SSS - Cafeteria "Beanadiction"A large metal construction stood in front of the double glass doors of the cafeteria. It was looking up at the sign above the entrance with a blank expression. Of course, it's not like it could express anything, as it didn't have a face to speak of. It took a step back from the door to let one of the customers out, and then went back to his previous position to observe the plastic sign hanging from the ceiling of the hallway. Large black letters on a white plate, much like the other signs in the station. Clearly, at one point someone must have thought that the name was funny enough to attract customers. Now it was hanging sadly from the ceiling, covered in dust and some kind of a frozen liquid that only god knows the origin of. These signs all pointed towards that the owner probably had second thoughts about the name since they installed the sign. The construct seemingly got bored of staring at the bland and uninteresting sign, and focused his attention on the inside of teh cafeteria. The furniture and architecture were all amde in a retro 2050s feeling, like everything else on the sation. A few customers drank coffees inside, and some of the more daring ate from the suspicious looking dough that the owners dared call a "cookie". A line of moderate size was standing in front of the cashier desk, waiting to be served their beverages. A long electronic sigh broke the stillness of the construct as it opened a door leading into the installement.
"Why exaclty did we stop here?" Elektro exclaimed as they took their place in the short line leading to the cashier.
"What do you think dummy? I'm hungry!" Pisq sounded very upset as they advanced forward in the line, and no one could really blame her for it. For a good 20 minutes now, the two has been exploring the station to find any kind of information regarding the layout of the place. They were late for the shuttle that would've taken them to GAHL directly, so they had to improvise by taking a commercial space liner. Turns out that they arrived way before the briefing was supposed to begin. But as luck would have it, they had absolutely zero clue where the shuttle dropped them off, or where they were supposed to go to, so they had to figure something out. After a
couple dozen of failed attempts at asking for directions from other aliens, they had to turn to the good old method of "find it yourself".
As the line disappeared from front of them and they advanced to the cashier, a human in his early 20s gretted them. For a second he was surprised to see the EXO standing in line, and stood there without any ideas on what to do next. But the training kicked in, and he greeted the two like any other person.
"Hello, what do you want to order?" A moment of silence as Pisq and Elektro discussed the details of the order in silence, and then the cheery female voice emerged from the voice synthetizer of the helmet.
"I want a single donut, of the smallest size possible!" The cashier looked behind his back at his manager with a confused look, but after a silent gesture that could've meant anything he followed the order. He took the smallest donut possible from the display case, and then put it into a small paper bag. On his cash register the cost of the donut popped up, and then an incoming transaction quickly payed for it.
"Anything else, um, miss?". Elektro grabbed the bag in his hand and shaked his head as a response. Pisq spoke up again just so she could have the last word.
"That's all! Thanks!" They quickly left the cafeteria and left behind the confused cashier and patrons of the cafeteria.
44 minutes later, 2 minutes since debriefing began
SSS - Some corridor near GAHL The sight of a Combat EXO carrying an adorably small paper bag as it is running through corridors is something most people won't forget for a lifetime. The comedic effect of such a scenraio can easely overwhelm even those with steel nerves and no sense of humour. Thankfully, the aliens on the sation mostly smiled at the sight, and only a few of them started laughing. However wherever they passed by, phones appeared from out of pockets, and the cameras in helmets started recording. In a few days they would be internet sensations. However Elektro had better things to do than to worry about keeping up a decent image of themselves. After they left the cafeteriea, Pisq wanted to eat the donut that they bought, but he locked the cockpit door and told her that she can only eat it after they arrive at the briefing. That was about 40 minutes ago, and Pisq refused to help him ever since, giving him the silent treatment. He could feel for Pisq being hungry, but if she mucnhed down on the donut then they would have to stop somewhere, and they were already late. So the best he could do was to hold the bag in his hand as he ran through teh corridors to find the place where they were supposed to arrive at 2 minutes ago.
The discovery came as a complete suprise to Elektro. After passing by a few doors with nothing more than numbers above them, he stopped to check on Pisq, and to see if she was still mad at him anymore.
