[BlueInTheShell]

Atrix clicked her mandibles a few times and reached to her side to pull out a small (To the Terskix) pistol and moved towards the doors. If it was going to be an emergency situation on the ship, there was a chance to sate a little bit of bloodlust, something that was beginning to start overwhelming her. Sure being recently fed was helping, but severing the limbs of someone who was helpless was not a fight that she had been craving. Hissing a small acknowledgement to Rosalind in her own language, Atrix moved towards the doors to wait for the trio to arrive.

Riola shadowed Magali in the meantime, helping the Felis with setting up the room into a makeshift medbay, and looking towards her. "No real medic or anything myself, but two people wrapping others in bandages and shit is better than nothing." He said with a bit of cheer in his voice. "Besides. Had to learn to do the basics when you're making bombs. Had to sew a finger back on once. Dios mio, that wasn't pleasant."

Nokra, seeing everyone move and getting the initial push from Fikri swallowed a bit and paced in a circle, psyching himself up for the push into the cockpit; the male felis creeping in for a second and taking a seat near one of the consoles - keeping sure not to press anything as Rosalind made herself situated, Nokra spoke up. "Uhh...'Scuse me. Rosa? Probably not the best time, but Fikri told me to ask you. I got uh...Interest in learning how to pilot things. Would you mind me helping out? I don't know much, but I can at least point out when something is wrong."

It took quite an effort from Hyun and Atrix to get Shaldag onto a cot when they group had come in; Atrix looking at both the princess and the Ogrunu for a moment, and then shooting a glance towards Hyun. "I'm surprised you kept them along in their condition. I would have eaten them." Hyun looked towards the Terskix and narrowed her eyes. "Hey, fuck you, you eight-limbed bitch. I have a fuckin' heart, unlike you." Atrix ignored the slight for a moment and snarled, shoving her way back to her own room.

As Magali worked on Shaldag, Riola moved over towards Ashi, and began to examine her himself; his usual look of disgust for the noble replaced with just the look of someone trying to do his job; the Edensian pulling a small flashlight from his pocket and shining it in each eye to make sure they'd dilate. "You all look like you went through Hell to get here, reinita." He said casually. "I guess your parents are looking for you."

Hyun leaned against the wall of the room and crossed her arms for a moment, eyes locked on Shaldag as the massive man was being treated. Not a lot the cat could probably do for him at the moment. "Edensians happened. Probably looking for you. I should fuckin' kneecap you for what happened. Everyone is fuckin' dead, and it's probably because of you."

[sylvanSpider]

Mendez, as expected, took his place beside Atrix, drawing his own pistol for the first time. Rosalind's words did not bode well. Two injured? Ashi was to be expected; when they left, she was about to begin her beat in. But there was another? They were also wanting to make a quick getaway, leading him to believe that something attacked.

With Ashi and Shaldag each situated on their cots, Magali was beside herself with what to do. She was going through towel after towel in an attempt to stop the blood. She had no idea what to do about his jaw, but in other areas, the main priority as far as she could tell, was stopping the bleeding. He had to make it to an actual medic, and if she could help it, he was going to. She gave a quick nod, not turning to him as she did so, focusing on her task at hand. “Had to learn the basics in case anything happened to one of my masters. The thinking was that if something happened, I would be the one thing standing between them and something bad happening. This though? I never thought I'd have to treat anything like this...”

Fikri put a hand on Nokra's shoulder to stop his pacing and looked him in the eye, “You've got this. I know a bit of it, so I can help you with what I know—but for now, I think it's best to watch the best at work.” He nudged him in the direction of the cockpit and stood back, following Nokra into the cockpit.

Rosalind nodded in his direction, “To start,” she said in an obvious acceptance of his proposal, “I want ye t'watch an' see 'ow I move. Ye'll learn the name of parts an' the like later, but now I jes' want ye to watch.” As she spoke, her hands deftly flew over controls, her body's tension seeming to melt as the ship lifted from the ground, then flew up, a razor slicing through the sky like silk. She'd already set coordinates to Onsion, camo already set to on the moment she heard the others were on board. “Fikri, would you get me some coffee, please?”

Fikri looked to Nokra, offering a reassuring smile before leaving to do as he was asked. Rosalind was one of those that needed the human drink to function, especially given the amount of sleep she'd had. True, Fikri didn't like Nokra in the slightest, but a second pilot for Rosalind was necessary given their situation. Even with autopilot, Rosalind had needed to be ready, and now more than ever. This was going to be a good thing, for both of them. And who was he to say no to an easier life for his best friend?

Magali glanced up at the terskix nervously, then back down immediately to Shaldag. She'd only seen Hyun in passing, but at those times she wasn't seen as someone with a heart. On the contrary, as a matter of fact. But perhaps she did have those she cared about. Magali certainly did. She didn't know what she'd do without Nokra. She hoped things were going well for him in the cockpit.

“Parent,” Ashi corrected equally as casually, “My mother was executed. And father wants me dead after we duped him out of a few million qanta.” The drugs that were in her system were slowly wearing down and she was struggled to keep a straight face. “My wounds were from...before the attack. I'm on my way to officially becoming a part of the gang...Hyun and Shaldag saved me..”

Ashi looked up at Hyun, eyes wide, “But...the thing in the tunnels...He claimed to be after me. We can't lay this on Riola. Besides, he's with the pilot.”

[BlueInTheShell]

Riola, seemingly satisfied with the fact Ashi's brains didn't seem to be bashed in, moved on to her leg, and frowned for a moment. There was nothing he could really do except maybe set the bone back, and even then, he had only done that a few times, the Edensian sucking his cheek for a second and frowning at the Daoweian. "Ay. So uh, your leg. I can try and set it back for you, chica. The issue is it's gonna hurt. Like, muy mal. We can leave it alone, but infection's gonna set in." He warned, giving her a cautious look. "And it's your call." Riola was hoping for the latter. If only because he had heard the sounds of bone being moved, and it made him shudder on the inside.

Nokra looked back at Fikri for a moment, and offered a sheepish smile towards the male Felis. Despite how much Nokra wanted to throttle Fikri in his sleep, the guy was at least not trying to sabotage him. Though he was still assured in his own mind the male was gunning for Magali. In the cockpit however, Nokra's nerves began to get the better of him, though he kept a trained eye on Rosalind's movements in the ships, watching each press of a button, each move of a toggle, and feeling what it did to the ship. "What's the biggest thing to remember, in general?" He asked, quirking a brow and then looking back towards Fikri, before offering him a small, polite wave; his way of silently admitting thanks.

Outside of the medbay, Atrix was stewing for a moment, the Terskix looking towards the gun in her hand, and then looking back towards the room; mandibles clicking and the urge getting the most from her base instincts. She didn't have any sort of urge to pull the trigger on the Daoweian or the half-dead one she lugged in, but the Chuzizian? She'd empty the thing's entire clip into her. Letting out an agitated sigh, the Terskix holstered her pistol for now and took a small walk to try and calm herself, watching Fikri pass by into the kitchen for a moment, and then deciding on stalking him. If only out of curiosity in what he was doing.

"So all of this was you getting your shit kicked in? Damn, someone wanted to be friends desperately." Riola said with a small laugh, before Hyun's comment warped his face into something a bit more furious. Standing up, Riola looked towards Hyun, before grabbing her by the head-tendrils and tossing her down into the ground, before snarling at her. "Maybe it's the fact you're a fucking criminal, your fucking pendeja." he spat out, Hyun looking up at him with seething eyes. Her hand reached into her coat, but before she could pull anything out a foot was slammed onto her arm; Riola shaking his head. "You pull out anything other than smokes, food, or something to drink, and I'll make sure Rosalind vents you all out of the luck. Comprende?"

"Fuck you, Gemhead."

"Yeah, I know. I'm fuckin- What thing." Riola stopped and shot a look over towards Ashi, darting over to her and giving her a deapan serious look. "Thing. Edensians. The fucker have no features? Pale? Didn't fucking die?"

[sylvanSpider]

Ashi gulped, finally looking down at her leg and cringing seeing the full effect the metal fists had caused on her leg. A quick glance at her arm told her that the same story was probably true for that appendage as well, and she wasn't looking forward to it, but she nodded, pressing her lips together in a tight line, “I think.... I'd rather not lose my leg to infection. Best to do it now while I still have the little bit of drugs in my veins.” She gulped once more and repeated her nod more to convince herself than the male Edensian, finally mustering a not-quite convincing laugh seeing his paling face, “Look at it this way; you'll get to cause me pain and it will be completely warranted.”

