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Alice tried to keep out of sight as she listened in on their conversation. She had been heading to the room she and her brother shared, but the conversation in the room beside theirs had caught her ear. Whoever this man was, why was it he followed Ketin? Had he done something wrong? Whatever he had done to attract their visitors attention, it was clear that he wasn't wanted company. Alice was hesitant to call Perrygold security after the incident earlier, but it was an idea that crossed her mind. What right did this man have to just enter uninvited and clearly unwanted at that moment?

If her starts making moves to threaten them or anything, I'll call someone. Nirix is pretty strong, or at least she seems to be, so if he gets too rowdy she can handle it at least for a little while, right? she thought.

Moving as though she was just trying to get back into her room, Alice continued to listen as Nirix was advising Ketin to go to bed. The Eoclu woman was right, they all did need some rest. Alice already knew for a fact that once she was done eavesdropping she would probably climb into bed until the end of the voyage. How her brother could ever put up with facing dangers like they'd faced with the gunmen every day she would never understand. Still, she stood by the door to her room in order to listen further. She hoped that she would go unnoticed by the others.

It was just that it was so sudden that it happened. He hadn't minded hugging her earlier, or sitting in the same chair or anything. Those weren't bad, she wasn't bad. It was just that this situation now had happened so suddenly it was begging for him to start panicking. It took him by surprise, like an assault, but on a completely different level. But his mind still took it as an assault, it was in such state that be it anyone to do it, he'd have panicked just the same. What did depend on who the other person was, was how he'd get out of it. Screaming? Kicking? Or to just slowly silence himself and breath it out.
He hadn't had contact like this for ages... Everyone else was dead so what did he have? Everything had changed so quickly, and he felt that this wasn't the only time it had happened. But it took a toll on him, one he couldn't quite explain to others.

In his case, Christofer Knew he was too attached and he had been told constantly and so many times it grew repetitive, that he should not be the way he was. He should be more independent, able to work without thinking about others or turning to his feelings as it was all a hindrance to his tasks. But he kept going back to that emotional side, even if it might have done him more harm than good.

Here, it could have been fine if she had said "No, it's okay" or something, but instead, they were both denying things, and in this case, double negative did not turn itself positive

Canid wasn't sure what to do now. To keep sitting there? To move back to the other chair? He wasn't sure...
He wanted to stay, it was important to know that someone was still there. But he had hurt her... But....
But that'd make him selfish. The way in which she crossed her arms had his ears lowering. Clearly he had done something wrong. He had been bad. And if he'd reach out to her to do anything, that'd be just selfish and would make it so that he didn't 'care' about the other person, their privacy or feels. It was a situation in which all the answers felt bad. Saddened, ears lowered and gaze turned somewhere on the floor, he'd let out the quietest of whimpers, but restrain himself and not grab her - even as he felt that the blame was his and she was probably taking it just to not make Him feel sorry.
And he wanted to cry out about the situation. But he didn't...
He was weak.

He was faced with a dilemma. He'd have wanted to allow Royanna some alone time, to make sure he was not on the way or interrupting anything, but at the same time he did not want to be separated, because he was getting stupidly attached and the thought of being left alone again creeped in and wanted to drive him insane. He didn't know what to do, and that increased the need to panic and start running around for no other reason than to make that energy go somewhere.
Thoughts on self harm... Yeah, they were surfacing.

The canid would be mildly red eyed when Royanna took note of the chip, which he'd hand out rather quickly, not forcibly so, but he was ready to let her have a look at it, that was the intention. She could have just taken it too but...
He sniffed, unintentionally so before answering to her question.
"It fell to the floor when I was taking a shower..." He wouldn't be looking at her as he spoke, absentmindedly rubbing at his cheek instead and focusing onto the floor. "I don't think it's been too long since then..." An hour at most? Right? He was a little down when it came to his mood, but the new focus and the enthusiasm in which Royanna worked on identifying the object was a little lifting. It was nice to see her so interested in something, might have even sheered him up a little.

"A tracker?" Repeated after her own words, Christofer's head lifted ever so slightly so that he could see the object again. There was a little higher healthier pitch in his curious voice, though it remained soft even as his ears took a little more distance from the back of his head, not glued back there to point at the floor anymore.
He was intrigued by the object again now. First because he didn't know what it was and now because Royanna had said it was a tracker. And due to the amount of time she took to determine it, and with the confidence she spoke, he could reliably take her word for it. But didn't know what to say in return. Because if it really was a tracker, what for? Why him? More mysteries. More questions.
So much so that he was slightly startled when Kallenger started asking questions again. It wasn't a bad kind of startling, more like, being pulled back to the moment because his mind was all locked up and fascinated, focusing on the chip and nothing else, until the questions which had him lifting his head again to look towards her.
"Uhh... It was just Earth, I think." No idea that there were probably like a dozen Earths that he had no idea of. Making his other sentences to describe it seem... Unnecessary? "I know it's a little silly... But I guess it was just because people weren't all too creative... Like, Earth, like, soil... Habitable, something." He felt strange talking of such things. "Ummm, ja we had wireless communication, but nothing lightspeed... That sounds too... Advanced?" Looking at what she did with the chip and all the text that appeared. "Like that, we didn't have anything like that." Not to his knowledge.

He'd suddenly be a little confused about all of this, so many questions, too many questions. Why was he even being tracked? Overwhelming.
"Umm... I... Think it was on the back? Like... Like.... Here...?" He'd be leaning forward a bit, bending so that he could point at the back of his neck. "I think it fell off while I was cleaning that part..." As to if anyone had hit him there? "Uhh... I guess Dim might have...?" A faint memory, he looked so confused, and Royanna wasn't going to know who he meant. "I had no time to think about it, I don't know... It's probably not that."

So many things, they made him thoughtful, the canid couldn't help leaning back a little and crossing his arms, one hand rubbing at his chin while he looked down and thought. Maybe this was too much? He couldn't think straight.
"I... I.... I'm just a scout... I do running things... I don't think we have chips like that? We have tags, not chips." He blinked, thought further into things, but everything was just a mush. His head started to hurt a little. It's like it had been far too long ago since any of this had been relevant. He was shaking his head and brushing his palm across his face. What even...

Head was lifted, seemingly troubled. Hopefully Royanna would be able to get at least something out of all of this...

Down in the medbay, Asya and Jack had both already gotten up from where they had belted in before the frame shift. Both looked rather green in the face but otherwise fine. Jack was already on a bed with his damaged leg armor off, Asya checking the area beneath the armor that had taken rounds. Even from across the room, large and visible bruising could be seen starting to form "That's going to hurt for a while but nothings broken. Just ice it when you can." Asya could be heard saying.

Turning when she hears Kovacs enter, she begins to speak only for it to fall into nothing at the site of Ellen. Her face turns pale before she turns back around to face Jack, speaking to him in hushed whispers, though the word 'spider' could be over heard in a slightly upset voice. After a moment she turns around once more "Commander Kovacs, Th-thank you for pulling us out of there, and to your robot for getting our wounded here in time. You have my thanks." As she says this, Asya looks glances over at the auto-doc operating on Jin for turning her attention on Kovacs again "I'm Asya Żuraw a Maj-...ex-major in the Union of Niven Socialist Republics's Special Intelligence Squadron. It's a pleasure finally have a proper face to face. I suppose you have a lot of questions." Even as she spoke, her eyes kept glancing over towards Ellen. It was obvious Asya had never seen someone like Ellen...and that she was not keen on spiders, but that she was making a valiant attempt at keeping whatever her normal reaction was at bay.

Kovacs nodded, "Welcome aboard, Major. This is Ellen, spider-human hybrid. On her back is a friend of hers, Dietrich, a slime...thing," he faltered slightly, unsure about what to call it. Did it even have a gender?

Shaking his head, he turned his attention back to Zuraw. "Judging by your choice of words, you're now out of a job. With your skills and equipment, I would like to offer you and your team permanent lodging aboard my ship, at least until your wounded recover. That is, unless you would like to stay?" Kovacs silently prayed that he didn't sound hopeful, like a desperate lunatic looking for friends.

If she noticed, it didn't show. "Provided you accept, I will adopt you into the Federal Navy Auxiliary and I expect you to maintain your military bearing while on board. I suspect that Federal regulations are quite different from your former affiliation, so I have ensured to compile a translated copy for you to look over at your earliest convenience." He handed Asya a datapad, a list of the more important rules and regulations already on-screen.

"I would also like to interview each of you in the future, in order to gauge how best I can utilize your skill sets during your time aboard. But for now, rest up. I've assigned you quarters for the time being, just look for the room with your name on it," BN-33 poked his head in at that, optics blinking innocently. "Barney will show you around, but be warned; he's a little...odd."

The Diplomat

Royanna loved mysteries, as much as Roy could love anything. As a kid, on the rare instances when she had done something for entertainment that didn’t involve her training, she had spent some time watching films about cigar-smoking detectives who wore trench coats and followed hunches. It must have been at least some small part of why she had volunteered, when the time came, to become a Special Agent.

At first, the case of the Devil Eye seemed to be just like one of those old movies. He was the bad guy, who always eluded the other tough cops. She would be the tough cop who persisted until the end, and brought the baddie to justice with brutal force, and immaculate style.

But as the years passed, the comparison began to fade, and she was reminded each time he escaped that not every old film ended well. Not to mention that life was not like films. She had become disillusioned, and all but forgotten that old passion as her hatred of the elusive target began to consume her.

This, though, was different - and she was viscerally reminded of the thrill it had been each time a new clue was revealed, a new step taken. It did not make her happy - because nothing made Roy Kallenger happy - but it did keep her focused, and interested.

The kid had been a mystery since she had met him. A mystery that was begging to be solved. And now, with this newly acquired sense of freedom she had been coming around to, maybe it was a case she could actually close. The first mystery she could really solve.

But she was not consciously thinking of it that way. All she was thinking about consciously was the chip, and Christofer’s words, and their implications.

