Episode 1: Borrowed, with no intention of returning

[Axe]

Roughly one hour after takeoff

They had done it. Melody and her crew of misfits had managed something truly unprecedented in this day and age. They had stolen a state of the art Alliance war ship with stealth capabilities.

Got away clean too. Air traffic control on Three Hills only managed to keep sight of them for about 20 minutes after they broke atmo, after that they were ghosts.

That didn't mean they were home free. Far from it.

While the Cornwolf was well stocked with provisions and her weapons were fully loaded, she was critically low on water. The logs indicated that just before landing the XO had ordered that the entire contents of the filtration system be vented out of fear of further contamination. This would have been fine if the XO hadn't also ordered a full flush of the system, draining nearly the entirety of the backup tanks. What remained would only last the ships new occupants a few days, maybe a week if they were careful.

However there was an even bigger issue. The leader of their merry band, Isa, had missed the rendezvous. During the taking of the ship she had managed to send a coded message that more or less amounted to "I'm humped. Go on without me". That, combined with the arrest warrant Joakim had discovered, made it clear that they would need to reevaluate their command structure.

There was also the question of what to do now.

Isa had had a contact who was, for a modest fee, going to provide them with information on ships that would have valuable cargo. With Isa in the wind they could try to get in touch with her contact, a man named Tony, and attempt to negotiate a new deal between him and whoever was crowned Captain. Or they could simply head for the nearest shipping lanes and start hunting.

These were not their only options of course. They had a sneaky ship with both legs and teeth. If they played things smart, the Verse could be their oyster.


The crew began to gather in the lounge.

[Melody]

Alone, finally, Melody stood in the cockpit staring out at the stars, her arms crossed firmly over her chest, and her shoulders tense as iron. Brows were perpetually furrowed, lips pulled down into a scowl. That was much messier than she’d hoped it would be, but at the same time it had all gone much smoother than she’d imagined. They had been trying to steal an Alliance ship, and any outcomes other than death or imprisonment, she’d consider a wild success.

Still, Isa had been left behind. Mel tilted her head back and closed her eyes, forcing herself to draw in one slow breath after another. They’d had to leave her, she’d ordered them to. Staying to wait for her or going after her would have gotten the entire team locked away or killed. Her hands rose to rest over her face, rubbing harshly at her skin before sliding her fingers into her hair along her scalp. Yes, they’d gotten away with the ship. But now they had a strange Alliance medic on board as well as an accidental terrorist, and the man she’d brought on board to be their Alliance Intel Specialist was completely forgetting protocol and his knowledge of the bastards in purple and had suggested they just bring the strangers into the fold. “Likely to kill us in our sleep,” she muttered to herself, mostly talking about the Alliance doctor but maybe also including the Mess Man in her worries.

Grumbling to herself, the pilot turned and started stomping grumpily down the stairs on her way to the lounge, her hands shoved deep into her pockets and a grim frown contorting her potentially pleasant features. She’d asked the crew to get checked out by the potential murderous medic and insisted that Izak have the strange man clean up the galley. She’d also given Jo the task of routing the med bay’s cameras to her control panel at the helm, which he’d done so brilliantly. She supposed they’d have to discuss where he was going to go next…

Rolling her eyes at nothing in particular, the ex-Alliance ace leaned her butt up against the edge of the table and stared hard at the entryways, waiting for the crew to meander in.

[Joakim Soong]

Re-routing the cameras in the med bay had been a piece of cake -- below Jo's skill level, really, since it had just been a matter of re-entering a few parameters, no actual hacking required. He had kept to himself while he worked and avoided conversation with the doctor. He'd be damned if he let her get a morsel of additional information about him; ot was bad enough that Izak had addressed him by his first name in front of her. He was supposed to be the outside contractor who showed up for the heist, did his job and disappeared into the night without a trace, and that was still his plan. Maybe he should come up with a cool hacker pseudonym to go by in the future...

He didn't know why he was even worrying about the name thing. What was the doctor going to tell the feds anyway? "Sure, Officer, I'll give you a witness' statement: they had some guy named Joe with them. He was about average height and had brown eyes..."

