For a moment, Senjen almost felt overwhelmed again thinking about the options, the numbers being given, and the programs on offer. On the surface, the work placements did not seem to be too bad of an option. He was a bit wary about working directly for a massive corporation like Myrmidon, but if they were odd jobs he could choose to take whenever he had time, it could be fine. For the moment, though, he stopped worrying about it. His friends could help him figure this out. 

Senjen took the tickets with some hesitation. “Ah, well, if I only have a day to read through and figure all this out, I probably don’t have time to go to a club. Still, I will be back tomorrow, at least.” 

[hr]

For Jess, the mention of the castes had her looking annoyed for a moment, but in a place like this, she was holding her tongue. As she nodded long, listening to the explanation, she messaged Light privately. [i]”Exciting as it might be, I don’t think you want to be getting attached to this thing right now. You don’t have the savings right now, and there’s no way you get even a halfway decent rate without a deposit. Just...be patient. The offer I have might help you out.”[/i]

Meanwhile, hearing Symphony’s offer, Jess gave a non-committal shrug. “Maybe. We’ll have to see what our friends are wanting to do. Speaking of, we should probably get back to them.”

It did not take long for both groups to find each other, though both Senjen and Jess had reason to leave quickly. The idea of going to the club was up in the air, but no matter what they chose, they also had reason to stop back by the ship first. Fortunately for Jess, the gel from the room mostly stuck to itself rather than her clothing, so she mostly just had to deal with being slightly moist and mildly uncomfortable during the taxi ride back. 

[hr]



“You’re wanting me to read [b]how[/b] much?” Jess snapped at Senjen as they climbed out of their automated taxi, outside of Light’s landing pad. 

Senjen held up his hands. “I know, I know, but you’re good at this sort of thing. Best out of any of us, for sure. This thing could follow me around for a decade, and you know...you could really do a lot to help me. And with a frame like that, maybe I could help you too? Or at least I could pay you, or maybe…”

Jess sighed, interrupting him. “Just…” She began, holding up one hand and looking away from him. “Fine, I can help. Just give me a few minutes. Light, could you come here a minute? I need to check something with your astronav system real quick.”

Senjen tilted his head, surprised for a few reasons. He had expected to have to persuade her more to actually convince her to donate that much of her time and effort, and on top of that, he was not sure what she wanted with the ship. “Is there something wrong with the ship?”

“No, or at least you better not have broken anything since last time. My usual courier’s been dragging their feet on something, so I might have a courier job or two soon, if they don’t get their asses in gear. Just need to make sure the ship is set to navigate to that sector. We’ll just be a few minutes.” Jess answered. 

Jess seemed a bit insistent that Light join her, and once they headed up through the ship, out of sight of the others, she spoke up in a casual voice. "Could you change into your old suit real quick? It could take some advanced flying, and I need to check some things in the suit you're actually going to be using."

Light was willing to comply, so after taking a few moments to change, the pair headed up towards the cockpit. Once they got out of potential earshot of the Myrmidon suit, though, Jess got to her real business. “Not completely sure how Ruk would feel about this one. I’ll make it quick. I’ve spent the last few years trying to make inroads with a certain organization that shall remain nameless for now, and I think I finally have something. I won’t sugarcoat it; I’m looking to get into the trade of black market goods. Tech, specifically. Nothing dangerous, just the kinds of things that corporations would rather keep in-house than to sell on the open market. I’ve tracked down a lead on a particular piece of gear, and if I can recover it, then that’s my [i]in[/i]. There are risks, and it could be dangerous, but there’s a lot of money in this trade. Could be a lot for you too, if you work for me.”