As the portal slid open, I caught sight of Comet Rider just stepping out of the lapper, running her hand through her hair to give it some lift. She looked at me with a barely concealed smirk. “So…what do you think of Bannick?”
I walked over to the settee and settled myself into its soft cushions then reached over to the low table and poured a long libation from a convoluted bottle of liqueur that just seemed to be begging to be tasted. I raised the cool liquid towards my lips and then just tweaked its silver surface with the tip of my tongue.
“Tokugawan Black Ice.” I commented with an appreciative nod at Comet Rider, who was staring at me either with a great deal of control or none at all. “Where’d you get Bannick? She has all the culture and aplomb of an Oortian Cavecruncher.”
Commander Rider tossed her towel into the incinerator – a perfect shot, then walked over and plucked the drink from my hand and tossed it down like it was mother’s milk. I admit I was impressed. Tokugawan Black Ice can take the ‘g’ out of ‘gamma’ quicker than antimatter blowing off an electron. “Bannick is quite an asset, Girk." She chided me. "You should learn to play nice. It will get you a lot further than…”
“Flaunting my techno-antics?” I finished.
She smiled. Aeonic Fusion, I saw the woman smile. True, it was a triumphant 'gotcha' kind of smile, but it was a start.
"So," I asked as Comet Rider sank into the cushion next to mine. "Why didn't you just come and ask me your questions - or maybe you prefer to come up with answers through a psysexual? Wait, that's right, you didn't come, did you? That means you have to totally trust Bannick to tell you the truth. Most interesting. You don't seem like the type of woman who would let a little pleasure get in the way of gaining knowledge, Rider, and you certainly don't seem the type that would totally trust anyone. Feel free to break in here at anytime and correct me if I'm wrong...please."
