Futuristic The Bounty {FaddedFox and Lucyfer}

[Lucyfer]

Human sacrifice was not on Hayate’s bingo board for the day, and his brows lifted in surprise as Naomi pressed on the subject. “Definitely glad you all aren’t big into that nowadays,” Hayate chuckled, definitely more curious on the subject and how they grew out of it. He knew humanity had practiced it, though he didn’t know much more than that. The details on which group of humans was long lost to him in the blur of ancient history.

His focus hadn’t been human history.

They reached the tree that was home to so many, and Hayate stepped out carefully. He knew it was safe, but there was still something disorienting about being on a tree. The distant sparkling ocean did not relieve him in the least, even if it was pretty. He approached the door with Arien, and adopted a semi-strict posture for himself – back straight, face neutral-warm – as he saw how Arien held himself.

Of course, it broke soon enough, and Hayate let his body relax and a grin form. He also grinned wider at Naomi as she caught onto the hug going on – a real hug, not that bump thing Arien called a hug. Clearly this was reserved for closer relationships.

He stepped in and also took note of the minimalism going on. ‘You two must be so hard to shop for.’ When he heard his name, he stood briefly at attention, “Yes – that’s me,” he confirmed for Menzai, “It’s good to see you again, sir,” he added, “and to be invited into your home. I’ve never been in a place like this, despite all the travels we’ve done.”

Weaving nature into a world just wasn’t common practice.

Technology took over, more often than not, but here it seemed to be enfolded and welcomed into the natural world in such a strange way. The galaxy could learn a lot from the le’ak. Hells, Hayate wished then he had gone further with his degree to try and research this to bring it back to the wider galaxy.

But he knew even that wouldn’t go far.

Hayate hesitated to say more, unsure if Arien wanted to broach the subject of the broadcast they saw immediately or not. He still dared, “How are you all holding up with that…blockade going on?” Things seemed well enough on the surface, but he just got here. A lot could be going on he didn’t know about.

~***~

Ancasta remained silent on the way to the station, and was silent leaving the vehicle as well. Noy, no doubt, would go find a place to park, and then go spend his time in the station. It was large, a central hub built into a large tree, tending to all sorts of travel – water, space, air, land. It was more for commercial travel, compared to private, the reason that Ananke didn’t land here, really.

She stepped into the building, walking upon the amber ground, to one of the many eateries within the area. No matter what planet people were on, they needed places to eat while they waited on transit, and it was as good a place as any to meet her employers.

All sorts wandered into and around stations, after all.

Within the Floressence, Ancasta found the le’ak employer and slid into seat at his booth, “I was starting to wonder,” he chuckled. “Glad you could make it.”

“As am I,” she didn’t really care, “tell me about the mark.”

“Right to business. Well,” he turned his tablet towards her, and she took it, seeing the sleek humanoid upon it. Not le’ak or human, though – ondiade, with the way their skin shimmered in the pictures and the complete lack of hair. “That is Meluso, and due to our current stance with the ondiade, we cannot touch him,” her employer sighed, “I was relieved when the guild was willing to hear us out. He’s been causing harm across multiple planets to le’aks, so the ondiade have refused him protection, as well, to avoid further conflict with us.”

“Mmm,” she didn’t really need the sob stories, “where is he known to be now?”

“The Sequiatitanis – it’s only twenty minutes out from here.”

One of their larger cities. Ancasta nodded.

“He’s been keeping a low profile, but we’ve seen him in the local transit stations, around the rivers, and within the Groundskeeper. Always on the base levels.”

“That’s all I need,” Ancasta said, “I’ll take the rail down. I’ll send a message when I’ve finished the job,” she stood up, “it won’t be long.”

“You’re confident,” he noted with a bit of a laugh in his tone. She just shrugged, "Well, be careful," he added, "we thought he was trying to get off planet, but with everything locked down...he may be more dangerous since he knows we won't intervene here."

"I'll keep it in mind," she agreed, and walked off towards the local rail system to find one that wound on down to the ground levels of the planet.

 

[FaddedFox]

Arien glanced at Hayate when the man brought up the blockade. Arien gave a nod, also very interested in what was going on. If anyone knew anything, it would be his father. He was the head of security. Well, of their division, but still. He had high enough clearance that he'd know what was going on out there. " The media is painting us as the enemy," he further informed the man.

Menzai gave a bark of a laugh at the words. "Of course they are. There always has to be an enemy," he mused. He shook his head. He was quiet a moment, but his petals were raised. Arien frowned. His father was worried. He could see through the mirth in his words. Something was wrong. "The Aks'shaka are a militant breed. They do not understand the idea of trade. They certainly offer something in return and wrap it in nectar leaves so you swallow it. Mark me - they are not as charitable as they paint themselves." The Aks'shaka certainly had made themselves out to be saints always providing advancement while all the while hiding the best for themselves.

Menzai smoothed down his petals as best he could. "They have asked for resources to save their planet. We gladly agreed to assist them. They asked for Talen Crystals and Balminium. In return, they were going to give up something to amplify our ability to irrigate water more efficiently."

Naomi nodded as she leaned her chin on her hands as she listened. That sounded like what they said on the broadcast. She didn't quite see what the problem was. She didn't know what the Talen Crystals were, but Balminium was a staple here. It was one of the things they sold best. Seemed a nice trade. "That's good, isn't it?" she ventured.

Menzai winced. "To a point. Balminium takes time to mine, purify, and stabilize. Our resources also need time to replenish. If we try and produce rapidly, we risk mining too much and our planet won't be able to create enough to sustain itself. We have to remain balanced. They want as much as they can get immediately, and delays are met with anger and frustration. But that is not the whole story. The main issue is the Talen Crystals.

"Talen Crystals are sacred. Not just to us, but all the races on Zalenthi. The crystals only grow and form in special areas around the world. Once you take them, they do not grow back. They are the strongest purifiers we have on the planet. They reduce the pollution and radiation that technology and space travel cause. Without it, our planet will be poisoned and slowly die. Because they're so vital to us, they've become sites of holly pilgrimage and healing. The other crystals are in other territories that do not belong to us. They are the only places on this planet where all races gather without worry of prejudice and attack. It was an agreement long ago that no one would ever take the crystals for any purpose. So, we cannot provide the Talon Crystals," Menzai explained.

"I assume they don't take 'no' as an answer." Arien clarified.

"Correct. Because we refuse, regardless of what they have offered in return, they have called us hostile. They want the world to pressure us in return. Hence the lack of communication and cutting us off from other routes. It will be a game of attrition and shows of power and posturing. They've found that we don't scare easily. This is a setback, but we'll get through it," the man sighed.

Naomi sat back then. That did sound a bit like a dilemma. She wished she knew what to do to help, but she knew nothing of politics or these crystals. "I'm sorry about the situation you are in. I do hope it all settles down quickly." She'd hate not being able to come back here for a while.

Menzai offered a small smile. "Not your doing. So, while Ancosta is doing this bounty, what are you three going to be up to? I unfortunately can't stay long. I have to meet with the Counsel," Menzai questioned, effectively changing the subject.

"We were going to visit Terr'ian Olatani," Arien informed.

Menzai arched an eyebrow. "Why there?"

"They wanted to see ruins. That was the closest one."

"Hmm. Well be careful when you go." The man hesitated then.

Arien tilted his head to the side, his petals lifting slightly. "What's wrong?"

"I can't say much, but I would advise against dallying long. If you can, avoid the cities and crowded spaces. We've got a strong influenza going on right now and I don't want any of you getting sick on top of everything else."

Influenza? Arien leaned forward then. "Father, I'm a doctor, remember? What is the-"

"No." the man said, his petals rising in warning, causing Arien to immediately back down in surprise. "I do not want you involved in what is happening here. It is best you are off planet." Menzai knew that if he said any more about it, he'd never get Arien to leave. He loved his son and proud of his honor and sense of duty. However, Arien would stay and maybe he'd get sick too. They were containing the virus and had their best minds working on cures and treating symptoms. Arien did not need to be here.

Arien however looked, and was, a little hurt. Why didn't his father want to tell him about the illness? Did he not believe in his abilities to help the sick? That is what he had trained for. "I can cancel my contract with Ancosta...." he trailed off.

"Arien, please don't press me on this. This isn't your fight. Not right now. Especially with the blockade, you may not get to go again. I want you to be out there, not trapped. You never did well in restraints," he smiled softly.

Arien looked down and gave a small nod though he was not happy with this news.

"Promise me?"

Arien looked up confused and looked back up at his father.

"Promise me you won't go to the cities. That you'll go to the ruins and then back to your ship," Menzai clarified. He knew his son. If he didn't promise, he'd do exactly what Menzai didn't want him to do. At least with a promise, Arien was honor bound to listen.

Arien gave an exasperated sigh, almost hiss, as his petals rattled. "Fine. I promise."

Naomi's eyebrows shot to her hairline. She'd never heard Arien make that sound before towards his father. As far as she'd ever seen, he was very obedient and did as his father said without question. Apparently not. Naomie gave the father a nod. "We promise, Sir. We'll stay away from the cities." She did wonder what was going on with that though. Made sense that Menzai didn't want his son getting sick, but still. Something felt uneasy.

"Good." Menzai got up then, Arien following his suit. Menzai moved to his son and hugged him again tightly. He ran a hand against his head before pulling back. "I won't see you before you leave. Sent me a message when you guys leave. I can't respond back, but I can at least get word from you."

"Yes, Sir," Arien sighed.

"Bye, all three of you. I am riding with Jena, keep the transport for you trek to the ruins." Menzai looked over his son one last time, fully expecting not to see him again for a long time. He didn't doubt this drawn-out war would take a year or two, if not more. He gave them a salute, one Arien was happy to return and watched his father leave.

Arien crossed his arms, more unsettled than he was before meeting with his father. Some things had been answered, but even more questions now sang in his head. He looked back to Naomi and Hayate. "Are you ready to go to the ruins?" he asked, his voice sounded a little more flat than usual.

Naomi nodded and finished her glass of water. Which tasted amazing. It was so cool and refreshing. It almost tasted like it came straight from the mountain top. Hell, it probably did. "Yeah, I am ready. To the ruins!"
______
Melusa pulled his cloak tighter around himself. It served several functions for him really. It hid him from view, so it was harder for the people to recognize him for what he was. Ondiade weren't exactly welcome in the Le'ak cities. Thankfully this one was bordered with Ondichi so seeing an Ondiade, though rare on land, wasn't a cause for concern if he was spotted on the outskirts. Secondly, it kept his respirator hidden. His people couldn't breathe the oxygen above water for more than an hour, so his own source of water and oxygen needed to be with him at all times. Thirdly, well, the cloak had special woven threads that took moisture from the air and turned it to water to lubricate his skin. He'd dry out faster than it took to say 'dehydration' and die out here. And lastly, he was able to distribute his parasite with relative ease and keep them out of sight, so no one was the wiser.