Rosalind breathed a sigh of relief as they left the gravitational pull of Hazoo. It being a rather small planet made it that much easier to get out of, and she checked the screens to make sure that none were in pursuit. The camo held true, however, and she saw no one. They'd made a clean getaway. Unfortunately, she didn't know if the enemy knew exactly how much damage had been done. They're next most likely spot would be Onsion, and she knew that they knew that. Provided communication was tight enough, anyway. Finally content with where they were, she set the ship in autopilot. “The most important thing? Keep a clear head. Ye might be under fire, but ye gotta learn t'not panic. The second ye do, et's game over.” She spun around in her seat and grinned at him, “So, yer wantin'a be a pilot? Ah can teach ye, but it'll take practice. That, and ye'll 'ave t' learn t'work with Fiks. 'E's great backup, an' ah'll admit, the glue that keeps The Odyssey running. That aside, since we 'ave a breather 'fore we're able t'safely activate light speed, ah'll teach ye some of the controls.”

Fikri's ears were pressed flat against his head as he made his way into the kitchen, his mind reeling. If they only had the Edensians on their tail before, now for certain they had the Daoweians. Unless the two were already in cahoots before, as Ashi had once or twice alluded in passing. On the plus side, a new pilot was being trained, and that meant that Rosa could get stronger with more rest. She, as expected, was more than grateful enough to have him there, and Fikri would push for that as much as possible. He generally had his hands tied as it was, and given the fact that he was learning to work with explosives, he'd no longer be able to actually keep up his position as co-pilot. Nokra's coming was sort of a godsend, as much as he hated to admit it. He got the coffee ready and as it was brewing spun around on his heel to find himself face to face with the terskix. “Do you want some coffee too?” he asked, wondering why she followed him. Usually she didn't show any interest whatever in him, unless it was to antagonize him. He'd decided to kill her with kindness in a staunch rebuttal.

“They all did it,” Ashi said simply, “I don't see any reason why I should be an exception--” She cut herself off seeing his countenance twist with Hyun and almost leapt up when Hyun's arm got held down. So much was happening so fast, and she was a criple. She had to hope things would calm down by themselves. “Yes, yes that exactly--”

[BlueInTheShell]

Riola shook his head and looked around to find something suitable to help the princess set her leg, settling on a set of pieces of rebar. Not exactly sterile, but they were just going to have to make do. "I don't care to see anyone hurt, hermana. I just wanted shit to change for my people. They're the ones who turned it all into...This kinda shit." he said bitterly, gesturing towards Hyun and Shaldag, before placing one of the bars against her leg, and moving the other towards the other side. "Whatever drugs you got in you now, once they wear off. This isn't gonna be a walk in the park, reina. Wherever you need to go to fix this, I'll see about getting Rosa to ship us there pronto, si?" He offered, before taking hold of Ashi's leg, and twisting; working the bone back in place until it was set, and then tying the two bits of rebar into a makeshift splint.

Nokra was like a little kitten staring into the inky, glittery abyss of space; eyes wide as he tried to bounce both keeping an eye on Rosalind as she began to pilot, and take in the majesty of the sea of stars they were now sailing in. It was a complete mystery where they were going now, but the more time out in space was more time that he could spend learning. "Keep a clear head. Gotcha ma'am." Nokra repeated, sniffling for a minute and kicking his legs like a youngling as he drifted his attention towards the Pyra. "I wanna pilot things more than anything. And I'll..I'll suck it up and work with Fikri if that is needed." Nokra said spitting out his tongue before swiveling a bit in his chair. "When do you think I can like, get my own little ship and fly? Is it gonna take a long time?"

Atrix looked at the Felis for a moment, cocking her head to the side and clicking her mandibles for a moment. "I've never had coffee." She admitted, crossing her arms for a moment and looking at the brewing machine, looking with a bit of revulsion at the brown liquid settling at the bottom, and then pointing to it; a chitinous finger tapping on the glass of the pot. "It looks like dirty water. Why would someone drink this?" She asked, taking a deep breath and then peering over towards Fikri and flashing him a small, evil smile. "Would you object to me eating the pink-colored woman? I do not like her. At all." She cooed, wriggling her other fingers and then bringing up a small arm to polish her teeth. "I feel like I could get away with it."

Hyun subdued still, and the presence of the faceless thing confirmed; Riola sighed for a moment, and leaned against a wall for a moment; finally bursting into a small fit of chuckling. "Wow, you must have done something to really piss them off to send that thing after you. Heard the Queen had someone like that. Thing wouldn't die. Can't die. Does a lot of dirty work. What exactly did you do to earn that kinda thing slithering your way?" Riola muttered, looking over towards Shaldag. "Least you all got out a live. Not a lot of people can say that."

[sylvanSpider]

First it was the sound that did it. The grinding of Ashi's bones, audible even through her flesh sent a chill down her spine and she wanted to squirm away, knowing full well this was for her better good. Then, came the actual setting. Riola's hands worked deftly, like he'd done this type of procedure many times before, and Ashi had no doubt in her mind that the Edensian knew what he was doing. But, that wouldn't make the pain any easier. The drugs might, but even then-- She couldn't help it; she screamed. The drugs seemed to do literally nothing for her as the pain washed over her in waves. Her teeth dug into her lower lip so hard that she could have sworn flesh would break.

Chest heaving, the princess sighed, her back flopping against the backboard of the bed she was propped up on. She mustered a smile, however strained it looked and nodded to her arm, “Would you...would you mind setting that as well? Add it to the debt I owe you for resetting my leg.” She swallowed, willing her eyes to the newly reset leg. Already the thing looked leaps and bounds better, now straightened to the direction it was supposed to be. She took a deep, shaky breath closing her eyes and leaned her head back. “I really do owe you. What do you say to starting anew? Friends?”

Rosalind couldn't help but smile despite the circumstances. Sure, they had the best men (and women) after them from two different kingdoms, two on her ship were injured, one was critical, and their next destination would be only too obvious, but for the moment she was drinking in another person's first time seeing space from space. It was a sight that she'd always feared that she'd take for granted, but the pyra never tired of it. The other side of mechanics, the side that didn't involve grease and pocket wrenches, was one of stars, planets...the galaxy in its entirety was theirs for the taking, and Nokra was beginning to see it now. Beaming, Rosalind spun in her chair to face the felis.

“Keep that in mind, an' ye can pick the rest up as we go, aye?” She tossed her head in the direction of the window, “Ye become a pilot, an' ye'll get used t'the sights, but if yer truly made fer it, ye'll never tire of it.” Rosalind leaned back in the seat, still gazing at the sight that Nokra was just drinking in. “As far as 'ow long et'll be? Et depends. Are ye a fast learner? Ah'll teach ye all that ye need t'know, an' pay ye t'boot, but 'ow long that takes is solely up t'ye. S'far as prices on ships go, well, that depends on th'model. Some are more expensive than others.” Rosalind stopped speaking for a moment, her smile fading not out of discontent, but out of seriousness as she turned her eyes back to the felis. “Ah've got a ship that we left 'hind on Hazoo. If the Edensians left et in one piece, ye can 'ave it in lieu of payment. Unless ye sail the skies with us as the makin's of a small fleet.”

She pressed her lips together and sighed, “But, ah should warn ye; ours es not an easy path. Not anymore. You bein' freed from slavery...by us...might not'a been the best move on Fikri's part. Ye sorta got thrown from the fryin' pan into th'fire, so to speak. We're wanted, by not only Edensia, but also Daowei. So far, et seems only the Edensians 'ave made a move, but the two could be workin' together. We're not safe, but ah'll teach ye 'ow t'be as safe as ye can be while yer 'ere. If ye want us t'drop ye off when we land next, jest say the word.”

Fikri could do little more than blink at Atrix in disbelief, “Wait. You're serious?” Fikri retrieved three mugs from the cabinet and set them down on the pot which he now grabbed. “I'll tell you what. I'll pour two mugs, one for me, and one for Rosalind. You can try a bit from my mug and if you like it, you can just have that.” He chuckled with the comment of dirty water, pouring two cups worth, lifting his to his nose, ears pressing back against his head with a sigh of contentment, “It's made from a ground up Earthen bean. Run hot water through a filter that has these ground up beans, and you get coffee. Humans started drinking it because they liked how it made them feel and it spread out to other species. Just give it a shot; you might like it.” The felis offered Atrix a sort of lopsided smile, his tail flicking with anticipation. “It's bitter. Like those of left on this ship. I think it's suitable—at least for me anyway. Though Rosie seems to like the stuff too. As far as eating her? I doubt Rosie would appreciate it much. The pink-skinned lady got us this ship. Though, if I'm being honest, I'm right there with you. I'll pass on eating her though.” Fikri added, chuckling.

“That's the thing. I haven't done anything yet. Sending something so outrageous seems unlike my father. But then again, it was Edensians that we saw,” Ashi murmured, leaned back completely now and still recovering from her leg setting with a grimace clearly on her face. “Though I could have sworn I heard daweigos...”

[BlueInTheShell]

Riola flinched and cringed rather visibly when that scream echoed in the makeshift medbay of the ship - He didn't like hearing people in pain in the slightest, even the people he didn't seem to have a care for. No one in this world needed to feel something so excruciating and Panicking for a second, Riola fumbled through a medkit (Assuming they have one. Probably.) And fumbled for some small pain relievers. They were most likely meant for headaches, but anything he could probably offer her would at least take a small edge off of the pain.

