RP: ISC Phoenix [Interlude] - Splish Splash

"0H41 V1NC3NT - Y0U'R3 ST1LL 4L1V3 - TH4T'S 4 G00D ST4RT T0 TH1NGS!" Echelon stood up and was about even with the giant mercenary. She extended her hand for a handshake. "PUT '3R TH3R3 - 4LL1S0N'S B33N T4K1NG C4R3 0F M3."

However, by standing up, the shadow within which Tani Mako was concealed in moved with the robot. Her cat ears were now as obvious as the bollocks on a stray dog wandering Sargasso. Luca was still intimately aware of Vincent's dislike towards anything with cat ears. He also noticed her with a note from Nostrovia, so that made two.

"I'm sure they'll be done soon," Luca replied to Reeves, glancing behind him to see what Vincent was doing - hopefully Echelon could keep him distracted. He patted out the blood around his eye with the napkin the newbie had given him. "Oh, by the way, I never got your first name."

"1 M34N SH3 G4V3 M3 4 S3NS3 0F T0UCH! 1SN'T TH4T 4W3S0M3?" Echelon said to the ID-SOL mercenary as she held out her arm. "C'M0N G1MM3 M3 4 F33L, B1G 4RMS. 1'LL 3V3N CL0S3 MY 3Y3S!"

"She won't shut up about it." Lina observed dryly, LMG still on her side of the bar, finger dribbling along the wood of her bar rhythmically. "Where is the redhead anyway?"

Someone walked in, but it wasn't the redhead. It was John, Luca's erstwhile companion, college buddy, and THE pilot for the ISC Phoenix. Luca gave him a nod of acknowledgement. John pointed as inconspicuously as he could at Vincent and tilted his head at Luca. He shrugged his shoulders in reply, making a rattling noise as his gear moved with him.

"Vita was looking for you," John said, "she's at the apartment - seems down, wants to move you back into the Crimson Kestrel."

"Yeah, I need to work on the whole parenting thing don't I..." Luca said solemnly.

"I haven't touched your room since you left - neither have you," John said. He'd preserved Luca's room on the ship and his other belongings from intrusion. "I've kept it that way for - hey, who's the new guy?"

"Ph Reeves." Luca replied, remembering the first syllable of Reeves' first name. "Says he's a techie, maybe you can show him around the ship."

"Sure. You should go see Vita, I'll handle the rest from here." Luca got off his barstool and out the door of Lina's bar. The bartender waved goodbye as Luca stood outside to feel the afternoon breeze before getting his move on back towards Ferros Block. He let the sun beat down on him, sniffed the air and felt it pushing the smell (and taste) of stale urine away. He had to drill Aiesu over why it was that way. Some sort of sick sciencey Lazarus joke he wagered as he was jogging back home.

John, meanwhile was with 'Ph' Reeves. "So - did you see the ship on the way in? Big red thing sitting near The Long Road," John said as he began to meander outside onto the sidewalk. "It's our main base of operations. We'll catch a bus to it."

The next bus was to come around in a couple of minutes. Luca just jogged past it.

Bronzi shuffled. The blood letting he had just caused had him excited and his restless nature had produced energy he needed to burn off. Bronzi snorted and stood up. "Ya need a hand lewks? " He grunted as he slapped an empty glass on the bar top. His voice was rather calm, but projected loudly.

As Bronzi stood, Sura mimicked him, except her glass delicately touched the table, and she stood up behind him.

"Er. . . Is that a *good* taste or a *bad* taste? . ." Seiren asked, befuddled at Enzo's terminology. "But, I guess, if it works, it works. But why ten? Do you have a habit of breaking things?"

Mid-conversation, he pulled something other things from the case - a small, thin gas tank about the width of a shot glass, and a mechanical-looking thingamajig, a whosawhatsit made to do some manner of random science - and began fiddling around with them with his Vial.

"Nah, I'm gonna rip yous off, revoise engineers it, figure out how to make it uniquely different from yous version-- den sells it."

Enzo said all this with narrowed eyes, like he wasn't really sure-- then suddenly burst into laughter and threw a heavy hand to Seiren's back. "Nah, nah, lil' guy, don't worry. I'm juss joshin' ya. Seriously, thoughs, it's just so easy t' use I want three fer myself and seven to sell to schmucks."

"I'm sure they will." He agreed his gaze lingering on the crew members that Luca had pointed out to him. He looked back at the captain timidly before letting out a nervous laugh. "Oh that. My first name? Well its funny really. The thing is..." He trailed off feeling a bit silly. He didn't want people calling him by his first name. First it might tie him to being a clone if they were to look deep enough into his past and the other reason was more obvious. "Its er Phoenix " He coughed his voice getting small. "Phoenix" Phoenix was pulling at his hair at this point trying his best to keep eye contact .

Eventually he broke down and stared down at his beer. When had he drank half of it? He really needed to pace himself lest he didn't make a fool of himself.