"Hey," Jo greeted Melody as he entered the lounge. For a while before takeoff she had looked almost happy, but now her demeanor had returned to its sulky default setting. He had a feeling it had something to do with whatever Isa Romero's coded message had told her. He hesitated, unsure where to place himself, then seated himself a few chairs away from where Melody was resting her behind on the edge of the table.

"Your face suggests you're upset," he said. "So I'm guessing the Captain's message didn't contain coordinates to a safe rendezvous spot where she wants us to pick her up."

He paused, wondering if he was being too quippy given the circumstances. Melody and Isa had seemed close, and he had a feeling her ire at the sudden turn of events wasn't just because it was going to complicate her pirating plans.

"You okay?" he asked.

[Rashy Pete]

After Melody dismissed her crew from the bridge in order to consolidate her last few remaining strands of sanity, Olo followed the group down to the infirmary to be inspected by the doctor lady. Missy, he remembered someone calling her that even though to him it sounded like some floppy-eared dog's name. Though apparently Missy's orders only referred to inspecting Melody's crew, Olo unabashedly revealed a rather unsightly rash in his underarms and inner thighs. He began to explain, but she cut him off rather promptly and granted him a tube of ointment. The rash's origin remained a mystery to Olo, though the cat probably played some small role.

After leaving the infirmary, Olo made his way to the galley and tried his best to clean his mess without making a new one - tried, and failed. After an hour or two of continuous scrubbing, mopping, and knocking something else over, Olo admired his handiwork, sighed in relief, and noticed Rasputin sitting on the counter next to an eerily convenient jar of butter pickles. "Mew." "No." "Purrrowl!" "Please."

Rasputin looped around the bulk size jar as if curling up to an unsuspecting mark, looked back at Olo, and then slunk away as if rapidly losing interest. Olo breathed a sigh of relief and went to make his way out of the galley. "Good kitty." *CRASH!* Hanging his head in defeat, Olo turned back to find pickles, brine, and glass spread across the floor. For his part, Rasputin seemed to disappear completely. After cleaning the mess a second time, Olo finally made his way toward the lobby. Hoping only for isolation and an opportunity to relax once he got there, the maligned mechanic took one look at Melody's expression as she leaned against the table facing one of her crew and abruptly turned to leave, walking right into someone he failed to notice trying to enter behind him and knocking heads with them.

[Missy Etheridge]

After methodically granting every crew member but Holger a clean bill of health -- and, thankfully, after The Screaming Idiot had taken his tube of ointment, put his pants back on, and departed for cleaning duty -- Missy turned her attention to babysitting the ginger giant and quietly strategizing.

The first thing she did as soon as she had a spare moment with his eyes closed was sign in to check the onboard water supply records, but -- jao gao. Already depleted from the system flush. Best case scenario, the ship would still have been full of tainted water and all she'd have to do was wait out the pirates while they all got sick one by one. Second best case, drained and restocked with clean water and ready to go. But, apparently, their takeoff had come after the drain but before the refill had made much headway, making for the worst of both worlds. She wondered how long it would take their new leader to notice, if she hadn't already.

Missy checked in on Holger and made sure he was still mostly behaving himself, then bustled around the Med Bay, tidying and reorganizing at random. Then, as if it were a perfectly natural part of her everyday chores, she calmly emptied a few jars of cotton swabs and began filling them from the little medical sink and stowing them in a cabinet, behind some old pouches of cough medicine that were about to expire. The sink wasn't designed for much more than rinsing and it took a while to fill even just a few of the little jars, but it was something, Missy told herself, eyeing the clock as the rendezvous time approached. Maybe enough to tip the balance, maybe not, but at least it was something.

When she closed off one jar and decided there wasn't enough time to risk starting another, she put her smile back on and went to go rouse Holger from his cot. "Time to go say hi to your friends again," she said, and added teasingly, "How are your chickens doing?"

[Izak Archer]

Zak did not let this slip often, but he liked cats. Except for when they made a mess – like breaking a jar of pickle in a kitchen.

In truth, he felt bad for the mechanic stowaway. He had never seen a man so terrified. Well, when you factor in the loose cannon Browncoat, foul-mouthed pilot, and him being a smart ass, no one could blame him. By far the simplest part of his, or anyone's day was the medical exam. Things progressed smoothly.

