The next two weeks seemed to crawl by for Jeremy and his crew. A handful of delivery and courier jobs kept them afloat, but they weren’t making anywhere near what they needed in order to afford a replacement jump drive. While there were more lucrative jobs available, they were also much more dangerous. The Fox’s crew didn’t necessarily always operate on the right side of the law, but they made sure to stay away from violent crime.
Returning from their latest contract, the Fox pulled into docking bay 23. On the bridge, Jai manned the helm as he guided the freighter in through the airlock doors. Kell sat at the navigator’s station, watching the pilot work with a detached gaze and his feet kicked up on the console. As the airlock cycled in oxygen, Jai extended the landing gear and killed the thrusters, bringing the Fox to the station’s floor with a reverberating thud.
Jai shut down the remaining flight systems, then stood up, arching his back to loosen up the kinks in his spine. He really had to bug Jeremy about upgrading their furniture. Their current bridge seats looked like they had come from a junkyard. Given their captain’s frugality, he wouldn’t be entirely shocked if they had.
Looking up, Kell read Jai’s body language and scoffed. “Oh, you’re uncomfortable? At least the chairs match your species,” the sestan griped, gesturing towards his digitigrade legs. “Imagine how I feel.”
It was true, the Fox was a human-built ship, and Jeremy had never bothered improving much in the way of comfort. Most of the freighter was still stock, and therefore, in addition to being over 30 years old, was also designed specifically for humans.
“Hey man, don’t complain to me,” Jai defended. “I don’t do the budget.”
Kell dragged himself up and out of the chair. “Yeah, let me go talk to the captain. I’m sure that’ll be productive.” He quipped, his voice drenched in sarcasm. Making his way to the bridge’s exit, the security officer punched the call button, and waited for the tram as Jai came to stand next to him.
“So,” Kell said quietly. “What are you thinking about our little situation?”
Jai grimaced. “Not great, honestly. We’ve been in some tight financial spots, but…this? No jump drive, no money…it’s gonna be rough.”
Kell considered his crew-mate’s words, staring off at nothing in particular. For his many faults, Jeremy had managed to lead his crew successfully for years on end, and Kell wasn’t ready to up-and-leave him because of this setback. However, he had to make sure he was taken care of, and if things aboard the Fox stagnated, and they started losing money, the crew wouldn’t have much choice but to disband.
The chime of the magtram arriving brought him out of his thoughts. The doors slid open, and the pair walked inside, selecting the boarding ramp as their destination. The tram took off, making its way through the ship’s internal network of rails to the bottom of the vessel. As they exited onto the boarding deck, Jai and Kell stopped by their lockers to grab personal effects before heading out down the ramp.
On the station floor, they caught sight of Jeremy standing by the airlock, throwing on a jacket and preparing to leave.
“Hey, Cap,” Jai greeted, “you going out? We’re hitting downtown Navi if you wanna come.”
Jeremy shook his head. “Not today, guys. I’ve got something to take care of.” He said excitedly. “I’ll see you guys later.”
Jai and Kell exchanged puzzled glances as their captain hurried through the airlock door. ‘Motivated’ and ‘energetic’ were not normally descriptions that could be attributed to Jeremy Cain.
———————–
In the cab on the way down, Jeremy brought up his heads-up display with his implant. He reread the message he’d received through the job board:
To whom it may concern,
I have read your advertisement posting detailing a need for an engineer, and I believe I can help. I graduated from Sanctuary University with a degree in interdimensional physics, and have provided my validated certification in a link contained in this message. I am very interested in taking up a position aboard your ship. I’d love to hear back from you soon.
Cordially,
Thomas Webb
Jeremy had received the response two days ago, and had since set up a meeting with Mr. Webb. He’d had one of his contacts, a specialist in forged documents, look into the certification just in case, and the degree had proven genuine. Nonetheless, Jeremy had his pistol strapped in his shoulder holster just in case things went awry; Tremere was a dangerous place, after all, and there was always a chance that this man wasn’t who he said he was.
He had decided to meet Webb in a diner. While he could have set up the meeting at Riley’s office, he wasn’t sure that the decrepit building was the best impression to make on a prospective crewman. He figured a diner would be public enough to dissuade any “last minute renegotiations,’ as Kell put it.