Though she only glanced to him periodically as he spoke and kept her eyes mostly locked on the screen, she gave off the strong impression of listening very intently, and giving him her full attention. When she did glance to him, it was pointed eye-contact, if he reciprocated it. The kind of eye-contact that reassured a person that they should keep talking, keep talking. It was silently encouraging.

The first round of questions was over, she had taken in every word he had to say - and now the second round could begin.

”So, you’re saying that you’ve never heard those words before?” She gestured toward the screen where many of the tracker’s components had been labeled. ”You think this is more advanced than technology you’re accustomed to?” It was an earnest question.

Almost thoughtlessly, she flipped the little thing over on the black pad, and the image on the screen shifted as a three-dimensional wireframe model of the chip moved along with it. More, different information appeared - the same gist, but different parts.

It seemed that something was eluding her on that screen. Eyes narrowed slightly, and she shook her head very slowly, as if musing that something was wrong with what she was looking at. As if something was missing, or didn’t add up.

Her words seemed to be along a different line of thought, running both simultaneously through her mind.

”What kind of unit were you in? Special Operations? Anything experimental or nontraditional?”

Roy appeared to remember something, and again picked up the tracker. Instead of flipping it over, she turned it onto its side, so the thinnest part was contacting the surface. Then she turned it to the next side, then the next - then the last.

She made a little, almost inaudible ”Ah.” sound then, seeming satisfied with what she saw. ”Access port.” She added as an afterthought, evidently explaining to Christofer what she had found.

She spent another moment looking at the information, then abruptly stood and hastily made her way toward the only other door in the pilot’s cabin, on the opposite end of the back wall from the one they had entered. It was already open, though the light inside that next room only turned on when it detected movement.

As she went, the woman gestured toward Toffi to ‘follow’. ”Don’t worry about leaving the controls.” She muttered as she walked the short distance, ”The ship will tell me if there’s a problem. Otherwise it flies itself.” She didn’t need him worrying that they might crash into a sun or something because she left the pilot's seat.

The room was about the same size as the pilot’s cabin, and in some ways, similar. But where the former was structured around two chairs and the controls and monitors that surrounded them, this place was a hub of control boards, databanks, screens and displays. It was all arrayed around the edge of the small room, with two fairly simple, rolling office chairs kicking around. They were probably the most mundane thing on the whole ship, and comically juxtaposed against the fancy technobabble surrounding them. Most of the monitors were mounted to the gently curving walls, and displayed either generic status screens or the backsplash Old Imperial insignia - the asymmetrical E, pointed at the bottom - different from Royanna’s badge, which was a diamond shape when the two halves were together.

Having not actually explored this small room past a cursory glance through the doorway earlier, Roy took a moment to look around, then made for a cabinet below one control panel. She opened it, rummaged for a moment, then closed it and moved to the next one. There were drawers inside that one, and she pulled each out in turn until finding what she wanted - a small spool of thin, non-insulated copper wire. Something else that seemed remarkably mundane amidst the high tech surroundings.

She stood, closing the drawer and cabinet with one foot almost as an afterthought, glancing around the controls until she found a small panel built in directly next to a simple keyboard and touch-pad interface. She sat down somewhat heavily on one of the office chairs, which hissed a little as id adjusted to her presence, tucked one leg comfortably up under the other and went to work in earnest.

Opening the compartment, a number of short cables, each with different plugs at the end, spilled out. She picked through them, found one, and shoved the rest away. Then she went about biting off a piece of the wire, fiddling with it and the chip.

”One good thing about older tech like this is that it’s almost always backwards compatible.” She said, voice plucked slightly by the wire she was still holding in her teeth. ”Good thing about Old Imperial tech in particular is it’s forwards-compatible with almost anything.” She paused for a fraction of a second, grimacing that meager excuse for a smile that was her only way of expressing any positive emotion, adding ”If I had to steal a ship, I’m glad it wasn’t a new one.”

She proceeded with attaching the wire - which was not, in fact, copper at all - much too thin, and in reality composed of many minute fibers which allowed for a more complex transfer of information than simply electricity - but it looked like copper, and it was easier to think of it that way. Nobody remembered the real word for it any more. Not even Roy - who seemed, at times like these, to know everything.

An interesting illusion. Or delusion.

”What I’m thinking…Is that this kind of tech usually requires an…” She waved one hand in a rolling motion, searching for the right word, as she continued to work on the tracker. ”...Authorization signature from any other devices it transfers data to. It’s a simple security feature that keeps it from just broadcasting to everything that can pick it up. If I can figure out what that signature is, I can reverse-engineer this thing and use it to track down whatever devices it’s been sending to. They won’t know we’re coming, either, because this thing will keep thinking you’re wherever you were when it was reversed.”

Well someone was feeling talkative, all of a sudden.

But when she next turned to look Christofer dead in the eyes, the sobriety was still there - and the distant, musal tone she had been going on with was replaced by the more grave and direct tone she took on when asking the important questions.

”Christofer. Who is ‘Dim’?’ She said pointedly. It was almost as if she had forgotten to ask and was just now remembering, though it was not actually the case.

Only a short length of the wire remained, and it stuck out from between her teeth at the corner of her lips like a toothpick. ”Was he one of the ones we met before leaving that first planet?” She didn’t want to call it ‘Earth IV’ any more, now that she knew he was from some other planet called ‘Earth’, Didn’t want to confuse him.

”Were those people your unit?” It seemed like a very, very important question indeed.

---

Qetan Ship

Tsuan’s awkwardly apologetic expression turned downright pained as the despair fell over Rai. There was something about these Nyran types that was inherently charming, and it made their sadness that much more empathetic. At least, to him.

He stepped forward, then sat down cross-legged across from the pale, green-tattooed alien, slumping. He waited a moment before speaking, and when he did the words uncertain and low.

”Hey, don’t get me wrong here. I like the kid and I’ll go to Hellstar and back to help him out. But...What’s so important about Rin in particular that everyone’s out to get him? I Mean, looks to me that even he doesn’t know why.” Tsuan shook his head thoughtfully, looking down into his lap. ”We all figured at first that it was just because he came from another galaxy - or, now, I guess, another universe, or timeline or whatever they’re called. But obviously there’s more to it than that, isn’t there?”

Whether the answer came immediately, or delayed, he would remain quiet, looking introspective and ponderous. One had the impression that in thirty or forty years he would inevitably look like some kind of wise old monk, regardless of what actual wisdom he had acquired.

Either way, it was not long before Rai was overcome with a second wind. With a a start,Tsuan too was back on his feet and watching as Rai...talked to himself. Realistically, he had to assume that there must have been some kind of link between him and some other Nyran on the ship, but it didn’t make the image of it any less humorous. He half-raised a finger, about to point out with a smirk that ’no, the door’s name probably wasn’t Shen’ when something happened. He had mistaken Rai’s straining and sweating to be anxiety - but it was not so.

A spark, and the sinister shield disappeared, the door retracting and facing them with their prospective freedom. The Nyran spun around with a bright spark of hope in his eyes, and it was matched by Tsuan’s own and the accompanying bright grin.

”Uh, cool.” He said, as if pointing out the obvious, then half-seriously ”Can you teach me to do that?”

Though the next question made his enthusiasm falter just slightly. ”Uh, yeah.” He said, in a voice that said ’I am one hundred percent totally sure that I think they might be tracking me probably.’

He was pretty sure that the whole group had trackers in their bloodstreams which reported their location back to the Skadi. He was slightly less sure that there was a receiver on the Koolest Boat. It was not entirely encouraging - but not entirely discouraging, either.

They were about to step out of the gloomy cell and begin their daring escape in earnest, when yet again, they were put-upon with another rude interruption from…Her.

A purple haze appeared, and a pair of vaguely defined red eyes that were surely intended to be deeply frightening.

Tsuan groaned loudly and animatedly - as though he were a kid, and his mother had just told him to go to bed.

”Duude! This @#$% again!” He moaned, sagging his shoulders and looking up at the ceiling. Then, assuming that he wasn’t the only one seeing it, he added to Rai ”Blink really fast and think about math problems. It helps.” When the effect had faded some seconds later, he gave a pointed look to the other. ”There ya’ have it, that’s ~Ova~. One-Dimensional Lord of Edge or something I dunno’. Also she’s a pedophile. Likes throwing magic tricks at people and trying to scare them with tacky spoops and overused tropes.” He shrugged, appearing totally unaffected by the psychic ‘warning’. ”Far as anyone can tell she’s just a generic bad-guy who likes to eat souls ‘cause they taste like swampchicken, and interrupt more interesting things when she’s least wanted. Total !@#$%, right?”

And with that out of the way, Tsuan stuck a pinky-finger in his ear to scratch an itch, then said ”Okay, so, on with the great escape? I’ll follow your lead, but I’ll be more helpful if we can find where they took my gun.” Though, he mused, this would be the perfect opportunity to field-test that experimental implant that the Boss’s eggheads had whipped up. Sure, they had fought him tooth-and-nail, saying that it was barely tested and might blow up his hand or something, but this seemed like a good excuse to take the chance, if it came down to it…

---

The Koolest Boat U Know


Dallen, who was just behind the cargo bay door, missed getting plastered to the wall by approximately one Planck-length. She ended up just standing there wide-eyed for a moment, coming to terms with this new outlook on her own mortality, before simply nodding in acceptance, turning and following.


Seconds later, she was strolling midship toward topdeck when the hulking mass of meat that was Jet Jackson went soaring past her with the velocity of a small comet. The backdraft from so large a man moving at such a speed was akin to a ten ton truck, and she wondered briefly if it was going to knock her on her ass. It didn’t – but she would not have been surprised. This time, however, there was no look of shock. Just a deadpan frown.

When she reached the top deck, Jackson had long-since arrived and was systematically reducing the door to a sad knot of twisted crap. Ty – who had not gotten the chance to say anything to Jet before he went to work – and Sands – who had come to investigate what the great crash had been – were standing to the side with similar deadpan expressions that seemed to say with perfect clarity

’This is our life now.’

