Disclaimer: Guess what? I still don't own 'em, and I still aint making money from 'em. So there.
AN: Sorry for the long wait, but first there were finals, and then (horror of horrors) our phone line went out for a week. Also sorry that it's so short, but I suck at transitions, and I'm trying to get it all out before something else drives it from my mind.
prin69: My first review! Thanks so much, both for the spelling help (I really do appreciate it) and the encouragement. Thanks again!
It was almost dark as Rhade, bag in hand, stepped out of the musty alleyway and onto the dust-covered loading ramp. He glanced at the sky, gauging the time. "I'm not late." He muttered. His face grew smug. "She is." He took only one step toward the hazy hanger entrance before a voice stopped him. "I'd get rid off that smirk before someone removes it for you… You made it, I'm surprised. I had thought " she said as she slid out of the shadows to his left, "that I would have the pleasure of tracking you down and making you" she smiled "compliant."
"Sorry to disappoint you." He said grimly. By now she was inches from him, their noses almost touching. She inhaled. "Sober. You are just full of surprises."
"Fun as a barrel of monkeys. Are we leaving yet?"
"Well, if you are going to take that kind of attitude, yes we are leaving." He let out a breath. "Just as soon as search your things."
"What!"
"Standard procedure, I assure you."
"I don't believe you."
"Of course you do not. It is a reflection of your own character." Her reply was muffled by his bag, as she began to sort through it. "What do you mean?"
She glanced up, her blank eyes locking into his. "I liar never trusts anything anyone says, of course." She returned to her rummaging, ignoring his fiery stare.
A liar. She had just called him a liar. No one did that, especially to his face. It made him mad. It was true, but it still made him mad. He glared at her as she sorted through his things, laying them in piles on the ground. When the last of the articles were removed, she turned the bag upside-down and gave it a good shake. Rhade rolled his eyes. Satisfied that it was truly empty, she began to haphazardly toss his things back into their receptacle.
"Well, it seems there is nothing to be concerned about. We are finished here."
"What, you don't want to do a cavity search?"
A small smirk "You would just love that, wouldn't you?"
He huffed, determining not say another word to her. She began to walk towards the hanger door, motioning for him to follow. "It's this way." When he said nothing, she stopped and turned toward him, "What, not speaking are we?" He said nothing. "How very mature of you." He scowled and very nearly retorted, and then remembering his decision, he chose to remain silent. She just looked at him, then with a shake of her head started off again. "The ship is over here."
After a few moments walking through dim light, they came upon the craft. His host motioned for him to stay as she moved behind and to one side of the ship. Rhade took this opportunity to get a good look at his future transport. It was small, nothing as big as the Maru, probably meant as a passenger vessel, with room for a small cargo. Nice enough, by Seefran standards, but nothing compared to Tarazad or the former Commonwealth. It was, he thought ruefully, entirely what he had expected. Cheap; poor grade technology. Harper could build better from a matchbox. So, it was a disdainful, silent Rhade that greeted his host when her head emerged quite suddenly from a hatchway in the side of the ship.
"Ready for boarding!" She called almost cheerfully from her place. He just stood there, gazing distrustfully at the ladder that was dropped from the side. "Mister Rhade, are you going to come aboard, or am I going to get the pleasure of trussing you up like a pig?"
"More like a lamb to slaughter" he muttered as he made his way over to the ship and cautiously up the ladder. After what he thought a precarious climb, he pulled himself through the now empty hatchway and into the vessels interior. Once inside, his disdain fell away into shock and curiosity. Better than the Maru. As good as the Andromeda. He glanced to where the woman sat in what was obviously the captains chair, a genuine almost smile on her face. "Not what you expected, egh?"
"No. It's not. Where did it all come from?"
"From me. That is, I invented most of it. And what I did not invent, I improved."
"This is... it's phenomenal." And valuable. Rhade's mind was already spinning, working out just how much he could get for it on the black market.
A grin and a raised brow caught his attention. "No, Mister Rhade it is not for sale. And I severely doubt that you could steal it. Any of it." Emphatic. Damn, did this woman read his mind?
"Well, now that you have been adequately awed by my genius, let me show you to your quarters." Wow, he thought, what a Harper thing to say.