"We should uh...Probably give you a moment. Set too much and you're gonna be a in a lot of pain, chica. Take a breather, let the leg pain subside first." Riola said with a shrug of his shoulder, and frowning at her mangled arm. That thing looked beyond just being set and fixed. "Is that arm even broken in just one place? It looks beyond ruined. And if it's more than one break, I'd probably just do more harm than good." He added, before looking at her last request and taking a breath. "....Ai, fine. Deal. Start anew, si , si. Just, let's focus more on just keeping you and Shaldag alive first. Business, then we can grab a beer and laugh at the world."

"You were seen with us. That's as good of a reason as any, Ashi." Riola laughed, giving her a 'Sorry, not sorry' sort of glance and then beaming at her. "Oh yeah. You got Edensians on you? They're gonna send the worst of the worst kind of people after you, with all sorts of promises. Send their criminals with amnesty as a reward. Heard of hiring Terskix and feeding them said prisoners as well. I think one mercenary group got awarded two warships once for bringing down a cartel." Riola cocked his head to the side. "Never heard of Daweigos. Is that a thing from your world?"

Nokra was silent for a couple of seconds as he lost himself again in the void of space, before he blinked a few times and then swiveled back into Rosalind's gaze - For the first time the male Felis beaming and smiling like someone his age should have been doing. "I'm ready to just make a bed in the cockpit. I wanna look at all the stars all day. I have to bring Mags in here too so she can see them." He murmured. And see me piloting the ship. "I kind of had to be a fast learner as a slave. Being a pit fighter doesn't leave a lot of room for error. Least I know you can rely on me if it comes to using my reflexes to fly something ma'am." Nokra said, perking a brow and twitching an ear. "Pay? I...Never really got paid before. You don't need to give me much. Just enough to make sure I can at least buy food and some things for a room on board for now." Nokra shook his head at taking her old ship. "No offense, but if someone who is in trouble was flying that, I don't need to take it. They'll think I'm you or something."

Then it came to light, Nokra's eyes going wide for a moment. Freed and now in the presence of criminals. Apparently big-time criminals if two different worldly governments were hunting them down this extensively. He looked at the entry to the cockpit and envisioned himself and Magali back in shackles. Locked in seperate cells in prisons, and shuddered - Nokra bringing up a hand to bite at his nails. "...No. No, I uh. I owe Fikri for saving me. And you're the only chance I have to learn how to fly. No one is gonna take me seriously anywhere else." He admitted, wrinkling his nose. "I just can't promise how far I'm willing to go with you all. I have...Well, I gotta look after Mags. I like her."

Atrix looked at the mug of coffee with a venomous look, and clicked her mandibles once, before taking a sip; Atrix smacking her lips for a second, before her face slowly contorted, and she handed the mug of coffee back to Fikri; the Terskix rushing towards the sink and sticking her head under the faucet to lap up water, and then spit it out. "Humans enjoy drinking terrible tasting things. That was not fun." She grumbled. her foot however, began tapping rather quickly and she locked all her eyes on the Felis. "What Rosalind doesn't know won't hurt her. We can make up a story or something. That's what I had planned when I was thinking of eating you. You were going to have an accident while you were cleaning the engine room." She said, a tinge of sheepishness on her voice. "I tried my best, but no avail. It would explain the blood everywhere."

[sylvanSpider]

Ashi leaned her head back, squeezing her eyes shut ashamed of the fact that she couldn't keep her chest from heaving. The waves still rolled through her body starting at the break in her leg rippling up through her core, to the top of her head, into her fingernails and at the base of her hair follicles. It hurt like a...like a bitch. But she tried to hide this. Aside from the tears that formed in the corners of her eyes with the resetting, she didn't cry. She screamed, yes, but she felt she probably would have died had she not. “Y-yeah, I agree...Just, just so long as we're not enemies...” she mustered, somewhat labored, but Riola's comment drew her attention again back to her arm. Bad enough that it couldn't be set. It wasn't a good sign, and seeing it made her want to cry out again, but she didn't, turning instead to Shaldag who the other felis was doing her utter best to repair.

Mendez was at her side, utilizing what little bit of first aid he could, and for once he seemed to find himself without words. Aside from that blue woman who actually didn't survive her wounds, this was the worst Mendez had seen for a very long time. “I don't know what else we can do for him, chica,” Mendez said, wiping his brow with his forearm. The two of them together managed to bandage up the parts that were bleeding the worst, but in some spots his innards were still visible. It was on these parts the felis was focusing with a bandage, wishing she could get underneath to wrap the bandages around his torso, relying instead heavily relying on medical tape.

“Do you know how far it is to a medical facility?” Magali half-whispered, half-croaked. Unlike Mendez, she'd never seen this amount of gore, and certainly had never had a hand in attempting to clean it up. She was amazed that this man had even lasted this long. His role in this world was not yet complete, she'd decided; he was pushing much too hard for life for them to allow his life to slip through her fingers like this. “We need to get him soon or...or...”

“I know, amiga, just keep the blood from coming out, cover his innards to protect from infection, and just pray. Hold on, Shal. We're fighting for you,” Mendez said, his green eyes searching for some sign of hope, the only hope seeming to come from the injured's rising chest. He was still breathing. As long as he drew breath, he would be fine. He would make it.

Ashi gulped. They were doing what they could for him, and Ashi, again, found herself unable to do anything. Any more people around his bed, however, and they would be getting into each other's way. She looked to Hyun, hoping for some sort of reassurance, but that reassurance would only be found, no, could only be found when they landed at a medical facility where she would demand that Shaldag get priority. “Why the Edensians, though? Why do they want me? Why is that thing in cahoots with my father? And how did they know we were at the club?” So many questions went through her mind. She was supposed to be getting her tattoos, to become officially part of the gang—with both Hyun and Shaldag. She was supposed to live happily ever after with her own little makeshift family.

“Ye may 'ave ta,” Rosalind said chuckling. “Et's not uncommon among pilots t'sleep in th'cockpit. For many of us, et's th'most comfortin' spot on the ship.” She left her chair facing him, drawing her knees up to her chest. If one were to step into the cockpit just then unnoticed, they'd see a sight that they would never want to erase from their memories. A vetted pilot sat in her most relaxed position, one that would allow her knees to be a pillow if need be, but eyes focused on the apprentice before her. The pale light from the various screens and buttons would emit a bluish white glow on their features. The more experienced of the two bearing the common signs of most of the galaxies great pilots, wild red hair gushing down her shoulders, low hanging ears, the horns that curled around her ears, too, would be glowing softly, reflecting the light of the screens, the stars as their backdrop. The felis would have the classic signs of someone who had just been handed the wheel. Eyes, scared but excited, in awe, and possessing a certain knowledge that like the pyra before him, he too would take possession of the skies.

“So ye like the girl in ways besides friends, eh? Watch out for that shit. It makes ye do things outta character,” she laughed, though there was no bitterness whatsoever to be had in it, “Ye think ah'd be in this mess if it weren't for Riola? 'E's in their eyes a terrorist. Ah'd say 'e's a freedom fighter. 'Fore 'im...ah kept my 'ead down. Never got into any trouble whatever. Ah'd dip out at the first signs. Does this make me a coward? Maybe, but it made me a living coward, one with a steady, reliable job. Was jes' me an' Fiks b'fore, an' it 'twas easy. Nice. Soft. All that's gone now, an' all in the name of love,” she moved her legs down again and leaned forward, a wry smile on her lips, knowing exactly how it was that the felis felt, “Ye know the best part of it all? Ah'd do it all again in th'name of love. An' ye would too, if ye actually do love 'er. Not sayin' ye 'ave t'fight t'prove it. On the contrary. Ye can run, the second ye can, with 'er, an' ye'll be able t'live. Ah won't stop ye. An' dun worry about the pay, ah'll make sure yer good an' covered.”

Fikri laughed, taking the mug back, “It's...I would say, an acquired taste.” He took a whiff of the beverage before taking his own swig of it with a contented sigh, “Rosa was addicted by the time I got onboard, and, well, the rest is history. She made me a coffee drinker.” His tail switched back and forth, back and forth as he picked up the other mugs, balancing them on his fingers. “Something tells me she'll put two and two together. She's too clever for that. But what did Hyun do to you to make you decide to hate her?” Fikri wasn't meaning to sound accusing, but he was more curious than anything. For that matter, he didn't understand why she'd singled him out initially, or why she was making friendly moves now. He wouldn't complain; if he could make a friend out of Atrix, he was going to, and chose rather consciously to not take an offense to her rather blatant confession of his own plotted murder.

[BlueInTheShell]

Riola looked around. Any sort of thing to try and keep the girl from focusing on the pain of her leg being reset. The Edensian fumbled through his pockets, before pulling out a small package of cigarettes; the man opening it up and sighing. Only one left. Taking a breath and cursing this newly founded friendship for a moment - Riola chuckled to himself and pulled the little cancer-stick from its package, offering it out to Ashi. "Peace offering, chica. It's not painkillers, but it's something to do other than lay here and worrying about your arm. Speaking of, I'll have to make sure Rosa is gunning it towards the medical facilities. Need you both up as soon as possible. Don't wanna bury more people over Edensian politics." He said with a sudden grim demeanor and a bit of salt in his voice. "Sick of running from them too. I wanna get them back...For everything that's happened so far."