Even with the risks, however, this was all worth it. He was glad he could play a part in the downfall of the Le'ak. They'd considered themselves the most advanced race here. They took the spearhead to be the face of Zalenthi. They spoke of balance, but where was the balance when it came to the water races? They took the water they wanted and used their irrigation systems and called it innovation. They fished and made farms, depleting the fish and corals wherever they did so. The corals were dying, and their procedures were changing the hunting patterns of various predators. They didn't seem to understand the damage they were causing with their greedy little operations. Well, Melusa called it fucking theft. No matter. Soon, the world would know how two-faced the plant head were.

The Ondiade hurried through the streets, heading for the interconnecting rivers. He couldn't go back to Ondichi yet, not until everything was done. He was promished a pardon then so he could get back to his people. Till then, he had a little cave system he called his base of operations, and he was eager to get back and fully submerge in the water. Even with the protection from his cloak and suit, there wasn't enough water out here to satisfy his body's needs.

 

[Lucyfer]

Hayate hadn't realized the importance of the crystals. Though not really devout himself, the galaxy often understood these things. It was strange that wasn't highlighted more. The crystals had never been on the table in the first place, and from the sounds of it, that was agreed upon by all of Zalenthi. “Yeah, I can understand why they aren't traded,” he murmured, more to himself than anyone else. He half wished things were a bit better with his family. He could ask a favor to blast the other story.

He decided to just put a pin in that and see if it was needed in a couple weeks. He could bite the bullet if it was needed then.

For now, it seemed there was a flu issue. “Don't worry, we see enough cities on our travels so we won't press Arien to take us into one, promise!” Hayate said, and while he might have wanted to see how a city in this culture operated, he could wait until next time.

After all, they'd have to come back to see Talia again! Hayate wasn't convinced nothing was going on there and he knew Naomi wasn't, either.

The family embraced and it seemed the last time they'd see Menzai. He offered a wave, before his attention was taken by Arien. “Yeah – if you are. If you don't feel like it now because of the flu going on or anything, I get it. You'll have to deal with a ship full of sick people.”

He still might if Ancasta got sick.

“Ah shit – I guess it's probably too late to warn Ancasta. If a flu can even last in her lungs,” Hayate joked, hoping to lighten the mood just a little.

Either way, he was prepared to follow Arien’s lead.

~***~

Ancasta did some light reading on the ondiade as she sat in the transport, making her plan from it. As much as she preferred encounters in public, her odds seemed better off finding Meluso near the rivers. An ondiade needed water. He likely lived out that way, separate from the larger community, which made sense.
They preferred the ocean, larger bodies of water, not the rivers.

Of course, following a river and tracking in wilderness wasn't common in her line of work. So, she did what recon she could in the Groundskeeper, where she learned about the frequent visitor, and the routes some had seen him take. The Groundskeeper bartender noticed that Meluso passed by often, even if he didn't stop in.

He'd passed by not long ago, and she was given the direction.

So, she did move to the river – quite annoyed there were a few rivers. She followed a path to where they connected, though, and using her tablet scanned for tracks or other unusual activity.

That helped her track, given the trail was actually fresh, and well-navigated. She was able to catch up with a figure in a cloak from behind.

“You're late, Meluso,” she called ahead.

Dropping a name and an accusations like that usually startled people into dialogue. She was hoping for the same outcome here.

 

[FaddedFox]

Arien gave a noncommittal 'hmm' at the question of whether or not he wanted to go to the ruins. It didn't matter. He'd promised them the ruins, so the ruins they'd see. He wanted to see what the hell was going on in the city and why his father was so tight lipped about it. He had said he wouldn't go and he knew he couldn't really get around that. He didn't want to openly disregard and disobey his father. It just... wasn't done. At least not in his family which had always been highly militaristic. Training to be a soldier only reinforced those tenants. Authority was law. Your promises were law. Maybe when communications were restored he could wheedle the information out of the man. Or find something online about reports.

He made his way back out of the house, fully expecting Naomi and Hayate to follow him. As before, the three of them squished into the little pod and Arien started up the transport. He began to drive them deeper into the forests, further away from the towns and cities. Naomi pressed against the glass to see the green world below them pass by. It was fascinating to see where the civilization gave way to natural forest and wilderness. There was almost no hint of technology out here. Maybe a tower or two now and again covered in vines and plants. As they passed them, it became clear they were telecommunication towers.

And soon, they arrived at their destination. It was much closer to the mountains where a cave resided. Arien parked the transport a few feet away from the opening. Beside the cave stood an information podium that gave a brief description of the cave and what took place there. It was protected from the elements with an iridescent shield, much like what protected the ships. This way it remained clean, easy to read, and undisturbed. It kind of reminded Naomi of zoos and museums that had little plaques and information slabs in front of exhibits. She wondered if it would be clean and manicured like museums then. Seemed rather organized and it would make sense. The Le'ak people seemed very organized and clean.

"We're here," Arien confirmed as the pod opened and let everyone out.

Naomi stretched like a cat as she stepped out onto the lush grass. The air here felt much wetter than it had at the altitude of Arien's home. It almost felt muggy. "Thanks for bringing us out here," Naomi said then. She'd been quiet during the ride. She of course had things she'd wanted to say or question, but she'd wanted to give Arien space. He hadn't seemed happy or in a particularly good mood as they'd left the house and she hadn't wanted to step on the tiger's tail too much. She could guess at his frustration.

While she waited for the boys to get out and settled on their feet, she hurried over to the information panel and started it up, always curious about the tech. It immediately came to life with a hologram that initially started out in the Le'ak's written alphabet. There were translation button so she pressed it and immediately was greeted with the common tongue. With a quick skim, she could see it was an entire history of the cult and the location. "That is pretty cool," she mused to herself.

She looked up to see Arien was waiting by the entrance for them. "Arien, is there going to be like a guided tour voice thing?" she asked.

"No. Well, I suppose I'll be acting like one," he mused.

She chuckled and nodded. "Yeah. I was just curious if one was rigged up for tourists."

"No. It's not a tourist destination. Usually," he explained with a tiny quirk of his lips. "Come on." He turned and entered the cave entrance.

Whatever Naomi was expecting, it wasn't this. Not by a long shot. The outside had been manicured and homey almost. The inside was far from it. The scent of mildew, mold, and decay immediately hit her nose. The more they ventured in the wide tunnel, the stronger the scent. She was kind of glad she hadn't eaten anything before coming in here. Cobwebs and dead leaves, twigs, and even a few dead rat-like things immediately dispelled her initial assumption of this being like a museum. The tunnel slowly grew taller as it began to open up to an inner sanctum. It became a hall; the walls around them had been chiseled in defined geometric spaces. Three levels all the way down the hall and carved into the stone were sarcophaguses. Naomi's eyes widened.

"It's a crypt," she said hoarsely. That was not what she'd thought of when Arien had said 'temple'.

"Partially. The dead that line the walls here are the old god's priests," Arien explained. "When they died or sacrificed themselves, they became part of the temple walls. This hall will open up at the end and became the main temple where the worship and sacrifices were held. Deeper still are the priests' chambers."

"Oh my god. The smell... are the bodies still in there?"

"Yes. It was decided the dead would not be removed. Maybe it is superstition, but people were worried of releasing any curses or bad omen if they were disturbed. Others worried about potential poisons and traps for grave robbers." Arien looked to Hayate then. Since he was the one most interested in the ruins, he'd wait before moving on in case he had questions or things he wanted to investigate further. They'd take this one room at a time.
____
Meluso was getting more and more relaxed as he left the city behind him. He didn't have to worry so much about people noticing him. And he simply hated crowds. He loosened the tie on his cloak a little and started to hum a little tune to himself. Soon, he'd be 'home' and relaxing in his pool. Since his task was now complete, he just needed to lay low until everything blew over. That was easy enough. His ideas of the evening were quickly dashed, however. His eyes widened when he heard someone call his name.

Oh shit.

It was never good if someone knew his name and what he looked like. It was time to go. Ancosta may have expected him to chat, but that was the last thing he was going to do. He didn't even turn around. He immediately took off running. He didn't know if the person pursing him was familiar with the world or not, but he was going to try to lose them. He highly doubted that the woman was anyone from the ocean; few would come out here, even to come after him. It was a gamble, but one he was willing to try and take.

Melusa rushed over the ground and traversed the river and headed straight for the tree line. Though it was good in theory, he was not a land-dweller. He was not used to this place any more than his pursuer was. And he lacked the grace he had in water. As the fugitive ran, he wove through the trees as fast as he could. Unfortunately, his foot caught a gnarled root as he moved on an incline and Melusa hit the ground. He slid down the incline as he scrambled, trying to catch himself. His hood fell away from his face and the little bag at his waist unbuckled and came free.

He hissed in frustration, as he came to a stop and tried to grab the bag again. The last of the specimen was in there. He couldn't leave it. He rushed to try and grab the pack.

 

[Lucyfer]

Hayate followed Naomi and Arien out of the transport, glancing again at the information booth. It was pleasant here. He could imagine laying down in the grass and just falling asleep in the warmth and mugginess. It was definitely one of the highlights of this planet. He didn’t think about sleeping on the streets of the various space stations they went through.

Naomi brought up the information, but Hayate opted not to run over and read it; he’d see it, and let Arien do the explaining. He followed Arien to the entrance and waited for Naomi, chuckling at the thought of Arien actually being a tour guide. “I’d pay to see you act like an actual tour guide,” he joked.

The pleasantness of the exterior was wholly lacking within. Hayate wrinkled his nose, and in the end, brought up his hand to somewhat bury his nose in his sleeve as they proceed. It wasn’t gag-worthy bad, but it was still unpleasant.

The reason was voiced soon enough by Naomi, “Ugh – you could have warned us,” Hayate complained, voice muffled a bit in the sleeve. At least once they were free of this area, it would be over. Until they had to head back to the cars. It didn’t surprise him that the bodies were still here. “You don’t deserve the dead. That’s like, rule number 1 to avoid bad luck. Didn’t you ever hear of what happened in the Martian ruins?” An old story back home, and one full of superstition.

Sure, all the archeologists died gruesomely years afterwards, but that didn’t necessarily mean they were cursed.

He passed on elaboration. He wanted new knowledge. “Were the other sacrifices placed here?” Hayate wondered, “or were they just thrown in some sort of pit?”

Maybe only priestly sacrifices were honored. Maybe there was even a special time when a priest was required, and so they were treated differently from the more mundane sacrifices. Which brought up the question, “What was the requirement for being a sacrifice, anyways? Not that I’m looking for a new job or anything.”

