Ansgar was moving crates at a brisk pace, seemingly unbothered by the smell that was no doubt getting to the others. The Hub was home for him, well home in this new place humanity had found themselves in, and he'd grown up with the stench and culture that humanity that had drifted into the Hub had found themselves in. He was all but grinning and humming to himself, comfortable at home despite having been disowned by his family. He'd been catching up with old gang members during his free time, putting his ear to the ground as it were and digging around for information as to current rumors and goings on. The arrival of the Veritas Lux Mea had indeed generated a lot of rumors and discussions as to why that ship was here. He'd not divulged his position on board said ship, of course, he was gathering information not handing it out, but it gave him some interesting thoughts as to what was going on at the Hub.

His attention was dragged over to his current superior as she muttered complaints about where their passenger was supposed to be. Ah, yes, the Judge, Ansgar was not looking forward to that. Anyone who'd any experience in the criminal in this new place knew about Judges, and the amount of trouble they tended to bring along with them. And yet, here they were, about to shuffle one to wherever the sodding hell the bastard wanted to be. He did speak up in response to the captain, in his own manner of speaking of course, hefting up another crate as he spoke, continuing to work while remarking on the situation at hand. "Well shite lass, th' sodding wanker doesn' show, tha's less stress. Tosser's are nothin' but trouble. Least got ye'self a down payment, jus' in case?"

---

Teg's head was pounding. She'd spent the day and night of respite that Maria had generously offered them, resting. Which meant that she had been drinking and gambling at a prodigious pace usually only matched by those facing an imminent and gruesome death. In a matter of hours she'd managed to gamble away at least a months worth of credits in the backroom parlor of an undoubtedly illegal bar filled to the brim with pirates. Drunk off of some strange beverage that the passed as drinkable to the Glao, she'd accused no less than three of her fellow revelers of cheating and almost started a gunfight before the bartender had politely asked her to put her pistol away. Teg reflected with a smile that it was the shotgun that he was pointing at her head that really sold it. A round of drinks bought with the last of her credits settled the matter and Teg left the bar in the early morning in search of food certain that she had made several new friends.

Broke, still drunk, and full of joy Teg had thus returned to the ship well after breakfast. She noted with great pride that her attire was only a bit ruffled and that she hadn't even lost her hat. In a tragedy of epic proportions, Teg's dreams of sleep were unfortunately shattered when the Captain grabbed her the second she boarded the ship. Muttering dark threats and mentioning the value of haste, the Captain had assigned her to the loading party. Teg felt certain that loading heavy crates of dubious legality had never been part of the original job pitch, but she knew all to well that there was no strong union of space mercenaries to shoulder her righteous cause. She would have to suffer quietly yet again.

Struggling with a crate full of what she felt was the heaviest ammunition the she could reasonably remember ever having carried, Teg only vaguely listened to what the Captain and Socket were discussing. It was too early in the morning for talking, especially loud talking. However, the mention of a guest set electric charges of recognition surging through the alcohol addled synapses of her brain.

"Tall, creepy looking dude with a suit of metal armor?" Teg began, happily dropping the crate of ammunition with a loud bang. Turning towards the Captain and Socket, Teg lazily scratched the back of her neck and perched lightly atop the crate. "Yeah, I saw him. He was sharpening his blades and staring daggers at a cup of coffee in the mess hall. I'm not sure if he knows it's for drinking. Someone should probably make sure that he doesn't murder Kev. Or more importantly stop him before he decides to interrogate our coffee," she added with a shrug of her shoulders.

Andrea

Andrea was nervous, and afraid. After the knock down drag out argument between her and Maria (ending with Maria firmly not rescinding the offer to take the Judge anywhere and Andrea sulking off to her pilot's seat to seethe) she had been on edge. In an attempt to reassure herself about their cargo, Andrea had spent most of her day off checking over the ship to make sure there was nothing she had missed, or Ansgar had added when she wasn't looking. Reassured that there wasn't anything new or concerning, she went into the Hub to buy a new cape. They were gonna need good luck, and nothing brought better luck than a new cape. Coming back last night with a vibrant purple new cape, she felt a small modicum of calm return. Everything was going to be alright.

The next morning, with the realization that they actually were going to haul a Judge across space the panic returned. This morning, she had done no less than seven checks of all of the ship's operating systems, five checks of the ship's mechanical systems, and reorganized her display of model ships on her dash twice. The only thing stopping her from doing an eighth and sixth check and a third reorganization was the fact that Maria had ordered her to start helping load the supplies onto the ship, something Andrea did with only minor complaint. "Shouldn't have the pilot doing grunt work." She grumbled, picking up a box with a slight grunt and heading up the ramp. "I can fly this ship through a damn meteor shower and come out without a scratch, yet here I am, loading boxes like a farm boy on his first trip to space."

Her three drones buzzed around the ship, keeping an eye out for any trouble. And trouble would be coming, of that Andrea was certain. They had picked up a damned Judge of all people. Judges only brought trouble and death. While a rebellion wasn't exactly the cleanest of affairs, she had at least expected most of the dying to be on the other side. Judges usually meant death for those on the opposite side of the law.

Standing off the side of the ramp, her box successfully loaded onto the Lux, she gave a slight side glance at Maria. "We could just kick him off. Don't want any undue tension or stress on our cook. Or the rest of the crew." Her thumb was rubbing the coin around her neck, nose slightly wrinkled at the smell of the hub. "Really, its only good policy. Like not letting Ansgar change things on the Lux without talking to me first."