Dallen approached, wearing the same expression – considered saying something – and then, against all odds, didn’t. It wasn’t that any of them feared Jackson – it was simply such an incredible and wildly unnecessary spectacle that they had all been made speechless.

The bursting of the pistons was felt, more than heard, and sent a sickening vibration through all of their stomachs.

And when at last the doors had been forced to go exactly the way they were not supposed to go, only a gradual hisss could be heard, along with the heavy breathing of Jackson himself, standing there with great triumph.

All three of them returned the thumbs up simultaneously as one, all sharing the same forced, slightly nervous, almost embarrassed smiles.

”…..Thanks.” Ty said after a moment – and he did mean it – the problem was that they had wanted the big man to open the doors merely as a convenience, so as to avoid waiting another half hour or two. It seemed like a waste, considering that the doors were utterly beyond repair, now.

But they weren’t important, even barring the circumstances – so nobody particularly cared.

The almost silly air of it all dropped as soon as they entered the ‘scene of the crime’, with Ty sidling in first and the rest in tow. It had the air of a place haunted. Outwardly, nothing was different – except that they all knew to some extent what had happed here only minutes before.

Someone, or something, had taken their friends from this very room. They might already be dead. That was why none of them had been in any real hurry to get in – why none of them had shown the same kind of energy as Jackson had. He might have been under the impression that someone was still in there – either someone to attack, someone to help, or both – but the rest of the crew were under no such illusions.

Surely, though, there must have been something. It was a fairly small room – if there was any clue, it would not be hard to find.

Almost as an afterthought, Dallen reached up and unlatched the air vent grate, allowing Laurent access into the room. If only the latch had been on the inside…

”You see anythin’?” She asked the Cat, without any particular inflection in her voice – and in a way, it was vastly more cutting than if she had spoken with hate as usual.

The whole crew was blaming Laurent for this. It had been his job to mind the systems. While it was possible that there still would have been nothing they could do, still possible that even if he had been doing his job, they still would have lost Rin and Tsuan – they would never know.

But none of them had the vibe of hate toward Laurent, at the moment. Nobody glared at him, or made any snide remarks. They weren’t even ignoring him. It was like he was in the room, and everyone knew he was there, and none of it mattered. It was as if someone had died – and they all knew who had been asleep at the watchtower when it happened – and there was no point in brooding over it now.

As Dal spoke, it was Ty who knelt and found the small gray device that had been partially covered over by a piece of busted door. It was thin and cool, and a purple dot glowed centrally on the surface. Without thinking, Ty tapped it with his thumb – and a holographic starmap spread out before him. The others gathered around, and looked on with him. It was a simple interface, with no text or labeling – just a dot that pulsed amidst a grid. But it was all they needed.

”That looks…’bout an hour away.” Dallen said.

”Did Rin drop this?” Ty asked, clearly directing the question at Laurent – and again, without malice. Just a cool, analytical, sober tone – so much worse than venom because it was so clear that nobody was even trying to make the Cat feel bad, or express their disdain for him.

Hearing the answer, Ty nodded slowly, thoughtfully, gazing at that little purple dot.



Then, coming to a decision, he turned and almost shoved the gadget into Dallen’s hands. His expression was hard and formal – and he looked for all the verse as if he were back on Earth IV, preparing to address the Hi’tzen Special Forces Division 109 Unit 4 with a briefing for the coming infiltration of Earth City – that would change their lives forever.

Except that now – he was the only Hi’tzen left among them.

It didn’t matter.

”Get us there.” He commanded to Dallen, who stood at attention, gave something that resembled a salute, and made off with haste for the pilot’s chair.

”Laurent, head to the cargo bay and see about converting the escape pod into a boarding vessel. Sands, make sure the ship is in operating condition. Whichever of you finishes first, go help the other. Jackson, you’re with me.” He paused for only the briefest moment before continuing – voice still more direct now. Dallen was listening through the monitors even as the functional ship systems began to warm up anew.

”Listen up people. We may not be a military unit anymore but that does not mean we’re going to abandon one of our own nor the one we’ve been charged. This is going to be a full-scale boarding operation. We’re going to crack into that boat and hit them with everything we’ve got. We’re going to show them not to @#$% with the people of the New Empire – and not to @#$% with our friends. We meet up in the cargo bay in fifty minutes. Head out and Earthspeed.”

Ty spun on a heel and gestured for Jackson to follow, headed to what passed for the Koolest Boat’s Armory which was actually a supply closet full of guns and small explosives. Sands made for the engine room. "I'm glad we brought you along, Jet." He said as they walked. "I get the feeling we're going to need you very badly."

Rai nodded eagerly, not bothered by the previous vision that invaded their senses. Honestly, they'd experienced something similar before, but... they've never heard of this disturbing 'Ova' person.

Troubling...

"Yes, don't worry about that! I know every part of this ship, since I've been-

beat

-w-wait a minute."

A previously said sentence, one that Tsuan had had told them, suddenly came to mind. They reeled back in shock. "D-did you just say another u-universe?!"

Just... how?!

No wonder they'd never heard of this 'Ova' person! They had been too muddled in their despair to actually pay attention to everything he said.

That... was embarrassing.

"I've been in that pod longer than I thought..." they mumbled, eyes now clouded with anxiousness. They looked at Tsuan, gaze pondering.

Trust gained should be trust earned, right? He... maybe he could help them...

"... I guess... I guess, I can tell you the short version on why these particular Qetans want him," they said thoughtfully, tapping their chin. They turned around to peek into a hall.

Nobody in sight. No distractions.

... Lovely. This was gonna suck. He seemed fond of Rin too...

A deep breath...

"So basically Rin is their genius war Queen reborn," they said quickly, all hush-like. "Now let's go- onward to our weapons!- and my familiar."

They darted across the hall, almost no sound coming from their footsteps.

... Yeah, that wasn't helpful at all.

Vaxur bit his lip, turning to Commander Wyr with a guilty reluctance. "Your call, ma'am..."

Don't get him wrong. He liked helping people. In fact, it wasn't just part of the job description- it was just his nature to like people, to befriend. It made compassion so much easier to give... and loss so much harder to take.

Whatever was going on out there... people could be getting hurt, killed, for something they don't even understand. Lives lost... and for what?

He had no clue. And it wouldn't matter, he'd save as many people as he can, care for them, protect them-

If.

If he was in his right mind.

Was it crazy, if this time, at this moment, he was feeling selfish? To not want to care about what was going on outside, out of the ship, to not want to care about what's happening to people he doesn't know but knows needs help- that all he wanted to do was get out of there and- and-

Was is wrong that he just wanted his friend to be home?

He leaned back, fighting back the urge to bury his face in his hands and cry. No, he... he just needed to pull himself together. He couldn't be a burden, he needed to be strong the Commander was stressed enough-

With a start, he realized that there was a solid weight on his shoulder.

He took a rattled breath, bringing a hand up to gently squeeze the one grounding him in place. "M'fine," he said, voice a little softer, with a touch of hoarseness.

Commander Wyr said nothing, for a while. She squeezed, one more time, then slid the hand down to grasp his arm.

"We can be careful," she said, double-toned voice smoothing out the tense atmosphere. "We can still help, and be careful."

He stared at her eyes, searching for- for- there was none. No condemnation. She was with him on this.

He thought Rin would approve.

"Then let's go help out," he said, reaching for his rifle. Commander Wyr nodded, arms twisting and hardening into swords.

"Together."

"... Together."

As Kovacs greeted the new guests formally. Ellen merely stood and waved at them as he went through his "current" crew while Dietrich continues to on her coloring on a piece paper on Ellen's rather large abdomen. Really calling Dietrich a thing would be most appropriate since she, in current form, can be anything at will and really has no true form besides being a living slime. However as long as whatever is asked or needed is directed towards Dietrich, calling the slime by anything that person is comfortable with is quiet fine.

Ellen puts her chitin hand on Kovacs shoulder as if to signal him to calm down a bit. Ellen being the spider hybrid she is, is a little simple minded and when Kovacs spoke all this military jargon, it was slightly confusing...even though she can pilot a ship no problem. "Yes, as Kovacs says I am Ellen, a pleasure to meet you" she greets the newcomers as she gives them a happy smile as she closes her six eyes. She opens her eyes back up and says "I'm guessing what my role is here...uhhh I think I what they a uhhh...his...uhhh...I..help with his oh! Public Relations! Yes! That's it!" She says as she stammers through thinking in what she was trying to say.

"This is our new friend Dietrich" she says as she reaches around and picks up Dietrich off her abdomen and shows the slime girl off like she was holding simba from the line king, however the slime had decided to take the appearance of Asya with absolute precision just by the naked eye. Ellen frowned and shook the slime violently and then took the form of Jack, causing Ellen to do it again turning the slime to look like Kovacs and then back Dietrich's female looking state, her face being visibly dizzy, moving her around and then her blue cheeks buffed up and let a glop of blue slime to come out of her mouth and standing behind Kovacs may have caused the "slime puke" to either slather Kovac'a head in slime or graze his back as his splats on the ground.

Ellen bit her lip and says "Sorry..." in a soft voice as she puts Dietrich back on her abdomen as the slime giggled like a child. But who can blame the slime though? Ellen knew, but Dietrich in her slime form had the mind of a 3 year old human child and acts as such. Of course hearing the giggling, made Ellen turn around and give Dietrich a glaring look which shut down her small laughter.

The Perrygold

Usually, Ketin would have given a charming smile and a cute little wave – playing on the fact that their parting was not so friendly by acting friendly – but there was none of that now. He just sat there, leaning on his legs, head hung, looking up through the orange hair at the blue-skinned man with exhausted, somber eyes. He did not smile, did not wave – just watched with solemn impassivity until the door was shut.

