Isindyll: The Arc of Deep Space (Peregrine x J_"Kr

Pure reaction had saved Rhys from the hail of gunfire that had accompanied the opening of the doors. It wasn't as though such a phenomenon was unanticipated, but were it not for the bullet that had ripped through the door before it had even fully opened Rhys might not have guessed at the full ferocity waiting in the next room. Instead that single, over anticipated bullet, moving so fast that it was barely more than a blur of light and color, gave Rhys enough time to disappear behind a nearby wall as the soldiers began to empty their weapons. In the first lull, Rhys moved, hurtling through the doorway, slipping past and through a couple delayed shots, and clubbing the nearest Vollori over the head, following the suddenly limp form towards the ground as a brief moment of shelter before moving on to the next, and the next.

This was the last defense of the Empire, their last chance for salvation. The best of the best were here, and after a certain point, there was simply no keeping track of the soldiers as individuals. The only way to approach it was as individual limbs of some massive beast. More than half of them would fall, never to get back up again, because Rhys had not time to pull the blows and change it from something that would crush the skull to something that would render the target unconscious.

It was not until Rhys was more than halfway through the room that Captain Yolhn came into sight. Rhys had only caught a single, brief glimpse of the captain during that period of transfer, before the cell had closed in and drowned out all sense, but there was no forgetting that shillouette. Even among the Vollori Captains, Yolhn was a good looking man, the crest of his head adorned with rare double wings, and spines surrounding the rest of his face. His giant wings were folded up behind his back, but Rhys knew they could snap out in an instant and deliver just as powerful a blow as any fist. His eyes were cold, and hard as ice.

But he made the mistake of waiting, of letting his men press until there were none left, acting under the assumption that somehow his feelings of innate superiority would save him where nearly a hundred of his finest had thusfar failed. He made the mistake of waiting, and there was no way he could stand up against Rhys alone.

The Karthk'yarii gave him a chance, although it was little more than a pretense and a game. Yolhn was able to throw one blow, slicing with razor sharp points on his wings at the wrong spot, and hitting nothing but another mass of feelers, before Rhys had overwhelmed him. For the first time Rhys allowed a taste of pleasure to arise at the look of panic that grew in his eyes, the knowledge that he had miscalculated. That moment was worth all the torment, all the starvation and the abuse, that Rhys had suffered over the past Luner.

And then Yolhn was unconscious, joining the piles of his soldiers, and Rhys moved on.

"Isindyll, we need to..." Rhys froze, sensing the motion. There was someone still conscious within the room. Someone who had gotten back up. It was the only one in the room who was not a Vollori, and Rhys had misjudged the strength of its skull. It had a knife in one hand, a gun in the other. There was a moment of tense, hot silence, then Rhys'evin was moving.

The gunshot flew wide and wild, barely needing to be dodged, and Rhys was only moments away, a mass of feeler forming into a giant club that would be sure to be effective no matter how thick its skull was when...

"Rhys, no! Don't kill Nyarri!"

The Karthk'yarii had no such intent, had intended to hold to the promise given to Isindyll that death would only be given by strictest necessity for Rhys' own survival. A lone attacker would never drive such necessity. But Isindyll had not known that, had not known how dense her friend's skull was, and the kind of force it would take to render her unconscious. Rhys hesitated, unable to act against the sheer panic in Isindyll's voice. The feelers unraveled, and their form shattered apart upon contact, offering no damage. The knife fell, and there was a sudden, violent burst of pain as it sheered off nearly a quarter of Rhys' body. The lucky blow had finally come. It fell away, carrying thousands of feelers with it, and even though Rhys stopped moving the momentum of the attack hurtled the assassin into the soldier, knocking her over and burying her under thousands of feelers and white Karthk'yarii blood.

And the world went dark as Isindyll screamed.
 
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"Rhys, no! Don't kill Nyarri!"

It had come too late.

As Rhys'evin dove through the air, Nyarri had hefted her knife upward to do what damage she could before his tendrils, already shaped into that same spear as they had been so long ago. Mid-flight, the assassin unfurled into a mass of swinging feelers and passed harmlessly around Nyarri, but the damage had been done. The shock of the impact of the entire body, the force of flailing tendrils and tension developed in flight, had sent the marine sprawling backwards. Her blade came loose from her control and fell to the ground along with its owner and its target. White ichor poured from the injured assassin and the mass of feelers fell with a wet crunch to the ground around Nyarri.

Then Isindyll screamed. It was an ear-piercing, bloodcurdling scream born of no natural tongue. The shriek sent the floor beneath Nyarri rumbling and the lights overhead flickering with its power. Ears ringing, vision swimming, she attempted to rise to her feet, but the weight of the dying mass of flesh atop her kept her pinned to the ground. Nyarri let out a sharp curse, but it was drowned out by the ship.

Before Nyarri could do anything more, the rumbling grew to a pitched whine, and the walls began to move. They crawled in over the consoles and the chairs, pushing the unconscious forms of the marines towards the door of the bridge. Soon the walls were only inches away from Nyarri, but rather than grabbing and pushing her they flowed around her. Or, perhaps more accurately, they flowed around Rhys'evin. For a time, all she could see was the strange, grey, metallic tissue of the wall creating a tiny bubble around the two prone figures. Isindyll's scream of torment went on unabated.

The scream only came to an end when it was drowned out by the sound of a blaring klaxon from atop a logistics mainframe. It droned on for a good Quick before a shudder ran through the ship. When that came to an end Isindyll finally relaxed. The walls retreated to their original shape, and Isindyll's scream faded away to the sound of heartwrenching sobs.

"What did you do?" Nyarri spluttered out, unable to do much other than force her head from behind the limp weight pinning her down.

The sobs stuttered slightly, seeming to be taken by surprise at Nyarri's voice. The floor surged around her, gently extracting the marine from the wounded assassin. "I... I emptied me out."

The marine spouted incoherently for a moment, one word finally breaking through, "Where...?"

"The evacuation ships. I pushed everyone in them, and then opened the airlock. "R...Rhys was supposed to do it. But you... you stabbed him instead."

"Stabbed him?" Nyarri chuckled with manic laughter, "Clearly I have the reaction time to lower my knife when this comes hurdling at me! You didn't bother to tell him to stop until he was mid-flight!"

"Why did you do it? How could you stab him?"

"I wasn't even going to hit him! He was going to skewer me right to the ground before I could do anything. You asked him to stop, so he unraveled from that spear and.." Nyarri made a slicing movement through the air with an empty hand, "there he went..."

They were both in shock, but now that the ship was silent and empty, floating through space, Isindyll seemed to begin to recover. "He wasn't going to kill you!" she spat, voice suddenly full of fury. "He promised me he wouldn't kill anyone if he didn't have to, and I forgot."

"I had a weapon..." Nyarri retorted, "I was a threat. If you didn't want him harmed, you should have let him kill me. There was no possibility of me hurting him if he would have been going for a kill. This is your fault."

"My fault?! My fault for wanting to protect you? My fault for thinking you were my friend? Well, I guess that is my fault. My mistake."

When the marine next spoke, her voice was flat, emotionless, "Go tend to your friend's wounds. If you don't need me around anymore, I'll know it."

Isindyll let out a faint noise of distress at the implication in Nyarri's words, but did not otherwise respond. Rather, she enveloped Rhys'evin in an organic mass not unlike his previous cell and dragged him out of the room. The marine teetered over to the nearest officer's chair and sank gratefully into it, facing away from the door. Nyarri would go along willingly enough with the ship and her obsessive protection of the killer. She would play her part and, if ever the criminal would recover, take her nearest opportunity to see to it that he remain lost in the Void. If Rhys'evin perished, Nyarri knew she would last no longer than the time it took for Isindyll to realize the thing had let out its last breath.

So she would play the willing assistant. The legitimacy to a space-bound organism and its dangerous cargo. The disciplined soldier to the ruthless killer. Eventually the ship would need to settle onto a planet so that her crew might replenish supplies and gain a bearing of the wide Void. And when they did, she would finish what the Empire had started more efficiently than they ever could. In their arrogance and drive for proper justice, they had allowed a ship's crew to fall victim to its greatest killer. No matter: the marine was the executioner now. No authorities to respond to, no consequences for her actions. She would return a hero, leaving Isindyll in the Void to mourn.
 
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The world was composed of blinding heat and freezing cold, trading places, swirling around each other in a dizzying vortex that made it impossible to know what was coming, how to prepare, how to fight. Everything was darkness, a shadowed mass that pressed away anything else. Rhys'evin knew that shadow. It was the face of death, pushing in closer, trying to smother that spark of existence that somehow defined life. What Rhys'evin didn't know, couldn't begin to guess at, was why death had yet to succeed in its effort. The world of consciousness was too far removed to comprehend, and all that was left was pain, and a blurry certainty that nearly a quarter of Rhys was missing. But Rhys still clung to life desperately, even through the pain and the smothering darkness.

There was no telling how much time had passed when the shadow finally lifted away, leaving Rhys curled up in a soft depression in the floor, incredibly weak but whole once more. It took a lot of slow, careful probing into past memories for Rhys to remember what exactly had occurred. Isindyll had begged for the life of a soldier. Nyarri. The soldier that she had spoken to Rhys about, and had somehow grown fond of. And then Nyarri's knife had nearly cleaved Rhys in half.

"R...Rhys?" came a soft, stuttering, tear-stained voice. Rhys tried to drag himself back up into further consciousness.

"Isindyll? Is that you?"

"Oh, Rhys! I th..." she sniffed. Somewhat abstractly, Rhys wondered if Isindyll really could cry, or if these verbal, and very Vollori, ticks were done to bring her closer to the crew. "I thought you were doing to die!"

"I don't die that easy."

Isindyll was silent for a moment, seeming to reassure herself that Rhys really was alive, and didn't plan on dying any time soon. "Why did you lie to me?"

Normally Rhys was very good at following Isindyll's changes in conversation. They were hardly logical, but they were always things that were brought about by something else, usually something else occurring on the ship that caught her attention. Perhaps it was the fact that Rhys had just been injured and had even more recently woken from an indefinitely long sleep, but this change in conversation seemed impossible to follow. "I'm sorry, Isindyll. I don't get it. What lie did I tell."

"You said that, if it would end up hurting or killing you, you would kill rather than incapacitate anyone on this ship. You said you would put your life above anyone elses. Why... why didn't you kill Nyarri?"

