As Teagan had said, "hanging" the new fuel nozzles took another two hours. What she didn't factor in was the discrepancy in the mating surface her x-ray eye caught just about the time they were ready to bolt up the new nozzle. The discrepancy was great enough that, once pointed out, you could see the discoloration in the metal where hot gas from the thrust chamber had leaked in between the two surfaces with the naked eye. Left unfixed, it would eventually cause a blow out that could take the power plant with it -- and maybe compromise hull integrity. So while the starboard nozzle went on without a hitch, work on the port side nozzle ground to a halt.

The other thing nobody had factored in was that Juice too was an engineer. Putting their heads together, the two women came up with a workable solution to the problem that involved some kind of advance molecular paste that would bond with the metal and then turn into metal itself. Whatever it was, both seemed please with themselves -- if Teagan ever really was please with herself -- and the work continued.

But even with that delay, thanks to Juice and help from her people, they still managed to knock out getting both nozzles up and the power plants fired off in two hours. Her "guys" would make it home in time for supper -- barely.

Paladin was still hard at work on the bridge and Leeda was still busy in sick-bay when the familiar whine of the main power plants began. First came the whine of the turbines winding up, then the scream of the first low powered ignition, and finally the triple pitched howl of complete power generation began, which settled into the familiar, comfortable screaming thunder of high energy fusion reaction. From inside the ship it was a rumbling hum that pulsed through the hull almost like a heart beat.

Once again, after ten years of near death sleep, she was fully alive and operating on her own.

The fuel browsers were still pouring fuel into the tanks. Two more browsers had shown up to fuel the wing tanks as well. They wouldn't be finished for another three or four hours or so -- which was more than enough time for the power plants to heat up to operating temperature. But everybody else had either left, or was in the process of leaving.

Juice shook Teagan's hand and told her to "give me a call" if they needed anything else before they launched. Then she stepped up onto the kick board of one of the cranes and roared away. Save for the refueling crews, after four very long and grueling hours, they were once again on their own.

Willa’s stomach growled as she watched Juice and her equipment roll out the bay doors. Her body ached, as well as her head. This was not the best way to start a staff meeting, every one else was likely feeling about the same way, and those who weren’t used to this type of work were probably even worse off.

She walked up the ramp into the ship and headed to the lounge where she had seen two food prep areas. She knew exactly how to get a crew to gather in one place. Examining the equipment she found the majority of it in working order. She pulled a pre set cookie dough off of one of the chips, and threw them into the oven. In a matter of minutes the entire ship smelled of fresh baked cookies. When the timer indicated that they were done, Willa grabbed one off the tray, sat at the head of one of the tables and put her feet up on it.

Once the diagnostics and pre-flight checks had been completed, Paladin made his way to the cargo hold. He began flipping through the catalogs of mem clips till he found what he was looking for. A quick trip to the transporter station, to "download" the supplies and the pack to carry them in, was almost complete when he caught a whiff of something other than welder scorched ozone, fuel, and chemicals... those were COOKIES!

He followed his nose to the lounge, grinning as he passed the doors, and saw Willa there, and her bounty. He set the pack near the door, and asked, "Can I have a cookie?"

“Of course, they are for everyone. I think we should all get a little food in our bellies, then showers, then start the meeting. Let everyone relax a little bit before the intensity that is bound to happen. What do you think?”

"Well, we've got time, till the fuel load out is complete. So however you want to work it. Im hoping for no intensity, just a recap to make sure we are all on page, then a smooth election of leadership." Paladin grabbed a cookie, and started to nibble on it. "Thanks, these are delicious." He said, as he began to unpack the belt communicators and comm dots from the rucksack, setting them on the table.

Teagan walked into the lounge, her face and eyes too still for her pretty face. She walked to an empty chair and sat down quietly, so as to not interrupt the conversation that was in progress.

As Paladin unpacked the sack, she watched is handsome form, her eyes following his movements, and her mind started to wander to thoughts that probably weren’t appropriate in this situation. When the machine like woman walked in Willa cleared her throat, and said, “Thanks, it sure would be nice for things to go smoothly. Teagan please have a cookie.”

Teagan nodded her head obediently and reached over to grab one of the gooey cookies. Sitting it down in front of her as she slowly licked the chocolate chip residue from one of her slender fingers.

The nozzles were hung and the Thavan had gone off to terrorize some other innocent person. The sore spot on his side had faded to a dull ache, partly due to the bandage he had slapped over it. Jacob felt pretty good about things. Then he smelled the wonderful smell of fresh cookies. He groaned, remembering his oath to eat better and lose weight. He should run and hide, avoid the temptation.Still, he should check in with the rest of the crew, and they were probably where the cookies were. He followed his nose to the lounge.

As he came into the lounge, Jacob's mouth watered as he confirmed what his nose had suggested. Chocolate chip. Why did they have to be chocolate chip? He moved towards them, determined to just smell them. After all, no calories in smelling, right? Nodding at Paladin, Teagan and Willa, he looked over the warm, comforting, melted goodness on the plate. He clung to his willpower like a drowning man to a plank as they called to him.

Glancing at Willa, he wondered if she would be offended if he didn't take one. He didn't want to be responsible for more tension on the crew. He could always start his diet tomorrow. Better that than get on the wrong side of his new crewmates. His conscience assuaged, he was doing this for the crew after all, he quickly grabbed four cookies. Wishing for some cold milk to wash them down, he got a glass of water. "Thanks," he mumbled around the remains of the first cookie, trying not to spray crumbs as he found a seat.

Willa looked over at the big man, smiled, and said, “No problem.” Then grabbed herself another cookie.

"I'm not late, I hope," Lawrence's polished tones voiced as he breezed into the lounge. He was wearing the same outfit but his jacket was surprisingly clean and crisp given it's previous condition. He seemed not to notice as he carried a three shiny metal cylinders to the table. He chose a seat furthest from the harridan and sat down, then set them down. Each was of a different gauge than the others; one four, one three, and one only an inch in diameter, and all roughly a foot long.

