Star Fire (closed)

[kircanos]

Kircanos leaned back in his chair, he looked down at the brown boots with silver buckles that rested on the ships console. He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly feeling the perspiration starting to cool on his skin. They exit off of RA237 had been a particular rushed and dangerous one. They planet had been going through some civil unrest and differing factions were trying to control the ore export. They had rushed to get the ore loaded and secured and getting off of the landing pad had been fun as a group of rebels started to take shots at them. Luckily they only had small arms and couldn't really do any damage to the space freighter. He ran his hand down the side of his chair feeling the cool metal against his finger tips. She wasn't the biggest or fastest ship but she had been through alot and he knew what he could get out of her.

He leaned back and closed his eyes for a few seconds before a familiar beep filled the cabin. The computer had finished plotting their jump path and was ready to engage. He leaned forwarded and pressed a red button for the ships intercom system "Hold on, starting the jump sequence" he said. He straightened up and entered the commands for the computer to take them into hyperspace. The ship lurched and then everything became very still, he took a deep breath of the coppery tasting recycled air. His dark brown eyes focused on the forward view screen as the star field flew past him.

His ship the Star Fire was comprised of a small crew Ajax was his copilot, Karena was the mechanic and Gareth was the everything else guy, he did some cooking, if you could call hydrating the prepackaged meals cooking.

Kircanos eyes flicked back to a blue screen that gave him some readouts of the ships progress. They were on schedule to make their delivery and all of the other readouts look good. "Hmmm" Kircanos let out a low sigh, their oxygen reading seemed to be a little lower than expected. Keying up the com system again "Gareth, did you fill the O2 tanks full" he asked and listened to the static as he waited for the reply.

"Yes" came a somewhat snippy reply "I'm not sure how good their gear was down there are compressing it but they were full by the time we left".

"Well, it looks like we might have a scrubber on the fritz" Kircanos said “Karena, can you check on that and see which one isn't functioning at full capacity” he said as he let go of the mic and sat back in his chair. He shook his head, every flight was an adventure in itself.

 

[haremfaery]

Josephine Morgan breathed a sigh of relief. She made it off world in one piece. She was sure they'd find her sooner or later. Her weigh wouldn't affect a ship this size or which such heavy cargo, but she didn't know how many were in the crew. Depending on how many there, her presence could be detected fairly soon as she impacted the life support system. She just thanked the Virgin that they kept the cargo area pressurized.

She checked her bag, she had enough energy bars for a few weeks and water for about three days give or take. She decided to take a look around, get to know the cargo bay for now while the crew was still busy. She scouted the perimeter avoiding what looked like monitoring cameras. She found a better spot to hole up in, more comfortable, better hidden. She'd worry where she'd get more water later. Jo moved her stuff and decided to try and catch a snooze while she could.

 

[kircanos]

He checked all of the readouts once more everything looked like it was on track “Ajax come up here and take a watch” he said over the mic and started to look at the schematic of the ship. He located all of the scrubbers in the cargo bay and noted their locations. One of these wasn't functioning properly and would deplete their O2 supply faster than they wanted it to. This jump wasn't a particularly long one but it was something they needed to deal with and they had some down time.

He heard some boots behind him and turned to see Ajax large frame enter the cockpit, he was a muscular man, and very tall. He scrapped something out a tin container and popped it into his mouth. He shook his head as he swallowed “These rations all taste like the same bland crap” he said as he tossed the container in a refuse can.

Kircanos laughed “Yeah only the texture changes and that is lumpy or really lumpy” he said with a chuckle. “Im going to check on the scrubber and see whats up with it, check the inventory and see if we have one in stock” he said as he nodded to the console. “If not we need to pick one up when we drop off this stuff” he said as he grabbed his jacket and zipped it up.

He walked out of the cockpit his boots echoing off of the metal grated floor as he headed down to the cargo hold. The hull down here wasn't as thick as it was in the living areas so it was always much colder down here.

The turbo lift dropped him down the few stories into the cargo hold, the doors swished open into the dimly lit cargo hold. It took a few moments for his eyes to adjust to the light in here. He saw a familiar figure appear of the darkness between a few crates. He blond hair was pulled back in a pony tail, her atheltic figure was squeezed into a flight suit. “You find anything” Kircanos asked her as he grabbed a flashlight off of the wall.