Ah the doctor. Certainly dedicated to her job, his gut instinct was to hire her. He did not trust her completely...yet. But if she wanted them all dead, they would not have made it off the planet. She was guilty of something. She was not what she seemed to be. He had zero doubt in his mind that she had some sort of 'Plan B' for getting out of their sight.

So maybe I jumped the gun, not the first time,he thought. But if she wants me here for my knowledge, there's a gut instinct that comes along with it. It may get his ass kicked. Scratch that – he was almost certain it would. But that was neither here nor there. He already made the offer, and pissed Melody off, but she had two options.

Hire them, or kill them. Regardless, it was not his problem, or choice.

As the moron finished with the last couple of pieces of glass, he left his position from watching across the hall and walked towards the lounge as they collided.

He shook his head. "Just go in and take a seat," he caught Melody's gaze as he walked in. He skipped taking a seat and just leaned up against the wall next to the doorway. "Forgive me if I sound trite," he began, " "but I'm assuming that my outburst earlier is the least of our problems. Did the crew flush the tanks as per procedure for waterborne contaminants?"

[Holger Heyerdahl]

Laying down made the spinning subside, so that is what Holger was doing. He had a small black mask with an elastic band attached covering both eyes, and a cold compress on his forehead. He moaned a bit as he drifted in and out of consciousness, though his dreams were more of a wash of colors and lights than actual projections of his psyche. A voice roused him from this state, and Holger removed the sleep mask to be blinded by the harsh overhead lights of the Cornwolf's Med Bay, or Doctor Room as he had so eloquently proclaimed it not too long previous.

The source of the voice, Dr. Etheridge, looked down on Holger with practiced concern and good humor. She was beside his bedside, and her manners were impeccable. "In the chickens do not in space black. This is a stupid thing." For a doctor, this one sure was strange. What did she mean about chickens? That was ridiculous. With a heave and a ho Holger propelled himself to his feet and swayed precariously as he waited for the dizziness to subside. "Friends go to where am I." He said it with such confidence, that one might have almost thought he was fine. But clearly, he was not.

The room slowed down to a gentle wobble and, finally, Holger felt as if he was ready to take a step. He did, and it went well. He tried it again, with similar results. "And then another. And then another." It wasn't clear if he knew he was speaking out loud, but that coupled with staring down at his feet as he walked, it seemed as though it was at least working. "Chicken doctor walking clear to me." Holger said at last, holding out an arm for guidance from Missy. "Friends go to where am I." Who could argue with that?

[Melody]

Vivid blue eyes landed upon Jo like a beam of focused and hostile light, only seeming to dim in their intensity when he’d greeted the pilot. Another forced exhale to lower her shoulders, and Mel nodded her head in greeting, remembering her manners. Her head turned to track his journey from the doorway to his chair and she nodded her chin downward just slightly, “I always look like this,“ she muttered in what might have been some grumpy attempt at humor. Turning her face back toward the door, Melody nodded curtly in response to his question about her current mental or emotional state, then shrugged one shoulder. She wasn’t really sure, but she didn’t have time to think about if she was okay or not.

Her hand rose to pinch the bridge of her nose as the Mess entered, jerked to a halt, and turned to abruptly crash into Izak as he came in behind him. Not one second. He hadn’t lasted one second in this room before he’d managed to cause an accident. Low grumbling accompanied by a couple low and almost unintelligible curse words slipped past her lips, catching in her palm before she lowered her hand from her face and crossed her arms over her chest once more, glaring at the two of them. Her jaw clenched and teeth ground as she listened to Izak’s guess on the situation and she once more forced herself to take a slow breath in, and then out, trying to keep herself from lunging across the space and throttling every single one of them. It wasn’t their fault she was upset. Well, it wasn’t entirely their fault, she thought, shooting Izak a venomously annoyed glower. “Yes. They did,” she answered, her tone clipped.

When Holger and the doctor finally entered, her shoulders dipped a couple of inches and her hands rose to once more rub at her face in frustration, trying to shake off her annoyance. “Okay,” she began, her voice muffled before she slid her hands up into her hair, and then lowered them to her sides, resting them against the edge of the table. “I’ll start with the good news,“ she decided, moving one hand into her pocket and leaning most of her weight on one foot, “Ship’s pretty stocked up. Guns are loaded. And we seem to have gotten away,” she told them, nodding a little. “Maybe I should have started with the bad news…well too late now. Bad news: We have about a week of water left if we ration well enough.” Another rub of her forehead with a hand, “And, Isa isn’t coming. The Feds are on her trail and she’s ordered we go without her. Which is…well it’s tian fan di fu…but I don’t disagree with her. We keep going or we’re pinched along with her.”