---

---

Two months since joining the crew of the Veritas Lux Mea had cruised on by much quicker than the Ithlo physician realized, and yet it didn't come as a great surprise considering ship's duties and general work were in constant motion. As the only full-time medic aboard, Kai -with the Captain's expressed approval of course- made several changes and minor upgrades to the medical bay, which had previously been in a rather sad state of affairs. Aside from a lack of proper surgical tools and the like, cabinets needed to be restocked a lot of the fundamentals, including fresh latex gloves, sterilized bandages, and a thorough cleaning, free from any dust, dirt, or debris. The last thing needed on a ship full of people flying in space was infection spreading from lack of hygiene.

The single day of shore leave bestowed upon the crew by their benevolent Captain was time well-deserved by all, and Kai'mos would make the most of every minute knowing a place like the Hub would fill a great many needs on his list. One of those tasks being the tending of a second degree burn to the underside of Maria's forearm due to contact with an extremely hot pipe in the engine room the previous day. It would heal naturally over time of course, but Kai'mos -being well versed in herbalistic remedies- had a salve which would not only soothe the skin and accelerate the healing process, but repair lost tissue and any possible nerve damage with near perfection. The key ingredient, truly only ever found on a few planets within the galaxy, is also the toughest to procure without knowing precisely what you're looking for, as there are a handful of false plants sharing similar traits. Fortunately, the Ithlo knew of a place within the Hub which carried the exact specimen, however gaining access would prove to be more the challenge.

“You know we banned you, Apothecary, from your last visit to our humble establishment.” The short, stout creature, similar in appearance to what a human would consider a Dwarf, stood behind the counter of the small shop which was situated to the rear of the bazaar, giving Kai’mos a very suspicious gaze as he stroked a dark, wiry beard. “We don’t need trouble like last time.”

“And there will be no trouble from me, I assure you. I only-”

“Right!” The vendor interrupted in a low, gruff voice. “That’s what ye said last time as well before putting three of me business partners in the infirmary. I thought ye were supposed to be some kind of pacifist.” His voice took on an almost condescending tone. “Ye know, all ‘spiritual’ and queer religious beliefs of some such.”

Kai’mos, gazed at the other across the counter with a neutral expression, unphased by childish insults and wild assumptions. “Ah. You are referring to the moment your henchmen assaulted me, unprovoked I might add, and I simply defended myself?” The Ithlo nodded as he continued. “And I only came for what I have requested of you. Nothing more. Nothing less.”

“Well, we don’t have any in stock.” The Dwarf retorted, crossing his arms in a defensive posture.

The Ithlo cocked his head slightly and raised a quizzical brow, pausing for a few moments before flicking his eyes toward the bushel of reddish-voilet colored plants hanging near a shelf behind the short vendor.

“You mean, those?" Kai lifted his finger and pointed in the direction of the dried plants.

“It ain’t them.” The stubborn near-human stood his ground, arms remaining crossed, as he continued to stare up at the Ithlo with a frown.

“I beg to differ, it is the-”

“Nope.”

Kai couldn’t help but allow a slight smirk to form on one side of his lips. He knew the games of these vendors well, and while this particular fat, lazy, pile of useless matter was the only thing between him actually procuring the very herb needed for his captain, he was also well aware of what piqued the greed of such a creature. With a graceful motion, the Ithlo slipped his hand into the interior pocket of his long coat, and pulled out a small object wrapped in tanned parchment. He could then see the expression on the vendor’s grubby face softening just a bit. Kai, holding out his hand with the object, slowly unwrapped, until the object was free of its enclosure, revealing a most precious of gems.

“Rythian crystal…” The words emerged from the Dwarf’s mouth as a whisper while he gazed upon the glistening facets of green and blue hues. “How did ye find such a prize?”

“Will it suffice to trade for the entire lot of my request?” The Ithlo said flatly, which was usually an indication he was ready to wrap up his business.

“Are ye kidding, Doc?” The vendor chuckled heartily, leaning in to get a better look at the gem. “This could buy ye half my stock of medicinals.”

Kai’mos paused for a moment without taking his eyes off the other, and a smile eventually creased his lips.

“Excellent.”

---

Back on the ship, Kai’mos carried a large bag that the Dwarven vendor had graciously filled for him with various premade ointments, herbs, disinfectants, bandages, and a myriad of other needed medical wares, which the Ithlo wasted no time in restocking within the MedBay pantry. Shortly after, he began grounding up the ingredients needed and preparing a pasty substance that he immediately presented to the Maria in order to apply it to her burn wound.

“As promised, Captain.” Kai bowed his head in respect to the young human who oversaw the ship he would be travelling in for an unknown amount of time.

Shing.
Shing.
The sound of stone against metal reverberated through the currently unoccupied mess hall, save for the one whose hands were the instruments in making the sound. A short blade rested against the knee of a man clad in black, silver, and gold. His arms and chest were protected by heavy armoring, adorned with decorative gilding surmounted only by the twisted helm he wore. on the table in front of him, a single mug of coffee, from which a coiling tendril of steam sprung forth of its dark substance. His nemesis.
"..."
A metallic sigh escaped the Judge, even as he set the stone and his blade on the table, freeing his hands to pull off his steely face. He'd lost this fight.
He took up the accursed mug and drank.

