Shen Jiutai secures the distinct lack of cargo in the bay after the last inspection, and goes to the cargo ramp to yell at Rae, "Cap'n you gonna go all moony over that ossifer?"
Rae Overholt: Ossifer? Who's goin' moony? I'm not Moony!
Xiao Li Marshall hits the comm. "This is your pilot speaking, we will be liftin' off in ninety seconds, I suggest y'all hang on ta somethin'..."
Rae Overholt goes to buckle in.
Shen Jiutai mutters something about 'Why don't we get that Grav boot tuned so we don't get all tossed about?"
Rae Overholt: Shouldn't need nothing "tuned" with the shape Roland left us in.
Xiao Li Marshall: Sixty seconds...
Li Mei quickly heads to the galley to buckle in
Shen Jiutai makes her way to her bunk and sits down.
Luke Hu: Heads to Galley to buckle up
Xiao Li Marshall: Thirty seconds.... Liftoff in ten... nine... eight... seven... six... five... four... three... two... one...
Shen Jiutai pulls out a magazine and flips through the latest in 'Urban Commando Wear."
Xiao Li Marshall pulls back on the throttle and the Raven takes to the air....... Thirty seconds to atmo break... Ten seconds... Five... four... three... two... one....
Shen Jiutai sighs, usually lifting off makes her hungry, but since she just had dinner... she decides to pour herself a drink instead.
Li Mei appears lost in thought.
Luke Hu leans back and closes eyes. He tries to doze as the engines begin their rumbling.
Li Mei folds her arms across her chest and scowls, grumbling something under her breath.
Rae Overholt unbuckles and goes to relax on the circle couch. Sighing, she wonders if they'll get stuck between the Tigers and the Dragons. "Hey, Lena? You heard anything about the Tigers while you were at the guild?"
Li Mei looks up at Rae, "Hmm? Oh .. um, no. I didn't hear anything about them."
Xiao Li Marshall keys in the course on the autopilot, then stands, stretches, and heads toward the galley.
Rae Overholt: Do you know them?
Li Mei shakes her head, "No, I've heard of them, but I don't know much about them." She grumbles again, "Every time I visit that damned house, it reminds me why I am out here and not living there."
Rae Overholt: Why would that be? That you're out here that is.
Li Mei frowns, "I just can't handle all the politics. Not to mention all the estrogen in one place."
Rae Overholt: Ah.
Dana Maelstrom awakens in the cramped compartment where she was unceremoniously dumped, with packing blankets over her (to hide her from the Alliance, I'm sure) and wanders upstairs, all groggy-like.
Luke Hu hears 'estrogen,' a medical term and snorts softly at the talk but then drops back to sleep, as it is just general conversation.
Dana Maelstrom: Oh, here's everybody!
Xiao Li Marshall 's head jerks up abruptly.
Li Mei: Thank you again, Captain, for detouring to Persephone for me. I hope it wasn't too much trouble?"
Rae Overholt: "Nah." She does her best not to roll her eyes, "No trouble."
Dana Maelstrom plops herself into a chair, still not quite awake.
Xiao Li Marshall: Doc? What's she doin' up here?
Dana Maelstrom: What, I'm not allowed up here?
Luke Hu:
Dana Maelstrom nods, "Yeah... at least I'm awake... Gorramit, I seem to be sleeping more and more..."
Luke Hu: Well you need to eat. Nothing complex right now. Soup will be easy on your system. Anything more and your stomach will be rumbling for hours
Shen Jiutai nods and gets up to find something for Dana.
Xiao Li Marshall edges as far away from Dana as possible
Dana Maelstrom notices Xiao Li's reaction, "What? I ain't catching... I'm just sleepy 'cause of this code in my blood..."
Xiao Li Marshall: No offense, sweetie, but I ain't about to take your word on that.
Rae Overholt: You ain't gotta sit next to her Xiao Li.
Luke Hu: Oh she is fine girls. It is just a dna code that is not getting along with her. It's no more catchable than if she cut herself with a knife.