He smiled into his sleeve at the thought of this ever being a job option. Hard pass. He still had a lot of living left to do.

~***~

Ancasta couldn’t even sigh at the run. Sure, it was exasperating, but this wasn’t an unexpected reaction, and her body jolted by instinct right after them. Her feet moved, her eyes focused ahead, and her hand reached for the gun.

She got paid if they were dead, too.

Not as much, but sometimes, she very much preferred to bring them in dead.

As her hand closed around the gun, Meluso tripped. Ancasta still pulled it free of its holster and approached, gait slowing, as Meluso stumbled all over trying to get a bag. Ancasta aimed at the bag, and fired when she thought she might get his hand in the shot as well as the bag, despite the incline making everything move and slide about.

A hand injury might make him reconsider running again, at any rate. A slug thrower’s bullet was a terribly painful wound. Not nearly as clean as the lasers and plasma everyone seemed fond of nowadays. Nor did it have as much ammunition loaded at once, since its ammunition took up more space, but she didn’t mind.

She never needed much.

 

[FaddedFox]

Pay to see him as a tour guide? He might have ignored it, but he decided in light of everything, he may try a little joke. The darkness and gloom needed a lift. He extended his hands towards the man expectantly. "So let's see it. I'm your acting tour guide."

Naomi stared at him a moment and Arien didn't waiver and continued to wait. "Wait, are you serious?" she asked after a spell.

Arien gave his rare smirk to finally show the 'jig' was up. "No."

Naomi snorted and shook her head. It was always so hard to tell when he was joking or not. He had such a deadpan serious face most of the time. Even his father seemed more expressive.

Arien tilted his head towards Hayate when the man said Arien should have warned them. He supposed he could have. The smell was far from pleasant. Still, they had insisted on an experience, did they not? Well, this was an experience. Hayate wanted to pretend he was an archeologist of some sort, discovering new things. Well, most of them wouldn't know what they would be walking into until they were there. It was more authentic this way. They weren't in any real danger, unless they decided to open the caskets and touch everything. Then they could get bacteria. Considering Hayate and Naomi weren't used to the on illnesses on Zalenthi, it would be best not to get open wounds and then go about like a three old and grab rusty and old decayed objects. On second thought, maybe he should have warned them. He wouldn't put it past Naomi to do just that. She was very hands on and liked to touch everything. "Don't touch anything," he reminded, just as Noami had reached out to touch the inscriptions on one of the walls. Naomi flinched back. "This place wasn't sanitized so it is best you avoid touching things as much as you can. When we get back to the ship I'll have you both do a sanitization bath before boarding." Better safe than sorry.

Noami nodded and clasped her hands behind her back. She shrugged then at Hayate's caution as well. "I'm just saying, I am surprised. I hear that lots of tombs and the dead get dug up and taken to museums and stuff for preservation. I figured it would be something that was done here too," she explained. "Though I suppose leaving them alone is probably a better option." She wasn't superstitious. She wanted to know things and how it all worked. If she was a scientists, she'd probably take at least a body back to investigate and gain insight on how they lived and what not. "Well either way, continue on, oh wise guide," Naomi grinned then.

Arien shook his head though he didn't seem quite as strung up as he had before they'd entered the temple. Arien listened to Hayate's questions and was quiet a moment as he decided the order in which he'd answer. "I'll get to what happened to other sacrifices when we get to the Sanctum. The priests were sacrificed before a war in the hopes their favor with the god would ensure our victory. Besides being a god of Death, Olatani was also called Fate. Priests would practice minor blood letting to try and decipher future events or sway decisions. So it wasn't always about sacrificing life." He paused and nodded to the scriptures beside the dead. "Those are the names of the priests. Many of them are undecipherable now due to the change in language and the damage some of it has received over time."

Arien moved to the archway that led deeper into the caves then. "Above me it says 'Do not fear death, for death is the great Uniter. All shall fall to his Silence.'"

"Cheery," Naomi mused.

"Indeed. This leads us to the Sanctum. Follow me. Don't. Touch. Anything," He warned a little more sternly.

The reason was soon apparent. The large room they entered was spacious and had been carved in a perfect circle. Light filtered in above them from an opening in the ceiling and gave the illusion of the space being calm and inviting. It was anything but. The walls all around had carved balconies that lead deeper into the cave. Old candle sticks were set up in specific positions but over time. they had moved or fallen over. Spider webs and dust were a testament to how long it had been since this room had been used. Looking at the balcony, it made the space suddenly seem oppressive and suffocating. The center of the room was where the alter rested. A monument of a crescent moon on its back facing the sky sat behind it, also caked with grime, old blood and webs. The moon had inscriptions on it and a place holder for candles. Delicate metal work wrapped around the moon and above it, forming what looked like a blood droplet. Around the alter, there were indented groves and buckets used during the sacrifices. The alter also held several simple blades, some curved for various purposes. They still looked as sharp as ever. The most startling thing aside from the age old blood that stained the area were that several bodies lay strewn about. They were all just bones at this point. They way they lay indicated murder and the dark robes marked them as priests.

"Whoa.... what happened here?" Naomi whispered, her voice echoing in the chamber.

"This is where people were brought to be sacrificed. Now, my schooling did not go wholly in depth about the history of this place and everything that went on here or the other religions or anything. It is understood that though we all believed in Olatani and when we prayed to him, we'd offer a little blood from our body. This place, however, was home of a cult. Sacrificing others wasn't something that was ever mainstream for us. From what I remember and know, those that were sacrificed were selected based on some kind of divination the priests conducted with the cycles of the moon. A person was sacrificed each year. If there was war and our people won, the cult would sacrifice several of the hostages from the rival clan to thank the god for protection and victory. If they could get ahold of them. If not, a stand-in was used. The sacrificed was tied down on that alter and bled. When the person was dead, the organs were removed. I don't know exactly what they did with all the organs. There are jars in the catacombs that contain organs. Everything except the brain and heart, anyway. It is unclear if the priests ate them or performed something else with them.

"As for the priests you see here.... they were purged. During our Enlightenment period, we realized this was not something we wanted to continue. Our beliefs and mode of doing things changed. It didn't happen over night, but worship of the old gods was abandoned. When this place was discovered, the governments that be immediately disbanded it. The priests refused to change and so were killed and left to rot in the temple. Their ways effectively died with them, and ultimately, the last sacrifices made to Olatani. More of the priest's bodies are deeper as well. The soldiers that came here went level by level to wipe them out. The final floor of this temple is the Catacombs where the other sacrifices were buried after the rituals. They are unmarked graves and nowhere near as elegant and defined as what you saw before we came in here. We are barred from going down there so we do not disturb the dead or desecrate them further." It was a very eerie place to be sure.
_________
He almost had it, almost - the shot rang out. "ARG!" Meluso screamed out as pain racked through his hand and up his arm and radiated. He curled at first before he rolled onto his back and cradled his trembling and ruined hand against his chest. "You fucking Annok!" he yelled the curse. It was much akin to calling her 'scum feeder'. Violet blood oozed from the angry wound and stained his clothes and the ruined bag he'd reached for. With his own pain at the fore of his mind, the bag and its contents were long forgotten. The shot probably shattered the vile with the evidence, releasing it into the world so it really didn't matter anyway. It couldn't hurt him; the parasite didn't attach itself to marine life since their skin was different. Meluso had to deal with the bigger threat. Meluso obviously couldn't outrun Ancasta.

Meluso panted as he slowly got to his knees and looked at his pursuer for the first time. His deep black eyes narrowed on her. She wasn't a Le'ak or anyone from this planet. She looked human. Had his employer sent her to close loose ends? The bastard. Meluso didn't put it passed him to do something like this. With Meluso's task complete, there would be little reason to keep him around, after all. Even if he'd been promised a pardon and safety for doing all their damn dirty work. Even if she wasn't sent by him and it was a bounty hunter sent by the Le'ak or other organization, he didn't care. He would show them he didn't go down easily.

He remained on his knees for now, making himself a smaller target and allowing himself to hunch over and hide his good hand a little. "Who the hell are you?" he growled. "What do you want?" he panted.

 

[Lucyfer]

Hayate absolutely would have paid if Arien upped the corniness, but Naomi interjected before he could make sure he was going to get that out of Arien. Alas, it was too good to be true! Just like the sanitization bath. Hayate groaned at that; he never enjoyed those. Thankfully they weren’t frequent, “If I had known about that…,” another grumbled complaint for the lack of warnings for these ruins.

But he was still fascinated by it.

It didn’t surprise him at all that the priests were considered a different sort of sacrifice. They were only parted with in situations of war. ‘The sacred to commune with the sacred.’ The mundane could never. He looked upon the script, but it wasn’t one he knew. He couldn’t have made out the names, but he still looked upon the symbols that made them up, before he followed Arien forward, into the Sanctum.

He also looked upon the symbols that spoke of death, “Well, they don’t have that wrong.”

What was in the sanctum was unexpected.

Priests were left to rot where they died – not in sacrifice, but slain as offensive practitioners of an art that had no place in an enlightenment movement. Arien explained, but Hayate couldn’t help but shake his head as he went through it, “This seems…okay, outsider view, I get it, but it seems excessive and a bit…wrong to just leave the dead like this.” He understood why it wasn’t a tourist attraction.

He pursed his lips together, “Why are they left out like this? It must have been centuries by now, right?” Was it some sort of harsh lesson to the modern day, would-be cult leader? Was there still such a deep fear of something like this happening on Zalenthi?

Or was it a manner of respect he just didn’t understand? Certainly, with the other priests being buried, it didn’t seem like this was respectful in the least. “I guess the diseases and whatnot of the rotting flesh are long gone and it’s not really that unsanitary but…I don’t know,” he shook his head.

He really didn’t get it, as this was a place that was still allowed to be visited.

A reminder that there were some things still very alien.

~***~

Ancasta didn’t need a translator to know when she’d been insulted. Tone and expression said enough. But, she didn’t really care what ‘annok’ was, coming from someone like Meluso. Whatever he considered an annok to be, was probably something wonderful. She allowed him a few silent moments to regroup, to sit up, and hunch over his hand.

She wasn’t a fool to think she was now safe because he was talking and asking questions.

She didn’t approach closer, only adjusted her aim so it would now go through his head. “My name is Ancasta. I’m a bounty hunter. Based on the way you ran, I don’t think I need to explain why there’s a bounty on your head that the guild accepted, do I?” Rhetorical, obviously. “I’m paid more if you’re alive, so I’d rather take you in that way.”

Selfish reasons were believable reasons.

“If you’re willing to cooperate, I’ll toss you binders you can put yourself into.”

Otherwise, the alternative was obvious. She got paid either way.

