Borrowing things, with no intention of returning

[Akhsar King]

King walked up to the bar and looked around, checking the area. He was pretty confident he wasn't being followed, but there was always that chance in his line work. He was dressed in light khaki pants, combat boots, and a Hawaiian print shirt. Satisfied that no one was looking either to closely, nor avoiding looking at him, he headed inside. He'd been contracted to acquire a rather interesting item. A very old laser pistol. Not quite as old or valuable as the fabled Lassiter, but still would be worth a fair pile of coin. The item in question was resting inside a blast resistant polymer case inside the small backpack he carried.

As he entered he scanned the room, looking for his contact. The job hadn't been to difficult, but still, he was eager to get paid and be on his way. He already had another potential client lined up a few planets away.

[Jolene Blaylocke]

Jo sat at a booth towards the back of the bar. She'd gotten the usual run down upon entering and taking a seat and had to show ID, yet again, to prove she wasn't just some kid. The particular spot she chose faced the door, which she didn't watch religiously so as not to draw attention, but she'd given the man at the bar the general description of someone she was supposed to be meeting and asked that he be sent to her table if he approached the bar. If he didn't, she had a couple of other ways to get his attention. Her drink sat in front of her, hardly touched when in walked the man she was waiting for.

The bright choice of shirt made him a little hard to miss, and drew a smile. She wasn't about to waive him down, wanting to watch him for a minute. There wasn't any rush for her, though she hadn't quite gotten a good read on him yet. Her eyes went to the bar tender who looked straight at her. All she did was give a faint nod of the head and look to her cortex link, using her peripheral vision to keep an eye on a one Akhsar King. He said he'd gotten a hold of the item she was after, which was a good mark in her book. Now to see if he was one of those who tried to bend the contract upon meeting her face to face.

[Akhsar King]

King's gaze swept around the bar in one smooth pass, noting the windows, exits, doorways, and occupants. The place wasn't very crowded, and he spotted a woman who fit the description he'd been given. Plus the bartender was looking directly at her, and she gave the man the slightest of nods. Either she was ordering another drink, or she was his contact. King approached her table and spoke, his tone polite, with a hint of an Eavesdown accent. "S'cuse me miss, you wouldn't happen to go by the name Pix would you?"

[Jolene Blaylocke]

"S'cuse me miss, you wouldn't happen to go by the name Pix would you?"

Without looking up immediately, Jo attended one last thing on her cortex, securing the video of the bar from prying eyes in case there were any or would be any. Shutting off the screen, she laid the cortex down and then looked up. Her fingers laced together and then rested against the table. Dark brown eyes studied him for a second before she gestured to the bench seat across from her, a small impish smile starting at the corners of her mouth. Idly she wondered what he made of her young appearance, but there was business at hand.

"One name among many," she finally spoke, answering his question. Her head tilted slightly as she waited for him to take a seat, pulling her feet up and adjusting to sit cross legged on the bench seat. "Any trouble with the work?"

[Akhsar King]

The woman gestured to the bench seat across from her. She took a moment to study him, and he took that moment to study her as well. She was young, no doubt about that. Early twenties, maybe mid twenties if she had good genes. Brown hair, brown eyes. Quite attractive. A small impish smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

"One name among many," she finally spoke, answering his question. Her head tilted slightly as she waited for him to take a seat...

With a casual glance around, King slid onto the bench. His back was to the door which made him uncomfortable, but the meeting shouldn't take long, and none of the discomfort made it to his face.

...she pulled her feet up and adjusted to sitting cross legged on the bench seat. "Any trouble with the work?"

He shook his head. "Nope, was pretty simple. Just took a bit of time. Finding it was harder than actually getting it." He blinked, and his head tilted a little to one side. "Nothing that would prompt me to attempt to renegotiation the agreed upon price, if that's what you're worried about." He said, the ghost of a sly grin playing across his face. More than a few times clients, especially young nobles, had become very worried about the prospect of him trying to squeeze them for more money. He'd only actually done it a could times, but those were times when his clients had violated the good faith part of the initial contract, so they had no bargaining power anymore anyways.

[Jolene Blaylocke]

"Nope, was pretty simple. Just took a bit of time. Finding it was harder than actually getting it. Nothing that would prompt me to attempt to renegotiation the agreed upon price, if that's what you're worried about."

The impish smile grew a little more delighted at his words. Jo turned on the screen of her cortex again, without dropping her eyes and slid the device screen up between them. On it, was footage of the doors from an angle that was clearly inside, but did not include their table. "In case you're worried about the doors. Most I've worked with are." Her eye brows lifted briefly as one hand reached for the bag that was laid on her side of the table.