It hadn't taken long for Qamala to track down Leeda in the medical bay after her part in the labor of getting ship repairs completed. She knew right where her friend was, would have known it even if they hadn't left their minds open to each other. She had been briefly concerned about Ekhart, and was just as immediately relieved when Leeda told her she'd left the man in stasis -- was just for the best, until they figured out what was to be done with him.

"Ready, Leeda?" She asked brightly.

Leeda looked up from where she had been checking her fingers; it was easy to miss blood underneath the nails. "Oh! Yes, yes of course, just let me change into something a little less medical!" She turned to sift through her belongings, which had been piled in one corner of the sickbay for lack of a resolution on the bunking issue.

Her stuff had been deposited in the med bay for now -- which suited Qamala just fine. She skinned out of her work coveralls and back into her belted tunic. It was more comfort than merely physical, to wear the clothes of her home again. She touched the golden amulet at her throat, the figured "gazelle" that humans knew, but to her eyes resembled the callot of her visions. It had been sweet of Leeda to buy it for her, and she'd never take it off of her own free will.

Leeda decided on a simple shift and leggings, and at the last minute, the scarf that Qamala had bought for her during their shopping trip; as she put it on, it shifted color subtly, shading to a lavander and ruby red pattern that seemed to ripple even when she wasn't moving. It was a lovely effect, and she grinned brightly at her companion as she draped it around her shoulders, flinging the end dramatically over one shoulder. "Don't we look fabulous!"

"We are fabulous," Qamala assured her, amazed at what her friend had accomplished alone here in the time it had taken the rest of them to do the repairs. It was only a short walk to the crew lounge from Medical; Qamala gestured politely for her smaller friend to precede her, then folded her robe over her arm and followed.

They found they were almost the last to arrive but not by much, having heard the greeting of Lawrence Bourne III just before they entered. Qamala smiled at the others with genuine pleasure, as if they were old friends she hadn't seen in years, then took a seat between Leeda and Lawrence.

She glanced at the warm baked goods and cold metal cylinders with evident curiosity. Her nose twitched. "What are those?" She asked, nodding at the cookies with sparkling eyes. It was evident that the others were enjoying them greatly, whatever they were.

"Oh, cookies!" Leeda jumped forward and took a pair of round, sugary pastries off the platter, grinning as she felt the warmth radiating off them. "And still warm. Delicious." She handed one to Qamala even as she bit off a large mouthful of the other, eyes closing to slits. "They're a sort of baked biscuit," she mumbled, chewing busily, "sweet and a little savory. These are nice and squishy, but they come crunchy too." She giggled and swallowed, brushing a few crumbs quickly off the front of her tunic. "Try it! They're so yummy."

Morgan dropped his coveralls in one of the small rooms and showered. Then, pulled on a pair of baggy, cargo shorts and wandered down toward where everyone else seemed to be meeting. He had always found the feeling of the metal deck against his feet very comforting.

He entered the room and took a seat at the table, but gave the cookies a miss. He looked tired and he looked a little angry.

Jacob stared in shock at the exotic and beautiful woman that had just walked in the lounge. A cookie sat in his hand halfway to his mouth. As he stared, his brain worked furiously, trying to figure out who she was and how he missed her. Finally he vaguely remembered her being with the group outside the ship when the Therans had been there. He had been so distracted he hadn't really noticed her then. Realizing he was staring like an idiot, he forced himself to smile. "Hi Leeda." He stood up, painfully aware of his bulk. "Hi," he said to the mystery woman, extending his hand after brushing the crumbs off. "I'm Jacob, I don't think we met."

That smile... it was like the sun coming up, for worlds that experienced such things. "You're correct, we didn't," she said, placing her smaller hand in his. "Hello Jacob. I'm Qamala. It's very good to meet you."

Jacob shook her hand gently. "Nice to meet you, Qamala." He stumbled slightly over the unusual name, and blushed. Determined to make the best impression he could, he continued on. "Are you coming on the madcap voyage as well?"

"Madcap?" Qamala laughed delightedly at the term, obviously pleased to have learned it. I suppose I am, Jacob, what a wonderful way to describe it! Though I have yet to make acquaintance with the man everyone was calling `captain' earlier," she finished, turning toward Paladin with the question in her vivid violet eyes. She either didn't seem to notice, or simply didn't mind, that Jacob hadn't yet released her hand.

Paladin looked over at the dark woman and returned her smile. "Actually Morgan kinda introduced us earlier, though things were so hectic I can understand how you missed it. I'm Paladin."

Qamala's eyes lit up again, this time putting Paladin in the center of the full effect. "Oh, that's right. `Odd alien babe!' I remember now, but I'm hardly a baby anymore." A flicker of doubt moved over her face, then she grinned. "Well, only according to some."

Since Jacob still had her right hand, she simply held out her left to Paladin. "It's good to meet you under somewhat less hectic circumstances, truly.

Jacob realized he was still holding Qamala's hand and quickly released it. 'Great,' he thought, 'now she'll think you're creepy as well as fat.' Shrugging he moved around and found a comfortable seat.

Paladin couldnt help but smirk, as Jacob took his hand back, even as he himself took Qamala's offered hand. "I think, Qamala, in that context, Morgan was referring to your more aesthetic qualities. 'Babe' being slang for an attractive woman."

Morgan looked up at Paladin, breaking into the meet and greet. "Yo, Cap'in. You wanted us here - can we do this already so we can get outta Dodge."

The pilot released Qamala's hand and and gave a nod to Morgan."Easy on the Captain, stuff, till thats decided, Morg, ok? We'll get this thing out of the way ASAP"

Watching her companions all filter into the room and interact with each other, or not, Willa folded her arms across her chest and sized them all up. Paladin certainly had the capability to be captain, he had the training and skill. He seemed up to handling any task that was set before him, and she was pretty sure that once a hierarchy was established she could feel comfortable working under him if it came to that.

Teagan was an odd duck. There was a part of Willa that felt sorry for her. To have to go through life as a machine, it must be difficult. Although, maybe she didn’t know the difference. Willa almost hoped so, for the girls sake. She was an extremely competent mechanic though, but who would do such a thing to a person? There must be quite an intriguing story behind that one!

