Braddon was terrified, he had never been particularly good at lying, or acting, and now he was going to have to deceive a bunch of people who were very likely to want to make him relive his worst nightmare.

"I can't do this." He whispered in Xanther's implant.

"You got this. I trust you, just do it like we practised."

For a while now he had been transmitting an all frequency distress beacon. They figured the reevers probably already knew where they were, so no point in trying to play hide and seek. It also gave them an option to re-write the encounter, from one of violence to something more amicable.

"This is Jade of the shining arrow, answering your distress beacon. How may we be of assistance."

"Who is she?" Braddon whispered to Rus.

"That aint her real name, but she is tha leader. No nonsense, smart too."

"So what is her real name?" Xanther asked.

"If I tell you, ya might stuff up and mention it by mistake!"

"Right, of course."

Braddon turned his attention back to the main comm. "This is Braddon of the XB-1070 requesting aid. Thank goodness you found me! Some sort of virus managed to get into the nav computer, I have been flying around in circles, and can't seem to find my way out."

"Braddon, are you a brainship? How many crew do you have on board?"

"I am currently unmanned and am on my way back to regulus to retrieve my next brawn assignment. It has made my options in dealing with this virus much more limited, any assistance would be appreciated."

There was a pause on the line as Jade considered her options.

"We should be able to provide some assistance. With permission, I would like to dock."

"Go ahead, although you might have to open the hatch manually, a lot of my systems are malfunctioning."

I am inviting dirty treacherous swine, into my main cabin, so they can poke around at my controls. How did it come to this!

He whispered into Xanthers implant. "On second thoughts, I really can't do this."

"You are doing great! Just let them in, make a jump, and drop out early."

Braddon went about undoing the little 'play' that had been keeping the virus tame, and now fed back still images of their current location. He didn't want their guests to pick up on the fact that what was displayed on the screens and sensors was not representative of what was actually going on outside. He had been observing their ship with his telescope, and was modifying his dummy readings to include it. It definitely had more than a mining laser strapped on the front.

He had just managed to get his secondary engine controls online, but unfortunately had not been able to do any testing or troubleshooting. All he had to do was manually execute the commands as the reavers input them, at least for a while until they were more at ease. The docking went smoothly. At least they didn't fire upon me. He thought glumly. They had got the airlock open, with some instructions from Braddon. He could have simply opened it himself, but wanted them to think his control was less than it actually was. Jade walked onto the bridge confidently in a lightly armoured pressure suit. Two strong looking men followed, each holding a needler.

"They got at least 4 working ones." Rus reminded him.

"There is no need for weapons." Braddon stated. "Or those suits, my life support has been mercifully unaffected."

"Why would you have life support running, if you are unmanned?" Jade was facing his column, and spoke with an air of authority, and distrust.

"Standard protocol, easy enough to maintain with no breathers, and it helps with sensitive cargo."

She nodded to her men and they headed down the passageway opening every room they came to and having a quick look in each.

"Um, what are you doing?" He tried to sound calm, but it wasn't working particularly well.

"We have been ambushed before." Jade stated. "Just taking precautions."

"Oh of course, I completely understand. Feel free to look around." Be compliant, be helpful, be oblivious.

Jade moved to sit down in Xanther's chair. She sat up straight and stretched her arms over the control panel. A small smile crept across her face, that made Braddon extremely uncomfortable. She drew back her hands before actually pressing anything and folded them in front of her. "Can you describe the problems you have been having?"

"Um, well, the navigation systems were the first affected. No matter what I did we always seemed to end up heading in the wrong direction."

"We?" Her eyebrow raised slightly as she started sifting through the logs Braddon had so helpfully left open.

Shit. "Sorry, um, force of habit you know? I am not often without a brawn, which is why I am ever so grateful for your help. After the navigation glitch, a number of other systems have been acting very strangely, it has been a real headache trying to keep things under control."

She glanced up at a camera with a blank face that was hard to read. Before turning her attention back to the controls. "Luckily we have had some experience in dealing with this particular virus. Our own ship was affected recently. There is an expert at Talthos who can help scrub your systems, but in the meantime I may be able to apply some short term measures."