Why hadn't Rhys killed Nyarri? In the end, the answer to that was quite simple. "You asked me not to."

"But why... why would you listen?"

"Tribes on Home were very small, close knit groups."

"Don't change the..."

"Isindyll."

"Sorry."

"It's my instinct, the instinct of all Karthk'yarii to protect tribe. I don't think we could have survived as a species without that. And you... you are tribe now. Which means your words have equal weight, your life has equal value, and you desires are of equal import as my own."

"That's a really stupid way for an assassin to think."

"I suppose so. It hadn't mattered up until now."

"Why?"

"My tribe died. I left them far behind."

It was many Delens later that Rhys finally gained the strength to stand. At first it was simply as a mass of writing feelers, a loose comfortable form that was ill-suited to anything but rest. Slowly, though, they began to weave together. Legs emerged first, followed by a heavy, strong chest, two arms, and a head. Giant, bat like wings formed on Rhys' back, and the two fins that visibly marked Vollori men formed on the brow. The feelers tightened. The form solidified.

"R...Rhys? Is that you?"

"Yes, Isindyll."

"You look like Yolhn."

"That's about right. Not him specifically, but a Vollori Captain."

"Why are you doing that?"

"I figure it is about time I have a conversation with this Nyarri of yours."

"She's not mine!"

"Isn't she, though? You were the one who wanted to spare her life."

"I didn't think she'd hurt you, though. And I didn't think you'd actually stop..."

"That's alright. Will you guide me to her, and then let us have a private conversation? I'm going to need a uniform as well."

"There's one in Yolhn's room."

Several Quicks later, Rhys was walking down the hallway, stretching the... stretching his arms experimentally. The uniform was an odd sensation after so long without form, and it was undoubtedly going to take some getting used to.

"Nyarri's in here."

"Thank you, Isindyll."

When he pulled on the door there was the faint sound of something releasing, before it slid over to the side. The soldier was in the room, sprawled out on the bed.

"Isindyll seems to have taken a liking to you," Rhys began without preamble.
 
Three solors had stretched by as Nyarri remained condemned to her quarters. In that time, she had shared brief, meaningless discussions with Isindyll. The earlier, if inconsistent, Isindyll was all but gone, leaving in its place a creature prone to short, harsh remarks and unannounced farewells. Regardless, communication was progress, if slow progress, and Nyarri had found little else to do alone in a room that had never felt so constricting.

Well into the fourth solor of her confinement, once again in a lapse of interaction with Isindyll, Nyarri found herself lying once again upon the bed, unresponsive and immobile. So lost in the trance, Nyarri had failed to note the door unlocking and sliding open until a uniformed figure strode calmly through it.

"Isindyll seems to have taken a liking to you." Was she dreaming? Was this a figment of her imagination?

"Likewise to you," the marine retorted, harsher than she had intended, "Why are you here? Here to gloat?"

"I have no reason to gloat, especially not to you."

"Humble as you are skilled," Nyarri snorted.

"I figured, since you are still a passenger of this ship, we should speak."

"We don't have much of a reason to, unless you're here for some specific reason. Not in the mood for small talk."

"I would assume not, yet, unless you wish to remain confined indefinitely, we must. May I come in?"

Did she have a choice? "Might as well."

Rhys moved in slowly, before taking a seat on a chair near the door. "What do you expect to have happen with you?"

Nyarri rose to sit upright, rolling her shoulders as she spoke, "I expected to be killed or forced out with the rest of the guards. This was a pleasant surprise."

"That didn't answer the question."

"Was it the tense? My expectations haven't changed. You and Isindyll may keep me here with enough food and water to live, but that doesn't stop you from marooning me on some hostile world or branding me a traitor. With that disguise, people won't think twice about following your word."

"Perhaps I should rephrase then. What do you want to have happen with you?"

"I'm in no position to make demands," Nyarri paused, feeling the 'that didn't answer my question' looming overhead, "but ideally I would like to be left off at the closest Imperial planet and we go our separate ways. No need to continue this. You can't do that, of course. There's always the risk you'll find yourself on the face of every wanted list on every cruiser out there. Might even form active parties to search you out if I say the word to the right person. Begs the question: how do we proceed? I pose a problem."

"Yes. It does pose a problem, and it wasn't one I was planning on dealing with in the first place. Yet it has become a necessity at this point. We both have a vested intrest in the outcome."

"Perhaps I could offer legitimacy to this ship. Though you're skilled, you aren't, to my knowledge, versed in standard military language, correct? I have no reason to sit here and waste away and you can't let me out of sight, this is a compromise."

"And yet, somehow I can't help but doubt a marine who makes an offer to assist a wanted fugitive."

"You will be stopped at the first patrol you hit. Don't you want to have some chance of a payoff? That someone who hired you's still out there, probably within the confines of Imperial space based off the target. As is, you'll get a tightbeam message at a thousand kilometers, fail to respond correctly to their security tests, and be blown away. You'll take whatever ship you're locked in combat with down with you, but you're no use in space. Your skillset doesn't take your power out in the Void."

"Oh, I never said I don't need you. Most likely I do, assuming, of course, that myself and Isindyll couldn't plot a course that would avoid any contact. What I said is I don't trust you. Would it not make more sense for you to purposefully mess up the message to alert them to the situation, so that they could send a whole fleet our way?"

"And die in the process myself? Unlikely. They won't send a boarding party onto a ship most marines are unfamilar with. Particularly one with a vast interest in keeping the trained assassin on board alive at all costs. They'll make sure Isindyll's converted to her sub-atomic particles, regardless of who's on board."

Rhys was silent for a long while.

"I have no interest in fighting a fight I know I can't win. I've learned any interaction with you will end poorly if I'm on the opposite side," Nyarri added as one last attempt to sway the assassin's favor.

"It is not a permanent solution, but it is better than keeping you locked in here. Over time we will hopefully find something more lasting."

It wasn't ideal, it wasn't even a proper deal, but it was all the negotiations Nyarri could stomach. Her time spent to herself had only accounted for about this far into her argument, any further, and her logic would begin to crumble.

"We done here?"

"I suppose so. Let Isindyll know if you need anything, and we will do our best to accomodate. You are not exactly a welcome guest, but that's no reason for you to suffer needlessly."

Nyarri nodded, not bothering with a parting shot. She was alive, she had a chance of leaving the ship, and she was back on track with Isindyll. Matters could be worse.
 
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“Rhys?”

“Yes, Isindyll.”

“Now that you are awake, and know what you are doing with Nyarri, can you help me with something?”

“Of course. What's the matter?”

“Can you figure out how to turn off the alarm? It is giving me a headache.”

Rhys did a bit of a double take. “Alarm? What alarm?”

“That alarm they set off when I let you out.” A small part of the ceiling writhed, and, faintly, the sound of the klaxon could be heard. It was quickly stifled again. Now that Rhys knew what to be listening for, it was just possible to make out the very, very faint sound, cleverly muffled by Isindyll but still present. “I'd really like it off.”

“You can't just... turn it off?”

Isindyll let out a frustrated whine. “No! I've tried everything I can think of. I never knew there were parts attacked to me that I couldn't control. I don't like it, Rhys.”

“I wouldn't either,” the assassin agreed. “We will start by figuring out how to turn it off, and once we've got that taken care of we'll figure out how to connect you to it and anything else that might be outside your current control.”

Naturally, their first stop was the bridge. Rhys went through the space meticulously with Isindyll, going over every contact plate, touch screen, and holographic projection. Almost exclusively, everything in there was simply a translation for pilots used to the controls of a mechanical ship, as a way to let Isindyll know what they wanted or needed. For a brief moment they were distracted as Isindyll told a short story about her time back in the bunker with all the Uetie scientists, and how they had set up a scenario to show her why she must always trust the guidance of her pilot or pilots.

Halfway through they found a carefully concealed and protected button, which Isindyll quietly reported was a last resort override system, to force her to obey any commands given from the consoles on the bridge.

“Yolhn triggered it when the alarm sounded. I found a way to override it, though. When Nyarri cut you. I'm not quite sure how.” Rhys tore out the button anyways, following the cable back to its source to permanently disable it.

Well over two Delens later, Rhys and Isindyll had gone through every possible option on every control in the bridge, and, while Rhys now understood the system a lot better, they were no closer to finding a way to turn off the alarm. Isindyll made a noise of frustration.

They wandered their way through the ship, Isindyll guiding Rhys to each of the major points where it was possible for people to interact with her through something other than voice. Once again Rhys learned more, but there was still nothing that resembled a kill command for the alarm.

“We must be missing something,” Rhys said, sliding down against Isindyll's wall, the distinct wings of the Vollori captain dissolving into a mass of feelers and folding into the body.

“But what?”

“I don't know. If I knew, we wouldn't be missing it.”

They were silent for a period, before Isindyll finally offered up a suggestion that Rhys had long been considering. “We could ask Nyarri.”

Nyarri. Despite the soldier's apparent cooperation, Rhys had no doubt that her willingness to help was nothing more than a temporary cease fire, and the battle between them would resume just as soon as she found a way that was, as she had put it, not a fight she couldn't win. All the same, there was no other solution for the moment, and Rhys had no choice but to go along with it.

Likewise, Rhys didn't think much of asking Nyarri for help. Isindyll had too many controls that Rhys just didn't understand, and giving Nyarri access to them, even if Isindyll was watching her, set the Karthk'yarii on edge.

“Rhys?”

But what other option was there? They had to find a way to turn this alarm off. “Yeah. Let's go ask Nyarri. You want me to come along?”

“Mmhmm.”

They found Nyarri in her room. For all she had claimed to desire freedom from her quarters, she didn't leave them very often.

"Nyarri?" Isindyll asked.

"Yes, Isindyll?" Nyarri sounded hopeful, as more often than not their discussions had been initiated by her, not the ship. Then she noted Rhys'evin hovering by the doorway and the hope withered away.

"We need help finding out how to turn off the alarm. Will you?"

"Thought it shut itself off by now," she paused, "Though I assume you have something to do with why I'm not hearing it?"

"I've muffled it, but I'd really like it off now."

"No one on board ever walked you through any of the mechanical components?"

"Some of them, but I never knew that alarm was there. And I can't turn it off." Now Isindyll sounded irritated, although whether at Nyarri or the scientists was unclear.

