Last Stand

Vala found herself peeking into the officer's quarters through the doorway before she strolled inside. Now that the place was fixed up and furnished, it really did look like a classy place to relax and unwind. They even kept to their word that the place would be open to anyone, which was something of a surprise to Vala. She almost thought they were just dangling that carrot in front of them and her cynism kept her from believing that. Smoothing out her jumpsuit, she approached the bar and leaned in to rest her elbow. "Whatever that's smooth on tap, thanks."

Vala Roke wrote: ↑

Sun Mar 05, 2023 12:37 am

Vala found herself peeking into the officer's quarters through the doorway before she strolled inside. Now that the place was fixed up and furnished, it really did look like a classy place to relax and unwind. They even kept to their word that the place would be open to anyone, which was something of a surprise to Vala. She almost thought they were just dangling that carrot in front of them and her cynism kept her from believing that. Smoothing out her jumpsuit, she approached the bar and leaned in to rest her elbow. "Whatever that's smooth on tap, thanks."

The dashing Zeltron in a pilot's jacket winks. "Sure thing, we got beer...and beer."



With a well practiced motion she fills a glass for Vala before offering it over.
"Don't think I've seen you here before, I'm Maleli."

Vala gave a carefree shrug at the presented offerings on tap and smirked at the Zeltron. "Hey, I'm not picky in the slightest, so long as it's free around here. Actually, I was kind of hoping for beer myself. I appreciate the luxuries around here but I don't want to get caught up in tastes that are bigger than my pay grade."

"Cheers, thanks," she said as she took the glass in hand and raised it for a moment before taking a sip. "That's because I haven't really found time, until recently. I kind of thought the place was more of a proverbial open to anyone rather than actually open to anyone. Nice to meet you, I'm Vala Roke."

"Vala, it's a pleasure."
The Zeltron pours herself her own glass and takes a sip as well. The brew isn't bad, a light malty lager of some kind, maybe local?

"Yeah, lots of Republic operations the officer's quarters is a big no-no. Once flew with this Major who made you take off your shoes every time you went in, absolute disaster. The Hopers seem more relaxed, I can dig that."

Gesturing with her glass, but somehow managing not to slosh anything out. "You don't look like a ground pounder....analyst? Scout? Dunno, don't recognise the uniform."

Vala momentarily raised her brow when Maleli poured herself a glass. Well, she supposed this place wasn't exactly a business exactly and she was just kind enough to play bartender for her when she arrived. She took another sip from her beer, taking a moment to savour it. It was a good baseline but it made her wonder if it would be twice as tasty if it was on a hot day.

"That would have been a pain around here but if they made me take off my boots then I would have really made myself home around here. This place seems like a better nap spot than my bunk and I get the feeling they won't appreciate my snoring," she chuckled as gave a quick glance at her surroundings.

She flicked her gaze back to the Zeltron mid-sip before setting her glass down. "Oh, me? Uhm, no, I'm not exactly military here. I'm part of the volunteer corp, militia, or whatever they call the fine folks who are helping out to dig everyone out of this mess. Before all of this, I was CorSec. Still am, probably, just haven't checked back home for a long while."

"Yeah, they draw the line at snoring here. Shame, some of the couches are real comfy."
Maleli walks around the bar and gestures to a table near the windows with a view out over the ice.

"Wanna grab a seat? I try to never drink alone. Way too quiet."
She perches up on one of the chairs.

"CorSec though? That's pretty cool. Corellia must be awesome. Finest shipwrights and pilots in the galaxy. Bet the crime is just as fast. You ever get into a high speed speeder chase? And how'd you end up here from there anyway, lot of galaxy between Corellia and Obroa-Skai."

Vala offered a momentary glance to the window and gave a shrug. "Sure thing, I can sit anywhere. Although, I would have thought that anyone around here would have gotten tired of the snow and ice already. It hasn't driven me quite as mad because there's only smog and metal where I'm from."

She took another sip of her glass and picked up her drink to join Maleli over at the table. "I wouldn't call Corellia awesome. It's a place like anywhere in the galaxy that just happens to be home. Funny, I would consider that place home but I do miss it now. Sure, we've got great pilots and ships but not everyone there is awesome. We've got a share of terrible pilots too, only the good ones make it past the atmosphere and can jump systems without vaporizing in space."