Her fingers moved fast, zipping across the controls as she entered some sort of access code. There was blissful silence as Braddon realised that all the assaults on his secondary systems had stopped. No more requests to open the airlock, no more strange power surges.

"Whatever you did is working wonders! Thank you!"

She continued typing and access to the sleep gas was blocked. Air-lock control, was also locked down. As expected, I guess it is now in a manual mode, I wonder what else she can make it do…

"Well, these nav logs are indeed very jumbled. The shining arrow will lead the way, and you will follow their ion trail." A command, not a suggestion.

"Sure, that will work." The external sensors were still cut off! Braddon quickly compared the engines of the shining arrow to ones that he had previously encountered so he would be able to generate a somewhat believable signal. The two goons came back to help with the decoupling, at least somewhat satisfied that they were alone."

"I think you are safe for now." Braddon whispered into Xanther's implant and the contact button he had left with Rus, figuring it would be less likely for their 'friends' to notice that than if they relied on using the suit comms.

"You are doing great." Xanther sub-vocalised. Rus stayed silent, being positioned closer to the main cabin. "Just keep it up, and follow orders until we can gas these guys."

Braddon had managed to successfully jump to FTL with his new direct engine command link, he had been prepared to stall with fictional engine problems but luckily didn't have to use them. Jade seemed to be falling for his 'play' and hadn't realised, or hadn't commented on the fact that she wasn't in control of everything. Without the constant assaults from the raging virus it had turned from a bullet hell into more of a game of chess. A slow battle of wits. Braddon ran through mentally the things he had to do:

Somehow take out or confine the 3 invaders

Change course and hopefully outrun the shining arrow

Keep Xanther and Rus safe

Not get removed from his ship

His anxiety bubbled as he considered the last point. No, no, I've gotta make this work. We've gotta make this work, it has to…

The goons were now going through the crates in the cargo hold more thoroughly than before, suspicious that their large sizes could be concealing an 'intruder'. Braddon was fairly sure they were just taking inventory to make looting easier later.

"We have to take them out before they find my stuff!" Xanther muttered. The small crates full of her personal belongings were stacked at the end of the aisle they were working along. Braddon could see her fidgeting, obviously uncomfortable in the cramped space. They still wore the pressure suits, helmets and all. "Ugh, I can't believe they are still doing all of this in their suits, they must be uncomfortable!" Xanther whined.

"Jade mentioned something about safety," Braddon offered, "in case the virus infects life support, which is obviously not her actual concern. How are we going to entice them out of the suits?" The two men chatted away as they worked, commenting on what they found, making jokes. "Rus, you mentioned most of their equipment is old, would issues with the suit comms be commonplace?" Braddon asked.

There was up and down movement on Rus's contact button feed in confirmation. Braddon couldn't easily block the transmission, but he could add to it. He sampled what they were saying, and ran it through a noise-cancelling routine, then mixed in a bit of static and fed it through. Not perfect, but definitely made it difficult to understand.

The problem was Jade had been listening in, and she would hear the 'malfunction' as well. Worth the risk, we have to do something!

"Braddon," Xanther whispered, "When you mess up the comms, I think you should drop out. Jade will already be suspicious, and I would rather not get any closer to our destination. It will also increase their need to communicate swiftly, so they are more likely to pop the helmets."

"Ok, sure, good plan. I can just blame it on the virus, although she will know I am lying. Should I jump towards home straight away?"

"Yes, otherwise we risk the shining arrow damaging our drive before we can escape."

"Ok, well here goes nothing. Brace for transition to normal space."

Braddon implemented the comms filter and dropped out of hyper simultaneously. Jade lurched forwards in her chair, and the two men tumbled into the crates.

"What just happened?" Asked a very stern Jade.

"We dropped out of hyper. The virus messed with a bunch of secondary systems and has tripped one of the safety measures. Bypassing now, preparing to resume jump."

