The Strange man didn't lie. It took less than a full day for the first of the strange mans promises to come true. A warrior she hadn't seen before stepped into her prison, his face and stance giving away that his intentions were less violent than most of her visitors. Throughout her time on the ship she had come to expect the beatings that seemed to arrive every few hours, and she could recognize the look and the feeling those who had such plans tended to give off.

Like the stranger He looked like a Saiyan in some small way. Two arms, two legs, a face she could imagine on one of her kind. Unlike him it wasn't so close a resemblance that it bothered her. His skin was a light shade of red, and his hair was a mid length sprawl of pure white. There was no doubt, no question he wasn't related to her species. With "Dennis" it was different. The only reason she couldn't imagine him as a Saiyan was the way he held himself, and the cowardice of his plan. He was like a caricature of a Saiyan so weak any mother in her right mind would smother him at birth.

The red one carried himself with an air of desperation, and disgust, but not unbecoming of a warrior. His scouter beeped and his frown grew. "Sixty-five?" He shook his head in disappointment. Not that she blamed him.

"You the Saiyan?" His tone was pleading, as if he expected her to answer with anything but an affirmative.

"Yeah."

The warrior grimaced, looking her over again.

"One of my warriors was wounded around thirteen hours ago. When he got out of the healing pod he claimed you were the one to injure him. Is that true?"

Oh how she wished it was. To have the power to rip that lizards spine from his back. Instead the best she had managed was a cheapshot that would have barely slowed anyone down. His fellows might have made a joke out of it, but it was clear to all of them how a real fight would turn out between them. It was the not-Saiyans promise that made her swallow her denial, and her pride. Even then it was close. She hesitated a moment, opening her mouth and closing it again. A thousand thoughts whirled in her mind. What if the man was lying? What if she was giving up on the last shred of her pride for nothing?

But what if he wasn't? What if all it took to make such a claim without deceit was this one moment of cowardice? An instant where she admitted, to herself at least, that she needed to do things differently than any of her people would allow of themselves.

She nodded, already hating herself for it. "He came into my cell, and after I gave him a good beating I burned him. Is this all or do you have something important to say?"

He looked her over once more, and for a moment she was certain he would ask her to prove it. He didn't.

He coughed ."Straight to the point then. Respectable if nothing else."

"Either you're more than you seem, or Dirge is less of a warrior than I thought. Either way it doesn't matter, I need as many hands as I can, and you just proved that maybe the rumors about the Saiyan race aren't so ridiculous after all." The words seemed to escape the man's mouth with difficulty, as if he couldn't believe them. "You're a warrior now. Survive the next mission and I'll make sure you receive all the benefits of any member of my crew. Until then, come with me. There should be some armor in your size."

The captain led her from her room, and for better or worse into the life of a warrior,

Even when she didn't deserve it...

I repressed a grin as I washed a few plates and a few kitchen utensils. Listening in on several aliens as they loudly conversed amongst each other at one of the tables just outside. I was already in a good mood because the crew had been taking meals from the locals, but what I was hearing made it all the better.

"Heard Dirge was nearly killed last night. Tried to pick a fight with that Saiyan girl and got a bit more than he bargained for." The alien that spoke had a body covered in fur, but the head of a bird. "Captain was so impressed he made her a warrior. You believe that?"

"It makes some sense I suppose. The girls not like the other conscripts, we've all heard about the things her species can do. Remember a few months ago? When we heard on of theirs managed to take out an eight-thousand battle threat? Alot of people said the warriors official power was little over one thousand. Downright unnatural."

They both looked uncomfortable with the idea. Not everyone knew exactly what it was that made saiyans so dangerous, only that they were. There were rumors of course, but even the kind of barbarians common on these ships knew not to trust word of mouth so completely. Now that it seemed like one of those rumors was coming true, people were getting nervous. They had, after all, spent the last few days reinforcing the fact that the Saiyan wouldn't exactly be their friend.

By the time I was finished with my early training, and waiting for requests to come my way in the kitchens, my rumor about the ships newest warrior had already spread. In a situation as bad as the one we were in, people were eager to talk about the "Saiyan". It was going well all things considered, Fewer questions than I would have thought about the whole situation, and Dirge had remembered to keep his word. Not that it would save him.

