Stuck In A Rut: Part 1

[Kal Jericho]

Part 1: Thunderstruck

Three weeks away from the nearest civilised system, I lie in my bunk onboard a ship alien to me. We'd been in realspace for almost nine hours now. Repairs to the hyperdrive were still going on. I'd offered to help, but thanks to an accident in engineering earlier my right hand is pretty messed up. I mess about with the bandages as my mind wonders. Minds tend to do that when you've got ziltcho to do on a ship in deep space. Music plays over the rooms audio system. It was Sins - they guy who I was sharing the room with. He left it on when he went to grab something to eat. That was about thirty minutes ago now. Its not that bad. I make a mental note to ask him who the band is at a later time. Sin Vamel. He was probably the only person I'd really talked to whilst onboard. He'd gotten to know each other a little bit since the start of the journey. He was an okay guy by my standards. We had quite a few things in common. I thought it might be a good idea to look out for each other. Something told me this job might get a little rough once we arrived.

Our ship, The Inquisitor was not of any design or class I'd ever seen before. It looked expensive, almost designer in...well, design! Almost three hundred metres long, and operating on a skeleton crew of fifteen, there were fifteen decks, as well as the cargo and engineering bays. The ship was shaped like some kind of eel - even the front bridge area resembled some monsters face. To be honest, it looked kinda cool. But if I said that outloud the others would probably laugh at me. My assumtions of the ship being expensive and even custom-built explained the room set-up. Two bunks of three beds each, and Sin and I were the only ones in the room. Skeleton crew, We'd chosen the same bunk, with him on the top and me in the middle - it just made talking easier at 'night'. Over on the opposite wall, next to the other bunk, was a 'fresher, as well as a sink with a mirror. There was a control panel next to our bunk, on the same wall the door was on. On the other side of the door to the control panel there was a table large enough for six people to squeeze onto for breakfast, but we'd been eating in the messhall with the rest of the crew anyway so we hadn't really used it that much except for a game of sabacc every other night. So far, since we'd left Coruscant, I owed him 12 days and 13 nights in the bed of a Twi'Lekk princess. Don't ask me how I'm supposed to arrange that! I'm just glad I don't owe him any credits. Imagine the look on my face when he turned round and told me we were playing for women. He was a funny guy though, and we always had a good laugh together, just talking, taking about the others and their quirks.

As I lay there, gazing out of the large window on the wall opposite the door, I pondered the job I'd acepted. The job we;d all accepted. It was pretty simple enough. We'd been hired by some rich guy to go to some damaged research ship out in the middle of nowhere and bring him back...well I dunno, I can't remember - the Captain's got all the details. Our pay was 20,000 plus anything we could loot off the R&D ship. It sounded like a breeze. Not bad for my first job on the wild side. Up until two months ago my days had been spent fixing speeders and YT-1300's and starfighters and bulk transports. I wonder how old Mik's doing back at the shop now. But that thought is quickly shoved aside as the door opens. I sit up slightly, expecting Sin to come in with a half-eaten plate of sandwiches. According to him he was starving when he left the room just before to grab a bite to eat. I had asked him to bring me back a soda. He better not've forgotten or he can forget bout that Twi'Lekk princess orgy!

[Turcyn Rorke]

Twenty thousand credits; that was the only real thought that consistently pestled in Rorke’s mind. It, just like every other lackey on this trip, was the only reason he was here, and quite frankly it was the only thing he cared about. Conversations and acquaintances were abound, but he was busy catching some rest. Though he had been dozing the entire duration of their nine hour interim, he still made no intention of getting up from his bunk.

With an eye open, he cautiously dazed in and out of consciousness, a bit weary of being stuck on a ship with a band of swindlers and mercenaries. He’d came capably prepared, at least with hardware. Patting down his pockets, it’d struck him that he’d loss track of his stims.

Cursing lightly to himself, he crawled to his feet, glancing sluggishly about the room. His hand was literally switching, it was apparent he needed a fix.

“For frell’s sake…”

He grimaced, his body branching out into a stretch.

[Anton Grenples]

His pulse was racing.

Why? He cursed himself for his nervousness. This was supposed to be *fun*, a chance to be a real adventurer for once--a chance to be interesting. Of course he didn't really belong here, we wasn't a mercennary, he wasn't interesting, and he certainly wasn't tough, in fact, he thought of himself as rather delicate. And, as whenever he actually stopped to think about anything besides machines, he began second guessing himself.