Kevej returned from his excursion, having discussed with Captain Thorne that he would be absent for a good chunk of the morning while he finalised a commodity goods delivery. The Verren worker driving the forklift didn't stop to chat, dropping off the several crates, taking a signature and going. Kevej guessed that worked for him, he'd wasted enough time already.

"Reporting for duty, captain!" Kevej gave a quick salute before moving to store some of the frozen goods he had purchased. "I spent the last day purchasing enough luxuries to make it feel like shore-leave will last for months." he hefted a fairly large crate with 'ice cream' written on the side. He started tapping the other crates with his foot as he listed their contents "I've got ice-cream, exotic spices, tinned fruits, frozen rich-meats. Someone was doing a deal on 'human-style-pasta' whatever that means, so I bought loads of that. Rich sauces, oh, and a couple of new board games. You know Marcan? He also recommended some books for you captain, so I picked them up."

He tapped the last of the crates and paused, "And... Uhhh... Certainly not strong spirits. Probably." He gave an exaggerated wink to Teg, making sure the Captian saw as well. He couldn't stand the stuff himself, but it was always worth keeping some booze in stock if you didn't know how long you'd be flying, it saves a lot of stress with the crew-members who'd become reliant on the substance. He moved into the ship and deposited the ice-cream. Cookie, perhaps reading the side of the box, started rubbing his ankle. "Not now, Cooks," Kevej sighed, more than a little relieved he didn't step on the damned cat. He moved back outside.

And with that the Nakan fell in line; lifting, shifting and sifting. Overhearing conversation about their new passenger he decided to add his own insight. "Judges are scary, but necessary, and nothing gets past them. He probably already knows we're a less than legal operation. Thankfully," he paused and grunted to push a particularly heavy crate into a higher place, "Judges know how to prioritise. He'll dislike us, sure, but if he's got his eyes set on a mission he'll let us be." Well that was the hope anyways.

"Thanks Teg," The captain replied. Since their passenger was on board, that meant they could get going as soon as they finished loading the cargo. Maria went to grab another box, listening to the others chatter as she picked one up and hauled it onto the ship. She looked up when Kevej approached and informed her of the goods he'd gotten, nodding in approval, and then let him finish as he joined in the conversation about their guest.

"Our esteemed first mate is right. Long as you haven't done nothing against his government, he's got no reason to bother you. Besides, I don't pay you to whine about passengers, I pay you to fly. Get up to the bridge and get the ship ready for takeoff so we can get off this blasted trash-heap," Maria said to Andrea. She then turned to Ansgar. "No offense. I know you call this place home but..."

She didn't finish her sentence.

When they were done loading up the cargo, Maria made sure everyone was on the ship and closed the ramp, depressurizing the airlock to ready them for leaving The Hub.

Glaring at Andrea with a evil eye when she dared to mention trying to keep him from doing anything on the ship without talking to her first, his remark was rather pointed and blunt given the idea itself was absolutely absurd. That would be like expecting a cook to talk to the person who drove supplies to the kitchen before cooking, or the doctor to discuss the procedure with the damned janitor. The day he willingly went groveling to some jumped up flightstick fiddling, egotistical tosser like her, he'd swallow his own gun. "Oh, aye, ah'll jus' soddin' giv' up e'en t'e slig't'st o' repair's 'till ah've begged fer yer blessin'. Go stroke yer ego s'me mo'e, bitc', an' stic' to all yer good fer, ferryin' the adults w'ere t'ey need t' be. Glor'fied, 'xpend'ble taxi driv'r..." *

The discussion on the Judge, who apparently was already on board the ship, continued as others arrived from their shore leave, bringing supplies and the like, mainly the point that the Judge would prioritize his mission over their little operation. As much as he didn't trust or enjoy having a Judge on board, it was a good point, though he had to offer a slight rebuttel, taking a minute to fish a coffin nail out from one of his pockets and light it, taking a long drag and blowing the smoke up into the air. He wouldn't just go trusting this Judge, even if he ended up aiding them along the way, government figures tended to not be the most reliable sort. "Aye, 'e'll not bot'er us, rig't 'till it suit's 'im to bot'er us. A'd keep 'least one good ey' on 'im, jus' t' be sure, savvy?" **

The Captain's remark on his home brought a snort, whether of amusement or annoyance was hard to say as Ansgar got the last crate he had assigned to him loaded up, turning back to smirk rather off puttingly for a few moments, half smoked cigarette hanging from his mouth as he rebutted on her remark. Whether he was purely jesting or took offense to the remark was hard to say, though odds were he really didn't and was just mouthing off again. "O' aye, tras' talk me 'ome away from 'ome, ah'll not mind. Not at soddin' all Lass. T'is 'eap resupplied t'e s'ip, so ah' wouldn't be t' quick to disparage, aye? Ah'll be in t'e engine room if'n ye need me." ***

With that, Ansgar took another drag, blowing the smoke outside before marching inside of the ship, making a beeline back towards the engine room, which was where he all but lived while they were in transit. He preferred being back there during transitions from space to docks, especially ground based ones, though fortunately the Hub wasn't by far one of the less rough exits for most ships that weren't strapped to it for long term stays. Barring corrupt or greedy 'officials' trying to bribe or steal what they can off those too stupid to know better, but that wasn't them. Once back in the engine room, he'd undo the top half of his heavy attire, tying it off like a waistband using the sleeves, leaving the tank top, and arms covered in tattoos, exposed. It got warm in the engine room, and he'd rather have the flexibility and dexterity of a tanktop and exposed arms than the dubious protections of the heavy attire he wore outside the engine room.

