RP: 188604 [Star Wasp] 5: The Milk Run

Taisaku Sunahama Ryū Kenka or The Epic Beach Style Fight

Aashi Nath listened as Ronin spoke, picking up the nuances of his tone and the way his body language reacted to what he said. Ronin was proud of his own exploits and less than thrilled with the exploits of others, like those of the NMX and Mishhu and, yes, pirates. Only pirates like pirates, she knew that. She was unperturbed, but noted that he could have withheld that bit of information but had chosen not to. She wanted to know why, but that question was shadowed by the one she had wanted to ask when he changed his statement about being in it for the cash and had added something else.

"So," she began, bringing her face close to his as she pushed her palms on her beach chair and raised herself slighly, "what is this 'bigger picture' you are driven towards?"

Ronin took a moment of dwelling in the moment, his abs glistening in the sunlight for the momentary silence. It was only after another drag and puff of smoke that he let out an initially wheezy and single word.

"Change."

It was spoken with no doubt lacking semblance to the ears of the Iro woman he'd just had the privilege to start getting to know. Aashi, as she were, was an older woman just by how she carried herself and likely had little interest in the affairs of a short-lived being like himself. But the idea of changing Yamatai was something that he shared with many criminal and ex-soldier alike.

"Power armor is the only way we looked at crushing the Mishhu. My bigger picture... it's to use their own technology against them. Mecha-craft has existed but not in the state we saw them unleash against some of our numbers during the war. Power armor bridged it... but there was an untapped power to it. Watching a machine tear a fighter in half like we would paper? It changes your perspective of things."

"Change is an important thing to want. Knowing how to get it is another thing altogether," she said, ruminating on the thought as she lowered herself on the chair and took in a deep breath.

Her lungs were particularly good at filtering out dust and other fine debri in the air and were working well at filtering out the smoke from his cigarette while he drew it in and exhaled near her. A small part of her wished she could get the same head high that others had talked about after they took their drags. She watched him idly, then said, "You spent time fighting several different species, but what do you think those species were fighting you for? They may have wanted change just as much as you do."

"Fighting for change like me, huh?"

Taking a moment to sit with the cigarette in his right hand's grip but with the butt still sitting on the trim, masculine lips for support. After a moment of what must have been some serious thinking, the man broke from his funk and scoffed.

"If that was the case, then I'd hope their change was at least something that was worth getting killed for. NMX, pirates, rebellious forces... they're all just names. Just like there are no doubt scum out there even among all my cat-sisters and brothers in the Yamatai Star Army."

Sitting up, his hand pulled the smokestick free and let out a stream of the stuff before moving his left hand rub his forehead. It took all but a moment before he turned over onto his side to face her from across the short distance between their chairs. And, as such, his mohawk shifted ever so slightly to lazily lean to the side as his shade-covered green eyes set on her.

"I think, though... that maybe you know the same sort of thing. A pirate and a mercenary aren't always so different. With or without a purpose, we fight for a living... so surely you understand the sort of question you're posing at me, Miss Nath."

All too well, Aashi understood, but to understand and be understood were two different things. She wanted more to understand than have him understand her. And he was doing a fine job of making it seem like he had her figured out.

"I know it's likely we have both been through the same things, and, forgive me for doing so, I'm trying to find out which side of the net you're playing from. Star Army seems to be the side of the net you have the most footing in."

"Well," he returned the smoke to his mouth with the brief pause, "They did train and take care of me for the short while I served. My world isn't coming back, so Yamatai is the closest thing to a home I got."

Looking toward the sunny sky, he'd give a rather pathetic attempt at a wave of his hand toward the heavens.

"All that shit out there? That's where I get to play and mess around to try and make Yamatai recognize the potential of these mecha. The Tengu is just one big mess but even then it's fun flying system-to-system for a new fight. But that's why my net isn't so easy. Yamatai and the Star Army are my home... but this way of life? This is what I've grown adapted to."

Aashi nodded her head at the sky as she looked on at it with him and then looked to him, a keener sense of who he was instilled in her.

"There are a million possibilities for what you can grow into and a mercenary and pirate happen to be the ones we landed ourselves in, because we adapted. It seems there may never be a new home from the one you last left, and yet there's always one waiting for you. For me, my home was a planet, and then I wanted to leave it and travel the skies we look at, now. But I didn't get that chance. The next home I got was a cell. That is where I adapted," she said, "to become something that you would have not hesitated to kill. Does that make this way of life, being mercenaries and pirates, does that make it less of a living if it's what we had to do, not what we live to do?"

The final question had pieced together the banter rather nicely, resulting in Mister Takimori rolling back and onto his back with a smile gracing his lips with the death-stick looking like it would fall off with the tiny smoke-trail rising from it.

"It doesn't change it much when it's what we need to do and what we choose to do. I heard there's one girl in Uso's bunch who was seen eating cereal in her underwear. That sort of scene fits more back on some secure world far from this NMX-contested frontier."

His chest rose with a deeper breath, finally letting out a lengthy one that blew the smoke from his nose in another display of a seasoned smoker. But his green eyes looked skyward for that time before looking at Aashi for a few moments. And, of course, ending it with the slightest of chuckles.

"It's certainly not like any other job I've been on before. The day I was hired on by Uso, I got dragged into some rich formal party with her, you know? Would have seen her nude, too, if it wasn't for her body's tech. Thinking about it only helps cement that maybe, for once, this isn't something I'm doing for any other reason than I might just enjoy the oddity of what I've seen on this backwater world."

Aashi drummed her fingers against her chair and looked up to see his spectacled face looking at her. She could feel his gaze even when she looked back to the sky. Only when she looked back at him did she notice he had turned his vision elsewhere. It was odd, the feeling of being looked at as an equal. Being looked at at all, other than for commands. She hadn't talked like this with someone in awhile and something about it felt reassuringly good.

"I've seen a lot worse of worlds, but never stayed on one longer than it takes to unload anything its inhabitants find precious," she said with sly smile. "I wouldn't mind doing the same thing again and again with Uso, and you, I guess. I wouldn't mind doing that again, not at all. But what I really want to know is why you got hired. Were you left for dead with nowhere to go? Or just thirsty for some Uso action?"

A sly smile and a witty hint at what any man would call lust had caused him to almost sputter out in a slip of his professional but grumpy persona. As fast as he had done so, the cigarette coming dangerously close to slipping free and falling onto that nicely formed torso, he covered his mouth while his right hand plucked the cigarette free. Smoke slipped out from the cracks in his fingers as he laughed momentarily, finally moving it away once most of the smoke had finally left.

"Haha~! That was a pretty good one," he said while plucking the glasses off and falling back in his chair with some effort to relax after the surprising chuckle, "But uh... I got hired because she needed hands. I had come off a job and next thing I knew, she was buying on any help. A friend put me through and then I got stuck following her ass around for the day. As for if I'm thirsty, I'm a healthy human male. We're mostly water for a reason... you know, needing to drink. If I earned the right to get aciton with that woman, I'd not mind taking the risk of getting killed from the ensuing fun!"

Aashi said, "I wouldn't dare tempt her to show you just how easy it would be to kill you. You say you almost saw her naked? What would the repercussions have been if you had? I can't pin you down as being the flogging type or not."

"Well, based on how she was taking a look at me while I was getting dressed? I think flogging wouldn't have been the punishment our boss had in mind. I'd wager any man or woman would have killed to have come as close as I did... and just as many would kill to have her checking them out."

Ronin chuckled once more, his grumpy mood softened considerably. Aashi had certainly proven herself different from the common horny alien. She was probably one of the more relaxed of the Iro he had met in all of his time travelling job-to-job.

"Turning invisible as she does... you've not seen her naked, have you? I mean, asking those sorts of questions makes me think you're almost jealous!"

"No, just used to floggings being a regular thing, where I'm from, is all," Aashi replied with a half smile as she turned her head to face the sun. "To be quite clear, I don't think I've had a sexual thought since I went into that cell decades ago and I haven't found the need for one since I've gotten out. There isn't a reason to let that be what you live for. I presume that sentiment lands on deaf ears, though."

"Less deaf and more doubtful. I can't imagine the idea of someone being entirely devoid of a sexual thought. I mean... you're not some asexual alien. Unless I missed something about your kind, you all like to get down and fu-"

He's interrupted as an ash falls from his cigarette and singes his bair chest, causing an immediate curse and slight rise to sit up in his chair. A quick brush knocked it free, giving his non-interested neighbor a view at his strong back for all but a moment before he turned his upper half to face her. The cigarette was running considerably low, the pilot taking the time to speak up while carefully plucking it free.

"Tell you what... why don't you show me what you pirates learn when fighting? I can't imagine being in a cell that long removed your natural instincts as a being that reproduces and your fighting senses. That game of volleyball ended early, so I still got some energy for a mock spar. Whattaya say, Miss Horned-Head?"

