Nico smiled at the Harpia group. “What do you think? Will it be a fun night to go dancing?”

The Harpia all giggled and smirked at her. “Is there ever a bad day for dancing?”

Nico and the doctor quickly administered the extra shots, and Max called for a transit pod. Watching the Harpia adapt to actually remembering things was going to be entertaining. At the moment, they didn’t even remember most of the regulars unless they were really friendly or really revolting, so it would shock the patrons if the Harpia suddenly started to remember them or their drink orders.

They weren’t in charge of serving, for obvious reasons, but they often took on the role of hosts, sitting and drinking with guests since their bodies were immune to alcohol. They would dance and drink and socialize all night long until their guests’ pockets were empty, and then the boss would give them a bonus and send them home happy.

It was a good working relationship, and despite the very middle-class home that they were in, they were actually among the better-paid workers in the service industry.

The night club that the transit pod took them all, including the research assistants and a few curious Innu who had heard about the implants, to an upscale club, where a long line was already forming outside, waiting for the doors to open.

It was early in the day, but today was the first day of the weekend, and the residents of Absolution knew how to truly enjoy their time off, so they didn’t pay much heed to ship time when it was time to party.

There was no rule that the club couldn’t be open all night, so if they were busy, it was normal for a nightclub to close its doors just as the sun was coming up in the morning. On a night like tonight, they would even change shifts at nearly midnight, in the expectation that they would have five or six more wild hours before the party wound down for the morning.

The Harpia led them past the line, shaking hands and exchanging happy greetings with all of the guests in line, while a huge human man stood by the door in a black suit with sunglasses on, looking like the poster boy for a mob enforcer.

“Commander Keres, Subcommander Nico, it is a pleasure to see you at the club. Thanks for coming to pick up my charges today.” He greeted them.

“Not a problem Lucca. We think that today’s treatment should pay off quite quickly, and nobody wanted to miss their first night at work.” Max replied, and the big man chuckled.

“Come on in then. I’m sure the boss won’t be bothered about the dress code for your research team.”

That was the point when the Researchers finally realized that they had worn lab coats to the club, and they all rushed to the washroom to grab a change of clothes from their Flat Space. They might be working, but there wouldn’t be any test samples here, so it would be better if they blended in.

Max was already dressed well enough to go out for the night, and Nico was wearing a frilly blouse with leather pants and a vest that made her look like a Pirate under her lab coat. So, they picked a booth toward the back of the room and waited for the club boss to come to see them.

He had been looking for a way to set a business meeting with the Reavers since he arrived, and this would be the perfect opportunity for him to try to expand his weapons offerings to include human gear.

The club boss came over with a bottle of Reaver Rum and a tray of shot glasses, carried by a small human woman with an exaggerated bust that could only be artificial. Max looked into their minds for a moment and realized that he was both right and wrong at the same time. The assets were a real part of her body, but they were both Mimics, a type of shapeshifter, and they had only picked human appearances to blend into the staff of Absolution.

A human-run club had a special draw for other species, so that is what he pretended to be when he was in public. It also let him disguise his real identity from casual inspection, a necessity for someone in his line of work.

“Matteo and Aria, it is a pleasure to meet you in the flesh.” Max greeted them, and the two suddenly stopped.

They hadn’t expected to hear their real names here, but nobody else reacted, as they didn’t know either of these people to begin with.

“Maddox and Angelina in public, if you please. It’s a pleasure to meet you as well, Commander. Would you prefer a private room for the evening?” The club operator replied.

“We are here to observe the treatment of the Harpia. I think that it will allow them to have memory retention on par with any of the other species here. You might not have to send your bouncer to come get them for work every day.” Max joked.

“I have to send him anyhow at this point. They’re so popular that there is concern that someone will try to grab them on their way to or from the club. I also hired the security that is working the door of the building. They’re not ship staff,” the Mimic explained.

“Well, at least you take good care of your staff. Lucca is a good choice for the door as well. He’s a tough operator.” Max added, referring to the bouncer, who was formerly Kepler Infantry with a Gamma Ranked system, but who had grown so large that he wasn’t suitable as a Mecha Pilot. At 195cm tall and half again as wide as Max’s well-muscled frame, there was no way that he would have fit in a standard cockpit.

The lights dimmed as they talked, and the Harpia all flew up to the levitating platforms just before the music turned on, then stared eagerly at the DJ while they waited for the song to start.

Even if the customers hadn’t started to come in at that point, they wanted to dance. It was the perfect job in their minds, and now that they were having an easier time remembering things, it was getting even better. They didn’t have to miss the start of the first song, they were ready in advance this time.