Finally arriving at the diner, Jeremy paid the driver and entered the establishment. He approached the hostess, walking up to her desk and explaining that he was expecting someone.
“Oh, yeah, that guy,” she answered, pointing behind her. “He said he’s meeting someone here, is that you?” Jeremy followed her finger, catching sight of a solitary figure sitting at a booth towards the back.
“Guess we’ll find out. Thanks.” Jeremy answered. He approached the man, eyeing him carefully. He had pale skin, watery blue eyes, and neatly kempt sandy blonde hair. He looked incredibly young; Jeremy wouldn’t guess a day over 21. The scavenger raised an eyebrow at the smartly pressed sport coat, dress shirt, and slacks his applicant was wearing; it almost felt as though he was the one being interviewed.
Noticing Jeremy’s approach, the man stood up and met him halfway. “Captain Caine?” he asked, hesitantly extending a hand.
“Yeah,” Jeremy answered, giving the man a firm handshake. “You’re Thomas Webb, then?” He noticed that Webb’s hands were very smooth, compared to his own rough, calloused hands.
“Yes sir, I am sir.” Jeremy quirked an eyebrow at the formality before taking his seat, with Thomas following suit. Jeremy picked up a menu while Thomas looked at him expectantly. Noticing the gaze, Jeremy gestured at the other menu. “Gonna order anything? Don’t know about you, but I hate talking business over an empty stomach.”
“Oh! Um, alright.” Thomas picked up the menu and began perusing the dishes. While he looked over the menu, he tried to hold onto the lines he’d rehearsed beforehand. He’d had his pitch planned out to the letter, and had been ready to jump right into it once Captain Caine had arrived; now, as his potential employer called the waitress over to ask about the day’s specials, he could feel his carefully selected words slipping away.
By the time their orders had been taken, Thomas felt his nervousness trying to bubble up into full on panic. He forced the feelings down, trying to at least outwardly appear calm. As Jeremy nursed a steaming cup of coffee, he finally turned his full attention to his candidate.
“So, tell me a little about yourself. Do you have any experience aboard starships?”
“No sir, but I’ve read up a lot on space travel. I feel confide-”
Jeremy held up a hand. “Woah there, slow down a bit, buddy. Reading and experience are two different things. There are a lot of hardships that come with life aboard.”
Thomas swallowed, then nodded. “I understand, sir.”
Jeremy regarded him for a moment. He very much doubted the kid truly did understand what he was getting himself into. However, if he ended up deciding the life wasn’t for him, Jeremy could always drop him off somewhere with good odds of finding a replacement. And at the moment, he was the only option.
Jeremy made a show of things, dragging the interview out a bit more than necessary. He wanted to make sure the kid felt lucky to be getting the job; it would help keep him around longer. The research Jeremy had done had informed him that while installing the drive would of course be the most important part, actually plotting courses would be nearly impossible without a dimensional engineer.
Playing with the last scraps of his breakfast, Jeremy decided to wrap things up. “Alright then, Mr. Webb, let’s get down to brass tacks.” He noticed Thomas straighten up, listening intently. Confident that he had the boy’s attention, Jeremy continued.
“I think you’ve got what I’m looking for. You seem to know your stuff, and I’ve had one of my associates double check the authenticity of your degree. Far as I can tell, you’re the man for the job.” He noted the relief and excitement evident on the younger man’s face. Mr. Webb certainly seemed eager enough.
“Thank you very much, captain. I’ll do your judgement justice.” Thomas grinned and grabbed Jeremy by the hand, shaking it enthusiastically.
Despite the nervousness the kid had displayed earlier, Jeremy found his newfound optimism infectious. His own face had split into a smile now, and he returned the handshake with just as much vigor. “Glad to have you aboard, kid.” Having reached an agreement, the two men paid for their meals and left the diner.
Jeremy accessed his implant, ordering a taxi back to the station. He held in a sigh of relief, not wanting the kid to know just how invaluable he was going to be. It wouldn’t do him any good if Mr. Webb caught on and started trying to renegotiate the advertised pay rate.
“Our ship is docked at the orbital yard, bay 23.” Jeremy explained. “When can you be ready to go?”
