Dylan did not meet with Illithan strait away, he and Rommie went to change
into clean clothes, and Harper showed Illithan into a temporary room. "It's
not that great but you brought that rug with you so it'll be more like home
for you." Illithan had been insistent on bringing the ornate rug with her,
as if it were the one true reminder of her past. "Trance wanted to know if
you wanted something else to wear, she noticed that your trousers were
ripped at the base."
Her eyes drifted down to her own leg, drawing the coat up slightly so she could look at the plain trousers; the leg was ripped to about her knee. "Maybe that would be wise," She followed him to where Trance was.
"I'll leave you two girls alone, I've got to go sort something out that undoubtedly keeps the ship going, I'll find you later,"
Trance smiled brightly at Illithan, who just managed a small smile back; inside she feared the habit, she was getting into smiling so much. "I'm Trance," The purple girl introduced with a wide smile, shaking her hand in a surprisingly strong grip. "I thought you'd like to find some more trousers,"
"Yes, thank you,"
~*~*~
Dylan stood waiting in the room set aside for negotiation on the ship; Trance had just sent a message through to him saying that Illithan would be there shortly; with all that Rommie had told him about the Shalench as a race he had been sure to bring a force lance. "You will have to forgive my lateness captain Hunt," A level voice said from the door and Dylan turned to face the woman. She wore exactly what she had when Harper had first been saved, the only change being her trousers; her coat looked immaculate and shimmered slightly in the bright lights. "My kind hold little recognition of time, especially when it is spent in the company of one such as Trance."
"No apology need be made,"
"I realise that what Harper promised me is not his to give and the travel to my world is not easy, if you cannot take me there then would you drop me back on the planet?"
Dylan found his eyes going to hers, pausing for a moment; there was an incredible sorrow to the oriental brown eyes that he had missed initially. "How far is your planet?" Dylan questioned, wondering if he could get her kind to join the commonwealth.
A sweeping bow was granted him, almost as if she had read his thoughts, "Oh, that would be because I have Captain; but that is beside the current point. My kind cannot join your commonwealth, the Magog and the Shalench are equally scared of one another, and they are not our problem. We are also not a kind who appreciates space flight; we would serve your commonwealth little purpose."
Dylan looked at the android version of his ship, she stood immobile just off to one side he made a silent gesture of confusion and she shrugged barely visibly. "I thought your kind were the Shalench," He admitted and a small smile played up her features.
"The Shalench and my kind are, to off worlders, one and the same." She confessed honestly, her hands linking on the tabletop in front of her. "The Shalench are, for want of a better term, the bad side of our kind; the parts of us which become hidden over time in my kind. Long ago the two founding leaders of my world chose their sides, since that time there have been changes in the clans and my particular clan was trusted with guarding others from the Shalench."
The two looked a little baffled but Illithan would not go on, her eyes went to Dylan's and he felt compelled to take her home. "I realise that I have little to offer you, but I know Harper feels we have something to offer him." She told him simply, "He feels that a kind as long lived as my own can cure him, we cannot." She looked sorry for this, as if she cared for the young engineer somehow, her eyes drifted from Dylan's as she fought to think of what to say. "Even if I leave this world, another will be sent in my place, Molovan will not trouble these people any more."
"Why was he here in the first place?"
"I cannot tell you, I am not of power enough to do so,"
"Even if telling me would send you home,"
Her eyes shot quickly to his, "Even if," She said simply. Her body held a suddenly proud stature and she stood, "I believe this session is over, you will need time to think things over, unless you want to tell me no now?" Her question drew a shake of his head, "In which case I shall be looking for Harper, I have something he must hear." She left, her heel less shoes making clicking sounds on the deck as she walked.
Rommie moved closer to Dylan, her presence was a comfort to him on some level, "What do you think Rommie?" He queried without turning to her. The android stood silent for a time, weighing over the things in her mind for a time.