He perked up from his self hating gloom when he heard Luca say his name. "I'd love to see the ship." He piped up hoping he didn't sound too eager. He stuck close to John honestly interested in anything the man had to say. "I didn't catch a gllimpse of it no, It was raining water that smelled strongly of ammonia or urea so I was more concerned with getting out of it than I was with looking up or around at the scenery unfortunately. " He explained Following John outside. Leaving his half full beer behind. The very damp techie stared up at the sky grinning quietly to himself. He was Grateful that the rain had ceased . It seemed his luck had turned good once he had stepped foot into the bar. "I'm Low on funds but I think I have enough for bus fare." He told himself quietly not really directing the comment at John. ((sorry to take so long the server stuff caught me off guard))

Mako Watched Luca get up and head out the door. At first she was just going to ignore him and hit up the next transport off this rock, but something caused her to get up and follow him out. "Hey! Hey Mr. Man..."

She caught up with Luca, "So what you hired me or something right? so what's next... besides me needing a hat. Do I need to pick up my gear, and I might need to get a gun or two, all i have is my service pistol."

"Though in storage, i do have my Mindy with my load out... Would need ammo for it but past that yeah..." Mako was starting to wonder if she was talking to much. She wasn't paying attention to her feet and tripped landing hard in the piss mud.

Nostrovia left no footprints. Through the dirty roads of Sargasso you could always see footprints through the grit, especially after it rained, but the IPG agent left no traces of her passage. Up and vanished like a fart in the wind.

Luca paused when he heard a splat and turned around to see Tani face down in the mud, pink ears and hair sticking out and splayed all over the ground. Luca sighed and lifted her out, but her clothing was now covered in a coat of grime, and her pride was in pieces. "You okay?" Luca asked as she got her back on two legs. "C'mon, not far now."

He, Tani, Bronzi and Sura eventually found themselves in the bottom level of Ferros Block, on dry land and in the car parking lot. Something stood out amongst the cars, and Luca gave pause when he saw a familiar couch.

Vita was sitting upon boxes and suitcases of all of the things that were valuable and still intact from Luca's apartment in 7-02 of Ferros Block. Admittedly, it wasn't that much stuff - just his and her clothing, his weapons, her computer, the food from the fridge, a kettle that worked and the couch - unboxed and sitting nearby. She was sitting down with her legs crossed atop a suitcase wearing headphones and a neutral expression, almost like a poker face from her father.

Only a few steps away from her and the luggage was Luca's form of transportation for when he wanted to go out of town - a beat up old two door car with a four cylinder engine, a soft topped roof that could be taken down on the warm days, and four seats. It was painted blue with some of the paint corroded by the salty air and revealing the bare and rusted metal in patches.

"Dad, we're moving." Vita scuffed at one of the boxes under her with her feet while looking at her father. Luca nodded sagely since it was the least he could do since she seemed to do all the packing herself. "It'll be good for you; you can't stay living like this forever if you're going to put yourself through hell."

Especially when I never asked for it, Luca thought sourly. "Sure. Uh, how'd you get everything down here?" Vita looked at the others in Luca's retinue, taking a moment to look at the mud caked Nekovalkyrja, and simply rolled her eyes and shrugged indifferently. She had her ways. "Alright, let's load it up and drive it to the Kestrel, then."

"You load, unload and unpack dad - I already boxed and bought everything down." She hopped off the suitcases and started heading towards the passenger's seat of Luca's car. She opened the door.

"Double allowance for the week," Luca said, trying to flex his diplomacy. Vita turned around, "if you help me unpack when we're there."

She paused for thought and shrugged. She didn't need the allowance most of the time, and had a surplus for a rainy day. "Okay then." Luca nodded and walked over to the driver's side of the car, and unhooked the right side of the roof from the car's frame, while Vita unhooked the left side. They they pushed it back and made the car a convertible.

Luca then opened the boot and started lifting his and his daughter's belongings into it.

"Who's the girl?" Vita asked from the passenger's seat, looking at the Nekovalkyrja that was caked in mud. "Sparring partner?" She guessed aloud. "Squeeze?"

"Not cool, V!" Luca snapped as he was bending down to lift up the couch. Unfortunately, there was simply too much couch for him to lift, and he was only able to lift one end of it up. "Bronzi, gimme a hand - back seat."

-

"Phoenix?" John replied as he looked at the kid up and down.

The Sargasso Shuttle bus stopped outside of Lina's and a man hopped out of the driver's cabin, walking around to the back of the vehicle, rolling up the tarpaulin and hauling a set of boxes in. "Oh, hop right on, there should be room." He said as he walked into Lina's with the box in hand, bottles clinking and rattling lightly as he moved.

"Don't worry about fares - if there's room, you can stay on." John said to Phoenix. The side of the vehicle was made of more tarpaulin and spray painted with various markings and symbols. Sargasso had no unified flag to fly, except for what was painted on the side of each shuttle bus.

The man returned to grab another box of alcoholic beverages. "Where ya headed?" he asked, holding the box with ease as the whirr and hiss of cybernetic arms and back structure assisted his strength.

"Long Road." John replied. The driver nodded and smiled - it looked like that was on the driver's delivery route.

"You're in luck. I should get there in ten. Gotta drop something off to Karl's, then something to the Tessen family and somethin' else for the Brandos." The courier's words trailed off as he entered the bar.

"Last box?" Lina verified with the courier as she grabbed the box of clinking bottles and put them under the bar where it was cooler than out in the open.

"Yep, don't sell it all at once." The courier replied. Lina blew him a kiss as he left, and he held up his hand and caught it to save it for a lonely day. Numerous kisses were blown, but not all of them could be caught. "Alright hop in." He said as he passed by John and opened the door to the driver's cabin.

