The Chance of a Lifetime

"Nice set of pipes you got there, kid."
The words were barely out of her mouth before she heard smashing of glass against brick. In the blink of an eye, the slender figure that had stepped out of the nightclub was staring her dead in the eyes with a broken bottle held to her throat. "Who are you?" came the immediate question. Followed, of course, by the ever-so-predictable... "What do you want?"
She smirked. "I wanted to tell you I really enjoyed the performance. Might have reconsidered if I knew you couldn't take a compliment. I think I'll try again. Nice pendant, by the way."
"I can tell when someone's waiting for me," the younger girl snapped, although her hand was shaking slightly. "And you still didn't tell me who you were."
She sighed, growing tired of the jagged glass tickling against her skin. Time to cut to the chase. "Sydney Ezell's the name, although it won't ring any bells for you, Miss Hayley Kyo-Moon. And before you ask, no, I wasn't sent by your old man."
The surprise was visible on the girl's face, even in the alleyway's dim lighting. "How did you know—"
The rest of her sentence was cut short as Sydney grabbed her by the wrist holding the broken bottle. One quick twist sent the makeshift weapon clattering to the ground, and pointing its wielder's elbow and open palm to the sky at the same time. "Lesson number one, Hayley, don't hold something to someone's throat if you can't hold it steady. We may not all be born with your natural talent, but I like my vocal cords as much as the next person."
"I'm sorry," gasped Hayley, eyes full of tears as Sydney held her in an uncomfortable stooping position. "Please, don't hurt me."
Sydney rolled her eyes. "Cut the act, kid, I know you're going to take a swing at me as soon as I let you go. You're made of tougher stuff than you look. That's why you're not sitting at home right now, fetching beers for daddy while he beats you." She released the girl, stepping back a few paces as a sign of goodwill.
Hayley straightened, eyeing the other woman warily as she rubbed her smarting wrist. "You still haven't told me what you want."
"I want to see you in action, sweetheart. Seventeen, abusive single parent, living on the street and making credits at the local bar with Gavin Dunn and a voice that could put the famous ones to shame...but the drinking, it's always the habit of drinking underage that gets me. It's a story I've heard a lot, and every time I think it's a damn shame. You could be doing some real work for some real musicians...or enlisting."
The suspicion on Hayley's face transformed into anger in a heartbeat. "Enlisting? Not happening."
"I understand. No one's ever given a shit about you, so why should you put your life on the line for them? I could tell you all about finding a place in the galaxy and how being selfless is really the best reward, but I don't think you'd buy that fairy tale for one second. And I'm going to be brutally honest with you, war isn't pretty. Especially with the Covenant turning more of our colonies to ash every year. No, I'm here with a proposition."
She wasn't buying it, Sydney could tell as much. But she knew that the girl's curiosity would win out over her skepticism, and sure enough... "What proposition?"
Gotcha. "I'm afraid I haven't introduced myself properly, Hayley. My acquaintances usually address me as Sergeant Sydney Ezell, 10th Shock Troops Battalion, First Company, Delta Platoon. When my squad and I aren't kicking aliens off our planets, we take a few months of leave as Orbital Skid."
Hayley's mouth fell open. "No way. You're—"
"The drummer?" Sydney rolled her eyes. "Yes, nobody ever notices the drummer. Now I'm going to be straight with you. Private Corcoran, my vocalist..." My friend. "...was KIA on our last deployment. The brass decided to keep it quiet and gave us two weeks to find a replacement before they make the story public. And I've taken a bet with the squad too; first one to land us the vocalist takes a week off bathroom duty. You ain't going to disappoint me, are you Hayley?"
"You're...you're just doing this because you want to win a bet?" She didn't know why, but that scared the crap out of her.
"And because it's your only chance to get off these streets." Sydney smirked. "I don't know if you'll make me proud or disappoint me, but I guess I'll find out."
Hayley could feel her heart pounding in her chest. Despite how afraid of this woman she was, she couldn't help but feel a strange exhilaration. "I could run away from you right now," she murmured, albeit without much rigour.
The look in Sydney's eyes told her she was already far ahead of her. "I'll find you."
Hayley nodded, having guessed as much. Without warning, she darted forward, her fist flying towards her opponent. Sydney's hand came up, catching the fist with a firm grip. Nonetheless, the sudden attack threw her off. In one motion, Hayley's other hand snatched up the broken bottle she dropped earlier, and without hesitation, jabbed it upward.
The ODST didn't even look down. Her foot swept out into Hayley's, causing her opponent to lose her balance. The arm holding the bottle flailed, slashing at thin air rather than her opponent. With one flick of her wrist, she sent the younger girl crashing bodily into the brick wall. She fell to the ground in a heap, gasping for breath.
A pair of boots appeared in Hayley's vision, but she didn't look up. "Screw you," she spat. "You're just like the rest of them. You don't give a shit about me."
She heard Sydney tutting mockingly. "I hate hearing such awful words coming out of your pretty mouth. Don't I get to see some of that charm you give the boys at the bar?"
Hayley laughed mirthlessly as she got up. "I don't swing that way, Sergeant. And no paycheck you offer me could convince me to put on a fucking uniform!" She threw another punch, but was just as easily blocked. This time, however, she flung her weight forward and headbutted Sydney squarely in the forehead. The bottle came up again.
There was no time to think, only to react. Sydney's right hand moved up to shield her face, and she felt a half dozen sharp points make contact with her palm. She flung Hayley's fist back, causing her to stumble and fall over. The broken bottle ripped itself free from the Sergeant's hand, but she ignored the rivulets of blood trickling down her fingers. "You're right, Hayley. No amount of money should compel anyone to die for their people. It takes a lot more than motivation to do what my friends do. But I'm giving you the chance for someone to recognize you, to remember you when you're gone." As she stepped forward, Hayley raised the bottle, but the ODST simply kicked it out of her hand. She leaned down with a strange smile on her face. "To give a shit about you. Isn't that what you wanted?"
"Why do you want me so badly?" Hayley whispered. "It isn't to win a bet, is it?"
An unreadable look crossed the young Sergeant's face. Then the strange smile was gone. "You come with me, and I might just tell you one day. More importantly, you come with me..." Her uninjured hand tightened. "...and I'll make sure your old man wouldn't dare put his hands on you again. No man will, not ever." She stood up, and without another word, walked away up the alley and back towards the street.
Hayley just sat there on the ground for a moment, wondering how it was that the evening had taken such a bizarre turn. Her gaze lingered on the droplets of crimson on the ground, and wondered if she was about to make the best or the worst decision of her life when someone in the bar window caught her eye. It was Gavin, the handsome boy with the guitar and the only one in the city who was always a gentleman to her. They had been playing together for four months now; she had told him after their first performance that she had to keep travelling, and he had asked no questions and even offered to accompany her. Last week, he had given her a beautiful coral necklace and quietly told her it had belonged to a friend named Judy.
He wanted to ask me something, after tonight's show, she recalled. I promised I would wait for him to pack up. And there he was, putting away his guitar and folding up his stand. He hadn't noticed her yet, but it wouldn't be long before he would come looking for her. Now or never.
Slowly, Hayley stood up. She unwound the pendant from around her neck and hung it on the side door's keypad. This time, genuine tears filled her eyes as she took one last glance into the bar. I'm sorry, Gavin. Maybe one day we'll meet again. Before she could change her mind, Hayley turned and dashed off into the street after Sergeant Sydney Ezell's distant form.