Shaldag was looking worse and worse with each passing moment. The monstrous man was still awake, which was a good sign, but what skin could be seen from him was growing colder and paler with each drip of lost blood. The Ogrunu however seemed focused on staying awake and watching the Felis and Mendez work on him; Any looks towards him met with a burning, ravenous look in his one good eye. There was an anger that was more than present in the mammoth of a man, and gripping onto Toka's cloth remains, slowly inched his arm towards the bandana, holding it out towards Magali, and then sticking is finger into his own wound, pulling out the stained digit and writing on the bit of cot that he wasn't occupying:

'Tie this to arm'

Shaldag's attention drifted over towards Mendez and the Ogrunu let out a deep wheeze, before lifting the same hand to imitate drinking water, then waving his hand around his torn apart mouth. Speaking was out of the question, but the warm air was beginning to dry out his gums and only made him ever more uncomfortable. Still utilizing his gore-soaked finger, Shaldag took a deep, purposeful breath and wrote again, this time on the other side of the cot for Mendez to see.

'Gotta live. Make Edensians Pay. My Toka.'

Hyun was back on her feet and kept herself silent, keeping her eyes fixed on Shaldag. Adjusting her coat, the Chuzizian buttoned it shut and sniffled for a moment, pulling on her tendrils and letting out an agitated noise. "Whatever the fuckin' reason, we're gonna find out, Ashi, don't you worry." She finally spoke up; her tone to-the-point and stern. "We're gonna slaughter the cunt that ruined that club. We're gonna make sure the thing that nearly killed Shaldag is frying in some sort of hell he can't get out of. Fuck. I've never been jumped like that. I've always bounced back. This isn't fuckin' fair..."

"Be glad you're all out alive at least. Not many people can say they've escaped a military." Riola offered outloud, only to be returned with a snort from Hyun-chu. "Started when we met you, red-headed shit bag." Riola took a breath and chose to ignore Hyun, instead kicking at the ground and then wrinkling his face. "Then fuck off the next chance you get, Hyun. I ain't telling you to stay, dios mio, fucking puta pendeja..."

"Well, you have the prettiest room available. Not sure I've even been in a place with a window and stars to glance at, even in the most lavish of owner's quarters." Nokra murmured; his eyes reflecting both the LED glow of the panels and systems of the ship, but also the glittery specks that blossomed out from the oblivion of black that covered the outside. Everything about this felt, nearly perfect. The low hum of the engines was enough for Nokra to sprawl out in his own chair; the Felis becoming more like a pancake of hair and ears slapped into the seat - Nokra's ears wilting while he let out a slow, soft exhale. His eyes slowly moved from the stars towards the fiery plume of hair, that seemed to erupt with horns he just noticed. "Whoa. Sorry, uh. Didn't notice you were a Pyra. Sorry again. Not exactly. Well. Never seen one of you up close before." Nokra stuttered, swishing his leg and letting it dangle like a dead limb. "Would it be weird If I wanted to touch one of your horns? Are they super hard or soft?"

"Well uh...It's complicated! I mean, I like her like a more-than friend and such. But at the same time we're really close and it's kinda like family. I don't know." Nokra said with a huff, crossing his arms before throwing them up in the air. "What am I trying to kid...Yeah. I dig her a lot. I mean, I kinda don't know how she feels about me myself in that regard, but if it's the same...I would never say no. I'd probably go back into the fighting pits to make sure she was okay and set for life if I had to...Aw shit, I'm rambling again." Exhaling loud enough to reverberate around the cockpit, Nokra itched his forehead and then puffed out his cheeks, the air escaping his lips in a raspberry. "All in all? It's up to her. Explain the situation to Magali when she's alone, and let her decide. I don't wanna coerce her but...If you need someone else to join. I'd do it. I don't...Really have a purpose now. At least being a slave meant I know what was gonna happen, day-today..."

"I say the same thing about humans, but that still puts people off from trying them." Atrix said plainly, hugging herself with her lower arms while she yawned and stretched out with her upper limbs. Chitin creaked and the Terskix's mandibles writhed and clicked while she bellowed out her yawn, sounding something more predatory than normal, before she slumped back down into her normal gait. "I'd just have to try my hardest not to get caught then. If I was going to do it. Maybe. Possibly. Things are not easy to deal with when you're not in the Empire." Atrix grunted, before brushing a lock of hair from her face. "She is rude. And doesn't seem to understand the concept of 'I will eat her if she keeps talking like she does.' I know her kind regenerate. She'd feed me for a long time if we chained her up." Atrix took a deep breath however and shook her head. "It's also a...Species thing. I don't know what it is. Some people just...Trigger the caste's urges. To rip. Maim. Tear. Kill the enemie of our people. Some people do not trigger that response. It's rare that they don't. Mendez does not trigger that response. The rest of you do."

[sylvanSpider]

Ashi was leaning back now, eyes set on a spot in the ceiling. It was better than seeing it at any rate; associated the mangled appendage as her former arm was almost too much. She had to focus on the positives. She was alive and going to make it. Her limbs were only remnants of their former selves, but her inner core was fine. Her head was fine. She realized her breathing was too ragged and tried to calm it, channel it into deep, steady, controlled breaths. This helped, however much it could. The drugs were wearing off fast, as if the resetting suddenly reminded her body of exactly how much damage it'd taken—the drugs now meaningless. Breathe in. Out now. In again. She could hear Riola talking to her in the background, more for her benefit than anything, grounding her to consciousness and her giving a response would only work to further cement her there.

The princess looked down at the extended cigarette, and offered a meek smile, extending her good hand to take it, “Thanks. I've...never smoked before. It's a new experience for me. Does it actually help? With ah...taking one's mind off the pain I mean? I'll take anything at this point.”

Magali was pale, sweat beading at her brow. Had Shaldag faced a different adversary, something that caused clean cuts, she would have been able to pinpoint exactly where the blood was coming from. Instead, his skin peeled away in large scrapes, deeper in places than others, but blood was everywhere. Regardless, she stayed focused, determined on keeping this life in this world. Had she been anyone else, second thoughts may have been had. After all, he was the right hand man in the club that she'd been pimped out of for as long as she could remember. Now, here he was before her, life literally in her hands. But, it was indeed Magali, and she was done with the tragedy. She was going to see to it that he lived.

Briefly, she saw his hand moving, writing with his own blood.

'Tie this to arm,' the blood spelled, and Magali moved her hands, dams that were keeping back rivers of blood, long enough to tie the piece of fabric to his arm, immediately resuming her duties. She said nothing, save for the occasional “Apply more pressure here” or “I've got this part, bandage that—tightly, tightly.”

Mendez and Magali made a great team, despite the circumstances. They'd never worked together before, but following Magali's orders, they'd managed to slow the raging rivers down to merely steady ones, both trying their best to keep the remained of his blood in. They had the benefit of his machinery though. Machinery didn't bleed. It was his core that they were focusing the hardest on, and things were looking grim. It was Mendez's turn to see the crimson writing, and he briefly made contact with Shaldag's one good eye as he realized exactly what he was saying. That glowing chica, the nice one that he (and everyone else) immediately took a liking to...was dead. He swallowed, pressing his lips in a tight line, “We'll make them pay. We'll get them back, and you're gonna live to see it through. Just stay conscious. Maybe focus on the sound of my voice.”

Rosalind looked at Nokra for a moment, realizing that this was probably one of those moments in the felis's life that he would never forget. Hell, Rosalind had grown up working on ships and she still couldn't forget her first time laying eyes on the stars from space. She could remember how her heart had caught in her throat, taking her breath away just long enough for her to have to force air back into her lungs. Not in hyperspace, the stars seemed to dance by, as if standing in a snow globe. The shape of distant galaxies formed just beyond the dancing shapes. This awe was normal for her. This feeling of tininess was normal for her. They were gnats compared to the glory of space, less than gnats even. Bacterium, maybe. “Well, now ye can say ye've not only been'n space, ye've seen it too. Soon ye'll be comandin' it. Et's a feelin' ye never tire of once ye've got the bug.” She smiled.

“What've ye got t'be sorry for?” Rosalind asked, tilting her head only to melt into a smile when she realized she herself was something new to him, “Well, pyra unless they get a job somewhere typically stay on Drypso 38. We're an industrial lot. Some of us get out there, 'ead out, become transports an' nomades or the like. Once we leave though, we rarely settle. Ah can see why ye've never seen any of us. Not the type t'be makin' use of slaves, considerin' we're a lot prone t'hard work.” She gave a rap with her knuckle on one of her horns, it answering with a hollow clunk, clunk, clunk. “They're 'ard. Ye can touch if ye like. The females of our planet get 'em too, unlike our Goim cousins, but they dun get off their planet at all.”

