Chapter 02: Reparations
"My stomach really hurts. Maybe I ate something bad."
"You got shot you idiot! Of course it hurts."
"Oh yeah. Well I guess that means I'm not dead then. I wonder why."
Jei slowly opened her eyes. The sight that met her was hardly the
inspiring majesty of whatever afterlife she might have believed in, nor
was it the pits of damnation, and her own consciousness precluded non-
existence. It was just a mundane white panelled ceiling.
She sat painfully up in the bed and looked around. She didn't
recognise it, but it was almost certainly a hospital judging from the
curtain around the bed and large observation window in the wall. It was
dark outside. She threw the covers off herself and assessed the
situation, giving her stomach a cursory prod. It was very tender, but
whatever wound was under the light green hospital gown was sealed.
Her leg caught her attention next. She didn't feel any pain from it,
but there was a thinly wired scaffold over her lower thigh and knee, the
small rods of metal buried deep in her flesh, and she guessed probably
the bone as well. She gently tried moving the limb and found that,
despite what she thought was probably a local anaesthesia, it still
worked fine, and the hinge in the scaffold allowed her to move her knee
easily.
She lay back and stared at the strip light in the ceiling. <What
now?>
For some reason she felt very wide awake after only a few minutes
back in the world of the conscious. Maybe they had given her something
that had worn off now.
She didn't know how long she lay there - it felt like hours. It was
strange, but she couldn't actually think of anything. Her mind kept
flitting from one conundrum to the next, never stopping long enough to
actually work out what she was trying to think of. It was very
disconcerting.
After a while she sat up, wincing as her stomach folded, and
carefully got to her feet. She never stopped to consider that her leg
might not support her, but the fact was that it did and she managed to
hobble uncomfortably out of the unlocked room.
"It must be a small or hospitable station, most hospitals lock their
wards - I think."
"Yes, evidently they never met anyone as reckless as you! Get back
to bed! They'll think you've been kidnapped or something."
Jei continued slowly down the corridor in spite of her inner self,
using the wall to help support herself on her unsteady leg. "It's night.
No one's here."
"And of course if you mess up that leg or something they'll be so
happy to have you back. You don't even know what they had to do to you!"
"So?"
It seemed her other self decided to give up then. She knew she
wasn't going to win, she was too far gone into her own apathy right now.
"Fine, see if I care. Looks like getting shot addled your brain if you
don't want to listen to reason."
"Maybe." It did seem like a real possibility.
After a while she found she could walk haltingly without the aid of
the wall, so she did. The dark, empty corridors reminded her of those
creepy horror movies she'd liked when she was younger, but instead of
fear she found the unnatural silence calming. Up ahead she saw a young
doctor walking hurriedly past the end of the hall, staring intently at
his notebook. It surprised her a little, but it made sense that at least
someone would be working at night.
She turned the way the young man had come from and soon found
herself at the front desk of the hospital. Again, she found it strange
to be on the ground floor. She always thought of hospitals as tall
buildings.
There was no-one at the desk so she headed out into the station. It
looked a little grubby, but she was too busy looking around at the other
structures to notice. It was a very small station: she could see from
one end to the other, and she guessed the docks were around the
perimeter, because there was no way they could have docked any real
number of ships inside. It looked two tiered, one for commercial, the
other residential.
She slowly continued down the one and only 'street' on that upper
tier looking at the shops. It seemed like the entire place shut down for
the night. When she reached a small cafe though she stopped. There was
still someone inside, asleep at a table. She carefully tried the door
and found it was still open. She wondered how may other shops didn't
bother to lock up. Wasn't there any theft here?
She slowly walked inside. At first she thought the sleeping figure
was male until she saw the woman's face. She didn't wear makeup but she
was quite pretty in a sort of rough round the edges way. Even so, her
eyes were red and it was blatantly obvious she had been crying quite
heavily.
Jei pulled out a chair as quietly as she could and sat down
painfully, resting her head on her hands as she watched the other woman
sleep.
<I wonder what she's doing here,> she thought to herself.
<Mmm, not our business though.>
Jei sat there looking at her carefully, as though she were studying
her. It was incredible the amount you could see when you saw someone.
Many people look but very few actually try to see. Jei could conjure up
so many possibilities as to who this tomboy was and why she was there.
When she looked at the clock she found she had been sitting there
almost two hours. "Maybe I should get back now."