---

Readjusting her bespoke coat, Teg cheerfully sauntered towards the cockpit. She hated loading boxes. She didn't mind physical labor, but boxes, boxes were just not very fun. More importantly, leaving the Hub behind meant that they'd be in space, which meant that she was off the clock, at least unofficially. Unless something interesting happened. Like pirates, she loved pirates. They were so much fun to shoot at.

There was little for the gunslinger to do during takeoff, but she wasn't going to miss a front seat view. Since as far back as she could remember, Teg had been fascinated by space and space ships. It had simply been a strange twist of fate that she'd earn her way across the galaxy by making holes of various sizes in various sized humans and aliens.

Making her way through the tight corridors of the ship, Teg considered the tense interaction between Socket and Andrea with a rueful grin. She knew there was beef between the two crew-members. As far as she could tell it was mostly based on mutual obsession with their rust bucket of a ship, but she hadn't ruled out some strange sort of romantic triangle between the two humans and the ship. Mechanics and pilots were a strange lot after all. And space was cold, so cold, and lonely. A student of the human condition, Teg recalled with some amusement that significant amounts of time spent traveling the interstellar seas could have unexpected effects on the human psyche and her own experience told her that people did very, very odd things to pass the time when stuck on a ship.

Finding an empty seat on the bridge with a prime view, that wasn't reserved for Andrea, the Captain or the first mate, Teg gleefully buckled herself in.

She was ready to fly.

She was ready for adventure.

"'Pay' is a strong word, I feel." Andrea muttered, their first mate having done little to reassure her that everything was going to be okay. Nevertheless, she dropped the discussion. If the captain wanted to be a damn fool and take a someone whose sole existence was to crack down on criminals and rebels onto the flagship of the rebellion, that was her business. Andrea just hoped that the captain's business didn't get everyone else killed, jailed, or worse. She glared right back at Socket as the narcissistic, nasty, troll began his almost unintelligible rant. It was bad enough he was stupidly arrogant enough to go fucking around in the ship's engine without any consideration on how the Lux would fly, but he could barely get two sentences out without sounding like a drunken Glao being dragged face first through a pile of mud. Her eyes narrowed and her fists clenched in fury as he threw the words 'taxi driver' in her face. Who did this ugly little illiterate goblin thing he was?

He only said one thing that made sense, and that was that the Judge was going to leave them alone until he decided that he wasn't. Ansgar might've been an arrogant bastard but he at least knew when not to do something as stupid as trust a Judge when they were the flagship of the human rebellion. As soon as she saw her chance to retort, Andrea leapt at it.

"Yes you should give up on the 'slightest repairs'," She made mocking air quotes at him, "when every other slightest repairs screws up the flight system so much that she goes from flying to tumbling through the sky and from turning like a spaceship to turning like a damn semi-truck being driven by a drunken cow, you stupid bastard! You should beg because your grasp of what happens to the Lux's flying when you make changes is so nonexistent a toddler's imaginary friend knows more! Go crawl back under your little troll bridge and try not to screw us up while we're flying." Andrea, her cape flaring behind her, and headed towards the cockpit with a huff, shooting one last insult back over her shoulder at Ansgar. "Jumped up, useless, plumber school reject!"

She only spared the Judge a quick dirty glance, before heading onward. The lawman wasn't her problem to deal with. If everything went right, she wouldn't ever have to acknowledge his existence.

Andrea's irritation faded as she saw Teg's childlike glee at the prospect of watching yet another take off. The mercenary's joy at flying rivaled Andrea's own, and Teg didn't even know how to fly a space ship. The majesty of the stars was something that they could both agree on.

Andrea sat down and touched her prized figurines one by one, and gave her lucky coin a rub. It was a ritual, when she had time, before flying. It brought good luck, and helped her focus. She saw Cookie running by and narrowed her eyes at the cat. "If you try to mess with my figurines again, I'm going flay you alive you mangy furball." She was certain that the little scoundrel had been trying to steal figurines from her room, as much as Maria claimed she was just being paranoid. Andrea waited until everyone was seated and buckled in (everyone in the bridge. She could care less about Ansgar and the Judge's comfort.) and began to take off. The Lux came to life beneath Andrea's fingers and she smiled, confirming that she was cleared to leave with Hub docking officials.

Sometimes the idiots tried to get more money from the crews that docked there, using their docking rights to try and bully smuggling crews. This time they seemed content to leave them alone, and Andrea began to take the Lux away from the Hub. The dull thrum of the engines became a small roar as they burst into life, the ship shaking slightly as it left the artificial gravity of the Hub. Stars began to whip by as they picked up more and more speed, the ship smoothing out and the roar becoming a consistent thrum once again. Andrea loved that feeling. The feeling of a ship coming to life beneath her hands and the knowledge that freedom was in her hands.

"We're on our way, Captain. No problems to report."