Meanwhile in the cargo bay the two men were madly trying the comm, trying to ask about what was going on. There was wild gesturing, one of them was trying the panel on the wall, then finally they popped their helmets in order to yell at each other across the room.

"Got em!" Said Xanther as she released her canister of sleep gas.

Back in the main cabin Jade had heard the garbled comm attempts and had started making her own. "Come in!" She flicked over the feed on the main screen to look at what was going on in the cargo bay. It felt super gross having her use his controls and systems. He quickly swapped the image out with a recording of them from earlier. I can't let her watch us gas her men! She watched intently, scowling. "Is there a problem?" Braddon asked innocently. She looked up into Braddon's camera.

"You think I am a fool?"

"No, no, of course not!"

Her hands sped across the keys and the world went dark.

Terror radiated through Braddon's mind as he attempted over and over to access the internal sensors.

Amik! Help! I can't see!

Memories bubbled to the surface drawn out by fear.

I am safe inside my shell, my sensors function… he started before realising that particular mantra wouldn't be so helpful right now.

No. No. Not this. Not again… Somebody help me! He thought desperately. This time Sam was nowhere near close enough to come to his aid. No one was. He couldn't even use his Helva unit, which was buried too deep in his column, however it would likely give some early warning when they started cutting into his column… when, not if. flashes of Jasbur's mutilated column entered his mind as he remembered the hours stuck alone disconnected from his own ship after Pacifica pulled him out. Panic quickly pulled him under. Are all your cameras down? Came an echo of the headmaster's calm voice, a continuation of the previous memory.

Braddon forced himself to take a step back and stop trying to break through the internal sensors block. Instead he started reaching out to all of his feeds looking for any other inputs that were still working. My telescope! The virus has left it alone so far.

Stars filled his view, some more smudged than others due to the FTL speed. I can see. A wave of relief washed over him as the absolute terror dropped into a more manageable heightened stress. I can see. His nutrient and hormonal feeds were still working, so he did what he could to steady his nerves. The fact his Helva unit was still dark meant they hadn't started cutting. An inch of titanium took a bit of effort to get through, which meant he had time to figure something out. I can do this, I have to…

A beam of bright light briefly flashed through the starry sky bringing with it a fresh wave of terror. They're shooting at me?

Braddon checked his new engine controls were still working and pushed the FTL beyond normal limits. A sustained journey at this level could cause damage, but for a short time the risk was acceptable. Especially when compared to the risk of one of those beams hitting its target and causing an uncontrolled drop back into normal space.

Another beam of light flashed across the display. Closer than before, but wider and less focused. Good, I must be almost out of functional range.

He angled his telescope backwards as far as it would allow and saw a streaky flash that could have been a ship dropping out of FTL. He had been analysing their engines earlier to make the fake ion trail and knew their top speed was significantly less than his own.

Good riddance! That is one problem solved. He eased up slightly on the engine controls. Now he just needed to figure out a way to see what was going on inside. There has got to be a way in, something she hasn't blocked… He needed to know that Xanther was ok. Xanther! Her implants! I can swap to the backup array just like I did on that lud forsaken moon!

Xanther had managed to wriggle out of the vent and was now carefully tying up the two goons with one of her suit tethers. The closest thing they had to a rope. Something's not right, Braddon has stopped responding, I need to get to him and fast! She picked up the needler with the lessor number of dents, hoping it was one of the working ones and sped towards the lift. Once the doors were sealed she pressed the button to cycle the air, she wanted to get out of this clumsy suit, so she would have more of a chance to sneak up on their last remaining guest. Instinctively she asked, "Is the air clean?" Before thinking, you idiot, he can't hear you!

"I don't know…" came Braddon's very shaky voice.

"Braddon! Oh thank the stars, what is that bitch up to?" Xanther started to undress while they talked, trusting the readout on her suit.

"I don't know, I'm blind, she did something, the virus… all my internal sensors have been blocked. I finally managed to swap over to the backup Comms array in order to access your implant, but I can barely see or do anything!"