"You're in for quite a fight, Mister Creamsicle, let's get this going, then," Aashi said, standing to her full six foot height, not including aforementioned horns. "Do you need any rules? Pull your punches, no groin or head, that kind of thing?" She began to walk over to a deserted area of the beach, expecting him to follow.

Getting up, he couldn't help but shake his head with a sigh at the attempt at a trashtalking nickname. Taking his cigarette as they walked, he would flick the much smaller smoke flying through the air and against some bookworm's head. Of course, he had no interest in seeing who he'd hit before moving along.

As they arrived, he'd give her a pat to her rump before passing her and moving to stand across from her. It was the one free shot he had, one mixed between a fighter's pat and an attempt to get a nice touch to that heiny. Compared to his opponent who stood six feet tall without her horns, the fit soldier was an inch shorter... but he was confident enough in his old training. As a last touch, he pulled his sunglasses off and tossed them into the sand nearby to avoid getting them involved in the scuffle that was sure to come.

"I guess we can keep our groins out of it... but everything else seems fair. Whenever you're ready to lose, let's get this show on the road."

Aashi nodded slightly with her hands to her side, a movement tha could have been mistaken as a bow. She moved her fists up as her feet started moving back and forth. While she held her gaze on Ronin's eyes, she threw two punches out to his abdomen, missing connection on both before recovering her fists to their defending positions and allowing him a chance at her.

Meeting those eyes with his green ones was all it took for him to lower his stance and bring both hands up in an open manner. It wasn't exactly a shared fighting style, but it was disciplined enough that her missed punches gave him the moment he needed. Lunging forward too fast, however, he came face-to-face with the Iro woman in such a manner that they practically smacked lips as he shoved her back as hard as he could. It was a simple manner to attack, but the awkward step to warm up into the fight had thrown off his own attempts and made it hard to do much more than put his own strength to work and try to send her toppling back.

The Iromakuanhe woman simply moved backwards and to the side as she grabbed his wrist and twsited as he fell forward and she moved out of his way. Her hnd was on his wrist as she moved behind him and held it up to his swole back.

"Kissing, already? Tsk, tsk. That doesn't happen at all for me, you know that. Now, tell me you want to be let go and I will. Say the words."

"Tch! Surrendering? This isn't anything yet, kiss or not!"

Rather than submit and let her purely take hold, his body strained in an act of defying the pain and instincts to not move in such a binding grip. Rather, he fell and rolled his body to slip his arm out from behind him while bringing his still free hand to clasp the wrist of the Iro. With his back toward the ground, he tried to keep the momentum of his falling weight and use the hold on her to pull her to the ground in a slam-like manner. Slipping free was possible, of course, but losing so fast would hurt any man's ego!

Aashi slammed her hand down on the ground to take most of the impact before her body hit the sand. It reduced the force minimally and her body was still for half a moment before she felt Ronin let go of her and she rolled away from him and stood up.

"Heh," she said, more of an exhaled grunt than anything, before stancing up again with him.

While she'd gone for a fancy roll, he'd turned and rose to his feet with sand covering his back from his own impact in the sand. As confident as she was and already slipping into her stance, it seemed her opponent wasn't too terribly let-down after scoring a semi-successful take-down.

"Getting reversed after demanding a surrender," he said as he paced around in his stance once more with a slight tug-down of his swimtrunks on his right hip to show some of that nice male form, "I guess you were expecting me to be some weakling. I can safely say you're living up to the tough pirate you were playing out to be!"

"I think you'll find that to be true," Aashi said as she got back into her fighting stance, bouncing on the balls of her feet with her hands determinedly placed, one in front of her face and one tucked against her large chest.

She lept forward, looking at her pseudo-target, his face, while her front fist went forward, only to pull back before it could meet him. That is when her real blow came from her other hand, straight against his belly. His body was too solid to get through that easily and she put her hands on his shoulders, using his body's recoil from the punch as impetus for her knee to find its mark against his face. She stopped just short of it, though, and instead pulled it back and hopped backwards, hands off of him.

The gut punch to his abs had almost knocked all the wind out of him with how sudden it came, but when she backed off and avoided delivering a knee-strike to his face, the man felt more than a little annoyed at being played around with. Rising to stand up sorta straight once more, he cursed under his breath and moved forward with his hands in a low guard. Without breaking their gaze, he feinted a right jab toward her head, then feinted a second time with a left hook that stopped mid-swing, before finally bringing a leg up and around in a fast knee-level kick that would land with enough impact to at least get retribution for the initial strike.

Aashi let out an exasperated and terse , "Ah~" as her foot made contact and instead of letting her body buckle now that one of her legs had the heat put on it, she sprung to the side and bounced back and forth on her feet, trying to bounce off the pain, which soon faded and became a dull pulse of past pressure.

Aashi then stepped her forward left food to the right side, twisted her hips and pivoted on the ball of her foot while taking her right foot off the ground. She had fully spun around and was now facing away from him as her spinning back kick made impact on his shoulder. She held back only barely this time and let her nearly her full strength go into the leg before landing with her right leg forward, hands up and defending.

The powerful kick had landed, but with how easily she had made it to read, it wasn't landing with the force one might have got from a stealthy blow. Instead, he braced for it and only went teetering and stumbling a few steps before fixing his posture with a grunt. The pain stung and ached, but it was far from enough to get him to stop.

"Not bad, Wide Hips... guh... you can certainly throw a k-kick..."

Being a baseline human, even in a state of fitness and prowess as Ronin was, was making this fight almost biologically hard. For each powerful blow he thought he delivered, she threw one back without much more than a moment to recover! This time, he moved in and planned to get off a flurry. Specifically, he'd try to bait out a punch from the Iro woman to take hold of her arm and deliver a nice hooked jab to her hip. All the while, of course, with his own swimming trunks seeming to steadily slip lower and lower!

Aashi blocked one punch after another, sweeping her arms side to side before she saw an opening and went to take it. He pulled on her arm and went to get a punch to her hip. The Iroma woman had hard bones, harder than humans and thick exoskeletal plates on her joints made of the same stuff. When Ronin hit her hip, he was hitting hard bone and Aashi jumped back in surprise at the sheer force he had punched her with, worried more for him than herself.

As she did, she noticed his sagging shorts and her eyes fled from the strong V shape of his lower abdomen, not needing to know where it led, but knowing full well that it was a place most likely as strong as the rest of him. She watched him to gauge the pain he felt, if any, from punching her exoskeleton.

Thankfully, as lewd as his shorts short-malfunction was, her hip had done enough to cause him to draw back with a curse and a look to his hand. It had felt like hitting a brick wall, but those hips looked like something any guy or gal would kill to just grab onto and hold all day! Looking to her with their newfound distance, it took him a few moments to click his knowledge of the Iro and understand exactly what happened.

"Jeez, you sure have some rock-solid hips... I know girls back from my Star Army days who'd have killed for that shape and that toughness! I guess I'll have to punch something different than normal targets..."

"The shape is what I think most want, but the toughness is what most need. I can tell which of the two you most desire, though..." she said, swaying her hips as she walked over to his sunglasses. She picked them up and walked over to him, then put them up to his head. She set them over his ears and against his eyes, looking into the refelction of herself rather than the green eyes she had only just seen.

"You are quite the adversary, I am happy to say you're on the same team as me. You know, I used to be the undisputed champion of the fight club on my ship. I haven't been able to join the crew in a few years and needed that refresher course. I'm sorry if I'm a little out of practice, but it seems it was a fair fight, if I'm being honest," Aashi said as she lowered his hands away from his sungalsses and face.

Getting his sunglasses put back on had certainly caused a pause in the man. From a fight to the nicely-shaped Iro picking up his shades and putting them back on for him? Even though it hurt his pride, and reminded him to rub his stinging hand, he figured that maybe letting the fight end on her compliment spree was a good choice.

"Well... if I'm being honest, you're certainly one of the few women I've met to look as good as they can fight, out of practice or not. I wasn't expecting one of the Iromakaunhe to be someone I can match up against even remotely fairly. Compared to the cats of Yamataia, us humans are jokes... nice to see there's someone in the stars I can still fight."

"Compared to the cats of Yamatai, we're all jokes," she said, mentally enumerating the many things those Neko could do that she herself could only dream of. Her familiar came over to her as she mentally called it and she pet it, soothed by its presence with her. It felt a strong urge to slip through the air and she let it follow its desires as it flew around Ronin, touching him on the shoulders and arms with its slick, flappy wings.

Blinking at the strange manta, his hand moved up to pet and pat the little critter for a few moments. It still hadn't occured to him, it seemed, that the swimtrunks were so close to falling off and leaving him exposed to the deserted portion of the beach. Of course, that meant he'd be bare before the Iro gal... but as he reached down to try and grab hold of his cigarettes, he failed to grab anything. Looking down, his glasses at least hid the widening of his eyes.

"Uh... w-well, I guess that's the case," he said while quickly tugging the trunks back up to hide the strong V-shape that Aashi had no doubt been oh-so interested in, "But I wonder what everyone else got up to while we were gone..."