 

[FaddedFox]

"That's a good question. I asked my father that when I was brought here," Arien answered. He turned and looked back and the fallen priests of old and clasped his hands behind his back. "It seems that when this initially occurred, the powers that be wanted this to be a lesson. It's speculation though. We don't know the actual reason they left it. It could simply be that the soldiers that came here were lazy and didn't want to bury the dead or they held grudges and didn't want to give them the honor of a burial.

"After that, this place was lost to us. We forgot it existed here and the cave entrance was blocked over time, naturally. When it was rediscovered, the temple and the priests were investigated. The heads of the Historical Archives decided that since they rested here for centuries, taking them out now would be a greater grievance. They are fragile and transportation might break them. This was their temple and it seems fitting they remained here with their brethren. This became more a historical place and it remains a reminder of a darker place in our history and a warning not to repeat the mistakes. As I said, this isn't a tourist attraction and most off-worlders would not be brought here. I brought you here because this was the closest ruin and you wanted a real experience. I didn't know how much time we'd really have to explore."

"Well, it certainly is that," Naomi mused. She looked around herself and rubbed her arms. This place was very eerie. "So how did you guys get from blood sacrifices to a communing with nature?" she asked then. That was the most startling thing to her, really.

"Well, as I said, this particular place was a cult. It took centuries. We started off with a large pantheon of gods for various events. There were many ways of worship. One branch of worship saw all living things as divine or spiritual. It was a more pacifist style of living. It's teaching spread and changed with time and various factions grew out of it. It really began to take shape and become more unifying when several of our leaders adopted the faith. Life and nature became sacred and many of the other faiths naturally diminished or adapted to combine with the new faith as it became mainstream. Our last king abolished the monarchy and set up our current Collective ruling body to coincide with the idea that no one is above any other.

"We have no formal religion. It's more a way of life. We are a part of nature and nature is a part of us. We all have our circle of life and every action has a cause and effect. We try to maintain that balance. We've seen first hand how disrupting this balance is detrimental to everyone and everything in the end. We're not perfect by any means, but we make a conscious effort to be better and do what we can to maintain life. I suppose if you want to pinpoint what we consider divine, it's the essence of a person, animal, or plant. We all have a life and soul. The soul is never destroyed. The body may die but the spirit becomes one with world and we are reborn." Arien stopped talking then and sighed. This was probably the most information any of them had ever gotten out of the Le'ak doctor. "Anything else?"
___

A bounty hunter. It had to be the Le'ak sending her. He eyed the gun aimed at his head. Even if he went with her quietly, he knew where this was going to end. The guild would pass him off to the employer and he was sure to torture him to get information out of him. Regardless, he would end up dead. His real option wasn't whether he was going to cooperate. It was about how he chose to die. Meluso was at a disadvantage here with Ancosta and there was a very slim chance he'd manage to get away. Still, he could damage her or take her with him. That was better than nothing.

"Alright, alright," he mused, sounding a little defeated. He had to get in close to her. "I'll cooperate." He watched as the hunter tossed him the bindings and sighed. He clasped it on his injured hand and winced as it was jostled and let the mechanism bind his second hand. He slowly moved to his feet so she wouldn't suddenly shoot him. He waited calmly as she approached him. Ancosta still stayed back just a little, trying to be safe by not getting too close. Thing was though, she was just in range for his tentacles. It probably just look like hair to her. Did she know much about the water races? Well, she was going to learn first hand. The tentacles inched up slowly at first before jolted outward quickly. Several wrapped around her wrist, immediately stinging her hand and injecting the painful neurotoxin to immobilize her hand and prevent her from pulling the trigger. He didn't know if Ancosta was distracted enough or not by the sudden pain, but he didn't want to give her time to process. While his tentacle pulled her close, he swung, hoping to knock the gun away and get close enough to wrap all his stinging tentacles around her.

 

[Lucyfer]

Hayate wasn't having a strange reaction, it seemed. He felt some relief that this wasn't such an alien horror and Arien had wondered the same thing. Time was apparently the answer. The truth of them being left behind was unknown, but now, they'd simply been here so long it felt like their grave.

An open burial, of sorts.

He hummed in understanding. He didn't like it – but now it made sense. “No, no, I definitely appreciate seeing something real,” Hayate said as Arien reminded them it wasn't a tourist attraction. As Arien began to answer Naomi's question, he took it upon himself to walk around the sanctum to get a closer look at the clothes, and the bloody moon, careful not to touch, even though he really wanted to lift the fabric to examine it more, and run his finger along the edge of the moon.

The move from faith to non wasn't unique to here. As humans expanded out, religions changed, though some remained strong, only shifted. He was only too familiar with that in his community, which still held a predominant belief in what they called Shinto, though it was hard to say how closely it actually resembled what had been practiced on Earth when it originated.

Still, spirits were found in nature. Changing planets apparently didn't change that rule.

Nature as divine wasn't strange. Concepts of reincarnation, also, weren't. He'd not really familiarized himself with ‘returning to the planet’ but that was likely due to how many places and people traveled.

He hummed again to acknowledge what he heard, mind flipping through it. “So, if you had to pick – who is your favorite old god?” Hayate looked up with a grin, unable to help but ask something only slightly related.

He had to find a book on the old pantheon now, though. He wondered if they were as messed up as the faith that bore Ananke into existence.

~***~

Ancasta assumed Meluso wanted to live. Most of her bounties did. Even so, they wanted to be free, sometimes to the point of stupidity. It was why she let them bind themselves when she was alone. The binders hadn't let her down yet, she could see the lights shift to red to signal the lockdown.

Meluso rose and Ancasta stepped closer then to help guide him where she wanted, only for her outstretched hand to be assaulted by stinging tentacles.

She hissed in pain, grip loosening on the gun as her instinct was to pull away. It was brief enough – the pull and the tug forward. She went forward but serendipitously dropped the gun before he swung.

She caught it in her other hand, pushed it into his abdomen, and fired as other tentacles got a moment to inject more poison into her upper arms. She was able to push back then, no doubt that pain being a surprise to him.

The next shot was fatal, though not high enough to be a clean death, still within the abdomen.

She was a bit more accustomed to acting under duress.

When he fell, she let herself sink down. She fumbled her tablet as she felt the poison radiating from the stings. Arms, shoulders, neck. How much was fatal? How far to the heart? Brain? It didn't matter. She pulled her tablet out and did an emergency dial, connecting with the local systems still active on the planet.

“...what is your emergency?”

“Poisoned. Ondiade. Use signal to track. Outside Sequiatitanis.” The thought crossed her mind to call Arien – perhaps he could give her a tip for surviving until help arrived? She dismissed it as she let herself slump against the tree and shut her eyes against the pain the burned her nerves and froze them at once.

She had gotten far too comfortable having Hayate around.

 

[FaddedFox]

"Stay on the line with me," the dispatcher's voice echoed from the tablet. "Try to breathe as normally as you can and focus on my voice." Last thing they wanted was for Ancosta to slip into a comma or begin to freak out. The more her heart and breathing elevated, the faster the spread of the medicine. "Emergency is on their way right now to your location. They will be there soon. "

While the dispatcher continued to drone on, Ancosta's attacker coughed up blood, a strangled laugh raked with pain bubbling up. It filled his mask, turning the water within it red. Meluso hadn't wanted to die, but he would much rather die a free man, than a whimpering mess at the hands of the Le'ak. They'd never get any information from him. He'd wanted to see them all perish, but at least he was comforted in knowing he had a hand in their demise. And he'd take the bounty hunter with him. All in all, he had made his peace. And Meluso didn't last much longer. His body went limp in the grass, his skin already beginning to dry up as his life passed and his blood stained the ground.
The little parasite that had been in Meluso's bag crawled free then. The 10 legged insect alien to this planet was as black as night and no bigger than a 2 inch coin. A angry orange circle rested on it's underside. It unfurled it's wings and went straight to the first sweet blood source it senses; Ancosta. Meluso's was far too salty. It landed near one of the marks Meluso had left on Ancosta and inserted it's proboscis into her skin and drank greedily, leaving behind a little something in return before flying on it's way to it's next unwary victim.
_________________________________

Arien tilted his head to the side as he debated his answer. His favorite old god? He hadn't really thought about it in some time. And favorite in what sense? The god he resonated with more? Fancied because of powers or story? Or was he asking if he himself was religious and prayed to a certain deity? Probably the first situation. There had been so many 'main' gods and then the minor deities that branched off from there that were set up by followers who wanted to worship certain aspects and changed others.

"The God Menki or Goddess Hazen," He answered then. He didn't elaborate. It seemed Arien was back to his short, sweet, and curt responses

Naomi shook her head. Whenever the conversation became about Arien himself, he was so tight lipped. It immediately made her wonder if he did that on purpose. Did he just not like talking about himself? He certainly gave them a lot of information just two minutes ago about a dead cult. Did he even realize how different his response was? "What are they the gods of?" she prompted.

"Menki is a warrior god. He was the patron of soldiers. He valued honor and sacrifice. Sacrifice in the sense of being altruistic and giving yourself to save someone," he amended, considering they just talked about actual sacrifices. "Some soldiers still carry 'blessed' items as well to ward off ill fortune, just in case, before heading into battle." Some people were more superstitious than others, after all.

"Do you?" Naomi interjected a moment. She vaguely remembered Arien mentioned he was a soldier of some kind before being a healer.

"When I was young, yes. I wore a clawed talisman. I don't anymore. As for Hazen, she was Olatani's wife."

"Wait, wait, wait! Olatani's wife?" Naomi was flabbergasted. How could Arien like the wife of a god that condoned blood sacrifices?

"Yes. She is a patron for the healing arts."

"...Oh," she mused.

"He may have been the god of Death, but she was a healer. She took the bodies and studied them. It became complimentary in the lore. From death, you learn about life, and how to prevent decay," Arien shrugged. "Of the deities, she's the only one that still exists today. She's not seen as a god exactly, but more an old researcher who passed down her knowledge through the ages. We do have a statue of her in front of the hospitals."

Well, from the answers, Arien showed how practical his thinking still was. He only seemed to align himself with things that helped him in his current pursuits. Naomi still wanted to see what Arien was like outside of all the practicality and logics. What was he actually passionate about? It seemed to always be duty with him. "Well that is pretty neat. Thank you for taking the time to go through this."

Arien nodded. "If you want, I can take you guys deeper into the chambers. You'll see their rooms. It's damaged from the fight, but you'll get to see more artifacts," he reasoned.

There plans however, soon changed. Arien's communicator suddenly began to beep. Arien frowned and reached up and pressed the button on the device located behind his ear to bring up the caller information. He quickly recognized the number for the hospital. He accepted the call then, concern making him tense. Why was the hospital calling him? Had something happened to his father? "Dr. Arien Hak'eri," he announced in his native Lecan tongue.