Dana Maelstrom looks worried, and looks to Rae, "What? What did I miss? What did Dr. Miles have to say?"
Rae Overholt: Well. Guess you'll have to ask Dr. Miles yourself. Not too up on the medical jargon myself.
Xiao Li Marshall: An' I ain't too eager ta trust *her* either.
Dana Maelstrom: What? Didn't she tell you what's going on? Where are we going? She said to go to Hera, didn't she?
Rae Overholt: Yeah. Sounds about right.
Xiao Li Marshall mutters, " 'mong other things..."
Dana Maelstrom looks from the stoic Xiao Li to the terse Rae, then to the silent Shen. Finally she appeals to Li Mei, "What are they not telling me?"
Li Mei shrugs, "I'm afraid I really don't know. I was not there when they spoke to Dr. Miles."
Shen Jiutai pulls a pot of boiling water off the cook-top, and re-hydrates some Ramen noodles, to which she adds some fresh scallions, all the while avoiding eye-contact with Dana.
Dana Maelstrom glances back and forth, she looks to the Doctor, her nervousness increasing, "Will you tell me what's happening?"
Xiao Li Marshall retreats to the far corner of the room.
Rae Overholt: We got plenty of time to tell you later. I suggest you relax and eat.
Dana Maelstrom's eyes follow Xiao Li and she starts to tear up, "Why is she treating me like I have the plague?"
Luke Hu: Ok...ok now. Its all right
Li Mei: She's often surly, hun, don't take it personally
Luke Hu: "Look, you have to think of this as a bad flu bug. You are tired and your system is taking a beating." turns back to Shen, "Is the soup ready?"
Rae Overholt nods, "I have great fun being surly. It's what I do best."
Li Mei: I would think being surly all the time would make you stressed out and tense.
Luke Hu: "...and hand me a spoon for her....chopsticks might be expecting too much of the poor girl."
Dana Maelstrom sets her chop-sticks down, "Look, Captain, I know when I'm being snowed, I may only be 16, but my father is a powerful business man... I can read people."
Rae Overholt: Yeah. I've met your father. I am stressed out and tense. Keeps me alive. You folks too by the way.
Li Mei shrugs, "You make a good point, Captain."
Dana Maelstrom: Well, then you can understand why his daughter doesn't like being danced around... All right, if I have to ask Dr. Miles myself, can I please make a Wave?
Luke Hu: Soup ready yet Shen? Girl is getting restless here.
Shen Jiutai passes Luke a bowl of soup, with a spoon.
Luke Hu: "Thank you," he takes the soup and slides it in front of Dana, he hands the spoon to her.
Rae Overholt looks to Shen and Xiao Li, wondering if she should ask Dana about the Tigers.
Luke Hu: Please eat. I promise it will make you feel better with something in your stomach.
Rae Overholt hums to herself.
Li Mei looks down, lost in thought again
Xiao Li Marshall hangs back.
Luke Hu fumbles through coat pockets looking at pill bottles.
Rae Overholt: Ok, someone is going to have to teach the cat tricks. I can't handle the silence.
Luke Hu gets a glass of water
Rae Overholt pokes the kitty with her toe, "Say mama"
Luke Hu: "Sit Ubu Sit!....Good Cat!" He slides the glass of water across table to Dana.
Li Mei looks at the cat, "I bet I could teach it to play dead."
Shen Jiutai pours herself another shot of whiskey, and one for Xiao Li, to whom she hands it while she makes her way back to the table.
Xiao Li Marshall nods and murmurs "Xiexie" before taking a long drink
Rae Overholt looks at Lena, a suspicious look on her face, "What exactly do you mean by that?"
Luke Hu looks at the pill bottles again and then opens one and taps out 2 pills and hands them to Dana. "Here......this is Accetaphilzicaticobtic... It is a powerful broad-range Antibiotic. It should help your system give this bug a good fight."
Li Mei looks up at Rae, "I'm sorry, Captain. I'm just not in a great mood. I didn't mean anything by it."
Luke Hu fumbles with more pill bottles in his other coat pocket.