This time she found no dissenting voice. She stood up, her hand at
her tender stomach, and headed for the door again, ideas about the
sleeping woman still going round in her head. As she left she let the
door swing back, shocking Yae awake as it clattered closed, causing her
to knock what was left of her cold coffee across the table.
She looked up rubbing her eyes to see the hospital gowned form of
Jei shuffle past the shop window, lost in her own thoughts.
***
The doctor sighed as Jei's eyes started to wander around the room
again. "...so as unwise as it was at least we know you won't be needing
physiotherapy."
"Good." Jei turned her attention back to the old man. It was
starting to annoy her that he didn't seem to have anything worthwhile to
say that she didn't already know. "How long will I have to stay here? I
have some business to finish."
"Just an X-ray for that leg to make sure it wasn't aggravated and
then you can go. Before that though the young man outside will want to
ask some questions since the police have requisitioned his services over
what happened to you. He's the one who found you."
Jei nodded. "All right, let's see him then. I just want to get out
of here."
The doctor nodded and beckoned for Crow to come in.
<Would you look at him!>
The other part of her stomped on that though. <Shut up Jei, you're
hardly a vision of normalcy yourself!>
To her surprise he gave her a brief smile. "I'm glad to see you
pulled through. You're a very lucky woman."
"Uh, thanks."
"My name's Crow. I know this isn't the best of times but I'm stuck
with sorting this out while the locals are tied up. I just need a few
questions answered then you can get on with what you need to do."
When she didn't reply he kept going. "I need to know what cargo you
were carrying when you were attacked."
"Just chemicals. For a university."
Crow noted it down on the paper he'd been given for the
'questioning'. "Anything dangerous?"
"I don't know, maybe. I think some of them were acids. Why?"
"Just had to check." He scribbled it down again. "Your destination?"
"Koranis Educational Academy. Look, what's this all for?" Jei
paused, studying him. "You don't look like a cop."
Crow nodded again. "I'm not, but the Bounty Hunter's Charter says I
have to help them out under special circumstances, and this is one of
them."
"You're a bounty hunter?"
Crow decided to humour her. She'd almost been killed after all. "If
I wasn't I wouldn't have to be playing errand boy here."
He was just about to finish his questions when the door burst open
behind him. "WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL ME SHE WAS AWAKE ALREADY?"
Crow just groaned inwardly. <Because you're loud,> he thought to
himself, although that was really just his own reason for leaving her
out of it. He didn't need the hassle.
Angelica stalked up to the bed and looked Jei right in the eyes,
righteous fury dripping from her features. "You owe me a new ship!"
Jei looked back unfazed and blinked. "Why? Who are you?"
"Who am I?" The well dressed outlaw looked incredulous. "I'm Lady
Angelica, the captain of the Crimson Scorn, the ship you just BLEW UP!
*That's* who I am and *that's* why!"
She crossed her arms as though that settled the matter. Jei blinked
again and frowned. <She's blaming me for her ship trying to kill me?>
Angelica wasn't ready for the punch that sent her reeling backwards.
Crow quickly stepped between them. "Hey, nothing gets started in here."
He couldn't afford to get stuck babysitting them if either of them
decided revenge was in order.
Jei however didn't pay attention. She felt the fire explode in her
stomach as she hauled herself to her feet, but that was something she
could cope with. "You attacked me, shot out my engines, forced your way
onto my ship, stole my cargo, shattered my leg, put a *bullet* in me and
left me to *bleed* to *death*! And you have the nerve to blame me?" She
glared coldly at Angelica. "You deserved everything you got you pirate!"
Angelica glared right back. "Okay, so maybe I hired a combat happy
nutcase when I shouldn't have, but there were *seven* other people on
that ship who sure as hell didn't deserve what happened to them! I spent
four years on that ship only to have it get blown up along with everyone
and everythin' on it. And I'm *not* a pirate, I'm an outlaw, which means
I don't go around attackin' every passer by for the fun of it! If it
weren't for you I'd still have my livelihood and could beat the crap out
of the asshole Jhonas for myself, so the compensation is your
responsibility!"
"I fail to see the logic here," Crow deadpanned, causing Angelica to
round on him.
"You stay out of this ghoul-man!"
That caused Crow to finally frown. "Lady Angelica, if that is in
fact your real name, there is no way in hell anyone with any legal sense
will back you up on this. If you carry on harassing Tazenten-san you'll
find she can get you put away for what happened. Considering that she is
capable of pressing charges I would have thought that you would be more
careful about your attitude."