Opening it up, she pulled a small case in which was his payment. "And no, the security cameras aren't currently recording anything anyone will be able to use later. I've taken care of that." Her voice was lowered enough so that just the two of them could hear her. There was a tiny thrill building inside of her, not just at the prospect of finally getting her hands on the pistol she'd sent him after, but taking care that they weren't being watched. "Also glad to hear you had no trouble. I did hear you were good..." Her words, while honest, carried just a hint of cheek to them.

[Akhsar King]

The woman slid her cortex pad over towards him. On the display was an interior camera with a clear and unobstructed view of the door. His smile turned rueful, and he inclined his head in silent appreciation for her consideration. Clearly this was not her first rodeo. She then reached into the bag on her side of the table and pulled out a small case. Payment, he presumed.

"And no, the security cameras aren't currently recording anything anyone will be able to use later. I've taken care of that."

She spoke low, as to not be overheard by the other patrons. Again, clearly not her first time. He made a noise of approval and appreciation. A tech specialist then, or she knew someone who was.

"Also glad to hear you had no trouble. I did hear you were good..." Her words, while honest, carried just a hint of cheek to them.

His smile turned to a slightly self deprecating grin. "Ah, well, I do my best. Not every job is as easy as this one was unfortunately." He paused, his eyes moving to the payment case, and then back to her. "Well, would you like to see it?" He said, indicating the backpack.

[Jolene Blaylocke]

Jo noted the smile at the video she was providing and was unable to keep herself from giving him a wink. It wasn't merely just for his protection, but hers as well. There were times she'd had to sit with her back to the door and it wasn't ideal or comfortable. If it helped the deal and his comfort level, however, she had a feeling there could be potential future work.

"Ah, well, I do my best. Not every job is as easy as this one was unfortunately." He paused, his eyes moving to the payment case, and then back to her. "Well, would you like to see it?" He said, indicating the backpack.

Now her eyes lit up more than before. "I think that's a bit of a silly question." Barely was she able to hold back a laugh, not so much at her own words but at the prospect of seeing the pistol. Even as she sat forward, she kept one hand on the payment, out of habit more than fear. Her eyes got a little wider in her excitement and she unconsciously bit at her lower lip. Thankfully, she'd taken the time to make mention to the bar keep that once her company had joined her that they were not to be disturbed by any staff unless the staff was called for. For now, she could keep her attention on King and the prize he'd 'retrieved' for her.

[Akhsar King]

"I think that's a bit of a silly question."

Her face lit up at the prospect of finally seeing the item, and she sat forward eagerly, though he noticed she still kept one hand on the payment case. Smart girl. Not that she had anything to worry about from him. He was a professional. But there were plenty of people out there who would consider just keeping the item and grabbing the money on their way out the door.

King slowly and calming unzipped the pack and lifted the little polymer case out, setting it on the table. He opened the latches, lifted the lid, and spun it around, pushing the case towards Pix. The pistol was showing the years a little bit, but was in remarkably good shape. It was less boxy and a bit more sleek in its design than the Lassiter. "Supposedly the thing still fires too. Though I have not verified that. And if you intend to verify it yourself I'd suggest having a medic on hand just in case." He said, only half kidding. He deemed the source of his information as reliable, but still, some of those ancient weapons could be a little... volatile.

[Jolene Blaylocke]

Leaning forward as the case was laid on the table and then opened, Jo let her feet slip off of the bench. It looked far better in person than she'd imagined it would. Gingerly, she reached out and ran one finger along the pistol, taking in his warning about firing it. She wouldn't be doing any firing of this beauty, but she appreciated his information none the less. The hand on his payment gripped at the case and then slid it across to him. "Almost too pretty to be a weapon," she murmured, more to herself than to him.

Her eyes finally came up and the smile on her lips was probably more than enough to tell him she was pleased with the job. She released her grip on the payment, feeling a touch more confident that he was as honest as she had been told. He hadn't tried to change the deal and had delivered in good time. Reaching up, she closed the case then her head tilted ever so slightly. "I might look you up again in the future, if you're interested." It never did hurt to test the waters for future jobs.

[Akhsar King]

King couldn't help but be pleased at the woman's reaction. He didn't get much joy from acquisition jobs. They usually were more or less just a paycheck. Reclamation jobs were certainly more rewarding... mentally? Spiritually? Something like that. But the genuine pleasure on Pix's face was pretty pleasant.

"Almost too pretty to be a weapon,"

He made a noise of agreement, though truth be told he'd never really preferred laser weaponry. To flashy. To easy to give away ones position when using one. Good old bullets were far better in his mind. They'd been the workhorse of war for over a thousand years. Why try and fix what aint broke?

Pix finally slid the payment case over towards him and, after another moment of admiring the weapon, she released it. After an appropriate moment or two he reached over and opened the case, doing a quick visual inspection of the money. He would do a full count later, to do so now would be unprofessional.

"I might look you up again in the future, if you're interested."

King nodded and smiled. "Would be happy to work with you again. Easy jobs with good pay are hard to turn down." He said with a chuckle.