Mark sat at the back corner of the bridge. One boot hooked under his chair and a ration pack at his hands. Chili... again. He’d cracked it open halfway through the debate and hadn’t bothered to mute the slurp.

Sol, uncharted systems, pirates, metacer queens.

The bridge had turned into a philosophy lecture with better lighting. He kept himself busy with his meal while his eyes kept mostly focused on the power diagnostic scrolls across the screen next to him. He spooned another mouthful of chili and tried not to stare at Divaldo as the gloriont rolled himself right into the center of the bridge like he’d just been crowned. The electric whirr of that scooter was starting to feel personal.

When Divaldo barked “Stupid,” Mark’s jaw tightened slightly, he almost bit his own tongue.

He considered, briefly... How long it would take to cycle a small auxiliary airlock?

Three seconds? Four?

Unprofessional, he reminded himself. Very unprofessional.

The debate rolled on. Velia hedging, the doctors talking pirates and extinction scenarios, Ginny standing firm on the chart. The word “Sol” floated around like some messianic promise.

That, at least, made him pause for a moment though.

Earth, he hadn’t thought about it much beyond old recordings and archived feeds but the idea of a destination that wasn’t just “away” had some potential to him, at least more than what everybody else was yapping about. He scraped the bottom of the pouch, folded it neatly, and finally leaned forward and stood up.

“Alright.”

His voice rang out.

“Engineering report first, just so everyone's on the same page. Ship’s stable, the reactor output’s smooth and there's no metacer activity onboard. Vent sweep’s done and we found one corpse near a startup fan, looks like it boarded before evac and got itself chopped when we powered up.”

He looked around the room.

“So unless somebody smuggled a queen in their lunchbox, we’re clear.”

A brief pause.

“As for pirates, I think I have good input on that given I fought them... This thing’s massive, like from the outside we look like we could shrug off a cruiser. Most raiders don’t pick fights with something that size unless they’re very sure of the payoff.”

He glanced towards John.

“Assuming they don’t realize how thin we are on actual defensive teeth.”

He shifted slightly.

“Sol’s a gamble, sure. It could be ruins or worse but at least it’s not wandering aimlessly. The chart gives us a structured route and between here and there? We’ll cross systems Eden scouts already flagged. Habitable zones, mineral signatures, atmo candidates. Odds are we find something workable before we ever get close to Earth.”

He let that hang for a moment.

“Setting down near here?” He shook his head, “Doctor’s right. If the metacer spread like we’ve seen, buying ourselves a generation next door doesn’t solve anything. It just delays the inevitable.”

His eyes slid to Divaldo’s scooter again.

“Now, I’ll be honest.”

He thought his words for a second.

“Half this meeting makes me want to shoot someone out an airlock. But that’d be unprofessional... and we don’t have the crew numbers to spare anyone.”

He leaned over a console.

“So here’s engineering’s take: we follow the chart, keep emissions tight and inventory everything. Get hydroponics fully online, if we find a solid rock on the way, we reassess as a team.”

He folded his hands behind his head.

“We’re big enough to look dangerous, stable enough to move and for the first time since we undocked, we’ve got an actual direction.”

A small nod toward Ginny’s projection.

“Long shot or not, at least it’s something.”

Reenneesuash (Ren to humans) daughter of veanamdarr

Ren held back her desire to rant about the fact that the Metacar was a invasive species yes, and yes it was very dangerous but unable to leave a planet known independently and the current planet they were over was A, now almost entirely taken over, been exposed to weapons banned by many laws, had whole stations or would have nuclear level events as whole stations broke up and fell and would frankly be the most uninviting place to go since a class 5 deathworld. It probably was one now, of some class. Instead the Kellar paused, closed her eyes and breathed slowly holding the somewhat alcoholic coffee and sipped as pirates and so was mentioned. Food, water or so was probably more likely, right now they had X supply. No more. No less until they found more or grew more.

Wait. That was a Grendari yeah, he was some kind of leader of his people she recalled. They were an odd, mostly water adapted species that honestly she never had come across too many of. He was honestly making her feel repulsive thoughts more than anything. He got no words, having no words to think where to even begin? Did he taste nice? Maybe… No, not if his soul was that rancid.

“As a Xeno Biologist, If I start, we're gonna be here all day.” Ren said, looking about and closing her eyes to calm again. “Short Answer. Eden Prime, ecologically about as healthy as a plasma reactor core. No one's going there any time soon. Same with most other worlds they took and we fought over.” She said and drank more of the alcoholic coffee feeling the happy buzz calm her down. “Trust me if it might kill bugs. We tried it. We want to get far from those worlds out of that alone..”

“Thankyou” she said to the pilot as the comment came to something she knew, Biologist stuff not star science. “I need some help getting set up, Xeno, or otherwise. I know how things live. It cannot be too different from what I've used before.” The short woman volunteered and took the task, it would be useful and she was not exactly cut out to be a soldier.

“I say Sol, I just want to do something, instead of being pushed about. I just want to leave this tomb of a world. I guess you're my clan now.” Ren said softly and looked about the room. Sure she was a little… rough edged but about as damaged as anyone else who had lived through the apocalypse. Everything she knew was dead on the planet below or in a vast crater.

