Disclaimer: Yu-Gi-Oh! belongs to Takahashi Kazuki.

Bronze-tanned hands rubbed at bleary eyes. Groggily, Mariku slipped back into his black spacesuit, sloppily tossing his sleepwear onto the edge of the bed before pulling a sweater over his suit and zipping up his trousers. A glance at his watch revealed that he'd slept through the rest of the day and into a new one. Outside the window, he could see that they were still in the jump. Mariku felt his stomach growl and shuffled out of his room. He let his feet carry him to the kitchen, his mind struggling to boot up.

The kitchen door slid open, revealing a stark white space furnished with typical kitchen appliances and a table surrounded by chairs. Setsuna was already seated at the table, a cup of coffee held firmly in his hand. Grabbing whatever ration was put out for the day from the refrigerator, Mariku joined him.

"Finally up, I see," Setsuna commented, taking a sip. Mariku grunted, choosing to devour a sandwich rather than make decent conversation. He was still half-asleep.

"Not a morning person, huh?" The pluophilo went and poured out another mug of coffee. After a few seconds of staring, Mariku's head finally kicked into gear, and he took the proffered drink.

"Thanks." He took a sip. He ignored the scalding pain. "It was the one thing I struggled with during boot camp."

Setsuna snorted, "I can imagine."

The duo sat quietly while they idly drank from their mugs. Suddenly, webbed hands slammed onto the table. Mariku nearly spilled coffee as he jerked in surprise. His eyes had glazed over when he drifted into a zombie daze during their silence, but now they focused sharply on the grinning pluophilo. Mariku's irritation was coming off in waves. Setsuna ignored it.

"Now that you don't look half dead, let's go see what Ryou's doing."

The blonde contemplated giving a flat "No," and relish in seeing Setsuna's stunned expression. However, he did want to find out what their progress was. Slowly getting to his feet, Mariku followed the co-pilot. He figured there'd be other chances to be a dick.

Ryou greeted them with a smile as soon as they appeared.

"Good morning Setsuna," Ryou nodded, "Mariku." Said blonde plopped into a cushioned seat while Setsuna took his position by the controls. "Did you guys rest easy?"

"Like a baby," Mariku said.

"He woke up looking like a gremlin though," Setsuna added, flashing a grin. Mariku had to refrain from flipping the blue alien off—looks like his morning temper wasn't completely gone. "Where we at, captain?"

Humming, Ryou opened his scroll. "The ship's going to have to enter a cool-down period soon, but we've reached Omega Centauri. It'll take about a day of flying before the Amane can enter another jump and then another day to reach Athilia."

"I'm assuming we're making good time then?" Mariku asked. A discarded magazine lay on an empty seat beside him, and he picked it up. Cosmopolitan. He quirked a brow and cast a surreptitious look at Setsuna. Was this the magazine he was reading yesterday?

Ryou made a noise of affirmation. "You'll be at school before you know it." He then flipped a panel on the underside of the main controls. "Jak's the only one not up…" he muttered to himself. Words were scrawled onto yellow tape next to several buttons. Ryou pressed one that had Jak's name. Catching Mariku's curious stare, Ryou said, "These are buzzers that connect to the crew's rooms and other areas of the ship. The intercom is typically better to get their attention, but it's really disruptive when passengers are onboard."

"It's also a terrible idea to announce that there's a problem," Vera said, emerging from the stairs. "I remember Ryou had the buzzer system installed right after Setsuna made that mistake—a family was in hysterics because they thought the ship was under attack." She took her seat and went right to work.

Mariku snorted. "That sounds like loads of fun."

"Oh it was riveting! Who needs a radio when you can listen to the sweet sound of screaming aliens." Ryou chipped in. "I love me some good screamo." The false cheer dropped. "That was one of the worst flights ever."

At that moment, Jak staggered into the control center, clutching a mug close to his chest and giving gruff good mornings.

The captain sent him a stern look. "What have I told you about going to sleep early?"

"Early to bed, early to rise—I don't know—you're smothering me, mother," Jak snapped, eyes squinting as he looked at the control screens.

Ryou pursed his lips, "Don't sass me. We're getting out of the jump. Vera, set coordinates for the cool-down."

Getting down to business, there was a flurry of hands flying across screens, deftly pushing or adjusting buttons and levers. Outside the window, Mariku could see the lightshow begin to slow, and the ship eased its way outside the jump. The projectors, which kept the ship safely in the jump, receded to their places inside the ship.

