"Couldn't you have given me something a little less revealing?" Miranda huffed, stretching the skirt of the neon-pink mini-dress as far down as it would go, frustrated when the pencil-thin spikes of her matching heels kept getting stuck between the gaps in the floor. "And not garishly pink?"
"It was the only thing I could find that was suited for your measurements on such short notice," Kasumi hopped out of the skycar she had discreetly rented via one of the many false accounts she possessed. "Besides, pink looks good on you."
"I look like a streetwalker," Miranda frowned, spotting her reflection in the crust-covered glass running along the landing platform, wondering how she had allowed Kasumi to talk her into taking part in her sordid scheme.
"No offense, but that is sort of the point, Miranda, we want to look the part. A pair of glamorous club-goers who made one too many wrong turns down increasingly dark alleys," Kasumi grabbed her purse and locked the skycar, turning on the spot to give Miranda a full view of her own ensemble. "So, how do I look?"
Miranda glanced up and down at Kasumi, admiring the admittedly exquisite sight. Just for the occasion, Kasumi decided against wearing anything that would obscure her head, making a rare public appearance without anything disguising her face, though there were incredibly few individuals alive who would have been able to recognise her. Immaculate raven hair cascaded across her neck and shoulders, a light application of make-up was all that was needed to highlight the facial features that few were privileged to see.
Her bespoke infiltration suit was replaced with a black dress just as revealing as Miranda's, contrasted by a puffy gold bolero jacket running across her shoulders and arms. Glossy gold synthetic latex boots travelled up to her exposed thighs, with heels that raised her profile just high enough to push her past six feet. On anyone else, the outfit would have easily appeared trashy, but Kasumi gave it a certain level of class.
"I hate the idea of enabling you, but you look great," Miranda admitted, regretting it immediately when a vindicated squeal came from Kasumi.
"Ooh, keep speaking like that and I might feel the need to start paying you a late night visit from time to time," Kasumi purred, emboldened by Miranda's exasperated eye roll.
"Don't push your luck, I still have half a mind to turn back now and back out of this scheme of yours before it's too late," Miranda warned, unwilling to pay any attention to the excited voice deep in her mind.
"God, you'd think that Aria would do more to keep this dump in better shape," Miranda stood back and summoned up a modest amount of biotic energy, directing it at the set of heavily corroded doors marking the exit of the dry dock. Sweeping her arms out, she threw the doors open, earning a few glares from those on the other side of them. "It's basic maintenance."
"C'mon, it's part of the charm," Kasumi pouted, her eyes lit up when they glanced up at the massive column nestled at the center of the never-ending promenade. "If you want something classy, you head to London or hit one of the clubs on Illium. Omega is the place to be when you want to lose all your inhibitions, what you see is what you get."
"Which is just a polite way of stating that it's a dump," Miranda countered, gazing at Afterlife with more revulsion than admiration, able to feel the thrumming electronic music within pounding in her chest. "At least I'm unlikely to get caught in a random gang shooting at Flux."
"Exactly, that's what makes Omega so much more interesting than any other place in the galaxy. One minute, you're sat at a bar enjoying a nice glass of Drossix Blue. The next, you're taking cover behind that very same bar, exchanging fire with a group of masked gang members," Kasumi breathed wistfully, leaving Miranda certain that the master thief was speaking from experience rather than conjuring up a theoretical scenario. "Or you've missed out on all the fun because you've spent the evening becoming better acquainted with a charming Turian."
"I think I'd rather find a nice, quiet corner so I can peacefully enjoy my drink," Miranda said, hearing the snort the Japanese woman couldn't hold back. "What?"
"You talk like a prude, but you and I both know you're the furthest thing from it. How else do you explain your bodysuit?" Kasumi asked.
"What about it? My uniform is crafted for the specific purpose of providing both protection and manoeuvrability during firefights and-"
"Thigh-high boots and a white catsuit that sticks to every curve so well that it may as well be painted on?" Kasumi gave Miranda a cheeky grin, unconcerned by the indignation her interjection earned. "You don't need to lie to me, Miranda. If I happened to be the literal definition of the perfect human woman, I'd take every opportunity I could find to flaunt it. Be honest, don't you get some kind of thrill from knowing that almost every set of eyes follows you your back is turned?"
"I do not... " Miranda prepared to launch into a tirade, but knew it was pointless to do so to Kasumi of all people. Not meaning to, Miranda's lips quirked and quickly formed a playful smirk. "Okay, fine. Maybe I do enjoy some of the attention I get. Just as long as they're smart enough to only look, touching the merchandise will earn them a few broken bones."