Melody held up two fingers, looking around the room and eyeing Jo before adding a third. “No matter what, we need to land somewhere and get our tanks refilled. There’s a station not too far out, and a couple planets. I think we can make it if I push the ship a bit, she can take it. After that, we have some options…” Her lower lip was trapped between her teeth as she eyed them each in turn, “Isa had a contact we were going to do business with, we could try to meet him and see if he’ll deal with us without her, “ she lowered a finger, “We could give up on that and use our own knowledge and the documents Isa gave me to pick up Alliance ships in the lanes…” another finger down, the last one pointing at Jo, “Or we could listen in on the chatter and find a target that way, but…that’ll require a tech specialist. On board. Long term…” she told him, offering something without outright saying anything.

Finally, she turned her attention to the strange man, pointing at him and frowning. “Now, for you...” Her gaze flicked toward Izak for a brief second and she rolled her eyes. “What is your name and what can you do? Why shouldn’t I kill you? How can you be of help to us?” She asked. For all any of them knew, all he could do was break things. His occupation was a vast and confusing mystery.

[Missy Etheridge]

"Mmhmm. Yep. That's right. And another. Good." Missy guided Holger patiently -- well, with the pretense of patience, anyway -- to the lounge. They were, it seemed, the last ones to arrive, appearing in the door just in time to collide with the screaming one, who now inexplicably smelled of pickles. Missy wrinkled her nose as she brushed past him, arm threaded with Holger's to keep him from falling down or wandering off -- for all the good that might do -- and found a place where she could listen attentively to Melody's updates.

The pirate leader was certainly being a lot less reticent with information now, although Missy couldn't decide if that was a good thing or not. Presumably, it meant that either she'd decided to take the Skinny Bastard's advice and treat her like crew, or that she'd decided to go ahead and kill her after all, so that nothing Missy heard could matter. Either way, she apparently had discovered the water shortage, which was disappointing but unsurprising.

Missy chewed on the inside of her cheek as Melody listed off their options, debating whether to weigh in. She didn't exactly want to draw attention to herself just now, but on the other hand...

"Umm, hi! she said, half-raising a hand and offering up an apologetic smile. "Question! Sorry to interrupt. But... This Isa person... Did her contact know her, like, in person? Not that I know a whole lot about how this stuff works or anything, but if he didn't, then... does he have to know that she's not with you? With us, that is. Just a thought!"

[Rashy Pete]

Olo shrieked and jumped as if seeing a ghost as he bumped into the man behind him, despite surely knowing how closely he followed. "Just go in and take a seat," the gunner instructed and motioned toward the room. After mumbling his incoherent protest, Olo looked at the chair like a man who completely forgot everything he ever knew about sitting. After much internal deliberation regarding the proper muscles to flex and relax, the maintenance attendant fell into the chair side straddling and looked up at his escort for approval.

As Olo alternated between watching the scowling woman's lips work and the way the light above her caught in the loose strand of blonde hair dangling just out of her field of vision, all the while trying desperately to avoid eye contact. He squirmed in the chair until he straightened his bottom into a more comfortable position and placed his hands on the table as if he expected to be patted down at any time. Melody began to explain the situation. Apparently the Alliance crew dumped the ship's water supply due to contamination. Olo looked down at the claw marks on his outstretched hands and recalled the attempt at a soothing bath he tried to have with Rasputin the tall, vertical tub before they fell asleep in the engine pit just a few days ago. He remembered seeing the word "reserve" on the side of the tub, but wasn't sure where he should make a reservation or with whom. 'Or did it mean that someone already reserved the tub, but changed their mind before they finished adding the D and - oh.' Olo quickly withdrew his hands from the top of the table, but as the doctor escorted the fire bear back into the room he thought better of it and put them back.

