#Miner'sRespite – December 9, 2025

Jason listens, a few nods following Nathan's words, the familiarity of them hitting their mark. "I-... uhh-... I get that." he admits, shifting a bit in his seat. To say his relationship history is checkered would be an understatement. "Think I've got a superpower for finding new ways to fuck things up." he adds, lopsided grin crossing his lips as he takes another sip of his beer. It's easy to joke about now. Things have been

Leah gives a small shrug, idly kicking the toeplating on her boot against the floor. "Couldn't hurt to get to know your coworkers, right?" she offers as words of encouragement. A reminder that they're 'part of the team' now and opting to avoid giving her thoughts on her fellow coworker. "There's certainly enough of them here tonight..." she adds in a mutter, passing a quick glance around the room. Spotting Renala's eyes on her,

Li starts to pick at the fries without introducing herself.

Aeral seems a little puzzled by the presence of the human child. He squints at Li, then looks to Halisi. Then back at Li.

Sarze returns Ilyna's smile. "You too!" she answers for both herself and Aeral, watching Ilyna curiously. "I have seen you around the hospital before, but I hadn't realized that the two of you were involved."

Halisi 's earlier stunned state is nowhere to be seen now, and she casts a glance to her side at Ilyna, a small smile crossing her lips before she looks to Dr. T'Ala. "It is a... fairly recent development," she offers.

Holly covers her grin with a sip from her drink.

Emma 's gaze eventually returns to the turian next to her, studying him with an assessing gaze as she sets her beer down. "Are you local?"

Celyna 's eyes gain a glint of curiosity. Her attention is briefly diverted when she reflexively follows Renala in glancing across the pub, but then her focus returns to the older asari. "Rough times, huh? What kind? Poke the wrong big fish?"

Crux nods to themself. "Yeah, makes sense..." they agree, before giving RC a nudge. "Hey, find us a table. I'm gonna scope out my new cent," they instruct before taking off with a spring in their step, weaving around any patrons in their path.

RC 's attention is drawn back by the nudge, seeming fondly amused as Crux rushes off. He watches them for a moment before his eyes all turn to Leah. "We really do appreciate everything you've done for us," he says seriously. "This is everything we hoped for when we left home, and for it to have come from such a..." His gaze falls away and he swallows, glancing briefly in Tara's direction again.

Nathan can't help but relate to the latter half. Every step he has taken up to this point has been some variety of fuck up. But, he will quietly admit, that he is happy where he has ended up. Despite everything, he has found a nice corner of the galaxy that he thinks he could genuinely call home. Well, once he is sure there are no more surprise kidnappings, slaver death gangs,

Zaylus pushes his empty mug forward, relinquishing his fidgeting toy. "No." He says with a shake of the head, inhaling wearily, "Nope, from the whole other end of the system. What about you?" His far away demeaner shifts, turning to give an assessing look of his own as if trying to deduce the answer from her appearance.

Emma shakes her head, immediately reaching for her beer again, turning it around in her hands and taking a sip to buy time to formulate her answer. "No... I was born on Earth. I grew up in the colonies, though."

Zaylus had little hope of guessing correctly, but seems curious, almost impressed at the mention of Earth. The second part of her answer gives him pause, so he focuses on what he finds more interesting. "To be from your homeworld sounds, well, I don't why you'd leave it." He muses almost wistfully, "though it doesn't sound like that was your choice." He adds quickly, leaving the

Jason's gaze dips towards the table, unsure how the conversation has suddenly shifted away from Nathan and onto him. He shifts in his seat to get a bit more comfortable. With his back to the wall and one leg up on the bench, he gives a quick glance around the bar, scanning over the familiar faces that populate the bar. Friends. Coworkers new and old. "Well don't jinx it, the night's still young, right?" he jokes, doing his best

Renala chuckles. "Maybe, but not with Redrock," she says, though one might have to stretch the definition of fish. Her smile fades as she thinks back on Ogofau, however. "I don't think I should talk about most of them," she says, "but there was that time we got stranded on Rakhana. We were there to grab some old prothean tech, but our client tried to stiff us and run."

Ilyna raises a brow at the salarian's silent question about Li, but it's soon replaced by a smile in response to Halisi's. "Mhm," she hums in agreement. "And this is my daughter Li," she says, patting her shoulder; she's cautious about how much in detail she could introduce her without surfacing some terrible memories for them both. She begins taking off her winter jacket as she's already started to warm up.