Ren just about held together, glad for the fact to be able to hide behind her drink, showing how close she came to not. “Somthing. Is better than zero.” Ending on that.

John actually gave a look around the bridge to make sure there wasn’t a camera crew.

‘Looking for Sol?’

He let out a scoff. What were they the latest Galaxy Force flick? He could see the title now; Galaxy Force: The Search for the Lost Homeworld.

“Much as I would love to go on a galaxy spanning adventure in the hope Earth hasn’t been mulched by the machines; I think our first jump should be more short term.”

He gestured at the star chart and its various projections and data.

“Mainly, a place to stock up for the short term. Perhaps a place to dump some people who don’t want to stay on a colony ship. Cut some of the chaff out now.”

A few star systems had the symbology he was looking for.

“Some suspected wildcat colonies might be what we need.” He glanced around the room. Meeting the major personalities that were steering this planning. “No need to rush from adrenaline and survival to jumping a search that has lasted generations. Let’s get situated for the immediate future and vote on our course later.”

He glanced around the room again. Mentally tallying whether they would hop onto his plan or not.

If not he would need to repair the shuttle. Get an escape plan ready. Maybe invite a few of the more upstanding crew as he exited stage left.

Not the toad though.

Definitely not him.

"Concerning the pirate issues," Vitaifa spoke up. Her milky eye had twitched slightly at each mention of the possibility, but her tone remained neutral. "I imagine the anarchists and gangs hiding out on asteroids along the Eden's colonial trading routes have the same big problems to worry about that we survived. Gods willing, we shall be likely safe from undue harm while we remain in Eden's space."

She stifled a dark chuckle before continuing, "Unless the Metacer have deduced how to fly ships instead of merely stowing away on them."

Vitaifa moved to a chair next to an unmanned station on the bridge and swiveled, now opting to sit out of a concern of length of the meeting given the tangents rapidly propping up. "It would appear that most of us are not opposed to the idea of venturing on the route towards Old Terra. For the sake of transparency, we also know the route to an inhabited cluster but local government there is dangerous and there is a strong possibility of war breaking out. For those afraid of well-armed pirates and for the sake of those frozen below, I would advise against this."

She gestured to Mister Lockman with a wave of her hand, "Nor should we simply jet towards Sol."

"As Miss Sokolova mentioned," The older Kiel cracked a faint smile, "there are inhabitable worlds believed to be on the route. We scout them, as Mister Lopez suggested, while continuing to to the galactic crossroad. If there are any issues we find at Sol, we will simply double back to the most suitable world we found along the way."

However Mister Lockman," her neutral tone turned slightly frigid as she turned her attention directly to the human. "Separating the chaff is not an option. Out of those not frozen, there are far too few of us. "Dumping" some of us off on a wildcat colony, if we can find one, is not a guarantee of long-term survival for those who go and those who remain."

She paused for a moment, mentally tallying the room around her. "Now, I believe we had already established a quorum concerning Sol. So, unless there are any sudden changes of heart or other immediate concerns, I suggest we let Miss Fihlyn or Mister Lockman prepare a jump while the rest of us get to work."

Reenneesuash (Ren to humans) daughter of veanamdarr

People least had an agreed plan, honestly. Wild cat or Sol. Ren wanted to be away from the Eden Prime system and its dead worlds that were infested by countless metacar and their hives. There was no way to reclaim them without things that might end all ability to sustain life now. The kind of projects that were in theoretical papers.

“I just want to be…somewhere, not here.” Ren admitted.“This just reminds me of how much we failed.” She said and hid her head in a jacket and face to side looking really hard at the plans trying to find where the bio labs and the hydro facility would be located. There were quarters nearby that could be ideal to take over though, a little larger, private shower room, a small living area and a single bedroom attached. She guessed it was an officers room and if no one wanted it. Well…Ren would take it. Tapping the screen she managed to find it … code. There were code panels all overhang that helped you navigate. A rather old system but variations have been in use for centuries. “2…37. 2 HYDRO.” She could find the area by simply running the numbers down once you had an idea which way they went up or down.

“If thats all, im gonna go to Hydo.” Ren said more confidently than she felt inside as the Keiller dropped onto her feet pushing off the chair and taking the mug with her. The sound of the boots on deck plates and lacing that would probably cause most drill sets to have a fit over.

Nodding to most people, she gave the Prieitess a more traditional gesture of respect, the older Kiel was one of her pmRace, even jf maybe not the same exact culture or beliefs, least someone might understand Ren a little. She threw the hint pretty heavily she would like to get to know the teo doctors but well, they seemed to miss it.

Everyone else got a normal nod, the sooner she was busy, the sooner the intrusive thoughts would be quieter.

…

“2.27.1..stores.” She read heading down the spine of the ship as it were, 2 above the centre line, 27 down counting up and would have to just head to side to go to compartment 2 from the centre on a horizontal plane.

Yes. This whole ship thing was.. vaguely logical like the space stations code systems. With decks, rings and various identifiers for everything from labs to the nail salon. Damn, she really found some strange perks provided by the mega corp, company nail spa was included…health benefits it turns out was a flexible term.

