New Elysium: Weapons of War (Book 2)

Riot 10

 "Mayday! Mayday!
The ship is slowly sinking
They think I'm crazy but they don't know the feeling
They're all around me,
Circling like vultures
They wanna break me and wash away my colors" - "My Demons" -Starset

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Red's jaw snapped shut and he shook his head. Both he and Null stared at the man behind the counter, Null's intense glare was enough to melt anyone into a steaming puddle. He squirmed under their intense scrutiny but closed his mouth. He seemed sorry to have asked his question.

Lars?

Lars didn't respond back.

The only one who seemed to be moving at all was Becky the bartender. She sat down on a chair in the back, eyes wide, a slight smile on her face as she watched the scene play out in front of her. Red didn't know her but he felt an intense dislike for the bartender already. He'd run a crew and had little time for gossip and anyone who entertained it.

"Amy," he snapped at her hoping to get her attention.

They'd just gotten here to help Nova, he didn't need them getting into a bar fight as well. She didn't even turn to him, her attention focused on the huge man behind the counter. He shuffled in place uncomfortably.

Red studied the man, the word that jumped out at him the most was soft. Not someone who was a soldier, but a man who definitely wore his emotions openly on his sleeves. Red didn't dislike people like that, but he didn't understand them either.

He put a hand on Null's arm, he was certain it was Null who was pinning down Cai and not Lars. But Lars's silence was disconcerting. Null, the mission, focus.

"Who the fuck are you?" Amy repeated, ignoring Red's hand.

She left the rest of the words unspoken, but from the way she continued to shoot daggers at the man with her eyes it was clear that she had meant to ask, "Who are you to him?".

"They call me Cai," the tall man said slowly, spreading his hands out in a defensive gesture. "Nova and I, we, uh... we just... met."

Red had a feeling there was more to it than that and he could tell by the way that Amy's jaw was working that she felt the same, but neither asked.

"He left me here two weeks ago after rescuing me from Atlas," Cai continued on his own, "I just wanted to know if he was all right..."

His voice grew more and more silent as he spoke, and for a moment it seemed like he wanted to say something more, but instead he closed his mouth.

"Atlas?" she said, the expression on her face suddenly changing from a furious scowl to a frown. "Wha-"

"What's the matter, Larsson?"

Both Red and Null whirled around as a slurred voice resounded from behind them. The speaker was an elderly man who was now walking toward them with a staggered gait, swaying from side to side as he moved.

"The supposed Queen of Pirates ditching her favorite little cabin boy in favor of the infamous 'Captain'? He not taking orders well enough for your liking?" the drunken patron sneered at her, eyeing Red up and down as he spoke.

"I did not - We're not together, for fuck's sake!" she growled.

Her hand shot up to slap at Red's, still resting on her arm, but he pulled it back before she could hit him.

"Hey!" somebody called out from the crowd. "Did you seriously just hit the Captain?"

"Mind your own business," Null snapped, her eyes scanning the crowd, trying to make out the speaker.