Jacob, she had mixed feelings about him. He seemed eager to please, and self conscious as well. He was a competent worker, and willing to jobs that weren’t even his to do. Being from a race of genetically enhanced women, Willa was concerned about his weight, but was unsure if she should approach him about it. That could be saved until later, but it probably did need to be addressed.

Lawrence Bourne the Third, son of Senator Bourne. He was the unstable element of this crew. She, much like Paladin, didn’t necessarily want him on the mission, but the thing with Ekhart had showed just how important Bourne was. He would be able to pull strings, and use his influence in ways that nobody else would. His presence may very well keep them out of quite a few fire fights. He was a lot of fun to play with though. Willa figured she would continue acting the loose canon with him. At least she could continue to have some fun with him if nothing else.

The woman from Eden seemed to be a paradox within an ingénue. Sophisticated, yet guileless. Intelligent, yet ignorant. Willa was willing to take the Senator’s word that she was part of the crew, but her showing up late was still a sticking point for her. Though she seemed to not have a deceptive bone in her body, sometimes those were the people you really had to watch out for.

Willa hadn’t spent much time with the doctor. She had disappeared after they had been shown the ship, and then spent the rest of the time fixing up Paladin and Ekhart. Leeda seemed like a nice, hard working, intelligent woman, and she really looked forward to getting to know her better.

Morgan was a hard one. Not only in demeanor, but to predict. He didn’t seem to be quite military trained, but he did have a sense of order. He might have anger issues, but seemed to be able to keep them in check. He was competent, and knew his shit. She would have no problems following him as well. This ragtag crew had the real potential to pull together and become a good working unit, she just hoped that it could. When he spoke to Paladin, she turned her head and looked at him expectantly.

"Alright folks, lets get this thing moving." Paladin began. "I think the first order of business is leadership. Out in the cold black, there can only be one captain of a ship. Frequently there is no time for discussion, or for voting, when decisions and actions must be made. This person doesn't have to be me, and it doesnt have to be a position of leading the whole mission, just, command of the ship. I think the fairest way to do this is for nominations to be made, then a vote. Any other suggestions?"

Teagan blinked a couple of times as she processed what was happening. "Captain...approximately 15 variations of definition. Among them. A person who is at the head of or in authority over others; chief; leader. Also of note. The pilot of an air borne vessel or plane. Also of note. A person of great power and influence, esp. based on economic wealth." She nodded her head once and smiled brightly. "That would indicate that the best nominations would be Paladin, logically for his position as Pilot. or Lawrence Bourne the Third, Son of Senator Bourne, illogically for his postion of power and wealth."

She might have been wrong. There must be a spark of humanity in Teagan after all. Nobody could make that good of a joke without a great sense of humor. Willa had a difficult time not snorting in laughter at the last bit of Teagan’s speech.

"No, no, thank you, no," Lawrence deferred. "If I wanted to be responsible for others I would have had children."

His tone turned from joking to serious on a dime. "Besides, I think we're well past the democratic process here. As the crew's diplomatic attache' I think it's safe to say that everyone's comfortable with you in charge. So if we can dispense with going through the whole student body election motions I think we can save a lot of valuable time, which if I understand the situation correctly is our most scarce resource."

Leaning back, the well-dressed gentleman asked, "So what's next on the agenda, Captain?"

Morgan nodded yes with a scowl on his face and knocked on the table twice in agreement. He hoped that the next thing here would be for Paladin to send them back out to their jobs. But, he had never been that lucky.

Qamala shrugged and smiled. She had no real experience with what the decision portended, though she'd read some things during her five months' imprisonment aboard the courier ship that had brought her here. "I can see how orders need to be obeyed when the ship is in peril, and I think I can do that. What I would like to know is how far that authority extends? There are other issues that need to be addressed before we leave and I can't surrender my personal responsibility for my part in them."

Leeda had been sitting quietly during the exchange; she really didn't care one way or the other who ended up giving the orders. She knew nothing about piloting, little about navigation, and though she could probably figure out how to keep the ship running, she was honestly just fine with letting the others worry about the details. She knew her role in the crew, a role nobody else could fill, so she let the others figure it out a hierarchy amongst themselves. She sat up, shifting closer to Qamala as she brought up her concerns, but said nothing, just taking another bite of her cookie. They really were quite delicious.

Jacob shifted somewhat uncomfortably. "I've got no problem with you being captain, so long as you don't expect me to salute or anything. I don't have any personal things like Qamala, but I'll feel better when I'm sure how much authority we're talking."

"As long as I can do my job," She piped up, remembering Paladin's reaction to her diagnosis earlier in the medbay, "its all the same to me. Though, in that vein, I really do have to insist that when it comes to medical concerns, I be the final word." She locked eyes with the ersatz Captain and took another bite of her cookie, eyes suddenly harder than they'd been, disconcerting on her young face."If its my job to keep the crew alive and in working order, I expect to be giving full authority to do just that. For *all* members of the crew." She held the look a moment longer, then looked down, ostensibly brushing a few invisible crumbs from her scarf, then back up again, expression returned to its normal good cheer. "Other than that, as long as you're all happy, I'll be happy too!" She grinned and folded her hands in her lap.

Willa sat with her hands intertwined behind her head listening to everybody’s input. She nodded once everybody had said their piece and said, “Then it’s done.” Looking over at Paladin she smiled, “Captain.”

With a sigh, and a nod, Paladin indicated his acceptance. "Alright, then, Ill accept, but only as it relates to the ship, and its operations." He looked at Leeda, though he addressed them all. "You all have your areas of expertise, and I dont want to try to meddle in any of them, as long as it doesnt put the ship in undue risk."

"I think next we should decide what to do with our guest." He continued. If I understand correctly, a shipping company hired him to kidnap Larry to try to use him as leverage against Larry Senior. Whom the shipping company believes knows where our quarry is, am I correct in this?" He paused a moment, and added. "As this is not a matter of ship operations, all options are on the table."

