'Final checks, everyone!' Ravess harshly called out to her quintet. Shortly after this, the room backstage erupted into a cacophony of stringed instruments erupting into various notes, dissonent to each other. A couple of players played a few notes before twisting the tuner pegs on their instruments ever so slightly, before playing again. After everyone piped down, every member pulled out a small container of rosin and started to apply it on their bows, topping it up for the performance. 'Are we finally ready?' Ravess asked, waiting for an answer. The four other musicians silently nodded. 'Good. Now, onto the stage! We have the Princess Peregrine in the audience tonight, so we mustn't disappoint.' Ravess insisted. She stood and watched as her bandmates all walked past her.

First was her celloist, a short, stout Terradon who swapped his lab cout and workman's goggles for the quintet's attire and round glasses, with small leather sunguards on either corner of his frame. Next was her bassist, a tall, thin man with shoulder length blond hair drooping over the left of his face. After him was the quintet's viola player, a black haired, tan skinned man with a natural smile on his face, he walked with a particular sense of pride. Ravess' eyes followed the three members as they walked past, but would be interrupted by her final band member calling her name. Ravess looked over to the bandmate.

This bandmate was a young woman in her late teens, she stood a head shorter than Ravess. Her hair was jet black, wavy, and was covered her right shoulder, and continuing down to the bottom of her ribs. She was pale skinned, with barely noticeable freckles. Ravess asked her what the issue was with a neutral, professional tone. 'I think... I think I'm ready for the duet this time' The woman replied

Ravess leaned back a little in quiet surprise, her face constant with exception to a slight raising of eyebrows. She took a moment to let the woman's words sink in. 'If you're ready, we'll do the duet' Ravess assured. Relieved, the young woman started to walk past Ravess, but was stopped by Ravess leaning over and whispering 'Remember, Leila, if you mess this up, you'll make a fool of me; and nobody makes a fool of me'

'I-I understand' Leila shakily replied, starting to walk again. Once Leila walked on stage, Ravess closed her eyes and took a deep breath. A breath interrupted by the voice of a woman with a british accent.

'You've got yourself a cushy gig, haven't you?' Hearing this, Ravess opened her eyes and looked at the source of the voice. Starling.

'Oh. It's the last of The Interceptors, little miss sneak herself' Ravess replied.

'I wouldn't be back here if I wasn't' Starling confirmed with an air of pride. She slowly closed the distance between her and Ravess. 'A little birdy told me that you plan to come back to the Atmos. Something about being re-invented as a musician?'

'Music has always been my passion' Ravess said with a smirk.

'That may be so; but there are those of us out there who remember what you've done, who will do everything in our power to keep Atmos safe and make sure you stay away. You can keep your little act up as long as you want, but we won't allow you back. Ever' Giving her warning, Starling turned and left. Ravess shuffled a little in awkwardness, struggling to keep herself together, she pulled her hands to her chest, took in a deep breath again, and exhaled. Back in the room, she turned and walked to the stage.

The quintet, one by one, walked on stage. On the stage stood three chairs in the centre. The stage overlooked a fairly small, yet regally decorated theatre, complete with flowing decorations and well atuned acoustics. The Terradon celloist, Rez, sat on the chairs first, sitting directly in the centre, letting his cello onto the floor with a satisfying thunk. After him, the bassist, Stan, stood stage right to the chairs and almost inmediately started to set up his double bass, shuffling to find the most comfortsble spot. The viola Player, Lester, sat down on the chair to the right. Finally, Leila, shortly followed by Ravess herself, both walked on stage. They both stood a few paces in front of the chairs. Ravess was on stage left, in front of the empty chair, whilst Leila was on stage right, in front of Stan.

All the men in the quintet were dressed in impeccable suits with long swallow tails on the back. The jackets and slacks were both a dark black, with crimson stitching and an otherwise red undertone. Their shirts and ties were both crimson, leaving their presence at the background of the group reminiscent of the foreboding atmosphere Ravess once carried during her time in the Cyclonian empire. Ravess had also reinvented her attire, ditching her old Cyclonian wear for a more sleek, armless dress, coloured similarly to her hair. It lacked any shine or sparkle, but the form held tightly to her slender frame, it was held in place by the straps over the shoulders, which not only connected to the main fabric piece just abover her bust, but also connected to itself around the neck, akin to a choker. The bottom of the dress was asymmetric, with her right leg covered almost half way down her shin, and her left leg stopping just above the knee.

Leila followed Ravess' colour scheme in her clothing, but wore a more modest prom style dress. The fabric was taut from her bust down to her waist, before turning into aggressive plaits that stretched to her ankles. Whilst her shoulders were covered only by straps; two pieces of fabric, about half the length of her bicep, covered the top of each of her arms.

The crowd in the theatre all clapped with polite vigour. Up in one of the balconies, Princess Perry, wearing her regular cream ball gown, watched intently, seeing how the performance would unwind. Once the quintet was ready, Ravess turned to face the crowd. 'We thank you for your generosity and your attendance. I, Ravess, and my skilled quintet, shall aim to have you enthralled' Ravess lifted her violin to her neck, and readied her bow. The action causing the rest of the quintet to ready their own instruments. 'Be prepared for some... devastatingly beautiful music' The crowd erupted into applause again for a brief second before falling silent. Eager to hear the composition.

