Even as he headed down the passageway to the guest quarters, Captain Michael could feel the tension in the air. It was the strangest thing about Latiida, how her emotions could also be felt by the other crewmates. When she was giddy and delighted, the crew could even feel that giddiness even when she wasn't in the room. And when she was angry or tense, whoever was close by could sense this tension too. And this time was no different, making the Captain wonder if she was okay.

With the idea of enlisting her fresh on his mind, he knew what he wanted to say. Asking her would be a cinch, since she was easy to communicate to. And she was often contented with working with the Androsynth Quadruplets in the medical bay. She excelled in medical work as she excelled in spiritual communication. And why not? Everyone got along with her fairly easily and she liked being around them.

When he got to the doorway to the unit Latiida was housed in, Michael was about to knock when he heard a loud and sudden, "NO!" from behind the closed door. Was she communing with the spirits once more? Since he was aware of why she often went to her quarters to be alone, he pressed his ear to the door to listen to what else the young Arilou had to say.

"Never, why would you say such a thing?" she asked, her voice clearly exasperated, "I see, well… yes, I am… Why must I return so soon? I-I see… but could I… I see… very well then, I shall ask the kind Captain to put the coordinated in right away… I shall see you soon…"

The Captain backed up. Now was not the time to ask her, it seemed, since she was tense. And coordinates, to where? He wondered this as he returned to the elevator leading up to the command center. He may as well wait for the young Arilou to head up there herself to tell him where they would have to go next.

And he did not have to wait long at all. He could sense that Latiida was upset, but what was upsetting her? When he saw the elevator appear into view, the Arilou looked like she wanted to be angry, yet held it back. Arilou La'leelay were not known to get angry easily, but something was on her mind as she took in a breath and exhaled as she stepped up towards the Captain.

"My apologies for interrupting you Captain," Latiida apologized, "But I have something very important to ask of you."

"Yes, what is it?" he replied, gesturing her to sit down. Even though he heard part of what she had to say earlier on, he wanted to hear her request.

"Well… I have been called back to Quasispace for something I have to attend to, so… if you can, could you take me to a natural portal to Quasispace?"

Since her Skiff didn't have the warp core needed to teleport to Quasispace with ease, Captain Michael knew that using the natural portal was necessary if she HAD to go back. And he knew where one of them was already. The task itself seemed simple enough, but the timing had to be just right to be able to enter the portal while it was still there.

"Is there a specific portal which you have to head to?" the Captain asked, sitting up, his hand over the console to enter the coordinates.

Seeing that the Captain was willing to aid her once again, the Arilou smiled. She shook her head, replying, "The nearest portal would do just fine."

"As you wish. We're headin' out immediately."

"W-Why so soon?"

"We wanna get there on time, don't we?"

…

At that moment, Lavender was in her workshop when she felt the ship propel itself into motion. She had just crawled out from underneath Latiida's Skiff when it took off, wondering why they took off so fast. She pulled herself out to see that one of the monitors surrounding her platform displayed the starmap. She had to see just where they were going, so she put her tools down to take a closer look to find that they were headed to a barren area of space. What was the meaning of this? She had to ask the Captain right away!

She pressed a button on her console and asked, "Captain, what's the meaning of this? Why are we headed to a part of space that no star systems are at?"

"That, sweetheart, is not where WE are going," the Captain extrapolated, "but where our guest has to go."

"But why there?"

"That place has a natural portal to Quasispace, the nearest one I could find. That young Arilou insisted we go there, 'cause she has to go back to it."

Looking back at the monitor, it became clearer to the Melnorme why that area was so barren at all. The natural portals to Quasispace could swallow up entire star systems if they had ever gotten too close. And there was a specific timeline they had to watch out for, hence why they took off so quickly. No wonder they were going so fast!

"I see." Lavender spoke finally, "Speaking of, I found the reason why the inertialess drive wasn't working. The part that allows it to be completely unaffected by inertia is completely gone, melted off by a superhot star, so if she were to pilot it again, she's going to have a bumpy ride when she enters the portal."

"Gotcha," the Captain replied, "I'll let her know about that right away. Just keep doing what you can to at least make it flyable 'til we get to the portal."

"Roger that."