"Yes, that is essentially correct," Qamala nodded. "I suppose I should interject that I spoke with Colonel Ekhart at some length, while I was waiting for word to come back to Willa from the Senator's office about my place on this ship. He is a religious fanatic and it is difficult to understand how he thinks, but he did tell me who hired him and why. In exchange, he asked for my protection and I granted it." Her gaze took them all in, but refocused on Paladin and Willa. "I'm afraid I must insist he not be harmed. Other than that, I am not sure what to do with him."

Morgan wasn't positive that Qamala had really said what he knew she had said, "You promised him what?" He said, "First, that jask-ass opened fire on me, my crew and my ship. Second, and I'm not really sure what you are doing here, but I am positive that you don't have the authority to tell me where to take a damn dump - much less who I can and cannot harm. Lastly, that guy is a religious fanatic with a large group of highly loyal, motivated and well armed mercenaries. Harming him might be our only way out of this situation." He was angry; but it was a controlled anger. He wasn't yelling, but his speech was agitated.

She listened to him calmly, considering his words carefully even as he flung them in haste. "Nevertheless, he will not be harmed. I promised protection in exchange for the information he offered and I intend to fulfill that promise to the best of my abilities. Fortunately, violence is not the only way out of this situation," Qamala replied, neither his anger nor his accusations serving to ruffle her in the least. In fact, as she went on, she started smiling again. "Applying even just a little imagination to the problem opens up several possibilities. I believe, for instance, that he expects to be ransomed back to his unit. I suggest we allow Senator Anastius to conduct that negotiation on our behalf, stalling for a length of time suitable for us to get off this station and away toward our first destination."

Paladins right hand dropped underneath the tabletop, and he took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly before speaking again. "What else did you learn from him, before you committed all of us to that?"

"The only thing I committed to was that he not be harmed," Qamala replied. "The rest is simply a suggestion. And what I learned is what you said before. That something named `ITI' sent him here to kidnap Lawrence Bourne the Third," she nodded at the man rather than simply talking around him, "and that he was to be used as leverage against the Senator to learn the location of Princess Aldeborahnn. But since the Senator doesn't have that information, it was really all pointless anyway. Not that Ekhart knew that. He's just the tool that was used, not the mind behind it."

“We aren’t barbarians, there is no need to harm the man. It sounds like we got the information we need from him anyway. Nor do we want his men following us. I think the best plan of action is to turn him over to Senator Bourne and let him deal with him.”

Paladin shook his head, with purpose. "I disagree, I think the man has a lot of information we need. How many men and ships does he have here? Where are they? How in the world did he know, at the same time we did, which hangar this ship was in? How did he know Larry was attached to this ship? Where did that info come from? Were we set up? Were we sold out? Is there a traitor amongst us? Is there a traitor amongst The Senators men? All vital, and now if we honor Her commitment, our hands are tied, on getting it."

Willa nodded, considering his words.

The man took a deep breath once more, plainly holding his temper with the self discipline hard learned. "Do not make commitments on my behalf again."

Qamala's pale eyebrows came up at that, though her smile indicated a certain kind of odd, almost startled delight in the turn the conversation had taken. "I'm sorry, perhaps I was not clear when I said this before. I made that commitment on my behalf, not yours," she reiterated, voice light. "And when I made it -- let me say it clearly this time -- I was not at all certain that I would be welcomed as a member of this crew. I was, in fact, dismissed and left to my own devices, and seriously considering whether I ought to consult with the Senator about taking another ship to complete my mission when I sat down to speak with the Colonel. So you see the error in your logic, I'm sure," she concluded, eyes sparkling in unruffled good humor. "I do understand why you feel stuck with the consequences now, of course."

Jacob raised his finger in an attention getting motion. "If I understand it, our guest is part of a large and very well armed organization. I'm assuming that includes ships. Do we have a way to get away without getting shot out of space? Maybe keeping him as a hostage until we are to a safe jump distance would be a good plan." Jacob considered a little longer. "Or, if he is honorable, just making that part of his ransom."

Qamala smiled at Willa and Jacob, but particularly at the Athenian. Qamala wondered if the woman knew just how impressive she was, even covered in sweat and grime. "Willa, Senator Bourne is likely in hiding. The courier ship that brought me here from Durakaan also contained a packet of secret information for Senator Anastius. I do not wish to cause you worry, younger Lawrence, but your father was attacked some time ago. It is believed he survived, but Anastius' contacts weren't sure and in any case," she added, intentionally saving his part for last, "Senator Bourne never received the message which would have told him when and where to meet with the Princess."

She then turned to Jacob. "Jacob, I am sorry to say that Colonel Ekhart is not honorable, not at all. He is a fanatic, feral and dangerous. So are his men. If we take him with us they will follow us wherever we go -- to reclaim him, or avenge him. I'm sure Paladin and Willa are very good at what they do, but I hope we can find away to avoid them having to prove it, right out of the dock."

Lawrence merely sat, comfortable with listening to what everyone else had to say. Speaking up in situations like this often led to no good, and it was much more profitable to actively listen just about always. So he waited, and listened, and followed the tone and body language, learning what he could about the people he was now forced to endure for the next who knew how long.

Sitting up into a more engaging position, Willa flicked her hand, and said, “Or Senator Anastius. Whichever. As long as it is someone who will know what to do with him. Holding him for random is too much work. We have a mission, find the lost ship. Let someone else deal with the fanatic.”

Lawrence was able to suppress the laugh but not the grin that spread across his face so quickly he had to look down to avoid drawing attention to it. Irony, thou art an Amazon, he mentally joked.

Morgan did his best to dial his anger back down. "I ain't so sure we're all not barbarians." Morgan said to Willa. Then, he turned to Qalama, "Look, you made a mistake. Without consulting anyone else, you limited our options." You made yourself the captain is what you really did. He thought to himself. That's mutiny. He consoled himself with the fact that - when she had made this decision - there had been no captain. She was just making a play for herself to lead. Why she had not fought for the captain's roll, he did not understand. But had she, he would have certainly tired to kill her before she could be elected.

"As for what we do with him ... I say we just send him back before his people descend on us and take him back. We can't repel them and we can't outrun them. They are most likely in orbit and they can hunt us down before we can get away." He looked at Paladin, "We never had a lot of options to begin with; getting away with our lives and our ship is probably our best outcome." It killed Morgan to say it; he hated running from a fight -- especially one with someone who had tried to fry him. He could hear Jade's voice talking to him, 'Fighting is not always the answer.'