Sounding cautious, Nyarri adopted a softer tone, "Well, I'm sure the way to turn it off is wherever it was triggered. Have you tried looking at where Rhys was imprisoned?"

This time it was Rhys who responded. "There were no controls near my cell. The soldier who triggered it must have had some sort of remote activator. Did you ever get or see anything like that?"

"My commanding officer would have had one, not me. On a normal vessel, there would be a manual control on the bridge or in engineering. Doubtless, to avoid Isindyll tampering with systems they'd want to keep in crew control, there's either no off switch or we need to find one of those remote activators."

"There has to be an off switch," Rhys replied, quietly containing his irritation. "The alarm wouldn't just go on forever."

"As unappealing as it sounds, I believe we'll have to search every on board armory and crew quarter until we find a remote. I imagine you've checked the engineering bay, yes?"

"The engine bay, the bridge, the Captain's quarters and the research facility. There was nothing in any of them."

"Alright. Give me one pass of the bridge and then we'll look for one of those remotes, sound good?"

Rhys felt quite confident that Nyarri would not find anything in the bridge, what with how long and thoroughly they had gone over it before, but now was not really the moment to object. "If you think it would help."

"Then what are we waiting for?"

After they had arrived in the bridge, Nyarri had quickly made for the logistics console and began typing into it. Half a delen passed, Rhys watching uncomfortably, as she worked through various terminals. "None of these are prompting any of the higher functions," Nyarri stated, sliding through slide after slide of information, "there was a board with admin features on here when we launched. There's an access key for it, I know that, so that means Yolhn took it with him before he jumped ship. We can check around for it, now that you know what you're looking for, but I doubt we'll find it."

"How do we turn off the alarm if we can't find it?"

"Find someone else who does."
 
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One Solor after having assisted Rhys'evin and Isindyll, Nyarri had finally allowed herself to exit her quarters more often. Prior to offering legitimate aid, free of tampering with either the assassin or his vessel, she had felt that wandering through corridors and training would appear suspicious. Though no doubt Isindyll would be monitoring her at the first sign of her absence, Nyarri felt that Rhys'evin was as much a contender in her situation as the ship, if not more. It was Isindyll who would be more prone to over-playing Nyarri's actions than the assassin, she knew that much from her brief exchanges with him. With that limitation in mind, she had restricted herself to no more than one Delen out to three Delens in.

"Don't leave yet," Isindyll blurted out before Nyarri could finish tightening her boots to leave.

"Been learning my schedule better than I have again, have you?" Nyarri asked, falling back across her bed.

Isindyll ignored the attempted joke, "Why did you help us earlier?"

"I have no reason not to. One misstep and you'll doubt my use here, regardless of what Rhys said earlier."

"You go from telling me how little you think of Rhys to nearly killing him to helping him make his escape. Why?"

"I don't feel like repeating myself, Isindyll," Nyarri replied, beginning to rise once again. "Now if that's all you needed I'll-"

"No. I wanted to see if we could talk like we did before. I haven't talked to Rhys much, he's much more worried about what to do next, and I don't want to talk about that right now. I would be a bother anyways."

"What do you want to talk about, then?" Nyarri questioned, pausing to take off her boots and toss them aside: she wasn't going to get anything done if Isindyll wanted to talk.

"Do you miss anyone?"

"Anyone that you sent out?" It was a rhetorical question, but Isindyll interrupted Nyarri to answer regardless.

"Yes."

"I can't say if I really do. Units change fairly often. This was a new posting, so they were all new faces," Nyarri replied, slowly. It was only half a lie.

"So you don't mind what I did?" Isindyll sounded hopeful.

"I don't know whether or not it was the right call yet."

By the time Isindyll responded, Nyarri was well out the doorway, "Why not?"

"Ignoring the morality of what happened, you lacked an end goal. Rhys'evin is free now - did he tell you once what he plans to do?"

"No, but he said he has a plan. I trust him. He's already passed through the hardest part of it all, that's what he said."

Nyarri halted at that. Isindyll was right - escaping and fighting through an entire crew must have been the most difficult, sanity-consuming task the assassin must have undergone as part of the job. Even the assassination of a First Council member had preparation put behind it. Rhys'evin's fight to the bridge of Isindyll was a mad dash of instinct, reaction times, and faith in luck. If he had gone through that without a plan of what was to come, then he was more a fool than a legendary killer.

"Probably right," Nyarri stated dryly, "but I suppose he's kept that to himself?"

"Yes."

"I imagine we're on the way to find that key somewhere, though?"

"Yes," Isindyll said with more certainty.

That was something at the very least. No doubt Nyarri wouldn't be allowed anywhere within the bounds of that plan, but she could live with that. She had time to continue the process of establishing her credibility with Rhys'evin and Isindyll. Perhaps this next stop would not be the first time she could leave Isindyll. Perhaps not even the one after that, but she would have her chance.

Rhys'evin had utilized Isindyll to escape and combat an entire crew. Nyarri wagered now was her time to do the same.

"Then that's a start."
 
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It had taken Rhys well over a Delen of careful trial and error to bypass the safeguards on the communications terminal without compromising its security. It hadn't taken Rhys very long to realize who would have, or know who would have, the electronic key needed to shut off the alarm, but it was equally true that the Arak'un would happily turn over both Rhys and the ship if he thought there was some reward in it for him. Rhys couldn't risk their location being broadcasted while the call was made, even if they would likely be many solar systems away by the time Gin-Ei was actually able to put the information to use. Electronics were not Rhys strong suit, but after spending Revalars working with some of the best criminals in the galaxy it was impossible not to pick up a few tricks. Eventually things were rewired to Rhys' satisfaction.

“Isindyll?”

“Yes, Rhys?” She sounded very excited to be called, and Rhys suddenly realized with some shock that the assassin and the ship had barely spoken since the escape. There was a stab of guilt that this call wouldn't be any different.

“I need to contact an individual. He is... not a particularly trustworthy person, but we need him to turn that alarm off.”

“You want me to be quiet until the call is over?”

“If you don't mind.”

“I don't. It is okay for you to ask me that, Rhys.”

“Thank you. Once this is over we'll be able to get underway to our destination, and we will have a good Solor to talk before we get there, maybe more.”

“I'd like that.”

The call was picked up almost immediately, and a blandly grinning Arak'un female appeared in the air in front of Rhys'evin. The recorded woman began to speak.

“This is Pad-Wi's Impirial Emporium. None of our staff are currently available to come answer your call. If you know the staff number of the person you are trying to reach, please say it now. Otherwise, please remain on the line, and someone will assist you shortly.” Not true, as Rhys well knew. Pad-Wi's was a real company, but it was more a front than a legitimate business. To actually receive service you had to know someone who knew someone, and get a staff number. Remaining on hold would keep you there indefinitely. Or, if you knew someone who knew someone else, you could get a passcode to contact someone who could connect you to someone else.

Rhys'evin had been out of the loop long enough that the passcode would have changed a hundred times over. Luckily, there was a backup route.

“Messages.”

“Okay. I'll transfer you to the Emporium Message Center.”

The line beeped softly and repeatedly, showing it was trying to connect. It didn't take long.

“This is the Emporium Message Center. Please leave the name of the person you are trying to contact at the beginning of the message, and it will be transferred to their personal account.” The line let out a tri-tone note.

Rhys scratched casually at the side of the Arak'un face adopted for this call with one of the bimale's long nails. “Answer the call, Gin-Ei.” The line was picked up immediately by a very angry looking Arak'un.

Gin-Ei was a reddish-brown Arak'un, with a shock of bright yellow mane just starting to be stripped with the dark grey of old age. His copper eyes were narrowed in fury. “How many times do I have to tell you bach-go,” a uniquely Arak'un word, which loosely translated to 'something of such inferior quality an Arak'un wouldn't take even if it was free', “not to use that na...” Gin-Ei trailed off as he peered closely at the face projected in front of him and finally seemed to recognize who he was speaking to.

“I had to do something to get your attention, now didn't I?” Rhys replied casually.

“Rhys'evin? I thought you got grabbed by the Empire almost two Revalars ago now.”

“One and a half,” Rhys agreed. “I just got out.”

“Got out?” Gin-Ei repeated, flabbergasted. “After what you... You make it sound like you just walked out the front doors.”

“In a manner of speaking.”

Gin-Ei's eyes narrowed, glancing towards the bottom of the screen, where the location of the call was usually reported. All the Arak'un would get was a static feed. He looked back up. “Where are you, exactly?”

“I'd rather not be reported quite yet, thank you very much.”

The eyes promptly widened in a mock expression of innocence. “You wound me, Rhys. I simply figured the Disciples would like to know that their top assassin is roaming the stars once more.”

“You don't need my location to tell them that.”

“Well, you need to be picked up, don't you? Why else would you be calling.”

“I have transportation.”

“Really? What?”

Rhys ignored this. “Unfortunately, something I need to access is locked, and I need an electronic key to access it.”

“Wouldn't there be backups?”

Rhys' head shook. “This is the kind carried only by a Vollori Captain.”
A rather vicious grin crossed over Gin-Ei's face. “You took a military craft.” It wasn't a question.

Once again, Rhys continued as though the Arak'un's interruption had never happened. “Where can I get a replacement.”

“It will probably need to be special programmed, with the lock on site. Those keys aren't easy to forge, but I know a few people who would be able to pull it off. Where are you?”

Rhys' eyes narrowed, and Gin-Ei backpedaled quickly. “Nay, nay, precious one. They are scattered all over, and I need a general idea of your location to tell you where to go.”

Relenting, Rhys related the coordinates of a solar system that Isindyll had skirted around earlier that Solor. Gin-Ei tapped in the coordinates, before glancing up in surprise. “The Outskirts? I don't suppose you are going to tell me how you got all the way out there? No? Well, then.” He went back to work.

“I've got a Gnesp named Etsy who would be able to do the job, who's supposed to be somewhere within that area, to the 7th​ council. It's a roamer, never quite sure where it came from or where it's going. I'm sure that will suit your... needs well. Hopefully it hasn't changed it's tightbeam node recently...” Gin-Ei typed some more. “Nope. Looks good. Here's the information you'll need, since I'm sure you don't want me setting it up.”

“Thanks, Gin-Ei. Will you give me a couple Solors before you sell the news of my return?”