The entire quintet swells into a fast tremolo. Quick notes in succession between a melody that wobbles up and down in pitch. It loops, breaking the higher pitch viola and violins into playing the same tremolo an octave higher. The tremolo would give way to the viola and violins climbing their musical scales whilst the cello and bass counter their melody by moving down their own scales. Seamlessly, the band played Ravess' leitmotif she made a note to have played anywhere and everywhere she went in her empire days. After the leitmotif, Ravess and Leila both started a tremolo together, slowly climbing the scale once again whilst the viola keep its current note, and both the cello and bass rose alongside the violins. Leila could feel her tremolo slowly become more shaky and out of sync compared to Ravess' masterfully timed strikes on her strings. At the climax of the rising melody, Ravess stopped playing; as Leila, Rez, and Stan all played through a rendition of the Storm Hawks' leitmotif. Rez and Stan continued their bassline as Leila started to franticly play a solo on her violin for a short moment, ending in a lower pitch drone. The solo was, to the untrained, a wonderous display of notes, but once again, Leila heard the few bungled or incorrect notes within, and she was certain Ravess did, too. Leila held the drone as Ravess, backed by Lester, starting to play again. Stan and Rez held and repested the small section they were playing as Ravess started her own frantic solo. Leila had played her section with wild, frenzied movements; which contrasted Ravess, who played proficiently and with composure. Ravess began to arpeggiate a triad of notes, starting with the root and middle notes. Without hesitation, Leila finished the triads that Ravess threw at her with no mistake or mistiming. After a number of these triads, Ravess started to climb the scale again, with Leila repeating her climb with a delay. The pair climbed until Ravess reached the top of her scale, causing both her and Leila to hold their notes. A long, sustained, tritone. Adding tension to the piece, and the crowd. The violins cut out, leaving the cello and bass to keep their own low end riffs going.

Ravess removed her bow. She looked Leila in the eyes with a stern facial expression. In a sharp motion she would point her bow under her violin, and towards the empty chair. Leila stiffened for a second before walking briskly and sitting down. Once sat down, Ravess waited until the next round to begin playing again. The crowd cheered the happenings on stage, as it happened so fast and seemingly so rehearsed, it was seen as a part of the performance.

The rest of the gig proceeded without incident. The quintet all played for a while, eventually culminating in the band finishing the performance on a dark and apprehensive song. Once the music stopped, the applause and cheering began. Even Princess Perry stood with starry eyes and clapped her hands enthusiastically at the still fresh performance. Ravess looked out to the crowd for a second before stepping beside Leila. The band, all in a row, all took to their feet holding hands, and bowed. 'Terra Klockstoppia, thank you very much, and good night!' Ravess called out before she, and the rest of the quintet, left the stage.

Backstage, Ravess left her violin in its open case as she left to go and talk to someone holding a clipboard, leaving the band alone. Leila slouched forward in sadness, and spoke to Rez. 'I can't believe I blew it. I actually got booted from the duet...' She said with acceptance over her condition.

'She didn't stop the show' Rez turned to face Leila. 'She would have had you booted from the entire band if you were that bad' Rez turned back to his cello, continuing the pack it away. 'Then again, she might just be planning how to leave you behind. She's been known to do that in the past'

'Y-you don't reckon she would, right?' Leila asked, Rez's words playing on her mind.

'What do you think happened to the guy you replaced?' Rez paused for a second, waiting for the reply to start to panic Leila. 'I'm only joking. Nah, the last guy left because he couldn't handle the pressure'

'You don't say...' Leila mumbled. She turned to look at the direction Ravess had travelled. In curiosity, she followed. Turning the corner into the corridor, Leila found Ravess talking to someone in the corridor. Judging by the discussions of payment and accomodation, Leila deduced them to be the theatre's management team. She ducked back around the corner and out of sight. Leila paused again, the thoughts in her head echoing. Suddenly, she drew a breath, welled up some confidence and turned the corner again. Almost walking into Ravess, who had finished talking and was walking back to the band. 'Oh! I, umm, uhh...'

'What is it?' Ravess asked, in a voice that was serious, but not overly aggressive.

'I...' Leila froze for a second before finally pulling herself together and clearing her throat. Ravess crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. 'Look, I'm sorry. I messed up. I thought I could handle the solo, but I don't know, the notes couldn't come cleanly, the timing just couldn't-'

'Enough.' Ravess instructed. 'Listen, kid. You were fine. You played well. You would be skilled enough for any other group to play lead' Ravess walked past Leila and spoke into her ear. 'You have talent, but you still need refinement to be at our standard' Ravess continued to walk away from Leila. Leaving her to mull over Ravess' comment. Leila's mullings would have to wait, as she was nearly trampled by one man holding a microphone, and another holding a large, analogue camera with 'Atmos Pathe' written on the side.

The man holding the microphone, Guy Skyly, had asked a few questions to Ravess by the time Leila caught up to everyone; although once she had made it to hearing distance, she heard Guy ask about performing at Terra Aquinos. Leila watched Ravess go quiet and reflective. Seizing the moment, Leila swooped in to grab the microphone. Without a chance for Ravess to confirm or deny their request, Leila took matters into her own hands. 'We are grateful for Terra Aquinos' trust in our path to a better future and we would love to perform there' Leila said, giving the microphone back. She coyly nodded at Ravess, who huffed, closed her eyes, and slowly nodded back. Leila's mind started to play on her. This was the second time she had done something Ravess may not have completely approved of within the same night. Her nerves got the better of her, and she withdrew herself from the crowd.

Outside of the theatre, on the outskirts of the terra, sat a small cruiser. The cruiser was barely large enough for a quintet, having only three sleeping rooms, a bridge, a toilet, and a kitchenette. Leila sat upon a fold up chair and gazed out to the Terra's surface. Stan and Lester had already stowed their instruments and retired to their bunks. Ravess stood at the front, and a little to the left. She stood tall, with her hands behind her back, and her feet at shoulder's width. Rez stood at the controls, gently moving the many gears and levers until the entire cruiser started to rumble. It started to lift the quintet up, and once at a comfortable height, the cruiser flew into the distance. Taking the quintet to their next destination.