John moved around the back and hopped into the truck's cargo area. A tarpaulin was covering the ceiling and the outside of the shuttle, and the interior was shady and a bit balmy. Inside there were boxes and crates with labels and names written on them. There was still ample room to either side upon seating trays, currently free of cargo.

Reeves could see Echelon wandering outside and looking at Reeves and the bus. The robot pushed in front of him and took his place inside the bus without a second thought. The whole bus tilted downwards and backwards as her weight caused the centre of gravity to shift dramatically.

There was still space for Reeves in there but it'd be cramped. John gave Echelon the evil eye but she just shrugged in reply. "WH4T? 1 C4N'T H4NG 0FF TH3 S1D3, 1'LL T1P TH3 BUS 0VER!"

"I don't think Reeves is game to hang off the side!" John protested. Echelon folded her arms and the camera shutters in her eyes narrowed at him.

"W3LL T0UGH C00K13S, SH3'S G0NN4 G3T C0MFY 0R W4LK!" Echelon replied defiantly. John mouthed the word 'she' and looked at Phoenix Reeves.

"Oh, Reeves, this is Echelon - Echelon, Reeves. Resident cracker, programmer, sniper and-"

"1'M 4 KA1JU, R4WR!" A hologram of a flaming skull appeared over her face plate.

"She's bonkers." John rolled his eyes.

Makari, now slightly more sober, chuckled at the Reeves-Echelon antics as he climbed into the back of the bus. This was really turning out to be more of a tailgate party than a bus ride. That is, of course, if what Lina had in those boxes was more booze. However, judging from the big guns Lina pulled out from behind the counter, he decided to not take his chances. So, Makari decided to clean his pistols one last time. Ten minutes should be more than enough to clean at least two of them.

Tani spent most of the walk to the Ferros Block scraping the mud off of herself. Though once she got the bulk of her face cleared off she wasn't all that concerned with the rest.

When They walked up on the teen Mako was intrigued, 'Who was this person? Though no matter how curious she was about who she was Tani started for some boxes to help load up. Then the teen snapped off with the quick insults. "Well shit, and who are you, the town's snarky brat?"

Lam said:

"Nah, I'm gonna rip yous off, revoise engineers it, figure out how to make it uniquely different from yous version-- den sells it."

Enzo said all this with narrowed eyes, like he wasn't really sure-- then suddenly burst into laughter and threw a heavy hand to Seiren's back. "Nah, nah, lil' guy, don't worry. I'm juss joshin' ya. Seriously, thoughs, it's just so easy t' use I want three fer myself and seven to sell to schmucks."

Click to expand...

"I knew you were a respectable businessman, but an engineer too? Enzo, you've been holding out on us!" Seiren giggled, putting the watchlike device away. "I think I'm gonna go and work on some science elsewhere. You, uh. . . you enjoy the porta still."

The inventor turned around on his stool and hopped off, merrily skipping away with his metal suitcase.

"Aye." Bronzi said brushing up against the couch. Bronzi perked a brow and let out a sharp snort. His voice was flat but not condescending "yer doin it wrong."

Bronzi's thick digits embraced the couch and he hefted it, lifting it easily into the air. He then gave it a light toss placing the couch into the vehicle.

Sura was scurried around her father and lept onto the Sofa. "What did that feel like?" she said quickly, with expedience in her voice, her nose inches from her father's as she peered down at him. Her hood fell around her shoulders revealing that her skin was a much richer shade of blue then her fathers, who by comparison had a slightly less vibrant skin tone.

"Navy therapeutics have really gotten it together! You are hardly exerted! What all did they do?" She said rapidly, almost flabbergasted.

Bronzi tilted his head. 'I derno, durin ether the damn squids were really breakin us in CQC. So they started injectin us with nanos, and other stuff...It felt good?"

It was funny how the condition of if there is room worked. Apparently if there were still room after everyone had climbed aboard he could do so as well. He wouldn't complain he wasn't that eager to part with his credits that he would pay. That being said room was eaten up quite quickly first by some cargo and then some by a very large very heavy looking stranger.

His grip tightened on his rain soaked belongings determined not to have to walk. "Ugh... Um" The technician murmured in protest not really uttering the words he wanted to to the great robot. Instead of snappy and belligerent comebacks he smiled weakly as the thing mistook his gender identity. An easy mistake, He wasn't the typical specimen for his race.

Wincing slightly he smiled at the John and Echelon. "I'm small, I can fit there I think... but If one of you could hold my bag or stuff it somewhere, Its not too heavy it just has some basic tools and a spare change of clothes and such." He explained not really waiting for an answer he pushed the bag into Echelon's lap before making himself very small , curling up where there was still room on the little transport vehicle. He wasn't impressed with the situation but he wasn't keen on hanging on the outside either. Reeves prayed the drive would be short and smooth.

"Alright, let's go." The bus driver said as the engine's revs begun to speed up again and the truck began to move. John and Echelon were anticipating the slight jump that the bus normally does as it got traction on the bumpy Sargasso roads, and they seemed to roll with it, bouncing up and down as the bumps in the road marked their passage.

"So Reeves," John said as he moved with the truck, almost as though he was anticipating the bumps, "you'll want to get familiar with Sargasso because this is where Luca seems to like living."

