Jessica was an old hand at moving in zero gravity. Lacking electronics, the suit she wore had no power assist or maneuvering jets, but she propelled herself by a series of taps and jabs at the bulkheads and walls, correcting spins and tumbles as instinctively as a fish navigates the currents of the sea. The task was made somewhat more difficult by the constant collisions with small pieces of debris. The taps were comforting after so long aboard the Abortion where the only sound had been her breathing and the beat of her heart.

The thought that Neesa might be leading her away from her crew to ambush her did occur, but it was hard to see what the alien could hope to accomplish by killing her. Taking her hostage would be a better plan, but the leverage would still be on the side of the crew who were the only ones with a plan for getting off this hulk alive.

Luminesce now seemed to be raditating from the Starborn, soft by obviously no natural glow. Jessica wondered if Nessa could turn the light off at will.

"How did they capture you?" she asked as she caught up with Nessa, catching the edge of the hatch combing with her fingers to arrest her freefall.

"YOu seem like you can take care of yourself."