Eyes had returned to the floor then – and he hadn’t even been watching – so that Nirix’s hand on his head came as a surprise. Usually, any surprise would have made him at least uncomfortable – but usually it was all but impossible to overcome the virtual omnipresence of the Eye. Lately though – he had been getting lax – or maybe just exhausted. How long had it been since he last slept? It must have been going on two days now. Maybe three?

He did not start however, despite the surprise of it – merely a flick of one ear as a thumb grazed along it’s sensitive base. She could not see the smile at first, given that his head hung and he faced the floor. She might have even worried for a beat that she had done something wrong, when he twitched slightly in a single, subtle hiccup – but when he looked up at her, eyes shone with brimming tears and absolute, all-encompassing adoration. A tiny, almost shy smile was there. Barely enough to let one canid fang peek from where it hid. It was not a childlike expression – but it was a vulnerable and open one. The little metal panel where the wire connected with his skull could be seen the way she tousled his hair – it almost looked out of place on him, especially since it was almost always covered.

But it didn’t bother him. Nothing, it seemed, could bother him in that moment. He sniffled just a little, wiped his teary eyes with the back of one hand – then, at last, looked downward again – though not without unconsciously leaning into the hand just a little.

Another hiccup – but this time, it was revealed to be an exhausted little half-giggle.
”Y’know…I get the feeling he’s a really nice guy.” He said, voice soft and ponderous. ”Just wish he could’a picked a better time t’say hello.” The good humor was back – no trace of the darkness or flatness from moments prior. Not a kid – but a young man who probably should have still been one. Exhaustion, but not despair – though a note of sobriety did creep in toward the end, and he spoke in an almost conspiratorial tone. ”Be careful though. I can’t…see him.” A vague, tired gesture toward his own head.

He did not look at her as he mentioned this – but there was something in that moment which would make it clear that he had never felt so liberated as to speak openly about what the Eye could do.

It was amazing – a nearly euphoric sense of freedom to not feel the need to lie about it. To be able to use it to help look out for his friend and actually let her know it. No need to make up some phony reason about why she should watch out for the guy. There had been some in the past that had learned about what he could do – but even afterwards, he had never admitted it. He had always dodged the question, always stupidly pretended that it was all a coincidence or chance happening, or instinct or some other nonsense. He had never trusted anyone enough to tell them about it even in a moment of vital passion – but he had already gotten past that with Nirix. To have told her what he could do then, sitting in the truck on Daedalus, was amazing. But to talk about it so openly, so casually with her – was something else entirely.

He stayed like that as long as either of them could manage. He didn’t want her to stop. It felt amazing. But it also threatened to make him nod off where he sat – so eventually he got to his feet, yawned and stretched grandly, rubbed at his eyes, went to shrug off his coat before realizing he wasn’t wearing it. Then he climbed into the top bunk, and promptly passed out on his face.

Though, when Nirix woke up an hour or so later, she would find him curled up into a tiny ball, nuzzled into her side and sound asleep.

-

Outside, the process of cleaning up the day’s madness had already begun. With no official law aboard the ship, it was the security team and janitors who went about disposing of the bodies and cleaning up the blood. The captain of the Perrygold had been in Garofalo’s pocket, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have a thousand reasons to want the mobster dead – and now that he had nobody telling him how to run his own ship, he was eager to let the matter drop quietly. Garofalo’s body, and the bodies of his deceased, were promptly ejected into space. Nobody asked questions. No interrogations. The bar was closed off for clean-up and repair, and over the course of the night, life returned to relative normality aboard the passenger-liner Perrygold. Most people went back to their rooms – some milled about the common areas – and it was fascinating as usual how a tragedy seemed to get people talking who otherwise never would have shared a word.

Nobody said anything about the possibility of the Devil Eye being present on the ship. Nobody wanted to think about it – any of it – and so they didn’t. Life moved on, and Ketin Clarke blissfully slept through it all.

-

Morning had long since passed by the time Kete found himself waking up sprawled out across most of the bottom bunk – and most of Nirix too, if she hadn’t already gotten up – but it seemed likely that he would have vastly overslept her. Groggy, he noted in his mind that it was ten after two PM. He stared upwards at the underside of the top bunk for a time, then at last heaved himself out of bed – only to spend another minute or two sitting on the edge and rubbing the sleep from his eyes. A subtle growling of the stomach informed him as to what his first order of business would have to be.

The Perrygold had docked at Maltese Station, in orbit around the planet Faalchon of the Eitflora system. The first of three stops. To think, all that had happened, and only one day had passed. The trip was hardly a third of the way through.

Passengers would be embarking, disembarking – coming together or going their separate ways – tending to business on the station, or simply hanging around. Idly, he wondered if any of the people he’d met the day before would be leaving, and found that it did not particularly matter – though the midget detective had proven good company. He had to admit that he would have felt slightly more comfortable if the blue-skinned man was taking his leave – but instinct told him it was going to be a very long while before he would be rid of him. Plus, the man had probably saved Kete’s life – that he’d never asked to be saved, or that he would have surely saved himself anyway, did not matter. It was the thought that counted.

Although, it occurred to him suddenly and grimly, the man had openly claimed to be, more or less, a bounty hunter. But it did not matter at the moment.

He would ask Nirix later if she wanted to get off here, instead of Menard’s Grove. It didn’t really matter to him. Very little mattered to him now, it seemed – very little could come off as more compelling than his friend’s presence.

Though, with an abrupt and vague pang of loneliness, he was overcome with the surreal sensation that something which had previously been present in his mind might be gone forever, and he wasn’t sure why or how – or what.

He forced himself not to think about it. The most pressing matter at the moment was food – and so it was the matter to which he would first attend.

---

Qetan Ship

Tsuan’s blankly startled expression mirrored Rai’s in comical passivity. He blinked – and again, all he could manage was an intelligent

”Uh…Yep.”

It made sense, he supposed, that this one might not be aware of where they were now – but he hadn’t thought of it. There were a lot of things lately that he hadn’t thought of…

”At least, that’s what I’ve been hearing. But I don’t really know anything about universes. We were hoping Sands’ friend would…” The words drifted off as the miserable sensation came over him that what he was speaking of had happened lifetimes ago. Everything had been different back then, it seemed. Better. If only he’d done more than just tagging along –

But he couldn’t think that way. Not now. Not while there was still a chance in the ‘Verse…

He was beginning to think that Rai had no intention of answering his earlier question. He seemed to have shirked it, evaded it, or just ignored it – but just as he was about to ask again, Rai dropped the bomb.

Thunderstruck, Tsuan stared wide-eyed at a particularly startling section of wall. That low, thoughtful pout was back as he tried to come to terms with this. Despite all the strange things they had seen since joining up with the Boss after Earth IV – this seemed to be the strangest thing of all. And yet, in itself, it would not have been so unusual. Tsuan would not have found reason to doubt that these alien beings were capable of some kind of reincarnation. Alien life was alien life, and he often could not hope to understand that – it was essentially the creed of every sentient being in the Galaxy.

But for Rin – little, grumpy, antisocial Rin to be some fanatic cult’s reincarnated war queen? That was too much. He couldn’t believe it – and yet, he did. He did not want to believe it – mostly because the implications were due to come crashing down any second now…

He staved them off. He pushed them out of his mind. This was not the time to brood over the possibilities. There was still a chance – right? Right? There was always a chance, until getting solid proof to the contrary. He had to live by that now more than ever – and so he would.

After a few long seconds of pondering the meaning of that particular spot of wall, Tsuan shrugged, and took off behind Rai, moving with the same silence as his new Nyran friend. Stealth had been one of their key skills in the Hi’tzen Special Forces – and so it was very unlikely that he would go blundering and making their presence known…At least, if ahe had anything to say about it.

Almost unconsciously, his right hand fidgeted. It was easier to focus on the prospect of testing out that experimental tech than it was to go theorizing what kind of horrific fate had become his friend…

---

The Stella Viventium – Board Room

”The infirmary?” Drakis Volo repeated in a questioning tone. He was about to ask ’Which one?’ – after all, the Stella Viventium was equipped with two full-scale hospitals, and dozens of privately operated clinics – but refrained upon recalling that his young, mad friend had only seen the most infinitesimal fraction of the behemoth vessel, and would have had no reason to visit any except one. She meant the Medical Center – the larger of the two hospitals, adjacent to the Research Center, where the majority of experimental medicine was practiced. This included the Re-Sleeving room, and Doctor Nathans.

”Sure thing, kid.” He said after the span of a heartbeat, with a soft, but encouraging smile and warm aftertone.

Had he been aware of the furtive glances she was tossing at his sidearm? A mystery – though given how oblivious he seemed to be of the world around him at any given time, it would be no surprise if he had not noticed at all.

Harkahn was getting gradually more fidgety the longer they sat – and it was beginning to seem like that was a very long time, though it had only been a couple of minutes. The anticipation lay heavy over their heads and seemed to stifle the room. He merely nodded at Caru’s suggestion that the scientist be the one to speak first. Certainly he was the one who wanted to speak the most.

The minutes stretched on.

And then, just like that, the doors slid open – and in stepped the Captain. The tall, young man with the long, black hair – the jagged scars that ran viciously up his left cheek – and the terrible, terrible black eyes. The eyes that were both empty, and malevolent. The eyes that were like two inky pools of death marred by the violent light of a white star. The eyes of a soulless arch-demon – a demon that lurked within the mortal coil of that heartless creature called Aelyn-Paeryc Petrovalyc. And beside him, the diminutive figure of his wife Alexia – bizarre in her utter normality compared to the figure beside whom she stood. Nothing strange, save for a slight irregularity of her own eyes – little more than a vague lavender and gold tint to the irises. A mundane human that ever stood in the shadow of the demon, unfazed by the tremendous malevolence that seeped from his every atom.

The two of them stood in the doorway for the length of several heartbeats, scanning the room impassively. Their mere presence alone commanded attention. The woman’s expression was harder than her usual easy passivity – or perhaps it looked so merely in the shadow of the demon next to her.