Aashi nodded as she looked away from the pair as the Matai Skyfish lingered around Ronin's pelvis, saying, "Yeah, speaking of Nekos..."

"HEY YOU TWO! WE GOT TO GO ON A MILK RUN!" Uso shouted from quite a ways down the beach, "STOP PLAYING GRAB ASS AND LETS GET GOING!"

"Aaah," Aashi sighed quickly, then bounded towards the freighter, saying loudly to Uso and Ronin, "I've got to get changed!" A few moments later she was out of the freighter with her stashed clothes in hand. She surreptitiously hid her knives in her lacey blue bra's holsters and let her dress fall over her head as she put it on, the slung her jacket over her shoulder and smiled at Uso, saying , "Ready."

While Aashi took off to get changed, Ronin had made his way off with a grumble to get a quick rinse of a shower. It hadn't taken but a few moments to retrieve clothes after that, hustling only slightly to join the two as he pocketed his sunglasses and pulled his coat on. Despite this nice and sunny weather, ships tended to get cool and he had a hunch this was about the newest members to work alongside Yamataia.

"Alright, let's get going, then. And for the record, we weren't grabbing ass. I was just... kicking her ass."

"That's what it was?" Aashi asked, putting a hand on her hip as it moved backwards. "I can only disagree, but for now," she said, then turned to Uso, "what are we going to be up to today?"

"Gotta make a deal with some lizard people I think," Uso shouted, "We'll work on the details on the way."

Aashi nodded and said, "Need a pilot or does Ronin here fit the bill?"

"I'm not gonna fly," he said rather bluntly, "You can handle flying, Horny-Head..."

"Okay, Creamsicle," Aashi said, punching him lightly on the bicep. "If that's what you say."

ON, Queen's Slave>

"SO, what do you know about these things? I mean, really? I got the gist. Lizards, Miners... uh... cold blooded? Is that a thing they are?" Uso asked, leaning back in the co-pilot's chair with her feet up on the control console as they ship made its way towards Ronin's contact.

"Beats me. I'd only just started to read up and get told about them. All I know is that they're hard-workers. Apparently they have something that gets people aroused as hell, but... that's not something you'd be interested in, would it?"

With his presence near the boss-lady on the bridge, he'd opted to not be smoking for once. As he stood nearby, the man's mohawk was practically drawing more than a few looks from her crew. Not due to the Queen's Slave crew having not seen such a look before, but simply because their guest wore it and still had the courage and poise to speak with Uso.

"Hell, knowing my friend, he's probably already asked them to let him borrow whatever it is for his nights out on the town..."

Uso herself had redressed as much as could be expected, once again wearing the bodysuit she normally had on for adventure planet side along with her space cowboy belt that hung low on one hip. Her hair was back in a ponytail, even if it was still a bit sandy from the beach party.

"Unfortunately drugs don't work on me, I have to have fun the hard way." Uso said, looking over at her mohawk'd pilot, "Though we could bottle it and sell it. There are plenty who would pay for an all natural love potion... BUT! We're here for miners. Lets not get sidetracked with sex. We've got a planet full of resources and we JUST got a fabrication setup going. Now we need people who can fill that fabricator with raw materials. If we come back with a ship full of love potions Arccos is going to give me that 'take this seriously' look again."

"Well, maybe you could give her one of those love potions and watch her make the 'take me... seriously!' look. I do agree we need the miners for sure, especially if I'm going to keep the Tengu operating and getting repaired while fighting for you, but if we're buying their help why not use it?"

Moving to sit in one of the few empty chairs on the bridge, he'd turn it to at least face the direction of Uso. Unlike the bossy woman, he'd been in a tussle and nice conversation not long ago with Aashi and had the time to wash the sand off before they got off and about.

"I guess we're not bringing any of them back with us aboard the ship, are we? My friend mentioned something about them needing respirators... no telling what that means, though, until we arrive."

"We'll probably need to bring one back... do we have respirators? Will they need the respirators or will we?" Uso would then pause again for a bit before adding, "I suppose we'll wing it. We've got a time table to meet and we can't be worrying about what might kill whom."

The console that Uso was resting her feet on started to light up, small displays showing that they were closing in on a planet, that their course was being adjusted to end up in a low orbit, and that the generic "Hey, we want to talk!" messages were being sent out by the auto-pilot.

"Besides, no drugging Arccos unless she asks for it. Unlike you she has special authority to do whatever she wants and you're expected to listen to her. I'll save you the trouble of asking and let you know that She is one of the two people in the 'Can kill everyone on the planet' club."

A few minute went by before the hail was answered by what sounded like someone who was unaccustomed to the job they had. "This is Komodo Space Port to Queen's Slave. Please respond," the voice asked, the Trade sounding forced. In the background of the clip, various slicks, buzzes, and hissing sounds could be heard.

"Oh good you can see us!" Uso said, taking her feet off the console and leaning in so that the lizard could get a good look at her face instead of her boots, "I hear your people are good at taking rocks out of a planet and turning them into something usable? Who would I need to talk to about negotiating a contract with you guys?"

The Lizard on the screen blinked, then turned to someone obviously off screen. After a breif back and forth in their language, the Vekimen turned back. "You have been given authorization to land at bay three. VDTF Escort will be provided for transport to meet with Sraralumee Khelena. Coordinates being sent now," the operator responded, the screen flicking out.

"Cool... " Uso said, before turning her attention back towards Ronin by spinning the chair halfway around, "You wanna do the pilot thing or should I call for someone with better hips?"

"Pft... those hips hurt as much as they are wide... but I guess calling her in will be better than letting auto-pilot run."

"It sounds like I can be of a bit of help," Aashi said as she turned to Uso with a smile, then away to the console in front of her and began working at the controls. She had the thrusters on, but not engaged while the inertial dampers were off. For a moment it wasn't necessarily smooth going, as the atmospheric levels around them changed, but when they were at a level where the atmothrusters could work, she hit the inertial dampers. It engaged all of the thrusters, including the hydro's and only when she found a slow speed did the hydro's disengage and she was able to flick the auto-pilot back on to meet the coordinates sent out.

"It would seem like we're at the entry port," she said, looking towards the very large hole seemingly dug into the planet. She brought the ship down lower to where it would be able to insert itself into the hole and wondered where exactly she was going. She was used to open space, and now she was landing on more and more planets. She brought the ship next to a few others, deployed landing gear, and set down at bay three.

"Well... they certainly like to Dig." Uso said as she got up from her chair, checked her belt to make sure her datapad was still clipped in place, and then headed for the ship's rear ramp, "You two are welcome to come along. I'm sure no one will steal the ship while we're away."

Aashi was wary of entering unknown territory without a pistol packing like she was used to and touched Uso's shoulder after she had gotten up and turned systems off, saying, "When you get a chance, can you arm me for when we go into situations a little more dire than this?"

"Ha!" Uso said, stifling a laugh quickly, "What are you going to do with a gun? I mean look at this place, there must be thousands of these things out there. You'll get cut down so fast.... Just run back to the ship or try and surrender. Quick thinking and a silver tounge are what we need here... but I mean... yeah we'll get you as many guns as you want... I'm not anti-gun just you know... be reasonable about what you think they are going to help you with."

"I didn't get this far without a good dose of reason. You can understand that this isn't my contact exactly, I don't want to go in blind," she said, adding, "but I don't expect anything now, of course, just in the near future, after we acquire everything you need here. Which seems to be a very interesting race," Aashi said as they had made their way to the open cargo bay ramp.

Outside the Ramp it was obvious Uso's words were correct. Thousands of Vekimen filled the massive underground Hangar, crawling on walls and even ceilings in some places doing various jobs. The Hangar looked like it was still under heavy construction, aliens working on electrical work, ramps, natural catwalks connecting the various platforms. There had to be 10 or 15 levels in this vertical hangar bay, and a quick peek over the ledge would reveal that even more levels were being dug.

The air was hot and dry, but the atmosphere was clearly breathable. The darkness was only pierced by low lumen lights checkered all over the place. The pad the Queen's Slave was docked on was however brightly lit, maybe as a courtesy? On the platform were five Vekimen wearing bodysuits, body armor, and were obviously set up for EVA, but a good pair of eyes would show that these were the only Vekimen wearing clothing in the Hangar, other than similarly dressed Vekimen walking patrols.

One of the five Vekimen approached, holding up a hand. "Please announce any weapons on your person. Anything more than personal side arms will be required to remain on the ship" The soldier responded, his assault carbine relaxed in his grip.

"Funny enough," Aashi said, smiling and raising her arms, "you don't even have to worry about me."

"Like guns? We don't have any of those on us," Uso said, holding up her hands.

"Er... well, I got my sidearm."

In the back of the group, having taken his sweet time following the duo, Ronin arrived just in time to hear the demand from the Vekimen. It didn't take any time at all to draw back his old Star Army coat to reveal the holstered gun. Leaving it on the Tengu wasn't going to be ideal if he actually ended up needing it somehow, after all.

"That's all I got, though."

