Klara knew she had some privileges within the Valorant protocol. Specifically, the ability to convince Viper to do things she would kill anyone besides Klara for asking of her. Klara was still a little afraid to make this request.
Viper didn’t look up from her work station as Killjoy entered her lab; her brow was furrowed over whatever results were currently lighting up the monitor in front of her. Viper was used to Klara entering her lab, certain parts had become something of a shared workspace for when Killjoy and Raze were tinkering and needed a second opinion—it was nice having a PhD informed mentor—even if Viper would scoff at the insinuation of ‘mentor.’
Klara took a breath as she walked up to Viper’s desk, “Hey, Viper?”
She received a brief hum as a reply. “You said you’d come eat with us today.” Viper paused her writing, looked briefly at Killjoy, her gaze jumping between the incoming data sets and her favorite junior agent, and she finally spoke,
“I… I did.” She set down her pen and turned slightly to face Klara, “Yes, I did say that. Why are you mentioning it?”
“Oh, well. It’s almost lunch and I’m sure you haven’t eaten—or slept, no offense.” Viper once again noncommittally hummed, who was she to argue with the obvious? “So, I’d like to take you up on your promise, and I swear it’ll be quick and easy. Everyone does want you there, by the way.”
Viper sighed. She knew she wouldn’t say no, she was only avoiding the inevitable.
“Actually, how long has it been? Since you’ve eaten, or slept?”
“Pushing your luck. I’ll be there in ten.” Killjoy beamed and excused herself—mission accomplished.
———
Viper had no clue what time it was. She also had no clue why she agreed to this. She also had no clue why she was playing favorites. Viper knew Klara, from before. She had seen her face around Kingdom often; the newest young prodigy on Kingdoms payroll. Viper remembered what it was like, to be impressionable and exploitable and thrust into a world of scientific innovation. Had the work been Klara’s world, too? Had it been ripped from her at knifepoint, too? Metaphorically, or literally?
She would think about that later.
Now, however, the sound of laughter grew as she got closer to HQ’s commons.
Viper took a deep breath.
Fuck.
Viper wasn’t averse to socializing, she simply preferred to keep to her strengths. Such as chemistry. She had a PhD in it, for god’s sake, is it so wrong to prefer a conversation about her profession?
Viper pushed through the doors to HQ’s commons and was promptly blinded by the direct sunlight shining through the windows, doubly reflected by the sea surrounded HQ. God, when was the last time she went outside?
She bit back a curse and shielded her definitely-not-burned corneas with her hand, and a voice called out her callsign;
“Viper! Klara told us you’d be making an appearance,” Astra smiled and gestured to the plates on the kitchenette’s counter, “Plate?”
“Just making some coffee,” Viper looked over to where Killjoy was animatedly talking with the other junior agents, “…Klara mentioned something?” She started the coffee maker.
“Nothing much, just that you’d be here.” Astra smiled again and left Viper to make her coffee, walking over to where another handful of agents, namely Chamber and Deadlock, were pouring over some kind of diagram, likely a blueprint, while Reyna and Sage looked on, interjecting occasionally.
The coffee maker’s beeping pulled her from her people-watching.
Said coffee tasted awful. Especially compared to her favorite home-brew. Viper only sighed and took a seat in the sunlit armchair next to the windows, as far from where everyone else had congregated as the room allowed.
Klara hadn’t specified that she had to speak to anyone else.
She would admit (although not out loud) the view was… nice. The sun felt nice. The coffee was still awful. The mug went on a side table.
Viper was tired.
Of many things, mainly her own mind. Her body was tired too; Klara was right, she hadn’t properly slept for… how long? She closed her eyes to block out sun in her face.
The one thing she could never block out, however, was still herself. Viper tried anyway.
———
“…Sunwoo, as much as I love you, my turret definitely has a faster reaction time than you,”
“Bullshit! I’d like to see that fucker to get a higher score than me on the training bots.” Jett, Han Sunwoo, energetically declared, halfways out of her seat.
Lunch was always interesting, a nice respite from tinkering and testing machinery. As much as Klara loved her work, teasing her hot-headed friends was equally rewarding.
Speaking of bots-
“Oh, you reminded me; I did want to recalibrate my bots’ motion sensors…” Klara stopped Sunwoo from continuing her tangent about reaction time, “Maybe you could help me with the speed tests? I also wanted to review their field of vision and sensitivity —different smokes tends to interfere with their sight—” Sunwoo had quietly passed her a pen for note-taking by now, “Oh, Viper?” Klara called out, “Can we utilize your gas for some testing-”
Huh?
Klara had turned to the far side of the room where Viper had settled down, inquiry still on her tongue, and stopped dead in her tracks.
Viper, VP founder and second-in-command, world-renowned scientist, former Chief Scientific Officer and Kingdom Corporation board advisor, one of the chemists who discovered radianite, easily the scariest woman alive, was…
asleep?
On an armchair, in the sun.
One long leg tucked under her, just barely curled up into herself, her chest softly rising with her breath. Jet black hair fell over her face, it almost shone in the sunlight.
Silence slowly spread through the commons. Everyone had paused to see the commotion -or lack thereof. The air was thick with the tension of everyone processing the sight. An amused voice broke the silence,
“I was curious if she ever slept.” Zyanya said as she leaned against the kitchenette’s island, and cocked her head and smirked, “Mean as-hell until she finds a patch of sun to settle down in? Shes like a cat.”
Multiple panicked expressions looked between Zyanya and Viper. The only thing that upset Viper —more than Reyna— was being caught in any kind of vulnerable or, god-forbid, humanizing situation.
Safe to say, Viper’d be pissed if she woke up to the entire protocol knowing she was sleep deprived enough to pass out in the busiest room of HQ.
Lingying, who looked like she was using 90% of her energy to avoid rolling her eyes, elbowed Zyanya and added, “She should sleep.”
She then muttered, “God knows how many times I’ve told her… but I am only a doctor for thirty soldiers, what do I know?” Sage quietly gathered an un-used blanket and laid it over Vipers legs, making pains to not disturb her.
Astra simply smiled to herself, Fade took a photo.
Klara was dumbfounded. Her table was also dead silent. And likely also dumbfounded. I mean, she is a human being —I know I do joke about her not sleeping, however, I cant help but feel like Tayane’s paint fumes have caused adverse effects on my psyche…
Klara supposed some of her bot tests would have to wait for the moment.
———
Wind gusts over the sea surrounding HQ are what finally roused Viper.
She slowly blinked and took in her surroundings: the sun was gone and clouds of a distant storm had settled over the horizon. The lights were dimmed, the only light was from outside. She was in the commons. In a chair? With a blanket?
She was in the commons. She’d fell asleep. She had fallen asleep, in the commons?
Viper was now awake.
She groaned, with her head in her hands. This is mortifying. Her habits had unfortunately, annoyingly, embarrassingly, caught up to her today.
However.
She would begrudgingly admit, the headache —that had been plaguing her temples since the morning— had subsided.
Viper sent a up desperate prayer, to whatever god had long ago forsaken her, and checked her phone:
Reyna (Do Not Answer): I think we should change your snake motif to something more, house-cat like, no?
mouse: Viper! Thank you for coming along with me today; whenever you are back to work, I had a few questions about my bot calibrations. :D< And please take more breaks. Sage has already scolded Tayane and I for, quote, “enabling”
Viper only scoffed, bit back a smile, and returned to her work.