Why? Why had he overheard that scruffy looking character talking about a big payout for a salvage mission? A better question: why had he inquired further about it? No doubt he was still addled from an earlier electrical shock. Yes, that's it; that explains the temporary insanity that came over him when he not only volunteered for the mission, but embellished (okay, lied) about his combat experience. Certainly it wasn't needed for the mission, but it no doubt swayed the man's opinion about the unusual candidate that was Anton.

And of course now he couldn't sleep, not with all this running through his head. Word was the ship was experiencing a problem with the hyperdrive system; perhaps he should wander down there and see if he could lend a hand. Not that he knew the first thing about ships or drive systems, but, really, how difficult could it be? Nah, best to not make himself too conspicuous. Rolling out of his bunk, he opened a large sack and dumped out a small collection of tools and equipment. Perhaps he'd build something, that always calmed him.

Cool air washed down on him from a hole in the ceiling, bits of capped off wiring barely visible. There had been a fan there a few days earlier, but he had removed it, stripping the motor and the mounting hardware. It, along with a myriad of other salvaged and otherwise "acquired" components had found their way into a small drooid that now roamed the room, exploring the corners once again. It was unrecognizeable now from how it looked even earlier in the day; an incureable perfectionist, Anton tended to build and rebuild his droids as often as once every hour. Sometimes it was as simple as a new manipulator; sometimes more complicated; like a new drive system; and sometimes, it was torn apart completely, leaving only the logic center intact.

With a small sigh he turned off the droid and got down to work. He was in his element now. With a blinding speed that would lead many to believe he was some kind of jedi (a perposterous idea), we went to work. An astonished onlooker would see what looked like days worth of work happen before his eyes in mere minutes as the droids rollers melted away and small, segmented legs grew in their place. But, of course, no one was watching. No one ever watched if he could help it--people made him nervous.

And only several minutes later, Anton was back in bed, his tools placed neatly away as he was lulled to sleep by the rhythmic clicking of the droid, once more exploring the room.

[Seteth Morters]

Seteth was by no means a swindler, but twenty k was a lot of money, to someone who had never really made very much money before. The quarters Seteth had been assigned were small, but cabins on long-haul journeys tended to take on some of the personality of their owner. Piles of books, datapads with messages from friends, a framed photo of a smiling woman and two young girls, one a conservative-looking brunette, the other blonde and smiling, just like her mother.

There were no books. There were no letters. There was no photo.

Seteth's few belongings were packed up in a canvas bag, which was stowed in the tiny cupboard across the room from where the ex-assassin now lay, staring at the bottom of the bunk above his. No-one had taken it. He blinked, and seemed to regain consciousness from whatever strange realm he had been inhabiting. His legs swung mechanically off the bed, and he stood up, staggering aimlessly out of the door and into a corridor, in the vague direction of the canteen.

[Nikkiah Wintermoon]

The only female within the skeletal crew aboard this monstrosity of a ship.

Wonderful.

Nikkiah can hear her own sarcasm in her mind as she meanders the corridors, running over a few things in her head - pertaining to the other hired hands on this mission.

First, there's the geek. He seems rather fidgity and possesses an odd affinity for droids. She's heard stories on the holonet, you know. Like on those talk shows and stuff. The ones that focus on the really weird fetishes humans and aliens have. Maybe he was like one of those types. Maybe he gets off on droids.

That thought brings a shudder to her shoulders.

There's one aboard whom reminds her of a serial killer. Semi-long hair, a greasy look about him; but he also holds an intelligence that can be seen in his eyes. He's not one to be messed with.

Who else ... who else ...? Oh yes! Then there is the one who bunks with the serial killer type. Odd sort, not much to say about him.

The one who makes her a bit nervous is the one she's noticed suffering from the shakes. Addict. He's the one she will see about avoiding as much as possible.

Then there is Nikkiah. As stated before, it appears that she's the only female aboard this odd looking, yet advanced ship. Twenty thousand credits is nothing compared to the money she once made. Compared to her former profession, it's chump change.

So, why is it that she finds herself here?

If it weren't for one itty-bitty incident which happened a week before getting this gig .. she wouldn't be here!

Rounding a corner and she finds herself at the mess hall. Funny, her stomach must have led her here because it lets out a loud growl.

"Oh hush. I can't believe you actually like the stuff to eat on this ship." Muttered under her breath, of course.

Into the mess hall and over to the food processing unit. Nikkiah depresses one of the buttons and voila! A nice slice of chocolate cake is there.

That's her drug of choice. Soothe the nerves with a nice fix from chocolate. Nothing beats that.

Wait.