Rae Overholt nods, still giving her an odd look. "Sure thing. What has you all afoul today Li?"
Luke Hu hands Dana another pill bottle, "Now these....this is for the headache, fever, run down symptoms you are experiencing."
Li Mei looks back down. "Nothing important. Just remembering something."
Luke Hu: Take 3 of these a day with food... 3 of these.
Li Mei: It's my cousin's birthday.
Luke Hu: 1 tablet with each meal.
Rae Overholt: Your cousin okay?
Luke Hu: 3 TOTAL in a 24 hour period
Dana Maelstrom looks at the pills, pokes at the noodles with her chop-sticks, and doesn't eat, or take the pills.
Luke Hu smiles and looks at her.
Li Mei sighs, her eyes moisten a little, "No ... he ... died. A couple of years ago."
Luke Hu: Hey... C'mon now. I need you to do this for me. I promise it will make you feel a little better IF not a lot better.
Rae Overholt's face changes, showing her sympathy, "Rough luck that. Sorry to hear it. You were close then?"
Luke Hu pushes glass of water to her.
Dana Maelstrom murmurs, "Oh," and slips a noodle into her mouth, slurping it down.
Luke Hu: Good girl. You'll be hopping around the ship in no time
Li Mei composes herself, and nods, "Yes. Very close. We were the same age."
Rae Overholt: You grew up together then? You have any other family?
Dana Maelstrom slams her chop-sticks down hard and stands up, "Look, I don't appreciate the condescending tone, I'm perfectly fine, and I demand to know what Doctor Miles told you CAPTAIN!!!"
Li Mei nods, "Oh yes. My parents are still living. They're on Sihnon still."
Rae Overholt completely ignores Dana, focusing instead on Li, "No siblings?"
Luke Hu: Listen....I am not being condescending to you. I am only trying to help you and be your friend. Fact is, you have a very nasty bug in you.
Li Mei shakes her head, "I was an only child. My cousin lived with us. I never knew what happened to his parents. I never knew them."
Luke Hu: I am trying to do my best to help you. It is not helping your condition to get this worked up and excited. Now then...
Dana Maelstrom pushes her way past Luke, "If you won't tell me what she said, I'll get it from her myself, unless you expect to hold me incommunicado for the entire journey."
Luke Hu sighs and shakes head.
Li Mei: I entered the Guild and went away to the training house on Persephone when I was 13, but my cousin and I stayed in touch."
Rae Overholt takes a moment to look up at Dana, "Little girl, I'm not letting you wave anyone till I know Tigers wont be on our tail for it."
Dana Maelstrom goes white, "The Tigers?"
Luke Hu pulls out hypo.
Rae Overholt turns back to Dana, "Yeah? So, was it an accident or?"
Luke Hu walks up behind Dana.
Dana Maelstrom: "How... where.... they really are after me?"
Rae Overholt: No an entire crew just died for the diyu of it. They stuck your pigu in a emergency pod and you owe them respect for it. With knowing your papa like I do, I'll be damned if my people will die for you.
Li Mei doesn't answer for a minute, then shakes her head, "No. No, it wasn't an accident."
Dana Maelstrom is shaken, she wobbles on her feet, but seeing the doctor so close, she suppresses any sign of it, instead she sits down and focuses on her boots, "Ta ma dae..."
Luke Hu drops hypo back into coat pocket. He picks up pills and glass of water.
Dana Maelstrom: "Look Captain... I really did... what I mean is... I guess they really were after me...after all... and that nice Captain Able..." She breaks down into sobs.
Rae Overholt: Yeah, that nice captain Able. Your decisions have weight to them girl, you learn that now before you make any more mistakes that cost like that.
Luke Hu hands the glass of water to Dana. "Will you take these now please?" He stretches out his hand with the pills. He holds out a handkerchief for her too.
Dana Maelstrom takes the glass, "I didn't want a life with these kind of pressures... I just... I..."
Luke Hu nods
Rae Overholt: Then you get an education and do something other than your father is doin'.