---

---

Kai held the long, thin vial in his hand for a moment as though approximating its weight in grams, before raising it to eye level and allowing the light from the wall units to shine through the blue iridescent liquid within. Extracted from the root of the orciatica plant on his home planet, the concentrated liquid could be mixed with just about anything in order to help cleanse the body and the mind, as well as act as a topical antiseptic when applied to bandages and the like. The Ithlo gazed almost hypnotically as he gently shook the contents, the liquid swishing around, kicking up the tiniest of glittering particles which acted as the main agent for its health properties. Deemed a "magical flower", no one could really trace just when the orciatica1 first bloomed on the Ithlo's homeworld of Loza, but most would speculate that it was formed at the same time the planet had been, making it a significant part of Ithlo culture and perhaps even the reason the planet itself has thrived for as long as it has.

The debate could be heard clear down the main corridor of the Lux, those two were at it again, which had really only become a tradition before just about any take off. Kai'mos despised the incessant bickering between the pilot and the engineer, but he kept it to himself as most things he may not agree with, allowing such trivial events to slowly evaporate into the greater universe, replacing his mind with peace and focus as it was meant to be. Anger, pain, and a myriad of emotions were all but a distraction, and were easy enough to control to a certain degree, but it was a moment of attaining contentment that made an Ithlo who they were. Peace in the face of adversity was the true mark of his species.

Peace. Sure.

The footsteps were unmistakable to Kai’s ears, something he’d learned to notice over the last few months of being aboard the ship. An individual’s footsteps said a lot of them. This particular set came from the human known as “Teg”, and someone that the Ithlo had -strangely enough- come to admire in a way that even alluded him at times. Was it her gender? The way she carried herself with such confidence? Or, perhaps, simply the fascination with the human species? Their kind were always so fickle in their ways, straying from one extreme to another as though they could not settle any single thought. Teg, in a way, was no different than the average human, but she was also not the same. She cared about her own personal being. Her appearance, posture, wardrobe, and even the subtleties of her hair were tended to with proper care and attention. This was admirable, especially amongst the Ithlo.

But, once again, Kai scarcely approached her as he did not want to give off the wrong impressions. Ithlo social customs were fairly strict, and anything that seemed as though it would be considered fraternization was frowned upon, especially during time of work. A formal greeting perhaps? Kai’s head turned slightly as the woman made her way down the corridor, and his lips parted as though he was about to say something, but then, no sound was heard as he simply watched her pass by the medbay entry giving no thought to the silent onlooker.

“Brilliant.” He muttered, shaking his head in mild disappointment, allowing a slight sigh to escape as he continued to sort the remaining medical supplies.

Presently, the Judge heard light footsteps coming down the hallway, soon revealing the figure of the mercenary, whom they call "Teg". His yellow eyes followed her, unblinking, as she passed by, seemingly oblivious to his presence.
Just as well.
The woman seemed to be in a rather chipper mood at present. First impression; she was an odd one to be a mercenary.
Not long after, the pilot called Andrea followed. His expression [or lack thereof] did not change as she shot a narrow-eyed glance his way. He'd seen that look a thousand times - did she think to get some kind of reaction out of him, or did she simply wish to make her displeasure known?
Either way, he cared not.
He sipped his coffee.
With what he had observed thus far about the crew, it was clear to him that they were, generally, wary of him. Hiding something, perhaps. There was a common misconception that Judges would track down every lawbreaker. It was, of course, ridiculous. It mattered not to him if these people broke their own laws. It was only the laws of his country that mattered to him. Now, it would of course be different if one of them had something against Rysudan law...
But, he had no reason to suspect any of them yet. He had informed the captain of his intent, and that alone should be sufficient for the crew.
He looked down, and was mildly surprised to see an empty mug before him. Had he drunk his coffee so quickly?
...Disappointing.
He took up his blade and stone again.
Shing.
Shing.

Kevej stayed behind in the cargo hold, making sure everything was strapped down appropriately and wasn't going to come loose during takeoff. He smirked at Andrea and Angsar at another one of their lovers spats, they were like an old married couple. He called out to Andrea just as she was leaving;

"You know he's just saying these things because hew knows you'll respond," Kevej chuckled, before realising she was in a less than stellar mood. "I'll talk to him." he said, more to himself than anyone else as he moved over near the doorway where there was an metal bar for support during takeoff and zero-gravity. He attached himself by the belt, gripped on and waited.

There was always a funny feeling just before the ship really took off. There was a sudden and unsettling jolt as the ship was released that seemed to be felt deep in your bones. Then there was a strange drifting sensation as the ship left it's moorings, which always left an awkward clamping feeling in Kevej's chest, and the ship would nigh drift until it was clear. Maybe it was anticipation? And then there was the rush that pilots always talk about. The ship shook as it tore free of the stations gravity and then a little while after before slowly coming to a gentle standstill in sensation. The ship was moving at speeds inconceivable but that's not how it looked or felt, stars drifted by lazily and, provided Angsar wasn't beating something with a wrench, the ship barely made a noise or shudder.

Kevej took one last tour of the cargo hold to make sure everything was where it should be. Predictably, it was. The Captain had a good eye for these kind of things and nobody slacked off with her around. He picked up a few culinary crates and took them through to the mess, intending to store them in the kitchen.

He entered the room backwards to fit the boxes in and he jumped when he turned and saw the Judge. You don't have anything to fear, Kevej, he reminded himself, regaining his composure and nodding to the guest. "Morning, we're on our way," gods, why did he have to sound so awkward?