Almost nothing beats it.

Taking a seat, she lifts her right foot and settles the booted sole against the edge of the table, keeping the plate of chocolate cake close as the first bite is taken.

"He'd better be right about this..."

[Vhiran Crescent]

"Krasst!" Vhiran shouted as he slammed his fist down on the table in their quarters. "I lost again!? Damnit Sollak, I suck at this." Vhiran had just lost again to his partner, Darriann Sollak, at a game of sabacc. Vhiran was actually very good at sabacc, but Sollak always seemed to beat him! It was very irritating.

He leaned back in his chair, looking up at the fan slowly spinning above them. He hated being here, stranded, on some ship he wasn't familiar with. He wouldn't even be here if they hadn't of messed up their last job. The Rodian certainly wasn't very happy with them, but he cut them some slack, with some certain..."negotiations", that Darriann had nicely arranged. They had been payed 10 grand to transport a Corellian Transport to Nar Shadaa, but had run into a little trouble on the way...but that was about a month ago, and they were both back up to speed now, but needed a little extra cash for a project they were working on.

They normally flew Sollak's YT-2000, the Renegade Angel. He could tell that he didn't like being here, and neither did Vhiran, especially after the hyperdrive went down.

"Maybe I should go help them fix this piece of junk?" Vhiran said, still looking at the fan. Vhiran was a very skilled engineer and pilot, as he took care of the Renegade Angel all the time.

[imported_Darriann Sollak]

"No stay. I'll try and let you win this time. I'll even let you cheat." Darriann replied to Vhiran.

Darriann leaned back in his chair and stared at the fan. It was spinning fast. He concentrated his focus on one of the blades. It slowed or so it seemed. He thought it almost went in reverse for a moment but then rubbed his eyes. The blades were spinning normaly.

"Maybe your right. Lets go see what we can do."

[Sin Vamel]

"Alright! I got your frelling soda, Huttass."

I stagger into our quarters with some difficulty; a plate of sandwiches in one hand, a bottle of beer in the other, a can of soda under one arm and a datapad under the other. The whole ordeal, getting from the mess hall back to this room had been no easy feat and I was thankful that no-one had seen me trying to manage it. Clamping the neck of the beer bottle in my teeth, I toss him his soda, not caring if Kal catches it or not.

"You know, I've been away from here how long?" I begin with a degree of disbelief in my voice and slump down into an unoccupied bed, laying my sandwiches on the floor next to me. Before continuing, I tear the bottle top off my beer with my teeth; a handy party trick and spit it across the room at Kal, it hits the side of his head. "About thirty minutes, right? And guess how many other crew members I saw; none. Zilch. Nadda."

A swig of the ice cold ale is enough to shut me up for a bit until I decide to break the moment of silence with a big, proud belch. Turning on my side on the bed that isn't mine, I look across to Kal; he was a decent guy and definately one you'd want to have on your side in our world where your honest workers are replaced by unscrupulous bastards. I'm one of those unscrupulous bastards and so is he; it's how we live and it's the only way to stay alive. He hasn't told me this but after speaking with him, it's one of those things you just know and it takes a scoundrel to know one. We get on well.

"I tell you what though--" I begin with a wicked look of amusement. "I wouldn't mind bumping into Miss Wintermoon in one of the dark, steamy service ducts."

Kal gives me a puzzled look so I elaborate. "She's the woman onboard, I asked the captain about her and he was kind enough to tell me her name; Nikkiah Wintermoon. Not bad at all, do you remember her?"

[Vhiran Crescent]

"Alright, lets go." Vhiran said, getting to his feet. The sudden rush of blood from the elevation made him somewhat dizzy and his vision turned nearly completely black.

"Whoa, stood up to fast," he said as he regains orientation. He shook his head quickly. "Ok" He headed out the door after Sollak and began walking down the long corridor with all of the other rooms. He looked at a few doors as he passed. At each one he wondered if there was anyone in there, or if it was just collecting dust.

It took them a good while to find the engineering room on this huge ship. When they arrived, Vhiran was amazed, and his jaw dropped to the floor. It was huge!

He whistled, looking all around the room. "Check out all this expensive, state-of-the-art crap. It doesn't even work! Hah! Still impressive though..."

He began to walk deeper into the room, still wide eyed.

[Kal Jericho]

"Ah! The traveller returns. Thanks for the..."

He tossed the soda over to me. It was awful. He basically flicked it into the air at the most awkward of trajectories. Maybe he was part of a mortar team in a past life. Luckily I caught it before it smacked me square in the face...