The door slid shut behind them. Aelyn-Paeryc opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted when the sound of palms slamming against the faux-wood table, loud and sharp as a gunshot, blasted forth from where Dorin Harkahn had stood up with such haste that his chair toppled behind him. All of the agitated anxiety he had been mulling over suddenly burst forth in white-hot fury, restrained only by the tremor of his voice and the stillness in the air. ”Captain Petrovalyc you need to explain what the @#$% happened down there right now.” He growled, hot fury made cold, eyes burning and hard as steel.

Unabashed, Aelyn-Paeryc did little more than blink twice, otherwise unaffected by the fantastically uncharacteristic outburst. Then he spoke – and the voice was as distant, hollow, cold and dead as it had always been. An uncaring automaton dressed as a man.

”Of course.” He said, standing there like some malevolent monolith, facing the scientist down without a care in the ‘verse. ”Alex and I entered the Isandril Engine per notes left behind by my brother. We looked for clues. We found one. The Dendril attacked, killed the research team-“"And you did nothing!” Harkahn barked, interrupting the Captain – who merely nodded. ”That is correct.” And the ice in his words was colder than space – colder than atomic inactivity – as vast as the void and as hollow as his own evil eyes. ”I did nothing.”

The frankness of it took Harkahn aback. Thunderstruck, the young scientist could say nothing – only stare in appalled horror and rage at the black-haired monster who would stand idly by as dozens of innocent people were slaughtered at the hands of ruthless beasts. He tried to speak after long seconds, but managed only small, meaningless sounds.

”What could I have done, Harkahn? That’s what Rivierre and the security team were there for. What would my intervention have accomplished?”

The enraged passion was beginning to drain out of the scientist now, shoulders slackening, the tightness disappearing from his jaw.

”And besides that, they accomplished much more by dying than they would have alive.”

Harkahn’s fury was rekindled then, disbelief coming over him in waves – unable to bring forth the words, he could only gesture his demand for explanation with outstretched arms and splayed fingers.

”When the Dendril kill, they assimilate. Partially. They are a sort of hive-mind. The researchers they killed became part of that hive-mind. As such, their BrainPal™s became linked with the Dendril. It created a network of immeasurable proportions. When the Isandril Databanks began their emergency backup, they were able to use that network to transfer vast quantities of data into the Stella’s. It killed them in the process, and saved them from total assimilation.”

The explanation hung in silence as heavy as the air itself. Harkahn could only look upon the Captain in unabashed horror and revulsion.

"You…You sacrificed them.” He breathed after a moment, in despair and disbelief at the realization. Then, louder "You @#$%ing sacrificed them to get the Isandril data.”

The Captain said nothing – merely staring down the Scientific Administrator with the deathly eyes and blank expression.

Harkahn shook his head slowly, as if denying the truth to himself. He looked at the surface of the table as if it were an abyss. Then he fumbled behind him to return the overturned chair to its legs, and sat heavily back down on it, as if he might otherwise have collapsed. A distant look came over him then – an expression not unlike the denial that Valheimer had become not too long prior. He seemed to be muttering something to himself, but it was inaudible. And though he appeared to no longer be listening, the Captain proceeded as though there had been no interruption at all.

”After the transfer, something returned us to my office on the Stella. Shortly thereafter we noticed the presence of what appeared to be an ancient Martian warship under the control of the Dendril.” The terrible gaze flicked to Rya then, for only the briefest millisecond – but long enough to gauge her reaction to the words – or lack there of.

An ancient Martian warship.

He continued. ”The ship was captained by the Dendril commander, a man in grey with blonde hair.” At the mention of that man, Harkahn seemed to return to reality – gaze refocusing on the Captain. "I saw him. On the surface.” He said – voice low. The Captain nodded. ”We tried to exit Notspace, but were locked out of the controls. We found that man inside the Drive chambers, manipulating them. Not only did he know how to use them, he seemed to know things even we don’t. Then he disappeared, and we were taken out of Notspace, and put down in the Jahoma system. This seems like a random location but we’ll do a thorough investigation of the system before leaving. We believe the Martian warship and the Kingsbane have also been removed from Notspace, but that evidence is inconclusive. If so, it seems likely that they are very far away and similarly randomly deposited. Now we’re here.”

There were so many details he had left out – details that only Alex would have any way of knowing.

The scars on the blonde man’s face…

For a long time, the Captain looked impassively at Harkahn, who allowed himself to soak up and process all the news. He leaned forward, elbows on the table and palms in his hair, looking down at the faux-wood but not seeing it. It was too much. The whole ordeal had been insane. Nothing had gone as it was supposed to. Nothing had turned out right.

Except that the Captain didn’t seem to care – the Captain seemed pleased enough, even with the deaths of some hundred innocent people on his hands. The Captain had gotten his clue, Harkahn mused bitterly. The numb expression gradually gave to one of distaste – but it was subtle – and when it became clear that he had nothing more to say for the moment, Aelyn-Paeryc Petrovalyc turned his attention to the pinkish-haired ‘young man’.

And now that he had the Captain’s full attention – with the full, abyssal weight of the eyes pressing down upon him – the Lord would experience something totally new, and strange – and indefinable.

The gaze of black eyes, blacker than space, colder than the void – pierced by white-hot suns – was haunting. Not outwardly frightening – not so gruesome as any heinous spectacle of Ova’s – but in a subtle way, worse. Worse in it’s very strangeness. The utterly inexplicable, the sense of something stranger and more unknown than anything that had come before it. The eyes, like black-holes, seemed to threaten to engulf the Lord – threatened to drag him into the white suns and devour him for eternity. The emptiness of them – the soullessness – the vast and unknowable darkness more silent, more encompassing even than the blackness which he had not long ago been tossed into himself.

The demonic man, his face impassive, eyes evil and inky black and white baring down on him with the weight of a universe – said nothing for a long moment. Then, without inflection, in that voice of a young man that seemed too young for the eyes which had known eternity, he said ”So, you’re the Lord?” And it was more statement than question. ”I hear you have some important information for me.”

Asya is quick to take the datapad and begin scrolling down the page, splitting her attention between it and the conversation "We are certainly appreciative of your hospitality. As you said, we are now without employ. " she falls silent as she continues to read before speaking once more "Yes. Very different. But we are if anything, flexibly by nature. Our unit was never as...regimented...as the rest of the State. "

Asya was focused on the datapad in such a way that she only looked up after hearing the splat of slime. The only change in her flat expression is a minor twitching of her right eye. Handing over the datapad to Jack, she speaks "I...believe it would be best if I find my quarters. Sergeant Black can answer anything else." Picking up the black armor case and bag of weapons from where both had been sat down after they arrived in the medbay, Asya makes her exit and leaves Jack to finish the conversation. As she passes BN-33, she says a quite "Thank you."

Watching her leave, Jack begins to redon his armor. Standing after he finished, he looks at Ellen and Dietrich with a embarrassed expression "Sorry about that. Don't take it the wrong way. The Little Lady has never seen anyone that's not human. Add the bad time we've been having since everything went pear shaped and.....She's really not so bad." Holding up the datapad he then looks at Kovacs "She won't have any kind of discussion until Jin is patched up. As far as skills go, we were an intelligence unit. But we also served as...Internal State Security. Nothing else to be said there. As for equipment? Niven technology is a little different. Takes bits and ideas of other weapon designs and types...and just works. Most of it's battery operated, but there are still a bunch of regular slug throwers around. Same with armor. Mines just hard plates. No power assist on anything. The lady's is semi powered, but her's is a special case. She can tell you more about it later. I don't know about the armor in the case though."

Kovacs stifled a sigh as the slime dripped down his shoulder, choosing instead to activate his stun gloves. Taking a hunch, he ran his electrified palm over the slime, causing the alien matter to latch onto his hand. From there, it was a simple matter to clean up the mess, handing the cantaloupe sized orb to Dietrich. "Adorable," he drawled without much humor.

"We'll talk later, Ellen. You can take Dietrich to the mess hall for chow, but don't make a mess," even if they couldn't hear the humor, it was fairly obvious that the Commander appreciated the intentional pun.

Kovacs paid close attention to Jack's brief after Asya left the medbay. "I understand, Sergeant. Go ahead and fall in with BN-33, there is an armory on the crew deck as well. Follow the blue arrows," he finished. He would make sure to check in on the Major soon enough, but for now, it was best to get his conversation with Ellen out of the way.

"So, what do you think?"

Once the Dragon lady was in her cell, taking her nap with Maria's cape and hat. She sat in medbay as the ships's doctor went ahead and checked over the bounty hunter making sure she was okay even after her protests stating she was fine. Of course, being the ship's doctor, he tuned up some of the damage that Maria took. It wasn't bad, but he knew if the fighting continued, one of the pieces of her synthetic arms or legs would have been broken off. Maria was strong, but not as strong to resist the immense strength from Illyia. After the checkup/tune up, she was debriefed on what was happening all around. It was damning news to hear that Ova was back to cause havoc and that her father was captured by the pedo woman. Even though most in her position would go after and rescue her father from Ova, but Maria was different. She knew her father and her father knew her, even though being captured, she understood Kampfer can get himself out and if need be would contact her to get him out.

Even with this news of her father's capture, she wanted to know all the info on a ship called the Kingsbane. Of course it would be ignorant to say that the name itself is only known to the legendary artillery cruiser but as well to a large number of ships. Some military others with captains who want there merchant or mining ship to sound edgy. Really Maria kinda chuckled to herself hearing the name "Kingsbane" thinking that whoever the captain was, had a very sensitive ego and would be very easy to tip off. Luckily a recent "attack" at Earth IV sounded like there ship, since after being swarmed by some kind of spy drones they were able to trace it back to a old artillery cruiser called the Kingsbane. Also that very ship was spotted in the forbidden zone under Kampferian authority fighting against a fleet of Dendril ships before it and the Dendrils disappearing.