She shook hear head “No but I got a few more to check” she said as she nodded in the other direction.

Kircanos nodded and started to walk in the direction that she had indicated.

 

[haremfaery]

Jo woke from her drowse with a start. Shit. Shitshitshit. They weren't supposed to come dow her yet. She thought she would least have a day or two before she had to be careful and hunt out some food or another place to hide. She kept her breathing shallow een as her heart pounded in her chest.

She listened. Voices. Scrubbers. She looked around from where she sat. She didn't see any scrubbers near her, but she could hear boots and they sounded like they were walking in her direction. GodDamnFuckingHell. Can I catch _one_ break today?

She stuffed the few things she had gotten out back into her back as quietly as she could. No way was Jo zippering the pack. Too noisy. She listened again trying to hear where the footsteps were. She wondered if she should stay put or try to move to a better spot. She thought this one was deep enough into the cargo bay and out of the way. But she couldn't see where the scrubbers were from here.

Shit. I am _so_ fucked if they find me. They probably wouldn't decide to turn around--it wasn't like the police had a bounty on her. But if they reported a stowaway, the Big Man might get wind of it and make them an offer. Fuck. Was she really worth that much effort? Maybe. Maybe she could throw herself on the mercy of the ship's captain. She had some money, she could hustle some more once they made planetfall. She could pay him back for her passage if he could wait.

She strained her ears again trying to decide if she should move or stand pat.

 

[kircanos]

His boots echoed off the durasteel floor of the hull, the cargo boxes doing little to stifle the echoing as it bounced around the mostly empty chamber. He focused his head up as he looked at the walls trying to find the scrubber in all of the grayness. He squinted and then shined his light up there trying to find the circular outline of the mesh that would give away its position.

His trained ears could hear the sound of the air flow in the quiet still of the room, he heard the rustle of Karena's flight suit as she came to a stop behind him. “When did we replace these things last” he asked over his shoulder as he focused his gaze on the wall.

“Two trips ago” She said as she placed her hands on her hips.

Kircanos nodded and clucked his tongue “damn, these things should last longer than that” he said irritatedly as he finally found the difference in the gray wall. “There is the first one” he said as he made his way towards the wall. He would need a ladder or something to stand on to be able to remove it.

“Can you grab the ladd....” he said as he turned, the beam of his flashlight cause a shadow that wasn't from a box.

Karena spun around as she reached for her blaster, she had seen that look before, she knew it all to well.

She looked back at him, Kircanos nodded for her go around the boxes and that he would make his way along the other side. She nodded back and they started off silently. He felt the missing weight of his blaster on his hip, he had left it in the cock pit to charge. He silently cursed himself, but he kept moving.

He reached the side of the cargo box and waited for an instant before he spun around his flashlight held shining brightly into the face of.... the face of a girl. His hand was up ready to deliver a strike, he heard the blaster charge up as Karena rounded the corner from the other side.

She looked scared to Kircanos, “Who are you” he asked demandingly “and why are you on my ship”.

 

[haremfaery]

Move or stay? Move or stay? Jo couldn't decide, paralyzed by the sounds of the two moving around. She decided if she moved they'd hear her. She tried to shrink back into a shadow of one of the cargo pods and think herself invisible.

Damn. Fucking bloody damn-it-all to hell. He found her.

Jo heard the weapon powering up behind her and all the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. She squinted as the flashlight stayed on her face. Her heart pounded louder than the thrum of the ship's engines. She swallowed her fear, or tried to. Her hands were like ice and her mouth was dry. She swallowed again putting empty hands up, palms toward the man in the time honored position. "J-J-Jo. J-Josephine. Morgan."

Stop being a baby. What's the worst that can happen? He kills you. You were dead already if you stayed. "There was no where else to go. I _had_ to get away. they were going to kill me."

Don't cry. Don't cry. Men _hate_ it when you cry. She blinked back the tears. "I can pay for my passage. I have money. I have some money on me, but I can get you more when we make planetfall." It all came out in a rush, which was good because it kept her voice from trembling.

From where she cowered on the floor, the man--the Captain? She couldn't see him very well with the flashlight in her face. But he seemed big. She didn't dare look behind her. She had heard a woman answer the man. Maybe the woman would be more sympathetic to her plight.