Teagan was openly studying Lawrence when she started speaking and continued to do so for a few moments. "I don't understand enough of the situation to provide counsel." Finally she turned from Lawrence to look at Paladin. "However, it is important that you understand that my ship can out run them. Once we get out of this station, I am most confident, barring any unplanned technical malfunctions, that our ship will out run anything else that will try to catch us."

Teagan paused for a moment and turned her full attention to Morgan, offering him another of her bright smiles. "Morgan was likely correct to assume that we can't repel them. However, he was most incorrect to suggest that we can't outrun them. I have upgraded our capabilities to Warp 10. Most ships can only travel at warp 8, transports usually run at warp 4 or 5. We can do warp 10! We may have one of the fastest if not the fastest ship in space. Exciting. Yes?" As she continued to lose herself in the explanation of what she had done, there was an obvious note of life and pride that slipped into her tone and mannerisms, but it was lost just as quickly when the subject changed.

Jacob smiled. "I don't know exactly what that means, but it is good to know we can out run them. With regard to returning him and escaping with our lives, I'm assuming they are still after Mr. Bourne," he nodded at Lawrence. "Whether we release him or not, won't they still come after us? It might be better to give him to the Senator, just to divide their attention. Leaderless, they should be less effective. But Ekhart has seen our fighters in action and has a decent idea of our capabilities. I'd rather not give him a second chance at us."

“They will continue to come after us. They have been or will be paid to capture Bourne. Ekhart has a reputation for being good at what he does. He is known for not being scrupulous so we can count on ITI to continue their pursuit of us, with or without this mercenary outfit. I just hope turning him over to Anastius will give us enough time to cover our trail out in the Neutral Zone.” Willa looked at everyone in the group, paying special attention to Lawrence to see if he understood the significance of what she was saying. He was a hunted man. Looking at him sitting there fiddling with the smallest of the three cylinders, though, you'd have thought that the topic of discussion was the color blue for all the interest he showed.

“Which reminds me,” she looked over at Paladin, “we should have Teagan go over every inch of this ship to make sure that there are no tracking devices on it.”

"A good idea, perhaps Jacob will be helpful in that as well." Paladin agreed.

Absently she agreed, “Jacob too.” Her brow furrowed, and she continued, “Ekhart’s men, ITI. Either way we will be followed. You are right, Paladin, at least if we have Ekhart here we will be able to get information from him. If Qamala is so intent on not harming him, she can be the one to retrieve it. It doesn’t seem she had much trouble getting what she did. It only took her 20 minutes as opposed to the hours it would have taken Athenian interrogators.”

Leeda had been sitting quietly during the conversation about what to do with their apparent prisoner; she'd been slightly surprised by the steel Qamala had shown during her conversation with the newly appointed captain, and she'd thought about offering her own telepathic services to help take some of the burden off of the Magellan. She could be helpful, but Leeda was an unknown element, and more importantly, she was Eldyri; she wouldn't get anywhere without Qamala's help. The Magellan had gotten Ekhart to trust her, at least as far as telling her his intentions. Leeda would, of course, insist that she be present, or at least close by, to support her new friend, but she realized that the information gathering would have to be Qamala's job.

"I can try," she agreed with another of those innocently dazzling smiles. "Talking with the man is like voluntarily taking a swim in a cesspool, of course, but if that is information you say we need, then I'll do that I can to get it.

Paladin nodded a bit and smiled. "Then thats settled, Eckhart comes with us, at least for now. If he becomes a bother, we can airlock him." This last part he said looking directly at Morgan with a grin.

"Ive taken the liberty to pull some comm units and Dots out of our stores." He said, as he began sliding the belt units and microphonic dots to each of them. "Please wear them, especially if youre going to be doing something risky, or away from the intercom units on the ship."

"The next order of business, is commitment to our job." He began. "If anyone doesnt want to be here, they should stand up now, and go. Once we are out in space, I dont imagine there will be much patience with an 'I didnt want to be here, anyway' attitude. You are either here because you want to be, or you are on your way back home, no middle ground. All of our lives depend on it."

"I think, sir, that we are all rather obviously invested in the mission now, but for what its worth, I'll give you my word once again. I'll see this through, no matter what." Leeda's voice was mild, but her words a bit sharp as she slid the microdot into position. "I do hope that will be an entirely sufficient proof of my commitment." She frowned, regarding the comm unit. "I do hope I bought a belt to put this on. I'd hate to have to use one of those horrendous canvas contraptions," as she nodded towards the belt Paladin himself was wearing.

"I don't think this was directed at us specifically, my sweet friend," Qamala murmured in Leeda's mind. She reached out a bit, tasting the air at the table, then glanced down at the man seated at one end, who'd said so little since it all began.

"Oh, I'm quite sure he didn't mean it that way, but I'm tired enough of his casual distrust to not care." Leeda's mental voice colored with humor; "I'm sure he's perfectly nice and competent, otherwise I wouldn't have endorsed him, but he's got some issues with other people that will not serve him well in such a role of power." She gave the link a little quiver, the equivilant of a small shrug. "Besides, I'm still a bit annoyed about what he said earlier. I'll be nice from now on, promise." She flashed a quick physical grin in Qamala's direction, then turned back to the conversations at hand.

Morgan nodded agreement with the doctor. "I don't really think that any of us have much choice. We've come this far. If we back out now, the Senator's likely to have us killed to keep us quiet. Or Eckhart's people will kill us for information about his whereabouts or for sport. At some point, you're screwed so far the only choice left is to fight on. And, I think we're all there.

Willa shrugged, “I’m here for the duration.”

"I must go," Qamala said simply. "With you all, or without you, but for me there is no `not going'. What power I can bring to bear is committed toward this purpose."

"I need a ship and a crew. This will do fine for me." Teagan's tone was flat as she offered up her commitment. "I will check for foreign devices as soon as the meeting is over."

