004.
The fuel tank would thank him, he thinks, as he docks in Neue Ziel. The Space Station has the bright Magenta colors of the Synth Arch, an organization he'd only heard about in the Cybersphere. Still, the minute he docked, he felt like he was back on Melisara in The Convent. The trappings of religion surrounded him in a way that felt like an itch under his skin. A childhood filled with the laws of scripture, even when they seemed banal and unobtrusive could constrict so easily around him still- the fear of a wrong step leading to those looks he had been so accustomed to. The knowledge that he had done something wrong just by stepping in the wrong building, asking the wrong questions.
Even in the docking bay, white banners hung with doctrine framed the exit to the rest of the colony, the scrolling messages changing every few seconds. His fingers twitched at his side as he stepped under them, deeper into the colony. Unfortunately the Arch wouldn't accept the Contraband as payment for fuel, so it looks like he'd be spending some time here, trading for some serum to get The Ceres fueled up and ready again.
The cluttered stalls of the market are set up around the infrastructure of the colony- metal tabletops strung between beams, awnings hung in nooks. Some structures were built in, but Valentine knows enough about trading in settlements to avoid those; they are hardly ever after specific goods, and finding someone who is searching for what you are selling is the best way to make any money.
His all-too human imperfections, asymmetry visible in every part of him, makes him feel like an outsider amongst the carefully welded chrome body and faces. He does a round of the market. Sweeping as it is, he is in no rush. At least he isn't made to feel like an outsider. Insular as it is, Neue Ziel obviously has its fair share of explorers and traders; enough that he obviously isn't a novelty.
Eventually he finds a stall he likes the look of, the trader has her clunky boots propped up on the tabletop amongst her wares. The cigarette she smokes emits a blue glow, the smoke sparks and glitters in the air.
She eyes with unhidden curiosity.
"Interested in some tech? You got any chrome?" Her voice is low and smooth, barely carrying over the ambient noise of the bustling market.
"I was hoping to sell you some stuff you might be interested in." He replies, patting the bag at his side.
She introduces herself as Aura Fei. She manages to be a good trading partner after testing how gullible he is with some haggling. He manages to make enough to cover his fuel with some to spare.
She claps her hands together when all is said and done.
"Not too bad, not too bad." She says, putting away the soda he'd traded for, but keeping out the flash round.
"Since our business is done," He started, letting his handheld comm process the transaction, “You wouldn't happen to know of any work I could pick up around here, would you?"
She eyes him more carefully now.
"If you want to make moves within the Arch, we are looking for something. Don't know what the reward will be, though."
He doesn't know if he manages to hide the way his mouth twitches; he doesn't even know if it is worth hiding.
"I'll take what I can get," He replies, honestly, after taking a moment to think it over. Even something as insubstantial as favor could translate into something that may prove useful. It wasn't like there was anything else for him to do.
She shrugs, a fluid, un-concerned movement as she pulls down a magnifying glass from the beams which hold up her stall, focusing it as she replies. She presses a few buttons on her Comm before replying:
"I've sent the details over to your personal Comms." Her attention is now off him completely, examining the casing of the round, she adds: "The Prophet is looking for a Tesseract."
Valentine looks over the comms she sent, examining the cyan holocube. He frowns down at the image, using his hand to rotate the image.
"What does it do?"
"It's an Old World energy source." She replies easily, and then, as if understanding what he really meant, she adds: "It shouldn't be dangerous."
The coordinates point him back to that Helios Farm.
"Thanks for the lead." He says,"I'll be back with it."
Aura nods, seemingly in response, before she lifts a hand as a good-bye. She is already bent down, focusing on prying apart the flash round he'd traded her.