Leah's smile remains. "Good luck!" she bids Crux as they set off. As RC begins to address her, the smile gains a bit of weight. "Hey..." she interrupts, brow furrowing as she offers a shake of her head. "You made this happen, okay?" she says, not wanting to take credit for the work they've put in. It hasn't been hard to pick up on the fact that the road that led them here to Aite has been rocky. She's been to Omega. She's seen

Nathan snorts, deciding to pour himself a fresh glass from the pitcher. "Hah, I ain't jinxing nothing. With how many Redrock are in here I'd argue this is probably one of the safest buildings on the planet right now." He offers a refill over to Jason, though something gives him pause. He looks over the bar, eyes scanning over the individuals here before he sucks in a sharp breath

Jason snickers, taking another quick swig from his drink before extending the glass out to accept that refill. "So. Sofia is leaving. But you're staying. And you've been signed on for-... what? Four months now? So now that you've got a few plates spinning here-..." he shoots a brief glance back towards the security guard, Nathan's budding relationship being one of those plates. "...Can I take that to mean you've decided you're in

Nathan refills the glass, gaze softening as he sets the pitcher down. "I think so," he says with a nod, the metaphorical plates spinning like a top around his head. And, oddly enough, balancing pretty well. "I feel like I've had my fill of over the top missions, adventures and frankly crazy shit. A quiet security posting out here will do me just fine." He looks down at his hands

RC snickers a little sheepishly and nods. "Wasn't planning on it," he assures, tone light, but with an underlying sincerity, before allowing his gaze to wander around the pub. "I guess I should find that table..." he says.

Emma 's lips thin as she suck them in slightly, tongue running along the inside of them. "Mm," she confirms curtly, a longer sip of her beer following as thoughts of home fill her mind.

Celyna looks a little puzzled by Renala's first reply, but the words that follow quickly pique her curiosity. "No shit..." she comments, spinning her stool to face Renala and listening closer. "What'd you do?" she asks, taking a sip of her drink.

Li looks up when she hears her name, clearly having paid no attention to the conversation.

Aeral seems a little surprised, but doesn't say anything else, instead just offering the young human a nod.

Sarze offers Li a smile and a hand to shake. "Hello, Li. I'm Sarze."

Li looks briefly startled, before giving Sarze's hand a serious shake.

Halisi smiles to herself, reaching out for her glass to take a sip, only to realize it's empty. She frowns and then gets to her feet, clapping her hands together. "Seems a refill is in order. Do you want anything?" The question is primarily aimed at Ilyna and Li, but Holly still gets an order for another beer in.

Jason finds his smile growing a bit more sincere as Nathan speaks. They're not far from his own thoughts. Wanting to build something. It's inevitable given everything going on. Terrifying, too. There's more on the line than just his own ass now if everything goes to shit. "I'll drink to that." he says softly, bringing his glass back and taking a swig. "Can't guarantee how 'quiet' things will be, though." he adds with a chuckle.

Leah mirrors RC, glancing out at the lively room. Spotting an open table, she gives a nod towards it. "Full house tonight, so be quick!" she jokes, passing the batarian one final smile before heading off towards the front counter.

Nathan breathes a laugh, mirroring the toast and taking a hearty swig of his drink. The warmth from the alcohol was starting to spread through his body; the perfect cure to a cold, winter's day. He gave himself a topup of his drink, nodding his head towards Leah. "I'm dating one of the chattiest ladies I know. Maybe quiet wasn't the right word," he quips, warm smile following. He

Jason gives another hearty chuckle, his own gaze traveling to Leah in turn. "She's definitely... uhh-... energetic?" he offers, sounding as if he's attempting to tease out the word that sounds the least insulting. 'She makes the inside of my head hurt' thankfully didn't make the final cut.

Nathan grins. Yeah, he knew what he was thinking. But, like any sensible individual, he also decides to not voice it aloud. He wasn't quite prepared to be launched out the doors at mach regret. "That she is," he says in agreement. "Oh, sharp topic change, but there was plans to expand the hangar-bay wasn't there? Still on the agenda or...?"

Renala picks up her drink. "I don't know who they ran into, but one of our excursion teams found them dead on the road the next day," she says before sipping her drink, trying to recall more details about it but failing. "Our first order of business was to get a signal out, though, which was easier said than done on that sand-blasted rock."

Ilyna smiles warmly to Li as she watches her shake hands with the Sarze, before she leans forward to hang the jacket over the backrest behind her. "A small glass of wine," she says, and looks out across the room towards the bar to see who's taking orders, "and say hi to Enila for me."

Jason snickers at the tactical topic change, but the question that follows causes him to furrow his brow. "Not sure about the hangar itself, we'll figure all that out when we handle the rest of the construction. But I'm guessing what you're really getting at is, specifically, the Mantis, right?" he asks bluntly, smirk remaining. Clearly he and Vasquez have discussed it after Nathan's sales pitch.

Leah rounds the counter, passing a few smiles to the familiar faces sitting at the bar before leaning against the counter beside Enila. "Need a hand with anything?" she asks idly.

Nathan has been rumbled. Not that he was being particuarly subtle about his intentions, but he was at least hoping there would be a smidgen more preamble. However, the shit eating grin is very prominent on his face as he shrugs non-chalantly. "Could be, could be. Just saying, it could certainly lead to more lucrative work! And besides...". Slurp. Glass clunk. "Mantis' are fucking

RC offers a quick goodbye gesture before beelining towards the the nearby empty table - the last of them by the looks of it.