The Vekimen who spoke looked across the group, lifting a hand to his helmet. "That is acceptable. The VDTF does not require full disarm. We have been tasked with escorting you safely to our Command Center. We have not identified all dangers on this planet, and we take your safety seriously" He explained, almost as if reading of a pre-prepared speech.

Finally he pointed to a large hole in the wall that had strings of light leading down it. "Please follow us," he ordered as the other four Vekimen took up typical positions in front and behind the group and started leading the group through the labyrinth of tunnels.

The walls, ceilings, and even the floors were littered with small, barely a meter wide paths. The Vekimen were aware enough to inform the group to watch their step when there was a risk of falling, but moving fast through this would be a pain without a guide.

Uso would follow, watching what was going on as she was led about, Aashi close behind her with Ronin taking up the rear of their group. "So.... you guys cold blooded?" Uso asked.

The Vekimen who was doing the talking looked back, slowing down so that Uso and the group could catch up. "Yes, we are cold blooded. We try to build our cities as close to the bottom of the Mantel as possible so we can spend as little energy trying to keep things warm. We have to build escape vents for the heat though. We have only been on this planet for a month or so Yamatai Military Time, so we haven't gotten quite that deep yet," he explained.

"I wasn't questioning your deepness, I'm sure your drills are plenty large and impressive... which, you know... is why we're here."

The Vekimen stopped, looking to Uso. When he did, the other four stopped as well. "Drills? We have no drills. All this has so far been hand dug by the Vekimen. We use explosives to breach bedrock and continue digging from there. We have no parts currently to make drills, and most don't like to use them" He explained. "If you are here to buy drills from us, then we unfortunately cannot help you. Do you wish to be brought back to your ship?" He asked.

"Not buy drills. I have a problem with the stuff I want being inside of the planet instead of inside my factories. I also hear you guys are new to the area and likely need something from someone a bit more established." Uso replied.

Aashi looked around the darkened, dank cave and then back to the Vekimen speaking to them, wondering just what was inside of Uso's planet and how precious that resource was.

The Vekimen nodded. "Good, then you will need to see the Sraralumee and the Thyva council. They will be who you talk to" He explained, nodding for the group to press on. Eventually, the tunnel opened up into a massive, artificial cavern held up by support pillars. From the ceiling to the ground could easily be a Kilometer in distance, with what seemed to be a massive city. Every inch of the space was used for buildings, passages, streets, and so much more as they prepared to have a normal civilization instead of the bare basics the station provided them.

The darkness looked slummy, and the high pitched screams and screeches that compromised the base of the Vekimen language echoed through the cavern. The group could occassionally see Vekimen wearing the same uniforms the ones leading them to the command center wearing, corralling groups of Vekimen back as the race tried to assert dominance over the various territories.

One thing that was noticeable though, was that the troops were all reasonably tall, well built, and some of them looked graceful in comparison to the short, bulky, and squat Vekimen they were dealing with. The lead Vekimen scoffed a little, chattering a little to the others. "We apologize for... the display the Kiraten are putting on. They may as well be animals. It's unfortunate their usefulness and hardyness is needed" He explained, his voice doing nothing to hide a hint of hatred.

As they made their way through the city, Uso would casually turn around, keeping herself moving in the same direction as the others as she looked about, walking backwards for just long enough to guage the reactions of her companions before returning to looking at the Lizard people from behind, "I take it you guys don't get out much? Caves and all?" She asked, "I mean, clearly you bumped into Yamatai at some point.... "

"Our planet was destroyed 1328 years ago. We as a species lived on a Mining station until Yamatai rescued us from a sudden NMX attack on our station. This is the first time the Vekimen have been on a planet in over a millenia" He explained. "However we are here. Please, continue on, we will wait out here" He ordered, pointing at a rather nice archway guarded by ten Vekimen wearing a suit that was similar to what the others were wearing, but much larger. They also carried what looked to be shotguns. "The Council will talk with you, and come to an agreement" He finished.

"Well then, what are we waiting for?"

Ronin grumbled, no doubt mood souring thanks to a lack of his smokes while in the company of Uso. As much as they had been led on and on, it was clear the man was hoping that they could get down to business. It was just another example of the NMX screwing over another species sob-story, much to his dismay, and hearing it all out any further would have likely put him to sleep.

"Personally," Aashi said in a low tone, "I'm waiting for those guns to be put away," showing a light concern at the militant stance of the over-armored guards. "But somehow I doubt that'll slow Uso."

"Shit..." Uso said, "Was I supposed to bribe them?" She scowled a bit, "Normally they are more upfront about that kinda thing, lets you know who you're dealing with... The two of you might want to focus on looking more useful alive."

As they walked through the arch, they would see several Vekimen running around with papers, Datapads, and other such things, talking to each other quickly. These were thin, gangly Vekimen and most of them stopped to look at the newcomers with intense curiosity in their eyes. They seemed to be studying the three, speaking to each other as the group walked. The path was straight though, and eventually they entered a large room with several Vekimen seemingly arguing by their body language.

One thing that was noticeable was while most of the Vekimen the group saw on the walk in had one or two gold bands on one of their horns, no one in this room had less than six, and one of them seemed to have one horn completely encased in the yellow metal. She stood as the group walked in, barking out an order in an unnaturally deep tone given her feminine appearance which silenced the room.

"Welcome, crew of the Queen's Slave I take it. We are glad to have you as some of the first visitors to our new planet" She started, her voice taking a more girly sound to it now she spoke trade. "I would like to personally apologize for any slight our Escort may have caused you. Things have gotten a little out of hand now that our species have a planet, some going back to the violent, domineering ways of our ancestors" She explained, waving to a set of chairs across the table from her.

Uso would spend a few moments to take in their surroundings, keeping an eye out for what materials things were made of, their placement, anything to get a better idea of who she was dealing with exactly, "SOOooooo....." She started, slowly turning her attention to the most gold-encrusted creature in the room, "No big deal, we just wanted to be good neighbors, say hi, see if there was anything we could do for one another? Of course, if you've got your hands full with your own people we don't need to get in your way... but if you're looking for a trade partner that won't try and envelop you in their own sphere of influence then I think we may have plenty to talk about."

The Vekimen stared at Uso for a moment, looking down at another vekimen and speaking to it. It nodded and she seemed to frown if that was possible with a muzzle. "You seem concerned. Worried. Your tone is not as loose and natural as other we have spoken too" She stated, remaining standing. "Is there something bothering you and your companions?" She asked, then shaking her head. "My apologies actually, I have not even introduced myself. I am Sraralumee Khelena Het'Laderen, the Commander of the Vekimen Defensive Task Force. Yamatai would call my position Empress. These are my advisers" She explained, waving a hand around the room as if to introduce them all.

~Did she just accuse me of being uptight?~ Uso thought to herself... it was certainly a new sensation for her. "I'm Uso Tasuki, I run a relatively small planet in need of a stronger mining operation. I also think my companions and I aren't exactly thrilled with what we've seen so far. It seems that you've already got a lot on your hands with this world as it is."

Uso would then turn her attention to her companions,

"That's Ronin, legendary mecha pilot and savior of the beleaguered ship Necromancer."

"And Hips over here is named Aashi, reformed pirate lord and kind soul."

Khelena gave a slight bow of her head at the introductions, sitting down once she was fairly sure they would not accept her offer to sit. "Pleasure to meet you all. As for the situation we are dealing with, it is nothing our Government cannot handle. The biggest issue at this moment to us is your safety. The Laderen and Sivaro understand what needs to be done, but the more base Kiraten like to cause issues. We are working on their... Manners if that would be an appropriate use of the term" She explained. "If you are looking for a trade partner, then we would be glad to come to an agreement. Mining is our races natural inclination, and there are few species as skilled at it as we are from our studies. Are you looking for services from some of our kind, and if so, what would the agreement be?" She asked.

"Normally this is a 'you solve our problem, we solve yours' kinda thing." Uso explained, "This is the first time your race has been on a planet in a while I take it? If you're that close to being wiped out, perhaps you should consider colonization efforts right off the bat? I would be happy to host some of your kind on my world, provide them with food, an economy, their own territory, in exchange for helping build a world they would get to have a little world of their own." Uso offered.

At the offer the room seemed to explode as all the Vekimen stood up, quickly "yelling" out suggestions in their language. Khelena seemed only mildy annoyed, getting up and holding up a hand of her own. Once the room settled, she pointed to one of the Vekimen to allow him to speak. "In trade... Please. So our guests can understand your comments" She ordered, which seemed to annoy the room.

The Vekimen stood though. "Colonization... Best course. No ship to do so..." He stated, his trade woefully broken. "Need money for Government. Need economy... Here" He stated sternly, several of the Vekimen nodding in turn.

Another stood up. "Kiraten are a problem. We know what happened to our last planet and it was because of Clans similar to theirs. They are the most numerous, and would be the best for what they did, but can we afford to send the support they would need to control them?" She asked. "The deal sounds good, but we all know that without proper handling they can be more destrucive than helpful" She retorted.

