Welcome to Chapter 8! Thank you to Varjotin and PrincessShotgun for your feedback on the last chapter – I will certainly continue to switch POV as and when it makes sense!
I won't keep you any further, so lets get on with the chapter :)
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It had only been a few days by the time Hana, disorientated and groggy, emerged from the healing tank. Sitting on the side of a small hospital bed she shook her head lightly to try and clear the fog in her brain while Dr. Jaeger with the assistance of the feline creature she had recently learned to be named Sheena, fussed around her.
Much to her disdain Dr. Jaeger had insisted on taking another blood sample from her while Sheena diligently checked her various vitals and made sure each and every one of her injuries had fully healed. Which, apparently to the surprise of the other two, they had. Hana couldn't help but feel that Sheena was being more diligent in her examinations than she perhaps would be with any other patient. Every time their eyes had met Sheena had given her a sincere look of gratitude that Hana was somewhat unused to seeing. Regardless, it made her smile, and made the telling off she would no doubt be receiving from Cooler later worth while.
Apparently that telling off was coming sooner rather than later, as it wasn't long before she could sense the now familiar presence of Cooler approaching the medical wing and couldn't help but roll her eyes. "He couldn't give me 5 bloody minutes could he.." she mumbled to herself under her breath before he rounded the corner into the medical bay. Both Sheena and Dr Jaeger stood to attention, whereas Hana ignored him in favour of peeling her wet hair off her still damp face and de-tangling it with her fingers.
"She's all healed?" Cooler asked Dr. Jaeger, barely even glancing over at Hana.
"Yes sir, she's completely healed! A rather unusual rate of recovery for her species, I had expected her to be in the tank for far longer" Something told Hana that Cooler would have been quite glad if she had stayed in the tank longer. Still, she wasn't sure what all of the fuss was about. She had always healed fast, so surely the fact that she was in a tank designed to accelerate recovery, what did they expect?
"Excellent. Do you have the file?" Cooler asked to which Dr. Jaeger immediately picked up a small metal rod. Hana recognised it as a document storage devise. The user could display various things on a screen that projected out of the side of the rod. Bogart had used one for his more confidential work that he didn't want stored on paper. Usually things that would get him into trouble if they were found. She was slightly curious as to what was on it, but not so curious that she was willing to engage Cooler to ask. He had barely interacted with her, and as far as she was concerned, that was absolutely fine. He was probably still mad about the broken walls and wouldn't tell her what was on it anyway.
Hana didn't realise that she had zoned out and lost focus on the discussion between Cooler and Dr. Jaeger, until she felt a sudden shift in Coolers mood. Moving from what she considered to be fairly neutral, to rather irritated. Glancing up she could see that his expression matched what she had just detected, and he was frowning at Jaeger before shaking his head and sighing, deciding not to pursue whatever that just was, and instead turned his attention to Hana.
"Is she discharged?" he asked Jaeger while he looked her up and down, seemingly satisfied that they had taken her boots away from her and given her the standard, ugly white ones. She still hadn't put the armour on though, lying that it was too heavy for her. It wasn't heavy at all, it just looked absolutely ridiculous, and she refused to wear it. The gloves she had hidden under the mattress when she thought no one was looking, although she was fairly sure Sheena had seen her, although she hadn't said anything.
After confirming that she was indeed fully recovered and good to go, Cooler lead Hana through the sterile looking corridors of the ship. They walked in silence, and it was only after stepping into one of the many elevators that zoomed upward, passing their accommodation level and heading towards the very top level of the ship, that Cooler actually spoke to her.
"To update you.." he started, choosing his words carefully "the pair you picked a fight with-"
"They started it" Hana interrupted grumpily, much to the annoyance of Cooler who sighed, clenching his jaw and gathering his patience before continuing.
"Fine. The pair you had your... altercation with then. Are in custody on their way to my father. It would seem you accidentally unearthed the fact they were stealing funds from the tax ships." Hana raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything, allowing Cooler to continue.
"They'll be investigated, and then trialled. In the meantime, my father has requested a call, and wants to speak with you too..." he turned to face her as he trailed off, his expression serious as he looked down at her.