Melody explained the situation to her crew and laid out a few options. Olo wondered what station she referred to and decided it didn't matter as long as he lived long enough to get dropped off there. He was also pretty okay with this Isa person not joining them. If she was mean enough to boss the rest of these brigands around Olo didn't need to meet her. Melody asked the group what they thought and it must not have been much because nobody said anything for a long time. A really, really, long time. Olo looked around, wondering if everyone waited for his response for some reason. Opening his mouth to offer a suggestion, he made a noise not entirely dissimilar to Rasputin hocking up a hairball and then covered his mouth with both hands. Melody's eyes leveled on him and he wished he'd gone to the bathroom before sitting down.

"What is your name and what can you do? Why shouldn't I kill you? How can you be of help to us?" Olo's eyes widened and panic began to set in. "I'm hue I'm heh uh I'm hew I'm huh. Olo. My name's Olo. Olo Rashtevian Petrovich. Uh. I'm not sure how much I can help. I'm not much of a pirate. Maintenance! I do maintenance. Sanitation and waste systems mostly, but I've been trained on engine maintenance and repair. Uh. I'm not great at it. I use a lot of tape. I was just covering my friend's shift. He's usually the engine guy. Really tiny, so he's pretty good at crawling around them. I get stuck sometimes. Like I said, I use a lot of tape."

Olo looked around at faces one might find at a weekly meeting for the habitually unimpressed. "And... you shouldn't kill me... because... because..." Olo wiped the sweat off his forehead and smeared it awkwardly across his upper lip before looking around the table and laughing nervously. 'Tell them you're a great dancer, or how you're really good at cooking ramen. Tell them how Mama always said you were her favorite even though you never had any brothers or sisters.' Olo continued to titter, his eyes flicking back and forth, despite his own internal protest. 'Tell her the doctor just gave you that ointment and you're really looking forward to spreading it! Say anything! Just lie!' He swallowed, his throat feeling like it'd been filled with sand and his Adam's apple bobbing so visibly one might think he'd done it on purpose. "I'm not Isaac! You shouldn't kill me because I'm not Isaac!"

[Holger Heyerdahl]

Holger did his best to follow the conversation, and it wasn't necessarily his injury that challenged his comprehension. There was just a lot it if. Melody's information seemed to be the most important, particularly the bits about Isa and the water. Holger didn't know Isa, but Melody spoke highly of her, and he could tell that her absence was concerning. And absence of water was something all people should be concerned about. So, Holger decided to be concerned. To show this, he narrowed his brow, crossed his arms over his chest, then nodded solemnly. "Isa water and the going away."

Missy then made some sense, and Holger also wondered if perhaps some subterfuge would be necessary in this situation. "Hide a face make smart maybe. Melody Isa, Isa Melody."

The small screaming man then began to talk, and perhaps because he did not scream, perhaps Holger's bonked noggin gave him a sort of idiot savant interpretation, Olo also made some sense. "Killing Izak isn't for killing Izak. The Izak killing is for a day when we don't kill Izak. We are all Izak. We should kill Izak all together."

[Melody]

Blue orbs of aggression remained locked upon the messy stranger, her finger pointing at him in an accusatory sort of way, demeanor sharp as a blade. It appeared at any moment she'd run him through with that index digit. Among the nonsense and gibberish and panic, some small tidbits of potentially useful information filtered through and she had to work far harder than she'd have liked to gather the little morsels into something she could understand. Olo. Mechanic. Not Izak. Got it. Her eyes rolled as she straightened her back, but the barest hint of a smile did tug reluctantly at one corner of her lips. Again, the pilot shot Izak a significant look and smirked darkly.

Turning back to the rest of the room and the only two who'd bothered to offer her 'solutions' or their ideas. Melody stared hard at Holger, her arms once more crossing over her chest and her chin nodding downward slowly. She was glad she was getting some support from the big man in the loss of both Isa and their water supply. A smile, a genuine smile, went his way before she covered it back up. The doctor had decided to put in her two cents and she didn't deserve any smiles just yet. Still. She did make a valid point. "Mmm," Mel hummed curtly and thoughtfully, her chin lowering toward her chest incrementally in the barest attempt at a nod. "You're both right...Hide a face does make smart," she muttered absently, lifting a hand to push some of her hair back.