He pointed out the back of the truck and at a store with two iron barred windows, a roller shutter for a front door, a veranda to keep window shoppers out of the heat "Over there is Karl's place. Sells guns, sells bullets."

The truck then made a stop and the tarpaulin next to John opened up. The delivery man grabbed a box, rung one of the doorbells to one of the housing complex. He then set the package down and waited. Eventually the door opened and a middle aged Nepleslian man with two cybernetic arms answered the door. He paid the delivery guy some tip money, grabbed the box and left with a smile.

"0V3R TH3R3 1S T4K3Y4M4'S PL4C3." Echelon pointed out the window to an Ori-Mart, a chain of stores managed and run by Origin Industries. Reeves would've seen Ori-Marts on different planets around the galaxy, franchised out to various buyers to distribute electronics, Origin made weaponry and maintenance packs for them and products. The one here seemed to be smaller than the others Reeves had seen.

"You'll like going there. All the technical junk and infrastructure in town goes through there. David Takeyama can always do with extra hands if you need extra work on the side." John pointed out sagely. "Bigger orders ... uh, might want to call Origin directly."

The truck stopped once more and another crate was retrieved, this time from under Echelon's seat. A doorbell, a door opening, some casual townie conversation, and a door closing. Then the truck started heading towards the Long Road.

The truck eventually stopped and the driver said: "Okay here we are. See you 'round Johnny."

"Take care," John said as he hopped off the truck, followed by Echelon and then Reeves and Makari. John looked at the Crimson Kestrel's open hangar that was a ballsy retrofit that Luca chose when he bought the ship - aside from it being painted crimson too. "That's the Kestrel, Reeves. It's our base of operations, home and hearth." He smiled wistfully. "Can't ask for much more."

As he started walking up the ramp and alongside the Big Bird, a smaller Vampire Class cruiser of old make that was barely small enough to fit inside the hangar; John spotted someone he didn't recognise. "Hey, who goes there?" He called out. Echelon froze too, eyeing the person.

A willowy figure in black with long striking white hair slowly turned to look in John's direction. An officer's bag sat at the deck by her feet. This figure was clearly female, without a doubt but something about her seemed off, for just a brief moment ellicting a sense of uncanny valley like a doll or a machine until her expression settled as she caught sight of him.

"I'm from the consortium," her voice sounded with a deep rumbly Lorath quality to it. "I'm here to support Mr. Palvone and observe his actions."

Echelon looked at John and she looked back at said willowy figure. One of the shutters in her eye camera narrowed at the white haired lady and she said: "SH3'S ... 1 DUNN0." Echelon was trying to do a rudimentary scan on her, but nothing was making sense. The readings were unlike anything she'd seen. A question mark materialised above her face plate.

John's face creased and he frowned, not willing to get any closer. "Wait a sec, the Lazarus Consortium?" He asked. He'd heard rumours from other mercenaries when he logged onto various websites and BBS boards. A communications company?

"That's correct" the voice sounded.

John took a few cautious steps forward, hands by his side and away from the energy pistol he kept on his hip. "I don't remember getting any interviews scheduled." He was keeping an eye on Luca's books and publicity when Luca couldn't manage it himself.

"I'm a combatant, not a reporter," the voice sounded, a metallic clink as she turned about thudding against the deck. Getting closer, John would note she stood just shy of a Fyunnen somewhere around 6'5". Even so, she peeked up toward Echelon, looking over the drawings over her frame.

"Spacer" she nodded, before looking toward John. He looked back up, and blinked a few times beneath his sunglasses. He was looking between her face and her shoulders, surprised at how tall she was in front of him compared to how she was in the distance. Part of him wished that she'd remained in the distance.

"Your eyes" she began, her voice harsh at first but taking a softer tone. She moved forward, invading John's personal space now, a hand settling on his shoulder. Echelon's face plate turned into an exclamation point.

"W-what about them?" he asked, now put on the back foot, polarised lenses glinting in the soft ship lights.

"Do they hurt?" she said, eyes half open, gloved fingertips peeling to lift the sunglasses away, burning ruby staring down at him like a parent with a child. Her voice had a strange and melodic quality but something in the back of John's mind was screaming for him to put space between the two of them - like a brilliant white noise building into a high pitched ring, pushing thoughts aside.

Cracked turquoise stared back up at her, eyelids flickering as the ship's soft lighting began to make his eyes water. "Stop that." He asked tersely, grabbing the frame and pushing them back against the bridge of his nose. He tried to take a step back. His composure was cracking quickly - he was clearly a civilian compared to the others that Aiesu's intel had provided.

"H3Y." Echelon growled. "H4NDS 0FF MY P1L0T."

And with that, whatever spell had been cast was broken. Beneath heavy white lids, those eyes stirred toward Echelon in the space of a blink.
"Protective" was all she had to say before slowly turning about and returning to stand next to the bag she'd left behind.

John caught his breath and wiped the tears from his eyes, finally regaining composure as his eyes recovered under polarised lenses. "L-Luca should be here soon. He's moving house."

"BY TH3 W4Y, WH4T 4R3 Y0U?" Echelon said, prodding the woman in the shoulder with an outstretched digit. Oddly enough, she seemed to compensate for touch, unlike most robots or constructed bodies that had the tendency to poke through people by accident.