Angelica looked ready to burst as she looked from Crow to Jei and
back again before she let out a growl and finally stormed off.
Jei looked at him for a minute as he gave a sigh of relief. "How old
are you?"
Crow wasn't expecting that. "Huh? Nineteen, why?"
"Oh. You act very mature for your age."
Crow gave a wry grin. "Thanks, but you've got to learn all that
legal bull before you get your Hunter's licence." He let out his breath.
"Well, I don't really need anything else so I'll leave you to your X-
ray." He turned to leave.
"Wait, do I get some answers too?"
Crow paused at the door. "If you've got any questions I'll be at the
police station. They'll be keeping me here for another day while they
tie this thing up."
Jei sat back down on the bed. "Okay."
Crow shook his head as he headed over to the outpost's small police
station, his forms rolled up in one hand. He had a feeling this wasn't
over quite yet, especially with Angelica still loose.
***
One clear X-ray later Jei sat in the reception of the police station
staring at her feet, waiting for Crow to come back out. In truth she
only wanted one question, but as always it was just that one question
that her life hinged on. And, as usual, the outcome didn't matter at
all.
"Tazenten-san?"
Crow looked down at her as she looked up, not sure what to make of
her at all. She was now dressed in a green T-shirt and jeans, both far
too baggy for her even given her generous figure, and her hair was just
as unkempt as it had been when he first saw her. He began to wonder if
her appearance mattered to her at all because she hadn't seemed to
bother with it. It made her look very rough. <Maybe that's what she
wants.>
"My name's Jei... What happened to my ship?"
Crow deflated on her behalf. To some he might have seemed cold on
first glance, but underneath he could empathise with people very well.
"The Moonlight's moored outside. It's a write off I'm afraid. They
should have told you already, but once you collect what stuff you want
it's headed for the scrap heap. They'll pay you for the metal... I know
that's not much consolation, but it's the best they can do."
Jei dropped her gaze and stared off into the middle distance. "It's
just a ship."
But somewhere inside she didn't believe that.
"I need to get my belongings."
Crow nodded. "There's a shuttle that can take you out at dock 1. You
should deal with getting it sold off at the same time, the quartermaster
should be there."
"Oh, so there you are!"
"Here we go again," Crow muttered to himself as Angelica sauntered
over.
Jei on the other hand just got up and headed for the door, not even
glancing as she passed the outlaw.
Angelica turned astonished as she was passed. "Hey wait a minute,
I'm talkin' to you!"
Jei just left the building.
"Now that was just rude!" Angelica stated, before taking off after
her.
Crow looked towards the door, distinctly non-plussed. "She's had her
warning. I'm not getting involved." He turned to the cop behind him at
the desk. "Where's the captain?"
***
Jei looked down at the credit chip in her hand. There was so little
to salvage from the Moonlight she had only just managed to get one
hundred credits for it. She put the thought on hold. She'd soon find out
whether money was something she'd have to worry about or not.
Behind her Angelica was almost apoplectic. The scruffy woman hadn't
said more than one word to her and that was a full five minutes ago.
"Look, are we goin' in or what?"
Jei looked back up and stepped into her ship. She knew there must
have been gunfire there but the hall looked like the scene of a siege.
She walked in slowly, taking in everything. For some reason she felt
like mourning the 'death' of the ship, but that just seemed silly. It
was just a tool.
From behind her Angelica whistled. "Jhonas really did go nuts."
"He was strong." Jei opened the cockpit door as she passed, but
carried on into the cargo bay that had survived. It was completely bare.
She began to let herself hope that her attacker hadn't been as thorough
as he could have. She walked up to the far wall and pressed one of the
panels. There was a muffled bleep, and the larger panel beside it fell
forward, revealing the hole behind.
She smiled. He hadn't found it. There wasn't much there, but it was
the stuff that mattered: her savings, some old photoslides, an
emergencies bag with spare clothing and other necessities, and a few of
her favourite books. The hidden hole in the other cargo bay wouldn't
have survived being depressurised. The fake panel wouldn't have been
strong enough. Still she had half of what she had stored and for once
she let herself see that the cup was half full instead of half empty.
The lost portion of her savings could be transferred as long as she had
one of the credit pads.
She packed the things into the bag and headed back to the shuttle.