Seeing as the crew was focused on their jobs, Mariku decided to head back to his room. He had spent most of yesterday sitting and sleeping, so it wouldn't hurt to do a few push-ups or something. It'd help pass the time and keep his body in shape.

Ryou didn't say anything when Mariku left. Although it was nice that Mariku was putting in effort to socialize with the crew, Ryou could tell that he'd prefer to be alone. That was just fine. One of the perks of transporting passengers was the prospect of making new friends, but of course, not all of them would want to hang out in the control center all the time. Despite the occasional jokes Ryou and his crewmembers shared, there really wasn't much else to do besides sitting and observing.

Humming a seraphim tune his mother once taught him, Ryou's eyes scanned the open expanse of space. There were no nearby planets and the spaceship traffic was nonexistent. He chuckled inwardly. Even without the gang with him, he still managed to end up in an obscure part of the galaxy.

"How is the cool-down?" Ryou asked.

At the sound of the captain's voice, Vera straightened in her seat, eyes scanning the monitor. "Going smoothly," she reported. "Temperatures are dropping quickly—I guess the new coolant we're using isn't so bad after all." Closing the screen, Vera turned her attention back to her technopad. "It might not take a full day like we thought, but the ship definitely won't be ready to jump for a while," she added absentmindedly.

The seraphim half-breed clicked his tongue, satisfied. Unbuckling his seatbelts, Ryou made his way to the stairs. "Setsuna, mind the ship. I'll be in the kitchen." A raised hand was the only indication that the pluophilo heard him.

His heavy boots clunked against metal as Ryou moved along the corridor. He'd been awake before everyone else—having relieved Setsuna from his position at the controls during the later hours of the night. Although it would've been completely justified for Ryou to take a nap, he preferred being awake for as long as he could. He's captain of the Amane, and as such, he must be ready for anything. He knew his crew is capable of taking care of the ship in his absence (why else had he not fired them), but Ryou was the one who built it, and he understood the Amane better than anyone else.

The kitchen door slid open. The coffee pot was still full, but he decided to brew some tea instead. Ryou didn't have any preferences for caffeine; however, he remembered the packet of tea leaves one of the friendlier passengers once gave him. Why not spice up the day with something different? Humming another seraphim tune he'd heard in his childhood, Ryou sat and waited for the water to heat up. A few minutes passed, and he heard whistling. With a content sigh, the captain returned to his seat, blowing lightly on the surface of murky liquid.

Taking a hesitant sip, he felt the heat instantly in his core, sending a tingling sensation throughout his body. The ends of his feathery hair fluttered with the pleasantness. Warm things always made him feel this way. It was also the same sensation he felt when he was with his friends. Although he liked how his life was now, sometimes he couldn't help but miss the good ol' days.

Feeling nostalgic, Ryou thought back to the first time he ever traveled somewhere with Yugi and the others. It was probably a year after they finished school. Joey and Tristan, Yugi's online gaming buddies at the time, came to finally meet the chucl face to face. Anzu thought it would be a great idea for them all to go to Dolphus; the planet had one of the best water parks in the Milky Way.

Ryou closed his eyes, smiling at the memory. Instead of public transit, they borrowed Mr. Mutou's small spaceship—which Joey insisted he knew how to drive—and typed in coordinates they had looked up on the internet. Everything was going well at first. Joey managed to get the spaceship out of Hatune's gravitational pull and into auto-pilot. They spent the first twenty minutes playing a board game that Yugi brought along and jolly good times were had.

It was Anzu's turn to roll, but the nypy was distracted by something out the window.

"Are those flashing lights?"

They all craned their heads—sure enough, they were getting pulled over. Joey cursed and stopped the ship. Sweat seemed to trickle down his brow, and when the policeman came on board, he wouldn't stop fidgeting with his hands. Just outside, Ryou could see the policeman's ship latched onto theirs, and another one hovered close by.

Seeing as Joey still refused to look at the officer. Tristan spoke up, eyes flitting between the ilmoe half-breed and the uniformed alien. "What seems to be the problem?"

"Your ship isn't in the designated fly-zones," was the gruff response. "I'll let you kids off with a warning this time, but if I catch your ship in this area again, I'm going to fine you." The policeman pulled out a scroll and looked at each of their faces. "Who's flying this ship?"

"I-I am," Joey stuttered, stepping forward.

"I need to see your license and registration, please."

