Chapter 21

Jack followed Pri into the hall, closed the door to Kazlaena’s quarters, then stood there in silence, thinking on what Kazlaena had said. He let out a deep breath, then felt a hand gently touch his forearm.

“Care for heartspeak?” Pri asked.

Jack nodded and followed her over to her own quarters where they went inside, and she turned around to face him.

“Speak from heart please, Jack. Are you of sound mind?”

“I have no real issue with pirates meeting such an end,” Jack replied, but Pri shook her head.

“Entire situation, Jack. Kazlaena’s condition and potential danger to crew from future adversaries.”

Jack motioned to her bed, asking permission to sit down to which she nodded, and they took a seat together.

“Kazzie will need some time, but she’ll come around, I’m sure of that. She has also seen void justice, something fully alien to the minds of her people.” Jack stopped speaking and put his hands on top of his head. “Ah, Kid, I’m sorry...” He scratched the back of his head and sighed. “I spoke to her of regret, something I have to admit that I now have for putting her in this mess.”

“Death is part of life in voidspace.” Pri said as she reached over and took his hand. “All who dwell in such environment face the possibility by the day. Rarer in most professions, but not fully omitted. If not by your path, she would discover it by another. Here, she has watch of treasured ‘Marshmallow’ to continue guidance. I can ill think of better situation for Kazlaena.”

“Us,” Jack looked at Pri. “She has all of us, as we all do for each other, for that matter.”

Pri nodded and moved her tail around until it circled around Jack’s opposite side, where he moved his free hand to take a gentle hold where the feathers of her tail started.

“What are your thoughts?” Jack asked her.

“No tear shed for pirates,” Pri replied. “Concern for repercussion is heavy on mind.”

“We’re gonna look over the wreck before InterSAR arrives and see if there’s anything important. I hope to hell there’s nothing of note there.”

“Of similar mind, Jack.” Pri lowered her head. “This home is sound. There is comfort to be found here. Comfort to be safeguarded should such action be necessary. I too, hope there is nothing of note to be discovered.” Pri ran a hand through the feathers on her head a few times, then scratched at her thigh in a slight tell that she was uncomfortable with something.

“What’s on your mind?” Jack gave her hand a squeeze.

Pri was silent for a moment, before reaching over to a side table to draw out a bottle of wine. She looked over the bottle for a moment, then and handed it over to him.

“Can you see to removal of spirits?”

“Huh?” Jack took the bottle, then looked at her curiously.

“I wish to partake in drinking no longer. Too often I have fallen to bottle to see way through clouded mind and handle inner turmoil. There is better way, always was better way, seated beside me, and resting a few rooms down with heavy heart.”

“I’ll make it gone.” Jack promised and set the bottle on the floor beside him. “Are you pretty solid, with everything that’s gone on the last couple days?”

“Pretty firm.” Pri nodded. “Has been difficult but has brought enlightenment to mind and lifted some pain in own heart.”

“Good to hear,” Jack nodded with approval.

Pri looked at him and gave him a smile. “Spoke of difficulties and burdens to you, felt some catharsis. Spoke too, with Valeria and Kazlaena. Had memorable time with both and found joy in Kazlaena’s offer to accompany her to Rockpig. Offer that was nearly declined that now fosters regret in own mind.”

“Well, you didn’t do anything regrettable, so I hope you make peace with that thought.”

“I will see to it,” Pri assured him.

“I don’t mean anything negative by that, doodle,” Jack wanted to make sure she understood. “I just, I see how guarded you are. I see how you keep everyone at arm’s length for fear of getting hurt if they get too close. But I also see how you are getting a little closer, taking steps to a closer relationship with more of the crew. I hope you make more of those steps.” Jack made one of his hands into a person taking steps towards Pri’s leg.

Pri tilted her head slightly, watching the display before trying to mimic his action for a moment.

“What did you get up to on the Rockpiggo?” Jack asked, wrapping her tail around him as he preened at the feathers.