Even though it may sound like there ship, but there was really no true hard evidence that the dragon lady came from such a old ass ship. Maria kept her thoughts to her mind as she walks towards where Illiya was being kept. She knocked on the door, before heading inside and meeting the dragon-kin, knowing well that Illyia won't attack her, but still kept her guard up though just in case. As she looks at the Illiya, without her hat or cape, Maria looked like a poor young woman who got the shitty end of the stick and now looks like a woman who got a botched surgery to save her life at the last minute. Her black hair was straight and cleaned and not the frizzled, crazy looking hair that was hit by humidity. "Hey, I hope the nap wasn't too bad" she says as she walks over to the wall next to the bed and rested her back on it, before sliding down and with a loud thump of her ass hitting the ground as she pops opens her leg compartment, showing off she was still armed with at least her pistol. She pulls out a canteen as the compartment popped closed and unscrews the cap and takes a swig from it and from no doubt the Illiya's possible sensitive nose would smell it as alcohol. After taking a swig of it, she gestures her hand forward with the canteen and says "Its rum if you want to drink some" as she looks at her as she brings her arm to wipe her mouth.

Either she takes it or not, Maria puts her arms over her knees and says "So...you were sent to kill me...and I'm guessing whoever sent you must have come from that ship you spoke about, the Kingsbane. So spill it...who on that ship told you to kill your idol?" Tell me so I can find that ship, and shove my gun up where the sun don't shine and do indescribable things to them before pulling the trigger" purposely cut herself short since she would have gotten really graphic in what she was going to do to those who were responsible to sending out s hit on her, expressly to take her out.

Christofer just sat there, having backed up onto the chair he had originally sat on. It was a safer bet, and this way he gave more room for Royanna to work with whatever she was planning on doing. It was all alien tech to him for the most part, so she could freely do whatever and with ears flicking and head tilting, he could barely understand small snippets of the bigger whole. It made him a little nervous, and it was no strange movement on his side to shrink a little, shoulders pressing the lightly furred collar part of the jacket further against his neck, all the while he kept looking down, along the floor, slightly embarrassed and unsure. Words occasionally a little muffled up, but the reassuring and encouraging gaze that he occasionally got allowed a small shy smile to slip through against the fur. Backed up by slight intimidation, ears stayed back but he talked and answered what he could.

Head lifted slightly due to the gesture made towards the screen, tail tip had a small nervous swish to it as it curled around the chair.
"I... I can't say I have... Not all of them. Some maybe but not all." Slight stuttering, but he did try to regain himself a little, even if he partly felt like he Should have known more. English wasn't his first language afterall, so that may explain a thing or two of him not knowing the words all too well. The simplest he could understand, but anything more specific? Nope. But canid got the idea. "I've not specified myself on this area... I really preferred cooking and sewing over the complicated tech..." A little embarrassing to admit, but he might as well tell her and not lie. Not about that.

Head tilted slightly in an attempt to see a little past the woman as she seemed intrigued by the screen. Not that he could have helped he find anything she was possibly looking for, but he'd lean further in regardless. He wanted to help.
But ended up hastily leaning back and slumping over as the questioning continued.
"Oh, ah... A peacekeeper?" And an spy of sorts. Was he supposed to talk about that? It was a secret, it was meant to be kept away from those outside of the information ring, like Anyone around him, he wasn't supposed to tell. But he was Very far away from where he was even remotely from, so.... "You know... Those that go to the roughed up areas, make sure that people are okay and defend them from those that want to harm them." He wasn't going to tell, not yet at least.

Afterwards he waited, tilting his head and leaning towards a side as Royanna kept turning the chip.
"Access port..? Is that the thing they attach to a laptop? Computer? At the end of a cord...?" Why did he ask, he was lost either way.

Back was straightened and ears temporarily perked upwards as Kallenger herself got onto her two feet, attention on her and her movement. Should he... She made a gesture to move, so with the chair turning a little, he got up, pushed it very gently out of the way and eyed the controls reluctantly.
"O-Okay... Autopilot... Like a plane or something..." Spoken quietly to himself. Slightly unsure, partly hunched over, but Royanna probably knew these things better. He'd just take one last look at the timer before proceeding to the room next to them.

Unlike Royanna, Toffi wouldn't dare exploring in a similar manner. While he was curious, this was out of his league, and careful behaviour and approach was the way to go. Silently eyeing to room from the door was fine and enough for him, but as soon as Royanna seemed to find something that caught her attention, curious but shy steps took him forward and further into the room.

He was just going to watch her tampering with the little thing, not knowing what she was doing. Making it unable to send any signals? Breaking it? Trying to make a cocktail umbrella out of it? Those were cute... But probably no, not an umbrella.
Definitely not an umbrella...
Canid took a moment and flinched as Roy just bit on the wire that in his eyes was still very much copper. Maybe not all that thick, but to him, it was still metal, and her having bitten onto it? Concerned expression backed up clutched mildly shaking hands held near his chest. As much as he wanted to scold her for having done what she did, he couldn't find the words to tell her that he didn't want her ruining her teeth. Perhaps there were tools around..? So... Why teeth? Concern.

Eyes trailed a little, but he'd keep nodding, trying to understand the words spoken, again, getting the general idea of the situation, somewhat.
"I guess it could work.... Have you cracked such codes earlier? Or should I not know..?" Just in case. Questions followed with a silent whisper. "... Don't talk with something in your mouth...." Yup, still concerned.

The gaze he was given got him to back away a little, expression having him hold an upside down smile for the time being. Reserved. Unsure. He'd back away enough to place his posterior onto one of the chairs, arms slumping onto his lap, a little less professional way of sitting, but he'd look back.

"I could recognize the voice, and the paleness... But.. None of the people I knew were ever dogs." It was extremely strange to him. Everything else made sense, the voice, the tone, maybe even the way he got called stupid by a potential stranger. What was it that told him to question and propose the strange canid as 'Dim'?
"They were never dogs. Everyone was a human." Stated more out of a necessity, though Royanna should have known at this point that he himself had proof of not being a furred being to begin with. Which made it confusing for him to give any kind of answer at all. "I know of a similar person, and either they were playing along really well, or...." Or he could confirm that they did not belong to what was considered 'his unit'. "I'm not sure... It is very strange..."

"The weapons room should juust be right around the corner," Rai whispered, peeking out from their hiding spot. Nobody so far. "And uh, if you're wondering why a room full of weapons would be so close to a prison cell, well... it's... not."

No doubt that would have earned them a confused look. Or something similar.

"We were held in an extra storage room," they explained, almost tiptoeing to the other wall of the hall they just scanned. They frowned a little, turned, then let out a pleased huff as they found a control pad. "I've actually camped out there a few times, in the three days I've been able to sneak around undetected. Handy little trinket. It's just too bad that the very day I decided to leave with vital intel, I was caught. It's one thing to be hidden by the sensors, but like... I was right in front of the guy. Kinda hard to miss." They tapped the console- and a zap of silver electricity came out, smoking and frying the only security to the room.

The door opened.

It was a decently sized room, surprisingly not filled to the brim with the usual generic weaponry. Instead there were bottles, and clear containers with unidentified liquids; books and scrolls protected behind a clear case; and several staffs and stunners, some matching, and some not.

Two weapons did not look like the others. One was a staff, shorter than those hung on the walls, a green stone the center of its design, silver blade on one end gleaming. The other was a gun. Tsuan's gun.

They went ahead and picked up their staff, turning it over and checking it for damage. After a while they opened their mouth, as if to comment-

They paused.

"Sorry if I... talk a lot. It's been a while since I was able to. Talk, I mean, to someone else like this. Do you... would you rather if I spoke less?" Their eyes skimmed over their staff to look at Tsuan. "I can be quiet, if you'd rather I do. Uh... sorry if it bothered you."

They looked... a little lonely. A bit burdened. Like a youth taking on the responsibilities of an adult.

It looked like it kinda sucked.

The dimness in their eyes vanished, as if it was never there- but if one was paying close attention, they would have seen it. They turned back to look at their staff, then nodded to themself. It looked like nothing was tampered with.

So far.

The Diplomat

This time, Royanna did not wait until after launching a barrage of questions to actually address the answers. Instead, she replied to each in turn. It was the closest thing they’d had to a real conversation in the entire time they had known each other.

”They’re useful skills.” She said when he mentioned ‘cooking and sewing’ - and she seemed quite genuine in that assertion. The openness and honesty that came with her hard personality could almost prove an asset at times - for she could not give the impression that she would say anything simply to make him feel better. If she said something, she meant it - and sometimes that forwardness could be a positive thing.

”Peacekeepers? Like an occupation force?” It had not been what she’d expected, but it did not sound as though she disapproved.

”Yeah, that’s exactly it.” She said when he tried to reason out the meaning of ‘access port’. She had looked at him then, looked him in the eyes for a brief moment, and added ”You’re not as stupid as you think you are, kid.”

When he mentioned ‘cracking codes’, Roy made a little ”Ts” sound that might have passed for an imperious laugh. ”I’ve cracked codes way tougher than anything that’s gonna’ be on this thing.” She said confidently. Though she seemed not to hear his mention of talking with things in her mouth.

The last part, however - the part where Christofer addressed the matter of that ‘Dim’ character - she did not reply to. As had often happened before, it might have looked for a long moment as though she had ignored him, or simply did not intend on replying - but Christofer had been around her long enough to possibly know that it was not the case.

She had returned her focus to the task at hand, apparently satisfying herself with the work, and then going about connecting the jury-rigged chip to the adapter she had tugged out of the console. Pressing some buttons, the screen came to life and immediately showed a complex mess of menus and windows. She contemplated this, using the touchpad adjacent to one of the complicated keyboards to scroll through some options that rather sincerely looked as if they could not possibly mean anything to anyone. Mostly letters and numbers. Some strings that repeated, many that did not. One window showed a chart that looked vaguely like a circuit diagram, but was nothing of the sort.

After five minutes of this, it became clear that she had either forgotten the sprig of wire sticking out from between her teeth, or simply did not intend on removing it. Actually, she might have been chewing on it a little - a nervous habit she had always made a point to suppress in front of her men.Just another liberating detail - even if not the best example.