"What?" Joey squawked. He locked eyes with Tristan, and they shared a guilty look.

The policeman raised a brow at the half-breed's shifty behavior. "Your license and registration." Eyes sharpened. "I need to record that this ship was stopped."

Fumbling, Joey pulled out his wallet and handed his I.D. "Um—I don't know where the registration is…"

"This is my Grandpa's spaceship," Yugi quickly supplied. "I think he keeps it under the seat." The chucl made a move to get it, but stopped short when the policeman quickly raised his hand.

"Halt! This is a permit." He leveled an intense stare on Joey. "You've been driving without a license—and this isn't even your ship."

"You don't have a license?" Anzu gasped in shock. Joey scratched the back of his head while Tristan smiled nervously. "And you knew?!" She rounded on Tristan, who shrugged sheepishly.

"I figured we could get there and back without any problems…"

Ryou sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. In the background he could hear the policeman radio his partner. "I've got a couple of kids out on a joy ride. We're taking them back to the station."

They were then escorted into the awaiting patrol ships, Anzu and Ryou went into the backseat of one while Tristan, Joey, and Yugi were stuffed into the other. Before the door closed, Ryou could hear Yugi groan.

"Grandpa is going to kill me."

Shaking his head slightly, Ryou broke out of his reverie. To this day, he still blamed Joey and Tristan for landing him a police record. In the end, they never even got to the water park!

He laughed lightly and took another sip. Today felt like a good day—a screeching sound echoed throughout the kitchen—or not.

Leaving the still hot tea behind, Ryou dashed out. Thoughts whirled around in his mind. Setsuna hardly buzzed him nowadays, so what was the emergency? Heavy footfalls thudded against the stairs as he entered the compartment, breath falling in and out.

"What's the matter?" Ryou asked, clutching at his side with one hand.

"The radar shows an approaching ship," Setsuna said, still leaned over the screen. Ryou glanced around and saw that Jak was standing by the back window, eyes squinting at something in the distance. With a thick finger, he pointed.

"Do you think they're friendly?"

Moving to stand besides Jak, Ryou stared at the spot his engineer indicated. Vera got up to join them too.

As the ship got nearer, they could see its distinct birdlike shape. Ryou's eyes lit up in recognition. It was an intergalactic police pod, just like the one he was escorted into years ago. Stark white metal contrasted greatly within the darkness of space.

"Looks like a dove," Ryou thought, remembering the lessons from school. One of the first human mechanical engineers to work with the Federation had proposed the design, which became the standard for the intergalactic police because of its delightful symbolism.

"Are we getting pulled over?" Vera questioned with a frown. "I'm pretty sure we're not in a restricted area…"

The patrol ship's warning lights flashed.

"Should I stop the ship?" Setsuna asked.

Ryou hesitated. "Yes." He didn't break his gaze away from the pod, which was steadily getting closer. Turning his head slightly to the side, Ryou spoke up. "Does the radar show anymore ships?"

"Negative."

A frown marred Ryou's features. "Strange," he thought. Since the pods were smaller than the average ship, the police patrolled areas in groups. There was safety in numbers, and the flock of police pods could easily take down malicious ships. At the very least, there should have been another pod with it. His stomach tightened in apprehension. "It'll be okay," he reassured himself, although something in his gut said otherwise.

"I wonder what they want," Vera muttered, head still not wrapping around the possibility that she made a mistake while plotting their course.

Jak shrugged and went back to his seat. "Who knows? Maybe the Federation is doing something and they just haven't announced the restricted areas."

"We'll just have to wait and see," Setsuna said. The Amane hovered in place.

From his spot by the window, Ryou monitored the pod's progress. It was about two ship-lengths away now. The flashing lights turned off. Ryou narrowed his eyes, trying to get a good look. Even though the pod's windows were tinted, Ryou could still vaguely make out the shape of a figure. Brown eyes widened.

"Put up the defensive barrier!" Ryou barked.

The rest of the crew jumped, eyes staring at their captain as if he'd lost his mind.

"W-what?" Setsuna spluttered. "We could get arrested for that!"

"Do it!" The seraphim half-breed snarled uncharacteristically.

Alarmed by Ryou's strange behavior, Setsuna fumbled with the controls. Eventually, the projectors flew out of the ship—but it was already too late. Before the barrier finished materializing, the police pod shot out a hook, successfully latching itself to the side of the Amane. The thick cables pulled taut as the pod shifted uncomfortably close. The useless barrier swirled around the pod as it entered the vicinity.