"Dr. Hak'eri, this is Dr. Leg'ach from Sequiatitanis Hospital. You are listed as the emergency contact for Ancosta. We had her here in the ER."

Arien's eyes widened, the only outer clue he gave to the other two with him. "What's happened? Is she alright?"

"Her condition is stable. She was in a fight with an onadiade and was poisoned. We gave her the antidote and she's already beginning to recover from it. She should be fine, just numb the rest of the day most likely in her extremities. She's on bed rest for now while the paralysis subsides."

"I see. What floor was she transferred to? I can be there in 10 minutes.'' It was in violation of what his father said, but this was Ancosta. He was her doctor and he needed to get to her. His obligation to her was greater.

"Actually, she is being transported back to her ship as we speak."

"What?"

"She... she was adamant that she be returned as soon she was stable. We couldn't refuse. There was no reason to keep her once she stabilized and would be heading directly into her personal physician's care," the doctor on the line explained.

Arien sighed, his petals lifting and rattling a little in his frustration. Ancosta was so damned stubborn. "Thank you. Please forward the medical notes for the visit to my secure inbox." He relayed the information of where to send the notes and ended his conversation with the doctor. He reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose to ease the tension he felt building there. The bounty must have been the onadiade. She shouldn't have gone alone. Now he felt responsible for her pain considering he'd taken her partner away during the mission. Again, he hadn't realize Hayate intended to skip, but when he had, Arien had taken him anyway.

"Arien?" Naomi ventured, concern on her face. "Is everything okay?"

"No. Ancosta was injured on the hunt. She's been sent back to the ship for personal care. She's recovering," he explained quickly. "We are leaving now." he left no room for discussion on the topic and headed for the transport.

 

[Lucyfer]

Hayate really needed to learn lecan. Although he could hear Arien clearly, he still strained to try and pick up anything. Obviously, something had gone wrong. Hayate wasn’t as wrapped up in worry about the father; he knew the person missing, and he knew how dangerous their missions were. His heart was already sinking into his stomach as he waited, watching every expression that crossed Arien’s face, until at last, he could speak plainly to them.

It was Ancasta.

She’d been injured.

Hayate took one last glance at where they could have gone, and although he did want to continue on, guilt and worry never would have let him, “Did they say what happened?” Hayate asked, jogging to catch up with Arien and then maintain closeness. The guilt was heavy. He should have been there, but he was concerned Ancasta would want to leave immediately when the hunt was done.

He hadn’t even considered asking for a brief stay.

Now? Now she was injured. Possibly badly, even if she was recovering.

He was never missing a mission again, as he loaded into the vehicle, to head back to Ancasta.

~***~

Ancasta did indeed argue to get back to her ship. It was one advantage of having Arien on board, but she would have argued regardless. The last thing she needed was, somehow, records to be run through too many systems, and come back with a match for Nana Sune. It was a long, long time ago since Nana Sune had her records taken, and most hospitals would have purged them by now.

Still.

She worried.

All it took was one slip.

The problem in this situation was that the numbness made things quite difficult. It had faded enough to be mostly in her hands, her feet, her ears, and a few other minor locations. Walking was a bit much, though. She was given transport back to her ship – after she was paid. The le’ak helped her to her own quarters, and reminded her, again, about bedrest.

So, needless to say, she had already forced herself, stumbling, crawling, and cursing, to the cockpit. She’d burnt the tips of her fingers lighting up a tacrose. Her lips barely felt the stick between them. Her tongue barely tasted it.

But her lungs savored it.

That was, of course, where she would be when the door to the ship opened, and Hayate called out: “Ancasta? Ancasta!” She heard him hurrying towards her quarters, so she called out.

“Here.”

She ashed out the burning tacrose and sighed, hating the way tingles still moved up her throat. This wouldn’t be a fun conversation with any of them. She always hated the concern that followed injury.

 

[FaddedFox]

For once, Naomi had nothing to say. She'd been shocked when Arien said Ancosta had been hurt. For as long as she'd known her, Ancosta was a strong woman. Certainly, she's had scraps before and had needed medical attention but for the most part, Naomi had always assumed that Ancosta really couldn't be touched. She was a skilled hunter, and this should have been a piece of cake. To hear that she had been taken to a hospital for immediate care was startling to say the least. How badly had she been injured? What exactly had happened?

She followed after Arien and Hayate, careful not to trip on anything. Arien looked tense and growly and she didn't want him to snap at her or Hayate. Hayate looked concerned. And maybe guilty? What would have happened if Hayate had gone with Ancosta like he'd been supposed to? Would he be the one injured or would they have both walked away unscathed? There was no way of telling. There was nothing meaningful to bring up to either of them and quickly crammed into the pod with them. The silence between them was palpable and Naomi could swear you could cut through it with a blade.

Once on the ship, Naomi made way for Arien and Hayate as they both rushed forward. Naomi considered Ancosta a friend, but there was nothing she could do in that moment. Arien needed to get to her, and she didn't want to block his path. When Ancosta called out to indicate her location, Naomi simply followed after the boys to check in on their captain. Once in the room, she remained against the wall. She didn't Ancosta to feel crowded with all of them there.

Arien himself bee-lined for Ancosta, his petals raised and alerting the world of his worry for the human captain. "Ancosta," he called. He immediately scented the tacrose in the air. He shook his head in disapproval. She'd just been released from the hospital, fully medicated and feeling the effects of a neurotoxins, and she added smoking on top of that? She needed to let her body recover, not add more complications. And she most certainly should not be sitting up here in the cockpit. She needed to rest. The medication in combination with the lasting effects of the sting would make her drowsy and potentially have muscle spasms and fatigue. The doctor had mentioned prolonged numbness in her extremities.

"You should be resting," he said then as he moved to her side. Arien didn't bother with asking how she was doing. He knew from experience the answer would be 'like shit'. He let his eyes scan over her then, assessing the damage he could see and the treatment. He hadn't had a chance to look at the report yet, but it was relieving to see she was feeling a little better. She'd been bandaged where the onadiade had wrapped its tentacles around her. No doubt Ancosta would have some scarring. At least he was confident in the fact that his people knew how to deal with onadiade poison and stings. They would have been careful in the removal of the barbs. It was a good thing the bounty occurred here and not on another planet.

"I will look over the medical report shortly so I can check up on you later." He didn't want to undo the work that had already been done by checking now though he was itching to do just that. "I do insist, however, you return to your quarter for the next several hours to let your body detox," he pressed.

 

[Lucyfer]

Ancasta could only give a sour look at the comment on ‘resting’. This was resting. Sure, it wasn’t sleeping, but she was…well, not doing anything except smoking. Which, she knew, was not something she should be doing. She was silent under Arien’s initial scrutiny, however, allowing him to get the visual idea before he elaborated.

If she wasn’t so tired, she would have argued with him about returning to her quarters.

“I can help,” Hayate offered, “I’m so sorry, Ancasta, I should have—”

“Ts,” Ancasta cut him off with the short hiss, “I know how to work alone,” she spoke a bit slower, the words clearly taking more of an effort with her lips and tongue not working well. Even then, with all her care, there was some obvious slur in her words that she detested.

Hayate tried not to cringe.

Or laugh.

“Just…out of practice.”

“I can see that,” Hayate said, “so let me help now, and I’ll make sure to never leave you on your own again.”

He didn’t understand the resentful glare. Was she that angry at him for abandoning her? Somehow, it didn’t seem nearly as pointed as that – but that could be the medicine making her unfocused. At least, she reached her arm out, and he grabbed it, pulling her up and pulling her arm around her shoulders so she could half-drape on his left side.

“Hey, so – should we stay here a bit?” The question was to Arien. He’d know if they needed more supplies here to help treat Ancasta. Not that she could pilot them out – but Naomi could. She was usually a more generous pilot so far as staying in a place went. Or, well, Hayate assumed.

Ancasta didn’t really let her have opportunities.

 

[FaddedFox]

Arien crossed his arms a moment as he watched Hayate help Ancosta to her feet. He may look angry and stern but honestly he was worried. Ancosta looked like she'd been in bad shape even if she was recovering now. The onadiade had gotten a good hold on her. Arien had grown attached to this group of humans. He considered them friends and he didn't want anything to happen to them. Arien would deny it to the moon and back if ever questioned, but it was the truth. They were strange and weird and quirky, but it was nice all the same. They were each so different from each other and blew all stereotypes and preconceived notions he'd had about them out the proverbial window.

"Thank you, Hayate. I'll check on you this evening, Ancosta." That would give him plenty of time to review the files from the doctor. "We do not need to remain. The toxin and spines have been removed. We have the medication necessary and most of the recovery is detoxing and rest," he explained. Arien would have liked to remain a little longer just because he wanted to know more about what was going on, but he knew Ancosta would not take too kindly to that right now. No doubt she wanted to hurry up and get out of here. She wouldn't have been in the cockpit otherwise. "I will return to my quarters." He paused then and looked back at Naomi and Hayate. "Before you touch anything else, you need your sanitation baths." With Ancosta injured, he'd completely forgotten about that. He would need to take one too, just in case, so he didn't spread something to Ancosta whose immune system would be compromised.

"Oh right," Naomi mused. "I'll go do that real quick then, and then I suppose I'll get us going. We'll head back to the Guild." Naomi watched Hayate lead Ancosta away and sighed inwardly. She really hated seeing Ancosta in bad shape. She was their fearless leader! She couldn't go down. She wanted to go sit with her but she knew Ancosta would just chew her out like old tacrose if she tried. She'd caught the glare the woman gave Hayate. She'd leave Ancosta's care to Arien's capable hands. Then when Ancosta was in a better mood, Naomi was visit her and see if she needed anything.

Heading to the Guild should give them a space to regroup after what had happened too. Then they could pick up more bounties and be on their way. Naomi hurried the washing chamber then to do her wash and change out of the clothes she'd used. Once she was settled in her new warm clothing, she made her way to the cockpit. It was practically surreal. Ancosta almost always drove and didn't let anyone else do it; not even the AI auto pilot system. Naomi knew how to fly, of course. She'd practiced and had thousands of flight hours under her belt. It had been required for her training and something she'd enjoyed. She'd even driven this ship once or twice to ensure all proponents were working correctly when it had been damaged. Each time however, it felt weird, like she was in Ancosta's personal space. It made her nervous, which was silly. Naomi always considered the ship hers in part since she repaired so much of it and new the ins, outs, and guts.