The door eventually opened smoothly as Ren spun the wheel on the door…hatch on a ship. The door was heavy but well set up and the small woman would push the heavy door open easily thanks to some kind of system in a box on the wall. The Hydro Lab was brand new, everything looked gleaming and a whole area was still wrapped in plastic and protective films that covered the glass, some were very much showing signs they had been thrown together in a hurry and would need some work to get all their hoses and power feeds installed.

The space could have been set up better but it was what it was, the systems would definitely supply them with food and probably excess for such a small crew, though getting them set up and working would be a labour at the start but pay off massively. The door across she found an office, a storage area with supplies and spares. The organisation was a mess but everything they needed was present. The cold storage was across the corridor and easily accessible, pretty self-explanatory, the seed vault would likely be in there to take advantage of the pre existing cooling systems.

All in all it was there, just not assembled with care or exact science, that could be adjusted later. The small office seemed to have a very standard desk, chair and so, it would work. The quarters nearby she had claimed and typed Ren into the panel so it would hopefully show on the door and on the system. It was near her little corner of sanity in this insane situation. She gave a slightly mad science cackle seeing a genetic editing set up, printers and other specialist tech set up in a corner booth. Oh that would be fun, they never really let her play with those much as the Bio labs before and she really wanted to have a go and see what they were capable of. “cybernickle …systems. Model. 4.5… full Flora genetic re sequence based on compatible base DNA and… analysis… ooh. We are going to have fun together. Exo corp.. grow systems, management and a lab grade environment control and filter systems… we are going to be good friends." She said looking through the labs file on what machines were present and what the capabilities of the various equipment did and tapping the lab. Ren had been pulled away to the more bio security side since the growing metacar threat but she greatly enjoyed science and was a trained Xeno and regular planters Biologist at heart. “Now, how do you work…” pulling a file on the grow system peached legs swinging off a side bench drinking her alcoholic coffee while she read through the specs and set up a guide with interest. Ren had not been directly doing this for a while but it began to come back.

The busy and something she could do, think about was helping to keep the darkness and nightmares at bay. This was progress and took the mind from other topics.

"Back so soon?" The bartender said to Doctor Vitella and Doctor Yeoman as they headed to their still empty table. "I would like a Sunspot with a lemon-lime chaser and two decks of cards. Don't care what game they are for. I'm down for anything at this point." Doctor Yeoman said to the barkeep as she sat down. "Let me guess. Doctor Vitella wants water." The bartender replied. "Extra sweet." Doctor Raphael Vitella said to the bartender. "Daring today, aren't we?" The barkeep said before turning his attention to some engineers who had entered the room. After getting their orders, he walked to them and placed their orders and a mat on the table. Vitella and Yeoman drank every glass dry and handed the glasses back to the barkeep before drawing five cards. Three of the cards had stars under their name, their attack and defense stats indicated by the numbers at the bottom. "I can discard the cute furball to reduce damage caused by battle to zero. It could come in handy." Doctor Yeoman thought before placing a card with four stars down on the table, immediately following it up by placing two cards facedown and equipping it with a card with the word pendant before ending her turn.

"Good move, but sadly, I will have to rain on your parade." Raph said to Yeoman as he placed down a card and pointed at her. She discarded the card in her hand and placed two of the cards on the table into the Graveyard before smiling. "I don't take any damage, but thanks to Black Pendant's effect, you lose 500 points." Yeoman said to Raphael. "Damn and my card becomes two hundred points weaker with every foe he sends to the Graveyard." Raphael said to Yeoman before placing down two cards facedown and ending his turn.

They were still a good week from leaving Edenite space or, perhaps more accurately, formerly Edenite space. It was a slow, laborious process of spinning up the drive, jumping as far as they could before the skrim drive began to overheat, then dropping back into normal space to wait for the drive to cool down.

The crew, such as they were, took the time to sweep the ship for Metacer. Three sweeps hadn't found any so it was reasonably safe to assume that they had managed to leave the station without one of the bugs getting aboard with them.

With most of the population in cryosleep, the corridors were mostly deserted, though the lights remained on, the dull hum of the engines echoing down the corridors.

Velia, finding that there really wasn't too much call for a Communications Officer at these times had occupied a nice cabin then set about locating the liquor supply. To her pleasure, there was enough whiskey aboard to drown herself in, should she so desire.

This morning she had risen early, gone for a jog around the ship, listened to music for a bit, then taken a bottle of inexpensive rye whiskey and seated herself in the corner of the galley to see who else showed up.

In the chaos of their departure she hadn't had much of a chance to get to know the other people who were forming their ad hoc crew. She wanted to get to know them, to figure out who would be good people to have on side and who were a potential threat. In her experience, having a bottle of alcohol was a great way to start a conversation.