Shit. "Um, ok, gravity, can you mess with the gravity like you do for my tumbling? I might need a distraction."

"Um, let me check, yes that doesn't seem to be locked down."

"I have to make sure she stays on the upper level, or the gas Rus has won't reach her."

"Wait, what are you doing? Why are you taking off your suit if you want Rus to use the gas?"

Good, Braddon was sounding less panicked, having a plan of action usually helped. At least he hadn't been disconnected, yet…

"He can gas us both! Once I can open her stupid helmet that is, she seems very unlikely to open it for us, so I am going to have to help her." Xanther's suit slumped to the floor of the small elevator. She stashed Rus's knife in the back of her utility belt, picked up the needler, and pressed the open door button. Jade was standing in the passageway pointing her needler at the now open elevator.

SHIT! Xanther's pulse started to race as her eyes moved between the gun and the very angry lady holding it.

"You must be the brawn." Jade's voice was as sharp as daggers.

What do I do, what do I do? If I surrender we're all dead, I have to do something!

"Drop the weapon princess, you don't even have the safety off."

Shit. Xanther winced at her words and looked down at the gun in her own hand, which indeed, still had the safety activated. I was rushing, careless fool!

Xanther slowly placed the weapon on the ground being careful to angle her body in such a way that Jade wouldn't see the knife. Once standing again, she raised her hands as non-threateningly as possible and pushed the weapon towards Jade with her foot.

Stay calm, you just need a distraction, take her off guard, you still have the knife…

"Good." Jade didn't smile, but she came closer, pushing her weapon into Xanther's chest. "I am in charge, and your mutant friend isn't going to come and help you."

Xanther swallowed, her mouth felt dry. Mutant?! How dare she.

"You are going to tell me what you did to the engines, or we are going to have some fun."

Jade's tone implied 'fun' was likely to involve getting shot in the leg.

What I did to the engines? Oh! Braddon's backup controls must be giving her some trouble…

"Ready to reduce gravity on your signal" whispered Braddon into her implant."

Would that be enough to take her off guard? Think! What else can you do?

"So what's it gonna be?" Jade asked, sounding like her patience was wearing thin.

"Don't shoot! Vala please!" Rus's voice rang out over the suit comm.

Jade's eyes widened in recognition, "Rus?" She said with confusion as the weapon lowered slightly and she started to turn to look over her shoulder.

This was it! The moment of hesitation, it was now or never!

Xanther screamed as she charged with all her might, ramming her shoulder into Jade. She felt a wave of lightness as they flew 3m down the passageway. Then the gravity suddenly intensified and they slammed into the floor with a satisfying thud. Jade lying on her back with Xanther perched on top. The needler lay on the ground back near the lift, having been dislodged from a surprised grip. Xanther pulled the knife out of her belt and continued to scream as she stabbed repeatedly at the offending helmet that had been causing them so much trouble. Her efforts were easily deflected by the reinforced polymer. She had just managed to snag the fabric near the neck when hands grabbed her shoulders and the visor slammed into her face. Jade had finally managed to process that a pink haired lady was stabbing her and she should probably do something about it.

Shit! Ow, what do I do?

The hands slid up around Xanther's neck and she gasped for air and continued to flail with the knife.

I can't lose! Braddon is counting on me… wait, Braddon? Xanther became aware of his voice in her head, or rather her ear, how long has he been yelling at me?

"Stop trying to stab her and just open up the visor! You can reach the controls on her neck, OPEN THE DAMN VISOR!"

Xanther dropped the knife and stretched her arm out towards the controls.

Almost got it… Yes!

The visor flew open and Jade spat in her face. The room spun and Xanther's head smacked into the floor, one hand still pushing on her neck. Xanther coughed as some air found its way back into her lungs.

"You trying to mess me up bitch?!" Jade screamed as Xanther felt a fist slam into her face.

I did it, I'm done, I don't need to fight anymore, Rus will use the gas, we've won… so why is Braddon still yelling at me?

"The knife, the knife!"