 

[kircanos]

Kircanos kept the light high, pointed in the face of this intruder. The bright light reveald that it was a woman, a younger one she looked very frightened. He couldn't tell if she was scared because she had been caught or what ever it was that had caused her to flee the planet was the source of her fear. He kept his grip on the light tight as he looked past her for a second to make sure that Karena had them covered in case she decided to pull a weapon.

From the quick scan that he had done of her he didn't see anything visible that led him to believe that she was a threat. He let her speak, hearing her frightened words as she tired to explain her reason for being on his ship. He heard her words and they all sounded plausible, but still he wanted to make sure that she wasn't a threat.

He closed the distance between them and reached out, with his free hand. He grabbed her by her collar and picked her up and spun her around. He pushed her forward pressing her into the crate behind her as he quickly started to pat her down, making sure that she didn't have any weapons on her. He kicked the bag she had with her over to Karena's feet.

He could hear Karena bend down and start to go through the bag “Nothing there” she said coldly.

Kircanos nodded “Well very good” he said backing off of the girl “Now Josephine” Kircanos said slowly as he bent down and picked her bag up “we're going to head up stairs and get you something to eat” he said as he could see the girl shaking. He figure it was from fear rather than the cold of the cargo hold “and something warm to drink” he said as he stood back and indicated for her to start walking past him.

She clutched her bag and walked past him slowly, his gaze flicked up to Karena who had her blaster at her side now. “Review the security cams I want to know how she got on here, and find out what you can about her” he said quietly as he turned to their new passenger.

“I'm Kircanos and this is Karena” he said indicating to each of them “And this is my ship the Star Fire” he said as caught up with her.

 

[haremfaery]

Jo felt like a rag doll the way the man hauled her up and thrust her against the crate. This wasn't the first time she had been frisked and his hands were rougher than they needed to be. Just her luck to be found by someone with so little sympathy for her plight. "Ow." Bastard.

He stepped away from her and Wait. What? He was going to feed her? Maybe he wasn't such a bastard after all. Jo walked past him as he instructed. She had a nice walk and she knew it. She didn't exaggerate her hips, she just let her body do what it did naturally.

"Captain Kircanos." Jo said trying to sound respectful. She gave a little smile to the woman. Karena didn't seem happy about this at all. She wondered if they had a marriage contract. "I um, I'm really sorry about all this." About being caught.

She walked in front of the captain and turned where he indicated into the mess.

 

[kircanos]

Kircanos watched as she walked past him, his dark brown eyes taking in the outline of her figure. She had ample curves, and her moves were womanly. She had an athletic figure that had a softness that belied her youth, and flexibility. He heard her apologize, he smirked, knowing she was just sorry for getting caught.

They made their way into the mess, it was a shiny room with most of the cabinets and counter tops being made of stainless durasteel. Karena left the group and continued down the hallway, only stopping to give the new intruder a piercing look. Kircanos walked past Jo and waved his hand towards the white table that sat in the middle of the room.

He walked past the table and opened one of the upper cabinets and pulled out a handful of nutri-bars. Turning around he tossed them on the center of the table and pulled out a chair opposite of her, he sat down and grabbed one of the bars and slid it towards him.

“mmm purple” he said as he peeled the wrapper back, it crinkled in his hands as he exposed the food beneath it. He took a bite and looked across the table at her, “So why did you get on my ship” he said as he set the food down and looked across the table at her. His dark brown eyes fixing on her as he crossed his arms across his chest and leaned back in his chair. “what were you panning to do once you got on board” he continued his quesitons.

 

[haremfaery]

Jo could feel the captain's eyes on her as she passed him. Like there was anything she could do. She had been found out, even if she could take out the captain and Whatzername, there were other's on the ship. Besides, she couldn't fly the damned thing alone.

When they got to the mess, Karena gave her a look that would have fried her in place. What the hell is her deal? Maybe she was in charge of ship's security, so it was her ass in a sling because Jo got on board.

Jo slid into a chair at the table and folded her hands in front of her. She watched him chew. His comment had to be sarcastic, ship's rations were notoriously awful. "You know, if you crumble those up and put them in the green glop and warm it a little--it's not half bad." She had bartered her way onto a few ships because she knew a few tricks in the kitchen. She guessed she was allowed to just help herself, the captain had said he would feed her while he sorted things out. She pulled one of the bars towards her and opened it. It sounded awfully loud in the room.

