Chapter Text
Reyes was going to kill the Human Pathfinder.
The longer he stood there, leaning on the sun-heated wall of an armour shop as the torrent of people rushed past him, the more appealing the idea became. Even though his face betrayed nothing of his thoughts, the market-goers seemed to sense his growing irritation and were now giving him quite a wide berth.
That was Kadara for you. You either learned to recognize a threat, and do it quickly, or you became a gruesome visual aid that others stumbled upon in a dark alley.
The Ryder girl, by all appearances, would fall into the latter category.
Reyes’ lips pressed into a thin line as he recalled the way their meeting at Kralla’s Song had gone.
He arrived early.
That fact had nothing to do with punctuality, however, since his intention had been to take a discreet look at Humanity’s backup Pathfinder before the introductions were made. He’d expected to cross paths with her father at some point, or his second-in-command, to whom the mantle should have been passed, and he’d made sure that he knew all the relevant information about those two.
Instead, he’d have to deal with Alec Ryder’s daughter, who he knew next to nothing about. Her personal record was disappointingly concise, and his people were still working on an inconspicuous way to procure her performance evaluation conducted by the Tempest’s physician. That left him with an insufficient amount of data to draw conclusions about the kind of person Amelia Ryder was.
Reyes Vidal, however, was the kind of person who did not go into a situation unprepared. Thus, he’d decided he would see for himself which of his assumptions were true before he approached her.
The girl appeared right on time.
Reyes considered her slender, somewhat delicate figure clad in pristine steel-grey Initiative uniform, wondering if that particular choice of attire indicated supreme self-confidence or lack of foresight.
His keen eyes followed her as she headed to the counter and leaned on it with one elbow, turning to watch yet another patron receive a lesson in manners from the bar’s owner.
The little show made him smile wryly. He rather liked Umi and her hands-on approach. In addition, she had a sharp hearing and even sharper memory – a valuable bonus that he knew how to put to good use.
Judging by the Pathfinder’s raised brows, the bartender’s particular brand of problem-solving made an impression on her. It was hard to tell if the impression was positive or negative, though, as her features became carefully neutral quite fast. Ryder appraised the asari for a moment, and then returned to scanning the room.
Reyes had to admit that the conclusions of his quick scrutiny were conflicting. Her cool expression, improbably neat short haircut and colour preference that declared ' I mean business' were at odds with her nonchalant posture and a lively kind of curiosity in the way she examined everything around her. Intrigued, he decided it was time for a closer look.
He pushed off the wall, leaving his vantage point at the far end of the bar, and sauntered toward her. The greeting rolled off his lips with practiced ease.
“You look like you’re waiting for someone,” he said, gesturing Umi for drinks.
The Pathfinder turned and gave him a quick once-over, pausing to accept the proffered beverage before her eyes settled on his yet again.
“And you look distinctly non-angaran, Shena,” she pointed out matter-of-factly, clinking her tumbler against Reyes’.
Well, that saved him half the introduction.
He grinned. “You don’t say.”
They downed the whiskey and she took a step forward, extending a hand. “I don’t know about you, but I hate codenames. I’m Amelia Ryder.”
Huh.
Reyes had always been good at taking the lead in a conversation. It was comfortable, familiar. He knew exactly what to say and how to steer the talk just where he needed it to go. That was how he preferred it.
The Pathfinder’s self-confidence was adorable, really, but this exchange would not be different.
“You can call me Reyes,” he answered, taking her hand in his and making a step forward of his own, stopping just shy of too close. “And I despise codenames just as much,” he added smoothly, lowering his voice to a purr.
She fell silent, her cheeks turning faintly pink.
That’s better.
Pleased with her reaction, Reyes was about to slip into his monologue, but, apparently, Ryder had other ideas.
“I must confess, I am envious,” she admitted, looking up at him with a wry grin. “You’ve managed to charm Evfra into working with you. I'm still convinced he'd rather drown himself in the nearest fountain than have a conversation with me. And I thought I was impossible not to like!”