“Ah, fine. But just for you, Rhys.”

The line disconnected, and Rhys settled back into a nearby chair. “We should probably move again, Isindyll. Just to be safe.”

“Any particular direction?”

“Any should do. There's no telling whether or not Etsy would be in that direction.”

“So the call went well?”

“Yes. I'll set up a planet for meeting Etsy... soon. Then we'll get that alarm off.”
 
Nyarri had been pleasantly surprised to find that their destination had been selected without too much delay. When Isindyll relayed the news that, within one to two Solors they would be within range of arrival craft, the marine had begun preparations for planetfall. She had managed to scrounge up whatever gear had been left within her quarters and some in the training room, for her and Rhys'evin both (though she personally doubted he would need it). While Isindyll changed course and blazed across the Void, Nyarri had field-converted two MACs for easy concealment, stripped armor plates down to fit easily beneath plain clothes, and ruffled two nondescript uniforms by scraping the insignia off.

Though when she had first started gathering equipment Nyarri had believed Isindyll - rather Rhys'evin - would have caused an issue, no remarks came, and no visits from Rhys'evin interrupted her pace. So she had continued, perfecting every little piece of their gear in every attempt to make it appear as far from Imperial technology as possible. Though the uniforms were still too clean, the weapons still too well maintained, and the armor bulky beneath all but the largest clothes, it would do.

The act of dirtying equipment that she had, in part, worked so much to maintain felt invigorating. Ignoring that it gave her something to fill her time with, Nyarri couldn't help but feel a rush as she tore through any remnants of her life as a marine. She was finally getting to do what she had wanted to so long ago: explore other worlds, even if it was for only a short incursion. There would be a short sense of adventure, and then Nyarri would have to turn on Isindyll and Rhys'evin when it was most opportune.

That was, when she wasn't in a ship prone to being destroyed from kilometers away.

When at last she could see the dot of light that was the planet they were to land on, Nyarri had become more than anxious with anticipation. As she stood, glancing out of the only viewport on her deck that could glimpse the distant world, Nyarri wondered exactly how far they were from it. It had been visible, slightly larger than the map of stars around it, for quite some time, if only in brief flashes as Isindyll skimmed through warp space, but that indicated nothing in the Void. Planets the width of her forefinger could still be light years away.

"Isindyll, are you there?"

The pause went on long enough for Nyarri to doubt she had been, "Yes, I'm here."

"Do you know how far off we are?" There was a hint of longing in the marine's rough, drawling voice.

"Not too long, half a Solor at the most."

"Will I be allowed on the planet once we arrive? I've prepared equipment for the both of us."

Isindyll's reply was slow to arrive, "I saw what you were doing. I'm not sure if you'll be allowed on the surface, it hasn't come up."

"Alright," Nyarri replied, not surprised. Her fatal error had been telling Rhys'evin exactly what he needed, and she'd have to pay the price. Nothing could change that now.

---

Ten Delens later, Isindyll announced she was within range for the smaller craft to reach the planet and, more importantly, manage a return voyage. Though she had neglected to state whether Nyarri would or would not be joining the flight down, the marine was quick to make her way to the docking bay regardless. Rhys'evin was already there.

Nyarri gestured to her gear and called out, "Don't suppose you'll need help down there?"

"I'm just bringing up Etsy," Rhys replied, attention clearly somewhere else. "We will be back on the ship within 50 Quicks."

Another detail Isindyll had left out, "Understood."
 
Even among the Gnesp, who are by their very nature thin of body and long of limb, Etsy seemed alarmingly thin and long. It's tiny head, with bugging eyes that seemed to take up three-quarters of the already small space, was perched on top of a neck that was as long as the rest of its body. Six twig-thin arms emerged from its thorax, which in turn split into three gripper fingers at the end of each arm. It balanced on two triple jointed legs, which split at the end as well, to look like it was balancing on two different tripods. Each finger and toe was capped in what looked to be a suction cup, which made it almost impossible to dislodge a stubborn Gnesp, no matter how thin and frail they looked.

Etsy's twitchiness, on the other hand, had nothing to do with its species. Even though Etsy had known that Rhys would appear as a Vollori Captain, the little bug still nearly fled at the sight of the assassin approaching. A similar thing had happened when Rhys had tried to call the electrician well over a Solor ago, and only quick talking had prevented it from putting Isindyll's tightbeam node on a permanent block list. Etsy seemed to have forgotten the conversation they had at that time, though, and Rhys was forced to chase after the little creature as it dove and wove between the crowds.

Rhys finally caught up with it just as it was about to board its ship. Like the Gnesp itself, the ship seemed to be more a combination of scrap parts that didn't really fit together than a spaceworthy vessel. Etsy made a lunge for the open port, only to be snagged by Rhys, who wrapped the struggling Gnesp in a tight grip.

“Lemme goo! I'z dun no bad.”

“I'm not letting you go until you remember you are supposed to build me a new key for my ship!” Rhys growled in frustration.

Etsy's struggles immediately halted. “Evie?”

Rhys'evin sighed. Despite the fact that the Gnesp were quite intelligent, they seemed incapable of grasping that a name could every be more than a couple of alarmingly short syllables. “Yes, Evie. Now, am I going to lead you to my ship, or aren't I?”

“Yee. You'z lets Etsy goo now?”

As soon as Rhys released the Gnesp, Etsy scampered into its ship, quickly powering it up. For a moment Rhys was certain it was going to try and flee again, and Rhys would have to go back to the ship empty-handed to find a new person who could wire up a key. Instead, a holographic appeared on the front of the ship, blowing Etsy's head up alarmingly large.

“Lead now. Etsy follow.”

Rhys was forced to return to the short-range vessel he had brought down from Isindyll with the very alarming sight of a ship floating close enough above that a single twitch on Etsy's part would send the engine crashing into the Vollori head. It was a good thing Rhys never put the parts necessary for life in the head, just on principle.

Despite the fact that Isindyll was hovering just outside of the atmosphere, it was nearly impossible to see her void-black form against the depths of space unless you knew what you were looking for. Etsy kept flying circles around Rhys' craft, wanting to lead but having no clue where they were going until both of them were almost on top of Isindyll.

Despite Etsy's growing ability to irritate Rhys, on the way out of atmosphere the assassin finally came to understand why Gin-Ei had recommended the Gnesp. Despite the kludged look of the ship it flew flawlessly, and Rhys suddenly realized that the Gnesp had probably built the entire ship from the ground up, despite the fact that such a task was normally considered impossible for an individual to perform without the assistance of specialized Imperial technology that it was nearly impossible to obtain, even illegally.

As if realizing somehow that the Karthk'yarii was admiring its ship, when it came time Etsy landed it so close to the passenger ship that Rhys was forced to completely dissolve the current form and return to a mass of writing tentacles to fit through the finger-sized gap that was all the door could open. Etsy was, in turn, suitably impressed by the performance, and handed Rhys the limp pile of clothes from inside the craft once Rhys once more had a hand with which to take them.

“No more tests or showing off, alright Etsy? We've got work to do.”

Etsy returned to its ship, hauling out several big bags from the depths that seemed way too large and too many for the thin creature to manage. It passed some to Rhys. “We do work, yee.”

Despite that assurance it still took them well over a quarter of a Delen to actually reach the bridge, as Etsy came to a halt at practically every junction to admire Isindyll. Rhys could feel the ship's pleasure at the admiration, although she was able to maintain the restraint not to speak, just as she had promised Rhys she would before the Karthk'yarii had left to retrieve Etsy.

“Much ship pretty,” Etsy murmured once they finally made to the bridge. “Give you very good price.”

“For the key?” Rhys replied, obviously faking obliviousness. “How kind of you.” Etsy seemed to take the hint.

Within only a few Ticks, or so it seemed, the entirety of the bridge was covered in more things than Rhys could count. Not even a third of them could be useful, but, as the Gnesp set to work, long neck swiveling to angles that looked as though they should have snapped the thing in half, Rhys didn't really dare interrupt. Five Quicks later and Etsy already had a prototype. It failed beautifully, but this seemed to only make the Gnesp happier.

The work continued as such, until there was a sudden interruption in the form of a tremor that raced through Isindyll. An alarm sounded briefly, before going silent.

“What be dat?” The Gnesp asked in confusion.

Rhys glanced out through the window at the front of the ship, which showed a bright silver craft making its way towards the planet far below. There was a moment of stunned silence. “...I think your ship just got stolen.”

The Gnesp let out a faint whimper of alarm, before collapsing to the floor.
 
Nyarri had watched Rhys'evin leave. She had watched his ship, a lone dot of light within moments of its departure, speed towards the planet Isindyll orbited. Consigning herself to her quarters once again, the marine had been sitting in silence, thoughts straying from anything of use. If Isindyll had anything to add to the matter, she kept her own thoughts private as the pair sat in their own lonely orbits. Whether Isindyll was conscious of the fact or not, her internals had shifted to compensate for the tug of a planet's own field of gravity, leaving it at the comfortable level Nyarri had become accustomed to during her time on board.

No later than fifteen Quicks later, at least Nyarri supposed it had been thirty Quicks, two dots of light began to grow gradually larger on their approach to Isindyll. Making sure to appear natural, despite a building sense of elation within her, Nyarri rose to her feet and approached the quarter's viewport, staring at the two dots. Were they two separate ships? Was this her chance to escape?

For a good while, the marine stood, attempting to pinpoint exactly what the forms were. When at last they came within range to be easily recognized, Nyarri noted the ship Rhys'evin had taken down to the surface and another, considerably more tattered and worn, ship beside it. Questions without answers flooded her mind, but one individual idea became clear through the cacophony: that ship was her means of escape, her means of avoiding the inevitable self-assured destruction that alerting another ship would bring.

While she awaited for the ships to dock, admitting she had no real way of knowing when they would other than by gauging their relative distance, Nyarri set about donning individual pieces of gear with sufficient pause as to avoid suspicion from Isindyll immediately. If she was correct, the ship would take far more interest in the newcomer than in the two familiar individuals she had housed for countless Solors. When the marine glanced upward from applying the magnetic seals to her boots, the ships had vanished from line of sight, meaning they were close to docking or had already. Rather than risk alerting Isindyll early, Nyarri let another five Quicks pass before she slipped out of her quarters.