When she saw Angelica in the cockpit she stopped. The young blonde was
just standing there staring at the scene.
Angelica really didn't want to be seeing this. After a few seconds
she turned and walked past the woman whose dried blood had coated the
room. "Let's get out of here."
***
The pair headed slowly for the outpost job centre, Angelica
following Jei's lead although she had no idea where the taller woman was
headed. However, she was nothing if not persistent. "Hey, what're you
gonna do now? You didn't just go there to show me that, and if you think
it'll make me forget what you owe me you'd better think again."
"I'm wearing everything I own. Go away." Jei didn't even turn to say
it.
"Not likely! I'm stickin' around 'till I get what's mine."
Jei picked up her pace a little. Perhaps she could irritate her into
leaving her alone. Angelica scrapped that idea by speeding up right
along with her. To counter that Jei stopped dead in her tracks, and
Angelica ran right into the back of her.
"Hey! What's that for?"
Jei looked her in the eyes, making the most of what height advantage
she had over the blonde outlaw. "You don't seem like a fool, and I have
nothing more to say to you, so go away." With that she turned and headed
off again.
Angelica watched as she disappeared down the street. "Right, we'll
do it your way then." She was used to dealing with uncooperative people.
Up ahead of her Jei noticed that she seemed to have lost her
annoying new appendage (namely Angelica) and slowed down again, giving
her stomach a cursory touch. It still felt like it was on fire every
time she moved too fast, but she never would have let anyone know.
Now she had other things to worry about. Her delivery would have to
be dealt with, and that meant finding a way off the outpost. Miners
didn't often get passenger convoys in to visit, so she would have to try
and find someone willing to take her when they left, or hire them.
That reminded her. She found a quiet alley behind one of the
buildings and dug the credit pad out of her bag. One password later and
she watched as the pad slowly authenticated the transaction and her
credit amount almost doubled, her lost savings finding their way back to
where she could reach them. She also connected the chip the ship dealer
had given her for her wrecked ship and added the cash on that as well.
Hiring someone would thankfully not be a problem.
The job centre was practically deserted, as she had expected for
such a self contained work outpost, but the notice board was still quite
full. Her eyes wandered over the various cards and plaques stuck
haphazardly to it announcing various job offers or requests. She could
have checked the computer archive beside the board, but they were always
full of small notices for the casual requests. If something was wanted
urgently it went on the board. Even a hand scrawled note would be taken
notice of there.
She had almost finished looking over then, noting the few that might
be promising, when another card was pinned up. Unlike most of the others
it was incredibly vague, just a ship name, contact number, and a fairly
impressive list of qualifications. They wanted a job that got them off
the outpost within a few days.
She turned to see the poster heading for the door. Even from the
back the hair and jacket made her unmistakable - the woman from the
cafe. If it hadn't been for that she might have let her go, but for some
reason having seen her before, even just asleep at her table, made her
call out to wait. She already knew that perhaps this woman wanted to
leave as much as she did.
Yae turned at the sound of the voice. Not even up for a minute and
they might have a job? She couldn't believe it, and somehow the woman in
front of her looked familiar. "Yeah?"
Jei plucked the card off the board. "You're military?" The answer
was on the card, but it was just as well to confirm it.
Yae nodded, feeling the hope rise in her. "Yeah, between us we can
do just about anything. We do commercial work too though. Chances are we
can do it, so long as it's not illegal or anything."
As far as Jei was concerned that went without saying or she would
have been somewhere else. "I need to get to the Koranis Educational
Academy. I might need courier services after that, and I want a ship
that can defend itself."
Yae's admittedly meagre professionalism was all that kept her from
jumping for joy. That was exactly the kind of thing she was after.
Simple but would take a while to finish. "Yeah, no problem at all.
What's the cargo?"
"Myself and possibly some Grade C hazardous chemicals if things go
well."
It was Yae's lucky day, grade C was the highest they were allowed to
carry since they were a combat ready ship, and that meant hazard pay as
long as that stuff was onboard. "Okay. Well it's 325 credits a day, 375
if you've got hazardous stuff."
When Jei's brow furrowed slightly she was ready to explain. They'd
had this before.
"I know it's kinda expensive, but we're faster than regular haulers
and we can defend ourselves so you don't need an escort. And it covers
fuel and ammo and everything like that."