“Watched vids, played games, launched little plastic darts at each other, spoke of some things, discussed some hobbies. Did dressup?” Pri pulled out her commpad and showed him a few photos.

“Damn, wish I’d have been there.” Jack said. “Looks like you had a lot of fun. Heh, look at that! All three of you doing the costume thing.”

“Had much fun.” Pri nodded. “Has been at fore of mind more than expected. Will look for opportunities for better path more often. They offer part in healing and guidance to stronger future.”

“Just come to the rec room from time to time, yeah? Let me torment you with little squealer noises.” Jack managed a faint smile.

Pri looked at him in shock for a moment, then reached over to poke at his belly. Jack pushed her hand down, then grabbed her tail and held it up with the other hand looking like a pistol, aimed at the feathers.

“No poking, or the tail gets it!”

Pri held her hands up in surrender and Jack gave her a nod, then patted the feathers at the end of her tail, before setting her tail down.

“Gratitude for releasing tail un-harmed,” Pri joked.

“Eh. I think I could manage for a fromate.”

“Fromate,” Pri pulled one leg up onto the bed and looked at Jack. “Endearing term has grown fondness in mind as I consider events in near and far past. Your willingness to offer hand upon park bench and your desire to keep friendship since said day has fostered strong gratitude. In spirit of fromates, may I ask question of difficulty?”

Jack pulled a leg up onto her bed so he could turn to face her comfortably.

“Go ahead Doodle.”

“Kazlaena spoke of hurt inside. You remained quiet to indicate heavy burden in heart. If no desire to speak of hurt exists, I accept your decision. I ask, however, what can fromate do to offer way to ease hurt? I feel what I do is insufficient, inadequate. I mean not to press, but desire exists to do better by you, Jack.”

“You’ve never needed to do anything more than you do, Pri,” Jack said softly. “Your friendship over these past years has grown to become very important and meaningful to me. You have my back in any situation and you listen from a position of understanding when I do speak about burdens of the mind.”

Jack was going to leave it at that, but her compassionate stare prompted him to speak further. He knew he owed her a better reply than he was used to offering when asked of his own pain and he understood he couldn’t keep it all hidden forever.

“I lost a lot of friends in that war. Many of them I grew up with. They died for a cause that brought a favorable situation I get to enjoy...” Jack felt Pri reach out and take him in a hug as his eyes welled with moisture. “I would trade places with any of them. They all deserved the peace they fought for. Why did they die, and I get to live? Why do I get to have all these good people around me? Why do I get to keep going, living, finding some measure of happiness while they are just ... gone? Ah...”

He felt her hug tighten, before she whispered back.

“You are where you are meant to be, Jack. Perhaps there is more for you in life’s design. But to situation at hand, I expect they would keep current state as it stands, to see to treasured fromate and his kind, gentle nature visited upon people of the League. I see you, Jack. I see how you look to the wounded ones, the broken ones, lost and alone, where you extend hand to offer help without hesitation. More of those in League need not be you but follow your example in their own way. Never feel you stand as any less.”

Jack kept silent as he let his emotions die down and heard her own faint chirps as she kept her hold on him. They both let out a deep breath together before Jack whispered to her.

“Thanks for this, Pri. There’s a lot in there, jumping around, wanting to get out. I may need to find further help for some of it. Would you come with me when the time comes?”

“I will.” Pri replied.

He patted her back and felt her give back a tighter hug for just a moment. Jack remained with her until he felt his emotions stabilize, then he departed her quarters to meet up with Lucinia.

Jack ran his keycard across the lock to Lucinia’s quarters and stepped in, hearing clicks from someone striking keys on a keyboard. She was sitting at her desk, typing as he approached.

“Jack! Are you doing ok?” she asked as she stood up.

“Hey Lucy,” he gave her a weak smile.

“Not really,” she noted, feeling his troubled state.

“It’s quite a clusterfuck,” Jack took a seat on one of her large, cushioned chairs. “Kaz ain’t doing well. She needs some time to come to terms with things. Pri has some concerns too, mainly about the crew’s safety or possible consequences.”