"...soda. Hey listen, that music you got is pretty good. Whats the name of the band?"

He didn't really hear me. He was plastered! He was probably seeing double. Thats one of the many reasons I don't drink alcohol. I'll stick to my soda's, thank you very much.

We'd be moving on soon. I had a funny feeling that the hyperdrive would be operational within the hour. And that was only because I'd never heard of anyone taking ten hours to fix a bloody hyperdrive.

"Well, I think I've been cooped up in this room for long enough now. I'm going for a walk - catch you later Sin..."

Taking my soda with me, I head for the door. Maybe I'll go check out the engineering bay. Reading the mental map in my mind, I think about how to get there. Ah, thats it. Through the messhall and down the turbolift is the quickest route. As I walk, I hum a tune to myself, with the occasional whistle for the high falsetto parts.

[Nikkiah Wintermoon]

With the chocolate cake eaten and nothing but a few crumbs dotting the plate, Nikkiah rises and cleans up the area. The sound of someone approaching draw her attention to the doorway when in walks Kal Jericho.

She doesn't say anything, only watches him walk on through to exit through the opposite door. Figuring that there just might something of actual interest to check out, she follows in his wake.

A quick look one way then to the other, which reveals Kal once again, heading towards the lifts. Quickening her pace just a bit, she catches up as he activates the lift's call button.

"Where's the fire?"

[Kal Jericho]

"The hyperdrive's still down. I'm bored waiting so I thought I'd see if I could lend a hand and get the show back on the road."

She's the only woman on board. I wonder how she feels about that? Hmm. Reminds me of a movie I saw on holonet a while back. A woman crash-landed on a planet inhabited by just men. I'm sure it had some kind of monster in it. She felt pretty uncomfortable while she was there. I can't remember the ending though.

"You're Nikkiah right? Sorry, I haven't really gotten to know anyone really, 'cept Sin who I'm sharing a room with."

It was Nikkiah, right? I'm sure of it. Or maybe not. Oh I can't remember! Guess I'd better start talking to the rest of the crew or else it'll be 'Hey you!' who I'm asking to save my neck when a bulkhead collapses.

[Nikkiah Wintermoon]

"Yup. That's the name I was given at birth atleast." She says with a slight hint of jest in her voice.

"Sin .. Sin .. oh yes, he's the one who looks like a rogue scoundrel."

Then again, most of the others fit that description too.

"Well, I don't know too much about hyperdrives, but I'd like to get the lay of the ship ingrained in my head so mind if I tag along for a bit?"

Being the only woman on board doesn't bother her in the least. Perhaps if she was one of those women who can't fight to save their own life she'd feel differently.

Well trained, been training since the age of three years, she doesn't worry at all for her safety or her well being. The thing that unnerves her the most is the thought of possibly being located by a few who have been hunting her for the past seven months.

Its not her fault that they were lousy at sabacc and its not her fault that she didn't know they were the head hanchos of her own employers.

[Kal Jericho]

"Yeah sure, I'd love the company. Better than going alone - this place gives me the creeps! I guess its because of the skeleton crew the ship is operating on. You can go a good five hours wandering around and not see anybody!"

Stop blabbing you idiot, or she's gonna think you're a loser! You are a loser, but she doesn't need to know that! At least put on some kind of demeanor. Pretend you're really cool - like a wanted criminal who's got bounties on his heads from here all the way to the Corporate Sector. Second thought don't - you're not the best of actors! You'd probably come off as an even bigger loser since she'd realise what you're up to!

Ah, here's the lift. We both enter and I key in for engineering. The doors close with a swish and down we go. Thats something I've noticed about ships - you always seem to go down for engineering! If I ever get the chance to design a ship, I'm putting the engineering bay slap-bang in the centre of the ship - so everybody's just as close or just as far away as everyone else. Sort of!

"So what brings you along on this little errand? I'm assuming its the money but you never know, heh!"

[Nikkiah Wintermoon]

As Kal rambles on, Nikkiah enters the lift, pursing her lips into a thin line while biting her tongue. If she were anywhere else, she'd have told him to shut the hell up all ready, geesh. She asks a simple question and gets an answer longer that was necessary.

Still, no reason to openly appear rude or anything, so she nods her head in the appropriate places of Kal's babbling; atleast looking as if she's interested in what he has to say.

"I like that the ship isn't clogged with idi ... er, people. Solitude is good and so is silence."

A slow turn of her head to look at Kal and a grin edging her lips.

"Oh yes, that's it. The money."