…

Once Lavender was able to repair Latiida's Skiff, the young Arilou had to get prepared to leave soon. In a way, she was almost sad that she had to leave, but fate was calling to her and she had to leave. While she stood by, Beeb'ob, Kimchi and Lavender were assisting in getting her ship readied up for her return. The Arilou La'leelay could see that they too expressed her emotion of slightly sad.

"You sure you need leave?" Beeb'ob asked as he readjusted the Skiff's headlights.

"I am certain." Latiida replied with a nod, "As much as my heart tells me to stay here with you, fate is telling me otherwise."

"Will we be able to meet you again sometime in the future?" Lavender asked as she hopped out of the ship, "Because, well…"

The Melnorme didn't want to admit it, but she was indeed, growing to like the Arilou's presence. And Latiida smiled, knowing exactly what Lavender was going to say.

"Say no more, friend." Latiida spoke, "There is a possibility that we may meet again in the future. I am uncertain of when, but I feel that we shall meet again someday."

Then the Arilou's face fell once more, her eyes blinking as if she had just remembered something.

"Which reminds me," she added, rubbing her temples with her fingers, "once we finish getting my ship prepared, I must share with you another fortune. One in which will be fruitful."

"Geez, I hope it'll be a 'fruitful' fortune," Kimchi huffed as he pulled himself out from beneath the ship, "We could use an extra set a' hands around here!"

"Means more fruits?" Beeb'ob asked, snickering at his pun.

The young Arilou smirked, a little bit. Even if the pun wasn't very funny, it still forced a smile out of her.

"No no," she bleated after composing herself, "it means you may see new faces."

It made Lavender wonder. "New faces"? Did that mean more enlistments? If so, then who would it be that Latiida's fortune would tell them about? New crewmates would be nice, but who would they be? What were they going to look like? And how was Latiida going to describe them?

…

Indeed, the Junk Heap did draw close to an area where the natural Quasispace portal would appear. Although they had arrived just a day early(as Captain Michael hoped), it would grant them the time for Latiida to gather the crew up to tell them her prediction.

As always, the crew gathered up in the lounge. It was the best place to have meetings in, much rather than the usual conference room(there originally was a conference room, but it ended up becoming a place where celebratory meals were served), for it was comfortable, absolutely everyone could fit in and should a transmission come through amidst a meeting, it could be responded to via the crystal pillars in the very center.

While the Captain and crew(with Penny sitting close by the Captain, as she always did), Latiida stood in front, adjusting her dress as if preparing for a presentation. With a deep breath, she spoke, "My friends. I regret to say to you that by tomorrow, I will have to leave. I will be returning to Quasispace to take care of greater needs. I cannot say what it is, but I must express my profound gratitude to you…"

She knelt down in a kind of bow, adding a quiet, "Thank you all." before standing straight again.

"Before I go," she continued, "I have a vision that I must share with you."

Just like before, she put her hands together, her fingertips touching on another, shutting her eyes and drawing her head back.

"In a place very near," she started, "you shall find a hidden jewel in a crushed chest. This red jewel is of high value to you and you must listen to it, help it glow further. Let its shine be seen by those who resemble this jewel. Though very old, this jewel's beauty still shines on. Bring this jewel with you."

When the young Arilou La'leelay opened her eyes, she could see the crew murmuring amongst themselves, the Captain, Penny and Lavender watched her with interest. The way Latiida spoke about her visions was in the form of a riddle, and she could tell those who observed her may have figured it out.

…

With a heartfelt farewell, Latiida's Skiff floated upwards. The airlock of the hangar opened and it sped out. The crew watched as the Skiff drew closer to a star, then marveling at the sight they saw next. A colorful portal had revealed itself once the Arilou got close and when she entered, a brilliant flash of light had burst out. And just a second later, both the portal and Latiida were gone.

The crew didn't feel sad, however. They were happy to see that the young Arilou was happy too. And having taken good care of her, she genuinely wanted to see them again someday. Perhaps that someday would come sooner than they thought, maybe she would be older and wiser by the time she came back.

But casting that thought aside, they now had another mission of their hands; find the "red jewel" that Latiida spoke about. And supposedly, this "jewel" was very near, so Lavender set her radar up to search for any ships or planets they would otherwise pass by.