"I wouldn't know" she only nodded affirmatively with a surprisingly warm smile, making it clear that she preferred things this way. It was, perhaps, her first natural expression all day. With that, the state of uncanny valley returned again as if she'd switched her face off and her body became impossibly still as she sat down.

"GR00VY~." Echelon replied. "TH4T M4K3S 2W0 0F US!"

John looked over to Reeves, the newest addition to the Phoenix then over to Makari and sighed. "Just another day..."

-

"I am a brat and a half, thank you," Vita insisted to the pink-haired Neko as Luca packed the last of their belongings into the car. The couch was secured with Bronzi's help.

He slammed the boot shut and said: "V, show some respect," however, the reality that sat in his mind could've modified his words. Even though you could probably mop the floor with her... "She had to drag herself through the mud to get here." The mud on Tani's clothing had dried out by now.

Vita shrugged. "Don't make that sound so special. Lina does it every-"

"Shush." Luca said, walking towards the driver's side door, opening and sitting at the wheel. "Everyone hop in."

"Luca," Vita turned around to look at the couch that was taking up the back seat, sticking out like a monolith on a mobile mesa. "Where will they sit."

Luca reached for the shades on the dashboard and some gears started turning in his head. He grinned.

-

A few minutes later, a four stroke engine could be heard coming down the street with the top down, a couch on top of the back seats and a trunk full of personal belongings. Luca was in the driver's seat, wearing a pair of triangular shades with the right triangle partially shattered due to careless conduct.

"We there yet?" Vita asked, sitting in the passenger's seat.

"No." Luca replied as he adjusted the rear view mirror - and saw nothing but cushion, blue fabric and Bronzi's crotch and legs.

Sura was sitting on the driver's side of the couch and clinging for dear life. Bronzi was sitting in the middle, and Tani with pink hair and oh-so-cute pink fluffy ears was on the passenger's side, pink hair billowing in the wind.

The wind was blowing in their face during the trip, and the occasional passer-by took a photo or video of the occasion. Weirder things had happened in Sargasso, but more weird was always welcome - if it had something to offer. A fly struck Bronzi in the chest.

"Are we there yet...?" Vita asked again, becoming bored with the trip. The car had been slowed down considerably more than usual thanks to all the cargo.

"No..." Luca drawled.

"We there yet?" Vita complained.

"No." Luca replied.

"We there yet?"

"No."

"We there yet?"

"Yes."

"Yes?"

"Yes."

He guided the car up the Crimson Kestrel's loading ramp and tooted the horn. John nearly jumped out of his skin, but Echelon saw him coming and waved. "0H41!" She said over the sound of the four stroke engine. Luca cut the power and killed it. He opened the door, fiddled with the handle, and gave it a firm boot to get it open.

"Hey John, hey Reeves, hi Ech, Hi..." He paused mid sentence. One of these things was not like the others. "...Rebeka."

It took her a moment to realise, pulling herself out of some deep thought. Sat cross-legged, her gaze slowly settled upon Luca.

"Mr. Palvone" her voice sounded. Calm, with the usual Lorath twang that refused to pronounce his name properly, evidently learned from Aiesu. Other words should have followed but they didn't as silence hung.

Luca let the silence hang in the air for an extra moment. The way he held himself compared to John was noticeable immediately. He looked calm, confident, like he'd seen stranger things in his travels, and possibly punched them in the face too. "Rebeka." He replied.

"Mr. Palvone" she said again.

"So. Anything I should know before you settle in?" He looked over to John and he seemed to be hiding behind Echelon's robotic frame. "I see you've met John; second in command."

"He's hurting" she stated with an oddly sympathetic tone to her voice, like a child that couldn't work out why -- yet curiously blunted, making it seem poorly acted or forced in some way.

Luca turned back around, and saw Echelon pointing at Rebeka while a picture of a demon appeared on her face plate. "Everyone messes with his glasses," he groaned before looking back up into her ruby eyes. She'd see that his right eye was an unhealthy shade while his left looked completely fine, brown and deep while his stare was sharper than zesuaium.

"Tell me - did Aiesu give you anything to tell us how to keep you in good condition?" He knew that Rebeka was beyond human comprehension, and he could see it in her uncanniness and attempt at empathy - she had the empathetic grace of a swan falling down an endless staircase.

Rebeka reached into the bag, handing out a draft of loose documents, both typed and scribbled with sticky-notes, paper-clipped together. He flipped open to the first page. And some how, it all made sense. Diagrams, notes, explanations. Parts of it went over Luca's head but what was on the crumpled white didn't resemble what was watching him. The dietary list of things she could and couldn't eat particularly caught his attention -- chalk, rhinestone, motor oil and petroleum standing out, making him double-check the list's headings. Curiously, Nepleslian was also on the menu.

"Wait," Luca tapped the page, looking up at Rebeka again.

"Yes?"

"This is some kinda joke, right?"

"Is it?" she pondered. "I wouldn't know. I can't read."

"So now I have an illiterate man eating humanoid abomination from beyond time, space and my comprehension on my doorstep thanks to Sharklorathtopus." Luca mumbled, rolling his eyes. "It must be Tuesday."

