Yelena almost makes it home. On her way she passes one of the Barrens ubiquitous strip bars. The lure of another shot of vodka is too much and she turns in. After all, Marco might not be home yet. She walks into the bar and the Ork bouncer does not even look twice at the Predator at her hip, but she sees a number of shotguns and rifles in a rack behind the bouncer with claim tags attached. She surmises the place is a bit on the rough side and smiles. Just her kind of place. She walks into the crowded room and past the small stage where a naked human woman is dancing listlessly around a pole. There is a small table off to the right that is being vacated as she walks up to it and she slides into the chair. Two men had been approaching the table from another direction and seem upset that she had pipped it first, until she motions for them to take the vacant chairs. She orders a vodka shot and they order beers. Names are not exchanged, but it is not important or required in a place like this. Her new companions try her cigars but quickly decide that they prefer their own. A drink and several cigars later, the three are exchanging stories and laughing in the anonymous camaraderie of bars like this.
A pimply-faced kid of maybe eighteen wanders into the bar and starts making rounds of the tables. Yelena sees small packets leave his hands and cash go into his pockets and her yearning spikes. One hit would not be too much. After all, she has worked hard and is still in some pain from the surgeries. A bit of Bliss would help. It would help a lot. Yelena's palms begin to sweat as the kid gets closer, emphasizing the need for the drug. She can already anticipate everything from the initial tug at her senses to the extended release of pleasure and serenity. Her experience tells her that she will be in a different world soon and she looks forward to it. Frag, she NEEDS it. Yelena feels the call and raises her hand to get the attention of the pusher, who nods and smiles. He will clear a large part of his load in the bar tonight, making his provider happy. If he had gone straight to her, he might have made the sale, but he delays with another customer long enough for the shadow to draw back, leaving Yelena alone and unprotected. The feeling shocks her and brings some degree of sense to her clouded mind. She does not realize the cause at first, but the realization hits like a ton of bricks. The drugs are a crutch for the weak, not a tool of the strong.
The last time the shadow left her, she had already been high on drugs and did not recognize it. This time she feels the shadow drain away and the loss is profound. She reaches down into her strength and spreads her senses to grab at the shadow as it moves away, forcing it back to her and this time she succeeds in forcing the elusive tendrils to gather around her. She steps back from the table and tosses some scrip down and walks away, leaving her companions and the pimply kid looking after her in surprise. She steps out of the bar and turns to the right, making it to the corner before she doubles up in pain and throws up anything that was still in her system. She kneels as the spasms keep coming, calling the shadow, which does not let her down this time. This time. Next time she might give in to the cravings, but not this time. Throwing her head back, she lets out a primal scream that does not sound like it could come from any throat. A hand touches her shoulder and she whips about, pistol in hand and pressed against the man's forehead before he can move. The man stutters that he was only trying to see if she was alright. Yelena lowers the pistol and replies. "Yelena better now. Thank you. You are nice man. Stay alive."
Yelena holsters the pistol and smiles at the man before stepping away. She runs to her Scorpion and climbs aboard. She forces the shadow to wrap around her and fires the bike up, heading back to the road and Marco's place.