"I don't know,"
He turned to her, a questioning look on his face; it was rare for her not to have any opinion. "Harper trusts her enough to bring her here, but then again he did say she saved his life; I suppose he feels he owes her that." Dylan concluded aloud, "She seems genuine enough,"
"We could always restrain her if she were a problem,"
Dylan nodded thoughtfully, "I think I'll sleep on it, make sure you keep an eye on her." He left the room too and headed to his private quarters.
~*~*~
Harper whistled to himself, slicing some cables and reconnecting them elsewhere moment later; music played over a speaker near him as he worked. The door opened and instinctively he turned to it, still ill at ease when alone in the engineering part of the ship; he breathed a visible sigh of relief when he saw that it was Illithan. "How'd things go with Dylan?"
"I do not yet know,"
"Fair enough,"
He settled back into his work with hummed lines and easy manner. "You spend a lot of time here?" She questioned and he pushed the answer to her mentally, 'yeah, I'm wherever I need be,' She chuckled slightly. "Wherever you need be? As when you were being chased,"
"That was dumb, and followed by better dumb luck, I don't know what would have happened if you weren't there."
"I will save you the visual,"
He looked to her with a great big smile, his eyes filled with the very same smile that showed on his lips, "So, Illithan, what do you think of the Andromeda?" He questioned her, his back to her as he worked on an open conduit.
"She seems to feel she knows a lot more then she does,"
Harper chuckled at the thinly veiled insult, he had not heard Illithan insult anyone save Molovan and yet hearing her speak about the Andromeda made him laugh. "It's a warship thing," He told her simply, "New things scare her on some level and she either shoots them or tries to classify them."
"Then I am lucky I am not dead,"
"It was certainly lucky for me that I met you,"
He fell silent again and she stood nearby, unsure of what she could do. The door hissed and someone entered behind her, her ears twitched as the being behind her sniffed; with a whirling motion, she turned and faced the Magog. "A Shalench," The being commented and Harper was soon standing between the two, clearly unconcerned by either.
Looking between the two beings, Harper could see how tense they both were, he adopted a slightly worried smile; "Not exactly." Rev Bem looked baffled and Illithan stood alert, her ears twitching for the sounds that most beings could not hear. "Rev this is Illithan, Illithan this is Rev Bem, I told you about him."
The tension on his left hand side dropped as Illithan relaxed, standing quite normally again, "My apologies, I feared he was another of his kin. An unfair judgement for one such as myself to make but one I hope he understands is justified." She bowed slightly to the priest who still seemed slightly bothered.
Harper lent against a nearby panel and drew on his medicine, drawing both their gazes; it was the priest's eyes that unnerved him the most and he shrugged slightly, trying to turn the burning gaze away. "I'm ok, just a little twitchy,"
"It was quite amazing that even a temporary cure could be found,"
Rev's eyes drifted back to Illithan, he bowed to her slightly as he realising that she was not a threat. "It is not a cure as such, it halts the larvae's growth," He told her simply.
"Even that is an accomplishment,"
"Uh . guys, as much as I'm enjoying this trip into the one thing that's keeping me alive it's making me a little queasy."
Illithan smiled slightly, Harper had the tendency to draw that response from her. "Then this is not the time to be informing you how close you came to death," She told him with the hint of a tease to her voice. He shook his head, but stayed silent as if he were thinking of it himself. "If these things happen to you often then it is a great surprise that you are still alive."
He looked her in the face for a moment before recognising that she was teasing him, "Did you want something Rev?" Harper asked of the Magog, "Or is it that you're checking I'm still breathing?" The comment was meant as a jest but the mood in the room took a sombre drop. The Wayist lowered his furry head and Illithan lowered hers too, Harper gritted his teeth and tried to think of something to say, something that would cheer everyone up again but his 'joke' had a rather harrowing edge to it.