Thomas thought about it. He was living in a cheap motel room at the moment, and had very little in the way of material possessions. It wouldn’t take him more than an hour or two to pack everything up.
“Um, tonight, I suppose? How early is too early?”
Jeremy grinned at the response. “No, no, that’s perfect! That’s great! I’ll get your quarters set up as soon as I get up there, and have my XO show you the ropes when you come aboard.”
A low hum interrupted them, announcing the taxi’s arrival. The dented craft descended towards the street, its impulse thrusters sputtering in a worrying manner. The taxi’s sporadic coughing somewhat shook Jeremy’s faith in its ability to get him safely into orbit.
Doing his best to ignore the rickety state of his ride, Jeremy turned back to Thomas. He held out a hand, grasping his new hire in a firm handshake.
“I’ll see you tonight, then, kid. Get in touch with me if you have any questions or need any help or anything.”
Thomas nodded excitedly. “Understood, Captain Caine. I’ll give you a call before I come up.”
Jeremy gave the man a grin as he clambered into the taxi. “Excellent. I’ll see you later tonight, Tom.” He pulled the door shut and settled in, confirming his destination with the driver. As the craft shakily rose into the air, he glanced out of the window to see Thomas already walking down the pavement.
The craft turned, cutting off his view of the ground below. As they took off into Tremere’s hazy sky, Jeremy breathed a sigh of relief. With this new addition to their crew, Jeremy was confident that their engine issues were now taken care of. He knew that his XO would be happy to have the problem solved.
——————————–
“You did what?”
Victa wasn’t raising her voice, but the venom in it more than made up for it. Jeremy was taken aback; this wasn’t at all the reaction he had expected. As he had gotten back aboard, he’d made a beeline for Victa’s quarters to deliver what he’d thought had been good news.
“But I handled it! On my own! I thought you would be happy to not have to take care of this yourself!”
Victa clicked her mandibles furiously, a sign of irritation in her species. She advanced on him, jabbing an accusing finger into his chest and backing him out into the passageway.
“You’ve handled it? So I suppose you’re the one who is going to rebalance our already tight budget?! You’re the one who is going to arrange quarters for him!? You’re going to tweak our reactor output to match the power requirements to account for a damn rip drive!?”
Jeremy opened his mouth to answer, but Victa cut him off. “No, you’re not. It’s going to be me, as usual. You never consult me before you make some impulsive split-second decision, and I always get left to deal with the fallout.”
Jeremy stood stock-still, his mouth snapping shut. Victa was always frank with him, but never before had she been so aggressively blunt.
Looking at her captain’s shocked expression, Victa noted the guilt and embarrassment evident on his face. Sighing, she cradled her head in her palm.
“Look,” Victa began, feeling a shred of sympathy in spite of herself. “I didn’t mean to snap at you. I’m just frustrated right now…with our budget problems, Riley’s faulty information, and now this engine trouble, I just…I’m not sure if we’re going to make it.”
Jeremy put a hand on her shoulder. “Look, Victa…please, I know I get us into tight spots sometimes-” Victa scoffed, rolling her eyes. “Okay, yes, a lot of times, but I know this will work. Believe it or not, I’ve actually done my homework this time. This kid? He’s got everything we need to get this thing running; Tala can help him plug it in, and then he can maintain it and help Jai with navigation.”
Victa thought about it. When the captain got hooked on an idea, he really did go all out. She had no doubt that he had looked into the matter thoroughly. If she felt it necessary, she could even cross-check the boy herself; she had served in the Imperial navy as a bridge officer, and knew a little bit about rip drives.
Noting her pause, Jeremy continued on. “And trust me, the rip drive will help out a lot. I looked into that too; On average, freighters with rip drives pull in about 30% more annual haul than ones with jump drives. That’s straight from the GTO, so you know it’s accurate.”
Victa took a moment to consider his words.The galactic trade organization was the top authority on commercial and industrial space travel; their statistics and estimates were usually quite reliable. It also just made sense logically, of course. She didn’t need the GTO to tell her the advantages of rip drives over jump drives.
“Alright,” she finally said. “Alright. But you’re going to help me with this. This is your project, so you’re going to be involved.”