Jacob shrugged absently. "I'm here for the duration. It beats throwing drunks out on their ears." He reddened slightly. He hadn't intended to bring up his less than glorious past. To cover for himself, he stuffed another cookie in his mouth.

"Nothing better to do?" Lawrence asked almost under his breath, finally choosing to speak since all eys had fallen upon him anyway. "I wish that was my problem."

"I would stand up and go," he said to Paladin, "only for the moment I have nowhere to go. And since I obviously can't stay here, then I guess I'm in as well - as much as I'd rather not be. But like Morgan here so adroitly pointed out, it's not like I have a choice at the moment. And...as it happens it turns out that I do have a personal stake in the outcome of whatever nonsense we're about to foolishly involve ourselves in with our excursion, so..."

With that said, Lawrence stood. He plucked the middle-sized shiny bar off the table and with a flick of his thumb sent an inch of it spinning down onto the table. The small metal disk landed and instantly expanded as if it had been under tension, and formed a conical cup of sorts. Several more thumb-flicks later and the entire tube had been rendered into six of these containers.

"There's a tradition in the circles I run within," he explained as he took up the largest cylinder in his hand. he flipped it up, making it tumble end-over-end until he casually caught it in his other hand. Then he began to give it a gentle shaking with an easy, mechanical rhythm.

"Whenever a decision or settlement of any consequence between parties is reached, particularly adversarial parties, the closing of negotiations is marked with a drink, sometimes several." Another flick of his thumb released a sliver-sized catch on the top and popped open a small tab. From the container he began to fill the cups two-thirds of the way with a clear liquid which, judging by the way the outsides of the small silvery cones began to moisten with condensation almost immediately in the temperate ship's interior, must have been very cold.

"You're probably thinking that this is just another excuse for people like me to enjoy alcohol more than we should." He finished pouring the last cup and looked up at the crew with a sly grin. "And you're probably right."

Lawrence returned the largest of the cylinders to the table with the same flourish he used to pick it up. Then he slowly twirled the thinnest of the three metallic tubes in the fingers of his left hand. A stopper came out from the tip and the debutante dropped from it a single yellow-orange olive into each cup with a dainty, practiced gesture.

When he was finished, he surveyed his work and said, "But I've always been a sucker for traditions."

The two remaining cylinders were put aside and Lawrence began passing out the drinks. "So...in the interests of comity and perhaps even for a little luck, I salute you all. I may not be much in the way of hard labor, but I assure you any diplomacy, negotiation, or commerce requirements of this ship shall be handled with pure competence."

He raised his glass. "Success," he toasted, before taking a drink.

Jacob took the glass, somewhat reluctantly. Although not an abstainer, he rarely drank. He had seen too many examples of the results of drinking for no reason to relish the idea. He had also seen enough of Lawrence Bourne to be suspicious of his motives. He wouldn't put it past the spoiled young man to drug them all and try to make his escape on his own. After all, he had made it clear none of the rest of them mattered to him at all. On the other hand, insulting him by refusing the drink would probably just set off another level of pouting and probably fighting. Thus he took the drink and raised it to his lips, but didn't actually put any of the liquid in his mouth.

Teagan took the drink as obediently as she'd taken the cookie, and in a few moments the liquid was deposited in the same place.

Raising her eyebrow at Bourne’s theatrics, Willa picked up her “glass”, lifted it in salutation, and repeated, “Success” with a cheerful laugh in her voice, then sipped the drink. It was good, a little less vermouth and it would have been perfect, but she was willing to admit that she was a bit picky about her drinks. At least it would be good to have someone who could act as bartender onboard. Maybe she should be a bit nicer to the spoiled brat.

Morgan was no stranger to drink, but he was a stranger to drinking with others. Still, this seemed like as good a time as any break his tradition and drink with his new crew mates. "Quick and painless, and not tomorrow." He said, as he threw his drink back. It was much better alcohol than he was used to drinking. And, he was sure that it was probably stronger, but with significantly less kick. "Smooth." He said, as he handed his cup back to LB3.

Qamala was also no stranger to alcohol, though such `hard liquors' were rare enough in her experience. In honor of the ritual and her new crew-mate's professed love of them, she held up the tiny cup between both sets of long fingers, then touched it to her lips for a tiny sip.

It went straight to her head, she could feel every micro liter of it as it did, more quickly and potently than Arcadian festival wine. Smiling in vast enjoyment, she replaced the cup on the table, vowing never to drink anything Lawrence Bourne the Third offered her unless she sampled it carefully first.

Paladin knew flying and drinking didn't mix, and fully expected to have to make this ship dance like a hoochy girl just to get them all away from this station safely. He also couldn't remember the last time he ate anything besides that cookie, and had no idea what sort of anesthetics or pain killers were in the blood he hadn't lost. So he declined the drink. "Sorry, none for me this time, I'll double up on you next time." He said simply.

He turned his attention back to Paladin, "Anything else before we go back to our duties?" He asked the captain.

"Not unless one of you has anything. I think we all know where we are going, and why." Paladin replied simply.

"`Where', yes," Qamala murmured. "`Why', I'm not so sure. Is everyone here aware already that contrary to popular belief, Princess Aldeborahnn actually has not been kidnapped?"

A look of disbelief crossed Willa’s face at Qamala’s pronouncement. “How do you know that? The Senator told us just today that she had been kidnapped. What else do you know?”

Oh. Morgan thought. This just feels so wrong. His internal 'odds calculator' kept running down farther and farther.

"The courier ship which brought me here originated on Durakaan. It also carried that information to the Senator, Willa," the Magellen replied. Almost in spite of herself, she picked up the tiny silver cup Lawrence had so flamboyantly served them, once again touching the contents carefully to her lips. "The ship we are to track down now, which is down on that moon in The Twins' system, carried another message to another senator, young Lawrence's father. It was from Aldeborahnn herself. It told the older Bourne when and where to be for a secret meeting with her.

"This implies several disparate conclusions," she went on, marveling again at how the fractional amount of alcohol raced through her system. "Either she has indeed been kidnapped and her captors have forced her to lure others into the same trap; or she is free and acting of her own will and has allowed it to be believed she is kidnapped. Upon receipt of the packet which arrived with me, Senator Anastius appeared to believe it was the latter case, rather than the former. She is free and an active player in this imperial game. Our mission remains the same, however. We must find her."

