Goodnight is considering her reply when catches Isaint and the Frenchman making their comments, and then Solo's surprisingly mild reply. Very calmly, she draws her Ares Lightfire 75 and turns around, stopping in the middle of the tunnel. She glares at Isaint and the Frenchman and tells the Isaint, "Not just infected. I think you're an indiscriminate thug where everyone is concerned. You said it yourself, 'Hurting people is we do' right? So don't be surprised or upset if I think that a paid legbreaker with hatred of monsters is, y'know, going to attack what most people would define as monsters, or if I treat you like a violent thug." Goodnight looks angry, but it is not the flashing rage of earlier and her voice remains calm. Now there is an edge of resignation to it, an unspoken measure of weary acceptance, as though she's dealt with people like the Isaint she describes a thousand times before, and didn't enjoy it then either.
Her eyes shift to the Frenchman. "We have four civilians that don't know how to move quietly, drones buzzing about, and a fucking motorcycle. My voice is not adding appreciably to the noise level." She explains irritably. "Take it from the expert. Most of the drek down here could hunt you silent, in the dark, behind a ruthenium screen and thermal damping. Spirits and their ilk do not give a single, apathetic sunday fuck how loud we are." She gestures at Solo with the hand that isn't holding a firearm and says, "But this man is having problems beyond our current task. Thinking of a solution rather than dwelling on a problem is constructive, and if he's got an idea of what he wants to do, the motivation to get through this to do it may save his life, so kindly shut your fragging gob unless you have something to contribute."
Goodnight looks back at Isaint, her eyes rolling for a second and says, "At least you had a viewpoint to express." Then she stares daggers at them both a moment longer and turns back around, walking once more.
To Natasha, Goodnight says, "I'm sorry about that." As they walk, she ejects the magazine from her pistol and replaces it with another, one that has a yellow stripe down the back, and curious looking bullets. She loads the pistol and cycles the action wirelessly, then places it back in its holster and unbuckles the whole thing from her thigh. Proferring it to Natasha, Goodnight says, "Here. I figure no kid in this day and age can grow up without having at least a layman's knowledge of how to use a gun, right?" Natasha nods, staring at the holster, which had turned black somewhere between hand and thigh. Goodnight nods, approving. "Good. This is loaded with stick-n'-shock. It won't kill anybody unless you really pile on the shots, but it'll stop a charging ork if you hit him a couple of times. Take it, put it on, make sure you know where it is in the dark."
As Natasha buckles on the holster, Goodnight looks at Solo and says, "To answer you, yes, I would. I already have." She sounds incredibly sad for those five syllables, but she smiles, too. Then she shifts her focus to Melisa and tells her, "Love is sacrifice, yes, but it doesn't have to be. If she loves him,she'll adapt. If you love him, you'll let him adapt. If he loves you both, he'll try to make it work."
Goodnight takes a second to pull out her contacts case and pop out her nightshade contacts, putting them in the case and washing them with a few brisk shakes. Natasha is just getting the holster seated when Goodnight hands her the case and tells her, "Here. Nightvision and a smartlink. Just put the little pink triangle where you want the bullet to go and physics will do the rest." Her own eyes are a blazing fuschia now, and they flash in the near-darkness like a cat's as she whispers and gestures, proving that she can, in fact, augment someone to be a better shot. The new spell construct lays over the old, and a moment later Natasha's grace and speed have been as augmented as Goodnight's magic can make them. Satisfied, she lets Natasha begin to get the measure of her new skill and gear and turns away, leading them deeper into The Maze.
