"No, I'm not," Solae admitted almost immediately. After Rene had tended to her wounds he had left the medical kit on the only nightstand in the captain's quarters. The bed was welded to both the floor and the wall and had a slight lip around the perimeter that was was customary with economical spaceships such as the freight vessel that was the [i]Bonaventure.[/i] Luxury cruisers did not need to anticipate turbulence for their refined gusts but cheaper models had a rougher ride both in relation to making jumps, spacial navigation, take offs, and landings. Just as been the case with antiquated naval boats, the lip was meant to keep sleeping occupants in their bed rather rolling off the higher surface and onto the floor. Solae's tryst with zero gravity had lifted the small first aid container into the air and, with remarkable efficiency, let almost all of its components drift out. A transfusion device loaded with a stimulant had become wedged between their lumpy mattress and the aforementioned metal lip.

"When we were on New Concordia our goal was to get off the planet. That was all I thought about because I was certain that once we had left we would be able to warn the empire, retreat to safety, and start putting the nightmare of war behind us," she sighed. She had fished out the cylinder and deposited it back into their medical kit. With any luck they wouldn't need to use it nor would they need to go looking for the other supplies they had stolen from the slavers. Almost an entire crate had been loaded with various medical items discovered in the makeshift clinic, kitchen, and pantry of the plantation. For better or worse they could tend to a small entourage had they the expertise. "At the very least I was certain our situation would improve."

Abandoning her cleaning task for now she sat down on the edge of the bed. For the last few nights she had chosen to sleep next to the wall. Being strategically placed between Rene and several thick layers of alloy plating had made her feel safe and secure. Thinking objectively this was probably a reflection of some lingering psychological trauma sustained on New Concordia. More than once she had been exposed to the brutality of the violent revolution: when she had watched the embassy's walls explode, when she watched her co-workers get impaled by shrapnel, when she fell on corpses fleeing the crumbling building, when she had nearly been captured by soldiers, when she had been snatched and drugged by criminal degenerates. Had her illusions of protection not been shattered by the first steps of a murderous campaign it would have been more odd than subconsciously seeking out methods to feel guarded.

"Trying to pilot through that typhoon may be the hardest thing I've ever done, and perhaps I ought to be proud, but when we crashed I realized that not only was any victory mitigated by the damage we had taken, but I had struggled and had gained us no benefit. The ship is damaged. We don't have enough fuel to leave. There's no array here. Resources will me more scarce after the hurricane because whatever surviving population there is after this monumental natural disaster will be focused on rebuilding and recovery." She leaned over and rubbed her head in her hands. The loose bun she had created came loose and golden hair tumbled down her shoulders. "On New Concordia the rebellion had more of a presence but we knew the area, we knew the Syshin would be potential allies, and we had a plan. There is nothing for us here. We're stranded and our enemy has only gained strength. Coming to Panopontus is a complete loss, Rene. We're farther behind than we were before, aren't we? What have we accomplished? Having the [i]Bonaventure[/i] is only a gain if it can jump us elsewhere which at present it cannot; all it can provide for us is shelter."

"We had a rough plan on New Concordia but... I don't have a plan for what to do from here," Solae confessed. "If we had touched down closer to a town or city I might be able to sneak out in evening hours when my hair is less distinguishable and recognizable, but I don't know that will be possible from the caldera. I'd need some manner of boat, be able to make my way to shore, and be able to infiltrate whatever library or archive they have that hasn't been destroyed. Urban exploration I'd have more success with."

Solae wasn't certain what she wanted him to say. The handsome soldier in front of her had no divine powers with which to change their circumstances into more favorable conditions. Whatever he had called her to see earlier- which she had yet to inquire after- had infused his voice with a light joy. It was her cynicism, her scrutiny, her inability to accept even the hint of failure that was pulling him down from the clouds where had he had been able to savor the relatively positive outcome of descending through gale force winds into a rock formation that naturally shielded them from the savage tempest. At the conclusion of her explanations for her negative outlook she felt guilty for burdening him when he had been so happy before posing such an innocent question. Her irritation with herself renewed she stood and began to clean once more.

"It's too risky for me to go anywhere so I'll stay here and perform maintenance once I've put everything away," she stated with a distinct lack of enthusiasm. Much as she enjoyed fiddling with the [i]Bonaventure[/i] and feeling that she could make minor improvements, some of which cured glitches or helped Mia integrate into the systems, she would much rather be gathering information about the sector and solving the murder mystery buried in Rene's past. Afloat in jump space there had been no better use of her time than tooling with conduits and nebulous circuitry but now she was confined by the appeal of a bounty rather than physical limitations. On Panopontus the monetary reward would be twice as enticing as on New Concordia where there were more opportunities for financial growth.