In Jei's opinion it was almost bordering on extortion since the card
said there were only two crew, but if they could live up to their sales
pitch it would be acceptable. <And she seems amenable enough,> her mind
chipped in.
However, Jei's silence was making Yae a little nervous. "Well, you
can come see the ship before you say anything. I mean, that's only
natural."
"Okay."
***
Sylvie slowly walked back down the ramp of the Gals Army. Yae hadn't
come back last night, and she wasn't on the ship. She could still feel
her, and she actually seemed happier somehow, but the fact that she was
nowhere to be found worried Sylvie a great deal. Yae was a lot smarter
than she appeared, but she had a habit of acting on the moment, and
Sylvie could only hope she hadn't done something she would regret.
As she stepped off the ramp she was astonished to see Yae walking
right over to her, another woman following her. Sylvie knew that there
was nothing wrong with the picture, but she couldn't help feel that this
other woman looked distinctly dangerous. It was her emotions overriding
her logic again - the only real drawback of her talent besides her lack
of control over it.
She rushed over to them, stopping short when she felt Yae's pang of
pain as her best friend saw her again. "Yae, are you okay? Where have
you been?"
"Hi Syl, I just needed to do something, you know, so I got us some
work. This is, er... sorry, I don't know you're name."
"Jei."
"Well, Jei needs us to take her to Koranis territory. Jei, if you
want to take a look at the ship and I'll talk to Sylvie."
Jei nodded and wandered up to the ship, leaving the pair to talk.
"Yae, who is she?" Sylvie was a little stunned that her partner had
decided to go job hunting without her. It was usually one of her own
roles.
Yae looked a little shamefaced. "I'm sorry, I just felt we could do
with the work. She's just a trader who needs a hand. And I think she was
looking at me last night."
That only worried Sylvie more. "What? Where were you?"
"I just think it was her who I saw leaving. I don't think she's
trouble or anything, just a bit detached maybe." She looked down a bit,
depression beginning to sink back into her features. "We don't have to
take the job if you don't want to."
"It's okay," said Sylvie gently, "We needed a new job soon anyway,
and if you trust her then I will too."
<After all,> she thought to herself, glad to feel Yae's mood
lighten, <if you want to be busy then I'm okay with that.>
Yae nodded, thankful the shorter girl had gone along with it.
"Thanks." She seemed uncharacteristically deferential right now. "Do you
want to finish sorting it out?"
Sylvie gave a little giggle, helping to lighten the atmosphere.
"Nope, I'll let you finish what you started. I'll start prepping for
takeoff."
Yae nodded, her smile gradually turning melancholy as the woman she
adored disappeared. But, as she had promised herself, she would deal
with it, starting right now. She walked over to Jei, who was slowly
taking in the ship before her.
"What do you think?"
Jei looked over to her, a little surprise evident in her features.
"It's big."
Yae nodded. "Well for just me and Syl, yeah it is, but we handle it
fine."
Jei looked thoughtful for a bit as she gave it another look over.
"How soon can you leave?"
Yae cracked a smile. "We can set off in about an hour if you want."
Jei nodded. "I need to let the authorities know I'm leaving."
"Sure, I'll come along and get docking clearance."
As the two of them left the dock Jei caught sight of someone that
she was getting very familiar with. "Typical."
As soon as she saw them Angelica strode up, a fair sized bag over
each shoulder and with a broadsword on her back that was almost as big
as she was. How she was able to walk with it all Jei couldn't tell.
"Hi there," Angelica said, a large smile on her face. "So, when do
we leave?"
Jei and Yaedite looked at each other for a second, the latter having
no idea who this new woman was.
"I think some extra help might be an idea after all," Jei said
desolately.
***
Crow October once again looked out to see the Gal's Army in his
window, and once again wondered how such an introverted and seemingly
dispassionate woman had managed to talk him into this. He also had to
wonder how many universal deities he had managed to offend to make Lady
Angelica the reason he was wanted there.
"Yeah I've got it on my scanners, moving to compensate."
Quite what good he was doing he actually couldn't work out, which
for him was quite something, but it had seemed rational at the time.
The Maria's Summer slowly orbited around the larger ship as the
debris field got bigger. At least the trip wasn't boring. Three days so
far of weaving in and out of the pockets of space junk did at least give
him something to do besides listening in on the various happenings
aboard the Gal's Army. At least Angelica was over there causing trouble.
There was no way he was letting her travel on *his* ship.