Kevej made his way into the kitchen and put the crates down. He started stacking the shelves and releasing the crockery they might be needing imminently. He looked at the judge, sitting there sharpening his blade. Kevej found he couldn't make eye contact, definitely not with that helmet as well, and so turned back to the cupboards. He said over his shoulder "Did you need anything? Breakfast? I was about to pop the kettle on." Kevej offered, hoping the judge would say no.

The captain had taken a moment to apply the medicine Kai had prepared to the burn on her arm. Damn thing. One small moment of clumsiness, and now she was going to be feeling it for days. Maria wasn't exactly accident prone, but recently she'd been feeling more and more fatigued, and had been getting somewhat less graceful in her day to day life. Nothing major, just enough to be annoying. She hadn't given herself much time off as of late. Between the rebellion, her crew, the ship, and her family, there had been no time left for herself, and it was all starting to catch up with her. One of these days she'd need to take a nice, long, relaxing vacation. Unfortunately that day was not today. However, she might be able to make room for a nap later.

"Thanks, Andrea," Maria replied to the pilot. "Let me know when we get close to Aspen."

The Glao would likely be rather grumpy about a human ship "invading" their territory, so Maria wanted to be on the bridge in order to calm their nerves and make sure they didn't get blown up. As fond as she was of their lovely pilot, the captain didn't think she would be very diplomatic, especially given her current mood. Speaking of that... Maria stuffed the cream in her pocket and started towards the galley.

The Judge had, of course, informed her of his intentions, but she still had an odd feeling in regards to him. Maria would never admit it to the crew, but he made her uneasy. Thankfully she was an expert at repressing and hiding emotions. At any rate, she still wanted to see if she could draw any information out of the man. As long as it didn't put her crew in danger, Maria didn't really care what the Judge was up to, but she still wanted to give herself another opprotunity to get a read on him. She entered the galley just as Kevej offered their guest some refreshments.

"Seems to me like our friend's coffee cup is empty, Kev," She said, sitting down at one of the tables in the room. "Personally, I could probably drink a whole pot of coffee by myself right about now."

Ansgar was, for once, not busy in the engine room. Things were mostly sorted, though he couldn't check the fuel lines before they launched due to the crate duty. Normally he would sweep the lines with a scanner he kept in the engine room, which looked for unknown materials, especially solids, since they were on a ship that would likely be targeted. Normally while they were flying, it wasn't easy to do, but he decided he would go about that now. With a low groan he resuited up fully, part of his usual precautions in case he did find something, and started checking the lines. Crawling among the running machinery might be concerning to some, but Ansgar was so used to it by now that it really didn't bother him none. He was able to move quickly about it, and like normal, he wasn't finding anything in the lines. Well, normally until the scanner started pinging like mad, and the mechanic blanched and opened the comm to the bridge as he launched himself towards a recently installed valve that would secure the section of piping from the fuel system. Downside being... "YER ABOUT TO LOSE 'ALF YER ENGINES!"

He slammed the valve shut, and threw himself out from below the fuel line since he could hear the sudden loss of flow dislodge the metallic object in the line, and Ansgar had the rebreathing mask and helmet on and secured when the metallic object detonated, blowing out the fuel line and sending flaming fuel outwards, sending the mechanic scrambling for the nearest extinguisher that he kept handy, designed for fuel fires. The automated safety systems locked down the engine room, ensuring that nothing could spread outwards should the mechanic be dead, or unable to contain the flames and damaged system. The detonation did, of course, rattle and shake the ship as well the fact the engine power was, at least temporarily, halved until the mechanic could install temporary fuel lines to allow the half of the engines that lost power to start up. Fortunately he rerouted fuel lines during one extended port stay, setting it up so that half the engines being lost was split between port and starboard.

"Lass, ah' need ye' down 'ere at the engine room!" That was directed at the Captain, who would no doubt either be on her way or recovering from the explosion and shuddering. It would take somewhat longer as he tried to get the last of the burning fuel under control, eventually wrestling control of the engine room back under his control which, after ventilation kicked on, allowed him to get the rebreathing mask and helmet off, watching the engine room doors unseal and open, stepping out into the much cooler and less stressful, for the moment, corridor while waiting for the Captain. He would also be actively blocking any attempts to enter the engine room for now, he planned to keep it off limits until all the repairs were done to the damaged fuel line plus anything burned by the fuel fire. As tempting as it was, he resisted the urge to light a smoke up right now, though he could use it. Better wait until the captain got here first, then do so, lest he be accused of being stupid.

---

The sound of an explosion was normally music to Teg's ears. However, when she was strapped to her seat in a space ship that had probably seen its best days some centuries earlier, this was not the case. Several battles fought in the cramped, burning corridors of spaceships and in the unforgiving vacuum of space had long since convinced Teg that there was little romance to dying outside of any planetary atmosphere. She'd seen what happened when the hull of a space ship was breached. She'd heard the panicked, desperate screams, and then the endless silence.