Rosalind chuckled, shifting to a cross legged position and resting her head on laced fingers propped up by elbows on the knee, “Ye know ah'm a lady. Ah could ask 'er for ye. She probl'y could use some more feminine friendships, right? An' the princess es rather occupied bein' injured an' all. Ah could see if she feels the same. If ye want, ah can also give 'er the same spheel ah gave ye about the danger we're in.”

“Killing people isn't necessarily my forte, so I'm sorry I can't help in any other way than to keep my mouth shut,” Fikri said with an honest shrug. He still wasn't particularly fond of the pink woman, so it would be all the same to him should Atrix choose to feed on her, but as long as she was on this ship, it wasn't looking like she'd be able to get away with it. Hyun and Rosalind had a very beneficial, albeit monetary, friendship. It was better for Rosa that she lived, which therefore should mean that it was better for Fikri. But the woman gave him a sour taste in his mouth, and he had other things to worry about than trying to protect her. “Look, I won't get in your way, but I don't think chaining her up is gonna work so long as you're on this ship. If you do do anything to her, I recommend it happen off ship. Just... Rosa's dealing with enough right now.”

Fikri bit his lip, “You're not with the Empire, no. But if you stick around, you'll get more than your fair share of bloodshed. Unfortunately, most likely from both sides. I'm going to treat you as I'm treated. Stay out of your way if you want me to. I'll try not to trigger it as best to my ability, but I do understand.” Fikri's tail swished back and forth, “I'm going to deliver the coffee now before it gets cold, you can come with me if you'd like or I can come back if you still need to vent about something.”

[BlueInTheShell]

Riola kept his sights trained on the woman's broken arm for a second, only closing his hand with the cigarette in it once he felt her pluck away the little bit of nicotine. Whatever hospital they were going to was going to be something high-end, that was all he knew. No backalley doctor was able to fix the damage the two they had, and the ones that were able to weren't too keen on aftercare, from what he had experiences with. Ashi seemed to be on the verge of falling into the black, quiet spells of unconsiousness and the Edensian was more than keen on letting her broken, battered self drift off into sleep - His fixation on her ravaged arm dispelled when she spoke to him; The grim reality of the makeshift medbay coming back into focus. He didn't notice the pool of red around both Ashi's cot, and the puddles of crimson that were forming into a lake around Shaldag. The reality sank in more.

Riola shrugged a shoulder slowly, before bringing up the hand that was holding the cigarette into his hair; the Edensian tugging on his braids while he chuckled nervously. "I can't say for certain. I've always used them to dull the senses. Took the edge off of burns and such when I was making bombs, chica." Rolling up his shirt-sleeve, Riola pointed out a few bits of scars; the light pink tissue a stark contrast to his pale skin. "Look at this way. If you've never smoked anything before, the first initial hit will take your mind off of a lot of things. Either nicotine sets in, or your coughing fits'll distract you from your arm."

Shaldag could feel each hand that was working on him. Each hand that put pressure on his hand made a bit of blood gargle upwards towards his throat; the Ogrunu doing his best to keep it down, though a few dribbles managed to leak out; drool and the red liquid creeping down his neck and staining his skin. His teeth were a few shades of scarlett as well, though the massive man's breathing relaxed momentarily while the bandana was wrapped around his metal arm. Taking in a deep, heaving breath Shaldag raised his good arm again and wriggled metallic fingers; using very bit of brain power so the shadows creeping in the corners of his eyes wouldn't overtake his vision. He couldn't speak. Or even summon the trite bit of energy to try and sign to the two, and helplessness was beginning to seep into his mind. He hated every microsecond of it. He should be up and about, making sure the people on this ship weren't going to try anything on his friends. Well...They were less like friends at this moment. Hyun had been something more akin to a sibling. And well...Shaldag spilled blood with Ashi. By all rights he could call her 'Sister' at this rate.

Listening to Mendez, the Ogrunu craned his neck to the sound of his voice; Eye dilating and refocusing slowly while he took in the blurred sight of the man; Bright red hair making the Ogrunu's brow furrow. It was the accent and the bit of Edensian that made Shaldag's arm shoot out like a rocket; metallic digits grappling and closing around the man's throat while a snarl escaped his mangled mouth; blood spackling his outstretched limb and chest. A few seconds later, and sharp pain wracked through his system, the Ogrunu releasing Mendez as quickly as he lashed out - Shaldag forming a deep bellow-turned sobbing as he closed his eye and slammed his fist onto the cot. It was all a horrid dream. He was going to wake up and Toka was going to ask him to see the same Cowboy movies again and again...

Hyun rushed over towards Magali and Mendez, placing a hand on Mendez and looking at him to make sure he was okay, before furrowing her brow and sighing deeply; the Chuzizian's head tendrils swaying as she shook her head slowly and deliberately. "Yo, you two. You've done as much shit as you can. Give yourselves a fuckin' break or something. I'll keep an eye on Shal." Hyun commanded, crossing her arms and tapping her foot at the duo. She was gonna give them about five seconds to just do what she had said, or the second time of her asking was going to be with something she could bludgeon the two with.

Nokra continued to sit, gawking at just...Everything. Suddenly the world he had known seemed so finite, it was hard to even try and grasp. He had been in collosseums that housed entire cities, listening to the roar of bloodthirsty patrons who wanted to see either him, or the beast he was hunting in the spasms of death throes. Nokra chuckled for a second. The adrenline rush he felt just glancing at the serene beauty of Space...It was a different feeling than the rush when you swung a weapon. It was peaceful. A jolt that was warming and welcoming rather than terrifying. "I don't think we command space...We're just...Just guests in it. I don't think anyone can really conquer all of this, no matter how hard they tried." Nokra bumbled out, biting his lip, and then itching himself under his shirt.

"I got a lot to be sorry for, I guess. It's just turning into a habit at this rate. Plus I'm kinda pointing out the obvious." Nokra uttered, sheepishness eking out of his voice, though temptation and curiosity overruled everything else. Curiosity killed the Felis He repeated in his head as he inched forward in his seat, and gingerly touched the Pyra's horn with the tip of his finger, only to recoil backwards like he was burned. "Can't imagine just staying on the homeworld for all of your life. It's gets boring. Least it would be for me. Moved around and saw too many interesting places for all of this to just...Go stale and keep the scenery the same I guess." Nokra snickered, a canine poking just out of his lips as he did so. "Well, thanks for not being the slaving lot. It's appreciated." He said, before the topic turned to Magali. Gone was the smiles. Now was the time of anxiety and tension, though her offer made his right ear twitch a few times.

"She could...Definitely do with some female friends. Far as I know, she's just been with men. And well, they weren't pining after her friendship." Nokra grumbled, sloughing out of his seat like molasses before he caught himself and propped himself back in his seat. "Give her the shit about the danger. And if you wanna. Ask her if she likes me the same way. Fuck...I don't think I wanna know though. Feel like the Terskix onboard has her fists in my guts when the topic is brought up."

"You don't know how to kill people. Or hurt them. You've definitely made a mistake when it comes to company then." Atrix replied, resting her hip on the counter of the kitchen and bending forward slightly - Lower hands on her hips as she shimmied a bit. "You're gonna wanna learn something. Anything. Real fast at this rate. Though your silence is nice. Not many keep secrets anymore." Fikri's prospects and reasonings for everything were starting to make sense however. It would have been easier to just get rid of the Chuzizian off the ship. Away from the eyes of the Daoweian and the Ogrunu. She could take the blue-haired woman easily, and she was more than sure of that. Or pride was more venomous than her pincers. Shaldag? Even wounded and reeking of the sweet, hungering scent of gore looked formidable. Though she'd never admit it. "Hmph. Amusing. Different race. Still pleading at the behest of the Ship-Matriarch. Little things in common." Atrix laughed.

Fikri was right again. This wasn't the Empire. A sudden feeling wrenched in her gut and she looked at Fikri...Or rather, his lack of extra limbs and sucked her lip; mandibles raking across her cheek and leaving skin a shade brighter as they traced themselves across her face. One of her lower limbs moved to a holster and pulled out a tiny little hold-out pistol; the Terskix offering it to Fikri. "I'll treat you the same way I'd treat anyone else here. I expect you to shoot that at things that want to kill us. Or I'll use one on you for failing to protect your Matriarch, Rosalind." Atrix said plainly, giving Fikri a rather cold, and emotionless look before she bounced her hip off of the counter, intent on following Fikri. "I want to see all of you enjoy that...Dirt you keep drinking. It's bizarre you all like it."

[sylvanSpider]

Ashi's hand shook as she brought the filtered end to her lips, looking to Riola to light it. At least, she assumed he had a light if he had the sticks that needed it. She wasn't waiting long, Riola soon flicking a lighter in her face and soon the end was glowing a bright orange. Still looking confused, Mendez looked over to her and grinned, “Suck in.” The princess did just that, soon spluttering, a giant puff of smoke coming out of as an exodus of an over exuberant drag. With each cough, her body contracted and the waves hit from two origins crashing inwards, one from her right arm, the other from her kneecap. The waves crashed and seemed to collide somewhere in her gut and she suddenly found herself nauseous. Tears formed in the corners of her eyes before escaping their prison and gliding down her cheeks. On the plus side, she sure as shit was awake now—a million steps away from fading to unconsciousness.