”So then, at least part of the situation seems pretty obvious.” She said, voice made very subtly sibilant thanks to the bit of wire. She spoke as though she were replying immediately, rather than picking up a conversation that had been left off five minutes ago.

”You recognized him, but don’t remember him being canid. So whatever happened to you, happened to him too.” She said it as if it were the only logical conclusion. ”My guess would be that it’s some kind of military experiment. It would definitely be the case if you were Imperial. Probably someone injected the two of you with some compound with the intent to make you into some kind of...pseudo-K-9 unit. No reason why it wouldn't have @#$%ed with your memory. It doesn’t explain how you got separated from your unit, but it would explain why you can’t remember how you got to that planet in the first place.” Then she shrugged, almost conservatively. ”But, it’s just a theory. If I’m right - if they did put something in you that made you like you are now - you’re in luck. Because in that situation I’m almost positive that Ritters will be able to undo the change with no problem at all. I can’t make promises - but it’s likely. The same experiment would probably have been done at some point in the Empire’s past, so there’ll be a starting point…”

Her confidence was returning. Though she still refused to actively think about it, the idea of returning to Ardella was starting to seem less like a prison sentence and more like going home. She was beginning to feel important again - feeling like an Agent on a mission, rather than a failure who had proven too incompetent to be anything but disposable.

And, while not admitting it to herself, Christofer’s reassurance earlier was a big help too. She could handle almost anything if he was there, whether she knew it or not.

Turning back toward the screen, she tapped one finger pointedly on the tracker. ”This…likely means one of two things. Best case, your comrade was concerned for you, and wanted the option of returning you to the unit. Worst case, your comrade was working under orders to make sure the experiment is kept contained.” The malevolence implied in the latter scenario did not require any dubious intonation to be heavier than lead. Roy didn’t dwell on it - simply tapping at the control pad so that the adjacent monitor came to life and displayed a simplified overview of what must have been the Milky Way galaxy.

”All of this is just theory. It may be totally off-point. But speculation is all we have to work with for the time being.”

Then she turned to face Christofer again, looking him in the eyes - the piercing green not intimidating, but certainly meaningful.

”How we proceed from here...needs to be your decision.” And she said it almost softly - almost as if delivering some grave, unwanted news. ”I can turn off the tracker if you don’t want them to know where you are, and I can reverse it to track them. I...don’t know what’s going to happen on Ardella…” She squirmed slightly upon mentioning it - feeling unconsciously a degree more confident about it did not make the issue any easier to face directly. The wire shifted slightly between her lips. ”But when we’re done there - if you want to track them down, I’ll help you do it. Or, if you want them not to find you...I’ll make sure they don’t.”
And the sense of commitment in her voice was like cool iron.

---

Qetan Ship

Tsuan wasn’t too surprised at the notion that they had been tossed into a storage closet rather than an actual, dedicated cell. The lack of anything to sit on, or notable features of any kind hinted at that. If it hadn’t been for the locked door, he might have taken it for granted. He raised a brow at the mention of it, then nodded in understanding.

It was actually something of a relief that it had not been a prison cell, and this showed on his face. A ship with a dedicated brig would be much larger than one that had no space to spare. It meant that, at very least, he wasn’t on some kind of capitol warship that could swat the Koolest out of the sky like a flawed argument. But even the smallest gunship would make quick work of a yacht like that - so he could only hope that it was more along the lines of an expeditionary vessel, and not heavily armed.

Though the idea that Rai had been hiding out, unnoticed, on a ship that was too small for a brig was disconcerting in itself. Either their enemies were oblivious, Rai was a ninja, or maybe it was a capitol warship, and Qetans just put captives in storage closets.

It was a strange day indeed when E’tzu Tsuan didn’t have much to say - but the weight of the situation was baring down on him with intense gravity, and he was finding it hard to think about anything other than strategies - and pessimistic speculations on many different variations of the worst-case scenario.

It did not stop him from looking around perplexedly when they entered the new room. ”Looks more like an alchemist’s lab than an armory.” He commented quietly. ”Do they have the expression ’throw the book’ where you come from?” Though it was not really a question that demanded an answer - it was proof that even in the most desperate of times, Tsuan could make something that resembled a joke.

He brightened up when at last his gun came into sight. It was all there - the blue, black and white ‘revolver’ with various tiny LEDs and other controls, the black belt-holster, and the three spare ammunition cartridges strapped to it. He hefted the belt, put it on, then did a few practice-quickdraws. He was fast.

And then, Rai was talking again - and he was looking at him as though he were saying something so incredibly stupid that he simply could not believe it was being said at all. As if he were trying to comprehend the idiocy and make some meager sense of it. When he spoke, the bafflement was in his hushed voice.

”Uh, @#$% no. Please. Usually I’m the one blabbing everyone’s ears off. It’s nice to listen for a change.” And he followed it up with a bright smile. In the back of his mind, he wondered absently if all Nyrans looked like people who were too young to be doing what they were. Perhaps it was part of what seemed to make them inherently charming to him. He had been a police officer before he became Special Operations - as was the requirement in the Hi’tzen military. He had spent a lot of time busting up sex-trafficking rings, and looking into the eyes of kids - teenagers, young adults - who had been put through more in their short time than most had in a full life. He didn’t often think back to those times, and he didn’t now - but maybe impressions such as those left deeper marks than the conscious mind could ever hope to perceive.

Looking around the room with a crooked, thoughtful grin, he said ”Hey, some of these are stunners, right? Anything I might know how to use? Maybe some grenades too? Something we could toss through a doorway to clear out the room.” And then, it occurred to him that if Rai had been on the ship for three days, Rai might have some idea as to what kind of fight they were going to be walking into. ”Are we planning on fighting through a lot of warm bodies and flak-turrets, or…? Like, we lookin’ at a security team, or an army here?”

Clearly this one, odd man was ready to fight half the Galaxy and think nothing of it - if it meant getting to his friend.

Rai was silent for a moment… then began to smile.

“You really do care for him, don’t you?” they murmured, tapping their staff. “I’m glad my instincts about you weren’t wrong.” They really were. After all, in this- apparently- new universe, more help was both needed and appreciated, especially if they wanted to complete their Mission.

They promptly snatched a stunner from the wall, then approached Tsuan, handing him the weapon. “It’s simple to use. There’s a small area on the handle where you can push, to fire an electric bolt. It’s… does aether mean anything to you? If it doesn’t, I’ll get to that later. Probably.”

They abruptly turned, using the point of their staff near the now glowing green stone to draw a circle on the clear case holding scrolls and books. The stone began to crackle with energy- and fired onto the area within the circle. Silver lines of what looked like lightning danced through the surface- a familiar sight, except for the fact that the one using such a technique now was an ally instead of an enemy. The dangerous looking energy didn’t seem to affect them as their arms reached through the circle to take out all the books and scrolls within the case.

“In terms of whom we’re up against? I admire how willing you are to storm a mothership to save Rin, and… scary… buuuut, we’re in a scout ship. Only ones in here are Reqti and Tahil.” They pulled their arms out of the circle as the energy faded, leaving a thin blackened outline of a circle. They started searching through the books.

Their casual multitasking seemed so easy.

“Tahil’s the female Qetan with red koh. Yanno, the markings under our eyes? Born with them. Effects our hair too, so she has pink in her hair. Hard to miss. Well… actually, never mind. She’s SNEAKY. Her suit has camouflage capabilities, cause she channels her aether to… uh. Oh, right, no idea what aether is, probably.” They flushed, scratching the back of their neck. They turned completely toward Tsuan, giving him their full attention.

“So aether is our life energy,” they started to finally explain, holding a hand palm up. A small ball of energy formed, silver-white in color, flickering every now and then. “The soul’s power, if you will. Everyone has this, but so far I’ve seen very few species use it like us Kiinris. That’s what Qetans and Nyrans are, by the way.” The energy faded. They leaned back a little, rolling their shoulders. “Takes endurance and concentration. And it’s the source of what Reqti and Tahil- and I- can do.”



“Tahil’s suit can blend in with any environment because she channels the aether necessary to power it. Reqti can go through walls cause he can fire aether through his staff unto the wall and manipulate the atoms there. Pretty neat.” They frowned, gesturing towards the stunner they gave to Tsuan. “And, well, their weapons- the staff and the stunner- it’ll have more power behind the attacks cause they use their aether to do it.”

They paused. They lifted a hand… and patted Tsuans’ shoulder. “But don’t worry too much. I got your back! I can do a lot more with aether then they can. My familiar- ah. Shen, they’re a bird- gave me a boosted aether potential. I can shield you, attack with you, phase and camouflage a bit. Tahil’s aether is actually kinda weak, it’s just she has a familiar to help her. Speaking of which, if you see a lizard like animal, just- don’t get caught. And Reqti has a pretty high aether potential, for someone who doesn’t have a familiar…” They blushed, then violently blinked, slapping their cheeks.

“Ack, ignore that. Uh. So yeah. Sorry, it’s a lot to absorb. But I figure you’ll need to know these things, so we could survive and all.”

Ellen chuckled slightly as Kovacs mad his little corny pun. As for the slime, she went back to coloring. "Very well" she says within her light chuckle as she went into the mess hall. At the mess hall, she took two trays and began to put food on both of them when Kovacs came around and asked how he did. "One moment, Kovy...let me at least get food for Dietrich, if I let her loose, you won't have any food left nor water...a good chance multiple slime's running around" she laughs slightly as she passes the tray to Dietrich and says "Don't make too much of a mess" Dietrich took the tray with a smile as she saw the small mound of food since its been awhile sense she had this much food and with one gulp, she shoves the entire mound of food and tray into her mouth. The food swirled in body, like chunks inside jello, as they slowly began to dissolve. She reaches into her own body and pulls out the tray and gives back to Ellen as the spider lady takes it and puts the slimy tray at where the dirty trays are.

