[hr][center][code]DM Collaboration: [/code][/center][hr] "I came all the way just to inspect this ship." Shai said with the hint of smile on her face, gesturing with the dataslate she had been given. “Look at that, a sense of humor. I never would have thought.” Woo’rah bemused, idly chewing on her chewstim. After a moment of thought, Shai said, “Would you mind if I stayed here for now? It's so... [i]crowded[/i] up there. Everyone talks too much.” “Now you know why I'd rather spend my free time down here.” She replied matter-of-factly. “Fine by me if you're as much a fan of small talk as I am.” “I should have brought my own hammock.” Shai responded dryly as she searched around the cargo hold for a place that looked comfortable enough to withstand the roughness of takeoff. “Maybe the Captain will let me move my bunk down here.” “I doubt it. Varen likes to keep his crew with the rest of his crew. You’ve heard it before: [i]the crew comes first.[/i]” The other twi’lek threw her hands up melodramatically. “Crew this, crew that - it gets repetitive and boring, but credits be damned if he isn’t gonna treat you lot like his own stinking family. He’s good people. Even if he doesn’t like showing it.” “Besides, the captain knows I like my space.” She continued, and then she leaned in a little closer to Shai and with a smirk she says, “He also knows he needs a place to keep all the dangerous spacers and mercenaries like me away from his [i]darling little crew[/i]. Just in case.” As close as Woo’rah was to her, Shai didn’t notice until just now that there were at least one or two teeth behind the escort’s lips that looked as though they were sharpened. “Please,” Shai mused as she took a step back and pushed two crates together, forming a makeshift bed, “you don’t look that dangerous to me. Looks [i]can[/i] be deceiving though.” The smaller twi’lek added with a sly smile as she scooted her ‘bed’ into the corner of the cargo hold and climbed on top of it. “Either way, I’ll try to stay out of your lekku while I’m down here.” the Twi’lek Exile finished, before pushing her own lekku onto her chest and putting her hood over her eyes. “Be glad I’m not being paid to kill you, then.” She responded, her dull eyes lighting up for a moment until-- [i]“Woo’rah.”[/i] A gravelly voice snarled from behind. The mercenary whipped around to see Captain Kray standing not too far behind her with an irritated and disapproving look on his face. That face then turned to look at Shai, and he said, “Miss Rivelia, a moment of your time in my cabin, if you would. At once.” The captain turned around and marched through a door not too far away from the pair of twi’leks on the bow-starboard section of the cargo bay. Woo’rah sighed and sat back at her work station, propping her feet on a strange-looking case of opaque flexiglass. With no effort made to hide her sarcasm, she said, “Time to pack your bags already? Shame. I was looking forward to being pestered some more.” Shai heard the Captain’s voice and hopped to attention out of habit, her hood still over her head. “Aye sir, I’ll be there in a moment.” The smaller twi’lek answered in a neutral tone. What could he need? Had she done something wrong? After the Captain had excused himself from the room, Shai relaxed and gave a half salute-half wave to Woo’rah, “Oh, I won’t leave you that easily. Try not to miss me too much.” Shai Rivelia pushed her hood back and followed the Captain into his cabin. “We don’t have much time left before take off, so I’m going to make this quick.” Shai heard as soon as she stepped through the door. Looking up, the captain’s face looked grave and his eyes were staring daggers into her. She also found herself in what looked to be an office, except the office also had a heavy arsenal that was mounted upon the walls. “I don’t know where you came from, and frankly I don’t care. But that is the last time I want to see that blasted device, do ya hear? I won’t have myself any rotten war following my crew and I around the galaxy. There’s only one side anyone is allowed to take on this ship, and that side is [i]the Phoenix[/i]. Do I make myself clear?” Shai stood ramrod straight, eyes fixed perfectly ahead, face blank. She had been dressed down like this in the past. This was not new to her. The reason, of course, was. Usually it was her Sith betters doing the reproaching. Not her being reproached for being a Sith. Well it was not [i]exactly[/i] that, but the Captain didn’t seem to care if she was a Sith or a Jedi. Not too surprising. Shai Rivelia had noticed throughout her travels that many hated anyone who used a lightsaber no matter which side they were on. Not that she used one anymore. The weapon was dead. Just like the Sith who wielded it. “Crystal, sir.” the twi’lek responded, her voice betraying nothing of her inner turmoil. “Convince me.” “Sir?” Shai responded, slightly confused and tensing up. What was he asking her to do? Destroy the rest of the blade in front of him? She couldn’t. It was one of her only possessions. To lose it… Would be to lose the last part of her past. She felt her whole body tense up at the thought. The past hurt to hold on to, but sometimes we hold on to things that hurt us. Or maybe it was impossible to let go completely. The twi’lek didn’t know the answer. “I’ll give you time to figure out how,” the captain said, “you’ll have until we land on Tatooine.”