"I told you why." She said holding the bar in her right hand. "I had to. They were going to kill me. The Syndicate. I figured I was better off taking my chances as a stowaway. The Star Fire was convenient. She was nearby and leaving. I got on while things were being loaded. The dock workers don't get paid enough to give a crap." She was giving him more than what he asked for. She hoped that would show him she was cooperative. "Staying hidden till you made planetfall, then bugging out again."

Jo wondered if they were carrying something special. What the hell else would she be planning? To hijack the ship? Steal some cargo?

She looked at the man and took a bite of the nutri-bar. Kircanos was built pretty big for a spacer. He had to be eating lots of protein and spending lots of time weight training to keep that kind of muscle mass.

 

[kircanos]

Kircanos leaned back in the chair and listed to her, this story lined up with the same one that she had told him down in the cargo hold. He pursed his lips together, if she was a liar she was at least had her story down so that she wasn't going to slip up upon closer inspection.

“Thanks” he said in response to her culinary advice “Jermand does most of our cooking for us” he said as he took another bite of the nutri-bar “he does a decent job, with what he has to work with” he said as he chewed the somewhat tasteless food. This stuff was made to carry nutrients and vitamins to their consumers systems, not for pleasure and taste. He was thankful that their trips never were that long that they didn't get down to a planet to get a decent meal.

He heard her concern for 'The Syndicate' he knew that they had just taken off from a primary mining planet. There was a strong undercurrent of organized crime that seemed to follow in the wake of these working class settlements. They did their best to separate the workers from their hard earned credits with women, gambling, drugs and alcohol.

That fact that she was mixed up with them made him once again wary of her, he looked across at her. She had an athletic look, nothing that he couldn't handle in a fight. Even though she was in shape, she didn't have the same dangerous look at the Karena had about her.

“How did you get mixed up with them” he asked casually trying to pry more information out of her. He studied her again she looked to be in to good of health to be an addict, he didn't seem gambler coming from her. They way she had reacted to being found out was a little bit more frantic than he would have expected. “Did you work for them” he asked as he raised his eyebrow, she was a very good looking girl. Those miners probably would have parted with plenty of credits for her companionship.

 

[haremfaery]

((When Karena does a check on Jo, she'll find a few aliases. Juvenile records are sealed. A few arrests for petty computer theft--identity theft, that sort of thing. Charges dropped.))

Jo shrugged. Fine, if Kircanos wasn't interested having this crap food taste better, that was his problem.

Jo finished chewing. She could feel him looking at her. Was he looking because he liked the view or to see if she had any tells. She wasn't lying--not much anyway. "I'm not a whore." She was affronted. "They found me. I'm good with computers. Really good." She fiddled with the food wrapper. "Okay. Short version: I was working for the mining company. The Syndicate thought they'd make me an offer I couldn't refuse. The pay was good. They asked me to do more, higher level stuff. I refused. But by then I knew too much. They froze my accounts and put out a hit on me. I had to get out of there." She took another bite of the nutri-bar.

He was looking at her again. Maybe it was the red hair. She remembered reading somewhere that redheads were supposed to have been bred out of the gene pool five hundred years ago. They weren't exactly right about that. She traveled a lot and had only met one other redhead--a guy, but his was more auburn than true red like hers. Hell, one of the VPs at the company had offered her two hundred greens just to drop her drawers and prove she was a natural. Maybe Kircanos wanted a peek. Maybe he hadn't gotten laid enough when he was planetside.

 

[kircanos]

Kircanos rubbed his chin feeing a few days worth of stubble there, he need to shave. Now that they were in hyperspace he should have some time to take care of that, well that was until this little problem arose.

A slicer, that would be a handy skill to have around, he thought as she went on. Oh and a price on that pretty red head, he thought as he furrowed his brow. That might be something worth exploring, seeing just what that number was, but he would have to go about that quietly. No need in bringing the Syndicate or the authorities down on him unneeded. “Looks like you got mixed in with the wrong crowd” he said as he sat up and finished his nutri-bar and tossed the crinkled wrapper down on the table. “You play with snakes and eventually your going to get bitten” he said rather sternly, he had learned that lesson early on in life. He had his checker past, and most of the time it stayed there. Every now and then they had to do things that were a little on the gray side of the law to try and make ends meet.

