Lack of Direction

[Daxen]

Daxen briskly walked towards the Brig, certain that this time he was heading in the right direction. It certainly seemed familiar to him, but then a lot of places were familiar by now; one had to know the ship well enough in order to keep hidden from all the troublesome characters. Thankfully Daxen was skillful at hiding and sneaking around when no one's looking. The trouble was he often got lost soon after, so he'd use the mess hall as a rendezvous point.

This is exactly why he was mistakenly wandering into the Brig today. He had just managed to escape some drunken crew members when he found himself hopelessly lost. Still, he knew that he had been here before, and he kept walking. The stench of past caged animals perked his nose, causing him to think that perhaps some miracle had occurred and they were having red meat today.

Alas, he had wandered into the brig, and he stopped amid the cells and paled, "I...probably shouldn't be here..." He gazed at his shadow accusingly and stood there for a moment, contemplating how to proceed.

[Fitter]

"No, this isn't for you," Fitter lifted an eyebrow toward the excited ferret that circled her skirts as she walked. She lifted the tray of food higher to get the point across. "Wait. You'll be fed soon enough."

Chuckling at her friend's disappointment, Fitter continued her walk to the brig. The normal kitchen staff member who delivered prisoner's food to the cells had fallen ill and the job had randomly been shoved on the new girl to complete. Could that really be counted as random? she thought distastefully. Regardless of such, the girl shrugged off her annoyance. She was content with her position on the ship; it was the first exciting thing to ever grace her mundane life and she wouldn't dare complain about it.

After passing a few other crew members, she walked through the doors to the brig. Fitter marveled at the automatic doors, enjoying the whoosh that accompanied each motion. All of the sights and sounds on the ship were still relatively new to her and she took great pleasure in discovering each one. "Here we are," she said to Ero, glancing around the room. Dozens of pins that Fitter recognized as holding animals -her parents had a few back on the farm- littered the room, with the stench to match. "I'm starting to think, Ero, that the further away I try to get from home the closer I get back to it." She shook her head in distaste before resuming her walk.

Ahead of her, a boy blocked the path, seemingly confused on his location. Strange, who would mistakingly visit the cells? If Fitter hadn't been shoved out of the kitchen without a chance to protest, she wouldn't have dared to come in. "Are you lost, sir?"

[Daxen]

Daxen jumped at the voice and turned around to find the same girl who confronted him in the mess hall. He frowned and shook his head, "N-No, of course not! H-How could I p-possibly be lost?" He looked around, trying desperately to appear like he knew the place well while racking his brain for an excuse. Coming up with one, he nodded, "I think I lost something when I was last here. N-NOT to say I was a prisoner or anything, I-I-I was here once before.......I think."

He had indeed been here before, albeit for a few minutes, but he never really lost anything. Or at least, he thought he hadn't. He never carries around anything valuable; no family heirlooms, no religious symbols, not even class ring. His gaze turned to the ferret next to her and he cocked his head to the side, intrigued, "Now where did you come from? You need a woodland, not a ship. Is it yours?" He didn't like calling the animal "it" but he couldn't tell the gender in the poor lighting.

[Fitter]

A wave of confusion passed over Fitter as the boy stumbled over his words. Frankly, she didn't care why he was down there; all she had done was ask if he was lost. Taking a step forward, the light changed slightly and she recognized the babbling fool as the ungrateful child from the mess hall earlier. Suddenly it all made sense-this was the one who was one piece of straw short of a barrel of hay.

She chose to ignore his ramblings, thinking it better not to bring anymore trouble to the boy's mind. Instead, her eyes brightened as he turned toward the ferret peeking out from beneath her skirts. Few crew members had noticed her close companion, and those that did merely warned her not to let it interfere with the daily hustle and bustle. Smiling, Fitter decided to give him the benefit of the doubt- first impressions aside, anyone who gave even the smallest amount of attention to Ero couldn't be all that bad...

"This is Ero," Fitter nudged the ferret with her foot, encouraging him to come out of hiding. "He kinda follows me around. A lot." She watched in brief amusement as Ero cautiously approached the boy, sniffing the air to catch his scent.

[Kaden]

Kaden touched the bars of the cage he was in. He sighed as he felt the cool, rough metal under his finger tips. He was getting all too used to these bars. He wrapped a hand around them and tugged slightly as if that would do anything. It didn't really, but it reminded him he wasn't supposed to take this sitting down, he wasn't supposed to like it. He hung from the bars for a moment, enjoying the feeling of his body pulling uselessly against the metal, and then he turned away and walked a couple of feet into the cell.