"If you helped me find the place, we could already be there, and you could've already eaten your donut. But if you refuse to assist me for any longer, I am never going to give it to you.". Pisq who was pretending to be sleeping all this time looked around the cockpit with an angry face and smahsed her hands on the terminal inside.
"That's not fair! I just wanted to eat a donut, and now you are threatening me to deny me of a single wish. You are such a meanie!" She crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair, silently observing the outside through the widescreen on the inside. She was clearly sulking, and Elektro had no idea what to do with her anymore. He figured that he'll just let her be for the time being, and then apologise when they find the GAHL place. Pisq's voice interrupted his thoughts as she spoke up, focusing on something shown on the screen.
"You big dummy! Isn't this door the place?". The door next to them looked just like any other room that they passed by, the number above the door and a holopad on the side. On the screen the four letters, G A H L, could be read clearly, and the company logo was spinning in the background.
"Well, that was certainly easier than I imagined.". With a statisfied look on her face, Pisq leaned back in the chair, and Elektro knocked on the door with his empty hand.
A droid opened the door after a short wait. It was a commercial Security Droid, with the name "Bishop" painted over the white pnales of it's legs.
"Mister Malkovich is currently busy. What is the manner of your business?". Pisq didn't think before rushing an answer, the sweet dreams of munching on a donut floating in her mind. "Step away rustbucket! We are here for a meeting and we need to get in yesterday!". thought the face of the security droid didn't, and couldn't change, the lack of reaction made it clear that it was not impressed by the answer it received. Pisq softened on her tone and asked again, as she saw her chances of tasting a donut fleeting away rapidly, and it was a risk she wasn't willing to take.
"Pretty, please? We have an ID! Show him Elektro!".
"Ah yes, the grunt's work is mine as usual. Here is our ID. Apologies for the late arrival but we missed the shuttle, and then got lost in the station. I am sure you can understand." He transmitted their ID codes to the security droid, and then waited silently for the answer. The light in the eye of the droid seemed to flicker for a second, and then it lit up in green twice as it identified the IDs.
"Miss Pisq, and Mister Elektro. You are late to the appointement, Mister Malkovich has already begun the presentation in the metting room." The droid walked out of the way, and let the two latecomers in. He closed the door and then began walking towards the door on the other side of the room. Pisq bent so close to the screen as she could, her nose touching the display as she observed the view. She never saw so much wood in a space station before. Or anywhere that wasn't a nature reserve or a park as a matter of fact. The cheap trick of composites and holo displays was good enough to fool her, but Elektro wasn't so breathtaken by the sight. He was quick to note that it was all facade, a pretty good one at that, but still nothing more than a simple show. Still, he didn't tell it to Pisq, as she seemed happier looking at the fake wood, than she was all day, and especially since they came to the station.
As they reached the door on the opposite side of the room, the droid stopped and spoke up.
"Mister Malkovich and the other hunters are beyond this door, in the briefing room. Now if you excuse me." Then it left them in front of the door, and went back to whatever it was doing before they arrived.
"Well, what are we waiting for? I'm getting really hungry!".
Elektro pushed the door in, and it loudly swung open as they entered the room. It was a spacious space with a circular table in the middle with chairs around them, most of which were occupied by alien hunters. They seemed to have interrupted someone from speaking up, and a newfound silence befell the room as most of the people inside turned their heads to observe the source of distraction. Whatever kind of briefing was going on, nothing was shown on the holo, and Elektro guessed that they were late for the presentation. Pisq could only see the paper bag that they were carrying, and taste the donut in her mouth.
"Heyo, nice to meet you! Sorry for the late arrival!". Elektro shook his head and formally introduced themselves, seeing how Pisq was unable to do it.
"My deepest apologies for being late. I am Elektro, and the gal you heard before is Pisq. We are pleased to make your acquaintance."Pisq giggled inside the cockpit and whispered to Elektro with a grin on her face:
"When can I get my donut?"