Once within the hallway, donned in heavily stripped and reconverted combat armor with a MAC bobbing at her hip, Nyarri adopted a casual pace and stance: if Isindyll were to switch attention to her, the marine would want to appear as innocent as possible. Isindyll would be fooled for a moment or so before realizing Nyarri was clad in full combat armor and carrying a weapon, but a moment was enough for her to begin running to the loading bay, she hoped...

Strolling through hallway after hallway, deck after deck, was nerve-wracking. If Isindyll possessed a modicum of common sense, she would have alerted Rhys'evin and his guest about the marine's presence without alerting Nyarri herself. For all Nyarri knew, Rhys'evin was awaiting her in the loading bay or else had just stepped from his ship. Without a clear look over the security systems and monitor feeds, there was no knowing whether or not she was still in the clear. Even though her route took her as far away from the most direct pathways of the ship, utilizing engineering passageways and occasionally maintenance chutes, Nyarri could not help but feel that she would turn a corner and meet the assassin face to face.

Every single step cost another portion of her paranoid mind, every second glance a shred of sanity. Though her trip could not have taken any more than half of a Delen, the ordeal had felt more time consuming and physically draining than it had a right to be. Still, here she stood before the pile of space-worthy scrap with no immediate threats, no incident worth a second notice. Without bothering to consider whether or not she could access the standard-issue, short range, vessel Rhys'evin had taken down, Nyarri approached the space-faring scrap first. Cautiously, she opened the ship's main hatch, at least she presumed it was as it was the largest hatch available, and clambered inside.

The interior was crammed and it could have done with a wash, but that was what Nyarri had lived in before Isindyll. After ungracefully pulling herself into the ship's cockpit, Nyarri glanced downwards at the control console and grimaced: nothing looked familiar. That earlier feeling of paranoia returning, the marine began to find some way, any way, to start the ship. A frantic Quick passed and Nyarri sat, ecstatic, with a ship that had sprung into life. Giving the manual flight controls a gentle test, the marine nodded to herself, finding the controls to be perfectly balanced, and gingerly idled out of the holding bay and into the Void beyond. Once there, she put all the power she could into the engines and began to familiarize herself with the landing procedures via a separate, mostly automated, control console.

After all, the ship was no good as an expensive, if ragged, missile if she was still on board.
 
There was a short, stunned, awkward silence as Etsy shivered on the floor, but then the Gnesp seemed to explode. "Hoo youz du this te Etsy? Youz say ship emptee. Emptee! Now Etzy ship gone." It hopped all over the place, kicking some of its supplies, although conspicuously missing those that looked particularly delicate or breakable. Rhys waited, arms folded, for the tantrum to come to an end. It didn't take long. The Gnesp didn't really seem to have that much energy, especially not when it was bouncing all over the place.

When Etsy finally collapsed off to the side, Rhys spoke. "You don't have any way to track the location of your ship among all this?" Rhys asked, gesturing to the piles of electronics that covered the bridge.

The Gnesp's eyes seemed to bug out even further, if such a thing was even possible. "Oooo. Yee." For a further moment Etsy just sat there and kept blinking.

Rhys let out a sigh. "If you would care to get started?"

As the Gnesp busied itself digging through things, hooking together wires and generally seeming to make more of a mess than anything Rhys walked out of the bridge, confident that Isindyll would ignore any tampering with the various screens Etsy might do out of curiosity. "Isindyll, what happened?"

It took a moment for Isindyll to respond, but when she did Rhys immediately understood the reason for her hesitation. Her voice was full of hiccups and tears. What it wasn't as easy to guess was whether she had been wanting to make sure her sounds of sorrow weren't overheard, or if she was afraid of Rhys. The Karthk'yarii dearly hoped it wasn't the latter. "Rhys. I'm so.... I'm so, so sorry."

"Shhhh," Rhys soothed, moving around the feelers to release a gurgling coo very similar to some of the noises Isindyll could make. "It's okay. Just tell me what happened."

"I... I was distracted. I wanted to watch the Gnesp. I'd never seen anything like it, or those little bits and bobs it scattered all over the bridge. It was so new and exciting that I di... I didn't even notice that Nyarri was wandering places she wasn't supposed to be until.. the ship was... was leaving. By that point there wa... there was... was nothing I co... I could do to s... to stop her." At that point Isindyll's words were drowned out by her sobs. "I'm so sorry Rhys. You trusted me to watch her and I f-ff-f... I failed!" Isindyll cut off again, and all Rhys could do was quietly stand there and wait for her to work the tears out and come back.

Unfortunately, before she returned, Etsy came out of the bridge, a device in hand which emitted a faint "ping" every five Ticks. Rhys was loathe to leave with the conversation at the point it was, but if they left now it might still be possible to catch up to Nyarri. As Etsy hurried towards the bridge Rhys paused, trailing a gentle hand down the arch-like door that separated hallway from bridge. "I'll be back soon. It'll be okay. You'll see."

There was more than enough room for both the Karthk'yarii and the Gnesp in the transport ship, as it was designed to be able to carry a full contingent of soldiers if needed. Rhys piloted it carefully down to the surface, carefully sorting through which of the Gnesp's babblings were actually relevant directional information, and which was just meaningless chatter. Unfortunately it looked as though Etsy had designed its ship too well, as it was just possible to see a silver streak dropping through the atmosphere ahead of them. There was no way they were catching up before Nyarri landed. It was improbable that Rhys would catch up before Nyarri managed to hide somewhere and make contact with the Empire. And if she did that...

One problem at a time... was all Rhys could thing. One problem at a time.
 
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Despite the cobbled, generally unpleasant form the ship held upon the exterior, it certainly could hurtle through space better than any imperial technology Nyarri had seen before. Even allowing the notion that all the ship really needed to continue to blaze through the Void was a strong push, Rhys'evin's contact certainly had made that initial push far more efficient. The marine was dimly aware of the ship's radar pinging behind her, noting a pursuing vessel, but both ships could only go so fast with the energy they could put out. She had the head start, she would reach the planet first.

Then came the descent into atmosphere.

Luckily, since Nyarri had never been at the controls of any space-faring craft upon entry, the ship itself was intelligent enough to gradually reduce speed before the ship would strike the condensed gas and begin to burn away. Still, the entire craft gave a terror-inducing shudder as it passed through from nothingness into the thin trace gases of upper atmosphere. Suddenly, whereas before every single movement of the outer hull had been lost to the Void, the entire ship creaked and groaned with the strain of reentry. Air brakes began to shoot outward to stall the mass of metal attempting to reach terminal velocity. Retrothrusters screamed in protest as they pushed against the force of gravity. Monitors flashed heat warnings with a low, blaring klaxon, and Nyarri could certainly feel the interior beginning to heat up. For a long while, the marine believed she would either burn in atmosphere or plummet with suicidal speeds to the surface. She didn't know which was worse.

But the sounds ceased almost as suddenly as they had come and the ship stabilized in-flight. Though the heat warning was still online and the interior still uncomfortably warm, the klaxon had ceased and the levels did not rise and further. The air brakes automatically slid inward and, believing that the worst had passed, Nyarri opened the external view from the hull-mounted cameras and began the manual process of choosing a landing platform. There was a city nearby, one large enough to hide in and guaranteed to have some means of interstellar communication. For the moment, that radar ping was distant, almost far enough for comfort, but Nyarri knew that their vessel was far better suited to atmospheric entry than her own ship had been: it was designed for planetary assault, quick, tough, and brutal.

Not much later, the ship came to a slow descent onto city's 'dry dock' and landed with an audible thud. The pressurized doors opened with a sharp hiss, timed right with the stabilization of the landing gear, letting in an influx of fresh, non recycled air into the ship. Gingerly, Nyarri clambered out of the ship and onto the docking bay's hard, metal flooring. The acceleration gravity had been uncomfortable in-flight, but now, with the majority of the force pushing down on her legs, the marine was finding it difficult to reliably walk. Attempting to shrug the gravity off, the marine continued through into the main hub of the dock.

Nyarri was entirely unaccustomed to seeing so many different species in one location. For the majority of her time in the wide galaxy, she had seen few variations among Vollori soldiers and their so-called 'auxiliaries.' Now, however, she could not see a dominant species anywhere as she exited the dock and entered the bustling street beyond. Experiencing a momentary rush of panic at the crowd, Nyarri stumbled down the steps and into the teething mass of individuals coming and go.

The first step was finding a communication unit. Nyarri had been dismayed to earlier find that the space port's only viable unit was for planetary and system pings only. She needed something with a wider reach, something with known coordinates of the nearest fleet. Her search continued, a frantic push-and-shove match against the crowd as the marine looked for anything resembling a communication station. There. A long, cylinder topped with a tight-beam. With renewed vigor, Nyarri pressed through to the station and stumbled through the doorway, immediately regretting her decision to wear her weapon and armor in plain sight.

To quiet the tension before it broke, she spluttered out, "I am an Imperial marine. I need a tightbeam to the nearest military outpost or fleet immediately."

"How do we know you're what you say you are?" a shiny black, beetle-like creature clicked from behind the counter.

"Link me through and you'll see soon enough," Nyarri replied, berating herself for removing the insignia and identification number off the shoulder plate of the armor.

"And if I don't?"

"You don't want to try me, now link me through, or you will face consequences."

Nyarri gave the beetle a blank stare, challenging him to contradict her. To add to the threat, she unlooped the MAC from its holster and clicked the safety back: that broke the creature.

"Understood. Lag is ten Quicks, what should I relay?"

"Rhys'evin has escaped imperial custody and is currently on board an experimental vessel, Isindyll."
 
Etsy's navigational device directed them to the very same landing dock which Rhys had landed on less than a Delen ago. The two individuals found the dock in a hectic state, as various members of the bay worked to try and haul Etsy's unwieldy ship out of the landing zone, where Nyarri had clearly abandoned it.

"Nuuuu!" Etsy bellowed, hopping out of the ship before it had even completely powered down. "No touchy. No touchy on Etsy's ship pretty." The Gnesp bolted off towards the group of people, waving its arms and head about wildly and looking rather like an unbalanced turbine.