"Wednesday" Rebeka beamed, her voice-dead-pan. Her smile was one Luca had seen on Aiesu's features. A startlingly good replication, considering how different their faces actually were. Why she'd done it, he couldn't quite work out. It didn't suit her.

"You learn from the best, I see." He recognised the smile as he clapped the book shut. "Just don't eat anyone on my crew and we're good. Got that?"

"Wait wait - WHAT?" John yelled. "SHE WHAT?"

"00H TH4T'S 4 N3W 0N3." Echelon observed, now curious with the 'woman' or whatever alleged to be one that Luca was able to stare down despite having five inches of difference.

Rebeka slowly stood to her feet, slinging the officer's bag against her shoulder. Her smile settled rather specifically on John.

"Why can't you collect plates or kittens or something?" John yelled, exasperated.

"Do you collect meals?"

"I collect a body count." Luca replied sternly. "I'd hate to add you to it."

"Why would I do something like that?" she quizzed, voice deep and on the defensive. Her reaction said she was genuinely confused, as to why they would expect this of her.

He then remembered something in the book and flipped to it. In Aiesu's words, the whole etiquette and common sense thing was still a work in progress. "We'll work on it. Aiesu says that there's still lots to learn - but apparently you know Quant... quantus... uh..." He was stumbling on the word.

"Right" she stated flatly. One of the few lessons she had learned was modesty.

He closed the book. "All things aside, welcome to the ISC Phoenix." He held out his hand for a handshake.

Rebeka watched uncertainly, eyeing his hand for a moment, then his face, then his hand again. Finally, she extended her own, mirroring his actions exactly with the same hand rather than the opposite, adjusting for height. Their hands wavered awkwardly in space for a moment before Luca took her hand and gave her a soft handshake. Ruby eyes darted down beneath a sleepy expression before returning to his gaze, clearly unsure what to make of it.

"Handshake." Luca explained. "It's a common gesture of goodwill on Nepleslia and Yamatai."

"My hand isn't shaking" she said back. Her arm was limp, letting him do the work.

"No, you grab the other person, by the hand after they extend their hand towards you like this, and..."

John and Echelon exchanged an incredulous glance as Luca kept on explaining. "1 L1K3 H3R." Echelon nodded at John, who just cringed back at her.

"...put a little more grip into it, but not much - you could crush the other person's hand." Luca finished.

Pain shot up Luca's arm as she did as she was told. Reading the flicker in his eye, she slowly loosened, trying to find an ideal middle-ground. He nodded when that middle ground was found.

"Is there something you need me to do?" she quizzed. Noting his absence of expression and not giving him time to respond, she asked again in Yamataian -- the words having a very different set of overtones.

"Iie," he replied. He started speaking in Yamatai-go, and his voice in Yamataian had a distinctly backwoods and mountaindwelling twang to it, the Ralt twang. "Be sure t' meet the others, say 'ello, find a room t' drop your belongings 'n set up, and that should be all fer now."

With that, she immediately turned to face John and Echelon again.

"Spacer".

Makari took a few seconds longer to get off the bus than the rest of the group as he packed up his SiZi 30 and the cleaning kit. As such, he poped his head into the conversation right when the tall woman invaded John's personal space. From Makari's perspective, it appeared that John and the tall woman were "kissing under the mistletoe". Huh, wonder who the lucky lady is, though Makari. As he approached, she backed off voicing her reply to Echelon. That's when Makari noticed....something. He couldn't put his finger on it, but something was definitely off about this woman. Her complexion seemed nearly flawless and the words emitting from her mouth were far too harmonic for a normal being. It sounded like some unlucky fellow had bedded a robot and this was the result. Makari, unsure how to respond, simply tipped his hat in her direction and kept his hand on his freshly polished SiZi 30. If this this was sent from the past to kill one of them...well let's just say anti-armor rounds should do the trick.

Luckily, that's when Luca showed up. He again tipped his hat, but this time in the direction of the boss. After the not particularly kosher greeting and banter, Makari released his grip on his SiZi 30. He didn't particularly like this humanoid thing standing in front of him, but he figured if it was sent from the future, he would be better off not angering it lest it eat him.

On the ride to the ship, Tani was enjoying herself, the wind was nice and refreshing. Her thoughts on Vita were erased quickly in that wind. Giggleing and putting her arms up into the wind she started wondering why she didn't leave the SA sooner.

After they pulled up she saw the Spacer, she was really the only on there that Tani knew, so she made her way over to her, wondering what she was to be doing. One thing she knew was that her gear needed to be sent to her, luckily it was in storage on one of the platform stations above the planet. She sent a quick message to the storage facility to have her crate to the Kestral. In it was her Mindy and the bulk of her SA gear. She hoped that where ever they were going to go, she would be able to do what she said she could do. 'Shit I don't even have the explosives or guns, other then my NSP, and I don't want to carry that here, it would be a dead giveaway.' it was then she realized she needed some new cloths, and a new hat to cover her ears.

Eager to get moving so he could get out of the cramped space he was curled into, Phoenix let out a quiet sigh as the bus driver stated that they would be leaving. The technician was not expecting the jolt in movement as they started. The unexpected motion nearly caused him to crack his head on the person beside him.

The bumping and jostling was both uncomfortable and disorienting. Trying not to look too green in the face he smiled at John. "Ah right. Of course. I'll come to know my way around soon enough." He agreed. Knowing this place would be his home base meant that he would have to make himself accustomed to its locals, the layout and all its interesting little nuances.