With a deep breath, Melody nodded and stood up a little straighter. "Alright. Tech, please head up to the bridge with me and keep us hidden and scrambled on the way to the Station. We'll discuss your options there. Izak, go check on the status of the turrets, see if they're something you're familiar with. Big Guy, go lay back down. Doctor Woman, go with him. See about..." she waved an index finger around her own ear, pointing at her skull, "...if you can help with the speech..." she added almost under her breath, brows raised in question. "I'm going to get us to Iscariot. It's a seedy place, you'll all love it," she told them before brusquely pushing off the edge of the table. "Olo, come with us," she told him, gesturing upward toward the bridge. "Need to keep an eye on you. Don't want another galley incident," she explained, mostly to herself. Clapping her hands together, Melody grinned, "Alright. Hop to it. Let's get some water in this beast. Then we'll see about reaching out to Tony."

[Joakim Soong]

The crew slowly gathered in the lounge; Izak, Screaming Idiot, a still very-much-concussed Holger accompanied by the chirpy doctor who Jo hadn't allowed to examine him. What would've been the point in that? His health status was of no consequence to the crew. He'd be leaving soon, and he was finally ready to admit to himself that no, he didn't really want to do that. Between the unexpected stowaways, their captain going M.I.A. and their water reserves being depleted, their mission was off to a rough start, but he could get used to this. Making plans. With other people.

"...Or we could listen in on the chatter and find a target that way, but... that'll require a tech specialist. On board. Long term..."

Joakim perked up. Well, that saved him the trouble of bringing the topic of continued employment up himself, which was a relief. Melody had made the first move, much like she'd done when she'd busted into his motel room on Beylix and disrespected his personal space like no one else. God, that felt like a lifetime ago.

He listened to the discussion, not having much to contribute in the moment. He had his qualms about the doctor's suggestion -- or maybe he had his qualms about the fact that she was the one making the suggestion, who's to say. Screaming Idiot identified himself as a mechanic, which was something their crew could certainly use. The way he described his skillset didn't exactly spark confidence, but Jo wouldn't judge him until he actually saw his handiwork.

Well, he wouldn't judge him much.

---

"So, about that long-term position..." Joakim cleared his throat once the trio stepped into the bridge. "I was under the assumption that this was going to be a temp job. I have some other stuff lined up, you know..."

That was a lie. He had nothing lined up, no plans for the future. He wasn't sure why he was even doing this stupid dance around the subject, other than some misguided sense of professional pride. He eyed the computer equipment, pretending to weigh his options, even though his mind had been made up the moment Melody had thrown him a bone.

"But you know what, this is more important, and I reckon your mission's going to be a whole lot easier with me around -- emphasis on the -er, of course. And besides, I don't think I can leave all this fancy equipment behind with a clear conscience..."

He shot a pointed look at Olo. "No offense, but tape's not going to do much if the ship's computer goes on the fritz. You'd be surprised how much more unrealiable technology can become the more advanced it gets..."

[Rashy Pete]

Olo smiled and nodded as none of what Melody said included killing him. At least she moved on from that, and Olo considered any progress a good thing. Not that he knew why, given his current status on board the ship against his will. Furthermore, Melody's decision not to kill him might not dissuade the fire bear, whose beastly visage continued to distort between bemusement and confusion whenever the matter of Olo's untimely demise came up - or rather, whenever the bear man brought it up.

The wind in Olo's sails deflated as he followed Melody and "Tech" to the bridge and took a seat as far out of the way as possible. For some reason, Rasputin's familiar matted mange already awaited them atop the relative warmth of the active controls. The cat purred and rolled onto it's back at the sight of Melody and Olo huffed his dejection at the perceived slight through his nose, dislodging a dried booger which bounced from the navigation screen before him. Olo flicked the thing away from the keyboard, muttering silently to himself behind Melody's back before straightening up and offering a dim-witted smile when Tech drew attention to him with a pointed look.

"No offense, but tape's not going to do much if the ship's computer goes on the fritz. You'd be surprised how much more unrealiable technology can become the more advanced it gets..." "Okay." Olo shrugged, confusion scrawled plainly across his face in his wrinkled forehead and scrunched nose. He looked back and forth between Melody and Tech before his eyes went wide in realization. "Oh! You know what-" a grimy finger rose in the air "Rasputin probably needs fed. Do you have any cat food? Oh, now I'm hungry too. Hey! Are you guys trying to offer me a job? Because mine has benefits. I have a dental plan." The mechanic flashed a smile, revealing yellow, slightly eroded teeth.

