The Rebel Flare wasn't much to look at from the outside. To the untrained eye, it seemed like nothing more than a beat up hauler; poorly maintained, which was apparent from missing plates, which left certain tubes, and couplings exposed.
That was a facade though. The captain of the small freighter, Bantan Tib, had designed the worn look. He even attached some tubing to the outer hull, which served only esthetically, to give it a battle scarred look. Even going as far as to paint scorch marks, and blast damage.
A ships scopes wouldn't pick up on these little design choices, but when docked, most other captains, and ship hands would avoid hijacking it. That was the important thing for Bantan, especially when running errands on outer worlds.
He paced the cockpit, lost in his own mind. The floors were clean, the walls were free of clutter; the Rotchi cleaner he had hired a few ports ago kept the place spotless. The insectoid was well worth his wages, for that fact alone.
The doors to the cockpit opened, and Bantan stopped walking, to watch his co-pilot, Kay Ber'ol, saunter into the room. A Human of Twenty-three, with black hair, a large frame, and sharp facial features. There was a slight stagger in his step, which he typically blamed on alcohol, with a grin, when questioned about it. Bantan knew it was really from an old wound that never healed.
"You're late," Bantan said, as he started pacing once more.
"My apologies Banty," he said, bothering with no explanation for his lack of punctuality.
Kay was supposed to be learning from Bantan's example, and in the beginning, he did. Now, though, he was becoming more laxed, when it came to the few simple rules.
"You'll straighten yourself up, or you'll be finding lodge aboard a different ship." There was enough sting in the captains words, to make Kay drop the cocky walk.
Hunched, he carefully got to his desk, and without a word, he started to work at his station.
"You're getting too comfortable." Bantan said, without looking at him. "This isn't the kind of job, one can get comfortable in, you have to be able to expect the unexpected. Space is a very dark place, and every routine job can be a death sentence for the misguided, and negligent."
"I'm sorry," Kay said, as he continued to type at his station.
"You're sorry." Bantan said. "Would that word mean anything, if we came under fire from a Gnosian War Party, or a Zun-Kulla Hunter."
Kay remained silent for a moment, as he continued to type. Bantan looked at him, and he stopped typing to meet his glare.
"We're coming up to Scoosha. Will we drop from our lane now?"
Bantan grumbled, but no words came out. He made his way to his own station, in the centre of the room, and sat down. The monitors were showing their destination, and a estimate on when to drop out of their jump lane.
Dropping now would leave them on the edge of the system, and would allow them to cruise there at common speed. It was usually good to do so, to keep an eye out for wrecks, cargo drops, and distress signals. The risks were, however, that bandits, skyway men, or scavs could be waiting to prey upon travelers.
"If we drop now, we might get lucky." Kay said, echoing Bantans thoughts.
"Is it worth the risk?" Bantan was trying to talk himself out of it.
"A good wager is always worth a gamble. Besides, if anyone stops us, we can always take the husk of their vessel to the scrappers yard." Kay let out a light chuckle. "Decide now, because we're loosing space."
Bantan disengaged the jump engines, and the ship jolted. It was so powerful that the Anti-Gravity emitter stuttered, leaving a fleeting feeling of weightlessness. The spinning feeling was the best part of an early drop; the sensation didn't last too long, but was strong enough for the feeling to be recalled for minutes afterwards. Starting in his head, it felt like he did a summersault, that feeling crept down to his groin, to finally settle somewhere in his lower stomach.
"Nothing like a good drop to get the blood flowing." Kay laughed.
"Okay, lets hope its worth it." Bantan could feel himself grinning, as he watched the shimmering blue light fade to the deep blackness of space.