Khelena nodded to both. "Very good insight to the boh of you. These are two major problems. Uso,you must understand that these are two very real things we need to figure out. Clans similar to the Kiraten over mined our last planet and caused it a great amount of structural issues. At the same time, we need to look out for the main populace" She explained.

"Here is what I will offer. I will send you a total of five thousand Vekimen all of Kiraten Clan. At the same time, I will ensure that you have members who are rational. Members who share blood with Sivaro and Laderen so that I am not unloading a flock of wild animals into your folds. Their territory will be considered an Embassy of sorts, owned and operated internally by our VDTF. You provide food, plans for what you want dug, and a fair pay for he work they do based on the galactic average in his region. 60% of what they earn will be sent direcly to us here as taxes, served in a major currency accepted in the area. Finally, you will be to take a foreman of ours out there to describe what you want and get a lay of the land before any digging is done. You will be responsible for transporting the workers we provide you, as we have nothing to transport them with" She stated.

Aashi nodded to Uso and then looked to the golden horned creature, somewhat like herself, to say, "You mentioned taxing what these diggers. Did we discuss paying them, Uso? I thought we were providing them with so many things that aren't offered on this new world of theirs, but pay isn't yet one of those things."

Ronin would grumble, finally speaking up.

"Taxing their own people when we're offering a place for them to work, grow, and prosper? Seems almost like they're not interested in restoring their numbers, but rather taking more than necessary from their people."

"We're not here to discuss how you tax your own people, though your numbers seem disproportionately high, we're here to make sure you don't gut us by insisting pay gratuitous amounts of money after we've already offered so much," Aashi said after Ronin had spoken and finished by saying, "What is your price?"

Khelena was thinking, but her muzzle opened in a oohy smile. "As I recall, Uso here offered a Colony. Food, an economy, land to call our own within your planet. I am not so Naive to think that this would be a forever agreement. This would be a Vekimen Colony, and all Vekimen in the end must pay their duty to the Task Force. To pay their Duty, they must provide for the whole in some way, and while expanding on other planets would be nice so soon, we have plenty of space to do that here. You have resources you are mining, they are worth something" Khelena explained, when a thin Vekimen female approached, holding a datapad.

"To be a burden on the current government of the planet in question would make us refugee's of sorts, and we are no longer refugees. Furthermore, by paying the Vekimen, the burden of providing for them hand and foot would no longer be required once a proper economy on the Colony has been established. They would be able to support hemselves, so long as the planet continued to pay them for their work" The new vekimen explained, obviously looking things up on the Datapad. "From a quick search for wages in labor fields, over the course of one Yamatai Military Year, my best estimate is that yearly cost on the operation would be..." She thought, tapping her chin and looking up. "132,384,000 yearly in Yamatai Currency. There is a small chance my math could be incorrect though, but that is the pay for the unskilled diggers, as well as the skilled personnel we would send with them. 54,953,600 would remain yearly to sustain the colony's needs and still have spending money left over based on market prices currently of our food" The Vekimen finished.

Khelena shrugged. "I trust a Sivaro's mind greatly. I trust her numbers are correct for what the worth of our work would be. Of course, I would pass along 30% of those taxes back to you for the first year while the colony gets situated" She offered.

"Perhaps if you buy everything, but we can make everything we need onsite. If you want to tax your own people that's your business, but I would rather stay free of such entanglements." Uso said.

Khelena frowned a little at the comment. "I do not quite understand the scope of technology those in he Galaxy have yet. If you can make everything without cost, then we will just take the..." She started, looking to the Sivaro.

"82,430,400 Sraralumee. You are offering them 24,729,120" She stated.

"Yes, 82,430,400, paying you the 24,729,120 for your costs in helping us set up the Colony. You must understand, space is not our problem right now, it is funds to enable us to survive. We are being provided a stipend from Yamatai, but I will not continue to take that if I am capable of not taking it while ensuring my people have what they need. You will not be a part of our tax system, that was just my way of interpreting it. I am sorry if there were any confusions, I am still learning how to speak politically in trade" She explained.

"Understand that if this colony is successful, we will send more Vekimen to your planet with no further cost to yourself. If you would like to discuss individual wages instead to better grind down the details, I would be happy to do so, but we need something other than a handful thousand of us geting everyhing provided for us, while I leave the other 95,000 here to keep working in what would be considered a state of poverty

"Maybe you miss-understand... you can print money. You're supposed to be a government after all. What you lack is authority and agency. No one gives a shit if your people live or die here, no one even knows who you are.

If you want to be someone, you need to start being something. In this case you've got an opportunity to be a part of the greatest, and possibly only, uplift operation going on in the Kyoto sector. By the end of the first year or two the Vekmen could be a race of refugees, or they could be known as a people who get shit DONE.

Help me build this planet, I don't give a shit what you tax your workers, but let us use them to mine what we need mined.

In exchange, we will setup housing, food, social events, that kind of thing. It is a frontier city so money ain't going to get them very far out there. We will even box up millions in protein and fresh water for your people back here on Komodo, provide you with technology and diplomatic expertise.

When the first year of this deal is up, I promise you people will know who your people are." Uso said.

Khelena put her hands together, obviously thinking about Uso's words. There was a soft murmer through the room, those thinking of pride and glory excited by the idea, but those who dealt in physical worth looked skeptical.

The room felt tense, when finally Khelena nodded. "I will send a Research and Development team with you. They will be some of my kind's brightest minds. You will provide them with everything they need to do research on the technology you provide them, as well as help us obtain the means to recreate said technology. That is on top of the 4500 workers, and the 500 personnel I will provide with them to ensure you deal with as little as possible. It will be your job to transport them still, and in one year I will personally travel to this planet you speak of to see the benefits" She smiled.

Aashi spoke, "I'm seeing a wage of 2206-ish KS a month per Vekimen, unless you have other plans for your people? I think that number can be negotiated, don't you, seeing as you'll now be bringing back the technology our planet has to offer, and much more."

Khelena tilted her head, then looked to the Sivaro. "Care to shed some light on this?" She asked.

The Sivaro nodded. "The initial agreement was based on 4500 miners, plus 500 personnel required to run the operation without you having to deal with them yourselves. The diggers would mae 12.40 Yamatai, and the personnel would make 20.50 due to the stress of the job. This is hourly. Of course, you are offering much to the Vekimen, I believe the Sraralumee is willing to strongly differ from that if you are offering so much. I hold no claim to speak for her though, as that is just my calculations" She finished.

Khelena nodded. "Amazing aren't they? The Sivaro's can do wonderful things with their minds" She chuckled. "She is right. I would be willing to change my decision. You plan on selling these resources? Here is my attempt at a compromise. If you provide all this, an... Insurance of sorts would be required for me to make this decision soundly. Twenty million dollars will be owed to the Vekimen if this endeavor fails to meet the promises you have made. Can we agree on that?" She asked, leaning back in her chair.

"We'll be paying your Vekimen 13738400 a year, then, which seems a high number when compared to what my going rate is, isn't it?" Aashi said, truly unable to do the mental math but capable of bluffing. "Uso, do you see any need to gauge this down a bit like I do?"

"If you think you can dig as well as 5000 Vekimen, then that math would make sense, wouldn't it?" The Sivaro stabbed, being quickly silenced by Khelena.

"I think Nukes and 'Bots are cheaper. Maybe you should consider who needs more who here?" Uso asked, "1000-KS a month go directly to your 'skilled Vekimen and we reserve the right to terminate the contract with 30 days notice if we don't like how you preform. I'll still feed and house the Vek on my planet, and provide some help with letting your people see and study some modern technology."

Khelena smiled. "I think our companions may be stuck on money, but I am understanding you completely Uso" She said before one Vekimen who was silent made a comment in their native language. This caught Khelena's attention, and a smile formed on her face. "However... I have one favor to ask of you. Ignore paying us. If your promises hold true you wont have to worry about anything, but I would like to know I can get one thing" She explained, reaching over and aking the Datapad from her assistant. She fiddled with it, and then slid it over to Uso. "I want those... Give me those and I'll give you 10,000 Vekimen" She offered.

On the Datapad was what looked like security footage of a "Robotic" Vekimen tearing through other Vekimen as if they were nothing more than paper cutouts. "One of my officers who are currently on a cultural exchange with Yamatai showed up on the station wearing that suit. Yamatai is hesitant to give them to us unless those who receive them are working on a Yamataian Ship. As you can probably tell... Our arms are as useful as thrown rocks compared to that. Can you give us those?" She asked.

"Specifically that one? Or do you just want some powered armor comparable to what you've got here?" Uso asked.

Aashi looked between the two of them with half closed eyes, ruminating on the Vekimen desires. She had managed to get her hands on a lot of things over the years, but Yamataian-made powered armor wasn't something she had yet found her hands on. She considered what Uso was saying by even asking those questions. She was saying yes, and that thrilled Aashi.