Illithan was the first to raise her head; her silky ears had heard the grumble from her own stomach as it complained its hunger. "Harper, I do not mean to be a trouble but I grow hungry," She said as simply as she could, the engineer looked to her face. "Would you be kind enough to show me to your mess bay?"
"Sure thing,"
Her eyes drifted down to her own leg, drawing the coat up slightly so she could look at the plain trousers; the leg was ripped to about her knee. "Maybe that would be wise," She followed him to where Trance was.
"I'll leave you two girls alone, I've got to go sort something out that undoubtedly keeps the ship going, I'll find you later,"
Trance smiled brightly at Illithan, who just managed a small smile back; inside she feared the habit, she was getting into smiling so much. "I'm Trance," The purple girl introduced with a wide smile, shaking her hand in a surprisingly strong grip. "I thought you'd like to find some more trousers,"
"Yes, thank you,"
~*~*~
Dylan stood waiting in the room set aside for negotiation on the ship; Trance had just sent a message through to him saying that Illithan would be there shortly; with all that Rommie had told him about the Shalench as a race he had been sure to bring a force lance. "You will have to forgive my lateness captain Hunt," A level voice said from the door and Dylan turned to face the woman. She wore exactly what she had when Harper had first been saved, the only change being her trousers; her coat looked immaculate and shimmered slightly in the bright lights. "My kind hold little recognition of time, especially when it is spent in the company of one such as Trance."
"No apology need be made,"
"I realise that what Harper promised me is not his to give and the travel to my world is not easy, if you cannot take me there then would you drop me back on the planet?"
Dylan found his eyes going to hers, pausing for a moment; there was an incredible sorrow to the oriental brown eyes that he had missed initially. "How far is your planet?" Dylan questioned, wondering if he could get her kind to join the commonwealth.
A sweeping bow was granted him, almost as if she had read his thoughts, "Oh, that would be because I have Captain; but that is beside the current point. My kind cannot join your commonwealth, the Magog and the Shalench are equally scared of one another, and they are not our problem. We are also not a kind who appreciates space flight; we would serve your commonwealth little purpose."
Dylan looked at the android version of his ship, she stood immobile just off to one side he made a silent gesture of confusion and she shrugged barely visibly. "I thought your kind were the Shalench," He admitted and a small smile played up her features.
"The Shalench and my kind are, to off worlders, one and the same." She confessed honestly, her hands linking on the tabletop in front of her. "The Shalench are, for want of a better term, the bad side of our kind; the parts of us which become hidden over time in my kind. Long ago the two founding leaders of my world chose their sides, since that time there have been changes in the clans and my particular clan was trusted with guarding others from the Shalench."
The two looked a little baffled but Illithan would not go on, her eyes went to Dylan's and he felt compelled to take her home. "I realise that I have little to offer you, but I know Harper feels we have something to offer him." She told him simply, "He feels that a kind as long lived as my own can cure him, we cannot." She looked sorry for this, as if she cared for the young engineer somehow, her eyes drifted from Dylan's as she fought to think of what to say. "Even if I leave this world, another will be sent in my place, Molovan will not trouble these people any more."
"Why was he here in the first place?"
"I cannot tell you, I am not of power enough to do so,"
"Even if telling me would send you home,"
Her eyes shot quickly to his, "Even if," She said simply. Her body held a suddenly proud stature and she stood, "I believe this session is over, you will need time to think things over, unless you want to tell me no now?" Her question drew a shake of his head, "In which case I shall be looking for Harper, I have something he must hear." She left, her heel less shoes making clicking sounds on the deck as she walked.
Rommie moved closer to Dylan, her presence was a comfort to him on some level, "What do you think Rommie?" He queried without turning to her. The android stood silent for a time, weighing over the things in her mind for a time.