Reeves peered out at the buildings as John pointed each one out. Perhaps when he had proper money he could visit the various stores and professionals.

As they offloaded more gear he stretched his legs in an attempt to become more comfortable throughout the ride. "I know a little about Origin, its easy enough to spot a shop. " Smirking he noted the building was smaller. For this location he decided it made sense. "I'd hardly call what they sell junk, but I suppose its a matter of my opinion." He'd keep the comment about extra work in mind. So long as the pay was fair and he could work around the things he loved he was fine taking on extra assignments. He could care less if he worked himself to the bone. The small company who he had been commissioned for hardly showed any sort of concern for him in that regard.

After the stop at Origin he took a better seat that had been cleared by moving the deliveries. Reeves cracked his joints and let out a quiet but happy sigh. He was prepared for the lurch of the vehicle this time his whole body tensing so he wouldn't be tossed forward again.

Staring out the window Phoenix could feel his own excitement building. It couldn't be long now before they arrived at their destination. He could spy the ship by now so he grabbed his bag and readied himself so he could follow the others without making them wait for him to gather his belongings.

"She looks beautiful." the clone murmured as he admired the ship in the hanger. "I'd like to become better acquainted with er as soon as possible." The short young man followed John and the others his eyes fixed on the pair of ships. It wasn't until John said something that he realized that another stranger had approached them.

Gripping the handle on his bag tightly he watched the girl from behind wisps of his pale hair. The stranger easily dwarfed him even if it wasn't a difficult feat in the first place, he couldn't help but find the woman intimidating.

Intending on staying out of the way he remained far back from the group silently hoping that nothing terrible would occur. When John finally made a comment to him he grunted uncomfortably in response. "This sort of thing happens often?"

Setting his bag down he folded his arms over his chest. Shifting from foot to foot he held his breath. It wasn't until Luca arrived that he said anything at all. "Hello sir." A fake smile graced his lips momentarily before he relaxed again.

His eyes focused on the big bird as the others talked enraptured with its form . It didn't take long before he was completely spaced out. It wasn't until someone mentioned not eating crew members that he flinched. He gave his underfed stomach a pat hoping this giant woman wouldn't make a snack of him. "Er, John Where should I put my things? I was hoping to get a closer look at both ships."

"If she eats people," Vita stood up on the passenger's seat and put her head over the windscreen of the car parked in the hangar, looking at Rebeka, "I have a list of people I need killed," Vita piped up from the car cheekily.

"Hey Ree-V!" Luca yelled as he was acknowledging Reeves.

"Kidding." She fell back down into the seat with a plop, "now stop procrastinating and start getting our new home moved into." Luca threw his hands up in exasperation for how subversive and how on the ball she was. She was like a judo master with getting people's attention and tricking it, even better than her old man.

"N33D 4 H4ND?" Echelon asked, grabbing one half of the couch from the back seat. Luca positioned himself on the other side and grabbed.

"Sure. Three, two... one..."

Even with two Gartagens sitting on it, Echelon was able to lift it up her half of it with ease while Luca grunted in exertion. They placed it down behind the car and tilted the couch so the two aliens were on their feet before placing it near the elevator into the rest of the ship.

"You'd be surprised - this is tame compared to what happens when we're on the job. Follow me, I'll take you to the quarters." John replied to Reeves as he started leading him, and inadvertently started following Rebeka too, pace stumbling.

"You're kinda small lookin'." Vita looked at Reeves and gave her commentary. "Get Allison to lead you around if you want more on the ship. She should be in the lounge, follow the tall woman."

The smaller boxes and possessions that were between Luca and Vita were much quicker moved. Vita, meanwhile got out of the car and started following the Sourcian and the smaller engineer tagging along in her shadow. "You're not like us," she observed as she walked beside the silver hime-cut, tall woman with her possessions in a bag in her long, slender fingers.

Like her father, she had the same stride of confidence, the same 'seen-it-all' swagger and attitude, and she appeared to be in her teens. The shape of her face had some similarities to her father, but there were no hard edges or facial hair to break it up, instead boasting softer features and long, curly bangs trailing down the sides of her face and onto her shoulders.

After composing himself, John came jogging in from behind and to answer Reeves' question. "You should be able to find a spare room on Level 2. The doors will be open to spare rooms."



He sped up his pace inconspicuously and went around a corner to get away from Rebeka and found himself in the lounge room.

"He's definitely scared of you," the younger Pavone grinned.

Allison and Melissa were sitting down on the couch, holding controllers and playing NSS DeathWish against each other, split screen playing on the same server with others. By the sounds of how furiously the buttons were being pressed and the sticks tapped and tilted over the din of terribly unladylike trash talking, they were really into it.

-

"Okay that should be everything." Luca said when the all of the boxes and loose possessions of his and Vita's old apartment were stacked outside of the door to Luca's old Captain's quarters. He was standing at the door looking at the identification pad, wondering if his his fingerprints had changed. After Delsauria he felt like a completely different man. He put his left hand down on the scanning pad and let the biometrics do their thing. The chirp of approval from the console was a sober reminder that he was still what he was.