It was... Nice to do something other than react. I can admit with some strange amount of pride that I can play the slave cook well, but it felt like I was watching the universe move on without me sometimes. My progress, and my experience on the weaker side of things may have earned me the patience to spend so much of my time hiding...waiting...planning-

I shook my head, ignoring the memory of cold pipes, and dark, damp tunnels.

-but that doesn't mean I enjoy it. I like to think of myself as a man of patience, but only because of the results said patience can bring. Results I might not have to wait for any longer. My senses followed the girl as she walked about the ship, likely following Jernus as he put her into the ships systems as a crew member, and hopefully at least, provided her with some equipment.

It didn't take too long, but the feelings she was giving off didn't bode well. I didn't need her little head to be filled with doubt, presumably about me. She was conflicted about something and I don't doubt that might mean a fight. A look into Jernus' energy told me she didn't tell him anything he shouldn't know. His only feeling was fear and light apprehension directed at Apara. He wasn't sure if his latest ploy was going to work, and if the girl proved herself weak he would come off as more desperate than he already was.

I stacked the last of my dishes from the night before in a nice, clean pile, before I moved them into their proper places in the sleek metal cupboards just above the sink. As I finished up my cleaning I paused for a moment, sensing as she broke off from the captain, her power making a beeline in my direction. I kept my eye from twitching at her approach.

Hadn't I told her to wait? What could possibly be so important to- My jaw clenched. Of course she was coming here. I had given her more than enough reason already.

I grumbled, before shaking my head, and turned to one of the ovens. I flicked on several switches, setting the temperature to a relatively low number. Large cuts of meat tend to turn out better that way. It'd take a while but it would make a good first impression. In the meantime I opened a refrigerator unit, pulling out every spare slice of cut meat I had prepared for myself and any sudden requests. Most of the command staff gave me time to prepare meals for them, but occasionally they failed to warn me.

It was a shame to effectively throw away the majority of my emergency stock, but a good first impression is always important. I had every intention of turning the girl into the kind of powerhouse I couldn't be, and that meant establishing a need for my continued survival aside from what I could teach. It would kill the point of training her in the first place if she ended up being the reason I die.

Sandwiches weren't exactly gourmet cooking, but they might have saved my life once or twice. I threw some butter and oil on a pan, setting it on a stovetop and grabbing some cheese and a relatively safe looking loaf of green bread. Drawing on some of my energy I sped over to a cupboard, pulling out a large dinner platter. Most of the time it went unused, but I doubted plates would due for today.

I threw the lunch meat unto the butter pan, most of the sliced meat I had on hand was something relatively porcine, and from experience with it I knew frying worked fine. I didn't bother with my limited amount of plant-based foods, things like lettuce, fruit, or vegetables. Most of the crew was carnivorous, and there was only one among the command staff still alive who exclusively ate such things. It was surprising how common it was to have members of herbivorous races on a crew of warriors commiting genocide for profit, but I was no one to judge.

At least I didn't have to expect them to bring me some poor local to cook.

I didn't notice the girl arrive at first, my focus being on preparing something quickly, I only looked away from my work when the door to my kitchen slammed shut. There was something wrong with just how feral someone who by all rights looked like a little girl could seem. Away from the presence of food and resigned for death had left Apara more amiable when I first visited her.

Now there was a spark of hunger in her eyes, the kind you might see on a wild, starved animal. Her teeth were bared in my direction in a way that did bode well for me. Combined with the uniform that had become a symbol of caution and fear in my life it made her a surprisingly intimidating sight. I sighed, before my eyes sharpened, and took on an orange glow, a kind of burning gaze that could catch anyones attention. It was an intimidation tactic for me. The kind of pageantry you would see from a lions roar or a gorilla thumping it's chest.

"Yes, its for you." I growled. "Sit down."

She chaffed at the order in my tone, before her nostrils flared. She found a place on a stool at a nearby counter a second later.

"How long until-" I slammed a platter down in front of her, a tower of sandwiches stacked neatly on it. They were all on toasted bread, with melted cheese and fried "pork". I threw on a bit of hot sauce as well. All in all a simple enough meal to make, if one that no health professional would ever recommend.

She froze at the sight of it, her face twisting into an expression of awe I couldn't help but find adorable. That's the first time her expression hadn't been filled with murder, or greed.

"You may eat."

Damn that took a while. I had some course work to handle these past few weeks, and I'm sorry to say that I'm not sure its not done slowing my schedule yet. Enjoy.