"I don't know,"
He turned to her, a questioning look on his face; it was rare for her not to have any opinion. "Harper trusts her enough to bring her here, but then again he did say she saved his life; I suppose he feels he owes her that." Dylan concluded aloud, "She seems genuine enough,"
"We could always restrain her if she were a problem,"
Dylan nodded thoughtfully, "I think I'll sleep on it, make sure you keep an eye on her." He left the room too and headed to his private quarters.
~*~*~
Harper whistled to himself, slicing some cables and reconnecting them elsewhere moment later; music played over a speaker near him as he worked. The door opened and instinctively he turned to it, still ill at ease when alone in the engineering part of the ship; he breathed a visible sigh of relief when he saw that it was Illithan. "How'd things go with Dylan?"
"I do not yet know,"
"Fair enough,"
He settled back into his work with hummed lines and easy manner. "You spend a lot of time here?" She questioned and he pushed the answer to her mentally, 'yeah, I'm wherever I need be,' She chuckled slightly. "Wherever you need be? As when you were being chased,"
"That was dumb, and followed by better dumb luck, I don't know what would have happened if you weren't there."
"I will save you the visual,"
He looked to her with a great big smile, his eyes filled with the very same smile that showed on his lips, "So, Illithan, what do you think of the Andromeda?" He questioned her, his back to her as he worked on an open conduit.
"She seems to feel she knows a lot more then she does,"
Harper chuckled at the thinly veiled insult, he had not heard Illithan insult anyone save Molovan and yet hearing her speak about the Andromeda made him laugh. "It's a warship thing," He told her simply, "New things scare her on some level and she either shoots them or tries to classify them."
"Then I am lucky I am not dead,"
"It was certainly lucky for me that I met you,"
He fell silent again and she stood nearby, unsure of what she could do. The door hissed and someone entered behind her, her ears twitched as the being behind her sniffed; with a whirling motion, she turned and faced the Magog. "A Shalench," The being commented and Harper was soon standing between the two, clearly unconcerned by either.
Looking between the two beings, Harper could see how tense they both were, he adopted a slightly worried smile; "Not exactly." Rev Bem looked baffled and Illithan stood alert, her ears twitching for the sounds that most beings could not hear. "Rev this is Illithan, Illithan this is Rev Bem, I told you about him."
The tension on his left hand side dropped as Illithan relaxed, standing quite normally again, "My apologies, I feared he was another of his kin. An unfair judgement for one such as myself to make but one I hope he understands is justified." She bowed slightly to the priest who still seemed slightly bothered.
Harper lent against a nearby panel and drew on his medicine, drawing both their gazes; it was the priest's eyes that unnerved him the most and he shrugged slightly, trying to turn the burning gaze away. "I'm ok, just a little twitchy,"
"It was quite amazing that even a temporary cure could be found,"
Rev's eyes drifted back to Illithan, he bowed to her slightly as he realising that she was not a threat. "It is not a cure as such, it halts the larvae's growth," He told her simply.
"Even that is an accomplishment,"
"Uh . guys, as much as I'm enjoying this trip into the one thing that's keeping me alive it's making me a little queasy."
Illithan smiled slightly, Harper had the tendency to draw that response from her. "Then this is not the time to be informing you how close you came to death," She told him with the hint of a tease to her voice. He shook his head, but stayed silent as if he were thinking of it himself. "If these things happen to you often then it is a great surprise that you are still alive."
He looked her in the face for a moment before recognising that she was teasing him, "Did you want something Rev?" Harper asked of the Magog, "Or is it that you're checking I'm still breathing?" The comment was meant as a jest but the mood in the room took a sombre drop. The Wayist lowered his furry head and Illithan lowered hers too, Harper gritted his teeth and tried to think of something to say, something that would cheer everyone up again but his 'joke' had a rather harrowing edge to it.
Illithan was the first to raise her head; her silky ears had heard the grumble from her own stomach as it complained its hunger. "Harper, I do not mean to be a trouble but I grow hungry," She said as simply as she could, the engineer looked to her face. "Would you be kind enough to show me to your mess bay?"
"Sure thing,"