If Reyes weren’t used to keeping his expressions in check at all times, one of his eyebrows would probably arch at that change in demeanour.
The Pathfinder that entered the bar gave off the vibe of a composed, no-nonsense kind of person. The smirking girl standing in front of him was too glib for her own good. The two personalities clashed so badly that the only possible explanation was that one of them had to be completely fabricated. The question was, which one?
While he was trying to decide whether he was amused or annoyed by her behaviour, Ryder spoke up again.
“So, Vehn Terev. Do you know where I can find him?”
“As a matter of fact, I do,” Reyes nodded, pausing to make sure she wasn’t about to interrupt him, and this time, miraculously, the Pathfinder kept silent. Satisfied, he stepped away from the counter and guided her to the balustrade.
The view that opened from there was gorgeous. In this respect, Kralla’s beat Tartarus fair and square. The murky seclusion of the slums’ establishment was excellently suited for his line of work, but he needed to come up for air sometimes, both literally and figuratively. That’s why he often chose Kralla’s as a meeting place – when the content of the conversation to be had wasn’t overly sensitive, of course.
Ryder seemed to share his opinion – she looked rather enthralled by Kadara’s harsh beauty. As he spoke, her eyes were slowly wandering from one mountain to another, stopping at a distant glimmer of a pond or an occasional burst of scarlet in places where the local coral-like plants prevailed. Her expression was so captivated, in fact, that one might suspect the Pathfinder was only half-listening to his rundown on the situation. That could not be the case, but he still felt vaguely irritated at the thought.
“Actually, that Sloane Kelly character doesn’t sound so bad,” she commented, turning to face him. “I’m sure if I ask nicely she won’t mind releasing Vehn into my custody.”
A corner of his mouth quirked up. “Your positive thinking is commendable, but I doubt it will be that easy.”
Judging by her carefree shrug, Ryder didn’t share his scepticism. That kind of attitude would get her into a lot of trouble. Especially on a planet like Kadara.
Luckily for the Pathfinder, Reyes was willing to help. It was part of his plan, after all.
“But,” he continued, leaning closer to her, “there might be another way to get to Vehn. You work Sloane…”
“And while I’m at it, you can arrange for plan B. Perfect!” she nodded approvingly.
And then she pushed away from the railing and headed for the exit.
He blinked and stared after her.
Halfway to the stairs, the Pathfinder spun around.
“Meet me at the market in twenty minutes?” she offered, and then added, the same smug grin from before playing at her lips, “and thanks for the drink!”
And then she was gone.
Returning to the present, Reyes checked the time on his omni-tool.
Forty-three minutes. He’d been standing here, waiting for her, for forty-three minutes.
For the girl’s sake, he hoped Sloane had murdered her.
Finally, the doors of the Outcast HQ slid open, and out she strode.
Alive, well, and not showing even a hint of remorse.
He exhaled through his nose and called out her name, arranging his face into its customary amiable expression. The marketplace was bustling with activity, so it took some time for her to pick her way through the crowd.
“Sorry I’m late,” the redhead chirped, completely unperturbed, as she stopped in front of him.
He folded his arms, wondering briefly whether she’d be that flippant if she knew exactly who she was talking to.
“Have a nice chat?” he asked levelly.
What the hell had she been doing there for so long, anyway? He seriously doubted Sloane’s ability to tolerate someone this annoying for an extended period of time. And, in Ryder's case, an extended period of time meant anything longer than ten seconds.
“Actually, yes,” she nodded, mirroring his stance. “Her Majesty was quite civil and even let me speak with Vehn.”
For a split second, Reyes’ smile became slightly strained, but he quickly composed himself. The girl was really getting on his nerves now. “So… no need for plan B?”
Ryder’s eyes crinkled with mischief. “I was so nice and convincing but she still didn’t let me take him. So, now I just have to do it!”
She motioned for him to follow her down the narrow alley and behind the corner of the armour shop. After a quick check of their surroundings, she turned back to him.