"I want as close as I can get to that. It amplifies the Vekimen combat prowess in our natural environment by more than I can even comprehend. Bullets just bounced off with only superficial damage done. She wasn't even phased by the NMX controlled assailants. Assailants that our armed VDTF members had a hard time dealing with" She explained. "Think we can make that a deal?" She asked.

"That is within my power. We'll get you a shiny new suit, some fun toys, a nice bit of food, and all that... We can work on the fine details later..." Uso said.

Khelena nodded, standing up. "Of course. Your escort will be waiting for you outside, and I will have the foreman sent to your ship as soon as readily available. I hope this is as fruitful a venture as you say it is" She smiled, watching the group leave.

With the Vekimen deal sorted and out of the way, Aashi navigated their craft out of the den-like structure and through the atmosphere. She hit a speed wall as she took off and pressed the thrusters forward, overriding thrust at maximum, wasting a lot of hydrogen but getting them up to where they needed to be. The gravity going down as they got further from the planet further decreased the the needed thrust to get them where they needed to be. While she worked, she began to hum gently to herself, a song from Neplesia.

She looked at the two that had been idly chatting next to her and asked from the corner of her mouth as she looked at the controls, "Ever see any good movies?"

"Like... sitting down and watching a video for two hours movies?" Uso asked.

"Like doing just that. Do you know how many times I've watched The Names of the Dreamers? It's what my people <i>crave</i>."

After their riveting discussion about space politics had been interrupted by movies, it had certainly caused pause in Ronin. From his chair, he spun more properly to face Aashi and join this new one. But, of course, the wiser would have noticed a spark of life come to the grumpy and smokeless male pilot at the sheer mention of The Names of the Dreamers.

"Pft... crave? Who needs... uh... movies like that? I mean, I used to watch some stuff back when I was in the Star Army... not nearly as much time for that sort of stuff when you're flying between one battlefield to the next."

Aashi grinned as she turned atmothrusters off and found a course for them, saying, "But you've seen Lover's Heart, right?"

"Er... only once. It sorta happened back when I took a break during one job and ended up at this woman's place for a few hours... yeah."

Telling such a lie was painfully too risky, Ronin instead opting to lean back in his chair and look between Uso and then back to Aashi.

"What uh... made you start talking about movies? Those lizards drilled a giant hole in the planet and it got your horny head focused on films?"

"They are just kinda.... you know... passive." Uso added.

"You think so? Why?" Aashi asked as she moved the controls about to get to FTL speeds.

"You just... I mean, it is a screen.... and you look at the screen...." Uso said, making some shoving motions with her hand as if that somehow illustrated her point.

Aashi began, "The Iroma have an empathic ability to understand others through what they touch, Uso, but I am not understanding you through what I hear right now. You don't like to watch movies, is that what you're saying?"

"I mean, I've seen a few movies... I just feel like I've been there and done that. They aren't bad for passing time I suppose... I've just never been like Yay! Movies" Uso said, doing a little fake cheer at the same time.

"She probably means she'd rather be in bed with someone than watching them be in a bed on a screen. It's not as involving as the real thing."

Ronin leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms and clearly trying to deal with not being able to smoke and hearing Uso be so utterly against one form of expressive art. Movies were important, after all!

"Well," Aashi said "I'm not one to waver in opinion to my boss, but then again, I haven't had one in more than a few years, so who am I to say that. Let's watch one!"

Uso looked over at Ronin to gauge his reaction, then turned back to Aashi, "yaaaaay.... moooovie....." she said, getting up from her seat and heading back to her room, "One of you pick something to watch, the other one make popcorn."

"On it!" Aashi said as she sprung from her chair and found her way to the jiffy pop, which popped in a jiffy, rightfully so. She spent some time searching for a bowl, though, while Ronin got up with a grumpy grumble to top them all... of course, he still went to find a proper movie.

Aashi returned to where the main display console was where they would watch the movie and set the popcorn down on the ground, then went to a storage area and found what seemed to be clean blankets and pillows. She set them down strewn about and sat herself down in front of the popcorn, legs criss crossed and feet on her thighs as she sat as if meditating, waiting patiently.

After some digging around on a console off the bridge, he'd make his way back to the scene. Finding Aashi so eagerly returned with popcorn and a whole area that seemed more fitting for some Yamataian girl's sleepover had certainly been unexpected, but as he looked to the movie in his right hand and then back, he figured it would at least let him get close to the horniest woman in the fleet. That is, of course, speaking to the horns atop her head. Moving over and putting the drive with the movie down for her to take, Ronin didn't even hesitate in shedding the coat he'd worn and removing the harness holding his weapon. Putting both of them to the side and away from the comfort zone Aashi had prepared, he leaned back on one of the pillows with a rather bad attempt to be dismissive.

"There, I found a movie. You know... uh... When Nepleslians Love A Woman or whatever..."

Uso herself had swapped into something a bit more comfortable and appropriate for a movie watching session, fluffy pink pajama pants and an overly large white T shirt. The neko would flop herself down on the pillows next to Aashi, placing her head int he other woman's lap, "So what are we watching?"

"I love this one," Aashi commented as she moved the movie from where he had placed it into the slot and began to idly stroke the Neko's green hair behind her fur-lined ears. She placed her other hand behind her and began lounging as Ronin moved about.

The screen glowed and the opening sequence started as the trio got comfortable and Aashi looked to the screen as the opening titles finished, the screen showed the blue foreground of a still pool. After a few moments of stillness, the reflection of a couple was reflected in the pool, then vanished with the rippling of water. The narrator began and so did Uso.

"You love When Nepleslians Love a Woman? I mean... sounds pornographic." Uso said.

"I don't love when it <i>actually</i> happens, Uso," she said with a laugh. "I live through their experiences for a minute."

"But if you don't love it when it actually happens then why watch a movie of it?"

"Tch... for the story. I mean... who wouldn't want to believe Nepleslians could be useful for more than clogging a deathzone during a fight," he said with a clear moment of Yamataian superiority, "I mean... it's not like they actually could get a beautiful women like Cleo anyway..."

"Cleo?" Uso asked.

"Yeah, Cleo... the uh... um... woman the Nepleslians are after..."

"Her!" Aashi shouted at the screen as the woman appeared and the narrator could be heard over the chatter.

"...but there was one girl," the young, but masculine voice said, "that defied what I had ever grown to know."

"See," Aashi said, "that's the kind of stuff I look for in a movie. I don't do it, but I get it. I don't live the life but I can look at it, at least. Give me that, at least!"

Ronin had been about ready to say something, but the soft and feminine voice of Cleo's actress filled their ears only a moment later.

"Look, you're a nice guy and all, but... I'm just not that into the soldier-type. You should... really move on to someone else." As Cleo finished and it showed the start of a scene with the main character watching her walk into a crowd during the flashback, all Ronin could do was bite his lip and sit up to watch the display more properly.

"I mean... uh... it's all about getting the idea that you're someone else when you watch stuff like this. Women not liking a soldier is so hard to find these days, since most of the galaxy is full of us..."

"But there was nothing," the male voice chimed in, "that could stop Nepleslians from loving that woman..."

Aashi tilted her head as she watched and then looked down at Uso to ask quietly, "You enjoying this?"

"Cleo is cute... and the ear rub is nice... " Uso replied, "Though Ronin could be a bit closer."

Looking at Uso, he couldn't help but be a bit more than happy to oblige. His bad mood was at least calmed by the start of cheesy music and an intro scene showcasing the man's time during service. The mercenary moved over beside Aashi and, in turn, near Uso who was sprawled out on her lap. Leaning back, the man put his own pillow beside Aashi and tried for all but a moment to get comfortable before turning his gaze back to the sight of the male walking off his ship.

"W-Well... uh... you see, Bick Digger is one of the few guys in Nepleslia's acting pool who really can pull off a good role in a movie like this. They say back when he was in the military, he was one of the toughest ID-SOL around... now he's a pornstar and trying to make it in stuff like this. He uh... really can pull it off. The guy has good range... and stuff."

Uso snickered a bit, "Nepleslians LOOVE their names..."

"That Nepleslian, Bick Digger, comes inside my soul and makes himself at home," Aashi said. "He really does. But porn you say? I don't see the appeal to watching him inside of anything but a romcom, honestly."

"Well, he got his start in it. He was originally in some more raunchy stuff... he's become a far more tame guy in recent years. Something about him having seen it all..."

There was no reason to point out how lewd Aashi's statement sounded, his eyes fixing on the screen as Bick Digger bumped into the "older" Cleo in the station, the two stumbling around for her glasses.

"You know, they say he and Oria Valdez were found naked three times during the shooting of the movie. I wouldn't put it past him that he tried to make the movie a bit more real by getting it on with her. The actress behind Cleo could be my wife anyday and I'd slay an army to get her..."

"Usually I just see him inside of blondes..." Uso said casually.

With each of her hands casually on both Ronin and Uso, respectively, Aashi turned her head down to Uso and asked, "What is it with blondes?"