Rhys followed Etsy out in a slightly more reserved fashion, watching with some amusement as one of the dock people stuck out a massive arm, Etsy's head thoroughly buried in the meaty grip as its arms continued to swing wildly. The ape-like dock worker had longer arms though, and the strength needed to hold Etsy at arms length, so the Gnesp's attempts to strike the creature were entirely ineffective. As Rhys walked up the person in charge of the rather unwieldy operation was quick to notice the approach of a Vollori Captain. Her long, fluorescent blue tail twitched as she walked over, pigeon-toed on stilt like legs ending in long talons.

"Our apologies for the delay, Sir," she said in a hoarse voice. "We will have this cleared out of your way momentarily."

"That will not be necessary," Rhys replied promptly. "It belongs to the Gnesp there." Rhys turned away from the dock worker, facing the still-flailing electrician. "Etsy! Calm down. They will give you your ship back." Etsy's flailing immediately stopped, and it set to work extracting itself from the massive palm still holding it in place.

"Pardon me, Sir, but if the... Gnesp, you called it? If the Gnesp rode down with you, why is the ship here."

Rhys turned back towards the dock worker, an answer already in mind. It was almost the truth as well. "I had a guest on board my ship. Unfortunately her intentions turned out to be less than benevolent, and before I could succeed in arresting her she stole my electrician's ship and fled planetside. I don't suppose you saw in which direction she went, did you?"

"I... I'm sorry, sir, I didn't. All I saw was that someone had abandoned this ship in the middle of the landing dock, and I had to move it to clear up traffic again. Would you like me to put out an alert?"

Rhys let out a sigh. "I'm afraid it would be quite unnecessary at this point, as she has undoubtedly already gone to ground. I would not wish to waste this planet's time on efforts that would inevitably be futile." Turning away to indicate that the conversation's completion, Rhys adressed the worker still holding Etsy's head. "Would you be so kind as to release my electrician, so that we can move these ships out of your way?" The ape blinked.

"Bagdogh, let it go," the dock lead threw in helpfully. Etsy finally pulled its head free, and the Gnesp seemed fully prepared to throw itself at Bagdogh, even though it was doubtful that Etsy's small fists would even be felt through the thick fur and muscle that layered his chest.

"Etsy, your ship?" Rhys reminded delicately.

"Oooo. Yee, Evie." Etsy scampered away.

"I hope you'll forgive the mess," Rhys offered to the dock lead, not really concerned as to whether or not her forgiveness would actually be granted. "We will be taking our leave now. Etsy, head back to the ship. You still have a job to finish."

The whole way back to Isindyll, Rhys wondered if it had been the right choice to not pursue Nyarri. Common sense dictated that she would have long since found a way to contact the Empire, and that they would be sending a ship this way soon, if there was not one on the way already. Their best bet at this point was to move, and move quickly. As soon as Etsy finished the key, Rhys and Isindyll would be on their way to the other side of the galaxy. It was looking as though Rhys was going to have to contact the Disciples a lot sooner than anticipated.

"Why youz let meanie laydie goo?" was Etsy's greeting words once they were back on board Isindyll. "She took Etsy ship!"

"You got it back," Rhys replied. "Can we please get back to work now? You need to finish your job." And Rhys needed to get Isindyll moving again, before a platoon of marines arrived to try and capture their stolen ship.
 
The twenty Quicks had passed since Nyarri had ordered the communication center to send its ping out to a nearby Imperial-controlled outpost. Either they had sounded serious enough for the beetle-worker to allow Nyarri into the communications console herself or they wanted to see whoever was making such a bold claim. Having been led back into the operations room, the marine currently sat before the video monitor and listened to the audio component of the Empire's message. It contained about as much personality as any official statement from any military did - a boulder could have delivered it with about as much charisma. The message had demanded Nyarri's rank, her stationing on Isindyll, and the current location of the ship, something Nyarri viewed as a redundancy.

After a nonverbal cue to the operator behind the controls of the communication terminal, Nyarri cleared her throat by letting out a low rumble from her vocal manipulators. When the 'all clear' came back, she spoke into the provided receiver, making sure to present her voice as tame and civilized as her biology allowed her to.

"This is Z'Nyarri, praetor of the Imperial Marine Corps. requesting immediate action upon the rouge experimental vessel Isindyll. The now-fugitive element, Rhys'evin, has utilized the living component of the vessel to escape and currently orbits the planet of origin for this message. All targets on board Isindyll are to be considered hostile - all other personnel on board were jettisoned prior to a deviation from Isindyll's set course," Nyarri waved for the operator to cut the connection and a moment later, the receiver clicked and the message went on from there.

There would be another twenty Quicks to await another message, and that was if they deemed the message worth responding to at all. The time it would take them to arrive at the planet was negligible given warp travel, but the communications lag was beginning to unsettle Nyarri. Would they receive the message before Rhys'evin left the system? Was he on his way right now to come and silence her, utilizing his appearance as a Vollori captain to dissuade any pursuers after the fact? His ship had been on approach behind her.

Worse still was the very real possibility that she would be questioned. Why was she the lone survivor? Did she aid Rhys'evin in his escape? Was she luring them into a trap on board Isindyll? In her current position, Nyarri had no credibility to defend against any of the accusations. The Empire wouldn't so much as spare a second glance at her excuse of 'the ship let me live.'

Finally standing, the marine made her way back the the waiting room in the station and seated herself down in a chair designed for someone at least three quarters of her height. Compared to the other, civilian, customers the station housed, Nyarri made quite the sight. Among the considerably shorter individuals occupying the waiting room, the sight of a marine in full combat armor in a seat too small was almost comical. No one in the room made a remark, but Nyarri could practically feel the questioning thoughts floating around the room.

Another uncomfortable twenty Quicks passed before the operator came from the back room and called for Nyarri. The marine stood, almost gracefully, and followed the operator back to the terminal.

"Understood. A rapid response force is in route. Expect arrival in fifteen Quicks."

The transmission clicked off and Nyarri gave an elated puff of her vocal cords - she'd won.
 
Donedonedonedonedonedone” The victory cry of the Gnesp was loud enough to echo all the way to Rhys, even though the Karthk'yarii was located many winding passageways away from where Etsy worked in the bridge. The assassin had left the bridge as soon as it was obvious that Etsy was well and truly embroiled in its task, and wouldn't soon be straying from its job to wander somewhere else, which was a tendency it was irritatingly wont to do until it became fully embroiled in a job. Rhys had left hoping to speak to Isindyll, wanting to reassure the young ship that she really did not need to feel she had to bear blame for Nyarri's escape. The soldier had known exactly what she was doing, and had planned it well.

Isindyll, however, seemed to take no interest in speaking to Rhys, and instead of having a short, polite conversation with the ship while Etsy did its job, Rhys sat in silence, staring blankly at the wall of the ship, waiting. Waiting seemed to be one of the few things that Rhys was really good at right now, as it was the only thing it had been possible to practice during the span of a revalar and a half's incarceration. Speaking to Isindyll would have been much preferable, however. Rhys felt some concern over what the ship was going to do because of the shame of her “failure”, and the Karthk'yarii wished to mitigate any such thing long before it began.

All the same, Rhys would not force Isindyll to speak. There was no question that she would eventually break her self-imposed silence, and Rhys would be there when she did. That was why worry was not Rhys' predominant emotion on the way back to the bridge. In fact, irritation at the Gnesp was proving to be much more heavily represented. It would be a relief to get the thing off of Isindyll, and then get several hundred solar system's away from it.

The assassin was forced to bodily grab the Gnesp, who had decided that the perfect was to test the functionality of the forged electronic key was to scroll through every panel that had been revealed, and press buttons seemingly at random. It took a good several Quicks to calm Etsy back down after that, and that was only once it occurred to Rhys to remove the chip from its port and remove the temptation from right in front of the Gnesp's nose. When Rhys finally succeeded, Etsy turned morosely, and started gathering its various supplies up from where they had been scattered all over the floor.

Rhys had hoped that, after that point, it would be a relatively quick and easy matter to give the Gnesp its payment and send it on its way. They had agreed long before meeting up that Rhys would not be paying in any form of currency, but would instead grant the Gnesp the right to choose one piece of Marine technology as its payment. That was part of the reason Rhys had not protested its search of many parts of the ship, suspecting that the Gnesp was looking for what it would like to take in payment.

What Rhys had not expected was for Etsy to demand Isindyll herself in payment. At first the Karthk'yarii had laughed, assuming that Etsy was trying to make some ludicrous joke, but only a few ticks passed before Rhys realized that Etsy was perfectly serious. That particular demand of payment ended quickly after that point, when Rhys reminded Etsy that the Gnesp was alone on this ship, with no weapons, and it would be much easier and smarter to simply kill the little creature than give it the ship. Were it not for the fact that Rhys had been connected to Etsy through Gin-Ei, and the Arak'un would not appreciate the death of one of his resources under such mild provocation, Rhys would have killed Etsy for even making such a suggestion.

The Gnesp seemed to realize exactly how much its demand had enraged the assassin, and it did not suggest such a thing, or anything like it, again. However, it seemed to get its payment for the insult back by taking well over three times the necessary length to pick its payment, one of the high-tech long-range guns stored away deep within Isindyll, should this expedition encounter any pirates, scavengers, or anything of the like.

When they finally made it back to the bay Rhys practically had to hurl Etsy into its craft, refusing to let the irritating creature stall any longer. Etsy twisted its head and fingers together into an odd shape that was obviously supposed to be an insult, before blasting away out into space. Rhsy let out a sigh.

“Let's turn that alarm off.” Rhys said. “We should probably move to a different orbit as well. I don't want Etsy trying to come back.” Isindyll still didn't respond, but Rhys felt the faint shifting that indicated she had followed the instructions, slipping out further away from the planet. The Gnesp would not be coming back.

Despite how irritating the creature had been, Etsy had done its job well. There was not a single feature in this console that was locked, and it took scant ticks to find the correct combination of inputs to turn off the mechanical alarm. The sigh of relief that echoed from Isindyll seemed as much reflex as anything, but it still caused Rhys to smile faintly.

“We need to move now, Isindyll.”

“To where?”

“As far away from here as possible. That took much longer than I would have liked, and I'm sure Nyarri has had more than enough time to report our presence here. There may be a military fleet on its way to our location as we speak.” Isindyll responded with sullen silence.

“It doesn't matter,” Rhys reminded gently. “We already knew they would know that we had escaped. It was part of the thing of letting Captain Yolhn and the others go alive. As soon as we warp they will have no way to track us.”