He was getting pretty good at teleporting without needing a running start. As far as he could tell he'd been here about a month and in that time he hadn't had many days without the kid around to block his powers, still he'd made the most of it. But he still couldn't teleport without his clothes and there was no point trying to get to his Falcon without a stitch on. You couldn't fly space ships in your skin.

He turned around and took a step forward. As he could have guessed, when his foot came down, it came down in the hallway outside of his cell. He automatically turned back towards the cell to catch site of the pile of clothes that was always lying there only to find the floor empty. That was when his senses caught up to his routine dulled mind and he felt the clothes still covering his body.

He looked down in surprise, a hand rising up to run over the smooth jacket covering his chest. He could not remember the last time the feel of cloth against skin had felt so good.

Kaden almost felt something break inside him. He wanted to sit down and just breath the free air here, two feet away from where he'd spent his last month. He wanted to take the time to relish the moment. But he knew he wasn't free yet, and as he heard voices of crew members down the hall he looked around, wondering what exactly was the best course of action. Finally coming to the decision he hated the most, Kaden turned back to the cell and a second later he was sitting inside of it.

[Daxen]

Daxen smiled at the little ferret, "He's very cute. I like animals; they're what help keep ecosystems alive and healthy. Although..." He looked around with a disturbed expression, "How did he start following you? Did you come from a forested planet? And are you sure he's safe here? I-I-I'm not saying you're a bad owner or a-anything, but critters like ferrets like small, enclosed spaces to hide in. On a ship, it can be dangerous." He observed the animal curiously. Something seemed strange about it, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

Suddenly he thought he heard a noise and he whirled around, remembering exactly where they were. He gave a weak effort to sound brave, "U-uh...Hello? Wh-Who's there?" He didn't like it when people evesdropped on his conversations. For all he knew, whoever it was could be in league with his rebellious shadow, which, unbeknownst to him, had a rather unusual shape. Rather than conforming to Daxen's body like a normal shadow, it actually seemed to be petting the ferret. Obviously, the ferret would not feel anything, and in the dim light it'd probably be hard to notice.

[Fitter]

"Thanks, I think." Daxen's concern for Ero was touching, if odd in the way he went about trying to explain it. "Every where's trouble for Ero, regardless." Fitter giggled softly, bending down to scratch her friend behind the ear. "I pulled him out of a well back home on Duhrma. I suppose that has something to do with him following me about, but I you won't see me complaining about it." Her parents, on the other hand...

She rose as something startled Daxen, wondering why the boy had such a white look on his face. Of course there was someone else down here-where else would prisoners stay? With the crew or captain? "Calm down," Fitter rose back up, returning her free hand to the tray of food. "It's just the prisoner." Just the prisoner? Hadn't she argued minutes before against stepping foot in the place? A slight trickle of fear returned at the thought of approaching him. "I have to take this to him," she nodded toward the food. "You...you wouldn't mind accompanying me, would you? It sounds foolish, but I'd rather not do it alone."

[Daxen]

Daxen restrained a whimper at the back of his throat as he summoned up what little courage he had. The normal crew members were nasty enough, what sorts of horrors were kept here in the prisons?! Probably mutants, or assassins, or worse! Trying not to think of what the 'worse' would mean, he nodded, "S-S-S-Sure, I'll g-g-g-g-go with you."

As they walked towards Kaden's cell he tried continuing the conversation, "A w-well huh? Wow, that's p-pretty lucky..." he trailed off as his mind wandered. He wish he could save an animal in the well. The most he's done is sneak into zoos to feed some starving animals. Not one of them followed him home, unless you counted angry zookeepers.

Daxen was brought out of his daydream by walking right into the cell bars with a 'BONG'. He gave the usual whimper of pain as he rubbed his throbbing head, trying to piece together how he hadn't noticed. He looked up to the cell's contents and squinted to see a lone man sitting. "S-So," started Daxen, "Wh-what's your n-name? I-I think we h-have foo--" He paused as he got a better look.

A single memory came to mind, of a naked man teleporting and running right by him with several people shouting for Daxen to stop said man. The transformation of his face from white to red took mere seconds. Looking away with a horrified expression, he nudged Fitter forward, "Y-Y-Y-Y-You do it."