[Izak Archer]

Izak was content to sit out most of this conversation, he made his points, but it was Melody's decision as acting Captain. He was there as some form of strategic or tactical adviser beyond running their weapons - which he found lacking overall, but he'd address that later.

It seemed that everyone was in agreement as to what the next step would be, however. That was a refreshing change. They would dart off into the black, get their information and water, and then probably take a shower. After that? The hunt would begin and with it would come infamy, wealth, and glory.

Good thing I took one before we left, he thought.

The rest of the conversation was worthy of his coming head shake and slow face palm. He was not sure what his next step would be here, but this trip was going to drive him up a bloody wall. That said, perhaps Holger was going to be the crew's proverbial crazy uncle or something. He certainly was a handful. He was also older than everyone here, so Izak thought.

Despite all the bull, Melody kept things moving along, and got down to issuing orders.

Izak nodded when she got to him. "I'll get right to it. I'll be heading to the armory afterwards if you need me. There's a safe that needs cracking and weapons that will need servicing."

[Melody]

Melody sat heavily into the pilot's seat and turned it slowly to stare up at Jo, a brow raised in anticipation of his speech. One hand idly rested over the controls, finger tips tracing the outline of the buttons, lingering in each of their corners before moving on to the next. Her other hand rested under her chin, elbow settled upon the arm of her chair. Of course, of course, lots to do, places to be, people to see. She nodded along skeptically as the tech explained things to her.

Her gaze followed his to the equipment before she grunted a little and stared back up at him, gaze unyielding. As he finally seemed to come around, deciding to stay just to keep things running in the face of Olo's unorthodox mechanical methods, one corner of her lips quirked up and she turned back around in her chair, now facing her console. "Welcome to the crew," she told him, her smile and pleasure at this new development apparent in her voice even if it didn't show much on her face. Melody hooked her thumb back toward the array of computers behind where she sat, "That's yours, then."

Shoulders tensed and a heavy sigh lowered them when the mess man exclaimed, and she turned just her head to eye him from where he sat. The pilot reached out to run her hands over the cat's fur, grinning down at it and making sure her back was to the crew so they wouldn't see it. He probably did need to be fed, and although she wasn't sure there was cat food on board, she could probably find him some tuna in the meantime. There was like to be some cans of that in the pantry. Mel turned and eyed Olo again, annoyance clear on her face. Yes, tuna would be fine for him too. No need to waste the good food... She grimaced at his smile and turned back to the controls. "Offering you a job. Kidnapping you and forcing you to comply until we can figure out what to do with you. Whichever," she answered, rolling her eyes leaning toward the cat, crooking her finger under its chin and scratching gently. "You, however, can stay as long as you want," she muttered to the creature.

[Lomari]

Iscariot Station. From its current location along the station's wide orbit, it was the best place for a group of now-pirates to go to refuel and restock. No one would care what they'd done or bat an eye at the makeup of the group. There might be a few confused stares and questions when an Alliance vessel clearly crewed by...well, not the Alliance docked on what was essentially a fancy gas station for the morally questionable. Without much in the way of pomp or circumstance, the Cornwolf crept closer to the docking sectors of the station.

"Approaching vessel. Identify yourself," a stern voice called out through the comms system on the bridge. There was some clear hostility in the voice, likely some distrust of the seemingly government vehicle approaching their shady and non-government station.

"Vessel name..." a thoughtful pause. "Isa's Revenge, requesting clearance to dock. Just staying long enough to refuel and fill our water tanks."

"Isa's Revenge?" the voice asked skeptically, "Not...Cornwolf? Alliance Designation CW4876621?" it asked, the clearance still not given.

"Isa's Revenge. No Alliance affiliation," she assured him. Another pause, on both ends this time.
Finally, their berthing instructions and clearance was transmitted to both Melody's console as well as Jo's array of computers.

"Welcome to Iscariot, Revenge."

Crew Exits to SS Iscariot - Episode 1: New Beginnings.