"And I've been in my share of chases," she said before a quick sip of beer and brushed some hair behind her ear. "But policy is mainly you're not supposed to pursue because that might cause accidents and damaged goods somewhere on a shipyard. I was here to do some off-system, semi-extracurricular investigating."

"I kind of dig the snow, which is probably good all things considered. Nice to have a lot of nothing, for contrast."
She takes another long drink.

"So is that the secret to Corellia? All the bad pilots just disintegrate before they can get anywhere and ruin the rep? Pretty wild, but a pilot who can't hack it has no business in the cockpit."

Her interest is clearly piqued though.
"Your policy sounds a little boring, to be honest. What was your best chase? Did you catch the perp?"
And a raised eyebrow.
"Off-system and semi-extracurricular? Don't tell me you've gone rogue, officer Vala."

"A lot of nothing?" Vala blinked at her, a bit incredulous at that. "I suppose all of it could provide some sort of abstract meditative peace if you're into that sort of thing but it's far too plain for my tastes. It feels like something is missing or hiding. Not that this place is all snow. Just, mostly snow-covered."

"Well," she smirked at that thought. "That's my theory behind it. I think I can pat myself on my back for making this far intact with all my parts still attached. I must be not that bad after all. As for me, it wasn't a rogue mission. Actually, orders...just off the books, that's all."

She gave a glance around the room. It was probably supposed to be a secret at some point but the whole war happening and being stuck on the planet for several months kind of tossed that formality out the window. Considering the meeting with the criminal, it seems the lines of engagement and duty were murky at best while Mandalorians were shooting at them.

"My best chase?" she snorted at the question. "It might sound like I'm punching down but catching the little scavenger kids wasn't exactly easy stuff. You kind of have to know what alleys they'll take, have enough of a slim profile to squeeze through, and maybe borrow someone's mono-cycle along the way."

"You've clearly never been to Zeltros. Imagine the loudest, hottest and horniest party you've ever been to. Then add pheromones, and keep it going for oh....800 years? My homeworld is a vibe. The lot of nothing is a nice change. Funny though, I never thought it could be hiding stuff. That's gotta be the CorSec in you I reckon."

She pretends to squint suspiciously out the window. "Could be little scavenger kids anywhere!"

As for the off the books mission she just nods, apparently content not to pry any further...for now.
"That does sound intense though, whizzing through alleys most people would have to turn sideways just to walk down. Bet they know all the best hiding spots too." She raises an eyebrow. "Were you ever a little scavenger kid?"

"Huh..." she said with slow nods when she was given a quick descriptive tour of Zeltros. "That sounds like a vacation spot that might be beyond my pay grade and salary. And maybe, I don't work intelligence to be in the business of jumping at shadows but you have to see the panels from the hull. Or whatever. When everything starts looking the same, something is bound to catch you unawares."

She found herself looking around the room for a moment. There were no children here. Weren't all the children getting taken away by a local criminal around here?

"It was probably not worth the trouble, at least to most officers. They typically like to run into the factories for a quick escape, where you might fall into a smelting vat or a maze of cargo or just enough bodies milling about at a shipyard. I probably almost ran into a pipe and upset a few dozen people during my chase. I'm sure the safety board might have had something to say about me walking in without the right boots and head protection." She shrugged before letting out a sigh. "But hopefully that'll right them form their trajectory."

Vala nodded as she admitted to the question. "Yeah, I might have an edge in knowing where to go since I was one myself at one point in time."

"So, how'd you come good?" she swirls her glass. "Seems a bit of a jump from that to security. Bet there's a story there. Did the last Vala catch you and set you on the straight and narrow?"

Vala took probably two long gulps when she posed that question, maybe she wanted something to clear her throat or maybe to find some liquid courage. After a moment, she gave a hapless shrug with her eyes downcast as she did it. "I wish it was so easy as me catching some kids in the act would fix them. We can't exactly do all that much to them, which is exactly why most outfits or criminal rings like to use them. We can only slap them on the wrist and move on. I wouldn't say getting caught is what righted me. They never caught me, actually."

She let out a strained sigh as she brushed away some hair from her forehead. "...let's just say I kind of found out early that actions have consequences, even if they weren't consequences that affected me directly. We're just kind of moving parts in the galaxy. You do one thing that leads to another, then suddenly people get hurt. I wanted to do some good that would hopefully lead to more good, is another way of putting it."

