Jackel smashed his fist onto the control panel of his ship, Bandit. The wild, black eyed man was in a towering rage, as his world fell apart around his ears. He was a tall man, with long, scraggly black locks, and equally black eyes. Eyes that could kill a man, if they stared hard enough. Though aging, Jackel seemed just as keen, sharp-witted, and strong as he had been when he was 30, although maybe not as thin. His thieving band was well known throughout the galaxy as hard criminals and bloodthirsty demons, but the truth was surprisingly much more docile than the horrific rumors that flew around the world of bounty hunters and feds. For in fact, Jackel and his four companions- Grey, Klow, Dove, and his wife Rena, had never killed anyone they'd met in their thievery. The secret to why they so often stole and ravaged areas, was a mystery to all but the loyal 5, and because of it, the government made sure to make up stories of insane murderers who enjoyed killing for the fun of it, and often said that Jackel and his band would be after the world itself next. However, Jackel was after a bigger prize. Thus his fury now, that the information of what he was after had leaked out. For almost a year, they had stayed dormant, not stealing or looting, but planning in their hideaway, a location they'd found years ago. All this planning had now come to an abrupt standstill however, since the information was now loose that his next target was the nuclear warhead, codenamed Spitz, after the scientist who had invented it. Few even knew it existed, but the 5 had found out about it on their last raid, and since then, it had been their prime goal. Now Jackel sat in the tattered black leather chair of the Bandit's control room, rubbing his temples tiredly.
A soft knock came upon the door, before the slight creaking of its being opened. The woman entering was dressed in all black, tight leather clothing, with soft brown hair and sharp blue eyes. Her face was delicately rounded, come to a soft curve at her chin and then moving up to well flushed and smooth cheeks. She was large, in a sense, and Jackel immediately grew chilled as he saw his mate in the doorway. Rena was one hell of a woman... Seeming to glide over to him, Rena's arms slide around his neck softly, and she lowered her body to his, rubbing against him gently. Brushing her lips softly against his ear, she whispered to Jackel, her voice so melodic and smooth.
"Any luck...?" He melted in her grip and stroked her hair, pulling her tighter against him. How he longed for her... But later, business came first, and the business was important today.
"No... But I'll have the bastard traitor soon... And when I do..." Jackel's temper flared again, and he tensed. But Rena kissed him softly, and he was soothed. Relaxing, he stood up, against her will, and moved away. "Thank you..." Rena smiled softly, and nodded. "And you, how are the others faring? That new recruit, Sam, any reason to suspect him? Klow was supposed to be watching him..." Rena shook her head.
"I spoke to Klow earlier, he hasn't had any time alone, it couldn't have been him..." Her eyes were troubled. If it wasn't Sam, then one of the crew was betraying them. She felt like she could trust them all, or once could... Sighing deeply in regret, Rena turned. "I haven't spoken to Dove yet, but Grey's gone again, run off somewhere or other." Hatred flashed in Jackel's eyes. Grey had been wandering a lot while they'd been docked at the starport of Danaam, under fake id's. Danaam was a trashy starport, considering, and well known for high crime rates, so they weren't suspected here, as long as they kept their heads low. But Grey... He snarled.
"That's the 5th time in 3 days, when he gets back, I'll have a talk with him, damn straight I will!" It was even more painful for Jackel to consider Grey a suspect, since the two had been close companions since the thieving group had been formed. Klow had come later, a friend of Rena's, and Dove had just, wandered in somehow or other. All the same, the past had nothing to do with it now, a traitor was a traitor, and if it was true? Jackel would break his no killing moral. He'd tear the filth apart. Turning to his wife, he spoke, in a barely contained voice. "I'll speak to you later, I've work to do..." With a nod, she was gone, as Jackel continued his thoughts, until it nearly broke him.