Explosions meant one of two things, either a critical component of the beaten ship had failed...which was not improbable. Or someone had sabotaged the ship...which was even less improbable. She had enough faith in Socket, despite Andrea's derisive comments about the engineer, to favor the latter possibility. She didn't think that any of Socket's repairs would have failed so soon and so catastrophically, not without some help along the way. The particulars of an explosion told Teg all that she might want to know about the skill of whoever made the device and what they had intended. The fact that she (and the rest of the crew) had not been exploded into a million smaller bits of biomass told her several things. One, it had to have been a modestly clever job. She'd heard Socket shouting over the comms about the engines before the explosion. Targeting critical parts of a ship required at least some level of expertise. Two, whoever did it had to have extended access to the ship. It took at least some time and privacy to place or rather hide a bomb. And unless the perpetrator was willing to blow themselves up along with the rest of the ship she was inclined to suspect someone that was safe back on the Hub had planted the device.

Addressing Andrea, Teg began to unbuckle the heavy straps that had kept her safe as the ship was rocked by the explosion, "I'm going to go see how they planned to blow us up this time. Be right back. Holler if you need me."

Springing to her feet, Teg picked up her hat from where it had landed on the floor and took a moment to fix her now ruffled clothing. With a nod of satisfaction, she headed in the direction of the engine room. She wasn't going to sit around and wait to see what had happened. She wasn't an engineer by training, but she'd been a spacer long enough to be able to offer a hand with any repairs or firefighting. And most of all she wanted to get a look at whatever was left of any explosives.

As she walked down the corridor towards the engine room, Teg shouted loudly, "Is anyone hurt?"

For all of her bravado and cutting remarks, Andrea respected Ansgar as a mechanic. As asinine as he could be, he knew what he was talking about and wasn't prone to crying wolf. Which was why she cut back on the throttle as soon as his yelled warning came through the comms. The ship shuddered to a stop a half second before an explosion rocked it. She clung to her chair as the Lux shuddered and groaned under the impact of the explosion, and hoped that this wasn't the straw that would break the camels back and kill the ship for good. As everything calmed down and they were all still alive, she turned her attention to checking the rest of the ship's systems and her thoughts turned to what could have caused such an explosion. Andrea's first instinct was sabotage. Ansgar would've already said he was fixing it if something critical had given out in the Lux (something that had happened more times than Andrea would like to admit).

Andrea was finishing quickly checking over the ship's systems as Teg made her way out of the area. The pilot gave the mercenary a half-distracted wave just to indicate that she had be, mostly, listening. Andrea breathed a sigh of relief as she saw that none of the other essential parts of the ship had given out under the stress of the explosion and leaned back in her seat, looking over her collection of figurines to make sure that they hadn't been knocked loose, or worse, stolen by that damned cat again when she wasn't looking.

Reassured that her prized figurines were still in place, she leaned forward and activated the comms for the entire ship. She didn't know where Ansgar was and also needed to make a general check of hands anyways. "Everyone still in one piece? Groan in agony if you're dying. Ansgar, what the fuck happened down there, and how soon can we get back up and running? I don't wanna try to fly all the way to Glao space with only half an engine to putt us along." She was already getting nervous as it was. Damaged ships like this were prime targets for piracy, and she didn't fancy their chances if the wrong types of people happened to fly by.

Leaning back she rubbed the coin on her necklace again, muttering to herself, "Never should've taken on that Judge. He's a fucking curse."

---

---

The Ithlo couldn't help but chuckle at the amount of medical supplies he'd had to stock within a short amount of time, considering the ship would be ready to lift off and leave their current location for a long while, as was the norm. Kai'mos didn't mind, because if there was any place in the galaxy he would rather steer clear off altogether, it would be the Hub. Enough time was wasted in such places, that rarely did he leave benefiting from the experience. However, in this particular case, he did, and as he placed the last of the dehydrated plants away within the temperature controlled cabinet, but what happened next was more than unexpected.

The violent rumble following an unknown explosion of some kind sent enough vibration to unbalance the ship’s Medic, as well as knock a few metal and glass containers from the storage shelf before Kai even had a chance to secure it properly. One of the metallic cylinders, glanced off a horn on the top, right side of his head, and as he turned to quickly evade any others, a glass container shattered upon impact as it hit the jagged scales of the other horn rainy small shards onto his face.

“Fia’kreta!” he exclaimed under his breath in the native language of his people, his hands instinctively brushing away the tiny particles from his forehead, being careful not to get anything in his eyes. “Like a bull in a china shop.” he mumbled, repeating one of the many sayings picked up by the human colonies. The thick horns protruding from the top of the skull were inherent amongst the Ithlo, and marked the sign of adulthood -and, some might say great intellect and wisdom- but could also become quite burdensome in close quarters when one doesn’t need such obstacles. Kai, noticed a bit of blood on his hand, and stepped in front of the mirror for a closer examination. A scratch, nothing more, directly above his right brow.

Hearing the voice of Teg echoing down the main corridor snapped his attention immediately, as he walked just outside the MedBay doors and nodded in greeting as the young, brown-haired human woman passed.

“Everything looks perfect from my perspective.” Kai said with a slight smile that quickly disappeared, wishing he’d retracted that statement immediately. “What I meant to say was. I’m fine. MedBay took a bit of a beating, but nothing I can’t straighten up.” He nodded, before turning to walk back into the room. “Oh…” He stopped and turned once again. “How are you holding up, Miss Taggart?”

Kai already knew the answer though. From what he understood of her, Teg was a damn machine, and built to withstand just about any punishment. But he supposed everyone had their breaking points. She was also not fond of being called “Miss” anything, but Ithlo customs would never die, and formality was everything to their species.