"So when we speak to my father, I need you to be a little less..."
"Me" she finished for him, "you need me to be a little less 'me' and to sit down and shut up," she frowned slightly in thought, a small smile pulling on her lips as she saw a small opportunity she could jump on and turned her self to face Cooler head on, meeting his gaze.
"How about," she started, ignoring the look he gave her "I do as you want, and don't say anything that'll give you grief, and you do something for me in return?"
Cooler surveyed her with a perplexed and slightly annoyed expression for a few moments before she continued, "I haven't seen or heard from Zee in almost a week. I want to make sure he's okay and that... you lot are keeping your promise." She met his eyes squarely, maintaining as neutral an expression as she could, but knowing all to well that she was genuinely concerned. For all she knew Cold had lied, which quite frankly wouldn't be out of the remit of any of the Cold family.
Playing absently with the edge of the sleeve of her bodysuit Hana dropped her eyes for a moment, uncomfortable with the fact that she had to ask Cooler for anything. "I'd just really like to be able to see him" she ended , glancing back up to try and read his response. His calculating face scrutinised her for a few moments before to her surprise, it softened slightly and he signed, turning away from her.
"Fine." he conceded "but, only if I deem your behaviour on this call acceptable. You cause me any more grief, and you can forget it."
Just at that moment the doors to the lift slid open revealing what appeared seemed to be the main control room for the ship. Cooler exited first as Hana trailed slightly behind him, trying to hide the small smile that had appeared on her face. She didn't want Cooler to know that he had this over her, but at the same time, there was no way she'd be able to contact Zee without Coolers approval, so needs must.
As much as it was certainly in Coolers interest for her to be on her best behaviour, she was surprised he had actually agreed. She was even more surprised that he seemed to have displayed some level of understanding towards her.
The various beings occupying the control room stood to attention at the presence of Cooler as the pair walked past a series of control panels towards the front of the ship. Right at the front against a backdrop of stars was a holographic screen that emblazoned the image of King Cold. He appeared to be sat in a throne, leaning lazily to one side, chin resting on his palm and a bored expression on his face. He sat up as Hana and Cooler approached, and she knew he must be able to see them too.
"Ah, my Son, and Hana too, it's a pleasure to see you both,"
Something about his tone didn't seem quite right. On the face of it, he was being friendly, but, it felt as though he was being too friendly. His sickly voice, void of any genuine joy to see either of them just felt... fake. Cooler seemed to pick up on the same vibe as Hana as she saw him swing his tail behind them from the corner of her eye, a movement she had fast observed to be the result of him being agitated. Remaining silent Cooler nodded in response, to which Hana followed suit before Cold continued, his voice maintaining the same disingenuous tone.
"I believe I owe you my gratitude Hana," King Cold drawled as he turned to look at her, his lip curling "if it weren't for you, who knows how long those two would have been stealing from me. However..." he trailed off, switching his attention to Cooler as his expression shifted and his lip pulling up in a snarl. "It would appear that one of them has escaped while in transit to me." his eyes flashed dangerously and as Hana observed another swish of Coolers tail, she knew this wasn't good.
"This is unacceptable. We have tracked the pod to a planet within sector two. I want the both of you to apprehend him and bring him to me to proceed with the trial."
Hana noticed Cooler frown slightly, mulling over the information before responding carefully "Sector two is your territory father, would it not make more sense for a squad in that area to simply arrest him?" he folded his arms across his chest as Hana turned her eyes back towards Cold, who held a cruel look behind his false smile.
"Yes my Son, it would, but as the fugitive was under your command I thought you would want to opportunity to apprehend him yourself?" despite the fact that he had phrased it as one, it clearly wasn't a question. Hana was fast getting the impression that King Cold did not tolerate hearing the word 'no', even from his own son. "Besides," King Cold fanned his hands out in a motion similar to a shrug, "I'm interested to see just how precise young Hana's detection skills are."
Cooler uncrossed his arms, that frown plastered back on his face. He glanced briefly at Hana before turning back to his father, his vote calm and even. Hana would have been fooled by his outwardly calm demeanour if she couldn't feel the agitation radiating from him. "I'll have a ship prepared and Hana and myself will leave first thing in the morning. Although I'm sure you will appreciated that it will take us a little longer to get to sector two in a smaller vessel."