"Okay," she breathed to herself and caressed the control board reverently. She hooked up the communication system then and put a smile on her face. "Alright, kiddos, we are now departing the Zalenthi station," he announced, her voice echoing in the ship. Naomi engaged the systems and let the excitement fill her as they began lift off. She watched as the beautiful green and blue life around them began to fade and they headed back into the atmosphere. The Aks'shaka ships were still floating around, but they didn't interfere as they made there way towards the 'approved' highway. Naomi was glad s he didn't have to deal with any of the Aks'shaka representatives. They were rather intimidating.

-------------
Hours later, Arien headed to Ancosta's quarters and gave a knock to announce himself. "I'm coming in to check on you," he added. He was sure he was the last person Ancosta wanted to see right now, but she'd hired him specifically for this purpose. He was here to keep everyone safe and healthy. When she gave him the okay to enter, Arien slipped into the room. He sat down beside her then. "How are you fairing?" he asked in his usual deadpan expression. Even still, his hands were gentle as he took her arm to started unbandaging her gently. He'd gone over the notes left behind and was satisfied with the care. Ancosta should only have a bit of fatigue and some numbing tomorrow but on the whole, she should be able to move around again. To prevent too much scaring and lingering pain from the stings, Arien planned to soak new bandages with a special herbal remedy he'd discovered in his research. Its scent was strong, but it would do wonders for Ancosta's wounds. He paused, remembering his manners. "May I remove the clothing to access the wounds? I am going to change the dressing on the wounds and soak them in Ve'in solution to minimize scaring and stinging. It will feel cold to the touch."

 

[Lucyfer]

Ancasta wasn’t thrilled to be back in her quarters. She preferred the cockpit, but she went along without fuss, and got back into her bed. Hayate was the one to fuss a bit, making sure she had everything she could need on the nightstand so she wouldn’t have to get up, including water and snacks.

The hum of Ananke starting up caused her to sigh, if only because she wasn’t the cause. She focused on that familiar sound, until it did, in fact, let her drift off to sleep.

It wasn’t a long rest.

She was pretty sure she woke up every hour, and stayed up for one or two at a time either trying to sleep again, or messing around on her tablet, reading up on the situation on Zalenthi, scouring the articles for any details of Jace’s other moves in relation to the planet.

Somehow, searching him directly was too far.

As if he’d know.

As if he even bothered to remember.

When Arien arrived, Ancasta set her tablet aside and let him take her arms. The room was clean, and barren. She kept nothing of her old life as Nana. Another reason she didn't like her room.

“Not as bad as everyone seems to think I’m doing,” Ancasta stated in a similarly flat tone. Arien may not have bedside manner, but he got the job done. That was all Ancasta needed him to do. Which was why she didn’t mind the deadpan or neutral way he expressed himself, or the way he got to the point.

She nodded, “You may,” not that she’d terribly mind the scarring, but the bits of pain weren’t helping with the rest.

She would help where she could in the process of clothing removal so that Arien could continue his work, “Is this a typical treatment back home?” she assumed it had to be; they probably had plenty of ‘home remedies’ for this, since it couldn’t be uncommon.

It wasn’t one the doctors there had mentioned, though perhaps they didn’t bother to when they realized she already had a le’ak doctor.

~***~

Hayate, for his part, had spent most of the day in the throes of guilt. He didn’t really know how to make this up to Ancasta, other than making sure to be on other missions. Sure, she wasn’t acting like it was a big deal, but it felt like one to him.

Eventually, he wandered into the cockpit to join Naomi and he took a seat, “Where's the little fox guy?” He hadn't been present for the whole backstory with that thing.

It would at least get his mind off the guilt for a bit.

“I don't think I've been properly introduced to…it?” Him? Her? They? He didn't know how they were to refer to it, and it felt so impersonal, even if the fox was AI.

It had the illusion of sentience.

 

[FaddedFox]

Arien helped Ancosta out of the clothes so she didn't hurt herself. Especially with the numbing agent in the neurotoxin, she might not realize she was bending too far or awkwardly in a way that would later hurt or sprain herself. With the clothes out of the way, he continued to unravel the bandages. He took a moment to allow his eyes to trail over the marks that had been left behind. They were red and a touch swollen, but it looked far worse than it was. The angry red would fade by tomorrow, as would most of the swelling.

"No, actually," he answered her. He pulled away and prepared the cool water with the plant oil and leaves and let the cloth bandages rest inside as he turned back to her. "This plant is not found on Zalenthi. I found it in my research. It was intended for stings produced by a animal. Upon researching the creature, I found its sting is similar to the onadiade. I have used this before in other trials. I am not experimenting on you," he assured.

Arien pulled his sleeve up to reveal his arm to Ancosta then and show her the prominent white scars that wrapped around his arm and extended upward. "This is what a normal scaring would be. With this new treatment, it should appear more like thin lines." He rolled his sleeve back down and began to strategically place the leaves on the wounds before binding them with the wet cloth. It would immediately cool the wound and begin to lessen the swelling and pain. The scent of honey, mint, and disinfectant permeated the air with it. Arien didn't understand how the plant could smell like chemicals, but it did, and it always made him cough and his petals curl in distaste.

Arien glanced up at Ancosta's face once his own coughing fit lifted. He debated a moment. He knew Ancosta wasn't one for apologize and lingering sentiments, but he felt it needed to be said. "I'm glad you are safe. I'm sorry you faced this alone, capable though you are. I won't pull away your partner for frivolity again." Even though it wasn't really Arien's fault that Hayate had left his post, Arien still felt responsible. He'd suggested the ruins and the outing. Safety had to always come first and none of them ever knew how a bounty was going to go. It was better to be overprepared than alone and caught left footed. "Do you have any other pain or anything I need to be aware of? What happened?"
________________________

Naomi hummed to herself as she stared out across the expanse outside the ship. Space really was so vast. She didn't often get to just sit here for a joy ride and watch the planets, satellites, ships, and debris fly on by the ship. It was humbling as it was daunting to realize that in the grand scheme of things, they were all just tiny particles. Certainly, some actions could cause ripples but overall, their personal trials and struggles meant nothing compared to the universes that expanded beyond comprehension. There were still so many galaxies and planets unexplored.

The woman looked back when she heard the door though, her thoughts brought back down to the present. "Hey, Hayate," she called with a smile and stretched against the seat. At the mention of the fox, she grinned. "Oh yeah! I totally forgot I didn't show you the little guy. For right now, I turned him off. He's got a learning component but I pretty much made him a blank slate so he just kind of stares at everything, not knowing anything. I think I'm going to tweak him a little and add some base knowledge about things so he can still act as a computer if we need it. His personality and everything else will be up to the learning program and experiences to shape. I am eager to see what he becomes," she explained.

"When we get to the guild hall, I am going to work on him and then let him wander around with us so he can start picking up on things. I'll introduce you then. I haven't named him yet either. I'll wait on that. Heck, maybe he'll pick a name himself." Naomi adjusted their trajectory a moment and activated the auto pilot. Unlike Ancosta, she did have faith in the system. She made it, after all. Though she too liked to manually fly the ship, she didn't want to distract herself.

"It's getting late. Couldn't sleep?" she ventured softly. She could imagine what he was thinking with Ancosta laid up. But in the end, mistakes happened, and they learned from them. They were lucky that Ancosta hadn't been hurt more, but this was an excellent experience to have had and improve upon.

 

[Lucyfer]

A shame the plant wasn’t from Zalenthi. Evidently, they could use it. “You’ll have to share that, if you have not already,” especially as she looked over his own scarring. Not that Ancasta was all that concerned with such things. Sure, it could ruin the look if she was trying to seem seductive, but most of the time scars didn’t get in the way of such things.

They added to the mystery and intrigue.

Ancasta still hissed when the cold leaves touched her flesh, but only the first time. She was prepared for the others. At the commentary, she shook her head, “I hunted alone for years before Hayate joined me. I can handle myself,” and she did, technically speaking. “Hayate can make his own decisions about how much he wants to get paid.” As much of a joke as she was going to make of it, and the obvious sentiment that he wasn’t getting much from this job.

He knew what he sacrificed.

As for other pain, she shook her head, “No, I’m all right,” she said, before sighing, and adjusting herself as best she could without disturbing the leaves to be comfortable, “Meluso wasn’t in the city. He was in the woods along the river. I tracked him there and he ran, then feigned surrender after I caught up. He bound himself and I assumed wrongly that it was safe to go near. He used the tentacles to sting me. I had to execute him on the spot.” Her nose wrinkled a bit at that, disgusted more at herself for not realizing the trick.

It wasn’t the first time, but most who tried that weren’t capable of poisoning her with extra tendrils. She had forgotten such a possibility was on the table even when she was looking right at it. “The response was quick enough when I called for help,” she added, before dropping her gaze to his covered arms, “But your markings make less sense than mine,” sure, he had an interesting history.

More than any of them really knew.

But she wouldn’t ask directly. He could agree, disagree, and elaborate at his leisure. She wasn’t Naomi; she wasn’t the sort to prod into the past. She was too aware of how sacred it was.

~***~

‘He.’ Hayate made that mental note, though Hayate himself had leaned towards that. He wasn’t sure if Naomi intentionally made it seem more masculine, or if it was his bias for being male. Either way, he nodded as she spoke about adding a bit more to the framework. “Man, but it would be interesting to record how something learns with no framework. Still, not too easy. And could lead to some bad incidents.”

That’s why baby-safing existed.

He couldn’t imagine Ancasta ‘baby-safing’ the ship from an AI fox.

“Nah, you gotta name him. Names are a gift,” Hayate insisted, even if it would be cool to see what the fox might pick for himself. “It can always reject the gift later if it wants to,” some people did. Or they just changed it as they accepted a gift of joining another family.

She adjusted to autopilot, and then asked him the dreaded, implicit, question.

“Yeah,” he sighed, “bit hard to sleep tonight. Tomorrow should be easier,” when Ancasta might be moving more, and be annoyed with every single one of them for worrying about her. “Most of our hunts…we don’t…we don’t really need each other,” it was easy to say what was bothering him, “Especially Ancasta. She’s a veteran at this. I wasn’t expecting it would go so wrong just because I wasn’t there.”

Maybe it still would have gone wrong.

He didn’t know.

“I know there’s nothing to do now, and all I can do in the future is just make sure to go, but I hate that answer,” he laughed a bit at his own hopelessness. “I wish there was something I could do to make it all better now,” then he could sleep.

Alas.

 

[FaddedFox]

Ah, so that was how the onadiade got close enough to sting her. Even if she wasn't very close, those tendrils were long and flexible. Some were as thin as strands of hair and it was hard to detect them. She really was lucky she'd managed to get enough distance quickly before the toxin had taken affect or the bastard had gotten more barbs into her to immobilize her where she stood. He'd seen first hand how things could go south with the onadiade. They were dangerous and not to be taken lightly, even if they appeared harmless.

