Captain Seth Hausier smiled to himself and leant back in his chair. It was a straight back leather armchair, which had been adapted to have a reclining feature. Seth knew that most ship captains preferred to stay on their feet, so they can move quickly from one station to another on the bridge. The Belle's Wrath was a small ship, and Seth could easily communicate with all crewmembers on the bridge simply by raising his voice.

Seth leant forwards and stared out at the infinite number of spots of light out in front of him. Seth had been living on and off of ships his entire life, but the view of space in front of him never ceased to amaze him. His reflection stared back at him; Seth studied his appearance, running a hand along his jawline. Seth had always thought of himself as ruggedly handsome, and the women he had met in his life had never disagreed with that description. His hair was black, and oiled down in a way that was currently fashionable amongst young nobles on Omega III. Course black stubble covered his upper lip and chin; the stubble also followed his strong jaw up to his hairline. His eyes were a deep blue that seemed to exude honesty, which was very useful for a man that lied for a living. Seth was dressed in a black tricorn hat with silver lining, a majestic yet light long-coat in a deep red colour, a white shirt, black trousers and black boots that shined. Rogue Traders were known to be garish and eccentric in their tastes and style, and Seth was no exception. All of his clothes were of exquisite quality and obviously very expensive.

The crew on the bridge were currently bickering quietly amongst themselves, debating whether the cruiser they had just eluded would follow them. Seth cared little whether they Imperials would attempt a chase or not. In a little under six hours they would be in the Omega system, and an hour after that they'd be safely docked in the port of Hyrax hive on Omega III. If the cruiser tried to follow them there, they would be stuck for days in security checks and inspections from the ever-wary Planetary Governor.

Seth's thoughts of victory were interrupted when the door to the elevator behind him hissed open, and the sound of stomping booted feet announced the arrival of the Belle's Wrath second-in-command, Sergeant Major Hank Brawnley. The ex-soldier was forced to flee the military after looting, and then murdering a fellow officer almost a decade ago, but he still insisted of using his old rank. The gruff veteran was from the jungle deathworld Omega I. They made short men, but level-headed and quick, both in body and mind. Brawnley was unlike most natives of Omega I, in that he was broad-shouldered, and his chest and limbs were thick with corded muscle. Brawnley was known by the crew as Papa Bear, both because of his protective nature towards the crew, and his huge bushy beard. It was made of thick curls, much like his hair, and a light chestnut colour. He was rarely seen in anything other than combat trousers, scuffed boots and a t-shirt, and he failed to surprise now. Brawnley was known to be blunt, gruff and worse than useless in negotiations. He made up for it however, with his extensive experience in fighting in a myriad of warzones, as well as his ability of playing the perfect 'bad cop' in interrogations.

Brawnley stomped over to Seth's chair, where he saluted and stood with his hands behind his back, legs spread in a standard 'at ease' stance. Seth gave him a sidelong glance, smirking. The Captain had always found his second-in-commands continued discipline to be incredibly amusing. Brawnley spent most of his time in the crew quarters, ordering around the crew or managing supplies. He only ever came up to the bridge when something had gone horribly wrong. Seth motioned for Brawnley to speak.

"Sir, we have a problem"

"If we didn't, I doubt you would be here, Brawnley. I never get to enjoy your company unless calamity arises"

"I just checked the package on a hunch"

"The package of hellpistols and shotguns that we're supposed to be delivering to the infamous crime lady, Madame Zafir?"

"Yes sir"

"What's wrong with it?"

"It's empty"

Seth's smile froze. "….empty"

"Yes sir"

"Are you sure you looked in the right crate? There are a lot of them in the hold. It is easy to get confused"

"I looked in the right box sure. And it's empty"

"We've been swindled out of our shipment"

"Yes sir"

"Madame Zafir will not be happy"

"No sir"

"I'm probably going to get shot, aren't I?"

"Knowing Madame Zafir, I would assume so sir"

Seth leant back in his chair, and sighed. "And today was going so well"

Madame Zafir was known more for her ruthlessness in the criminal underworld and viscous punishment to those that fail her than her beauty and grace. Everyone knew that the Madame was a sour old woman who despised man as a rule, but no-one would dare say such to her face. Seth had worked for her previously during his early years as captain of the Belle's Wrath, and it rarely went well. Madame Zafir has hated the opposite sex ever since she was sold to her then husband as a slave. She managed to persuade him to not only free her, but marry her. She then murdered her and took over his illegal businesses. She always gave the man working under her the most difficult and risky work, and never took failure lightly. Seth still bore the scars from when he lost his last shipment to rival smugglers.

Seth knew he had to think of a solution quick, otherwise it would be safer to simply cut and run instead of having to face the wrath of Madame Zafir. He rubbed his face with both hands. He hadn't slept in around thirty hours, usually it didn't faze him, but the impeding likeliness of a tongue-lashing and torture suddenly made him feel much older. He turned to Brawnley.

"Do you by chance know where we can get a thousand hellpistols and shotguns?"

"No sir"

"Hrmmmmm…bring the officers together, we need to work this out. My quarters, fifteen minutes" Seth sprung up from his chair, he was nearing thirty years old, but retained the energy of a child. He yelled over his shoulder to the crew manning the bridge as he strode to the elevator.

"Keep the ship orbiting once we reach Omega III, whatever you do, do not land!"