“I can't warp.”

“What?!”

“Sorry. I can't warp yet. I have yet to produce enough fuel. It's building quicker than normal because I've got the sun nearby, but it is still probably going to take at least a delen before I'll have enough to take us any distance.”

Rhys unraveled slightly, before pulling the form back together. It was almost like a sigh. “Alright then. Is there anything you can do to conceal yourself?”

“I can grow a coating that should keep their radars from locating me on a preliminary scan, but I'd need to go onto the light side of the planet for that.”

“Alright. Come back into the shadows as soon as you are done. In the meantime, I'll do my best to try and find a way to incorporate the offline mechanical systems into your control.”

There was no doubt that the panel that Etsy's key had unlocked was supposed to be used by someone who had extensive training in operating such things Beyond the obvious, like turning off an alarm, the commands were complicated and extensive, and Rhys knew it would take many Solors of study, if not more, to find a way to integrate every system into Isindyll's control, and then make sure the process couldn't be reversed.

Long before Rhys even came close, Isindyll interrupted. “Rhys?”

“Are we ready to go?”

“No. We just received a message from the planet. It's from Nyarri.”
 
Fifteen quicks passed with the pace of a Delen. The communication station's owner was beginning to burn through its patience, Nyarri knew that, but what could it do to stop her? It'd seen that she had been in contact with an Imperial official, seen that there had been a response. Not to mention a creature as brittle and scrawny as the beetle-like owner would stand no change against an armored and armed marine. With that barrier in mind, no matter how much it fumed, the owner had permitted Nyrari to remain in the waiting chamber.

The beetle emerged from the network room, finding that the waiting chamber was still empty: none wanted to remain around the marine for long. Clicking its mandibles with what Nyarri could only assume was agitation, the owner shuffled from behind the counter, halting within arm's reach of the marine.

"There is a short-range transmission from the response force you contacted earlier, shall I-"

"Too much hassle for too little payoff," Nyarri stood, towering over the creature. "Out with it."

"You think I-"

"I know you read through them before you clear them, now out with it."

Looking as indignant as it could, the owner clicked angrily before speaking again, "They wish to meet you at the space station - a small unit of marines are to meet you there while the rest look for this Isindyll..."

Without another word, Nyarri spun on her heels and left the station.

---

"Praetor Z'Nyarri?" the Vollori captain questioned when at last Nyarri had managed her way through the teething mass outside the space port's gates, eyes boring into her.

The marine nodded, noting the squad of armed-and-ready marines behind the captain. Did they believe Rhys'evin had returned to the surface? Or was this just a security precaution? Before Nyarri could question the presence of an armed retinue, the captain continued onward.

"Your contact was most fortuitous - the search for Isindyll was beginning to divert Imperial resources into potential core worlds once our rim outposts went quiet. For the official record, we have a few questions for you, Praetor."

Questions? Couldn't that wait?

"Understood."

"What are the details of the assassin's escape? Our Uetie technicians have told us that the ship cannot be trusted to give an accurate report upon the situation," the captain's eyes never left Nyarri's as he spoke, his words slow and deliberate.

"From my understanding, the ship was either guided into supporting or willingly supported the assassin's escape. Without a proper means of monitoring the ship's activity, I can't say how long it took exactly. Utilizing a shift in the guard, presumably provided by Isindyll, the assassin broke from its constraints and proceeded to fight its way to the main deck. Unable to organize in time, and with the ship's assistance, Rhys'evin was able to obliterate any resistance."

"Where were you during this?"

"Managing my way to the deck - I avoided any contact with the assassin prior to my time in the bridge. Once there, I was incapacitated along with a majority of the crew. I managed a knife strike to Rhys'evin, but that was not enough to kill it. I was knocked down again and Isindyll removed any remaining resistance."

The captain paused, "Yet you are still here. How came you to survive this attack?"

"The ship saw enough in me to spare my life under unspoken consent that I would not make another move to harm the assassin."

"You are saying of all the crew members left aboard, you alone were spared from both Rhys'evin and this 'removal' on the part of the ship?" Trepidation laced the Vollori's voice now.

"Yes."

"And where is this ship now?"

"In orbit-"

The captain raised a finger to cut her off, "Our scans show no Imperial affiliated vessel within suitable distance of this planet to be deemed 'in orbit'."

"It's still here - you would have detected a warp jump, anyone would have detected a warp jump."

Motioning with a hand to the marines behind him, the Vollori turned his gaze to Nyarri, "You will forgive me for not taking your word alone on that matter, Praetor. Until we can confirm your account, you will be detained for assisting the fugitive Rhys'evin."

The marines behind the captain moved before Nyarri could properly react, pinning her to the ground with ease, cuffing her arms behind her back.

"Get the ships moving," the captain continued as if nothing had happened, "The marine's right about one thing: we'd see if they had warped, get going."

---

The marines had been effective in their search. They had found her concealed pistol, her knife, every potential bit and piece of armor. They had been so successful in removing any possible route out, in fact, that it had taken Nyarri a good while to realize that her transponder still dug painfully into her rib cage. Was it because it was concealed among the growth across her torso? Had they missed it? Counting it lucky that, given their assurance the marine would be incapable of escaping the cell they had placed her in, the marines had neglected to restrain her hands. With guards stationed at the doors, it would be impossible to contact anyone without alerting them, but she would have enough time. She would have to.

Who would she direct it to? The Empire was the one holding her captive and no civilian, particularly none on this planet, would make it their personal vendetta to assist her in escaping. Isindyll. If Isindyll received the message, she would have a chance of escape. Even if Rhys'evin had told the ship that Nyarri was to blame, if Isindyll felt the marine was worth saving, he would have to listen.

Deftly sliding the transponder from the confines of her shirt, Nyarri slowly slid the 'send' switch up, "Isindyll, if you're listening to this, you need to..."

The guards had turned to face her, already beginning to run for the control panel that would open the door.

"You need to get out of here. Imperial ships are searching for you - if you can even do a low burn, do that, get out of here."

The door hissed open.

"Just, just leave here. Too late for me. Even if you have to warp, warp. You'll outrun them."

Nyarri barely managed to shut off the message before she was tackled to the ground, head slamming into the ground with a low thud. Vision swimming, she attempted to rise only to be knocked down again. They were shouting something, Nyarri couldn't quite make out what, but a moment later the marines atop her stood and shoved her to the wall, cuffing her to the wall. Isindyll would be able to trace the source of the message, find where she was - if that alone didn't prove Nyarri was in over her head, nothing would.

Certainly haven't helped my case with the Empire...But a gambit without risk is no good.
 
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“From Nyarri?”

Rhys' immediate reaction was cruel suspicion. Isindyll whimpered slightly at Rhys' tone of voice, and the assassin made an effort to soften it a bit. It was a challenge, and only proved partially successful. “I have to assume, because you know who it is from, that you have already listened to the contents of the message.”

“Yes. Was that wrong?”

“Potentially. If it was directed right at us and you answered, they would now have a direct pinpoint on our location, and we are likely to be captured.”

“It wasn't.” Isindyll seemed mightily relieved. “It was from Nyarri's transponder. I just happened to pick it up as it flew out.”

That was odd. Rhys could see Nyarri sending out messages into points in space, hoping to get Isindyll to pick up out of curiosity and naivete in order to locate them, but simply throwing a transponder signal out into space seemed more like an act of desperation than a calculated attempt at... anything. Rhys moved over towards the captain's panel Etsy had just unlocked. “And there is no tracer of any sort in the signal? Nothing that would allow them to use it to track it back to us?”

“I... I'm sorry, Rhys. I just don't know. I know Nyarri's a guard, and you are a convict. I shouldn't have grabbed it.”

Rhys grimaced slightly, but kept facing the display in hopes of keeping Isindyll from noticing. Now that Isindyll had listened to it, Rhys might as well hear the message too. “Go ahead and play it.” Isindyll obliged silently.

"Isindyll, if you're listening to this, you need to..." There was a burst of static. "You need to get out of here. Imperial ships are searching for you - if you can even do a low burn, do that, get out of here. ... Just, just leave here. Too late for me. Even if you have to warp, warp. You'll outrun them."

Rhys was struck silent. That was a turn of events that the assassin never would have predicted. From the way it sounded, Nyarri had been captured by the Empire, and was being held as a prisoner and criminal. That wasn't too surprising, she was, after all, the only person not to be ejected from the ship, but what was surprising was that, by sending this message, Nyarri had practically signed her own prison warrant. Rhys would have bet every remaining asset that the Marine would have cooperated with the Empire, done everything in her power to prove her innocence, including doing everything in her power to recapture both Isindll and Rhys'evin. What could possibly have led to such a turn of events?

There was no time to worry about that now, though. Not really. Right now they both needed to flee, whether this message was a trap or not. Both options led to the same course of action. Run.

“We need to go. Now!”

“But Rhys...”

“Isindyll,we don't have time for a conversation right now. The Empire could be on us at any tick.”

“Nyarri...”

“Told us to do the same thing herself. She already said it is too late for her to run. We need to leave.”

“Rhys...”

“If we don't go now...”

LISTEN TO ME!

The tone in Isindyll's voice brought Rhys grinding to a halt. Every instinct screamed that if they didn't run now both of them would be risking imprisonment and almost certain death. Were Rhys alone, Isindyll would already be far out in deep space. But Rhys was not alone; Isindyll was here too. And the Karthk'yarii could not bring fear to overrule the panic that had built within the young ship.

“Speak quickly.” The words might have been cruel, but the tone was soft and obliging. It seemed to be sufficient.

“Nyarri is my friend. And I... I remember what they did to you while you were imprisoned. I don't want those kinds of things to happen to her. She warned us. We... we can't just leave her!”

“And what would you have us do?”

“You could go down and... get her out.”

“Isindyll...” The feelers constricted, casting a strange wave across the features of the Vollori captain. “Do you remember what happened the last time. When you told me to spare Nyarri?”

“You listened. And then... you got hurt.”

“Yes. And if I go down there now I'll be facing a whole contingent of organized, prepared Marines, with no idea of what is going to happen. There is a very high chance I'll be captured and executed on the spot. Then both Nyarri and I will be gone.”

“I don't want that...”

