That single stutter in his step was enough to clue Aden in that going to the Phantom was hardly ideal either and indeed no comfort at all. Still better than leading him into the elevator and up to a base full of foreign things and people and species who would have a million questions and crowd around them like a bunch of curious toddlers. He was already mentally preparing himself for a talking to from Lana, though the Sith should be more than used to Aden throwing protocol out the window as it suited him already.
The Phantom was not ideal. But she was the better option.
While the hallway leading there wasn't nearly so inviting with its metal floors and walls and sterile atmosphere, the main hold at least wasn't quite as bad. Wooden floors, plush seating, shelves with actual books, and the odd art piece here and there to give it a vibe of being a home that someone actually lived in, and most importantly- a bar that Aden was quick to disappear behind, rooting around for something or other.
Of course there were still plenty of things that it was probably best not to think about, like the screen set into the wall and keyboard on the desk beneath, reminiscent of some of the technology that could be found on the Voidtrecker Express, the holoterminal with its many buttons in the middle of the room- currently inactive, but most certainly strange to those not used to such things.
"If you need a spot to lose it in, I can arrange that. There's a camp about a day's walk from here that might be a bit less..." He raised a hand up above the bar to give a vague gesture that clearly indicated all of this.
He finally reemerged from behind the bar, setting a smaller glass for himself and a larger one for Bull down, fetching a bottle from the shelves behind the bar and popping it open to pour its contents into the glasses.
"This is home for me. It's called Odessen."
It was as close to home as one got for him, anyway. It was a fitting enough descriptor.
"Don't know why the train decided to drop you into my world, but..."
He shrugged a shoulder. It was worth thinking about, but ultimately it would just be guesswork.
He already had theories, of course. Maybe it couldn't tether to the Iron Bull's world and decided to toss him into Aden's after having him wander the void for a time. Maybe his world wasn't even there to send him back to. Who could say- guesswork indeed. Aden decided to keep that thought to himself for now because he could recognize a man on the verge of going over the edge already and he thought it better to save that conversation for when his mental state was a bit more stable.
"As for things being tense, well... Don't worry too much about my situation. Those brainlessly aggressive idiots are easily led and will accept whatever I tell them, and if they won't, I can go over their heads to force their hand."
Having a direct line to the Emperor was convenient like that.
"If I say that you're not an enemy, then you're not an enemy."
He held the larger glass out toward the other man, and there was a small smile on his face, though there wasn't anything that indicated that Bull had to accept the drink. It was merely an offer that he could choose whether to accept it or not. For all of Aden's commanding presence only moments ago, at the moment he was more like the man he'd been on the train- if not a bit milder and without the same hint of pain in his mannerisms and expression that might have been hard to see was even there on the train, though its absence certainly was obvious to anyone who had seen both sides of him.
"Whether you think you need a bit of space or whether you're willing to stay and let me help you make sense of things so it's not so overwhelming is a choice I'll leave up to you. Besides here though, there aren't people anywhere else and there are some nasty fucking critters in the forests here, so I'd appreciate if you came back even if you choose to have some space for a while though."
When Aden was younger, he'd likely have just let him go and remarked on it being his funeral. But since they were both from the train and Bull had found himself in a world that didn't make sense to him and Aden was not the same callous bastard he'd been when he was young, he felt like he had to at least try and look after the man. If he found himself alone in a world that wasn't his own, he would have wanted someone to help him too.
Someone who was nicer than he himself was, but still. Unfortunately he was as good as Bull was going to get.
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The Phantom was not ideal. But she was the better option.
While the hallway leading there wasn't nearly so inviting with its metal floors and walls and sterile atmosphere, the main hold at least wasn't quite as bad. Wooden floors, plush seating, shelves with actual books, and the odd art piece here and there to give it a vibe of being a home that someone actually lived in, and most importantly- a bar that Aden was quick to disappear behind, rooting around for something or other.
Of course there were still plenty of things that it was probably best not to think about, like the screen set into the wall and keyboard on the desk beneath, reminiscent of some of the technology that could be found on the Voidtrecker Express, the holoterminal with its many buttons in the middle of the room- currently inactive, but most certainly strange to those not used to such things.
"If you need a spot to lose it in, I can arrange that. There's a camp about a day's walk from here that might be a bit less..." He raised a hand up above the bar to give a vague gesture that clearly indicated all of this.
He finally reemerged from behind the bar, setting a smaller glass for himself and a larger one for Bull down, fetching a bottle from the shelves behind the bar and popping it open to pour its contents into the glasses.
"This is home for me. It's called Odessen."
It was as close to home as one got for him, anyway. It was a fitting enough descriptor.
"Don't know why the train decided to drop you into my world, but..."
He shrugged a shoulder. It was worth thinking about, but ultimately it would just be guesswork.
He already had theories, of course. Maybe it couldn't tether to the Iron Bull's world and decided to toss him into Aden's after having him wander the void for a time. Maybe his world wasn't even there to send him back to. Who could say- guesswork indeed. Aden decided to keep that thought to himself for now because he could recognize a man on the verge of going over the edge already and he thought it better to save that conversation for when his mental state was a bit more stable.
"As for things being tense, well... Don't worry too much about my situation. Those brainlessly aggressive idiots are easily led and will accept whatever I tell them, and if they won't, I can go over their heads to force their hand."
Having a direct line to the Emperor was convenient like that.
"If I say that you're not an enemy, then you're not an enemy."
He held the larger glass out toward the other man, and there was a small smile on his face, though there wasn't anything that indicated that Bull had to accept the drink. It was merely an offer that he could choose whether to accept it or not. For all of Aden's commanding presence only moments ago, at the moment he was more like the man he'd been on the train- if not a bit milder and without the same hint of pain in his mannerisms and expression that might have been hard to see was even there on the train, though its absence certainly was obvious to anyone who had seen both sides of him.
"Whether you think you need a bit of space or whether you're willing to stay and let me help you make sense of things so it's not so overwhelming is a choice I'll leave up to you. Besides here though, there aren't people anywhere else and there are some nasty fucking critters in the forests here, so I'd appreciate if you came back even if you choose to have some space for a while though."
When Aden was younger, he'd likely have just let him go and remarked on it being his funeral. But since they were both from the train and Bull had found himself in a world that didn't make sense to him and Aden was not the same callous bastard he'd been when he was young, he felt like he had to at least try and look after the man. If he found himself alone in a world that wasn't his own, he would have wanted someone to help him too.
Someone who was nicer than he himself was, but still. Unfortunately he was as good as Bull was going to get.