At her comment about his own stings, he tilted his head to the side and touched his arm. "It's not that surprising," he mused. "The Le'ak and Onadiade have never been overly friendly to each other. " Arien debated on leaving it at that. Perhaps before he would have, but today had been quite the eventful day. Being back home, seeing his father and then everything else, he was tired. It wore down his defenses a little. That or he felt the need for a continued connection after visiting Zalenthi. It had been so long since he was with or faced his home, people, and past. Maybe he felt more alone than he'd allowed himself to realize. The crew didn't really know him. Sharing a little of his life with Naomi and Hayate and been nice. His whole life Arien focused on the task in front of him, his duty and kept everyone at arms length. He would no doubt revert back to that in the morning, but for now, he would share a little more, let someone see in just a fraction.

"As you know, I wasn't always a doctor. I was around 19, one of my first missions out of training for the Frontier. It was guard detail for a fishing company on the docks of Sequiatitanis. It was supposed to be a relatively easy task for us fresh soldiers without any issues. It was not so. It was me and one other trainee there. Our supervisor had left us to guard the shipping unit while she patrolled down the shoreline. She'd assumed more risk for herself by going alone since my partner and I could watch each other's backs, and were capable of handling events. My partner and I were by the edge of the docking bridge. His back to the water and I was facing the fisherman loading the boxes, my right side angled towards the water. Like the young idiots we were, we didn't watch the water while we chatted. There hadn't been any attacks reported, so we were lax, and of course, we were attacked.

"The Onadiade agents had been hiding beneath us in the water. My partner was attacked first, an Onadiade sprang up, wrappings its spines and tentacles around his chest and neck. Another agent wrapped hers around my arm, intent on pulling me under. I caught myself and managed to dislodge myself in a panic before I was able to shoot my partner's attacker. As you know, the toxins are fast acting, however and my arm was already going numb and my partner collapsed. There were three more Onadiade there and I did what I could to keep them busy and off the fishermen rushing away. I got another lash to the chest and around my leg when they tried to pull me into the water again. Our supervisor made it back quickly though it felt like ages, and saved me from worse injury. My friend, unfortunately, had already suffocated from the constriction of his airways by the time we got him to the medical bay."

Arien learned that even though something was supposed to be easy, unforeseen events could always happen. Nothing was guaranteed and they must always be prepared for the worst. Being on duty was no laughing matter and needed to be taken seriously. Perhaps that is what led him to be so serious, focused, and direct in his manner. He'd been so young and had nearly lost his life and witnessed the sudden death of his friend who'd been laughing and full of life just moments prior. Perhaps that too was the reason he felt responsible for what had happened to Ancosta now. They'd taken 'easy' for granted and it led to injury again. It didn't matter how capable one was with dealing with threats. Several injuries from the past would attest to that. Things were 'easy' until they weren't.

______________________________________

Naomi chuckled and nodded her head. "Yeah, leaving him to learn and experiment with things on his own is one of the things I really wanted to see too. Sadly, we are on a ship and I would hate for him to accidentally do something to make us crash or get in our way or something. I think both Ancosta and Arien would toss me into a sun spot if that happened. So I figured just a basic understanding of somethings needed to be preprogramed for all of our safety. I am not coding any of the laws forcing him to listen and do what I say, aside from the whole 'no killing a living being' rule. I don't want him to go out and hurt anyone, after all. I don't think that would happen, but regardless, he can't do that. At most he can protect himself without actually hurting or maiming anyone else," she reassured.

"I suppose I could give him a temporary name and then he can decide if he wants to keep it. And same with his gender. He'll have the ability to decide that later for himself." He leaned back in the chair as she made herself more comfortable. "I think it will be fun to watch him. Kind of like a baby learning to talk, learning about the world, all of that. I wonder how fast he'll learn. Or who he will become attached to. I think it would be hilarious if he started following Arien or Ancosta around. You and I will have to teach it how to be social though. Neither of them are very open to that," she mused.

As the conversation became more serious, she sighed. "Yeah... but Ancosta is going to be okay. She's a tough cookie and Arien is an amazing physician. Even if he is glowering at you the whole time" she chuckled. She really wondered why Arien was so stern. His father didn't seem like he was as strict or reserved. "But anyway... I don't think you should take on the whole blame. Things happen, mistakes happen. It is not good to walk on eggshells. You apologized. And you are entitled to refuse work if you don't want something, though your pay suffers. You could both be taking different jobs and going out alone all the time, and even if you went together, something could have happened. I am not sure if that's helping or not, but that's my thoughts. Don't let the guilt bring you down, you're not to blame."

She looked out the window after a pause. "As for right now, I can't really think of what you could do. There isn't really much we can do to help Ancosta. Maybe ask Arien? He'd know what she's allowed to do and could tell you what you could do for Ancosta while she recovers. Asking her directly is just going to get her angry at you. Right now she doesn't exactly seem angry at you for not coming, more annoyed that she got hurt and that we were crowding her. Perhaps the best thing is to just give her space."

 

[Lucyfer]

Arien could have left it there, and it would have told Ancasta nothing she didn’t know. There remained the question of how Arien ended up on the side of that conflict. He wasn’t exactly the sort to start problems, even if he had a bit of a temper he’d probably deny to the ends of the galaxy. Calm, collected, and still prone to outbursts.

But, he explained.

It seemed their incident happened in the same city, even. He remembered it well, even the angling – he likely never made the same mistakes again. His partner was lost over it, and he was lucky to escape alive, in spite of all his training. The poison was fast acting, something she’d also had the misfortune of learning. She did wonder if it acted faster in the le’ak or human. They weren’t exactly the same, after all.

Was it adapted to kill the le’ak?

Ancasta hummed at the end, both acknowledgment, and a moment to find words. Sure, she wanted to know more about Arien, but that did not mean she was the best at responding to old, sad tales of loss. Something in her tightened up. Advice was worthless. Sorry was a cop-out. Commiserating was simply beyond her.

“A lesson well learned, it sounds like,” yeah, absolutely trash at this, “it only seems surprising based on what I know of you now. You may be prone to outbursts, but I’ve rarely seen you start a confrontation. That’s why it seemed strange you’d be attacked out of everyone on your planet, but as a soldier, I suppose you did wear one big ‘kill me’ flag on your chest to any ondiade who resented their place on Zalenthi.”

She knew what it was like. She’d worn the ‘Sol Order’ uniform once, and not everyone was a fan of them, either. She knew what it was to lose people, too. But these were not things she could confess to. Ancasta had only been a merchant, and not long, at that. Then she was a bounty hunter. Academics and a career in galactic order were not her history.

“How long did you stay a soldier?”

~***~

Hayate could just imagine the little fox causing a panic by driving them into a sun. What a way to die, an AI that didn't learn fast enough! At least no one would know.

Though, an AI that could help on missions would be nice, he didn't mention that when Naomi went over the laws she'd program into it. That was probably for the best, too. They didn't need it turning on the crew one night.

Even if an AI biting the leg of some mark would be amusing.

Instead, he nodded eagerly with giving the fox a name, “Exactly! If he wants to be she later on, we can adapt.” it wouldn't be difficult at all, even if some attachment formed before the changes. Hayate was curious how much the little thing would grow and learn, and how fast. “If he's the sort to get overstimulated quick he might lean towards those two,” Hayate did agree it'd be funny. “Unless it's smells that get to him, then maybe not.” Plants and smoke might overwhelm.

All to be seen.

And the topic couldn't stay there. “I know, I know,” he said with a breath of frustration. Ancasta was tough, Arien was skilled, the ship was in safe hands with Naomi and he…maybe that was it.

He just filled in.

He wasn't anything in and of himself, he just helped Ancasta and he'd failed that.

“She's barely going to listen to Arien anyways,” he chuckled, “I know there's nothing I can do now to help. I just hate that feeling. Not that I think anyone likes it. But I will wish I could. Like, I could maybe buy Ancasta a pack of tacrose but I think she'd even be annoyed by that,” so space it was.

But that kept the insecurities in play. Ancasta let them all join, and they all obviously had roles. She wasn't unfriendly, but something still prickled at the back of his mind that she wasn't exactly…friendly, either. He'd been blinded by how she saved him years ago, but some of that veneer was wearing thin.

“You ever wonder why she keeps us all around when she always seems to, you know, want space?”

 

[FaddedFox]

Arien inclined his head at Ancosta's words. "Indeed, a lesson learned," he agreed. He wasn't sure how he felt about her comment of his 'outbursts' but he supposed he had some of those, now and then. He certainly had been angry during the last news broadcast. Emotions were always things that needed to be controlled and he did his best to keep himself calm and clear, so it was new to him to know he had 'several outbursts' that were so easily observed. "Yes, I would rather observe than start a conflict and involve myself only if necessary. I was a soldier for about 15 years, including some training, before I became a medic," he explained. "I decided I didn't want to kill or make it my career to harm others for the rest of my life. Soldiers are many and will always be. Healers are few and always needed." A pause. He didn't usually return questions but, "What made you decide to be a bounty hunter?" It wasn't necessarily common. "If you wish to answer. I will not pressure you." He was not Naomi and understood that personal details were not always welcome to be shared.

‘Revenge.’

That wasn't what Ancosta said. “I can make more now as a hunter than most other jobs, and I don't have to remember nearly as many laws while being allowed to travel the universe. Someone just needs to want someone else handled and I can go there.” A simple shrug, and a simple sentiment that felt so easy to see through though she'd used the line for years.

She wasn't spending money.

She wasn't sightseeing.

“But you do realize you're helping a killer, right? I mean, that's obvious,” a chuckle, “but your sentiment seems at odds with your choice to be here. Not that I'm complaining. I just don't want you to snap one day and drive a scalpel through my neck because your have an epiphany about helping cause violence in the universe.” A bit of a wry smirk to show this was mostly humor. She wasn't afraid he'd actually come to that decision.

Ancosta could tell she wasn't saying everything. He wasn't going to press her for the information, but it was something to put a 'pin' in. Her words didn't match her actions and what he knew of her habits. That was her own prerogative. At her quip, he just chuckled, a small wry smile tugged at his own lips. He crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned back. "You're a killer? All this time... whelp, where's that scalpel?" he mused back.

"I'm not a saint," he said more seriously. "You and I are similar. I didn't want to be tied up in rules and long-term contracts. With a large company, I'd be one doctor fielding beneath a supervisor and doing what they wanted and how they wanted things done for years. I'd had enough of that in my internship. I figured with you, I'd be able to travel more freely, see what I wanted and needed to see, and work with new techniques the way I saw fit without red tape. And your line of work would need immediate medical care and I wanted specifically to aid with that. Perhaps unconventional but I hated the restrictions, bureaucracy, and politicking that went with it. I'm getting too old for that shit," he chuckled. "I just wanted to focus on the medical, learn what I needed, and eventually go back home with the knowledge and experience." He supposed he reconciled with the fact that usually, the bounties were not good people. They had bounties for a reason and almost everyone thus far was a criminal of some kind. Or so he told himself. He didn't usually involve himself directly in the business.