"Hey. Looks like you're the first one here. I would ask you if you would like to share some of that whiskey, but I still can't drink alcohol. I am Doctor Raphael Vitella and this is Doctor Yeoman." Doctor Raphael Vitella said to the woman in the corner before heading to his usual table with Doctor Yeoman in tow. "Thank God that arrogant toad with the mobility scooter ain't here." Doctor Yeoman said to Doctor Vitella. "I have half a mind to give Divaldo the boot if he flirts with any member of my staff or yells obscenities at me for tellin' him that he needs to cut down on anythin'." Raphael Vitella replied. "If the Gloriont starts actin' up in the galley, I'm cuttin' him off then and there." The bartender said to Doctor Yeoman before turning his attention to Raph. "What can I get you, Doctor Vitella?" The bartender asked. "Extra sweet ice water with a slice of fruit." Vitella answered. "And for you?" The bartender asked Yeoman. "Surprise me." Doctor Yeoman answered.

"I brewed this last night." The Bartender said to Doctor Yeoman as he placed the drinks on the table. Yeoman immediately gulped down the entire shot glass of moonshine. "It certainly has an acquired taste." Doctor Yeoman said to Doctor Raphael Vitella.

@Dyelli Beybi

Reenneesuash (Ren to humans) daughter of veanamdarr

“Plant 46, ..47.. 48… 50…” Ren walked down as she checked, counted and tended to her seedlings that had already begun to poke out of the artificial grow beds. The nightmares had come back so the woman had woken, done some time in the cold seed vault bundled up in an oversized and excessively bulky cold suit trying to make a working version of a new strain of potato that could provide more nutritional value. No sample yet matched her needs and went back to the main lab to see how many failed. Thankfully they had a least 90% success rate across the board, this new tech was great and the ship was supplied with quality materials.

“My baby's…grow…you might make great vodka…or food.” She said as inspected the room as a whole, her realm where she was safe, busy and doing something other than being trapped in her own head.

Of course that turned to point she was hungry as a person and not able to put off as another rumble and a hungry pang returned. “i smell like ass” She thought having been sweating in an ill-fitting cold suit not designed for her so went for a quick shower, changed and pulled out something comfortable, unsure how it survived but glad.

Making way to the ships forward Ren walked along, boots tapping as looked for the stairway to the next deck and where the Galley / bar area should be. The Toga dress had somehow got into her bags when she packed essentials maybe left over from a trip? Yeah, she wore it to a company dinner on weekend team building retreat, still was clean… lucky.



Comfortable, clean and wearing something that did not get bug guts on them was honestly nice. The boots though, damn was she wearing heels on a starship.

She arrived at the Galley / area where people seemed to have adopted it as a lounge and bar also. A social space on the ship where they could be with other people and block out the thoughts and fires…at least for Ren anyway.

“Mor…whatever time it is, I'm not sure morning is a thing now.” Ren said as she entered and went straight to the food area looking around and finding a Chili, cheese and macaroni based ready to heat meal and pulling the tab as the whole thing heated itself finding a table. Was it fancy food? No. Was it food, yes. Was it hot? Also yes. So Ren waited a minute and peaked back the lid of the weird yet filling comfort food.

“Stil a while till we get new fresh stuff, but the seedlings are starting nicely. I was warned against drinking alone once, sharing?” Ren said unsure what to say or open with the dark haired ships officer, one of or the only one even meant to be aboard. The slightly shorter Kieller was enjoying her meal, having started rather early, unable to get back to sleep and unwilling to invite the nightmares back.

Ren was damaged, awkward and a little strange but after all they had faced.. was anyone OK? Good even? Probably no one. “Sorry, im… me, theirs no way round it.” Ren admitted, Ren was always a little awkward but felt far worse now.

Turning to see the doctor and other medical staff together, seriously they were married or something. Maybe that's why her teasing was useless against the man earlier in the week. “Hey mr and Mrs doc, I'm trying to eat, not imagine a metal bikini… eww.” Ren said lightly with a look of faux nausea.

“This chili mac n cheese is too good to be ruined by such things.”

@Flarbinia@Dyelli Beybi

"Neither of us mentioned a metal bikini, miss Toga with boots. You eat your chili Mac N' Chess in peace." Doctor Raphael Vitella said to Ren "Can I get you two anythin' to eat? Or do you want to make your own meal like the Kiellar?" The bartender asked Doctor Vitella and Doctor Yeoman. "Dehydrated Beef. Extra Salty. Medium Rare. A large soda. I will need to be sober during work hours." Doctor Yeoman answered. "Your finest stew. Extra sweet ice water mixed with a little fruit juice. Shaken, not stirred." Raph said to the bartender. "Your orders will be ready in a moment." The bartender said to Vitella and Yeoman before picking up the empty glasses and walking away.

A moment later, the bartender returned with their orders and placed them on the table. "Would you like a deck of cards once you're done with your meal?" The bartender asked Doctor Vitella and Doctor Yeoman. "We still have an hour or two before we have to head to Med-Bay, so yes." Doctor Raphael Vitella answered before he and Yeoman began chowing down, the bartender heading back to the counter. "Thank God I asked for a drink when I did. This stew is spicier than expected." Raphael Vitella said before drinking the extra sweet ice water mixed with fruit juice. "I know you don't normally get asked this, but do you have any weapons experience?" Yeoman asked Doctor Vitella. "Unfortunately, Medical School didn't have firearms trainin' as part of the curriculum, Jill." Vitella answered. "I never shot anything that could fight back." Jill Yeoman said to Doctor Vitella before continuing to eat her food. "Good to know that somebody in the Med-Bay can use a gun if the situation calls for it." Raph said to Jill before continuing to eat and drink.