There is no disguising the sarcasm dripping from her response and accompied by that grin only makes it more sarcastic.

"What brings you here? By the looks of you, I doubt it's just the money."

With her hands folded at her tailbone she leans against the backwall of the lift and crosses her left foot over the right ankle; keeping her eyes on Kal the entire time.

[Kal Jericho]

By the looks of me!? What the hell does she mean by that? What exactly do I look like? Seriously, its not as if someone can look at me and say 'Oh yeah - he looks like one of those guys who travels three weeks on an empty ship to bring back crap from a derelict!'. Maybe there's a name for those kinda guys. Salvage team? Who knows! Nevermind! What do I look like!?

"What do you mean by that? What do I look like? Yeah, I'm here for the money, but you can't just say that and leave it there!"

Now she's got me. If she doesn't tell me what she means by that I won't be able to sleep for days! Its not every day a woman who looks as good as Nikkiah says something as tantalising as 'By the looks of you, I doubt it's just the money'. Whats she getting at? I'm no good at reading between the lines! Jeez! Why can't guys speak the same language as women! Things'd be much simpler that way!

[Nikkiah Wintermoon]

A flirty wriggle of her nose with a shrug of one shoulder, then Nikkiah's eyes roam over Kal's figure from head to toe and back again.

"Why can't I just say something like that and leave it there?"

Ohhhh, he's a fun one! She likes that. Easing from the wall, she takes two steps closer to the lift doors.

"Mmm. You look like a man who is far more intelligent than the usual rif-raf that ends up working on a salvage crew without any alterior motives."

A slight turn on her heels brings her into direct eye contact with the man once again.

"Then again, looks can be deceiving; or so I've heard."

[Kal Jericho]

"Is that so?"

The lift finally comes to a halt on the engineering level. The doors open slowly to reveal a dimly-lit corridor. At the far end is a set of large doors, leading to the engine room. I'm not even sure how many of the crew are actually working on the repairs. I rub my hand behind my back as I lean against the back wall of the lift. My hand is still a little sore due to the accident earlier on, but I'll still lend a hand if I can.

"If you must know...", I start, with a smile. "I did a little research on the ship we're heading to. I managed to find out whats in their cargo bay. There's some pretty hard-to-come-by stuff on that ship and I'm hoping to make some extra money out of this job."

[Nikkiah Wintermoon]

With her arms folded beneath her chest, left leg jutted out a bit away from her body, her weight shifts to become supported by the right.

"Ahh. See, there are deceptions present."

Nikkiah's mouth opens slightly, the tip of her tongue caresses the side of her left cheek lightly. Closing her lips, pursing them long enough to give them a light lick, she turns on her heels and exits the lift.

"So he was right ..", she whispers to herself while sauntering down the dimly lit corridor, her boot heels scraping against the flooring with each step.

[Kal Jericho]

Jeez! Who is this woman!? She's one of those people who act a certain way and you think you know exactly what they're thinking, but really you couldn't be further from the truth. I know what I want to think about her, but the truth is I really don't know if I can trust her. Naturally, the story about the cargo is a complete lie. I just told her what she wanted to hear. I'm not one to disappoint a lady. Besides, a boring 'No, I'm just here to get paid' would have been a bit of a let-down.

As we leave the lift I can hear Nikkiah say something quietly. Since I assume it wasn't for me to hear I don't ask her what she said. As we reach the entrance to the engineering bay, she stops to operate the access panel...

"So what disciplines do you bring to this rag-tag bunch of caitiffs?"

[Nikkiah Wintermoon]

"Eye candy; that's what I donate to this group."

That sweet yet cunning smile parts her lips again as she turns her eyes to Kal once more. Is that seriously her answer? Only she knows.

"If you want a straight answer from me, you'll give me straight answers first. Though, I think I am finding this little game between us to be amusing and fun."

She winks to Kal then looks to the door as it slides open. In she goes, wading her way past the few already working on the hyperdrive to position herself in an out-of-the-way spot and watch for the moment.

[Kal Jericho]

Game?

Oh well. Once inside, I acknowledge the other guys working away and find out what needs doing. There's a loose power coupling that needs dealing with before power can be re-routed so that the main energy dampeners can be repaired. So that sounds like a good place for me to start. Its on the opposite side of the room to Nikkiah, but I can see she's watching me every now and then. It makes me nervous.

At least the tools aren't rudimentary crap - this is state of the art equipment! With this stuff, the hyperdrive should be fixed in no time. Then its on to the derelict - which should only take another day to reach if everything goes well.