Laughter! Good Friends & Knockouts.
16 Dec 2016Jubei Himura
But time just slipped away
Remember seize the day
Life goes by in the blink of an eye
With so much left to say
The Best of Times by Dream Theater
There’s something magical about the sound of friends enjoying each other’s company. Sharing stories, a meal, a good drink, or playing a game, good times are always accompanied by hearty laughter. It’s one of the most enjoyable sound to me in the world.
Dinner at Wrex and Arcy’s was just that. Well, after Arcy broke down crying from seeing me… and then proceeded to chase me around the block (look, she can hit really, really hard). After she calmed down, she invited Veronica and I to dinner. It was filled with happy and sad stories of the past, and Arcy’s wonderful cooking.
Both Wrex and Arcy were ten years my senior. While Wrex seemed to have kept in relative shape (aside from his gut), Arcy barely changed. She was still gorgeous. Long naturally red hair draped down to the small of her back, just above that great butt of hers. Her figure was the stuff of men’s dreams: big chest, slim stomach, and hips for days. However, despite her beauty, you’d have to watch out for her fiery temper. Arcy can, and will, hit you like a truck. I’ve seen that woman shatter blocks of ice with her fist just to make ice for a drink. Wrex was a lucky guy, and Arcy was a lucky women to have him.
There was little wonder that Arcy would take a liking to Veronica, they are both cut from the same cloth; beautiful and deceptively strong. They both giggled and laughed while sipping their wine, talking about us idiot guys. I was rather glad that Veronica payed attention to her lead. Wrex nudged my side and jerked his head. Clearly, it was a good idea to leave the womenfolk to themselves. I stood up, wiping my lips with the napkin and shooting an apologetic smile to Veronica.
It turned out that Wrex and Arcy had a good-sized den in their hab unit, into which they’d moved a comfortable sofa and wall-sized holovision. On it, some out-of-system game of holoball was playing, but Wrex and I weren’t really paying attention. Maybe it was the Baron’s Head brews that we were tipping back, or maybe it was the easygoing hospitality of my hosts, but I felt myself relaxed in a way that I’d almost forgotten about. The entire space had a homey, comfortable feel to it- like visiting a close relative. It was a hell of a lot more inviting than my tiny apartment back on Shajin. Not to mention the cigars that Wrex broke out were a cut above what I’d expected out in Pegasi.
“Arcy and I have been through a lot these last five years,” Wrex said as he pulled back on the fine stogie. “But, we’ve never been better. Black Omega kicked out those rats in the Tjakiri Jet Society and, after a little roughness, things are lookin’ up. Even scored me a job as Lead Dock Mechanic!”
“I’m glad to hear that, my friend.” I took a swig of the hops laden brew and looked down and my feet, feeling a sting of pain. “Look, Wrex, I… I should level with ya. After the battle, I traveled all over the bubble trying to find peace for myself. I eventually ended up back to my home, back in the-”
“Empire? Aye lad, we’ve always known.” a sideways smile crossed Wrex face. “You may be a rough and cold bastard, even for people out here, but yer accent gave ya away. We don’t care.”
I laughed, should have known. “Okay Wrex. Since I’m bein’ truthful here and seein’ as I trust you and Arcy better than most, ‘Hunter Lionheart’ isn’t my real name.”
“Of course it isn’t,” the hearty man laughed. “Knew that too. Big Selwyn Gawr gave ya the name ‘Lionheart’ cause ya wouldn’t tell the poor bastard yer real name. ‘Bastard has the heart of a lion’ he used to say before ya kicked yer habit. ‘Hunter’ came about ‘cause the local reapers couldn’t get over how ya used to stalk yer prey before goin’ in for the kill.”
“I forgot about that,” I said. On the holo-vision, the Lavian Lions had just scored in the bonus zone.. “Well… my real name is Jubei. Jubei Himura.”
Wrex had a look of shock on his face and then broke into laughter. He slapped my back in his hysterics and nearly dropped his cigar on the boards below.