The bartender took the empty bowl, plate, and glasses before placing two decks of cards on the table and heading back to the counter. Doctor Yeoman and Doctor Raphael Vitella drew five cards. Jill placed a card facedown and sideways before placing down two cards and ending her turn. Raphael placed the card he had used a week ago before using one of the cards in his hand to replace it with a card with a red horned monster holding a club on it and pointing towards Yeoman. Doctor Yeoman smirked as she flipped her card face up, causing both of them to discard their hands and draw five new ones. The game kept going until Doctor Raphael Vitella drew a card and showed his hand to Doctor Yeoman. "At least it didn't end in a draw like last week's game." Jill said to Raphael before she handed the cards back to the bartender. "Guess we'll just play Liar's Dice until it's time to go to work." Raph said to Jill, the bartender heading to the counter to get a pair of cups and some dice.
@PrinceAlexus

There was a saying somewhere. John racked his brain for what it was; the exact words eluding him. His mind churning as he leaned further into the partially dissembled engine cowling. A haphazardly arrayed formation of parts from his shuttle and the missing colony ship's shuttle (from the bay the assault shuttle now occupied) lay on the deck around the disabled engine.

'How did it go again?' He thought futilely as he cut away a debris scored section of engine. The edges jagged and impacting. 'Life's path's are numerous as they are unexpected?'

It was a cheesy quote. He remembered the first time he saw it; a book of short stories his tutor had given him. Colorful images with moral tales for a more innocent time. Back then he had wondered at the absurdity of it. His father had told a young John what his purpose would be. His place in the grand scheme of things. Where he would start and end.

Now here he was. Family and friends dead. Fleeing his homeworld for the notion of a fresh start somewhere. Working on a spaceframe he had help perfect with none of the parts he needed off-hand.

The unappealing screech of metal resounded as John he pulled the culprit, a piece of debris, from where it had impacted a heat exchange. He sighed as he looked over the index finger size junk of jagged metal.

The debris had threaded two different needles. Through a gap in armor and an intake to disable the engine. Impossible luck that had led to John spending his waking off-hours in this bay. Trying to repair and jury-rig the engine. A task that was about on par with nudging a colony ship along with minimal training.

The clomp of approaching boots had John give a resigned sigh; the pilot wiggling his way out of the engine's inner to see who intruded into his brief and small domain. The pilot having donned a fresh flightsuit from his shuttle's locker; the green jumpsuit pulled to his waist. A necessary move given the coating of grease and carbon that clung to his face and limbs. The pilot finally pulling himself out to crouch just above the engine's access port; surveying the shuttle bay's visitor.

@Pragia12

Reenneesuash (Ren to humans) daughter of veanamdarr

Miss toga dress and boots? Was that a statement or insult as the pale haired Kieler turned her head to look over at the bar tender and the Dr's with a frown. Honestly Ren was just trying to joke and have a light moment and what did he imply about her..

The Dr had been about as prickly as a gathoriion spine plant, it seemed his mood in the med bay was his standard personality. Oh well, maybe it was for the best their prior meeting ended the way it did. Much as they had survived the end of the world for them, lost everything, he and the gloriant were the worst among the crew it seemed for personality right now. Maybe he really had a thing for Pirates... peollw where entitled to their quirks.

“Doctor. Might I suggest a IV of Charm, i hear it might help your bed side manner also. Gentlemen are more attractive." Ren said feeling slighted somewhat and turned gold eyes rimmed with platinum on him, a somewhat glare a glitter that also hid her disappointment, she thought that maybe someone who could talk to about science and other subjects and not feel like Ren was confusing everyone. With a hand she absentmindedly moved some hairs away that was bugging her ear while dropping some extra hot sauce sachet into her meal stirring in to spice up the pre heated meal.

“So you do like my dress, how kind of you sir. I'm quite comfortable. Even has poxkets.” She said a little mirthfully, turning back to her meal and sampling it with an approving sound, the space was higher and had more kick…”someone remind me, i need to see if we have anything spicy in the seed vault.” She thought about growing some chili, or some other plants to spice up the ships diet with some flavour and something to make ration items far more appealing.

“I've not had too much time to explore, has anyone found anything interesting aboard?” She asked, trying to add some conversation to the room. Maybe they had a cinema room, a games room, a pool or some other luxury present she had not found.

@Flarbinia@Dyelli Beybi

Vitiafa slowly moved through the galley, side-eying her companion from hydroponics in a minor spat with a pair of doctors as she worked across between the tables and across the room the drink dispenser. She squinted slightly as she worked the buttons, clearly not quite adjusted to the harsh-light this morning.

Between helping choose and nurture the fresh food the crew would depend on, and providing nursing services to the recovering evacuees still lingering in the beds, the priestess was a familiar sight to both parties in the routine of her work aboard the ship. Neutrality remained her approach as she grabbed her nominally fresh tea, there was little harm in minor verbal spats over attire and food to be worth compromising any one person's willingness to approach her.