"Huh....That's kinda deep."
She drains her glass and sets it down with a thunk.

"Good on you though. You saw something, and you decided to do something. Most people can't say that. And you were a great sneaky kid, never getting caught." She grins.

"So you'll head back after all this finishes?" She gestures at the ship around them and the wider camp. "And keep sending good out into the universe?"

Vala let out a chuckle with a slightly self-deprecating air about it. "Well, it wasn't meant to be that deep. Just something I learned on my own and decided to do something about it. I don't expect people to turn their lives completely around, that's a little on them. Most people don't even get the chance to even put in the effort. I was still pretty young and didn't find myself in too much trouble to turn myself around."

"I'm still pretty good with my hands and on my feet, so that keeps me useful around here at least," she smirked. "And yeah, the plan is to go back after this is all done. I'm trying to not get used to this because going back to routine is going to feel plenty boring on the job. That said, I guess I would be happy to not get shot up by Mandalorians and I could focus more on dodging the shots of criminals trying to shoot me instead."

"Nah, it's definitely deep. Well, I think it is. The deepest stuff is the most simple once you say it. At least I think so."
She pauses.
"Maybe that was deep too? I dunno. Anyway it's nice you're just gonna go back home and keeping doing what you're doing. I mean, I'm going to stay being a pilot, so I guess there's no reason why the war should have to change all of that."

She stretches with an impressive chorus of pops from her back and shoulders.
"Do not miss those cramped cockpits though, not one bit. I got this Nautolan guy in my squadron, no idea how he even fits in, not to mention the Gs play havoc with his tentacles. Still, it would be nice to be out there driving something faster than a truck. I hear these other guys got into a high speed bike chase with a train. Can't believe I missed that."

"I'd say that was deeper than that whole impromptu rap sheet I just spilled out on you," she gave a deep nod at that before taking another sip of her beer to kind of commemorate that or just to take a sip of beer. "Well, where else am I going to go after this? After getting a taste of military and war life, I think I've already had my fill. It's interesting what the Republic does around here but something tells me that this isn't your everyday setup. Anything more is probably far too rigid and stressful for my liking. Have you always been in the military?"

"A train, huh?" Vala raised both of her brows at that and gave a few impressed bobs of her head. "I might have been busy that day or got the memo too late. I don't know if that's something I would jump on. If I had the choice, I think I'd prefer to be something more enclosed or with a chair, like a speeder. That one time I got to drive a tank was pretty neat."

"No way! So you were that tank driver."
She leans forward on her elbows.

"Tell.Me.Everything. I was so jealous when I heard that a tank actually got to fight a Basilisk!"

"That tank driver?" She murmured curiously before her gaze swept around the room, wondering if she got caught or was suddenly in trouble. "If anyone had a gripe with my driving, I can say that dent was already there when I took the helm of it. Also, those three lights were flashing overly after we took the first hit. That's not my fault."

"A Bah-what? Basilisk?" She blinked a few times. "Oh, you mean that moving mess of a machine with the cannons for a face, blasters strapped everywhere and walking limbs? I remember it more as an eyesore than anything. But seriously, I'm not going to lie, it was pretty scary for perhaps a short moment when it approached the tank and started to claw at it like a hungry manka, metal groaning and all sorts of noises from the damage control system. Some people had already decided to bail from the tank too when there was smoke. I don't really blame them."

"I think someone managed to wrangle a missile in its way and Terreck put a few good holes into it with. That's when it loosened in claws enough from the haul so that I could roll back slightly, just enough so that I could point one of the side cannons on its face just enough for the kill shot then bam, blew its face right off before it could do any more damage. Too bad it decided to flop on the tank afterwards with its last move. I really could have done without trying to toss its body away," she shrugged before finishing up her beer with two more gulps.

"Oh yeah! That tank driver." She listens in rapt silence to Vala's story. "Totally badass. Those things are walking nightmares, usually takes a whole company to kill one. But you gave it the old pop, pop."

She mimes a finger gun with two shots.

"Well, it's been fun. You're all sorts of interesting Vala. Think CorSec's lucky to have you. But I'm needed on patrol so I gotta bounce. She pauses a moment before taking a card and sliding it across the table face down.

"Let me know if you ever wanna go for a fly or something. Would love to see you in action."
Maleli stands and straightens out her jacket.