Celyna lets out a hint of a dark chuckle, perhaps assuming that 'found them dead' isn't quite the truth. There's only one proper way to deal with backstabbing clients, after all. She glances down the counter, and then waves her hand, a faint biotic shimmer surrounding it as she tugs over a nearby bowl of nuts, popping a handful into her mouth once they're in reach. "I've heard of crews getting stranded out there, no way off, and

Crux butts in suddenly with a "Heya." aimed Renala's way, paying little mind to the ongoing conversation with Celyna. "I'm Crux, your eager new apprentice-slash-future tech team expert. Not sure if the bosses let you know already," they introduce, sticking out a hand with a smile.

Celyna 's lips scrunch into a displeased grimace, yellow eyes on the back of the new arrival.

Halisi nods, flashing a small smile before heading off in the direction of the bar.

Sarze casts Ilyna a curious look, but none of the questions on her mind are appropriate with Li present, so her attention returns to the kid. "How old are you, Li?"

Li replies with a quiet "Seven...", reiterating the 'best estimate' that Halisi has given Ilyna.

Sarze nods, making a mental note of the answer - it can be hard to estimate ages across species, so more examples are always helpful.

Holly glances Ilyna's way with a small smile. "Dr. Halisi hadn't told me that you two are... public, now," she says quietly.

Jason takes another swig of his drink, setting the glass down on the table beside him, cybernetic hand loosely wrapped around it. Nathan's final addition draws a quick snort out of him. "You won't get an argument out of me." he agrees. He shifts in his seat, drawing in a breath. "Me and Linda went over the estimate and paperwork you sent over." Translation: Vasquez went over the paperwork. "Honestly? It looks like it'll take a

Enila looks over at Leah after handing a bowl of some salted snacks over to the asari that's with Nalota and Wenera. "I've got it under control for now," she says. "I got a message from Va'ynna that she's ready to take orders in a minute, so I'd appreciate some help taking those."

Renala tilts her head, a bit of realization hitting her at Celyna's mention of other crews. "Now that you mention it, we did bring home a few...-" The interruption from the new arrival catches her off-guard and she looks up at them with a bit of annoyance. Her expression softens a bit at the introduction, an even a polite smile shows up on the usually pessimistic asari. "So that's why the name rings familiar," she

Crux gives Renala's hand a vigorous shake. "Oh yeah, I am ready to assist. Whatever you need help with, I've got it covered. Hardware, software. Comms, fabs, mechs, VIs, cracking, hacking, omni-gel slapping," they rattle off with a grin, "I do a bit of everything."

Celyna continues to stare daggers at Crux' back, but doesn't interject just yet, instead taking a sip of her drink.

Leah raises an eyebrow, an amused look crossing her face. That wasn't exactly what she had in mind when she asked the question. The occasional drink? Sure. Delivering an order to a table while she's walking the floor anyway? Why not. It helps and passes the time. Still, she did ask. "Sure. But if we make this a habit I'm gonna start expecting a second paycheck." she jokes, shooting the asari a wink.

Ilyna returns the smile, and is about to cast a glance after her when Holly speaks, so she looks towards her instead. She didn't know Holly knew about it, but she doesn't blame Halisi for it. "We weren't supposed to be yet," she says, as quietly, but she picks her explanation carefully, "but... we weren't as private as we thought we were." An awkward chuckle follows, as she recalls how Jason suspected it even before

Zaylus unconsciously echoes the affirming sound Emma makes, perhaps imagining for himself the circumstances that takes a child from their homeworld. Thinking he might have Enila's eye he pushes the mug further with a dismissive gesture roughly meaning "no more", then raises the same hand to wave briefly as Leah visits the bar to speak to her. His mouth pulls the equivalent of a small

Holly 's expression shifts, frowning a little at Ilyna's elaboration. "Oh..." she says a little awkwardly, but as the asari continues her concern fades, a small smile taking root. "Well, it... it's nice to see, if you don't mind me saying. Dr. Halisi spends so much of her time working, I hardly would have thought she had the time for romance."

Tara stuffs her omni-tool into her pocket before slipping out of her booth to head to the bathroom, disappearing into the back to go for the employee one.

Enila grins. "Of course," she says, a slight laugh in her voice. "I'll see what I can do." She notices the turian's indication, and takes the mug to a sink on her way to serve someone else at the end of the bar.

Renala smiles at their enthusiasm about the craft. While she'd be suspicious about any assistant, the fact that they come across so inexperienced does make her let down her guard. "Good," she says as she lets go of their hand. "That's the kind of versatility I like to see. When do you start?"

Leah chuckles in turn. She returns Zaylus' smile with one of her own, that usual spark behind her green eyes, leaning a bit heavier against the counter since she has nothing better to do at the moment. "Hey, you!" she says, "Haven't seen you out-and-about since the New Years party. I assume you've made a full recovery...?" she asks tentatively, making a show of looking over his arm which lacks a sling, unlike the last time they

Ilyna hums in agreement. "I know she does important work," she says, before quickly adding, "You all do." She glances at Li with a small smile. "Halisi has been a great help to me and Li since we came back here, because I had so much to learn," she says, "and she even invited us to stay with her when our home needed repairs." She's treading near some painful memories, but she manages to push back the heavier