"I believe there is a a recreation room somewhere aboard, Reenneesuash, and I'd expect there to be a gym aboard as well. Though I cannot say what might be stocked in the former." she called out as she turned away from the machine with her tea in hand. "It might be worth finding it, unless someone else braved the halls of this ship."

Vitaifa moved to the singular Dhasath, and sat opposite of her.

"I see I'm not the only one having a liquid breakfast, Officer Larci," she said after a sip of the tea. "I would hope that isn't typical. Are you doing well, given the circumstances we find ourselves in?"

-snip-

ESS 3822-01

---

After nearly a week on the colony ship, Fihlyn had found comfort in her morning routine.

She would wake slowly in her rest tank a few hours before the official day-cycle began, giving herself enough time to prepare and don her suit. The tank had been installed in her quarters when she was first assigned to the crew, a necessary accommodation for her physiology and a welcome respite from the ship’s parched atmosphere. But as much as Fihlyn appreciated being able to sleep underwater, she was still growing accustomed to the limitations of her makeshift “bed.”

The tank had been designed by the Edenites and was only just large enough for her to lie in, almost certainly converted from a cryopod. There was little room to properly stretch or relax, and during the first few days she often woke with cramps and lingering aches. Regular stretching in the mornings and evenings had helped somewhat, but it was not the only compromise.

She had started to notice the curious quality of the shipboard water supply. It was clean, of course - the ship’s filters had made certain of that. But the water had a sterile taste to it. The filters had removed nearly all of the minerals and ions with meticulous precision, leaving it strangely empty. Fihlyn sometimes imagined it must be similar to an Edenite trying to sleep in a room that desperately needed a humidifier.

Still, it was far better than being forced to sleep in her suit.

Once awake, Fihlyn would linger for a while before sealing herself inside the suit’s protective casing. By keeping her door closed overnight, she had discovered she could maintain the air in her quarters at a higher humidity than the rest of the ship. For a short while each morning the room felt almost comfortable.

During that time, she could perform her morning prayers without the encumbrance of her suit getting in the way. Afterwards, she would still have more than enough time to review the ship’s navigational logs from the night before. It was a good way to prepare herself for the day’s tasks, and truthfully she had found that throwing herself into her work prevented her thoughts from lingering too long on the recent past.

---

“Mr. Lockman, Ms. Sokolova - it is a good day to see you both, yes?”

Fihlyn offered an energetic wave with a gloved hand as she entered the hangar. A stack of tablets was awkwardly cradled against her chest with her other arm. There was a deliberate spring in her step; the Quessir made a point of greeting the crew with enthusiasm whenever she saw them in the morning. It was said that a friendly start to the day led to better team cohesion, after all. Each of her heavy footfalls rang against the metal deck, and the wheeze of her suit’s compressors occasionally betrayed her presence. Subtlety was not one of the suit’s design priorities.

“I see that good progress is being made on your shuttle?” Fihlyn inquired, peering curiously at the scattered detritus and tooling that lay around the two humans. “I am glad that you were able to recover it. Attempting to land the ESS thirty-eight-twenty-two, dash-zero-one on a poorly surveyed planetary body would have been…” She paused for a moment, frowning as she tried to think of the right word in the Edenite tongue. “...unfortunate?”

Fumbling briefly with the tablets that she’d brought with her, the Quessir continued excitedly.

“I do not mean to interrupt your work, but I have made progress on an expedited training program for piloting the ESS thirty-eight-twenty-two, dash-zero-one. With so few of the original command crew remaining, it would be prudent to have redundancy for piloting and navigational needs.”

Managing to get her glove-constrained fingers around the top-most tablet, Fihlyn offered it to the pilot.

“I decided that the first chapter of the course should focus on general vocabulary and terms related to piloting this class of vessel. Much of it should be easy review for you, I am sure, but there will still be a test…once I have finished writing it.”

Turning to the ranger, the Quessir’s smile wavered slightly.

As much as she appreciated the star charts that the woman had provided, she had still not received a satisfying answer as to how she had acquired them. The priestess had vouched for the Edenite, which had been enough for Fihlyn to put her initial concerns aside. And yet, there was still a sense of lingering unease. Fihlyn knew enough to recognize that the star chart she’d presented was supposed to be classified. That meant either that the woman had acquired it through illicit means, or that she was involved with a part of Eden’s security apparatus that Fihlyn would have preferred to have kept at a comfortable distance.

“You are doing well, Ms. Sokolova?” Fihlyn asked, doing her best to keep any hint of suspicion from her voice. “I never properly thanked you for providing your star chart during our departure. It is very detailed. There are records of systems that I did not realize Eden had ever surveyed, even remotely.”

Reenneesuash (Ren to humans) daughter of veanamdarr

Ren did notice the priestess enter, her head turning to see the older woman's approach, scarred and much more like the one of her kin people expected. However Ren had valued her help in the hydro labs, it was too much work to get things running from scratch for one alone in reasonable time, knew at least the basics of lab work and knew enough that Ren rarely had to explain anything twice.

She just got on with it and had found comfort in the others' companionship, it helped fill the silence, when alone Ren had taken to distracting herself with music or other things played through the consoles.