***
Onboard the Gal's Army Sylvie leaned into the radio again. "Okay,
we'll check in again when we're through it."
She sat back and cast a worried glance at her pilot. Yae had been
quieter over the last few days, meaning she hadn't said much at all. It
was hardly surprising really but knowing why didn't make it any less
uncomfortable for her. In truth she was at something of a loss as to
what to do. The waves of depression, although no longer as soul
shattering, only ever left her friend when she was working. She had a
choice; either let Yae work herself into exhaustion or feel it as she
beat herself up over something she could do nothing about.
She felt the ship lean as Yae banked to pass through the debris.
They had specifically chosen this route because of its more challenging
nature. It would certainly keep them occupied on the way, and shave a
day off the travel time.
She left the radio and took the navigator's chair, occasionally
giving Yae a heads up when an awkward bit of debris appeared on the
scanners. While Yae spent most of her time at the pilot's chair Sylvie
spent her time moving from one station to the next, filling in for the
crew they didn't have. Flying an eight man ship with just the two of
them was a pleasant challenge, and at least this way the pilot wouldn't
clam up with claustrophobia. She knew from long experience that Yae
didn't like small ships one bit.
Sylvie sighed. The most simple solution to the problem was the one
she felt least capable of fulfilling. How do you find your best friend a
girlfriend when it's just the two of you flying around in a large hunk
of metal with thrusters? She honestly couldn't think of anyone worse for
the position than the Angelica woman. She as loud, outspoken and brash,
although Sylvie was convinced there was a good heart underneath it. And
at the other end of the spectrum was their current employer: Jei. Sylvie
knew Yae had something of an attraction to the shy type, and she was
sure it was her own insecurity about herself that had attracted her in
the first place. However, Jei was distant and seemed uncaring, or at
least unconcerned about everything, including herself, and Sylvie found
that troubling.
<Maybe when this job is over we should go on holiday. That would be
fun, and maybe someone will turn up.> That was pure wishful thinking on
her part, but it couldn't hurt.
However, it was the problem at hand she had to fix. As soon as they
were clear of the debris field she left her post and made her way over
to the tomboy concentrating at the controls. "Yae, maybe you should take
a break."
Yae's eyes remained fixed on the space in front of her. "Nah, I'm
okay Syl. How long till the next bad patch?"
"We've got twelve hours of open space. I know I can't fly but I can
handle it 'till then."
Yae chuckled a little, but she could tell it was a little forced.
"Really, better I'm here if something turns up, right?"
Sylvie wasn't a proactive person, but sometimes she knew she had to
take a stand. "Yae, you haven't slept for 25 hours. If you don't get
some rest I'll... make Andy annoy you."
Yae thought for a bit. Sylvie had only done that once before. It
might not have seemed like much of a threat, but being attacked by a
stuffed bear (courtesy of its owner) was not something to be taken
lightly.
Syl watched sadly as Yae wilted in the chair and got up. "Okay, you
win," Yae said, knowing she was defeated. She stepped past the smaller
woman and started for the door.
"Yae, I don't want to be mean, but I don't want you to make yourself
ill."
Yae nodded. "Yeah, I know. Thanks."
Sylvie had never felt so helpless as she watched her leave.
From out in the corridor she heard Angelica once again following Jei
around the ship, with Tangalo following her, seemingly annoyed he was
not the focus of his owner's attention at the moment. As Jei came to the
cockpit door she stepped inside, shut and locked it.
Angelica started hammering on the other side of the door, determined
not to be ignored again. "Come on Jei, I'm comin' along on this so you
should at least tell me what we're goin' to be doing. Jei? Open up
dammit! WE'RE PARTNERS ON THIS AND YOU'D BETTER GET USED TO IT 'COS
THAT'S HOW IT'LL BE UNTIL YOU PAY WHAT YOU OWE!"
It didn't seem like Jei was paying any attention at all. "May I use
your radio please?"
Sylvie blinked at her and brought up Andy. "Sure, it's over there."
Jei nodded to her. "Thank you."
<Strange,> Sylvie thought. <That's the first time she's said that,
and she meant it.> She looked at the door. <Maybe Angelica is actually
getting to her.>
***
"You do realise we'll have to close *all* the chemistry and biology
courses if we don't get the supplies? Is the courier stupid or just
irresponsible!?"