Dana Maelstrom: "That won't bring them back, that won't stop them from trying to hurt me, and I guess that means you too..."
Rae Overholt: Then I suggest you duck and cover and let us deal with this.
Dana Maelstrom: "Some-how they found out what I was doing, and where to find me, You really did hear it was the Tigers after me? Can you trust your source?
Rae Overholt: Yeah, its reliable.
Dana Maelstrom plays with the pills in her hand as she sips the water, "Does anybody know where we're goin'?"
Rae Overholt: We're going to Hera.
Xiao Li Marshall finally speaks up. "It'll be 'bout a week 'fore we get there."
Dana Maelstrom: yeah, :we: know that, but did you, or your crew tell anybody that?
Rae Overholt: Not that I know of.
Shen Jiutai shakes her head, "Come-on girl, we know better than to talk about our passengers, or manifest," She glances at Xiao Li.
Li Mei shakes her head, "I didn't tell anyone."
Rae Overholt looks to Xiao Li and wonders what was on the manifest the supervisor looked at. "Then I guess you're safe girl. Long as you don't make any waves."
Dana Maelstrom clears her eyes, and wipes her nose on her sleeve, "I'm more worried about all of you, it would only be fitting if I died, after Ophelia..."
Luke Hu shakes handkerchief that has been dangling in front of her for past 10 minutes
Dana Maelstrom places the glass of water and the pills on the table, "Now, are you going to tell me what Dr. Miles said?"
Rae Overholt: Well fine then. Rumor has it you don't have superhuman genes you got a superhuman virus geared to your own papa and family. Something that could rid us of the Dragons once and for all. Thing is, if thats true, why would the Tigers want you dead?
Xiao Li Marshall: They're rival gangsters, you think they need a reason other'n that?
Rae Overholt: Why kill her when she could take out all their enemies with no casualties on their part?
Luke Hu: Probably to harvest it from her blood stream and then get rid of her body so they have the only copy of it... but thats just speculation on my part.
Dana Maelstrom stares at Rae in stunned silence, "It will...?"
Li Mei: Is it possible that any of the Tigers have some genes in common with her family?
Rae Overholt: Yeah, next time someone doesn't want to tell you something, don't keep pushing. And yeah, that would make sense Dr. Hu. Still. If it gets rid of all of them why would they need it.
Luke Hu: Maybe they don't want to get rid of them... Have something to hold over your enemy to do your bidding....or die.
Xiao Li Marshall: I still don't trust this thing to stick to one bloodline.
Luke Hu: They either double their numbers or get rid of worse enemy...win-win for them.
Rae Overholt nods at Dr. Hu.
Dana Maelstrom stares at the floor, "But Dr Miles... Sarah would never be involved in something so... sick!."
Rae Overholt: How do you know?
Xiao Li Marshall: Yeah, how well d'you *really* know this woman?
Dana Maelstrom: You haven't met her... she really wants to help people...
Rae Overholt: Well. She wont be the first turns out to be shady.
Dana Maelstrom looks ashamed, "Well, I guess I don't..."
Li Mei sighs, "Yeah. Sure she does. She works for Blue Sun, right?"
Dana Maelstrom: "But she did tell me to contact her... she slipped me that Cortex Addy, all on-the-sly, like... Like she was afraid of someone inside the academy watchin' us..."
Rae Overholt nods, "Well, she's only one we got unless our doc here comes up with somethin."
Dana Maelstrom: I spent over an hour a day with her, for the better part of three weeks, Gosh, I sure hope it wasn't an act...
Li Mei: I thought you said you were good at reading people?
Xiao Li Marshall snorts and rolls her eyes, but says nothing.
Luke Hu: Only thing I can do is keep her going and hope her system eventually adapts and beats this virus. I would need a full lab to really make a crack on it before then. THAT IS...
Dana Maelstrom: Well, yeah... she seemed like a real person to me... I mean I felt like we bonded.
Luke Hu: "IF SHE TAKES HER PILLS!!!!" Luke Hu picks up glass and pills and hands them to her. "Please take these. The sooner the better."