The Captain sat back in the command seat, watching as the Junk Heap's radar system was being set up to search for energy readings. That was another benefit of having Lavender around, she knew what he was thinking and didn't need to be instructed on what she had to do next. Even looking in the Captain's eye proved he was thinking the same thing she was.

Penelope had walked in, wondering what Captain Michael was up to. Seeing him so focused on the interface made her wonder what it was he was looking for. Every now and then, the radar would let out a soft beep as it continued to scan the area around them. The Captain had been so focused that he didn't even notice Penny standing behind his seat when he leaned back.

"Where we going next?" Penny asked as she observed the radar.

"You remember what that young Arilou said?" the Captain asked, sitting up "We're searchin' for the 'red jewel' she talked about."

"Like a treasure?"

"Proverbial treasure, anyways."

What did that mean? "Proverbial treasure"? That was such a bizarre way of saying things!

"Meaning…?" the Syreen asked, cocking her head to the side.

"We might have a new enlistment in our hands." Captain Michael extrapolated, "Maybe a prophet of some sort?"

Now that he said that, Penny remembered. Latiida did say to "listen to it", "help it shine", and that "it's very old, but its beauty still shines on".

"That girl had such a weird way of sayin' stuff," Penny continued, "but maybe this 'jewel' she was talkin' about is an older… lady? Another thing I'm wonderin' is what race is red?"

That was a hint right there! There were very few races that were red in color, but that revelation alone narrowed it down quite a bit!

"That alone tells me that our rescue is going to be…!"

"An Ilwrath, perhaps?" Lavender's voice called.

The two turned to see Lavender standing in the elevator. Her eye glowed, meaning she too had a revelation.

"My apologies for intruding in on a conversation," Lavender apologized as she hobbled up to them, "I couldn't help but tune in."

"'Tis okay, aweetheart!" Captain Michael replied, "We've pretty much narrowed down what we're looking for!"

"And based on that riddle saying 'help it shine', perhaps this Ilwrath we're looking for has something important."

"Possibly." Penny murmured, looking back at the radar, "And if this 'crushed chest' means anything, we'll have to hurry up and find it."

"Yeah…"

…

Not long after the Captain's revelation, their navigation systems caught a distress signal not far from Beta Herculis. Sure enough, Lavender's radar picked up the image of a crashed Ilwrath ship. When they drew near, they could see that this Ilwrath ship was one of the fancier, luxury ships. No normal Ilwrath could ever afford such a fancy ship, so this individual was obviously filthy rich.

As the Junk Heap drew closer, Captain Michael would send a transmission to the Ilwrath ship.

"Do not be alarmed," he spoke, "This is Captain John Michael of the Starship Junk Heap. We have come to provide you assistance."

The Ilwrath ship's defense mechanisms were backing up and powering down, proof that the occupant would trust them. It turned in a way that would help the grappling claw latch onto it with ease. As usual, Lavender carefully gripped the central part of the ship and began pulling it into the hangar. Once inside, the Ilwrath ship released its landing gear and the crew got down to the hangar to meet their guest.

Stepping out from this ship was an Ilwrath, decked in a fancy top, jewels from her headdress to her appendages, tall boots on her rear limbs and bright blue eyes. Ilwrath typically had smooth chiton, but she was covered in silvery hairs like a tarantula, indicating her old age.

"Greetings, madam." Captin Michael began, "We're the crew of the Starship Junk Heap. We…"

"Cut the formality, I know who you are!" the old Ilwrath clacked, "You're the Junk Heap, you came to help me out… and you're gonna help me out with the war, right?"

"Uh… y-yeah, we are."

What war? What was going on? They had never heard of a war going on! Where was it taking place?

"Pardon me for asking," Lavender spoke, looking interested, "but did you say there was a war going on?"

The old Ilwrath looked to Lavender, her eight eyes blinking.

"Quite right, niece." she replied, lowering herself, "It's not known throughout the universe, but there's a civil war going on in the Alpha Tauri star system. A war of outrage."

The crew looked worried. No war was ever of good intent, especially if it were a civil war based on outrage.

"What's your name, lady?" Mack asked, arms akimbo.

"I'm Mistress Saffron." the old Ilwrath replied, standing tall, "You may call me Auntie Saffron if you wish."

"Right, Auntie." Captain Michael replied, "Do tell, what is this war of outrage you speak of?"