“Hello Vitiafa, greetings. I already checked the seedlings, I got up early and . Yeah.” Ren was not entirely getting a 100% healthy amount of sleep but she did not sleep well now and it was easier to work on the plants, tend to them, Channel things away from the darkness. She took a more respectful tone to the elder of her kin than the Doctor though and her thoughts dropped off a cliff glad for the distraction and cut to talk of a gym.

“Il take a look..” Her words said with a small yawn and thanked them, eating some of her meal with a small smile and enjoying the spicy kick. “Somthing different would be … nice.” She chose her word, a distraction to her thoughts, to the chaos in her brain. To give Ren some kind of chance to calm the stormy waters. Even before all this, Ren had a chaotic mind, this just made everything worse and it was hard to calm her thoughts, fears, and the whole fact she felt a little… being a little off the norm in height to her kin had not helped, feeling a little bit like she did not quite fit.

Ren was damaged, but who could endure what they had and come out intact? Knowing what likely effected her and experiencing it was two very different things, maybe a work out would knock her out before bed and make her too tried to dredge up the fires and flee.

All Ren knew was that Chili, mac and cheese was a good combination and made her feel a little better.

@Bingelly

---

John wiped away a clump of oil with an already smeared rag. Eyebrow raising as he took in his visitor.

“What can I do for the conquering bug slayer?”

Ginny was carrying herself casually, the duct tape over her torn up coveralls betrayed that she still hasn't settled in properly. "Start with accepting a thank you for going along with my dumbass plan and saving my skin."

“Accepted.” He hope she didn’t notice the slight hesitance in his voice. He hadn’t so much followed then misunderstood a garbled transmission and accidentally fired a missile.

“Not that it seemed like you needed much saving from my end of things.”

The pilot scooted his way to the edge of the nacelle. Boots dangling from his new perch closer to Ginny.

"You managed to ring my bell pretty good, not a good thing to be concussed on limited ox." She says casually, looking up to him "You fly shuttles like that before?"

"First time firing anything outside the range." He replied, a slight defensive shrug, before he patted the armor beside him. " But I pretty much flew this baby from drawing board to production."

A small amount of pride that turned to dismay as he gestured at the debris of his repair attempts.

"The Lockman Aerospace LG-54 Kestrel Assault Shuttle. Newest shuttle on the market. So new that no one has spare parts. Including colony ships."

The Ranger looks him up and down "You built the thing?" she seems to be re-estimating the man "If you got the prints I can see what I can do with the fabs, might not be to-spec, but should be good enough."

“I didn’t design it.” He corrected. Sliding down from the engine to the deck. “More like I helped massage an over engineered mess into a flyable frame.”

He stuck a thumb at the cockpit.

“I was a test pilot.”

Ginny bobs her head along "Even better."

Vitiafa of Endiohon

...

"I see I'm not the only one having a liquid breakfast, Officer Larci," she said after a sip of the tea. "I would hope that isn't typical. Are you doing well, given the circumstances we find ourselves in?"

"Slightly different liquid," Velia smiled a little uncertainly, seemingly not sure if she should be embarrassed or boastful about her early 'morning' alcohol consumption.

She took a restrained sip, "I suspect I'm doing better than most," she gave a sigh before deciding to confess, "Most of my close family, my parents, my siblings, managed to evacuate and are now in cryogenic sleep, waiting for us to find somewhere to defrost them. It's not pure chance - they knew where I was and were aware that I had access to an escape route. I didn't lose everything. I imagine the best portion of this ad-hoc crew did. I have a responsibility, but I am Blessed to be in this position and it means my feet are, metaphorically speaking, on firm ground, not on shifting sand. It will help me weather the storms this voyage will throw at us."

"So more importantly, how, are you doing?" she asked, flipping the question around, genuine concern in her dark, dhasath, eyes.

Ginny bobs her head along "Even better."

John could admit his curiosity was piqued at what made a test pilot better then a designer. When, the slowly becoming familiar, clumping of an environment suit preceded Fihlyn into the bay.

The Quessir crew member giving an energetic wave that looked at odd with the clunkiness of the suit. John wondered if the clunkiness was inherent to its design or if its user had any effect. A minor detail possibly but one that he might-

“I see that good progress is being made on your shuttle?” Fihlyn inquired, peering curiously at the scattered detritus and tooling that lay around the two humans. “I am glad that you were able to recover it. Attempting to land the ESS thirty-eight-twenty-two, dash-zero-one on a poorly surveyed planetary body would have been…” She paused for a moment, frowning as she tried to think of the right word in the Edenite tongue. “...unfortunate?”

Fumbling briefly with the tablets that she’d brought with her, the Quessir continued excitedly.

“I do not mean to interrupt your work, but I have made progress on an expedited training program for piloting the ESS thirty-eight-twenty-two, dash-zero-one. With so few of the original command crew remaining, it would be prudent to have redundancy for piloting and navigational needs.”

Managing to get her glove-constrained fingers around the top-most tablet, Fihlyn offered it to the pilot.

“I decided that the first chapter of the course should focus on general vocabulary and terms related to piloting this class of vessel. Much of it should be easy review for you, I am sure, but there will still be a test…once I have finished writing it.”

John looked at the tablet with the dawning horror of old memories overshadowing the new.