“While I was enjoying my little tour of the royal palace, I managed to do some discreet scanning. Turns out there are very conveniently placed maintenance shafts around here. I’m fairly certain that one,” she pointed a thumb behind her shoulder, “leads to the cells.”
Very well, she was at least somewhat competent, after all. The method she employed to get the intel wasn’t exactly ideal, though. She could have been caught in the act quite easily.
Someone might say Ryder had been lucky, but Reyes didn’t believe in luck. He believed in facts, and the facts said the cause of her success was, most likely, the Outcasts’ guards’ less than impressive IQ.
Still, getting the information was only half of the job. It was what you did with it that counted.
“So what’s your plan?” he inquired conversationally.
“Well, I am going to hack my way through,” she shrugged, “and then test out some of the exciting omni-tool mods I’ve recently installed on the cell door.”
Nice idea. A pity it won’t work.
For quite some time trying to override the port’s locks had been one of the popular hobbies on Kadara - apart from stabbing people and looting the resulting corpses. That was the reason the security protocols were changed. Now at a hint of interference, the system went into lockdown and could only be unblocked by the correct code. Which she could have had by now if it weren’t for her being so sassy.
Oh, this was going to be good.
“So, is there any way I can be of assistance?” he asked pleasantly, his previous frustration with her all but forgotten.
“If you could keep a lookout while I’m dealing with the console, that would be really nice!”
She exuded such confidence and enthusiasm that he almost felt bad for what was about to happen. Almost.
“Why, of course!” he purred. Sauntering to the railing, Reyes turned around and gave her an encouraging smile. The Pathfinder flashed him another sly grin, and strode to the shaft’s entrance, preparing her omni-tool on the way. Several moments passed in silence.
Three...two….one…
“Umm, Reyes?” Ryder’s voice was deliciously uncertain.
He made his reply sound casual, and a bit concerned, because he wasn’t enjoying this. Not in the slightest.
“Yes, Pathfinder. Is something wrong?”
“I’m not sure, but it seems like the system went into lockdown.”
He walked up to her and dutifully examined the console from over her shoulder. “Hmm, looks like you are right. You won't be able to open it now. Unless you have a code.”
Ryder cast a glance at him, her brows drawn together in a frown.
“I don’t. Obviously,” she waved at the red lock symbol helplessly. “So… What about that plan B of yours?”
It took a considerable amount of his self-control not to let his amusement show.
“Well, it's funny that you ask…” he answered, leaning in from behind her to input the required combination. The lock chimed softly and switched to cheerful green. Ryder stilled momentarily, then slowly turned around. When she lifted her eyes to peer at him, they were dangerously narrowed. Some people would definitely find the glare she was giving him frightening.
Reyes found it extremely satisfying to behold.
“You knew the code,” she spoke haltingly, as if she had to hand-pick every single word, “and didn’t tell me?”
He shrugged, a picture of innocence. “I would have, had you asked.”
Ryder’s lips parted, but not a sound was able to escape. For a moment the girl just stared at him, and he noticed that there were tiny blue sparks dancing in her irises.
It looked like anger made the Pathfinder's control over her biotics slip.
Interesting.
Ryder closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she met his gaze again, they were back to plain hazel.
“All right, I’m asking now. What did you have in mind?”
He answered her with one of those playful grins she herself seemed so fond of using, and then explained the few remaining details of his much finer plan. This time she listened with rapt attention, her focus completely on him and his words.
When he finished speaking, she looked him over once again and shook her head.
“We are not going to be friends, you and I,” she deadpanned.
Then she turned on her heels and escaped into the gloom of the shaft.
Reyes snorted at her proclamation.
Just about an hour ago, he would have agreed with her on that account. Now, however, having to deal with the cocky Pathfinder didn’t seem like such a nuisance. The girl was insufferable, that part was still true and very obvious, but apart from that, she remained a puzzle to him. And Reyes liked solving puzzles.
There was another thing he knew for sure, he thought, as he headed back to Tartarus, a slow, devious smile spreading across his face.
Teasing her would definitely be fun.