"Don't ask me to figure out why people like a certain thing. There are probably a billion and one reasons for it..." Uso replied, "Some people like hair, others go for tits, others like the curvey hips" Uso rolled over, her face right up against Aashi's stomach as she grabbed the woman's hips with her hands to emphasize her point.

"Some women like other women," Aashi said in response, knowing full well just how sensual the Nekovalkyrja could be. She put both hands on either side of the woman's head and stroked her ears with her fingers. "And some Nepleslians love a woman," Aashi said, turning her attention back to the screen where the PTSD-struck soldier was being cradled by Cleo.

"That is when I knew," the narrator said, "that I would always need this woman."

Aashi continued, "And some men needlessly throw themselves at women, as women do at men. It's not just overrated, it's unhealthy. But it sure does make for good entertainment."

"Ugh... needy... I mean, kinda needy is cute and all... but why is Cleo wasting her time with that mess?" Uso asked.

"Well, she's not... wasting her time, exactly."

"They're <i>both</i> wasting their time," Aashi interjected.

"Look, I'm really sorry to hear about your time away," Cleo said while pulling away with the softest smile a woman could make and not seem totally fake and obvious, "But I need to get going... my boyfriend and I are heading to this party, and... uh... yeah..."

The narrator said, with a depressed lilt to his tone, "That was the last time I saw Cleo until the day at the lake, but not the last tie we talked. Years went by, though, without a word..."

Aashi asked, "So you don't ever see yourself pining after a mess of a man and I doubt you ever have, Uso, but what kind of men do you pine after? Or am I wrong in saying so?" Aashi asked, the answer already in her mind's eye.

The chuckle from Ronin was all it took to make his thought on it certainly known. Carefully reaching down, he'd pull his shirt up and off to expose his own muscles and give a teasing smirk to the two.

"Obviously she pines after men like me and Bick. You should have seen her back when we attended that dinner. She couldn't get me out of my clothes faster to make sure we got out of there and were aptly prepared..."

"While Ronin makes quite the case.... I'm afraid I don't pine." Uso replied, "Some casual fun... maybe... "

"Casual fun," Aashi said, "it's what Nekos crave. I see the beauty in becoming a criminal to your own people, I really do, but Iromakuanhe sort of have an established criminal presence. Neko do not. What made you so different from the next kitty cat that you decided to set out on your own as a criminal in your own right?"

"Alleged criminal. No one has been able to prove anything,"

"You know Iromakuanhe can look into your soul just through touch, dontcha?" Aashi said teasingly, rubbing Uso's shoulder as she did, "I look into your soul and it tells me... yes, yes, I see..." she said, closing her eyes, "your soul says... should I tell you?"

Uso lifted her head up, looking Aashi right in the eyes, "Go ahead," She said, a bit of confrontation in her voice, "What does it say?"

"Mmmmm," Aashi said, flexing her fingers against Uso's Neko skin. "It says you really really really like to steal stuff."

"She was becoming more and more close to me every time we had conversations like that one," the narrator of the movie said as Aashi spoke.

"Oh I hate to think I'm so one note..." Uso replied.

"No, no, it also says here that you have an unending love for romcoms and movies in general. I promise, it does. Not lying," Aashi said with a soft giggle as she moved her hands back behind her to lean against.

"Is that so?" Uso asked, stalking forward on all fours, keeping her face right infront of Aashi's.

"Say it ain't so," Aashi retorted, "the Neko comes out when I press the right buttons, doesn't it? I like that." Her voice was bemused and lacked any hints of concern but was relaxed and joking, how she felt as they sat around watching the movie together. She wanted to be playful with Uso and to skirt Uso's boundaries to see where they were, if there were any at all. She didn't want to wound her or hurt her, but wanted to attempt to learn more about her in order to never wound or hurt.

Uso was just as curious, moving just a hair closer, practically playing chicken with Aashi, "I think you're making stuff up... After all you're a no good pirate scoundrel!"

"Oh," Aashi threw her head back as she sighed loudly before putting her face back to where it was, quite close to Uso's own and said, "you can't make this stuff up! The things I felt from you, the wonders I've seen... It's almost too much for an Iromakuanhe to bear!"

"You know, I've never met one of your kind before, I don't exactly know where your limits are." Uso replied.

"Do I even have any?" Aashi asked, "And will you ever find out, hmmm? Only you can answer the latter question, but only if you answer the first one."

"The Neko comes out when it wants," Uso said, her hands going to hold Aashi's hips, "Now take off your top," Uso's eyes were fixated on Aashi's looking like a predator about to pounce. If she wanted to play Chicken, Uso wasn't going to blink.

"But my top is also my bottom," Aashi told her, pointing to the full length of her dress. "You're asking for me to do both, right?"

"I wouldn't mind a little dance either..." Uso added.

Aashi's smile shot upwards and her eyes creased. She hadn't been out of a position of power in a long time and had forgotten what it was to be subservient, but this, this was tame for her. This was what Uso was probably used to, too. Perhaps if Uso were virginal, this would be different for Aashi, but Uso certainly was not and so, Aashi found a way to oblige her. She lowered her eyelashes over her pale pupils and blue irises and then opened them after she had pulled off her jacket.

"We're getting closer, aren't we?" Aashi asked, "I think we are. I do expect something in return for removing at least one piece of clothing. That favor is up to you to decide, but I'd like it," she hesitated, then let the world roll off her tongue with a smile tugging at the corners of her lips, "now."

"Well, are you going to keep dancing around it, or are you going to ask directly?" Uso asked, lowering herself down a bit so that her warm chest was pressing up against Aashi, "Ask me to take off these Pajama pants so I can get back to making you undress."

Aashi breathed in, close to Uso's hair, smelling the strawberry-smelling sweetness of the green locks. She let her smile stay on her lips as she tilted her head to look at Uso. She was an ecstatic, jovial, and most of all, sexual Neko. That was for certain, but to her, all Nekos were.

"When you take off your pajama pants, the ones nearly hanging off your hips, what do you want me to do with what I find down there?"

"When I want you to do something, I'll let you know." Uso replied, "Now ask it like you mean it!"

"Uso," Aashi said sternly, "take them off. I shouldn't have to ask you twice."

Uso would stand up in-front of Aashi, teasingly placing her thumbs in her elastic waste-band of her pants, gently tugging on them, as she lowered them just enough to show a bit of the black thong on underneith, "HMmm... You want to help Ronin?" Uso asked, slowly moving her hips side to side.

While the two had been going at their teasing shenanigans, Ronin's eyes had been straight ahead on the movie the whole time. The scene with Bick finding a comfortably censored but nude Cleo in a brothel had just come on, but hearing his name had snapped the mercenary's attention off the screen. Looking over, it seemed to take all but the briefest of moments to realize he was looking at the wide hips of a thong-wearing Uso.

"Uh... er.... the movie... your ass, though... I... yes?"

"That's a yes from him," Aashi said, focusing her attention bak on Uso.

"Come over here," Uso said, standing upright, reaching for Ronin's hands and putting them on her hips, the fingers just inside the elastic bands of her Pajama pants before holding her hands up behind her head. The Neko's baggy clothing certainly helping hide her slender body, but not so much so that hints of her athletic nature couldn't be seen underneath.

"Better do what she asks, Ronin, or you're not going to get a paycheck at the end of the month," Aashi chimed.

With his fingers wedged between those nice thighs and the waistband, it didn't take a genius to figure out that this was more awesome than one of the greatest romantic comedies of Nepleslian origin! Rising off his manly rear and to his knees, he tugged them down for the briefest of moments before grabbing each side and pulling them just enough to separate from Uso's form. And then, with a not-so-grumpy chuckle, he slid them down and revealed those Neko-perfect thighs and legs.

"Getting paid to undress a woman? It really is like I'm Bick Digger now..."

Uso was everything you'd expect from a neko, smooth, warm, with just enough firmness in her skin, the thin waste-band of her underwear gently hugging her hips. Of course, the small bit of black fabric was hidden by the overly large shirt once Uso lowered her arms. The aspiring tyrant taking a step forward so that she was standing over Aashi, her fingers gently sliding in place around the other woman's horns, "Your turn to have Ronin free you of your clothing..."

"Your turn," Aashi said, raising her hands up gently as she brought the corners of Uso's shirt up. She had to wait for Uso to let go of her horns and was ready to stand to take off the covering from Uso's body fully once she did.

"Cheater!" Uso said, sounding absolutely hurt as Aashi went for her shirt!

"Cheaters always prosper," Aashi said, putting a new spin on an old saying, then said, "It'll all be worth it in the end," as she lifted herself and Uso's shirt more fully to expose the delicate and pale skin of the Neko. Aashi's eyes did not linger on anything but the fabric as she lifted it up and away from Uso's body. She brought the piece of clothing back, behind her, away from Uso until she was ready for her to be clothed again.

"Now, weren't you talking about a dance of some sort?" Aashi said, leaning forward as she rested her elbow on her thigh and her chin on her palm, smiling.

