NEW CHARACTERS INTRODUCED! And Chanun gets to show off some of his moves in the gym, maybe even impress some of the bois ;).

Thanks for all who have read so far - things are building and I'm pretty sure that we're almost at the tipping point where things are going to get a bit faster and more furious. Cain and Abel (and co) are coming soon as well, do not fret!

Of course, all characters except for Chanun, Zeke, Kama, and Rati are property of HamletMachine.

Enjoy!

- SleipyNova

"Finally! The gym!" Helios exclaimed as we made it to the place where any Fighter worth his salt would spend most of his time. Given that today was a vacation day for everyone, the space was fairly full. Fighters and Navigators alike were on the treadmills and machines, lifting, sweating, and preparing for the rigors of space travel. Helios sprinted over to one of the pullup bars and did a full swing on it, flipping over the top and back around. Selene just watched him, arms crossed, walking over to admire the flexible Colonist.

I looked at Zeke with a grin.

"You lift at all, man?" He flushed.

"Uh...not really. I'm not super athletic."

"No reason not to start now, dude. Gotta be built for the job that you're assigned to do." I walked over to a 20 pound dumbell and picked it up with my left hand, easily bringing it over. Zeke put his hands up.

"Uhh...maybe when there are less people here," he said, his face turning bright red. I shrugged. I didn't want to embarrass my Navigator, especially not on our first day. That'd be a bad look.

"No worries, man. How about this? You can make it your mission to get me up to speed on the strategic stuff, and I'll help you get a little bit stronger?"

Zeke smiled and nodded. "Sounds like a plan...but let's start when there are less people around, OK? I think I'm going to head out."

I patted him on the shoulder. "You sure? The night is young?"

"I'm sure," he said, a look of resignation on his face. "I'm not feeling this. Not right now. I think if you're going to stay, I'll head back and prepare for tomorrow."

"OK, dude." We gave each other an awkward half hug goodbye, and I walked back over to the weights area. I noticed a jump rope on the ground and I picked it up and started to get into the groove, doing some jumps back and forth as a warmup. As I moved and gyrated from side-to-side, I thought about the day that had been, everything lifechanging that had happened. It would be a work in progress with Zeke, for sure, but I definitely saw how we complimented each other. Some in the Academy glamourized the Fighter/Navigator bond as being almost like a courtship, where fickleness was appreciated. One of our Instructors even said that he had requested a switch from his Fighter within a week due to, as he called it, a "lack of physical and mental compatibility."

I was going to give Zeke a chance. I saw the value he brought. Also, he could be pretty cute in his own way. I'd find him a boy soon enough - well, if he was Kinsey 2 to 6, anyway. There weren't too many Kinsey 1s around anymore, but if he was, well...good luck on this ship.

"Hey!" I heard someone shout in my direction. I stopped my jumping, a little bit of sweat on my brow. I saw a Fighter and Navigator come over. I didn't recognize either of them. The Fighter on the left was a bit taller than me with a bright red mohawk running down the middle of his scalp, while his Nav on the right was short but built like a tank, a black cowlick framing the middle of his handsome face.

"Sup, dudes?" I smiled and held out my hand. The redhead shook it with a strong grip.

"Name's Kama," he said, grinning. I noticed he had a small gap in between his two front teeth; "And this guy's Rati. We both just came aboard the ship today, and he thought he'd recognized you in line. New as well?"

"Yup," I responded. "I'm Chanun. Nice to meet you!"

"Cool," Kama said as he patted me on the back. "Getting your space legs under you?"

"Yup," I said with a shrug. "I was just going to do sprints or something. Gotta get back into the groove and all that."

"Want to spar?" Kama asked, pointing to the ring in the corner. I nodded. Why not?

We went over to the ring and both got into fighting stances, the big red head lining up with his left hand in the lead. Rati watched us from the corner. He seemed a bit shy.

"Just warning you, man, I was one of the best in my class in terms of hand-to-hand punch power," Kama said with some swagger in his voice. "And I don't intend on going easy."

I got up on my toes in a fighter's stance, thinking about everything Astor had taught me regarding hand-to-hand. Guard my face, jab, jab, hook, jab. Most importantly, never stop moving. Ever.

"I'm ready," I muttered. Kama nodded, and then he struck. Or tried to, anyway, as I was able to get out of the way of his left jab. I chuckled "Too slow, man."

Kama looked a bit perturbed and reared back again, this time with a right. Even before he had extended, I could tell he was trying to fake me into his left. I ducked the first punch and then quickly shifted to my left, escaping yet again.

"Fuck, dude." Kama said, already panting. Big boy clearly wasn't in shape. He came at me again with a left, right, left, regroup. I dodged each punch, his groans giving me life as I bobbed and weaved. Right, left, right, again. He couldn't touch me. He aimed a kick at my head and I ducked under it, backing up yet again, my feet never moving out of sync. In the corner of my eye I could see more faces coming over to our little ring, the two Fighters sparring getting some attention.

Now, Kama waited. Clearly, he was awaiting me to make a move, to punch, to do something. I was barely sweating, he already looked like he'd swam ten laps in the pool. I cheekily smiled and readied a punch with my right. I could see Kama getting ready to defend it...but then I pulled back into a feint and came over the top with my left hand. Kama's face turned, right into my fist, which I stopped an inch short of his nose.

"Boom, baby," I said with a smile. "If this was a real fight, you'd be done." The shock, or something else, must have caused Kama to drop to the ground on his knees, panting, sweat pouring off of his body.

Victory for Chanun. Fuck yeah, Chanun.

I looked around and saw faces, in white and black suits, just staring at us. Some of them had their arms folded, clearly impressed. Others were whispering to their partners, pointing at me. I even saw two of the guys from the podium earlier, standing together, giving each other sidelong looks, the one with the long blond hair smirking. Heck, even Helios and Selene were both just standing there, Helios' mouth slightly agape, Selene's eyes intense.

I squatted and tapped Kama on the back of his head, rubbing his shaved scalp.

"Need some help up?" He looked at me and took my hand as I lifted him as the crowd began to disperse. Now, he was grinning wildly.

"Shit, dude, that was amazing. You gotta teach me that." We walked over to where Rati was watching us and Helios and Selene soon ran over as well.

"Damn, Chanun," Helios said. "That was absurd. How'd you do that?"

"I DID come top in my class at the Academy in terms of Reflexes and Evasion," I said through a Cheshire grin, rubbing my forearm over my forehead and shaking some of the sweat out of my hair. "Guess learning how to catch waves and dodge awry volleyballs has its real life applications."

"Well, I'm happy you're on OUR side," Selene said with a grin. He looked at Rati, and so did I. Yup, still quiet, although his grin was infectious.

I yawned. "I actually think I'm going to head back and catch some Zs. But we'll hang tomorrow." The group agreed, we all exchanged room numbers, and I began to walk out into the hallway, toward the dorms, not realizing that I was being followed.