He looked up as Karena entered the mess, she strode past Jo and handed Kircanos a black data-pad. He scanned over the information on it, her criminal history. He scanned over a few aliases, a few mug shots. He flicked his finger across the screen pulling up the record, a few instances of computer intrusion, unauthorized slicing, identity theft, nothing to interesting. All of it done while she was young, no real time served for it. She spent some time in a half way house getting counseling and then some time out on work release. Satisfied that she was who she said she was he handed the data-pad back to Karena.

“Well you said you could pay for this ride and we can work that out later, for now there is some work to be done” He said standing up. “I hope your good with a sanitizer” he said looking across at Karena “the refresher station needs cleaning” he said nodding to her. “Karena will show you where it is” he said “and keep an eye on you he finished”. He had to suppress a grin as he heard a loud sigh escape Karena's lips.

He stood up and started to head out of the mess “Maybe when we land we can see if some of the planetary authorities can help you out” he said tapping the door frame and heading back up to the cockpit to check on things.

 

[haremfaery]

((Sorry, I couldn't remember, when Dayen went out.))

"More than one person aim and shoot at a time. They can't


----

"Yeah, well. It's hard to find a decent job out here in the fringe. I was just trying to make a living--make enough to go live someplace nice." Jo said. She went back to eating her nutri-bar.

Jo watched Kircanos as he flicked through the data pad. It had to be about her. She knew what he was reading about her. She had tweaked some of it herself. She could feel the rancor dripping off Karena. What was her problem. The captain didn't tell Karena _she_ had to clean the toilet.

In fact Jo was about to say something to the captain about that when he mentioned contacting the planetary authorities and then left. Jo would have to find a way to dissuade him of that. Or maybe that was his oblique way to threaten her.

Jo finished her nutri-bar and stood up. "After you." She made a little courtier's bow.

Karena's eyes narrowed. "Go out the door and turn left."

Jo did as she was told. She was really disliking this woman. She followed the instructions and arrived at the 'fresher. "Can I, uh, use it first?"

 

[haremfaery]

"Yeah, well. It's hard to find a decent job out here in the fringe. I was just trying to make a living--make enough to go live someplace nice." Jo said. She went back to eating her nutri-bar.

Jo watched Kircanos as he flicked through the data pad. It had to be about her. She knew what he was reading about her. She had tweaked some of it herself. She could feel the rancor dripping off Karena. What was her problem. The captain didn't tell Karena _she_ had to clean the toilet.

In fact Jo was about to say something to the captain about that when he mentioned contacting the planetary authorities and then left. Jo would have to find a way to dissuade him of that. Or maybe that was his oblique way to threaten her.

Jo finished her nutri-bar and stood up. "After you." She made a little courtier's bow.

Karena's eyes narrowed. "Go out the door and turn left."

Jo did as she was told. She was really disliking this woman. She followed the instructions and arrived at the 'fresher. "Can I, uh, use it first?"

 

[kircanos]

Kircanos made his way to the cockpit, Ajax's frame loomed large in the pilots chair, he had one leg crossed, his large brown boot bouncing as he wiggled his ankle. “How are things looking” Kircanos asked as he entered the space.

The large man looked back, his bald head picking up the reflection of the indicator lights “Green across the board” he said as he nodded to the screen. “We had some weird gravity readings a few centi's ago, but it all leveled out” he said with a shrug.

Kircanos nodded “Good, looks like that new FTL drive is worth what it cost” he said as he sat down in the other chair in there. He spun it around and access the console, he pulled up some of the critical systems and put access warnings on them. He was uneasy having an unknown slicer on board his ship, they really didn't have any where to keep her where she couldn't get access of some kind. “You hear about our unexpected visitor” Kircanos asked over his shoulder.

Ajax nodded “Yeah I saw some of that on the security cams and Karena came by” he finished with a chuckle.

“What did she say” Kircanos asked as he finished setting up his notifications.

“She wanted to airlock her” Ajax said quietly.

Kircanos laughed “Sounds about right” he said as he stood up and stretched “im going to catch some sack time” he said as ran his hand across his stubble “you mind taking the first watch” he asked.

Ajax shook his head “No thats fine”

“Alright, you let me know if anything strange happens, I mean anything” Kircanos said as he headed to his cabin.

