Evangeline's brow scrunched, and her face creased ever so slightly in time with the approaching noise.
*Clomp--Clomp--Clomp*
He better not -
A sharp metallic crack echoed out from the other side of the lobby's main doors.
"Eh, it'll buff out!" A muffled but gruff voice announced.
The dragoness' eye twitched, but she forced a smile as the doors before her parted with a rush of steam, revealing the source of the fuss.
"Officer Kintrax. So pleased to see you!" She called out. Her eyes briefly flickered between the perfectly polished white tiles of the lobby and the heavy mechanical foot that looked more like a hoof made from a car engine than an actual foot, that was just about to touch down within the station's premises. He was dressed in a sharp black shirt with oversized cuffs, a pair of tough-looking black combats, and an armoured waistcoat, thick with metal and stamped with one of the RMD's emblems; a gold-laced dragon wing, with several golden bullet holes through its membrane.
And, of course, the Kintrax trademark look - a single black boot for his single organic foot.
"So formal! We're all friends here! Theo is fine, Evangeline!" He smiled a smile that was all too wide and all too knowing. His walk had a sway of confidence to it, if a bit of an odd gait.
"Of course. How could I forget? So! What brings you to my humble little station without so much as a day's notice?" Evanageline gripped her hands tightly behind her back and spun to walk side-by-side with Theo as he strode towards the huge, semi-circular, brilliant white front desk in the middle of the lobby. He was gunning for the small bowl of sweets with increasing vigour.
Evangaline herself was clad in her usual affair, styling a long white lab coat and suit underneath, with a deep blue hue to the fabric.
Within seconds, the rhargnorn had unpeeled a couple of chocolates and was munching on them loudly, turning back to face Evangaline's unflinching demeanour with chocolate-covered teeth.
"Inspection time, as requested by Commander Koa!" He pulled what was once a neatly folded, but now a scrunched-up mess of a letter, bearing the same RMD logo in the header, out of one of his trouser pockets and thrust it towards Evangeline. "Gotta see what you egg-heads are up to! Make sure you're following all the laws and decrees, as set by our wondrous and ever-generous royal family!"
"Mhmm, so -"
"- Now, an inspection is when your place of work is investigated - a term defined as examining something and putting it under great scrutiny, - to ensure that it is following lawful conduct." Theo interrupted passionately, puffing his chest out. Despite standing a full head shorter than her, his gaze remained absolutely fixed to her icey, emotionless eyes. "In order to ensure your safety, and everyone else's aboard this Draconic Alliance XITD, or 'Xeno Threat, Investigation and Dismissal' regional headquarters, I will leave absolutely no stone unturned."
There was a brief silence as Theo grinned at Evangeline, waiting for her to speak. The dragoness' gaze intensified, and she opened her mouth, taking the bait. As expected, Theo immediately continued to speak the moment her throat began to creak the slightest hint of a word.
"I can understand, you being head of this facility and all, that you must be feeling some pressure from this sudden visit. Well, rest assured, any complaints you have about the process will be duly noted and passed on to my superior, Commander Koa, for action. In the meantime, as long as you've been following protocol, everything should be dandy! Shall we?"
He gestured towards and started to make his way over to the entrance leading to the E-labs, which were protected by a heavy security door and guarded by a single soldier (as most of the labs were), but not before grabbing another handful of chocolates from the bowl.
"Of course. Thank you for your wonderful description of a workplace investigation, consider any doubts I may have had clarified! I will need to escort you through the high clearance labs, but I cleared my schedule this morning the second we got your communication, so that should be no issue at all." Evangeline spoke with a perfectly practised enthusiasm, perfectly mirroring Theo's exaggerated tone. "I take these inspections very seriously, and I can't wait to see the outcome!"
"How brilliant! Your cooperation is expected, but still greatly appreciated!" The two began their journey together with equally forced smiles, walking through the pristine bowels of the space station together. The occasional scrape of Theo's mechanical tail against the station's floors and walls would make the dragoness vibrate with frustration, but there was little to be done about it; she knew he was trying to antagonise her.
"Provided all your reports have been correct, I imagine this is going to be a quick visit." Theo unwrapped another chocolate and popped it into his mouth, and continued to talk whilst chewing.
"Excellent. Then it shall be a quick visit."
"Glad you think so. I'd love it to be quick too. Would be a real shame if I were to, say, stumble upon a prisoner who hadn't been declared and was being mistreated as a scientific object instead of a living being."
"That would be awful." Evangeline agreed, nodding her head solemnly.
"It would. Would be worse if the prisoner in question was a czarite, too. Considering that czarites have been leaving the DA in droves lately, and the royal family has seen fit to declare all czarites as true draconic citizens to try and encourage them to return, regardless of their place of origin -"
"- A true horror, that would be -"
"- Which means that a nomadic czarite would still be fully protected by DA law, despite not originating from DA space, which means any form of non-consensual practice - including study and research, irrespective of any medical conditions they may or may not have - would be absolutely illegal and punishable by the maximum extent of the czarite protection decree. Which carries a title stripping and a prison sentence of up to one-hundred and fifty years."
"As it should. I'm so very glad you're fully up to date on your royal decrees, Theo; a true hero to the empire!"
"So, naturally, the discovery of a mistreated or falsely imprisoned czarite would be utterly disastrous for everyone involved. Does any of that... ring a bell, Evangeline...?"
"Not a single word of it."
Theo's grin dropped off his face as he turned his head back briefly to glare at the dragoness.
"Well maybe it fuckin' should!" He growled, ceasing the polite act suddenly and turning back to face the first lab on their journey. "You think you're gonna get away with this? You're not. I'm gonna find that girl, and if I can't find her, I'm gonna sweat it out of your fuckin' lackeys here. One of them is gonna fold, I know it."
"Girl? Theo, I don't know what you're referring to, but I can assure you that the primary project work the station has been engaged with has been done on the back of a corpse, recovered from the truly tragic incident at Barru X!"
