stove and then grabbed both of the mugs. Grabbing a thermal mitten, Ash lifted the pot by the handle and carefully poured its contents into both mugs. She did spill some of the Mazrit on the counter, but it was not the easiest task in the world when the pot was right off the stove.
"Ancestors!" exclaimed Ash when she spilled some of the liquid. She put down the pot and glanced frantically around for a towel of some kind to clean up the mess.
"Pirates... nasty little fiends, those ones." he muttered solemnly, noting Ash's expression.
Adiel couldn't help but feel guilty for asking. He looked at her with a trace of pitty. Out of all the shady groups he dealt with, he liked pirates the least. They were usually the most sadistic, the most ignorant of the laws of man and dignity. He dared not hurt her further by asking for details.
He grabbed two rags, glad for the distraction, and handed one of them to her. Ash accepted the offered rag and wiped the outside of both mugs clean.
"About that," he began as he scrubbed away the spilled brandy. "I wasn't the only wealthy-looking businessman aboard that tram. Out of curiosity, why did you choose me specifically? My dashing good looks? These massive, black feather-dusters? Cosmic roll of the dice?" he asked, fluttering his wings a little.
"Maybe it was fate. Maybe you just had the most expensive-looking suit," said Ash with a shrug.
She turned and placed both mugs onto the countertop and then poured a small amount of creme into each mug. She then picked up both mugs, handing one to Adiel.
"So, what's your story, then?"
Adiel sipped the newfound concoction and raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Not bad..." the angel muttered to Ash. He leaned against the wall. "Fair enough. A deal's a deal.
"In order to understand my tale, Ashtoreth, you must first understand Elysian culture.
"Elysians follow a strict hierarchy based on religion and lineage. According to the old book, only Elysians are destined for salvation. However, even amongst Elysians, there are classes based upon the purity of one's blood- Plebian, Caelisolan, and Patrician. Plebians are the most impure, and resemble malnourished humans with deformed wings. Plebians are the cogs in the machine, good for nothing more than manual labor in service of the Patricians. I wasn't always this statuesque paradigm of strength and grace. I too once toiled like a common animal."
His look of calm flickered a little, but he continued.
"Caelisolans are in the middle. Still below Patrician, but no longer outcasted and downtrodden, or at least, less so. Caelisolans are artificial, and Plebians get the 'privelege' of being transfered into a greater body. Last, but not least, are the Patricians. I myself resemble a below-average patrician..."
His face flickered once more.
"...In body. I just need longer hair, and a pretty dress." Adiel chuckled humorlessly. "Patricians, by right of birth, are too 'esteemed' for manual labor. They are better suited for the 'noble' pursuits of politics, acadamia, clergy, and walking around with their noses in the air."
"So you had your consciousness transfered to another body to raise yourself to another caste?" asked Ash. She took a generous sip from her steaming mug.
"Precisely," Adiel replied. "It all began, long ago, when the Yamataians drove my people from our homes during one of several petty conflicts that sprung up as a result of the Patricians being unable to swallow their pride. A mass exodus occured to New Elysia.
"Except, my family did not get to go to New Elysia. Ships to such a wonderful paradise were reserved for Patricians. The lesser beings got to go to smaller, industrial centers such as the mining colony of Minyas.
"After the exodus, us Elysians entered into a famine," Adiel recounted with a dark scowl. "Let me rephrase that! Us Plebians entered into a famine! The Patricians were too busy lazing about, drinking fine wines and toiling at lavish parties to pay mind to us. All the while, my father nearly killed himself working in a mine owned by one such Patrician. I myself was constantly reminded by Patrician and Plebian alike that slavery was an honorable way to affirm your faith."
What had started as a calm retelling began to slowly become bitter and angry.
"Fast forward several years to the Second Mishu War. I joined the Elysian Navy so that I could escape the mines. My service was hardly noteworthy, but it was at the beginning of my tenure that I became a Caelisolan.
"It was there, standing at the same post, day after day, year after year, that I finally became free and saw this backwards system for what it really was!
"I saved, I bided my time, and when I was released from my chains, I left. I changed my name to Adiel Avraham- Plebians were not allowed to hold such prestigious names as Adiel, and last names were reserved for only those of bloodlines worth naming. My old name... was Isaaphon. Just that- Isaaphon. A slave's name. A name for a lesser creature."
That last part seemed to be more for him than anyone else.
"I left for Nepleslia. I studied what I could, and I tried so desperately to make something for myself in the corporate world- to do what the Patricians said was unbecoming of my class. Sadly, due to the Patricians' arrogant ways, Elysians were not welcome in Nepleslia. Super plagues introduced by a foreign species have a peculiar way of pissing people off.
"So, I went a little less legal. I work mostly as a middle man between the larger criminal elements of the galaxy. It's a double edged sword. I have money, reputation, and power, but I also recieve pressure from the law. This ship is my solution to that particular problem, and I was aboard Dawn station tieing up loose ends when I met you."
Ash nodded, taking his whole story in.
"No offense, Adiel, but your people sound...terrible. Herdtitan dung, I would not have blamed you for wanting to better yourself; for wanting to find a way out of that system. I suppose if that is the way your culture has always accepted things, then that makes sense that it would seem normal. Mazerinii are very traditional as well, but more in the family sense. I am...was close with my family."
"But the good news is here we are on the Anbruch, with the galaxy at our fingertips, and nothing to hold us back!"
Ash raised her mug to toast.
Adiel took a breath and smiled, raising his glass as well.
"Thank you, Ash, for being cooperative. I had a feeling this whole 'apology' thing might have gone horribly awry."
He then proceeded to knock back the rest of the brandy.
Ash nodded.
"Not a problem. I would be a special kind of terrible if I did not let you apologize," she said before taking another sip from her mug.
"It is good to clear the air. As far as we know Captain Tanja could send both of us on a mission by ourselves. We need to be able to trust one another, because when things get sticky, trust is really all you have."
"Well said," Adiel affirmed. He waltzed over to the counter and retrieved his bottle. He stepped over to the door and looked over his shoulder.
"Good night, goat-woman." he sighed in farewell.
"Good night, bird-man," she replied with a smirk.