______________________________________________________

Karena was pissed about being put on baby sitting duty, she knew security was her responsibility and that this was her fault that they had a new passenger on board. She stared the younger girl down, her blue eyes trying to set her red hair on fire.

She stood in front of the refresher station and pressed the wall plate for it to open. “I don't care what you do, just get it clean” she said as she turned around to face the girl. She nodded for her to enter the room. The space was efficient, squeezing as much into the are as they could. There was enough room for two people to be in there at one time, but that was all.

“Cleaning stuff is here” Karena said she tapped her boot on one of the bottom drawers on the wall “get it clean and I will be back to check on you in a bit” she said with a sickeningly sweet smile.

With that Karena stepped out of the room and pressed the wall plate to shut the door, she entered in her security code to lock the door. Turning she walked off with a smile.

 

[haremfaery]

Jo could feel the hate dripping off the woman. What the hell was her problem. She wanted to ask her some questions, find out more about the ship and crew, and the captain. "Fine. I think I can figure it out." Jo wondered if Karena hated her, or if she was like that to everyone. She surveyed the cleaning tools and chemicals. At least it wasn't too gross. Probably ex-military on board. The captain sure came across that way. She could do spit and polish--that should get her in good standing. She used the toilet first, no sense making it dirty later.

Jo got to work starting at the top and working down. She thought while she worked. She wondered if someone was going to be watching her 24/7. She really needed to know if the Syndicate figured out she had jumped off world. It also wouldn't hurt to learn more about the ship and crew. If she had something on them, it would help her negotiations with the captain. She didn't mind pulling her weight but she really didn't want to be on latrine duty for the whole trip.

Jo still wasn't sure how she felt about the captain. She wasn't going to let him intimidate her. He seemed the type that used that tactic a lot. If he thought she was weak, he'd just make things worse. And Karena...what was her deal? Jo didn't see any girl bonding any time soon. She wondered where she was going to sleep. Maybe they had an extra cabin. Hell, she had been prepared to stay in the cargo bay for the duration.

Finally she pulled out the sanitizer wand and went over every centimeter of the room. When Karena came back to check on her, Jo was on her hands and knees going over the floor. Her butt was facing the door. Shame the view was wasted on the pissy woman. "Almost done." She said over her shoulder.

 

[kircanos]

On his way to his cabin Kircanos met Karena coming the opposite way “You left her alone” he asked concernedly.

Karena flashed a smile “She's locked in and cleaning” she said rather proudly.

Kircanos nodded “Alright, just keep an eye on her” he warned “don't give her much room” he said. He straightened up and nodded down the hallway “After she is done show her to storage B, I think there is some free room in there that she could use for a bed, and get her a sleeping roll” he said as he started to pass her. He paused and stopped “Make sure she knows she is supposed to stay in there till someone comes and gets her” he said and then headed off down the hallway.

---------------------------------------

Karena frowned and rolled her eyes as she opened the door to see Jo bent over still cleaning. She let out a sigh as she was told that she wasn't done with her task. She nodded and stepped back from the door “Hurry up” she hissed as she crossed her arms and waited for her charge to finish. Karena leaned back against the durasteel door until Jo emerged from the fresher.

“This way” Karena said as she pushed herself off the wall and started to walk down the hallway “Captain says your going to stay in here” she said as she stopped in front of a small door and pressed it open revleaing a small cluttered space. Spare parts and boxes lined the shelves that ran along both walls. There was a small bed roll inside of the door “You can use that to sleep on” Karena said with an almost laugh.

She nodded for Jo to get inside “Your not to leave till someone comes and gets you” she said her voice full of warning, but just a hint of a challenge. “Rest up, I'm sure Kircanos will have some more chores for you in the morning” she said as she pressed the keypad and shut the door. She wasn't happy that she couldn't lock this door, she

 

[haremfaery]

Jo turned back to her work. She made a face and stuck out her tongue when Karena couldn't see her. Good work, Jo. Thanks for being so conscientious. Jo thought. Well fuck you and the starship you rode in on.

Jo stood and stretched out her back. She put the sanitizer away. "Finished." She said. "Lieutenant." She added as an afterthought. ((That is Karena's rank isn't it?))