In the ships Living Quarters, the young man called Klow sat with the newest member of the team. Sam was 27, a green-eyed wolf in the skin of a sheep. His hair was shoulder length, and a dark brown that seemed to embolden his very nature. In contrast was the young Klow, with short, almost tidy, blonde locks. His eyes were innocent, blue and so like a child's. Klow was speaking softly with Sam, as they both lounged on the couch. It was a bold act, since they both had seen the brute of Jackel's attitude to laziness, but since Klow had been given the day to show Sam the quarters and areas anyway, they felt like taking the risk. Klow was now in the middle of describing their regular routines. "And this, as I've said, is the living space... We've got a television in the corner, and a bar 'round back, and over..." He broke off, as Sam leaned uncomfortably close to him. Locking eyes, he interrupted,
"That's enough, enough! I can find my way around here on my own! Now, tell me more about our upcoming mission!" Sam was impatient. He was eager to find out more about the rebel crew of thieves. Because Sam Aries was no thief. Quite the contrary, the man worked for the government. He had been offered a high fee for the turning in of the crew of the Bandit, but his actions here were on a more personal level. For the crew's clean slate in the prospect of killing wasn't quite clean. Grey Thomson, Bandit's technological chief, had dirtied the team's purity. On a mission fifteen years prior, Jackel had led them on to steal a good sum of money from a high security vault. It was one of their earlier missions, but they had come off with plenty of cash. Jackel, Rena, and Grey had gotten into the vault easily enough, but had run into some resistance on the way out. Rena and her partner had surged through with little difficulty, but Grey was a bit slower on his feet. No killing policy or not, the team always carried weapons. On this particular mission, Grey was carrying a pistol and some smoke grenades. When he had fallen behind Jackel and Rena, he began to panic slightly. Having nearly escaped completely, he turned the last corner to find himself face to face with an officer of the FBI. With only seconds to think of what to do and a loaded gun at his forehead, he had pulled his own gun, and before the officer could think... He was dead. Grey was running by that time, fear flooding him. He had killed a man. Killed him, himself, with a gun... An officer no less. But there was no stopping now, and Officer Tare Aries lay bloody on the sidewalk. Sam had received the letter of his father's death a full two days later, at 12 years old. And he was out for vengeance. Now, Klow was on the receiving end of Sam. Leaning back, away from the man, Klow grinned nervously.
"Umm, sure... Well..." He faltered, as Rena emerged from the control room. Seeing the two so close, she grimaced.
"Get a room..." And stalked off. She was in a foul mood, from her chat with Jackel. For, truth be told, she was just as furious about a traitor as he, no matter how hard she tried to hide it. Klow, taking this opportunity, leapt up and scuttled a bit away, acting like he was getting the remote for the TV. Forcing a laugh, Klow awkwardly looked to Sam,
"Hah...Get a room, yes, Rena is quite a comedian..." Sam smiled good-naturedly.
"Oh, really? I thought it was a good idea..." Klow's eyes bulged, was Sam... gay?? But they'd hardly met! Just yesterday, in fact... But Sam was quick on the uptake, and hurriedly corrected himself, "I mean, it would be easier talking about things like that in one of the sleeping quarters, I haven't seen your room anyway..." Sam grinned again. Klow, feeling much relieved, lead him to his room, heart still going quite rapidly. Typing the code into the metal door, he continued into the room, when everything went black.
The silent figure moved through the streets like a shadow. Grey was middle-aged, like Jackel, but was unlike Jackel in that he was beginning to gray and bald. He wasn't as fit as he had been 15 years ago, and it was beginning to get to him. He didn't want anyone, Jackel especially, to know that he felt old and weak, so he had slipped out repeatedly since they'd stopped in Danaam, to do some exercising. Jackel, he knew, would tease him to no end if he found out... and Rena had always looked down on Grey. No matter how much Jackel liked him, it seemed Rena disliked him just as much. She had grown to trust him, but it was a trust gained through business, rather than friendship. Still mildly jealous that Jackel had received such a woman, their friendship had hesitated when he was married to her, but only for a little while. When Jackel proposed taking up the thieving business with him, former wounds were mended as Grey joined the team.