Mendez laughed, “You didn't have to suck that hard, chic---” Mendez was cut off by a metallic hand around his throat, squeezing his neck. He couldn't breathe! He couldn't....breathe...His hands immediately went to the hand, trying to break the mechanical hold to no avail. The man's grip was simply too strong, and worse was the blood on Mendez's hands making his fingers slide across the metal as if it was oiled up ice. “Sh-Sh-al--” was all he was able to stammer before the edges of his vision began to fade to black.

“Shaldag! Stop! He's our friend! He's trying to save you!” Ashi said, almost jumping into a sitting position on her own cot, only being stopped by a new spasm of pain, relief setting in when Shaldag released his death grip and the redhead went toppling to the floor.

Mendez landed on his hands and knees, one hand immediately going up to his neck as if in disbelief that it was still in one piece. Air rushed into his lungs, and he began heaving, raking as much of that precious oxygen as he could properly fit. His immediate emotional reaction was thankfully one he'd caught in time. He'd been trying to save this man, why would he turn on him like that? But before he said anything he'd regret, he remembered. The man wasn't in his right mind. There was a good chance that he saw the flash of red, heard the timber of his voice and remembered what had happened to him. The man lost someone he cared about, almost losing another, provided he cared for Ashi or if she was just Hyun's pet. He put his hand on the cot, using it to prop himself up to a standing position.

Hyun, surprisingly, cared that he was okay, rushing to him, the redhead giving her a nod that worked on two levels, the first to show that he was alright, still conscious and still of right mind, the second to say that all was forgiven; he understood.

Magali, however, went catatonic and was still frozen until Mendez gave that nod. Her little body had taken to trembling, nervous at the possibility of his being this injured and still able to do serious damage. Her hands stayed plugging the same wounds, not moving as a deer in the headlights. She backed up with the order from Hyun, as if on impulse. “He's...he's bleeding most from here, and here,” she said, pointing with two bloodied hands, “I can...I can be back in a couple of minutes.” The felis gulped and backed out into the living room, bowing to Hyun before making her exit.

Mendez pressed his lips together, inhaling and exhaling from his nose. He would have put a hand on Hyun's shoulder, but given their present state, he thought better of it, “I'm alright, amiga. I think we should let non-Edensians tend to him—maybe I can grab Fikri. He left thinking that he was in the way, but I get the feeling his being a felis would make him less like to be attacked. Want me to get him?”

“Ah'm guessin' she didn't talk about 'er side o' work much, did she? Can't say ah blame the lass. But, now she, and you too, 'ave a chance. An' I will, provided yer still onboard when we leave the Pools. We're gonna be enterin' 'yper speed soon, an' ah need t'be in the pit for that. For the time bein' though, ye should decide if yer stayin' with us fer longer than this stop knowin' what ye know now,” Rosalind said, no matter-of-factly. She was by no means going to force the former slaves to live out their newfound freedom in the throngs of war. Options were available, should they choose to take them. “Don't worry,” Rosalind said, her eyes glistening, “I won't tell 'er about our lit'le conversation.”

“I'm...I'm learning how to make bombs, and how to utilize them,” Fikri said quietly, knowing that of the two, he was definitely the weaker. But, he was going to learn. He could be useful like Atrix, and he would, once Riola taught him everything. He'd work so hard, he'd show them. “I'll keep as many secrets as I need to not make enemies,” Fikri said with a shrug, “And Hyun has already made her distaste for me more than apparent. As far as I'm concerned, if I don't see something has it, I'll be as confounded as everyone else on board.” It wasn't that he wanted to see Hyun dead; he didn't. But she was not on the list of those he was willing to die for, and as far as he was concerned, it wasn't looking likely that she was vying to get on the list. He knew his place and his limits, and while he'd be constantly pushing for wider limits, he was not going to stray too far from them.

Fikri took the pistol in his hands, turning it over all the while being sure not to let the barrel point in Atrix's direction. The metal was cold, heavier than expected in hands too. In his hands, a containment of energy waiting to be released was bottled up, shaken, and ready to burst from the top should the trigger be pulled. He looked from the gun back to Atrix, craning his head upwards in order to make eye contact, “Th-thank you...I will. I won't let you, or Rosie, down.” Here, he offered Atrix the sort of smile that wasn't actually a happy one, but wasn't fake or malicious either. It was the smile of a man who was emotionally drained, one who would never catch a break. “Then let's get to it, she probably needs it, yeah?”

He holstered the pistol reminding himself to check some holo-vids on care and maybe some tips on firing and aiming later. Lacing his finger around the three handles he made his way to the cockpit, offering that same smile to the Pyra and the Felis sitting there when he arrived. “I brought coffee. Nokra, if you're going to be a pilot, you may as well get used to the stuff if you're not used to it enough already.”

Rosalind held out her hands, offering Fikri a grateful grin, “Thanks, Fiks. Hey, Atrix, how's it looking in the back? Are Shaldag and the princess stable, do you know?”

[BlueInTheShell]

Riola forced himself not to burst out laughing at the sapphire-haired princess, and just kept on the most neutral, statuesque look he could muster while she began to cough and sputter from her first inhalation. The poor girl was looking more and more akin to someone similar who couldn't catch a damned break it seemed, and Riola found himself raising a brow at his own thoughts. He was more like this chica than he wanted to admit. Young, and naive enough to land themselves into trouble. Maybe being the girl's friend would do wonders for introspection on himself, and the Edensian moved over to make sure the girl's lungs weren't crashing and collapsing...Or crushing. Whatever lungs did when they went wrong. He wasn't too certain. "You're alright chica. Bit of a huge drag for a newbi-."

It all happened in the blink of an eye, and between Mendez dropping to his knees, the wounding man springing an arm to life in an attempt to crush the poor Half-Edensian's throat, and Hyun an ounce of compassion towards someone other than her crew, and Riola found himself lost among a sea of chaos. As soon as the commotion began, it retreated and Riola moved over towards Mendez, making sure he was still breathing and dropping to a crouch while he examined Mendez's neck. "Puta madre. Fuck, you're still alive, good. Should probably steer clear of him. Both of us. Man got attacked by Edensians. For all he knows, we're trying to kill him." He said, frowning and glancing back at the wounded Ogrunu. Whatever they did to him, it was something awful, and Riola didn't wanna know. He was already carrying the burden of Fikri's lover on his shoulders. Another body, and he wasn't sure if he could continue.

Hyun's attention loomed over Magali; the Chuzizian's look stern and frustrated. Her tapping foot moved faster and magenta-colored hands gripped into the fabric of the coat while Magali began to explain herself and where the wounds were the worst - Her little bouts of information saving her from being the target of aggravation relief. Her glare hounded Magali like a hawk, until she had left the room; leaving her and the Edensians, along with Ashi, alone. Everything began to swim into effect and exhaustion began to replace the adrenaline surging through her body. Hyun felt aged into oblivion, and haunching over a bit, itched the side of her face only for both hands to move upwards to tie the hair tendrils behind her ears in a makeshift ponytail.

Riola hung an arm along Mendez and let him use him like a brace if needed, the Edensian nodding in unison with the spider-lover's words. "Last thing we need is another wounded person on the ship, because Shaldag decided to strangle the life out of us, chica." There was an uncomfortable silence in the air as Hyun ignored the two and went to work moving over and assisting with Shaldag herself, the Chuzizian looking aged and tired while she began to help him herself, Hyun-chu looking back towards them finally and sighing. "Gimme 5 minutes to talk to Shaldag alone. Then have the Felis in here. Both of them. The girl and Fikri." RIola nodded slowly and moved to help Mendez out of the room, to leave them to their privacy.

"I asked her not to tell me about it. Didn't wanna know what they did. All I could see was the shit afterwards. Her cleaning herself, and our masters fixing any...Damage...To their property." Nokra hissed, ears floding backwards and the hair along his tail standing on end. It was worse to see the effects than having to endure anything that he did manage to see. And he had seem some demeaning, heinous things done to the girl. But Rosalind was right and just in her side of the conversation. The duo had a chance now, and only the mention of going into hyper space tore him from the conversation at hand, Nokra spinning a full circle in his chair before leaving it facing the cockpit's window; Nokra turning his head back towards the Pyra when he realized they were still mid-conversation. "Hey...Thanks for not telling her about this. I really appreciate. People who can keep a secret are super important to me. They helped out a lot when I was pit-fighting monsters. Poisoned some of the stuff I used. Big no-no, but it kept me alive."