“I hope Kaz finds her peace,” Lucinia saved her message and joined him in the seating area. “Will Pri be ok?”

“She will, so far as I can see.” Jack nodded. “How about the others?”

“The Lexo’s are scared about repercussions more than anything. Cardox and Sita don’t seem phased.”

“Yeah, not much phases them, except maybe walking in on them in the armory when they think they have alone time.” Jack remarked.

“I have noticed,” Lucinia said quaintly. “That aside, are you ok?”

“Could be better, much better,” Jack sighed, and she came over to him, to take a seat in the same chair.

With a bit of shuffling and overlap, they managed to fit between the chair’s arms, though it would not remain a comfortable seating position for long.

“I am sorry for my fault in this,” Lucinia spoke quietly. “I never intended for us to be in this position.”

“I know Lucy,” Jack patted her leg, then took her hand as she offered it. “For your own peace of mind, I hope this helps.” He took in a deep breath. “I told Kaz she would be safe and free from the risk of killing. I failed her there. I do know her mind though. We talked about it, and she hates the situation, but not anybody involved. I feel guilt for putting her in this spot, but I know she has no ill thoughts about me or anyone on board. The crew don’t blame you or the contract for what happened. We were doing what we intended to do, just with another expectation in mind. Reality just happened to be different.”

“Thanks for speaking so,” Lucinia leaned into him. “We both know the guilt in our minds will linger for a while, that is how we are, why we share similar thoughts and feelings.”

Jack played with her fingers for a few moments, before leaning his head back with a sigh.

“How is the search of the wreak going?” He asked.

“Proculus and Sita are looking after it,” Lucinia checked her watch. “They should be pulling the drones back to the ship within the next ten minutes. Cardox and Rusu are assisting where needed. By the stars I hope they find something that can tell us who was on board.”

“Yeah,” Jack nodded.

“I’ve been thinking about what comes next ever since the meeting.” Lucinia sighed.

“It could be nothing,” Jack tried to sound reassuring “They could have been independents.”

“If we’re lucky, that’ll be true,” Lucinia said quietly. “Or any other favorable outcome we have already discussed.” She was quiet for a few moments before speaking again. “I think I see why dad turned to Kondaweed after he retired from the Terran Navy. He kept it hidden and only used when he had a few days without responsibilities outside the home. He commanded this very ship, used this vessel to engage enemy ships. Mostly Ref’yao raids on the eastern border of League space. There was one battle though, involving a group of retrofit warships from a dozen different races, following some strange ideology.”

“The Predator Fleet?” Jack asked.

“Correct,” Lucinia said. “You know the story?”

“Somewhat,” Jack replied. “A fleet of merchant ships retrofitted with weapons that stalked the stars for ‘prey’. They hunted anything from cargo ships, passenger liners, or lone patrol vessels. They would kill most of the occupants of those vessels and make off with whatever they deemed a worthy trophy, keeping some alive as slaves or sacrifices. The League did a lot of work to cover up the true nature of it.”

“Yes,” Lucinia agreed. “My father had some secrets regarding the action. He was sworn to secrecy.”

“Good ‘ole League politics.” Jack remarked.

“They thought it would cause widespread panic at the time, since the enemy fleet grew quick. The League counter though was that they were crazy pirates and people believed them for some time. Truth came out eventually, but still...” Lucinia shook her head. “How do people get so messed up?” Lucinia sighed.

“If I recall, they were archeologists and wealthy funders who dug too deep into some lost alien civilization. Some shit about awakening some creature, or power or some fucked up thing. All of that could be and sounds like bullshittery. What is real though, was their capability to go through with what they did and turn honest intention to darkness. Just like Artema, the wrong people in power can do a lot of harm.”

“There were good people willing to stand against them, though,” Lucinia leaned against him. “My father helped take out that fleet. He had a hard time with it afterwards, however. Had dreams of the people he saw, floating in the void, having been ejected there from the destruction of their ships. Funny how he was ok killing Ref’yao by the thousands, but an even more violent foe caused him misery. I imagine because a lot of them were Terran. We always seem to find it hardest to kill our own.”