Ellen then looks at Kovacs as she walks over to the table and set her food down and began to take a few bites from the food on her hand. "I think you did good...with the people with similar background as you. Compared with the other guys, I you did well. You didn't sound demanding...even if I was confused with the military talk" she explains as her eating habits became slightly more savage like as she then raises the tray and begins to eat food as if she was very hungry, in which she was....her own egg wasn't very filling on its own from earlier when she tried it.

The Ark of Chyll



It seems that no matter where you roam in the Way, the bars are always the same. I guess there’s poetry in that, but...I’m not a poet. Sure, the names and faces change. The drinks are different, but the gist is always the same. A bar is a place you go to forget. But it’s also a place to start something new; and as I sat there, smooth Marsupian Hyper-Jazz coming out the speakers and a fine, fine mushroom whiskey in my hand - I knew I was getting myself into something that was really gonna’ rock my world.

The place was called The Ark of Chyll. Smooth joint. A big, old freight-ship that had been sat down in the middle of Downtown Lai City, and gutted into a sweet bar and lounge sort of deal. The kind of place you go to spend some stand, or to get out of the rain, or to find something long, long lost. Sure, it was about as seedy as any other bar in any other city - but it was my kind of house. Places like this had always been my go-to for drinking up before a big case - and this was going to be the biggest case of my life.

The adverts had been all over the polar-northwest end of the Way for weeks now. A sultry voice talking about how all your dreams and deepest desires could come true. All your fantasies fulfilled. All you had to do was sign up for their little contest and come out on top. All sponsored by everyone’s favorite household name in comms - BrainPal Industries - in cooperation with their subsidiary BioDyne.

Too good to be true, right? Nothing new there. And BPI had always been on my list of ‘do not trust’ corporations. Too big and too clean not to be up to something six shades of sinister. Old, too - been around longer than anyone could remember. So when those adverts started popping up, I knew I’d gotten my chance. The ball was in my court and it was time to make a play.

So I signed up. Sure, maybe it wouldn’t go anywhere - but the usual cold-cases were getting old, and so was I.

The gist of it all was some kind of company sponsored scavenger hunt. Anyone could sign up, free of charge. No obligations, no strings attached. Yeah, right. Once you were in, they’d send you a place to meet up with the others who’d be on your little team. Then someone would come along with a starship and pick you all up.

It was the kind of contest, with the kind of reward, that promised to have every type of person itching to get their piece. Anyone with a goal, a mission - anyone looking for something, or someone - or just out for a challenge. Probably a lot of crackpots too. Shady business. Weird cats and off-rockers -- but I guess I’m not much different from them. We’re all not so different when it comes down to the bare facts.

So, there I sat, waiting for the others to arrive. The event itself was surprisingly low-key, so it was just another friday afternoon’s business for the bartender. It wasn’t too crowded - a couple folks at the far end of the bar, a few more at the tables. One sorry fella stared at the slot machine in the corner as if it had just dumped him on the street. Maybe it had.

I was staring down into that amber pool in my glass when the doors slid open, the smell of rain and the sound of city life pouring in with them. I knew it was one of them the moment I laid eyes on them - that was gonna’ be one of the folks on my team. Call it intuition - but they were looking for something...even if they didn’t know what was.

But I didn’t say anything. Just sat back, leaned on the bar, sipped at the whiskey and watched ‘em from under the brim of my hat.

This was gonna’ be good.

---

Eitflora System; PLanet Faalchon; Lai City

It was not a particularly interesting planet, located in a not particularly interesting system. The biome varied, leaning toward warmer, though the northwestern continent of Mor was pleasantly temperate, if a bit rainy for most peoples’ taste. Presently, it was a warm, sultry rain that fell over the city of Lai - warming up the morning’s chill to something comfortable by afternoon.

Lai was not a particularly large city. It served primarily as a center for industry and the entire western swath along the Sambo Bay was dedicated to factories and manufacturing facilities that gave a fair try at being environmentally friendly, but still made the sky gloomy and the water taste like filtered dirt. The rest of the city was tall, drab apartment buildings spruced up with bright neon lights and advertisements that spanned entire walls, and squat brick buildings where check cashing services, pawn shops, bars and other high-class establishments were located. The streets were not crowded, but public transportation was pretty good.

The Ark of Chyll had once been a hefty cargo starfreighter, built to haul a few hundred tons of raw materials to toe Sambo Starport for processing. When it was finally time to be decommissioned, the owner had it set down, planted and gutted, and turned into a bar and lounge. It was classy enough - deep amethyst and purple colors dominating the inside, enough light to see but not so that it was too gloomy or too bright. Lots of open space and a high ceiling - the only hints of the place’s former life on the inside being the support struts on the ceiling and the thick, converted airlock doors. They were known for great saltpigeon hot-wings and an admirable, if imperfect reproduction of traditional Yelwor burgers.

In the evenings, it was the hottest place in town - namely thanks to the gigantic, adjacent hovertruckstop that stretched out behind it. The bar would fill up with fat, angry drivers who whined about stupid things and didn’t flush the toilets. But at one o’clock in the afternoon, the place was abandoned save for a very few patrons. Actualy, the hovertruck stop was how a lot of people got to the city of Lai - being that Sambo Starport was mostly for industrial shipping, many people arrived on the planet via Central Starport in the city of Bo-Maah some hundred standard miles north - and hitched rides with the drivers.

That was how Corporal Investigator David G. Clégg had arrived - and frankly he hoped never to see that particular driver again.

The advertisement that had brought him there - and that would doubtless bring some half-dozen others there as well - was playing silently on a large-screen television mounted on one wall. He watched it idly, sipping at his mushroom whiskey. He’d heard it enough times that no volume was needed to know by heart what the woman was saying. A sensuous voice, exaggerated in all the right places, accompanied with all the relevant images of fame, glory, wealth, knowledge and power that they were promising to the winners of the contest. Surely the advert had been scripted by a team of skilled psychologists to be as alluring as possible to as many demographics as it could. Even he found himself tantalized by the thought of just how much good liquor he could buy with all that prospective funding.

It promised wealth, wisdom, sex, power, knowledge, secrets, wishes-come-true and pleasures beyond wildest imagination. It promised an epic, challenging quest that would provide adventure and intrigue, and camaraderie. It implied that even those who did not win the contest would be better off for the experience.

Because apparently, the megacorporation BrainPal Industries had discovered some new technological secret that would change the Way forever - and whoever won their contest would be the first, and possibly only ones to really take advantage of it all.

Bug as vague as these promises were, the rules were at least somewhat more clearly fleshed out. To sign up, one needed simply to send a message in their chosen format to BPI and sign a document that was surprisingly more simple and straightforward than most legal documents tended to be. Then they would be assigned, based on their present location, to a meeting point where the others in that vicinity would gather. Among them, one would be predesignated to put their starship up as a base of operations for the team. The group would live aboard that privately owned vessel according to the ship owner’s rules for the duration of the contest. They would work together, and the reward would be split evenly among them. Participants were politely discouraged from killing each other, though it was not an official rule and would not affect their standing. Once the group was gathered and settled aboard the ship, information as to exactly what they would be searching for would be sent to them, and the great scavenger hunt would begin in earnest.

The Ark of Chyll had been the appointed meeting location for everyone within five systems of EItflora. While official rules stated that anyone could sign up, the company had been using some kind of unknown system for filtering participants so that only a very few would actually be assigned a meeting place. Others would simply never get a call back. That meant that the number of participants per ship would rarely reach past ten or twelve at the absolute most, despite the relatively wide area of galaxy they were being collected from.

The Detective had been the first one of his group to arrive. He had settled in, ordered a drink, and waited for the others. He had been there for about an hour when the doors slid open, and the first of his new compatriots stepped in. Crossing one leg over a knee, he leaned back in the barstool and peered at them from under the brim of his grey fedora, sipping thoughtfully at the snub-glass of mushroom whisky as he sized them up.

This was going to be a very interesting couple of weeks…

They had reached their destination much sooner than Wick had expected. He thought it would be another day or two, yet here they were despite all odds. He wished they had more time aboard the Perrygold, though not because he'd miss the scenery of the ship. No, there would be a replacement for that portion of the journey soon enough. The part of this journey he would actually miss was what brought him outside of the room next door. He and Alice had already finished packing for departure, so this was the last thing he had to do. One hand in his pocket counting what few spare credits he had, Wick knocked on the door to Ketin and Nirix's room. He wasn't sure whether or not anyone would answer, but he hoped they would. There was something he wanted to talk to Nirix about, if only for a little bit before he got off the ship. He just hoped he would be able to put his thoughts into words.

Jacobo had never been the cleanest of creatures, at least, not by choice. The chips he was stuffing his face with had been falling out from his mouth by the handfuls, making him extremely self-conscious. Using his upper arms, Jacobo moved his wool coat higher up on his carapace, and looked down at the lower set of appendages. "Sign here huh? If I get my id stolen for the nth time, I am going to be livid". Focusing his eyes on the holo-tablet, he looked under and around it for a stylus to sign with. Pulling the seat covers off the bar stool he had just sat down on and shoving some of his arms into his back, Jacobo looked for the nonexistent stylus. Getting frustrated, Jacobo looked back at the holo-tablet and slammed it a couple of times on the counter at the Ark of Chyll. Through all of his frustration he remembered something, these newer tablets didn't need a stylus, and you could simply use an appendage with heat! Quietly grumbling, Jacobo tried signing his name with one of his arms. It didn't work. He tried with another one. It didn't work. He kept trying with all of his appendages, until, just like earlier, it donned on him, he had an exoskeleton. He looked around for anyone that was currently human and looked trustworthy. With one quick omni-directional gaze from his compound eyes, Jacobo saw another man seated at the bar. He wore a brown coat and gray fedora, with a glass of the hard stuff in one hand. Forgetting the recent food embarassment, Jacobo stood on the counter and scuttled on all 6's towards the man. But before he reached his destination, someone had opened the door to bar.