"H, HEY!!" Uso shouted, covering her chest with one arm, scowling at Aashi as her white shirt was pulled off, leaving Uso's rather perfectly shaped chest exposed aside from the arm squishing her breasts together. "I mean... Yeah I can't fault your logic here... RONIN HELP YOUR QUEEN!" Uso shouted, pouncing on Aashi, seeking to grab hold of her wrists, while keeping her chest pressed up against Aashi's form, Ronin always just a moment away from seeing something more than he shouldn't. Uso would roll slightly to the side, trying to bring Aashi with her so she was up off the floor with her back turned towards Ronin.

With just how close he had come to seeing the entirety of Uso's lady lumps, he was already more than enthused. It hadn't taken more than an instant to leap across and assist Uso in her efforts to bring the Iroma to the ground. With Uso chest-to-chest, it only meant he could pin them both from his seat atop Aashi's rump. Butt-to-butt, it was a perfect enough seat as he pulled the dress up with a devious grin. The two ladies were at war with one another, after all... which meant he could prosper as the third party!

As Aashi's dress got pulled from her body, her brow furrowed down hard, her teeth clenched, and lips opened wide. She looked down at Uso's beautiful, doll-like face and for a moment felt something for her, but at the moment she wasn't ready to decipher just what it was as she loosened Uso's grip on her arms spun at her hips, moving her right hand to the left side of her bra while her left went to the right side of her bra. Nimbly, she snapped open the holsters and drew her knives from each and lifted them up, to Ronin's face and pushed against his cheeks with them then pulled them away just as fast, watching slivers of blood erupt from the two distinct lines.

"OOH, I think we found her limit.." Uso said, tilting her head so she could look past Aashi's.

Pulling up and off with a curse, Ronin left the pile of the two and quickly backed up. Had it not been for the atmosphere being so proper, he'd have gone for his gun first and asked questions after he got retribution for the scathing encounter. Instead, the pilot's good mood immediately soured and got replaced with anger.

"Her limit? Fuck that, she's lucky I didn't have my gun on me! Pulling knives on me like that..."

"Luck is something that's always stood by my side. By yours, I don't see it," Aashi said strongly.

"Yeah, well I'll show you what happens when I don't hold back on a woman, pirate lord who likes good cinema or not!"

"I'd rather not see," Aashi retorted, "but I know I will, eventually. You and me both better hope that woman isn't me... or worse," Aashi said, looking to Uso.

"OH calm down kids. No means No..." Uso looked around for a bit... but found herself pinned under Aashi for the moment, "Would one of you mind handing me my shirt?"

While Ronin would have been all for retrieving the duo's shirts, the male's good mood getting ruined had reflected as his grumpy demeanor returned in full. Moving to retrieve his own shirt, coat, and gun, he'd curse under his breath as he started off and toward anywhere but the room with the Iroma he'd rather fight than talk to.

"Do whatever... sure as hell bet Bick never put up with someone pulling knives on him and ruining a fun night..."

Aashi turned to face Uso more fully and dipped low before saying, "I hope that didn't ruin your fun, do all Nekos like having their clothes removed so quickly?" Aashi lifted her head back up and cocked her head to the side quizzically before pushing a hand through her hair, which had fallen to frame Uso's face, and pulled it back away from her. "I think undressing you was more fun for you than undressing me was for Ronin." Aashi reached over to grab Uso's shirt and held onto the shoulders of it to let it hang before mimeing the motion with her hands to have Uso raise her arms so Aashi could re-clothe the old, but young-spirited Neko.

Uso would have the shirt pulled over her, and then go find her Pajama pants, "I'm not much for playing the long game," She replied, "Then again, you're happy to undress... but not to hot on being undressed yourself." Uso would flop back down into the pile of pillows, "Don't play Chicken unless you're going to win."

"There's a difference between masturbating and fucking, Uso," Aashi said bluntly, but with a cool tone that addressed Uso as she got up and walked towards a chair. She sat down and swung one leg over the other, "there's a difference between undressing and being undressed. You know, I haven't told you, but I haven't taken a lover. Not when I was a child, not when I was in a cell, not when I was on my ship. That's not what interests me, not what I want from life. What interests me isn't some man or woman's will against mine or even in tandem with mine. What interests me is being self-willed. You can understand?" she said with a questioning lilt to her tone.

Uso just smiled up at her, "OH.... You know if you want to choke me that's fine too..." Uso would blow her a little kiss as she lay back, "... But you do what you want, no point in doing anything else right?" Uso would wait a bit, the silence feeling a bit awkward, "Your people take things slow... there isn't anything wrong with that, but some of us don't have forever to wait around."

Aashi let her eyebrows throw themselves up in surprise when Uso said Aashi could choke her and her smile widened as Uso blew her a kiss through the air. "I can only presume what I want is also what you want, Uso. For your planet and as someone on your crew. Privately, I'll do what I want, but professionally, knowing what you want is what I'm interested in."

"I think you'll find my professional and personal desires are pretty much the same thing. I'm not out here for glory, duty, or even a paycheck." Uso said, "... This is what I do for fun."

"Then let's make it fun," Aashi said, "why are you just mining this place? What more is there to it?" Aashi said as she realized they had been going too fast too long. "Oh shi-" she said, turning her body to the controls, then said over her shoulder, "Really, though?"

"I got a fabricator from that ship I bought... and still haven't named... I extorted Vier out of the old man so we have a bot to run it, now we just need to feed stuff into it and we can make whatever we want. Buildings, factories, ships... I wanna see how far I can take this. You think I'm going to be satisfied with one planet? One Starsystem?"

"You mean the bed making machine has more than that feature?" she asked, delighted to hear it. "I want you to name that ship, for the whole crew's sake, right here right now. Or else you have no idea what problems you may have on your hands."

Uso frowned, "Fine, it'll be the 'Pumpkin Eater'."

"You're good at this, you must have done it before," Aashi said, thinking back to the Devata. The Deity. She led her hands idle on the controls for a half a moment too long and had to undo her mistake. Once she had, she turned to Uso and asked, "You said you had, what was it three major assets on your team? When will I meet them, unless I already have."

Uso held up her hand, counting off by raising her fingers one at a time, "The girl in the grey swimsuit, Spacer Referee, And Ragnarok in general... though that gets a bit murkey... can't really consider them a single asset."

"Ragnarok," Aashi said the name in her mouth. it didn't sound familiar, but that she would find out about later on. For now, she wanted to know, "that Spacer, would you call her your friend, too?"

"Oh come on, we have this great Frenemy thing going on right now and I really don't want to put a label on it." Uso replied, laughing a bit, "So where are all your friends?"

"A pirate's friend is never an enemy," Aashi said, then added cryptically, "Some things are better left unknown. I would say that, if you will have me, I can call myself your friend. Then I may know where one of them is."

"I think I tried to have you just a moment ago...." Uso replied.

"Then have me, you will." Aashi said smoothly, knowing Uso wouldn't likely try to have her a second time, not after watching what Ronin had to gain from it, at least. She watched Uso for a moment and then, asked, "What is it that you need that they're not giving you?"

"Trying to find a niche for yourself?" Uso asked, "You seem good with the kids, and patient enough to be systematically trying to meet everyone. Your ability to handle a ship under fire has yet to be seen, but so far you look like the kind of person who would be most useful in organizing the crew, getting them to work together well... general captainy/flightleady type stuff. You already mentioned you wanted a ship right? I suppose the next step would be to find something for you to do with that ship..." Uso rambled a bit, looking over Aashi, then to Ronin, "Alex is going to need someone to watch over him. I'm also really going to need someone to start handling the development of Osman city, there are more and more small details that need to be handled. Once we deal with the I'ee's problem, we're going to be focusing on our own."

Aashi thought reflectively as Uso spoke, saying, "I can captain a ship under fire and have for years before now, but piloting one under fire is something I haven't done in awhile, though I was skilled at it when it was my duty. If it comes to that, I'm there for it. I don't want my own ship, rather need one. If fighting is what you want done with ships, fighting is what I'll do with that ship. If moving things around is what you need, I'll do that. And if stealing things is what you need donw with a ship," she said, "well, I'd be happy to do that."

"The yound one, he needs guidance. He's gone through a great deal, but I'll only be able to tell if we're givent the opportunities to be alone with one another. No, Uso, not like that..." she said, eyes trained on the dubious Neko. "What does Osman city need for its development to go unhindered?" Aashi asked.

"Unhindered? This whole fucking planet is hindered. I can't just tell Vier to build a thousand beds and hand them out. We need running water, infrastructure, city plans... Hmf... I'm already on the hook for building a bunch of science crap in exchange for her help but all that goes in space. Plus I suppose I owe all those people new housing and the like, not to mention a reason to actually visit this planet... it isn't enough to just have stuff, they have to have stuff to do."

"All that I can help you with," Aashi said as she braced out of high speeds and back down to STL speed

"Right then, for now you're captain of the Pumkpin Eater. Make sure Vier has what she needs to do her job... We'll figure the rest out once we've finished saving the I'ee."