Jeremy nodded enthusiastically. “Of course, of course, whatever you need.” He bit the Inside of his cheek to hide his grin. He felt that he might getting off a little bit too easy,and he didn’t want his XO getting the same idea. “What do we need to do first?” He asked.
Retreating through her office door, Victa scooped up a tablet from atop her desk, and stepped back outside. She beckoned for Jeremy to follow, shutting her office door and leading him down the passageway. “Come on, captain. Lots to do.”
As they made their way to the ship’s storage room, Victa explained the list of tasks they had to complete. The first priority would be furnishing one of their rooms for Thomas to live in. Victa went over the ship’s inventory, finding a small cot and a pair of dressers for Thomas to use. Pulling them from the storage room, the pair then decided which room to use for their newest member’s quarters.
They ended up selecting an old crew cabin that had not seen use since before Jeremy had bought the Fox. It was mostly bare, but had a connected bathroom and was near the magtram’s entrance. Jeremy called Jai and Kell to help move the furniture in and remove the accumulated junk that had been haphazardly piled into the room over the years.
The room was beginning to vaguely resemble a living space. However, Victa assured Jeremy that there would be much more to do later down the line if they wanted to bring it in line with the standards the rest of the crew’s quarters were held to. The power receiver for the room’s terminal needed to be replaced, a few of the lights were out, and the whole room could have used a thorough cleaning.
Nonetheless, the room would work for now. Fixing it up would have to wait until they had a few more lucrative jobs. For the next task, Victa dragged her captain back to her office, where they went about adjusting their budget to accommodate their new member. While Jeremy wanted to account for the increased revenue that he thought the rip drive would bring them, Victa chose to take a more cautious approach, and based their estimates on their recent returns.
As they were finalizing the last of the adjustments, Jeremy received a notification through his implant. It was a message from Thomas, informing him that their newest member was leaving soon, and would be joining them shortly. Excitedly, Jeremy gathered the crew and brought them to the airlock to meet the new hire.
They walked out into the landing bay, where they loitered around the ship’s ramp. Kell leaned up against the hull, turning to Jeremy.
“So, what’s this kid like?”
“Well,” Jeremy answered, “he’s really young. Just graduated from college, actually.”
At this, Kell’s eyes widened. He shot Jeremy a disbelieving look. “So he has no experience aboard a ship? Like, at all?”
Tala, Jai, and Victa all looked to Jeremy, with looks of curiosity, bewilderment, and anger, respectively. Jeremy shrunk under their combined gaze, scrambling to come up with an adequate defense for his chosen candidate.
“Well, no, he never actually served on a ship-”
Both Kell’s and Victa’s eyes narrowed, and Jeremy sped through his explanation before they could cut him off.
“But think about it! It’s fine! He doesn’t necessarily need to help run the ship. We handle that fine on our own, right? All he needs to do is handle the FTL.”
Jeremy paused, checking to see if his efforts were doing him any good. Nobody started yelling at him, which he took to mean that he was in the clear.
“Besides,” he continued, “The kid will learn. We can teach him how to help out around the ship. He’ll pick things up as he goes. Isn’t that how we all did it?”
Victa raised her hand. “No, I was trained to.”
Jeremy rolled his eyes. “Yeah, well-”
His retort was cut off when Tala spoke up, pointing towards the bay entrance.
“Is that him?”
Jeremy turned to follow her finger, catching sight of the door to the docks. Hesitantly poking his way through It was Mr. Thomas Webb. He had a large backpack slung over his shoulders, and a suitcase rolling behind him. As he ventured deeper into the hangar, Jeremy noticed him staring up at the Fox, an awed expression on his face.
Jeremy couldn’t help but feel a bit of pride at that. The Fox wasn’t a very large ship, even by civilian standards. The largest super freighters easily outmassed it one hundredfold. To see such a reaction to his ship gave him no small amount of satisfaction.
As Thomas approached, Jeremy walked out to meet him halfway. “Good to see you, Mr. Webb.” He said with a smile, shaking the man’s hand.
“Thank you, Captain.” Thomas replied, accepting the handshake. He glanced past Jeremy’s head, where the rest of the crew had gathered behind their captain. Jeremy turned his head to follow Thomas’s gaze.