“Could be,” Jack said. “Didn’t bother me much on my end, though. I had to fight Terrans almost exclusively.”

“You say almost, were there other forces that fought for the Artemans?” Lucinia asked.

“Hired guns, yeah.” Jack replied. “Pretty fucked up when you think about it. Rogue Terran forces sought to overthrow the government and expel non-Terrans, with the aid of non-Terran mercenaries.”

“Mercenaries fight for money. I cannot imagine the cause factors in.”

“Usually not,” Jack agreed. “Do you need anything from me, given today’s events?” He changed the subject.

“No,” She shook her head. “You and the crew, just keep doing what you do, and we’ll get through this.”

“On a deeper level, how are you handling this? The deaths, I mean.”

Lucinia let out a deep breath. “I have no sympathy for those pirates, but I don’t desire to kill. I would have preferred to have taken them alive if the option was given, if only we had known.”

“If only,” Jack said passively.

“Why didn’t they attempt to communicate with us? Why not surrender? They had to know their odds were pretty low?”

“Maybe they didn’t have that option. We don’t know their circumstances.”

“If it is Black Nova, what do we do?” Lucinia questioned.

“I don’t know,” Jack sighed. “They’re going to want compensation, if it is.”

“Would they make contact?”

“As opposed to trying to destroy us outright?” Jack asked.

“Yes,” Lucinia took his hand in hers.

“I hope so,” Jack replied, giving it a squeeze.

Lucinia checked her watch and let out a sigh. “The anticipation is almost unbearable, waiting for InterSAR and Star Guard.”

“How far out are they now?” Jack had lost track of how much time had passed.

“The InterSAR Clipper is less than an hour out. The Star Guard Cutter is still two hours at least.”

“Do you want to watch something?” Jack rubbed her forearm, “or play cards or anything to take your mind off what I know you’re thinking about?”

“I really don’t know,” Lucinia replied. “I fear I will not be able to focus on much. Do you need a cigarette?”

“Yeah,” Jack nodded.

“Go grab a quick break, then come back if you could. I think talking over something uplifting might iron out the waves.”

“Alright, back soon,” Jack replied as they stood up and Jack headed out

Jack had only just got back to Lucinia’s quarters when Proculus summoned them to the C.I.C. to review all the collected footage. They entered the C.I.C. a couple of minutes later and saw Proculus, Cardox and Sita looking at a viewscreen while Rusu controlled the image.

“Do you have anything to identify them by?” Lucinia asked as she walked up to Proculus.

“Everything we can see, shows no insignia, no ranks, no patches or badges, nothing.” Proculus replied.

“What are the chances they are independent?” Lucinia questioned.

“Considering they are blackout...” Cardox said as he looked at her. “ ... I have suspicions they could be working for anybody.”

“Blackout?” Lucinia raised a brow.

“No ranks, no insignia, no means to identify them.” Cardox answered.

“Are you suggesting they may be military?” Jack had concern in his voice.

“No,” Cardox shook his head. “If they were military, yes, they would be without rank or insignia. They would, however, still be in uniform and not, whatever casual dress that is.” He pointed to the screen where a Terran crew member could be seen, entangled in some of the wreckage.

Lucinia looked away and shook her head. Rusu noted her expression and moved the footage time stamp until the screen showed part of the hull.

“So, if not military, who would run a blackout operation?” Jack asked, looking over the image on the screen.

“Who fuckin knows?” Sita shrugged. “Maybe they were contracted by a defense firm to test some shit?”

Everyone turned to look at her at the same time.

“Uhh, just kidding?” Sita raised her brows.

“Is that even a possibility?” Proculus looked to Cardox to answer.

“Could be.” Cardox replied. “Would be a ‘more’ favorable outcome for us.”

“Why?” Proculus folded his arms.

“Means retaliation would be unlikely. This would have drawn enough heat for a defense contractor. They’ll issue some statement about an accident to the families and move on.”