"Atta girl," Kasumi winked, pointing away from the club and towards the unwelcoming corridors in the distance. "That's where we're headed."
"I still don't understand why you want to do this," Miranda followed the direction of Kasumi's finger, finding a door covered in graffiti, barely lit by the flickering light above it. "The Vorcha are one of the most simple-minded creatures this galaxy has ever made the mistake of spawning. You could gather a whole group of them and you wouldn't find a single original thought between them."
"Well, it's a good thing that I'm not looking for a conversation then," Kasumi rubbed her hands along her stomach, her excitement mounted as her plan started to come together. "I want something deep inside me, and it isn't their words of wisdom."
"Women go missing all the time when they veer off the beaten path on Omega, most are snatched and sold off into the sex trade," Miranda watched Kasumi set off, shaking her head when she tottered after her. "I've seen the dossiers, I've lost count of the number of humans that have ended up in the brothels on Khar'Shan because they made the mistake of getting too plastered or letting their guard down around the wrong people."
"Brothels on Khar'Shan? I've heard about those, they treat the workers like little more than sex slaves, subjecting them to nights and days of unending sexual exploitation, using them in every way imaginable," Kasumi shivered, searching the promenade. "I wonder if there are any Batarian slavers around here that I can 'accidentally' bump into."
"I'm being serious, Kasumi, Omega is one of the most dangerous places in the galaxy," Miranda admonished the thief, glaring angrily at the street preacher when they both became the subjects of his hateful diatribe. "One wrong move and we'll be leaving this hell hole stripped and collared, never to be seen again."
"You don't have worry, Miranda. The slaving gangs are currently somewhere in the Terminus System, chasing after a transporter carrying some of Europe's finest ballerinas," Kasumi smirked back at Miranda, using her omni-tool to override the lock on the door. "But something tells me that they'll be terribly disappointed when they find out they've been chasing a cheap drone with one of my beacons taped to the side of it."
"You devious thing," Miranda laughed, always the first to admire Kasumi's cunning nature. Looking up, Miranda noticed the CCTV cameras following their progression through the dank hall. "Are you sure it's a good idea to be out in the open with your face exposed? I thought you were deadly serious about keeping your identity secret."
"I am, it's just nice to be able to walk around and have men eye-fucking me from afar," Kasumi opened up a holographic layout of Omega's sprawling back alleys, setting a waypoint for her intended destination. With their route locked in, Kasumi opened her purse and pulled out a jar of foundation, one that didn't appear to be a typical piece of make-up. "And I have this for added security."
"What is it?" Miranda took the jar and squinted at it, turning it to locate any labels.
"Luminescent Scrambler. That's what I call it at least," Kasumi smiled at one of the cameras and gave it a playful wave. "It looks like plain foundation when you see it on the wearer's face in person, but it contains particles that throws off the receptors of digital cameras. They can see my body, but my face is just a bright, blank ball of nothingness."
"You really do think of everything," an impressed Miranda whistled.
"That's why the Illusive Man pays me the big bucks. Amateurs rely on store bought equipment, all my stuff is custom made by yours truly," Kasumi stopped when they reached a 'T' junction, taking a right when her navigation system indicated for her to do so. "Burglary is an art, and I like to consider myself the Picasso of my field."
"I'd call you an egomaniac if it wasn't for the fact that you have the talent to back up that statement," Miranda stared distastefully at the poor state of the area Kasumi had led her to. Not an inch of the walls was left untouched by crude graffiti and copious amounts of rust caused by the leaking pipelines from the floors above, sacks of garbage was left to rot along the edges of the floor, creating a miasma that was almost unbearable for Miranda. "Are you really intent on doing this?"
"You got to have all the fun with those Vorcha back at the vault, and I missed out," Kasumi replied, continuing to deactivate the security systems of the dilapidated region of the old station.
"That wasn't so much fun as it was a pragmatic means of keeping us alive," Miranda said, irked by Kasumi's snickering. "It's a miracle that they were actually stupid enough to buy such a transparent lie."
"That was an awfully convincing performance for someone who's just trying to be pragmatic," Kasumi countered, noticing Miranda's displeased look. "Okay, answer me this. If those Varren decided that they wanted more than fellatio and a couple of handjobs, would you have stopped them? Or would you have stripped off that bodysuit and let them go wild?"