Jo followed Karena to the...Storage Closet. Lovely. It was better than the cargo hold, she supposed. "Home Sweet Home." She eyed the contents. Maybe there were things in here she could use. She tossed her pack inside. "Um, could I have some water? The captain gave me something to eat, but I'm parched." She nearly told the woman they should tweak the humidity levels, then it would feel warmer, more comfortable. But Karena didn't look like the type to take suggestions. Especially from the likes of her.

She tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and shifted her feet. She decided the stupid kid act was the one to go with for now. Besides, if they underestimated her, so much the better.

((looks like the last of your post got cut off. Or you meant it to end at the comma...))

 

[kircanos]

(( Sure LT is good, that was probably her rank in the planetary defense force that she served in with Kircanos. Yeah I think I goofed on the punctuation. ))

Karena rolled her eyes, she heard the request just as the door hissed shut. “Well better get her a bottle of water than have her out of her room” she said as she turned to make her way to the galley. She walked along the hallway, the lights had dimmed putting the ship into 'night' mode. Lights along the sides of the hallway softly illuminated the passage, giving just enough light to see where you were going so you wouldn't trip over anything.

The hallways was empty and dark, the light that streamed out of the galley was bright and vivid against the soft glow of the hallway. Entering the galley she saw Ajax rummaging through a drawer looking for something to eat. The big man was always hungry it seemed, he turned his head as she entered the room, nodded and then went back to his search. “Looking for a snack” he asked over his shoulder.

“Nope, running an errand for our guest” Karena said with dripping sarcasm.

“Ahh, how nice of you” Ajax said as he turned and smiled.

“Yeah, Captain wants her kept in her room till someone can babysit her” Karena said as she went to the chiller and pulled out a bottle of water.

Ajax nodded “Yeah I don't want anyone we don't know running loose on the ship” he said as he grabbed a handful of canned rations and shut the drawer.

Karena nodded “Yeah, well come get me when your watch is up. I'll take the next shift”.

Ajax smiled “Will do” he said as he lumbered out of the room and back to his post.

Karena looked down at the bottle of water, it had frosted over slowly starting to condense in the dry air of the ship. Reaching into the chiller she grabbed another bottle, not wanting to get a room service call in the middle of the night.

She made her way back to the storage room and pressed the button for the door to open, “This is it for this evening” she said as the door slid open.

 

[haremfaery]

Jo took the water gratefully, "Thanks." Bitch. She gave Karena her best smile. She set one water bottle down and cracked the other one. She raised it in a toast to Karena then took a sip. "Good night." She smiled again.

***

Jo spent some time going through the contents of the room to see if there was anything she could use. She really needed to get to a terminal.

After she thought enough time had passed she thumbed the button to open the door and peeked out. She'd head for the mess, she knew there was a terminal there and if anyone came in--she'd just say she got hungry.

So far, so good. No one in the hallway. She found the mess and got a nutri-bar and opened it. She took a bite and set it down on the table. She touched the terminal screen to activate it.

Jo checked the recent police reports to see if they were looking for her. She did a quick look to see if anyone was getting close to her secret accounts. That was the main reason the Syndicate wanted her--they caught her skimming funds.

"OK, one more thing before I get outta here. Where exactly are we going, Captain Kircanos?" She went to call up Navigation. "Hah." She saw the safeguards the captain, or someone, had put in. "I didn't start slicing yesterday, you know." She worked around it delicately and got the info she needed. Not only where they were going, but where they had been and what sort of cargo they were moving around. Some was a little shady, but they were by no means trafficking in contraband materials. Not that Jo could find.

Little did Jo know, the captain was smarter than she thought. Just in case she was able to work around the walls he had put around critical systems, he had put in some very old school alerts. Anyone but the person on duty or the captain who tried to access a terminal once the ship was in night mode would send an alarm to the captain. No password to decode or alert the person. Someone with Jo's mad skills at slicing would never think to look for something so simple.

She finished at the terminal then picked up the nutri-bar form the table and left the mess hoping she didn't meet anyone on the way back to her closet.

 

[kircanos]

Kircanos was asleep, his arm over his eyes as he gently breathed in and out. Sleep for a captain was something that wasn't ever long enough so he had to take it when he could get it. His slumber was interrupted by the dinging of his datapad, it buzzed and flashed an alert.