Willa nodded, taking in what Qamala said. She thought about it for a moment, comparing the new information with what else she knew. “You are right. Our mission has not changed. It only means that we are now trying to find someone who is hiding herself, instead of kidnappers. If this is the case, there will be no ransom, no easy way to find her. Our best bet is still to find the downed ship, and retrieve the message that she sent to Senator Bourne. Is there anything else that you know that might be helpful?”

"Not that I can recall, offhand," the "alien babe" admitted with a smile. "How about you? All of you," she went on, gesturing gracefully. "Let's get all this out on the table now, as they say, so we all know what there is to be known. Our success, not to mention survival, may depend upon it."

Lawrence wondered how much to say, but if he was going to attach himself to this mission and these people it was in his interests to ensure success. He downed the bottom half of his martini in one shot before clearing his throat to speak.

"Several hours ago I received a message from my father," he offered. "He confirmed that the downed ship was carrying a message of vital importance to him from the Princess. He also expressed that we aren't the only ones who know this, so we won't be the only ones searching for it. We might already be running behind in this race."

Qamala nodded soberly. It was likely true, which made the mission all the more dangerous.

“Finding the ship on Epsilon should not be too difficult, however that area of space is ripe with Pirates. They are rumored to have hideouts on Beta B and Bee. The crashed ship may have even gone down with a little help from them. If that is the case, we may be too late to get the message, or may even have a hostage situation, if the crew is still alive. It’s going to be rough going in that area. We need to make sure we have Combat Environment Suits in case we have to deal with the pirates, as the planets they are supposed to be on are highly poisonous.” Willa furrowed her eyebrows as she spoke then added, “VRF Gaus Guns and a speeder might be a good idea too.”

Morgan nodded, it was so sexy when girls talked guns. He nodded with a slight smile on his face, "We're picking up the speeder in the morning and I'll see what I can do with the Gaus guns."

Willa’s face brightened, “Wonderful! If you could check into getting some CES, CES Body Sleeves, and PLSSs as well, that would be great!”

“I have some experience in that system.” Morgan said. “It was a rich with ... targets.” He still wasn't entirely sure that Paladin or Willa wouldn't keel-haul him for his former life. “If we're headed to Epsilon, we will be out in the open – we can be monitored from Beta. There's a ... camp there. Exiles, mostly; criminals too. The kind of people they don't let stand trial.” His voice trailed off. “We're going to need to be coordinated ... tactical and ship. If we have to do a snatch and grab, or – if we have to spend an extended time on the surface – we're going to need a plan and it would be good to have more shooters.”

He looked Teagan and Jacob then back to Paladin and Willa, “How many shooters do we have?”

"What kind of shooters?" Qamala asked.

Morgan looked confused for a moment. "Don't they have violence where you come from?" He asked. "Shooters: people with weapons whose job it is to kill the people between us and the objective."

"Oh," she said. Her earliest training had instructed her never to answer those kinds of questions from other sentients if she could avoid it, but the way he phased the question made it sound rhetorical as well as very easy to avoid. "I can shoot," she assured him, fingers touching the holster attached to her belt, as if for comfort.

"Excellent." Morgan said without hint of irony, "Princess is a shooter." It was hard for him to imagine what kind of Hello Kitty-style gun she carried.

Teagan spoke up after taking a moment to scan through the resources available to her. "I am also proficient at firing a weapon, including long ranged sniper capabilities. My area of knowledge includes Assault Rifles, LMGs, Handguns, Rifles, Shotguns, Submachine Guns, Thrown Grenades, Liquid Propellant Rifles, Gauss Guns, Polymer Guns, Rocket Pistols, Rocket Rifles, Missile Guns, Sonic Stunners, Tranquilizer Dart Guns, Laser Pistols & Rifles, Electron Beam Weapons, Particle Guns, Ion Blasters, Plasma Guns, and Desitegrators." She paused for a moment in thought. "I currently have no weapon, so I will need a gun."

“Good,” Willa said with a sharp nod, “it sounds like we have a few people who know how to use a gun. Let’s work on getting the people who don’t trained. We will also need to train everybody on how to load the missal racks. We don’t want to have to wait too long to fire those things in the middle of fight.” She looked at Morgan, knowing he would be able to handle that, his competence was extremely impressive.

“Jacob, how are we set up for spying? Do we have any equipment that would allow us to hear conversations from a distance, line of site? I don’t know a lot about this type of thing, but I’m wondering if there are ways to get information without being noticed? Is that something you can work on for us?” Willa smiled at the big man.

The big man munched on his cookie for a second, then shook his head. "There's a lot I don't know about these star ships, so I could be wrong, but so far as I know: we're not. I don't have any bugs in my bag and we don't have the ability to make any. Well, actually, I guess I could but they'd be mighty crude compared to the micro-electronics we can buy. And, so far as I know we don't have any bug detectors either. As for the other stuff: coded data and communications intercepts, meson intercepts, voice amp gear and all that." He shrugged. "Zero. We need to outfit if we're gonna do intel type work. With Doctor Paayt's help we could also do subcutaneous implants. Again, if we had the stuff."

After looking Jacob in the eye thoughtfully as he spoke Willa leaned forward and replied, “We should see about getting as much of that as we can.” She sat back in her seat but kept eye contact with him. “Other than that, I got nothing to add.” She finished the martini, winked at Lawrence, and then sat back in her chair stretching her arms over her head as she arched her back. She stood, grabbed the belt Paladin had pushed her way, and went to find a shower. Once she had scrubbed all the grime from herself, she changed into some clean coveralls and went to check out her Nav equipment.

Qamala nodded, but the expression on her face was an odd one for her. A tiny little frown nestled between her pale brows, and the fingers of one hand touched the brushed gold amulet at her throat. "I should go to Ekhart then. Leeda, I think I may need your help on this. He's not going to give that information up willingly. What have you got to drug a man into compliance?"