'Dear stars....I'm back at Flight School.'

The tablet displaying neatly made modules of words and concepts that looked like a home produced textbook. Lacking in budget but not in data or quality of content. Definitely not lacking for content. Rows and rows scrolling past his eyes before he thumbed the pad off and slipped it into his flight suit's thigh pocket.

"I'll definitely give it a gander miss." His smile the forced, easy going one he normally adopted when trying to wheedle some design change out of the brass. "At least after I finish puzzling this out."

He cast a thumb at the engine.

"Debris was a silver bullet. Hit a part that this model exclusively had. New engine design and all that." His tone exasperated as the pilot knelt down. Sorting among the jumble of spares for something he could cobble together or salvage into an amalgamation of a part.

Doctor Raphael Vitella and Doctor Yeoman finished playing Liar's Dice and headed to the Med-Bay. They passed by several other crewmembers also walking down the corridor. Compared to a week ago, it was calm and quiet. "You think we might have anyone in severe need of treatment?" Yeoman asked Doctor Vitella. "I doubt it. We might have to perform a couple of surgeries if necessary, but other than that, we shouldn't expect anythin' more urgent than someone needin' a prescription filled or a bone needin' to be set." Raphael Vitella replied. They continued walking until they entered the Med-Bay.

"Chief Medical Officer Vitella. It's nice to see that you've arrived early." Doctor Ferdinand said to Raphael Vitella. "Any patients arrive while we were headin' to Med-Bay?" Doctor Vitella asked Ferdinand. "An engineer was in here earlier. Other than a cut needing to be sealed, his biggest problem is his gambling addiction. One of the more... disreputable refugees might want his scalp because of overdue loan payments." Ferdinand answered. "Not our problem." Raph told Doctor Ferdinand before he and Doctor Yeoman headed to the changing area.

"That was a little harsh, don't you think?" Doctor Yeoman asked Doctor Vitella. "We're Doctors. Unless an addiction requires medical assistance, fixin' it is the job of the ship's counselor. Assumin' that we have one." Doctor Raphael answered as he changed out of his civilian clothes.

Reenneesuash (Ren to humans) daughter of veanamdarr

Ren did notice the priestess enter, her head turning to see the older woman's approach, scarred and much more like the one of her kin people expected. However Ren had valued her help in the hydro labs, it was too much work to get things running from scratch for one alone in reasonable time, knew at least the basics of lab work and knew enough that Ren rarely had to explain anything twice.

She just got on with it and had found comfort in the others' companionship, it helped fill the silence, when alone Ren had taken to distracting herself with music or other things played through the consoles.

“Hello Vitiafa, greetings. I already checked the seedlings, I got up early and . Yeah.” She took a more respectful tone to the elder of her kin than the Doctor though and her thoughts dropped off a cliff glad for the distraction and cut to talk of a gym.

“Il take a look..” Her words said with a small yawn and thanked them, eating some of her meal with a small smile and enjoying the spicy kick. “Somthing different would be … nice.”

"Ah. Thank you for volunteering, Reenneesuash," Vitiafa turned her head to look towards the fellow kiellar as the scientist ate her chili.

It was part polite gesture, part lingering impulse as a half-dead eye blindly looked towards the voice over her shoulder. A well-practiced closed-mouth smile tugged at the corners of the woman's mouth, and she took a soft tone as she continued speaking.

"As important as the work is, do be sure to take some time for yourself. We keep us all fed and we keep help keep the air clean. It is the foundation of everything here, and it cannot crack from strain."

She turned her attention back to the Dhasath with a wave to Ren, but the hint of a smile faded as Velia spoke.

<Snipped quote by Bingelly>

"Slightly different liquid," Velia smiled a little uncertainly, seemingly not sure if she should be embarrassed or boastful about her early 'morning' alcohol consumption.

She took a restrained sip, "I suspect I'm doing better than most," she gave a sigh before deciding to confess, "Most of my close family, my parents, my siblings, managed to evacuate and are now in cryogenic sleep, waiting for us to find somewhere to defrost them. It's not pure chance - they knew where I was and were aware that I had access to an escape route. I didn't lose everything. I imagine the best portion of this ad-hoc crew did. I have a responsibility, but I am Blessed to be in this position and it means my feet are, metaphorically speaking, on firm ground, not on shifting sand. It will help me weather the storms this voyage will throw at us."

"So more importantly, how, are you doing?" she asked, flipping the question around, genuine concern in her dark, dhasath, eyes.

"We shall see this voyage through, child. With the Maker's favor, they shall see you again." Vitiafa evenly replied. She sighed, though.

But her gaze didn't waver as she shifted in the hard chair. She sat silently for a moment, pondering the Dhasath in front of her. She wore a symbol of the Maker, that far-flung God from Doona'tay, and her mind went back to the bust on the station. This other God was no stranger to travel either.

"Our ancestors made many exoduses too. This is hardly the first for either our peoples." She continued after a quiet sip of her tea. "From Andromeda, to Sol, to Eden, and now, it seems, back to Sol. We'll honor them and the dead, by seeing this through and building a new life. We both pray for that, but we both have obligations. We will remain sturdy, for the others."