Atrix could sense more in that smile. She had seem that drained, hollowed look from a lot of the other bounty hunters she had worked with in the past, and some of the mercenaries who had her in their employment as well. Though Fikri was far from any sort of warrior. The wear and tear from just the past couple of weeks was enough to leave the poor kid with a Thousand-mile Stare that would make him look like any run of the mill military grunt. he was no Warrior-Caste. And he didn't deserve the small bits of combat he had seen. She returned the smile with a stern look and a firm, deliberate nod; mandibles clicking together before she shrugged a shoulder. "Bombs. One slip and you lose your limbs. And you only have four of them." She said cautiously, letting the danger sink into his mind. Her mind veered from the topics of Hyun and his own weakness. In that tired state of mental exhaustion, Atrix couldn't help but smile and lean in close for a second. "You have the hunger. Hunger of a warrior. Is her death driving you to this?" She asked, crossing her legs first, and then her arms.

One she had her limbs crossed, the Terskix moved her lower limbs and rubbed lesser hands together. "Vengeance is a dangerous path. I fight and kill because it's how I make a living. You're going to murder simply because you're angry. Be careful in what you do. Human saying my husband was fond of: Someone burdened by bloodguilt will be a fugitive of their actions until death." Atrix mentioned, finally stirring back into action when Fikri began to deliver the coffee.

Atrix found herself in the cockpit of the new ship, and watched on as the new Felis, Rosalind and Fikri began to enjoy their dirt-water; Atrix speaking up when Rosalind began to ask her questions. "The princess is being tended to by Riola. The Edensian can stitch people back together well enough. He's done it for me." Atrix replied, shrugging a shoulder. "I have a feeling Ogrunu is going to be feeding me if we don't get there soon, in response to the other."

[sylvanSpider]

Riola's suppressed smile went well over Ashi's head as she recovered from the drag. Tears began to collect in the corners of her eyes and she groaned only to have a bubble of smoke creep back up her throat and poofing outside her slightly parted lips. The princess looked and felt utterly terrible. There was no chance for her to respond to Riola's attempt at comforting words when Shaldag turned on Mendez. He understood, of course, the man was a fountain of patience (she supposed he had to be, considering his choice of a partner)--so he bore no ill will against the man. She could see it on his face. He was bewildered, yes, but not angry.

“I'm alright,” Mendez croaked, “I'm fine; it's fine.” The half-Edensian's face said otherwise, however, and he gladly took to Riola's offer of his shoulder as the pair made it out of the room before their accents and hair could set the man off again. Riola was bound to be the next target if he made the mistake of getting within arm's reach of the Ogrunu. When they were safely situated outside in the common room, Mendez laughed, “Atrix'll be upset if that leaves a mark, won't she hermano?” He sighed, “I'm hoping the mental scares don't last beyond the Pools. It's gonna be one helluva fuckin' journey if they don't...”

Rosalind kept her mouth shut, nodding when she was supposed to but swallowed some spit that had gathered at the back of her throat. The felis truly led miserable lives. Damage to their property, as if these living, sentient beings could properly be owned by anyone. Then, they quite literally were. They were humanoid cargo, meant to serve their purpose and fixed...to serve that purpose. If she tried, she could almost imagine the misery that Magali felt when she needed to clean up in front of Nokra, the shame. Or for Nokra to see. The life was beyond her reckoning. As far as backstories went, Rosalind had a fairly happy one. Sure, she had a failed engagement and her father died, but her father wasn't murdered, and she'd had a great upbringing. Magali and Nokra? Shit, Fikri too...They all were raised believing that they were only worth as much as someone paid for them, and treated like far less than that. And Nokra was a fighter on top of that. His life would have been no walk in the park by itself. “Yer secrets good wit' me,” she said, eyes glinting in sincerity. “So long as ye live, some poisoned stuff is fine by me.

Fikri could feel Atrix's eyes on him, but he looked down shifting his weight. His ears were still pressed against his head as she assessed him but he managed to keep eye contact. Something told him that the usual expectations of his old masters were the exact opposite of what someone like Atrix would respect. “I...am aware of the risks,” Fikri said, cautiously, but not without appreciation, “I've decided to take them. Besides, my hobbies include delicate work. I have experience with that, at least. I know it's different, but I'm hoping that skill will carry over. And if it doesn't and I end up killing myself in the process, then I guess I'll be meeting Vail sooner than anticipated. It's all the same to me.” Fikri gave the Terskix a nonchalant shrug, his ears giving a bit of an involuntary twitch. “What's driving me to do this? Sure, Vail's death is part of it. I found out what love means because of that woman, and to have her stripped from me like a blanket when you're not quite ready to wake up? It's unbearable, and I will have vengeance or die trying...But,” Fikri paused for a moment as he gathered his thoughts, his ears rising from their flattened position, “But I'm going to fight for more than that. I'll fight for Rosie, you, Riola, Mendez...I'm going to fight for the living as well. And you can bet your ass I'll be giving it my all.” As he made his manifesto, his hands drifted down to the gun at his hip, feeling the cool feel of the metal under his fingertips. It was heavy, heavier than expected anyway, and lethal by nature. He would be making use of it sooner rather than later, and he knew it.

Magali shrunk back, not immune to Hyun's glare boring into her core. The sight was pathetic, but one suited to a near albino felis covered in blood not her own. Every emotion that she felt was clearly readable in more than just her face, but her ears and tail as well. She never had a reason to pretend to be strong—most liked them weak, so Magali in her job didn't need to change a thing. This timidity, this weakness, it was not only a part of Magali but it had been fostered, cultivated to make the perfect, obedient slave. It was no wonder she survived as long as she did; she was precious. “I'll—I'll relay the message,” she whimpered, her tail dangling behind her resembling a limp, furry noodle. She backed out of the room, closing the door behind her and breathed. The air in there was tense, and stepping into the common room felt to her like swimming to the surface for air. Her eyes drifted to a digital reading of the time, conveniently located by the door lock that led outside the ship. Five minutes. She'd be watching to make sure that it was five minutes, no more, no less—unless Hyun asked for otherwise. She nodded to herself, resolutely, and made her way to the cockpit.

Rosalind sipped at her coffee to test the temperature, then tipped the mug back taking a larger swig and sighed contently, “Ah, et's just the way ah like it, thank ye.”

Fikri offered Rosalind that smile he'd given Atrix earlier, and though Rosalind noticed it didn't comment, “Anytime, Rosie. Do you have an ETA yet?” She wondered if she'd ever see a real smile on the Felis's face ever again.

“Aye, we're about t'enter 'yperspeed. The gravity es fixed in this ship, so ye don't 'ave t'worry 'bout 'angin' on, but be wary of et,” Rosalind said, flicking a switch above her and grabbing a mic, “'Tention all passengers, we're enterin' 'yperdrive, so brace yerselves!” The voice was heard throughout the ship, and outside the cockpit, Magali quickly found a wall to hang onto, not knowing any better, bracing herself against it and slowly making her way to the cockpit. Now off the loudspeaker, the Pyra turned to Fikri, “We've got about ten minutes before enterin' the grav'tation'l pull, an' five more on that t'land.”

As the words were uttered, Magali appeared, and those in the cockpit turned to stare at her in horror. From head to toe red stained the normally white bodice and hair and fur. It was thickest around her hands, and she looked more like someone who had just committed a murder than someone who was trying to save another's life, “I'm... I'm sorry, but Fikri, in three...” she stopped to look at one of the screens, “...and a half minutes, we need to go back to tend to the princess and Shaldag. They are worse for the wear, but for the next three...” she paused looking back at the screen, “yes, three minutes, we need you to help. Are you...are you willing?” The last bit came out cracked as the realization that he might say no crept into her consciousness and a great relief was met with the answer.

“Sure thing, Magali,” his face was anything but reassuring as he raked over the blood-soaked woman with nervous, wide eyes.

Magali sighed and grinned, “Thank goodness. Uhm, we should probably head there soon. You said fifteen minutes, Rosalind?”

“Aye.”

[BlueInTheShell]

Once out of the room, Riola peeked back to make sure for some reason the Ogrunu wasn't out of his bed and chasing him down, before taking his steps just a bit slower. After all, the man looked like something out of a war film, and the fact he was still capable of crushing them with one functioning arm and his clinging to life? Riola wouldn't have been surprised if he was capable of jumping up and murdering them both. "People don't get their throats crushed by a metal man and jump around saying their fine, normally. Loco-ass hermano." Riola said with a small chuckle, before looking down the hall of the ship and shrugging his own shoulder. "She'll probably be jealous Shaldag got to leave a lasting mark on you instead of her. Providing she hasn't already. Don't tell me or show me. Don't wanna know what you two do in the bedroom, comprende?" Riola moved over to one of the walls along the corridor and let Mendez take hold of them, before Riola itched his forehead, looking towards Mendez with a rather exhausted look.

"At best, he's coming out with a newly found outlook on how terrible the chicas running the planet are. At worst? He murders every redhead he sees from now on. I'm banking on the fact the Ogrunu is just in shock and delirious. Don't know how Hyun is gonna handle it. Those two seem pretty fucking close." He added, brushing his hands through his hair and then kicking at the ground. "You ever get the feeling like all these people get hurt because of us? I mean, it seems like I get into trouble just for being able to piss standing up sometimes..."