Leeda looked up at Qamala, a slightly distracted expression on her face. She hadn't partaken of the alcohol, though she felt it might have calmed her nerves; as the conversation had turned to their actual mission, it began to hit home that Leeda was in a completely different world now than the academia she had become so comfortable with. She'd wanted something new, an adventure, and she was getting one. The question now was whether or not she'd be able to handle it. "Drugs? Yes. Well, we got a full delivery with the medical suite you and I ordered during our shopping trip. I expect there will be some sort of tranquilizer or anesthetic in there, among other things. Often times those sorts of drugs used in lower dosages lowers inhibitions. We might have gotten lucky with something more exotic; I'll have to look and see." She stood, gathering up the comm set and moving towards the exit. "Shall we go and look?"

"I'll be with you in just a moment," the Magellen agreed.

After the meeting adjourned, Teagan stood up quickly, with no words or gestures to make a polite departure. Instead, she left the lounge to go about her business of checking for bugs and any other foreign devices. Whatever Lawrence Bourne the Third had given her to drink, it had caught hold and made her exit a little less graceful than it should have been.

Teagan spent her time before leaving the Space Station using her special gifts to check for anything that she could think of. Such as bugs that were powered by the ship or that were somehow plugged into the computer system. She also used her jack to look for rogue software, and she used her wifi to attempt to pickup unauthorized or weird transmissions sourced from the ship. It all came naturally to her, thought processes and the innate drive for survival, kept her diligently at her task even though her eyes and muscles ached from the exertion of the day.

As people made their way out of the room, Lawrence slowly leaned way back in his seat at the end of the table and retrieved a smoke from the platinum case inside his jacket. He put it in his mouth and considered his new status.

Well, you're sure in it now, he noted to himself with a sigh around the cigarette between his lips. So much to do, so much to do...

Qamala coughed, then waved her hand in front of her face in disgust. "How can you breathe?" she asked, arising from her chair in a fruitless attempt to find breathable air. "I was going to ask if you wanted to be involved in Ekhart's next interrogation. Are you interested?"

Lawrence put his feet up on the chair adjacent to his and squinted at her, studying her. He gripped the smoke between two fingers, took a drag, and exhaled sideways while pointing at her with it.

"Won't that mess up your subject? If he sees me he might get...squirrely. And what if he's playing weak just to get you to bring me to him so that he can use a poison dart hidden in his nostril or something to take me out?" He raised just one eyebrow while he took another drag, as if to ask did you think of that, smartypants?

"A `poison dart....'" Abruptly she lurched away from the table, laughing and nearly gagging from the force of the resultant coughing. "Hidden in... his nostril??" The image of such a thing, in all its unrepentant silliness, flickered in the air above the table out of the light in the room, causing the woman who'd done it to laugh all the harder as Ekhart withdrew the sinister device, dripping with bogeys.

Laughing hard, now gasping for a clean breath of air, Qamala stumbled toward the corridor, waving the sleeves of her robe to bat away the toxic fumes. "In his nostril!! *coff-coff* What's he going *gag-wheeze* to do? *choke* Sneeze it at you??"

"Perhaps," Lawrence replied once she seemed to be in a position to hear him over the carrying on, maintaining a serene yet stern focus on the hyena in his midst. It had been sarcastic humor, yes, but it hadn't been that funny.

"In any event, if you are sure that it will not negatively influence the quality of your results, I am willing to take that chance. Might I ask first, however, why you are asking me to come along?"

"Simple courtesy," she wheezed, having found the spot where the air from the exterior provided a break from the smoke. She was still smiling, though her dark skin was somewhat reddened from the coughing fit. "He was sent here after you. It seemed logical to me that you'd want to be there when he was questioned -- out of his line of sight, of course," she added. "There's courtesy, and then there's foolishness. I'm fond of the former, not the latter."

"Yes," Lawrence drolly noted, watching her recover from her laughing fit, "there's nothign foolish about you at all."

He took another drag of his smoke and studied the ceiling above the table, considering the idea. Then he exhaled and shook his head.

"No, Ekhardt's just a tool, a means to an end. The most he'd give us is the name of his employer and he's alreayd given us that. If you had someone from ITI to question, then you'd really have something."

He swung his feet down and leaned his elbows on the table. "We've got shipping contracts with ITI all over the quadrant - Bourne Intergalactic, that is. Why would a freight line be at all interested in this secret war? They stand to benefit no matter who wins, I would think." He shook his head again. "Ah, but it's a moot point. I doubt Ekhardt's got anything worth the drugs you're going to give him rattling around in that overzealous skull of his."

"A moot point? I thought I was the naive one on this ship," she replied -- but as always, her smile indicated delight, not disgust. "You're the son of a powerful senator and it doesn't occur to you to do some research into who is on th board of directors for ITI? Cross-reference that list with a list of players who have political ambitions, alliances with the Medraas, or others who have a stake in this game. Ekhart may or may not know any of that, it's true -- but I would say, offhand, that you're probably in the best position to find out who's really after you. And," she added, offhandedly, "save your family's position and fortune while you're at it."

Lawrence snorted at that. "I know who's on the board of directors at ITI. I've played golf with several of them. And if there was ever living proof that Darwin was wrong and that fools sometimes do keep their money, it's them. Besides, this goes far beyond mere political ambitions, to the point that a lowlife like Ekhardt is likely on a less-than-need-to-know basis."

"In any event," he said, standing, "the probability that the chump you have incarcerated... wherever you have him incarcerated actually knows anything useful is smaller than my usual gambling tolerances."

"As you wish, then," she nodded, then shook her head with a small laugh. "I won't waste anymore of your time." With that, she turned to join Leeda in the medical bay, hoping her friend had the supplies she needed for this.

"Well, well...you do have a rather high opinion of your own assumptions, don't you." Lawrence chuckeld to himself. "I'm going with you, of course. You're less perceptive than I gave you credit for if you hadn't guessed that one."

"As you wish," she repeated agreeably, entirely unphased by his remarks. "I made the original offer for your sake, not my own. Leeda has him under for now -- safest really, the man is incredibly dangerous -- but once she brings him out of it, please don't let him see you. I'm pretty sure that would be a very bad idea."