The door slid open and Luca could feel the dusty atmosphere in the room leaking out and lapping at his boots. He looked inside an the lights came alive, just like the day he bought the ship. He took a step in and watched the dust on the floor fly up to meet his legs. He was only gone for a few months. He looked at the bed in the middle of the room by the wall, and saw that it was undone just as he'd left it when Delsauria happened. The pillows were disarranged, the sheets were creased and the .45 bullet that'd extracted itself from his body was still lying somewhere in a red splotch.

Looking over at the dresser, Luca could see those prototypes of the Phoenix Man! action figures the production company had sent him, smiling faces of his crew in plastic, metal and ball joints having gathered dust and fallen onto the dresser, smiling face down. The desk that kept the ship's main control computer had a cup sitting next to it with a nasty smell emanating from within - an empty cup of tea with a small measure of tea left at the bottom that he'd left behind that morning it had festered. There was a Yamataian newspaper from last year sitting on it too that he'd picked up, read for the cartoon and dismissed. The editorial headline running: "LUCA PAVONE - MAN OR MENACE?"

He didn't need an editorial to tell him what he was, the answer was already there in his heart. He sighed and looked down at the floor. Standing out amongst the gloom, a message had been slipped into his room and left on the floor above the dust. It was placed there recently.

There was an envelope, addressed to Luca. it was partially crumpled, and a hint of red near one of the edges suggested someone had attempted to kiss it, but was thwarted in the process. Inside, a piece of paper (Appropriately crumpled on one side) bore the following message, scrawled in the tidy, businesslike handwriting of Luca's favourite CEO.

Luca picked up the envelope. He thought nobody had entered his room on the Kestrel since he'd left it. He unfolded it and took the message out, mouthing a word or two.

A crumpled letter said:

I've come across some more information, a lead if you will, about the whereabouts of my body. Turns out the man I told you about was responsible for taking it, as I'd suspected, and it has found its way onto another planet. I can't tell you which, because I can't have you following me- You've got your own problems to worry about.

"Don't let anyone know where I've gone, just tell them I had some personal business to attend to. And of course, don't let them know about the truth behind Ellen and I. When this is all over, Ellen has decided to stay with you, but I'll have to go back to Origin, so don't get your hopes up of me staying with you all the time. I'll be available if you need me after this, but for the time being, I have to go on alone.

PS: Contact Zophia if you need anything.

PPS: I'll have dinner reservations for us made when I get back.

Click to expand...

Luca put the letter down, put it back in the envelope and folded the whole thing, placing it in one of his breast pockets. "Here's hoping they can make it..." he murmured.

"3V3RYTH1NG 4LR1GHT?"

"Fine." Luca replied as he stepped further into his room and sat down on the bed. Concealed from view previously, Luca was looking over the bed and he gazed into dusty, Yamataian style futon in good condition, made immaculately for its previous owner. Her previous possessions were nearby, scattered close to the walls in a suitcase and using some of Luca's night table. His stomach lurched as the memory of her cut into him. "Just... fine."

"UH, N33D H3LP UNP4CK1NG?"

"Wait for V. We'll do it together," he replied, not facing the robot as his face scrunched up, lips trembling. "Just like old times."

He bowed forward in mourning. It was all he could do for her now. -
"BOOM HEADSHOT!" Allison yelled as Melissa's player character fell to their knees without a skull, the player throwing her hands up and letting the controller fall onto her lap.

"Bah, you were screen watchin'!" Melissa retorted.

"You're just sore because I'm better than you!" She trash talked back. "I can own you any day of the month!"

The match ended - Allison had won over Melissa. The game had allowed them to keep a tally of how much they'd killed each other, and gave them a score separate from the rest of the server to keep locally, and it was 7-12, to Allison.

"I win!" She yelled. Melissa tore her cap off of her head and revealed her raven black and navy hair, frustrated and exasperated by the engineer's success. "Ten bucks - to me, now!" Melissa begrudgingly parted with the money and Allison pushed the money into a pocket unscrupulously. "John, call Zeta," Allison told the pilot as she pulled out her phone and called a radio station. She had to listen through some prompts and advisories.

"Gotcha," John replied as he sent a ping to Zeta with the text: 'Go to the Captain's Room. Luca's moved back in and he's having an episode. He needs a hug.'

Allison's voice changed immediately once the prompts were over and she was allowed to talk: "Heeeeey! My name is Allison and my friend is feeling down. I'd like you to play some String Smasher, play the theme to the Phoenix Man! cartoon!"

Very carefully, Rebeka turned her head and looked back over her shoulder down toward Vita. She weighed Vita with a single look almost looking through her.

"Were you expecting something else?"

She'd come to a stop, presumably to memorize the lounge - her gaze elevated, paying more attention to the walls and the ceiling than anything inside the room itself.

"Nah. I think my dad has a habit of attracting these sorts of things to him," she stated. "After a while it gets difficult to be surprised any more."

John was sitting down on the couch next to Allison and he shuffled further away from Rebeka nervously when he noticed her presence in the room.

"At least some of us are still capable of being surprised." She observed in regards to John's reactions to the Sourcian. "Maybe they're the smart ones."

Rebeka aped an apologetic smile she'd seen performed by the Nepleslian she'd modeled her physical form on and borrowed much of her mind from, deeming it appropriate. It wasn't perfect but the intention was there.

"I wouldn't know. I'm still unsure why this bothers him."