"Get the ship moving," Ryou ordered, nearly slamming into his seat. Nimble fingers flew across the control panels.

"Ryou, what the hell is going on?!" Jak exclaimed. The rest of the crew was equally confused. "I'm sorry for whatever it is we did that made you jump into the deep end, but please don't drag the rest of us with you!"

"Now is not the time for jokes," Ryou snapped. "Everybody, get into gear!"

"But why?" Vera asked, shakily sinking into her seat. "We can't just evade the police!"

"It's an imposter." Ryou scowled, pressing down on the accelerator.

Despite his uncertainty, Setsuna followed Ryou's lead. "H-how do you know?" Setsuna asked.

"Enough questions," the captain said urgently. "We need to shake him off. Now."

Without further ado—the Amane lurched forwards, gaining speed until it seemed like it was in another jump. Vera winced. Her sharp ears could hear a grating sound as the hook scratched the Amane's side. The pod was dragged along with the Amane, but, no matter how fast they went, its hook clung on stubbornly. Ryou caught Setsuna's eye, who nodded silently. Together, they began maneuvering the ship into swooping turns, brakes, and accelerations. The cable connecting the two ships whipped and grew taut, throwing the pod around. However, in spite of their efforts, it still refused to let go.

Ryou cursed. He should've expected this. The hooks the police use are specially made to withstand force and rough handling, guaranteeing that suspects wouldn't get away.

"This isn't working," Jak grunted, stumbling out of his chair. "I'll try shooting it." The xirq pulled down a ladder and climbed into a small chamber housing the ship's gun controls.

"We'll keep the ship flying straight for now." Ryou said. "Don't miss."

"Roger that, captain."

Just then, Mariku burst into the compartment. "Somebody tell me why the ship's shaking like it's in a damn mosh pit!" His forehead was red, almost as if he had face-planted into something.

Glancing back, Ryou spoke. "The ship's under attack—"

Vera let out a high-pitched scream. Mariku scrambled to hold onto something and keep from being sent sprawling across the room. The Amane shook from the series of blasts the pod shot in retaliation to Jak's own gunfire. From above, Mariku heard Jak yell a string of curses.

"Is there anything I can do?" Mariku asked, heart thudding against his ribs.

"Just sit tight," Ryou said. He winced as another tremor ran through the ship. "We're going to jump."

"We can't!" Vera objected. "The cool-down period isn't over—the Amane will overheat!"

"I know that!" Ryou snapped. "But what choice do we have? Accelerating and whipping the pod around at this speed won't do anything, and shooting it isn't going to do anything either! It's our gun against a police pod's—the Amane isn't equipped for offense."

"Vera has a point though," Setsuna said, a hesitant look on his face. "It could really damage the ship—"

"Anything's better than letting that thing on board," Ryou interrupted. "Do as I say and get the ship into a jump. Jak, keep shooting. It'll distract him."

Setsuna frowned. "But the jump will be just as pointless!" he insisted. "Police hooks are meant to endure jumps; how else do they keep up with ships trying to escape?"

Mariku listened intently from the seat he'd buckle himself into, accessing the situation. Apparently the ship's earlier unstable movements were from their attempts at shaking the latched ship off. The force their whipping created at that speed wasn't enough to pry the pod loose. However, entering a jump could increase their current speed by more than tenfold. If they tried swinging the pod then…

"Wait," Mariku snapped his fingers. "Are you trying to throw the pod outside of the jump?"

From his basic understanding of outer space flying, Mariku knew that when ships entered jumps, they were basically creating high speed tunnels. Maintaining those tunnels would overwork the ship's engines, which was why cool-down periods were needed, the length usually determined by how long a ship was in a jump. If a ship wasn't properly equipped and stayed in a jump for too long, it risked overheating and busting its engines. However, there are other factors that make jumps dangerous for an inexperienced pilot. If the ship does not fly straight and touches the side of the tunnel, then it will be thrown outside of the jump with so much force—it's a guaranteed crash.

Brown eyes widened in surprise. Ryou stared at him, lips twitching. "Yes. I don't know if it'll work, but it's our best option."

His co-pilot groaned. "Well, why didn't you say so? You would've made a lot more sense!"

"If you guys would just shut up and do as I say, I would've explained it already," Ryou deadpanned.

There was another tremor.

"Enough talk, more action."