"Well. I think I've talked your ear off tonight." he mused. Probably the most he'd talked to Ancosta ever, especially something about the past. But it had been nice. "I'll let you rest before you wished the numbing went to your ears."

The joke drew more of a smile to Ancasta’s lips. Ah, dark humor about murdering each other! Clearly, the best.

Even so, he elaborated.

Almost everyone went to bounties because of the limited restrictions. Eventually, it culled those who didn't realize those limited restrictions could backfire on them, hard. Still, it made sense for why Arien was there. It continued with what he'd said before. He was learning to improve his skills for a return home. He could only do that without the bureaucracy of medicine breathing down his neck. He'd come back with his research and his notes and be well on his way to getting around the red tape so he could actually use useful methods.

“Appreciated. I'm sure two more sentences and I'd want to throw you out an airlock.” Hardly. Naomi would be dead already if such was the truth.

“Take care. I'm not dying anytime soon.” He didn't need to check overmuch.__________________________________
Naomi shrugged. "I think she wouldn't overly mind gifts, but we did just buy her some so probably would be later. As long as you keep up your side of the work, I don't think she'll worry about this overly much." At his second question, she tilted her head to the side. That was a good question. "Umm... Maybe she's lonely, though she won't admit it? The silence of space would make me crazy. But aside from that, even a bounty hunter needs some back up. She can't fix the ship herself and a partner on missions does increase success. And she's going to need a doctor at some point for something so I guess convenience," she answered. "I think I pestered her enough she gave in just to shut me up," she chuckled. "Why do you ask? Did she say something to you before about it or something?"

Hayate quickly shook his head at the question of whether anything had been mentioned, throwing up his hands. “No, no,” mock surrender, full plea, he didn't want Ancasta aware he was thinking too deeply about this arrangement they all had. “And maybe you're right, maybe she is just lonely. I don't know,” he shook his head.

Maybe it was just because he knew what it was to omit.

“I think I'm just insecure,” he admitted that truth instead. “I'm just worried she is only keeping us around for necessity and I could be ousted at any second. Totally fishing for compliments, by the way,” he joked.

He shook his head again, though. “I think I just got too into my head when I realized I didn't know much about Arien. Now I realize I think you're the only one I know much about at all in this ship.”

Naomi reached over to Hayate and squeezed his hand. "Hey, a lot happened today. That's normal. You'll get through this just fine," she encouraged. "We are more than just roles, I firmly believe that. I don't think you need to worry too much about it. And fishing or not, you are an awesome person," she promised. "Chin up, yeah? You'll do an awesome job on the next job and all will be forgotten. Or an amazing dinner. I love your cooking, by the way."

She chuckled at his last comment. "I don't know much about them either. I only know a little more about Arien because the two of us have been on the ship longer and I pester the hell out of him. He usually gives one or two lines of dialogue. He very rarely gets chatty. I did catch him one time tipsy. Tipsy. It was some celebration I think, and he'd drunk something and he talked to me a lot about some plants and asked me about my work but that was once. And about plants. He still didn't talk about himself. Arien and Ancosta, they're just quiet people. If left to their own devices, they'd probably have a silence pact," she joked. "You and I? We're the social butterflies in this experiment. We are important because we're the glue keeping this place together," Naomi smiled. "But no, I don't think she'd tell you to go kick rocks. That just doesn't seem like Ancosta. Things will work out."

Hayate didn't quite flinch at the reach but he did stiffen up, before his mind caught up and he relaxed with Naomi's touch.

He was definitely seeing too much violence.

“Okay so we get Arien and Ancasta drunk at the guild?” A joke, but not entirely. It sounded fun. If they wouldn't kill the pair later, but they'd have to know it was a plot. “but thank you. I'll at least make sure to pick up some goods at the Hall for new meals when we travel…wherever next,” he never knew.

But that was the allure of it.

“Thanks Naomi. I needed that. I'll try and get some sleep so I can help out with anything that comes up and not be a zombie,” he said, as he lifted out of the chair, “See ya tomorrow, yeah?” More plotting and conspiring.

_________________
The next few days of the trip seemed to bring everything back into balance. Ancosta was back in the cockpit the very next day with minimal issues from her run in with her bounty. The scars were already healing and Arien diligently looked after her to ensure there were no complications. Aside from the very first talkative night, Arien was back to being his quiet, stoic self and completed his tasks efficiently without idle banter. Naomi was back to her main job of fine-tuning the engines and working on her little fox AI. Everything seemed normal. Even the brief interactions between Ancosta and Hayate, though Naomi knew he was probably still hoping to amend things.

Yes, everything was back to the way it should be.

At least until Ancosta started showing signs of being sick. In the middle of their travel back to base, Ancosta was coughing, sneezing, exhibiting chills and an increase loss of appetite. Though Ancosta protested wildly, Arien quarantined her to her room on 'doctor's orders' and put her on bed rest as her fever spiked. Considering the conversation with his father previously, Arien was sure she caught whatever sickness was spreading around on his planet. It frustrated him all the more that his father hadn't told him anything about this illness. Not knowing how it was affecting his own people, he wasn't sure how different it would be for Ancosta. What would he needed to look for and counter in the progression of it? Upon taking a sample to culture, Arien found it was a virus he was unfamiliar with. It wasn't one found on his planet which only increased the mystery and concern. Perhaps it was some mutation. It wasn't like he was a virologist to really know the mutation and advancements of these things. Thus far, it just presented as a normal flu, though it seemed gestate quickly. which was encouraging. When they finally arrived at the Guild, Ancosta was in the throws of her illness. Arien checked in on her regularly and ensure she remained hydrated with the soup that Hayate made to his specifications.

Naomi sighed as she docked the ship on the landing platform. It was good to finally be here. Perhaps now they could all rest a little, recoup, and get back to taking jobs and being on their way. She was a little worried about Ancosta but Arien assured her that she would be getting better. Her fever broke and though Ancosta was down for the count right now, all viruses got 'worse' before they were better and Ancosta was now over that hump. A few more days of rest and Ancosta would be as good as new. It would be a relief to get her back on her feet. She didn't doubt Ancosta would be very grumpy and cross with Arien for not allowing her up and about, but Naomi understood. Arien didn't want an entire crew of sick of people he had to look after and they were in such tight quarters.

Naomi leaned back in the seat and turned on the speaker. "Attention everyone, we have now landed safely on X1-D3SH." She ended the transmission and looked down at the android in her lap. The fox had been a constant companion while she had been in the cockpit. It liked to watch everything fly by the window and it had been fun pointing to things and naming them, explaining what they were. It certainly was like teaching a child about the world. It was fun, but also exhausting. "Come on Todd, let's go check in on everyone." Yes, she'd named the little fox Todd. It was an ancient movie at this point, but it was a classic and she loved 'Fox and the Hound'.

The fox chirped at her and gave a whole body stretch. It melted Naomi's heart. He looked so dang cute. Todd hopped down and Naomi led the way towards Arien's door first and knocked. "Hey Arien, you ready to come out on the station? We're here."

"No. I will remain on the ship." came the reply from behind the door.

"But Arien! You need to stretch your legs and stuff too and it can get cramped being in the ship all the time. We don't know when we will dock again or how long we'll be here."

"I may have contracted Ancosta's virus. I will quarantine here."

Naomi's eyes widened. "Oh... oh okay. Do you need us to get you something to help out?"

"Just tea and soup. Hayate knows which ones. They are the same ones he made for Ancosta."

"Okay. I'll tell him. I hope you feel better quickly," she added. She hurried to find Hayate then.

 

[Lucyfer]

Having sick people on the ship was a bit of a nuisance. Not that Hayate blamed Ancasta by any means for falling ill; if anything, it compounded his own guilt. Sure, she was having none of it, but that didn’t cause the sensation to fade by much. He knew she’d be on her feet soon, though he had wished he could have gone in to see her. Arien forbade it, and begrudgingly, Hayate listened.

The whole ship didn’t need to be sick at once.

He was more than relieved when they landed, though. He stretched out on his bed and dressed in something a bit more appropriate than sweats – just light slacks and a black sleeveless turtleneck. The station was both too cold one moment, and too warm the next; it was impossible to figure what he ought to wear on the metal base of operations.

When he stepped out of his room, he saw Naomi already coming his way with Todd the fox. He lifted a hand in greeting, noticing she was leaving Arien’s room. “The Doctor coming, or is he staying around to keep an eye on Ancasta?”

There was a non-zero chance Ancasta would try to ‘escape’ to the station, especially knowing she was over the worst of it. Of course, from what Hayate knew, that meant mostly that she was exhausted and sleeping, so perhaps she didn’t even know they landed.

“How ya doin’, buddy?” he asked the fox after that, a wide grin coming onto his lips as he looked at it.

Todd really was adorable. Though, Hayate hadn’t heard it talk yet. He didn’t know if it did speak yet or not. Still, it was rude not to acknowledge it.

 

[FaddedFox]

Naomi waved at Hayate when she saw him in the hall. "Hey, Hayate!" she called. She looked to little Todd and the AI tilted its head to the side. She'd given the fox a voice box so he had the capability of speech. The AI usually spoke when it was just the two of them and even then rarely. The fox was learning and it seemed to favor observation over interacting thus far. Todd had asked about the various greetings just yesterday though so she was intrigued if the fox would now start interacting with the crew more often now.

Todd looked up at Hayate when the man spoke to it. The fox raised it's paw and gave a sort of awkward wave to him. "Hello, Hayate," he greeted. He didn't answer the question initially, and tilted his head to the side. "Not sick?"

Naomi grinned a little. She didn't program any sort of responses for the AI, so it was all his own reasoning. Todd probably didn't really understand the question, not being fully aware of self yet, or perhaps the context since they had also spoke of Ancosta and Arien. She wondered how long it would take Todd to get a better understanding, if it would just learn from them, or even look things up himself. Naomi pat the AI's head in encouragement.

"To answer your earlier question, Arien is staying on the ship. It seems our good doctor is feeling sick," she explained. "He asked if you could bring him some tea and soup. We should probably do the same for Ancosta and c heck in with her too. She's probably still feeling under the weather too but at least we can relay messages she may have for the guild leader or anyone. You have the access code to confirm the job code was completed and what not, right?" she mused. "Once Arien and Ancosta are all tucked in and settled, we can board the station and stretch our legs a bit.