“I should have fuckin’ known it was you!” he said once he caught his breath. I just stood there, puzzled. “I was at the ol’ Golden Eagle a while ago and this young hotshot was regaling us with crazy war stories. ‘told us about some insane fucker named ‘Jubei’ that jumped outta his ship and somehow smashed through the enemy’s Anaconda canopy, just to take down the ship’s commander.”
“Well, he was the enemy Lead,” I mumbled, quite embarrassed. “Take him down and the battle ends.”
“Ah lad, I always knew you were crazy, but not that crazy!” Wrex wiped a tear from his eye and then looked straight into mine. “So, I assume yer here for more than just a visit then?”
“Aye, Wrex,” I nodded. “I’m here half on business. I have to determine if Black Omega has any plans to cause trouble for the Emperor. They’ve grown big and dangerous, and some of the higher ups are a little... concerned.”
“Ya ain’t lookin’ to fix Black Omega, are ya?” Wrex’s question was deadly serious.
“No, Wrex. I’m only supposed to report,” I assured him. “Besides, you know I’d have to find a direct reason to intervene like that.”
“Well, you wouldn’t have to look far, lad.” Wrex looked at the drink in his hand, his forehead furrowed in memory.. “They may have saved and ‘liberated’ us, but I know they got their hands in some dirty things. They’re warriors and conquerors. Strength, loyalty, and power is what they live by.”
“I hear you loud and clear, old friend,” I assured him. “You want no trouble for your home and people. I get you. I won’t cause any trouble while I’m here. Well… not any more than I usually would.”
“Aye lad, I knew ya wouldn’t.” Wrex smiled, wrapped his arm around my shoulders and proceeded to put me into a playful headlock. “Yer still one of us, no matter how long you spend out there.”
* * * * * * *
“What are you-” Veronica burst through the door after she heard the crash of glass hitting the floor. “Wait, are you fighting?!”
Both Wrex and I looked up a Veronica in confusion. Well, as much as we could. I had Wrex’s head in a leg-lock and he had mine in a similar lock. I guess we were getting a little rowdy, seeing as we knocked over the table and shattered the beer bottles on the floor below.
“Ah, leave ‘em dear.” Arcy appeared behind Veronica, hands on hips and smirking down at us. “This is what boys do. You should have seen ‘em when that giant teddy bear Selwyn was alive. There were four of them all rollin’ and jumpin’ around like they were GWE stars.”
I helped Wrex up and we dusted ourselves off, embarrassed that we were caught playing around like children. Once inside, we all sat down in the living room and enjoyed some tea and conversation.
“Hey sweetheart,” Wrex started with a grin. “Ya know the kid ‘finally fessed up? Told me his real name, he did.”
“Really? Do tell!” Arcy leaned forward and smiled slyly.
“His real name is Jubei Himura, and he finally admitted to being an Imperial!” he laughed.
“Oh Gods, like that wasn’t obvious at the beginning,” Arcy scoffed.
“Well, I guess since I’ve let the cat out of the bag, I should tell you the whole truth.” I stood up so there was no misunderstanding what I was going to say. “Yes, my name is Jubei Himura. I am an Imperial Chapterhouse Inquisitor, in service of the Emperor. My mission here is to gather information on this Black Omega group, find out what their ambitions are and if they plan to harm the Empire.”
“Huh, I really wasn’t expecting that,” Arcy said with a blank face. “What about her then? She an Inquisitor too, or is she your concubine?”
“No, no.” Veronica put her hands up in protest. “He’s my master-”
“Master?!” Arcy shouted. “Is she some kind of sex slave?! You pervert!”
* * * * * * *
I don’t really remember what happened next, aside from a vision of Arcy drawing her fist back. Veronica tells me that Arcy punched me pretty hard and I flew across the room. Which I believe, as I’ve seen Arcy overreact and get angry before.
Apparently Arcy thought I took Veronica against her will and used her as a living pleasure doll, which Veronica had to explain that wasn’t the case. We were simply mentor and student, nothing more- and certainly nothing sexual.
...When I awoke, it was already morning.
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Edit: Special thanks to Marra for lore and background info, and M.Lehman for editing.