At that, the crew sprang to life. Outside, the projectors lit up momentarily. Mariku felt a yank as the ship went into a jump.

The Amane began to steadily move from side to side, careful not to accidentally move out of the jump. From outside the window, Mariku saw the pod start swinging like a pendulum. There was a lull in the string of fired shots (thankfully all missing). Whoever was inside the pod seemed to be redirecting their focus on combating the forced movements.

Vera made a worried noise. Her eyes were trained on the screen. "Temperatures are increasing rapidly. We need to hurry."

Ryou grimaced when he heard a high-pitched screech echo throughout the ship. "Just hold on for a little while longer…" the captain murmured.

Despite the pod's attempts, it continued to follow the ship's momentum. Ditching its earlier strategy, the pod let itself get pulled by the Amane and began shooting again. A well aimed shot blasted one of the projectors. Ryou and Setsuna glanced at each other. It was now or never. With a jerk, the Amane swung the pod. Only the edge of the small ship's wing grazed the side of the tunnel, but it was enough. In a blink of an eye, the pod disappeared. Unfortunately, it was still connected.

With a lurch, the Amane was thrown violently out of jump. It seemed to tumble and spin through space. Mariku gasped, breath knocked right out of him. His seatbelts dug into his chest. Ryou and Setsuna struggled to right the ship while Vera grasped at the straps of her seatbelts, eyes unnaturally wide. From inside the chamber, they could hear Jak yelling. Once the ship steadied, everyone seemed to sigh in relief. Mariku felt like puking.

"The ship definitely can't go into another jump," Vera wheezed. "I don't even think it'll be able to accelerate." The Amane was moving at a worryingly slow pace.

"What do we do now? The pod is still there." Setsuna said, straightening back up in his seat and dabbing at the sweat on his brow.

"I- I don't know." Ryou looked tired.

Suddenly, Jak climbed down from the chamber, looking worse for wear and growling in frustration.

"I hope we think of a plan soon, 'cause I can't keep shooting. I think I busted something during our little ride."

"Why don't we just stop the ship and wait for whoever it is out there to come in?" Mariku threw in his two cents. Through the tinted windows, Mariku could see the pod hovering, probably regaining their breath like the rest of the crew was. If they did get in, they'd still be outnumbered, five to one. "It's obvious that all this flying around is doing absolutely nothing except making the ship smoke. I'm sure we can take on whoever that is."

While Mariku spoke, Ryou only shook his head. "No. You don't know who we're dealing with."

"Then who is it? You seem to know them awfully well."

"As much as I'd like to know too, now's not the time," Setsuna interrupted. "We need to figure out our next—"

In their moment of distraction, the pod had bumped into the Amane's side. It hovered and slowly rose up to the windows. Everyone in the compartment shut their eyes against the spotlight that swept through. Why was that suddenly on? Mariku narrowed his eyes. Something about how the pod was moving reminded him of a dead fish.

"What should we do?" Vera asked fearfully.

"I'm with Mariku," Jak said. "Let's just jump 'em!"

"No," Ryou repeated, "that's not a good idea!"

"Then what is?" Jak snapped, slamming his fist against the back of a chair. He gestured wildly at a blinking bulb on the main controls. "The Amane isn't looking too good right now, and we still have no fucking clue why you're so freaked out!"

"Hey," Mariku cut in, eyes still watching the pod, which was now drifting after the Amane. "Is it just me, or is the pod a little too lifeless?"

Setsuna turned to look. "You're right." The pluophilo got out of his seat to look out the back window. "Maybe getting thrown out of the jump was too much for them?"

"You mean they died?" Vera asked, alarmed.

"I doubt it," Ryou muttered. He unbuckled his seatbelts. Just as he took a step towards the window, there was a loud clank. Ryou whipped his head up so fast that Mariku was surprised it didn't twist right off. A scratching sound seemed to be emanating from the latch on the ceiling.

"There's no way he could have gotten there…"

Contrary to the captain's statement, they heard a whirring noise followed by a click. Another whirring sound and the latch opened. A figured clad in a sleek black spacesuit jumped down, landing in a crouch. A black helmet covered their face; the smooth surface reflected Ryou's dismayed expression.

Startling white hair peaked out from underneath.

A/N: Not gonna lie, writing this chapter was actually kind of hard. I hope my attempt at action wasn't too bad though.

Anyway, hopefully you guys liked it, and reviews and constructive criticisms are always welcome! :)