The three in the medbay had some time to themselves, and Hyun seemed to look back and forth between the two, her age finally setting in and the Chuzizian looking something more akin to a mother eyeing her two sick, wounded children; her maternal glances finally stopping as she locked bright eyes onto Ashi and moved to loom over her for the time being. "Well, at least we made it. And the pools are the next stop. Just gotta sit here in pain for a little bit, right? Nothing too bad." Hyun sighed, chuckling and slowly shaking her head, before planting a small, gentle kiss on the Daoweian's forehead, letting cold, slightly tingling lips linger there for as long as she could get away with, and then pulling away. "You should consider getting some rest, Ashi. You look tired as fuck, and I can stay up and keep tabs on Shaldag for now." She said, crossing her arms and looking over towards the Ogrunu - Hyun bringing up her hand and chewing on her fingernails.

"You take some assholes for granted, and you know you do, and now you end up watching them fight for their life. If he bites the fucking bullet, I'm all alone. Save you of course, but it's different with him. I guess...Shal's like a fuckin' security blanket sometimes." Hyun mused outloud, squatting and pressing herself against Ashi's cot. "...I don't want him to die. I don't want you two to die. This gang shit is over if we can get away clean from this all."

"I mean, I wouldn't poison you lot, if that's what you're thinking. I just. Fuck. Well, I don't really know how exactly to say what I mean." Nokra said, forcing out a nervous chuckle while he itched both of his ears with each hand; his legs kicking like a child's. Small talk seemed to be what was coming next between the two, and Nokra sucked his teeth. Chatting about mundane things was something he never really...Learned? If one could say they learned how to banter? The most the Felis had ever gotten in lieu of a conversation with someone who wasn't a slave was orders and drills on how to put something sharp into a point in a humanoid's body to render them inert.

The Terskix seemed to be silent and nodded slowly, understandably, at each sentence the Felis had been producing. Bomb-making was delicate work. The warrior-caste could testify to that every round of training when they were fed the limbs of those who had failed miserably in their duties to learning to serve the Empire, and Atrix blinked each set slowly, the previous set of eyes opening up only when the other set after was closed. "You keep talking about killing other people. And meeting Vail. Are you aware of what a bomb does? Not how it works. Anyone can explain what a bomb's purpose is for. I'm talking about the aftermath. They aren't subtle. They don't care about who is in the way. As you other humanoids like to call it. Civilians, you will be taking their lives too if it goes right. I simply ask because for someone who is so longing to see Vail. You do not see the fact that you will be doing to others what the Edensians did to you." Atrix warned, before shrugging a shoulder and clicking her mandibles, and chuckling to herself. "Don't fight for me. I am strong enough on my own. Rosalind is strong. Everyone here is strong. Fight for yourself mostly. Not to sound rude. But if you try and help us all, you'll get yourself killed. People need to stand for themselves."

Coffee in hand, Nokra took his mug and slurped it down in nearly one whole gulp, ignoring the burn and fighting as hard as he could to avoid sputtering and spitting out the hot liquid, before sighing and twitching his tail back and force like a furious little pendelum. "Whoa man. This is gonna keep me up. My tail's already going a mile a minute." He mentioned, offering Fikri a small nod in thanks, and keeping himself tucked in as hard as he could into his own seat when he noticed the Terskix had followed as well. "How did you guys find the spider-girl?" He finally blurted out, Atrix blinking a few times at the sudden mention of herself; Atrix moving over to shadow the Felis in his seat from behind.

"Rosalind hired me to eat people who ask too many irritating questions."

"O-oh..." Nokra muttered, shirking back as the tips of fur on his ears stood on end; bravery only returning when Magali entered the cockpit - Nokra sitting back up and looking at the blood-soaked Felis, and folding his ears back. Whatever hell the Ogrunu went through was splattered all over Magali, and Nokra fought the nearly irresistable urge to run over and try and clean her up.

Atrix looked at the blood-soaked Magali - A lower limb reaching out and swiping a finger across one of her crimson-coated cheeks, the Terskix planting the red on her tongue and sucking her finger. That's what an Ogrunu tasted like. Terrible.

"I hope we're fast enough." Atrix replied solemnly.

[sylvanSpider]

Mendez rubbed his neck as if needing the reminder that he'd just almost been choked to death. A hand-shaped ring of pain circled his neck, pulsing, pulsing. He'd bruise, and it would only hurt more from there. Shit, maybe he could take a dip in the pools himself. He smirked, wanting to say something along the lines of practice, but rolled his eyes instead, “I'll keep the details to myself, hermano. Nothing you wouldn't expect, and we'll leave it at that.” Mendez stopped seeing the exhaustion in Riola's eyes. It'd been a while since either of them rested, and Mendez hoped that the trip to the pools might ease that. Not all of them were meant for medicinal purposes; some were more luxurious and spa-like. He knew they had the money, and he wondered if they would take the chance to relax a bit as well. Might relieve some tension on the ship.

“Eh, if that happens we can just dye our hair. I think your Rosa would be safe though – she looks different enough from us that he'd be able to disassociate...ehm, maybe. Unless it's a color triggered thing, but I thought that it wasn't an Edensian that attacked, si? It was that faceless thing?” Mendez asked. He knew that the effects of PTSD were very real, but he didn't know how it worked. There was nothing ever that triggered that for him. As far as Mendez was concerned, Atrix was the most exciting thing that had ever happened to him. If anything were to give him PTSD, it'd be her. “SÃ*...” Mendez said after a moment, “SÃ*, I do. But every time I remind myself that we're all here willingly. We're being hunted, and we all chose to be seen together. So, as far as I'm concerned, we're in this shit together. We've gotta help each other now.” Even as he said this, doubt tinged on the outside of his voice. If he was putting everything together correctly, between their party, they had both the Daoweian and Edensian governments on them. There were likely hitmen at best, if not, entire armadas. The best they could hope for, until they got allies anyway, was to keep away – keep running until they couldn't run anymore.

=-=-=

Ashi's eyes stayed locked on the ceiling, forcing herself to focus on her breathing. Inhale...exhale...inhale After all, that is what they taught, wasn't it? Deep steady breaths...She was forced back into reality when Hyun's form moved in her periphery, and her eyes honed in on her as something else to focus on. Breathing in once more, she mustered a smile, “Yeah... almost there. If attention has to be decided, give it to Shal first. I can wait; I don't think he can,” Ashi nodded several times, as if convincing herself as well, and attempted to shift into comfort only to hiss, pain jolting through her body and...falling right back into the position she was previously. Nope, not trying that again...

Air rushed into Ashi's lungs, heart catching in her throat as she felt those cold lips on her overheating forehead. Hyun was a natural icepack, working more effectively than even than the most soothing herbal salve. “I'll...rest,” she assented, “Once we get there. We're almost there, right? I can make it then...I'll make it.” There was something about knowing that she would make it. She was bleeding, probably both internally and externally, but her breathing was clear, her heart didn't seem to be beating too fast. She just had to stay calm until they made it. But the pain, how it was escalating! Focus on Hyun, focus on her beauty, she likes you enough to call you her girlfriend...If not for you, at least for her...

“I...I know. I don't want him to die either... we'll make it, he'll make it. His will to survive is strong, and you know that means he will. We're almost there; he just needs to hold on, just a...just a little longer,” Ashi said, swallowing some spit that had gathered at the back of her throat. Her good hand shifted to rest on Hyun's shoulder, feeling her cold seep through her clothes and into her clothes, “What are we going to do if there's no gang? Run away somewhere? Is there anywhere we can go that they won't find me?” Ashi asked, accidentally letting her pessimistic side out some. She closed her eyes, “...Sorry. There's... there's got to be somewhere he won't look. I know it. Someday he'll have to give up, he'll lose patience and when he sees I intend to lay low, he'll stop wasting resources... if I know him at all.”

=-=-=-=-=

Rosalind turned and grinned at Nokra after taking a long swig from her coffee. It was only slightly too hot, just the way Rosalind liked it, “Alright, Nokra, ye watchin'? The levers I'm pullin' now are bringin' in the wings. T'enter 'yperspeed, et's best not t'ave a buncha friction...” She fell into explaining every little things her hands were doing, every little detail on the screens that were important, the ideal numbers to hit, and just like that the stars began to blend together. It was here that Fikri tuned out, if only for a moment. The Terxix had given him plenty to think about, like he didn't have enough on his mind already. You do not see the fact that you will be doing to others what the Edensians did to you... He shook his head and shifted his weight, from one leg to the other. He didn't bother to correct Atrix. In fact, he found her threat to be sort of funny despite his lack of smile.

Magali froze, allowing the Terskix to run a finger across her cheeks, only closing her eyes and breathing only when she felt she was no longer being touched. Almost instinctively, she looked up at the Terskix as if seeking her approval – a response that had been trained into her. Without looking to Fikri she said, “We should... uh, probably...probably head for the medbay...”