“Isindyll, we don't have time for one of our long, philosophical discussions. Right now there are two options. We leave, and it is certain Nyarri remains captured, and is tried by the Empire for helping us escape. Or you beg me to help her. Maybe we will both escape. But it is far more likely I will be captured, and then we are both gone, and the Empire will likely get you too.

“I want to leave. I want to leave her there, and flee to somewhere we will both be safe. But, in the end, you are the one who has to choose whether to leave or stay. You've heard my piece. Now it is up to you. Is Nyarri really worth that risk?”

Rhys waited, desperately hoping that Isindyll wouldn't say what was obviously coming. It was a vain hope.

“She is.”

...

“Then I'll go.”
 
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The Vollori captain's fist slammed against the flexible, near-impervious sheathing that separated Nyarri from the outside world. A single, mobile port allowed air in and out of the chamber and, more importantly, noise as well. The layer vibrated with the remaining for of the blow, hexagonal lines stretching from where the fist had struck it. Would this have been better at housing Rhys'evin? Probably not. The port gave the assassin more than an easy way in and out of the cell whenever it pleased.

At least the cell can't cooperate with it, though.

"Did you hear me?" The captain fumed, hand retracting from the sheathing.

"It's unlikely Isindyll even bothered picking up the message - I left the ship in ill standings," Nyarri responded, not bothering to meet the captain's burning gaze.

"You speak of Isindyll as if it is actually in orbit. No scans register and presence other than our own and a smattering of neutral trade vessels."

"Even if they did, would my situation be any better?" Nyarri challenged.

The captain blanched at this, "It would at the very least substantiate one of your claims - until evidence is presented that your innocence in aiding the assassin's escape we cannot trust your word alone. Now tell me, did you send that message in full understanding that Isindyll would receive it?"

"No."

"Perhaps that it would see the ping on a readout and know where to find you?"

"Closer to reality," the marine allowed, "but no. My reasoning is my own."

"I find you have very little room to make such a statement. Do we have reason to suspect a large, advanced ship is headed for this location or not?"

"If Rhys'evin is foolish enough to return, I wager you'll owe me a bit more than a pardon - I will have delivered him to you personally."

"We'll see," the captain forced a chuckle, "I doubt your assassin friend truly valued you in the first place, and the notion that this ship garnered and passion for anyone on board is ridiculous."

"Ask any Uetie and they'll gladly prove you wrong."

"Our own claims no proof of any personal relationships with anyone on board, even Isindyll's own personal technician."

Nyarri exhaled harshly, finally turning her head to meet the captain's dull, almost uninterested, gaze. It was an act, she knew it, "If nothing I say matters until you find Isindyll, what happens now?"

"You send out another ping, settle this matter once and for all. Bait Isindyll here and, should no ship be forthcoming, we'll know your story to be falsified."

And that is how I lose.

Either Isindyll came forth, and thus be blown apart by the assembly of warships gathered around the planet, or she would never arrive. Both outcomes resulted in the same end-game: Nyarri's story would be discarded and she would be imprisoned indefinitely, possibly exiled.

"What are you waiting for?"
 
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Now that an official military delegation had landed planetside Rhys had not dared take the ship down and pose as a Vollori commander, especially not if the dock manager had mentioned the presence of a Captain to this other retinue. It was doubtful that they would take time to investigate the appearance of a random Captain, not with matters of Isindyll and Rhys’evin on their mind, but doubtful was not sufficient. There was no way it would have been safe to risk landing in such a public place while adopting such an obvious appearance.

Before Rhys had left Isindyll the two had scanned the planet, looking for an uninhabited place Rhys could put down that was not out of range of the landing bay where Nyarri had disembarked. They were, of course, acting on faith that the marine was being held somewhere near where she had landed, and had not been moved off the planet. The message Isindyll had grabbed did not seem to indicate that, but if such was the case the two of them had no chance of success, and the little time they had to escape would have been wasted. Rhys’evin had forcibly quelled those doubts, for there was no time to think of them. Isindyll had made her decision, and Rhys would abide by it, no matter the personal risk. Such was the nature of a Karthk’yarii.

Before Rhys had disembarked Isindyll had also done two things, both of which Rhys would never have guessed were possible. The first was that Isindyll had given him a seed-like pod, which, if broken open, would deliver a single message back to Isindyll through some method of biofeedback that Rhys could not even begin to comprehend. It was not as effective as marine technology, which would have allowed the two to communicate freely, but Rhys could not risk that the local force would tap into their communication band. The seed, on the other hand, was untraceable as long as Rhys did not lose it. Isindyll's second gift was to coat the transport pod in the same strange substance that covered her own exterior shell, which would hide it from scans. The substance would burn off as Rhys descended into atmosphere, but it would keep anyone from noting his approach to the planet. Perhaps such precautions would be the difference between the success and failure of the mission.

Somehow, at least so far, everything seemed to be going right. No one had hailed Rhys as the ship had descended into a nearly deserted park in the middle of a luxury neighborhood. No one would question a private, short range ship there, and it would be left unmolested, giving Rhys a way off the planet. Nor was it particularly difficult to navigate to the nearest stronghold of the Police, as the Empire had no real need to hide its presence.

After that, however, matters began to get tricky. Even Rhys, as skilled as the assassin was, would not be able to take on an entire base of alert, well armed Marines who had likely been warned of the possibility of intrusion and were therefore even more vigilant than usual. Such a strategy was to be used as an absolute last resort.

What was much easier, on the other hand, was to circle carefully around the base until Rhys found two lone Marines on patrol, knock them out, and steal their weapons. Twenty five quicks later, and the Karthk’yarii had rigged up a very crude auto-firing mechanism that would be nonetheless effective, and aimed it at the front gate.

While a good majority of the marines raced to the front of the compound to see what the growing commotion was about, Rhys slipped over the wall in the back, killing those few who hadn’t joined in the curious and alarmed crowd. The weapons wouldn’t fire indefinitely, and without Isindyll around Rhys was not inclined to slow down for any reason.

Luckily the layout of the base was quite simple. This planet might not have been a true border planet, but it undoubtedly existed in the outer border, and that meant that, while still obvious, the Imperial presence was somewhat limited. It didn’t take Rhys very long to find the nerve center of the entire compound, and disable communications within the base, as well as a few other key components.

By now the Marines had undoubtedly figured out that the guns at the front gate were a distraction, and Rhys fled the small building before a swarm of marines would have rendered escape from the small space impossible.

What Rhys had not anticipated was a sudden rumble, as the building in the center of the compound split open and a medium-sized craft, sufficient for space travel to nearby solar systems but little more, rose up into the air and then streaked off towards the atmosphere.

Rhys wanted to swear. This was entirely unanticipated, and there was nothing the assassin could do to catch up to the ship, which undoubtedly contained the key military personnel and Nyarri. Already Rhys was moving, trying to exit the base, where the Marines were quickly finding ways to coordinate around the many blocks that Rhys had put into their normal situation. This was growing more and more dangerous.

But before Rhys fled the base, there was one thing to do. The seed split open on the ground.

Nyarri and others breaking orbit. It’s up to you now.
 
Nyarri was unsure if Isindyll's silence was to be appreciated or despised. The Vollori captain had been patient enough to let the message relay through the void, she had given him that much. When no response was forthcoming, he was quick to see Nyarri restrained in her cell once more. All the ferocity of Yolhn with twice his wit. Or had it been Isindyll that had worn down Yolhn? The inflated self-worth of Vollori captains was inherent in their upbringing, but given an honor such as a prototype ship bearing an infamous prisoner...

Even Nyarri would have felt a tad more important given the opportunity.

Time slogged forward as the marine sat in the cell, foot tapping incessantly on the metal flooring below. The flexible viewport had been tinted to the point where she could no longer see the outside chamber: how much time had passed? Not a sound or a sight passed through the layer of hard plascrete, only the metallic tap tap tap of her boot filled the air. This was it. She would spend the rest of her natural life in a cell similar to this, unless they killed her outright. Unlikely as it seemed, she had committed treason under duty as far as the Empire was concerned. Rhys'evin's death would have come by exile, hers from a bullet to the heart or a swift needle to the wrist.

Something stirred beyond the veil, more vibration than noise. Head shooting upward, Nyarri attempted to stand only to find her wrists still bound to the bench she occupied. Jerking against the restraints in a sudden, violent burst, she snapped forward a finger's breadth and slammed back onto the bench. Frustrated, Nyarri continued to struggle at the chains, wrists tugging and shoving, twisting and sliding. Her efforts were rewarded with sore wrists and a tear in the protective layer of gel around her skin.

Right when the marine had settled down, the veil hissed open and two marines rushed into the chamber, clad in full combat armor, MACs bouncing at their sides. Roughly, they undid the restraints pinning Nyarri to the wall, replacing them with cuffs that bound her wrists together.

"What's goi-"

"None of your concern. Move, now."

Nyarri was prodded unceremoniously with the butt of a MAC, edging her onward. The two marines took positions in front of and behind her, adopting a brisk pace that Nyarri quickly mimicked. Three turns down the narrow corridors later and the group arrived at an equally crammed, if technically larger, bay that led to the exterior launch pads. Nyarri watched intently as the marine in front of her slid an access card through a reader before thinking better of attempting to wrestle her way out of the facility: where would she go?

The doors clambered open and Nyarri was pushed through to the outside where a small craft meant for a one-way trip out of a gravitational pull. The captain stood there waiting for the procession, watching as Nyarri was forced into the ship, the marines following close behind. Only when Nyarri had been sufficiently restrained did the captain allow himself to enter the interior of the sleek craft.

"What did you tell Rhys'evin prior to your capture? What did you send?"

Nyarri stammered, feeling the ship roar into motion.

"In the communications chamber where you contacted us initially - what did you send Rhys'evin?"

"I don't understand-"

The Vollori's eyes burned her words to ashes mid-flight, "He was in the facility, did you send that message to give Rhys'evin the ability to track you?"

"Doesn't Rhys'evin arriving here prove my innocence?" Nyarri questioned, eyes flaring with anger.

"No - he arrived here by unknown means and we still have no proof of Isindyll's-"

The captain was interrupted by a warning klaxon flaring from the pilot's station. The pilot turned in his chair, gaze meeting the captain's.

"Unidentified ship approaching rapidly on the pulse scans," the pilot's voice was surprisingly calm.

The captain's gaze met Nyarri's.

"I do believe, sir, that you've just stumbled on Isindyll."