Kevej smiled at The Captain as she entered and hoped she might get along a bit better with their guest than he seemed to be doing. "I just popped the kettle on boss, I'll get you a strong one just as you like it." was what he wanted to say if he hadn't been cut off halfway through by the worst noise that could be on a spaceship.

The whole mess jolted, crockery rattled and the lights flickered. The kettle slipped it's moorings and splashed across the floor, slightly scalding him. Kevej cursed and threw down a towel. If only that was the worst of it. Kevej looked at Maria but she was already in motion. She'd know what to do. He turned back to their guest, smiled and did his best to ignore the rising smell of ship-fire.

"I promise this doesn't happen, I'm sure it's nothing major," Kevej said without a single mote of confidence in his voice. Teg also dashed through the mess, not stopping to look. That was also probably for the best.
"I'm just going to... You wait here and I'll be right back." Kevej didn't try to gauge how The Judge was reacting to the whole ordeal, but he could guess it was better than he was.

Kevej made his way to the bridge just in case there was any buttons that needed pressing or something. He knew enough about mechanical stuff to know he would just get in the way with most things. Ducking in through the doorway he greeted Andrea.
"Still flying?" he quipped with bravado he really didn't feel. He settled down into the co-pilots seat and buckled up, pulling himself towards the console and strapping on the headset.

There were a few emergency procedures he knew he had to go through as the first mate, though he discarded half of them. It was quite a liberty to take, but Kevej trusted everyone here; with a crew this small and skilled people already knew the procedures and then some. He calibrated the air scrubbers to flush, diagnosed and prepped the sprinklers, switched power to auxiliaries and two-dozen other small things. It was stuff Andrea was already doing half subconsciously but it saved her the time if he helped, and he mentioned and sounded off every time he set something just to make sure he was actually helping.

He wasn't 100% on a lot of this stuff, he was much more well practised at hoping he would never need to use this training. But he was also practical minded enough when learning to realise he'd be in this situation one day, and he didn't end up making many mistakes at all.

Finally he brought up the star-charts. Likely they weren't too far from help if they needed it but it was worth a check. Scanning comm frequencies... Maybe some folks might have picked up the disturbance already and be asking after, and hopefully not trying to take advantage. Scanning.... Scanning... Just the empty black, no vessel signatures
"No ships nearby, Andrea, for better or for worse, right?" he didn't relay that through to the captain, he hoped he knew better than to try and jam up the intercom right now.

Captain Maria Thorne

---

There was an almost comedic pause between the ship shuddering, Ansgar calling, and Maria reacting. As the explosion hit and the metal of the hull whined, the captain heard dishes in a nearby cabinet clattering against one another. No doubt a couple of them would be broken. The entire ship shuddered around them, like an animal that had just been wounded, and Maria took just a moment to let out a sigh. There was no rest for the weary. When Ansgar's voice rang out, Maria stood up and ran in the direction of the engine room, not sparing so much as a glance towards Kev or the Judge before disappearing down the corridor.

Her pace slowed to a walk as the engine room drew near, and she took second to observe Ansgar to make sure he didn't have any injuries. When convinced of the engineer's health, Maria looked into the engine room, deciding against actually entering before getting the facts. Before speaking to Ansgar, Maria turned on the comms to respond to Andrea.

"The passenger, Kev, Ansgar and I are all fine," She replied, and then the captain turned to the engineer. "What the hell happened to my ship?"

The tone was little sharper than she intended, but the anger wasn't directed towards Ansgar. He was good at his job, and never would have been incompetent enough to cause this big of a problem. Whatever happened to the ship, Maria had the sneaky suspicion that it wasn't an accident. Someone had messed with her ship, and when she found out who they were going to meet her wrath.

This wasn't exactly the first time someone had tampered with The Veritas. A year or two back, when Maria had just started to get a crew together, some useless bag of Glao scum thought it would be a fun idea to try and murder everyone on the ship by means of a bomb in the Galley. Thankfully, the bomb was a dud, but that didn't stop Maria from nearly tearing the little beast limb from limb when it was discovered. If it hadn't been for her better judgement she might have thrown him out the airlock. Alas, she simply turned him over to the authorities on his home-world to be imprisoned for his entire lifetime, which would probably not be very long given the state of Glao prisons. Okay, maybe her "better judgement" was slightly influenced by a drive of vengeance that just happened to be of a legal means this time, but that's not the point.

Maria had half a mind to wonder if the Judge could have been involved, but what reason would he have to sabotage the ship? They were out of his jurisdiction, and he had no evidence that any of them had done anything against his government. Not to mention he would have endangered his own life. No, it didn't make sense that the Judge was the perpetrator. Whoever it was, they were more than likely on the hub. The captain wracked her mind, trying to think of the people in this area of space she'd pissed off who would like to harm her and the crew. The list was somewhat longer than she would like to admit. Government officials and other humans notwithstanding, they had stepped on a lot of toes as they tried to build the rebellion, and she wouldn't put it past any of them to try and kill the crew. The universe had been a relatively quiet place before the humans came along, and not a lot of people were thrilled about the ruckus the rebellion was starting to make.

At the very least, no one had been seriously injured. Cookie had even emerged from some cranny where he'd been hiding, and was now rubbing on Maria and Ansgar's legs, evidently wondering what the humans had done this time.