Dana Maelstrom takes the pills in her hand, "Now what, exactly were these again?" Shen has had too many people tell her not to trust strangers lately to be all accepting-like.
Luke Hu: This is Accetaphilzicaticobtic. It is a powerful broad-range Antibiotic.
Dana Maelstrom: Antibiotic? That works on Viruses?
Luke Hu: Sure....why not
Dana Maelstrom: By the way, Captain, am I catching?
Rae Overholt: Not that we know of yet. got a couple weeks or so.
Li Mei raises an eyebrow and looks at the doctor, "Where did you go to medical school, again?"
Luke Hu: Londinium
Li Mei: Not at the top of your class, I take it.
Luke Hu: Now now......I don't comment on your job abilities now do I?
Dana Maelstrom makes a face as she places the pills near her nose, "I guess you were right about eating... these won't sit well on an empty stomach..." She returns to the table and starts eating the soup.
Li Mei: You haven't experienced my abilities, doctor.
Rae Overholt sighs, listening to all the talking and wondering where Gabe ran off to this time.
Xiao Li Marshall also wonders why the hell Kevin's never around when we have Blue Sun issues to deal with.
Luke Hu: Well you haven't experienced my treatment now have you?
Li Mei: No... but I did just witness it.
Luke Hu: Let me treat the patients and you service the...well....whoever you service.
Li Mei glares at the doctor
Dana Maelstrom considers a lump of Sea-Tofu and slurps it down, "Ya know, perhaps the Tigers found out what I knew when I was in New Baltimore..."
Xiao Li Marshall perks up at the mention of her old hometown.
Rae Overholt: And what did you do there?
Dana Maelstrom: "I mean, if they heard me explaining things to Asa, or the wave to my dad, perhaps they think I really am carrying a superhuman gene sequence... when did these guys get so good at sig-int?' She starts to look worried, "Cap'n? Have you been given anything that might have a tracker in it?"
Rae Overholt: We didn't pick up anything but Li on Persephony, and no gifts on my end.
Xiao Li Marshall glances toward Rae. "Cap'n? Remember the *last* time we were on Paquin?"
Dana Maelstrom looks to Xiao Li, "What happened?"
Rae Overholt: Got slipped something, but this time nothing like that. Same guy was hanging back though. Course we didn't know about Hera then.
Dana Maelstrom: Same guy? as what?
Xiao Li Marshall: Slaver tried t' slip a tracker in the Cap'n's pocket. We junked it.
Dana Maelstrom: Really? What did he overhear?
Rae Overholt: Just our business deals. Couldn't have known where we'd end up taking you.
Shen: Well, that was the deal to pick you up... Let's see, he gave us the coordinates for the rendezvous, and he said we were to take you to Newhall...
Rae Overholt: He didn't say who "you" were.
Dana Maelstrom: "So that's how they knew where we were going to be..." she thinks hard, "Did he mention Captain Able?"
Shen Jiutai nods, I think so...
Dana Maelstrom: "That was supposed to be a hush-hush arrangement... and there's the other Captain just giving out the info to the first bunch of... well I'm glad it was you he hired anyway..." She relaxes a bit, places her empty bowl down with a small quiet burp, and pops the pills into her mouth, quickly washing them down.
Rae Overholt: Well, let's hope we settle this thing on Hera.
Dana Maelstrom nods. "Now, about my bunk? do I really have to sleep under all of those packing blankets?"
Shen Jiutai snickers.
Rae Overholt shrugs, "Long as you don't take mine I guess and don't screech when we shove you in a vent if we gotta hide you."
Shen: Want I should set her up in the Passenger Dorm, Cap'n?
Dana Maelstrom ignores Rae, "That'd be nice... what was your name again?"
Rae Overholt smirks.
Shen Jiutai grins, "Shen... just Shen."
Dana Maelstrom: Oh, OK...
Shen Jiutai stands, placing her empty glass on the counter, she gestures aft, "C'mon, this way, I'll get you a fresh set of linens."
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