The chancellor of the Koranis Educational Academy cast a glance
towards the irate course leader. "The individual involved has given a
satisfactory explanation and has offered to carry out the order at no
extra cost, despite her heavy losses. She guarantees delivery before the
new semester starts."
The tutor nodded, somewhat placated by the good news.
"However," he continued, "I have decided to send a representative of
the school with her this time, since there is absolutely no room for
another inconvenience, and she has reluctantly agreed. This individual
would be responsible for the procuring of the lost materials on behalf
of the academy. The question is who to send."
The head of the languages department spoke up, running her fingers
through her long black hair. "I'm assuming you have some idea. I don't
think any of us will have time for anything but marking for weeks!"
Several of the other board members nodded. The culture and politics
head, a small balding man, spoke up after a second. "So, are you saying
send a student?"
The chancellor nodded. "That is one possibility. Are there any
business students who haven't managed to get work placements for next
year?"
The leader of that particular program shook her head. "No, we had a
good year this year. No stragglers."
"Then we just have to see who would benefit from the experience. We
do have several hundred students staying over the holidays."
Again the culture and politics head spoke up. "Actually, there is
one who springs to mind. She's a very promising young woman with a lot
of potential, but she lacks people skills, and in her course that will
count against her."
The chancellor nodded. "If you think she's up to it then let her
know. The courier will be arriving in two days."
***
The short balding man knocked on the dormitory door and smiled when
the rather cute upbeat music was hurriedly switched off. The door was
answered by a thin young woman of just above average height, wearing
large rounded glasses and her trademark rainbow striped woollen jumper.
She had fairly long green hair and looked very apologetic.
"Hello Tataku-san. Don't worry, there's no-one here to complain
about the noise."
Tataku Moniko smiled. "Oh, Misaniti-sensei. Umm, how can I help
you?"
"May I come in, or would you prefer to talk elsewhere?"
"Oh, I'm sorry." She stepped back. "Please, come in."
Misaniti cast an eye around the room as he entered, noting the huge
amount of books. That was just like her. "You've made a nice place for
yourself."
Tataku smiled at the compliment. "Thank you sir. Oh, er, please have
a seat."
Misaniti did so. "Tataku, the reason I'm here is that the academy is
suffering from a little problem and unfortunately the grading of this
year's papers and the current staffing shortage means that we can't
resolve it ourselves. I think you would fill the role nicely if you
wanted some paid work over the holiday."
Tataku looked at him in shock, glowing inwardly. She had never
expected to be chosen for anything like this. "Umm sir, are you sure you
want me?" she asked modestly. She was always one to stay in the
background after all.
"Of course." Misaniti knew she had faith in herself, even if she
hardly ever showed it. It shone through in her work. "You were my first
choice. We need someone to supervise and conduct dealings for extra
supplies with a variety of businesses. It would certainly be useful in
your course to get that sort of experience, and you will be working with
the courier and her associates, so you will have all the assistance you
should need."
Tataku nodded. He'd told her more than once that this was the area
she needed to work on. This was her chance to prove to herself she could
do it. "How long will it be sir?"
"It should be a good fortnight's work, and you'll leave in three
days should you want to take it. I know how you feel about such things,
but I do think it would benefit you, both in experience and in dealing
with your final papers next year."
Tataku smiled a little. "What will I need to pack?"
"Whatever you'd need for any trip. We'll provide you with everything
you need for the business work." He looked into her cyan eyes as they
looked down, trying to read her decision.
"Okay, if you want me to, then I'd like to try it."
Misaniti smiled and nodded. "Good. I'll be in my office when you
want to know the specifics of who and what materials you'll be dealing
with, but I suggest you pack and sort everything out with the dormitory
halls about your absence first."
He got up and made to leave, Tataku following him to the door. "And
Tataku, remember, nobody will have a problem with your heritage. Most
people can't tell the difference between humans and Kai Reithans
anyway."
Tataku blushed a little, wishing he hadn't brought that up. She knew
it was true and silly of her, but other species still made her nervous,
even the ever prolific humans. "Yes sir."
"Good. I know you'll do well in this."
"Thank you sir."
She sighed as he left and she slowly closed the door. Some holiday
homework. <I can do that,> she thought before looking around the room
and wondering what she would need to pack.
***
To Be Continued...
***
Author's Notes: Thanks to Rich Morgan (Zonefox) for Tataku Moniko. Now
all of the main cast have appeared. Let the show go on!
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