Groggily Kircanos rustled and sat up in bed “Damn, now what” he said as he ran his hand across his freshly shaved face. He picked up his datapad and stared at it for a moment, his eyes adjusting to the assault of the screen light. He squinted and then something shook through him, anger, fear, irritation, a mix of it all. He kicked his sheet off and grabbed his pants off of a chair and them them on.

He slammed the comlink on the wall “Karena we have a problem” he said and then pressed the button for the door to open. He had seen systems being access that shouldn't have been, he knew Ajax wouldn't be poking around in them and there was no reason for anyone else to be up and doing things at this time.

He saw a light on in the galley as he rounded the corner of the hallway and found Karena, bleary eyed as he was in the hallway her senses on alert. He nodded to the galley “Lets see what we find” he said as he took the lead and made his way to the open door.

He turned the corner rapidly looking at the terminal finding it empty he shifted his gaze to the table where he saw her sitting there. “What the hell are you doing” he fumed “you were asked to stay in your room” he said as Karena moved around to flank him.

He moved closer to her, keeping the table between them “And what business do you have trying to slice my systems” he growled. He liked the momentary look of shock on her face. She was good, she replaced it quickly with an innocent who-me look.

“You sneak on board my ship, despite that we treat you nicely, feed you, give you some chores to do” He said as he leaned on the table towering over her “I haven't asked you for payment” he said with a wave of his hand, his eyes met her “well not yet” he said as his lips curled up in a smile.

 

[haremfaery]

She waved the nutri-bar at the captain. "I was hungry. I came in for a bite." She bit off another piece and chewed while talking. "I'll just be going back to my closet now. Sorry to have caused such a stir. I won't do it again." She couldn't meet the captain's eyes. She started to stand up but he was standing there glaring. Then he asked about slicing his systems.

Aw, fuck. How the hell did he find out? I did everything right. Didn't I? Dammit!

Kircanos loomed over her. He seemed bigger, broader than she remembered. Her blood ran cold when their eyes locked. Then he smiled. Slowly. She dropped her eyes. This is not good. Her heat pounded. She could feel the blood draining from her face. "I said I could pay you. I just need a little time once we make planetfall."

Ok, go for the damsel in distress. That's an oldie but goodie. "I hacked your system, okay? I needed to know if they're still after me. They could be waiting for me when I get off this ship. For all I knew--you sold me out. I'm just trying to protect myself." She added a pleading tone to her voice.

 

[kircanos]

“Well you might not have to worry about what will happen to you when you get off this ship” Kircanos said the smile still on his lips.

“Yeah not if we air lock her when we come out of hyperspace” Karena chimed in almost gleefully.

Kircanos shook his head “No that isn't what I had in mind” the man said as he stood up. “I never asked you for money” he said as he crossed his arms “but you are going to pay” he said as he leaned back towards Karena.

“Do we have any where we can lock her up” Kircanos asked.

“No, Ive asked for a brig I cant count how many times” Karena responded

Kircanos paced his hand on his chin and thought for a moment. “Do we still have that crate from the rodisen” He asked.

“Yes sir” Karena responded her voice starting to waver from its enthusiasm.

“Good, take it to my quarters” he said as he started to move around the table. “Right now the Syndicate isn't going to be your problem Josephine” he said as his hand shot out gripping a hold of her upper arm. His fingers wrapping around her slender arm, his grip tight as he yanked her out of the chair. He pulled her close to him “Since you cant follow polite requests” he chuckled “I will have to be more persuasive” he said and then started to drag her out of the room.

 

[haremfaery]

Jo's mask cracked. She looked really frightened. "But you can't--that's _murder!." She looked from Kircanos to Karena.

Jo was relieved when Kircanos squashed the air lock idea. But what did the man have in mind?

"You're putting me in a crate? An animal crate?" Jo nearly shouted. Kircanos grabbed her arm. Hard. She had fair skin, she'd have a nasty cruise, she was sure. "Ow! Ow! let me go." She struggled against him, but his hand might as well have been an iron band. She pushed against his chest with her free hand. He was a brick wall. And just as sympathetic. "And what's so damned funny?" Jo tried to kick him. She looked at Karena, no sympathy there either.

Jo put up a good front struggling against the man. But it was useless, he was dragging her off to wherever and from the sound of it, she was going to be locked in an animal crate. Inside though, she was frightened. She didn't like the way Kircanos looked at her. She certainly didn't like the way he smiled what he said she was going to pay. What had she gotten herself into?