King Cold appeared to be satisfied with the answer he'd been given, as he leaned back in his throne, a smirk evident on his dark lips as he rested his chin once again on his palm. "Excellent," he beamed, a glint flashing across his red eyes, "I'll arrange for the last known location of the escape pod to be sent to you. Report back to me when you've located him. Do not disappoint me further" his eyes narrowed and the call ended, the image of Cold disappearing to leave the vast expanse of space where King Colds face had once been.
Hana frowned turning towards Cooler, who was still staring ahead. "What the fuck was that?" she questioned, but Cooler waited a few moments before turning to face her. "We'll leave early tomorrow. I suggest you head down to the cafeteria for food and then go to bed." he started to lead her away from where the screen had been and back towards elevator, hitting the button to call for it.
"I'll arrange a larger ship so that we can go over some training on the way there. It should take us a week or so to get there" something about Cooler seemed off, as he ushered her into the lift. Complying with him, Hana stepped into the elevator, turning to face him, her expression confused. He went to turn away, but paused, turning his head back towards her.
"I haven't forgotten our agreement. But it is best not to remind my father of your friend until we apprehend the fugitive for him." just as he finished his sentence the doors slid shut and the elevator began to descend. Hana leaned against the back wall, arms folded and staring at the now closed doors, feeling rather confused.
She had been under the impression that the Colds operated independently of each other, but from what she had just seen, that didn't appear to be the case. It seemed that King Cold was the one pulling the strings regardless of their separate forces and territories.
The chrome doors opened and Hana found herself once again in the crowded corridors of the lower levels. As she walked through this time there wasn't a single being that didn't shift out of her way. Presumably her recent fight with Cooler had set an impression about her with her fellow crew mates.
As she passed the half repaired wall and entered the cafeteria Hana heard her stomach growl and she realised she hadn't actually had solid food since she had arrived on Coolers ship. The healing pod would have provided everything her body needed over the past few days, but it could in no way compare to an actual meal. Grabbing a tray she loaded it up as much as she could, enjoying the variety of options before her. It certainly beat the crappy coffee and nutrition bars she had practically lived off before.
Settling on an empty table Hana picked at her food as she mulled the last hour or so over in her mind. She had a bad feeling about Cold, and usually when she had such feelings she was normally right. She would need to tread carefully with him in future.
Hana was pulled out of her thoughts when she felt a familiar presence approach her from behind. Turning her head she saw Sheena, still in her lab coat and a tray in her hands.
"Do you mind if I join you?" Sheena asked tentatively, glancing over the empty table. Her mouth full of food Hana nodded and gestured for her to sit down. Sheena smiled as she slid into the seat opposite and surveyed Hana's rather substantial meal.
"I... I wanted to say thank you" Sheena started, glancing across from Hana as she picked at the fish on her plate, her tabby tail flicking behind her. Hana nodded and swallowed her food, "no need to thank me," she replied, "I hate cowards that prey on those weaker than themselves. No offence." Sheena didn't seem to be offended at all and gave a wide smile.
"Still, I don't think anyone else on this ship would have done what you did. And when you fought with Cooler... I don't think I've ever seen anyone do that. You are very brave."
Hana chuckled slightly at her words, lifting her ruby gaze to look at Sheena "I think most would describe me as reckless rather than brave," she laughed as she took in another mouthful of food.
"Maybe," Sheena agreed, her grin lifting her pale whiskers, "but, aren't you afraid? He could have killed you if he'd wanted to?"
Mulling over her words for a moment, Hana shook her head. "I'm not afraid of dying," she averted her gaze back down as a painful memory flashed through her mind "years ago I could have suffered a fate worse than death. The only reason I didn't is because I fought back. If I'd done it sooner, people I love might still be here." she pushed her food away, her appetite disappearing and gazed into Sheena's large green eyes, "after what happened that day, I will never not fight back, and I'll always fight for those who can't fight for themselves".
Sheena nodded slowly, not pressing any further as Hana silently picked at her food before doing as Cooler had suggested and heading to the upper levels for an early nights sleep.