The knife? The knife was on the floor in front of Xanther's face. She watched in dismay as a gloved hand wrapped around the hilt. She willed herself to move, but couldn't, hopefully a sign that the gas was starting to work. The room started to blur as she felt weightless once more.

A room slowly emerged from the fog in Xanther's head.

"Good morning sunshine." She heard Braddon's familiar voice in her implant. Weird he isn't using the speakers… wait where am I?

"Morning?" Xanther croaked, as she blinked. "I never expected sleep gas to make you quite so hazy…" she was having trouble focusing on the walls that were obviously part of the infirmary.

"It's not just sleep gas." Braddon sounded serious, but not panicked.

"What?"

"Well, you got stabbed."

Xanther lifted the thin sheet and saw the large white bandage which she instinctively poked, noticing that she couldn't feel anything in that region.

"Serious?"

"Computer says you'll live, I guess even space pirates see the sense in telling their viruses to leave the medical systems alone."

She breathed a small sigh of relief.

"Wait, are you ok?" Braddon should have been my first concern!

"Hmm, well I've definitely been better. I can't figure out what that witch did to the internal sensors! Rus has placed some contact buttons around the place to help me feel less claustrophobic. I managed to reinstate the external sensors, as I was the one that initially cut them off, so I now know with certainty our flight path doesn't take us through any suns."

"Well that is good. Is the virus giving you any trouble?"

"Jade put the virus in some sort of manual mode, it is just sitting there waiting for instructions, which thankfully it is no longer receiving. Much more manageable than before."

"So we're ok? The plan worked?"

"Yeah, I think we are out of immediate danger. After the shining arrow realised we were running away, it took a couple shots at us, but by then we were pretty far out and it thankfully missed. When they realised we were faster they broke pursuit, gone to warn their buddies I guess. We are 5 hours away from rendezvous with a fleet vessel who is going to take on our prisoners and pursue the enemy, we now have a very good idea of where their base is and they want to catch up to them before they completely clear out."

"Jasbur?"

"We can only wait and see. Unless you still think we are equipped for a rescue?" Braddon layered on the sarcasm. Xanther shook her head slowly. Her eyelids felt strangely heavy.

"Until then, I've made Rus Captain."

"You did not!"

"After you, well, got stabbed, he was having a little freak out in the vents. I needed to find a way to motivate him."

"So you made him Captain?"

"Yeah, I came up with this wonderful speech about duty and the chain of command, and how being the last conscious softie makes you Captain by default."

Xanther snorted.

"Oh let him have his fun. I won't be surprised if he makes captain one day. Bright kid, knows his way around a multi-tool. We needed to disable the door on the room where we are storing our, um, prisoners, since a software lock can not be trusted… He had it sorted before I even managed to get a servo back online. One might even believe he could manage to stow away on a brainship."

"High praise indeed." She teased. "We're not keeping him."

"Of course not! I don't need that kind of responsibility. Simeon might be looking for a new project, now Joat is all independent and what not."

"Project? Yes, I will have to agree that you not becoming a father is probably a good idea."

They chuckled. The memories of the fight bubbled through Xanther's subconscious.

"He saved us, with that cry, it was the perfect distraction."

"Oh, him you heard?"

"I heard you too, well eventually. When you think you are going to die, your surroundings just, melt away." Her hands began to tremble slightly as she remembered the feeling. "But we're ok right? And you're ok? Not about to have a panic attack?" She was actually pretty impressed at how well Braddon had been handling things in her absence.

"Well, my monitoring has been a little frenzied, and I am looking forward to the wonderful nightmares…"

"Wait, when was the last time you slept?"

There was a pause as Braddon checked his logs. "I'm definitely overdue, but nowhere near my limit. I can hold out until we meet up with the fleet vessel. No way will I be able to relax enough to sleep before then anyway."

"You sure you're going to be ok? I just wish I could help more."

"Yeah, I'll be ok. No matter what this strange universe throws at me, I always seem to survive. You will just have to get some rest on my behalf. You protected me, now it is my turn to return the favour."