“Ah, yes, introductions.” he said. “Come and meet my crew. Guys, this is Thomas Webb.”
Thomas stepped forward, some slight hesitation in his movement. He’d never formally met an alien before, much less three at once. He wasn’t entirely sure what to expect.
To his surprise, one of them took the initiative, loping forward on all fours to greet him and thrusting her diminutive hand up at him.
“Hi!” she exclaimed. “I’m Talachamantana.” She giggled as Thomas’ eyes widened. “Don’t worry, you don’t need to pronounce that. It’s Tala for short. I’m in charge of engineering, so you’ll be working with me a lot!”
Thomas reached down with his own hand which she shook vigorously. “A pleasure to meet you, Tala.” he answered cordially.
Victa approached next, her three legs carrying her forward in a vaguely scuttling manner that Thomas couldn’t help but find disturbing. He hated bugs, and between her twitching mandibles and her long, spindly limbs, the koth woman set off all of the wrong signals in his brain.
Despite this, Thomas kept his reaction buried. He was sure being visibly disgusted with one of the crew would be a surefire way to end his sailing career before it had even begun. He forced himself to extend his hand to her, while plastering a smile that was far too bright and cheery over his face.
Victa stared at him for a moment before gingerly accepting the proffered handshake. “Executive officer Victa Ing-Kils. I am Captain Caine’s second-in-command, and I ensure things on the Fox are kept running smoothly. If you have any questions or concerns, I can help you take care of them.”
“Thank you, ma’am. I will, ma’am.” Thomas answered. He concentrated on not pulling his hand away too quickly, but he still felt as though she had caught on to him. He couldn’t read koth facial expressions, so he had no way of telling what she was thinking.
His thought was interrupted as the next crewmember stepped up. Unlike the last two, whom he’d had a solid head on in terms of height, this one towered over him by at least a foot. “Kell Vellus, head of security.” He held out a taloned hand, fingers briefly facing upward before he hurriedly turned his hand sideways for a handshake.
Thomas followed suit, taking care to mind Kell’s claws. He found himself once again being put off by his new acquaintance’s physical appearance. He wasn’t particularly fond of lizards, either. The security officer’s jutting fangs and slit pupils made him feel somewhat uncomfortable.
Turning to the last crew member, Thomas couldn’t help but feel a little bit relieved to see another human. Oh God, that’s a bit racist, isn’t it? he thought to himself.
The man grasped his hand firmly, flashing a welcoming smile. “Hey, how are ya? Jai Morrison-Bennet. I’m the Fox’s pilot. I do all the legwork around here.”
Thomas smiled a little bit at the quip. It felt like Jai was trying to put him more at ease, and he appreciated that. He believed that a little bit of kindness went a long way.
Jeremy spoke up, gathering everyone’s attention. “Alright folks, all aboard! Let’s give Mr. Webb the grand tour.” They trouped up the ramp, with Thomas trailing behind the others. Ascending into the ship’s belly, he felt a mixture of excitement and apprehension twist around in his gut.
The tour lasted late into the evening, With the crew showing Thomas all of the essential parts of the ship: the galley, the rec room, the bridge, and the engineering bay, where he would be working.
Throughout the tour, Jeremy made it clear that no area was off-limits or restricted, save for other people’s quarters. You remember the first time he had stepped aboard the Fox, and the amazing sense of liberation he had felt. He wanted to share that feeling with Thomas; one thing that he strove for was making his ship a place that all of this crew could comfortably call home.
The last room on the tour was Thomas’ freshly prepared quarters. Jai and Kell helped him carry his luggage to his new room, and then bid him goodnight. Victa had Wanted to handle paperwork and go over ship routine with him, but Jeremy had said that it was too late, and that they should all get some shut-eye.
Thomas on packed his belongings, Organizing them as best he could with his limited furniture. He made a mental note to spruce up his room a little bit once he started getting paid.
Starting with a new bed, he thought to himself as he settled into his rickety old cot. He willed himself to fall asleep, but between his lack of comfort and his excitement, rest eluded Thomas well into the night. He lamented how exhausted he was sure to be for what would be a very busy day. After tossing and turning for what seemed to be hours on end, the day’s events caught up to him, and he drifted off to sleep.