[Kaden]

Kaden watched the crew members approach with a blank expression that slowly turned to one of confusion and then one of surprise as the boy walked into the bars. It was like watching a movie or a show. You could clearly predict what was about to happen and yet you let it happen anyway because a part of your mind was convinced it wouldn't happen. He couldn't help it, he laughed quietly when the boy backed up and rubbed his head. He wondered if all the young men on this ship were so peculiar. Deux certainly was.

Kaden stood up and bowed slightly to the two. "Good evening to you sir, miss," he said with another nod. He hadn't actually encountered a female crew member since his first days aboard the ship and he'd been slightly, well, naked at the time. The episode still made him feel a spark of shame and he was glad circumstances were different this time.

He spotted the food tray one was carrying and he stepped away from the bars and motioned towards the slot where the food was normally pushed in. "Thank you for bringing me food and please pass my thanks and compliments on to the ship's cook."

[Fitter]

She cringed as Daxen ran headfirst into the bars of the cell. Her earlier assessment had proved itself valid-something was wrong with this one. "Um, you should be a tad more careful." As he started conversing with the prisoner, Fitter eyed his forehead carefully. There might be a bruise there in the morning. Luckily she had some balm stashed in her cabin if it became too much of a problem, seeing as Daxen had enough issues without a bump to the head making it any worse.

Next thing she knew, the boy had shoved her forward, his face heated from...embarassment? Sure, making a fool out of himself was one thing, but from her short encounters with him, not flushings of the face but stuttered excuses normally followed.

"Evenin' sir," she replied quietly, immediately placing the food in the spot the man had indicated. Her hands trembled slightly, and she bit her lip to take her mind off of the fact that she stood next to a prisoner. What had he done to stay in this stink hole? Ero took advantage of her free hands to curl around her hands as she rose. Having lived an extremely sheltered life, Fitter didn't know how to behave around people who caused serious trouble. She had seen others taunt prisoners or look down on them like they were mutts. Her hands slowly rubbed the ferret's back. Inhumane. She refused to stoop to that level.

"You just did, sir," Fitter gave a brief smile, deciding that anyone deserved to be addressed politely. And truth she told- the lead cook had no time to make a special meal for a prisoner with the amount she already had to feed three times a day. Besides the bread sticks, the soup and bread on the tray were the first items anyone had allowed Fitter to cook by herself since she joined the ship. "Much appreciated."

[Kaden]

Kaden smiled as he went to pick up the food. "You made it yourself?" he asked. "That is kind and I thank you." Kaden took the food and sat against the far wall. He'd flipped his bed up so that he could use the legs as a bar for exercise. He'd thought about setting it right but he didn't want the captain or his crew starting to think he was enjoying the hospitality of thieves. He was still a UIR officer and he had his pride.

He leaned back against the wall and picked at his food. It wasn't that it wasn't good but he'd been here longer than he'd like and he finally had the ability to leave this cell and this ship. He did not want to seem rude to the crew. All of them had chosen to serve with Gregorie and he imagined that most, if not all of them knew what they were signing up for. So as much as the two young people on the other side of his bars seemed nice enough they were still pirates and he needed them to leave if he was going to get out of here.

"Please, don't let me keep you from your own evening meal."

[Daxen]

Shockingly, Daxen seemed intent on staying. He opened his mouth a few times to speak, but all that would come out were a few squeaks and he'd close it. His blushing never stopped. Eventually he found enough dignity to at least spit out, "S-S-So...how are y-you?" Perhaps not the nicest thing to ask a prisoner, but he didn't care.

Still unable to get the image from earlier out of his mind he tried rubbing his temples, though that only made his headache worse. Still, he had been wanting to talk to this guy for a while now. He seemed...nice. Most of the other crew members were nasty, yet this nice, good-looking fellow was stuck in the brig. Why?

[Kaden]

Kaden looked up and actually took the time to look at the two young people standing outside of his cell. Both were looking at him with a slight hint of fear in their eyes and he wondered for the first time how they saw him.

He was used to thinking of himself as a fighter pilot and an officer. He was used to people looking at him as a figure of authority and responsibility. He always took the extra time to make sure he was clean shaven, his uniform wrinkle free and his posture correct. But he hadn't been allowed a proper shower in the entire time he'd been here. Just a bucket of water every other day. And he certainly hadn't been allowed any sort of razor. He'd abandoned the jacket of his uniform, figuring the more clothing he was wearing the harder it would be to transport and so he was down to the tight fitting cotton, sleeveless undershirt that went underneath his uniform. He had even taken to going around his cell without boots. Partially because he worried about his hygiene when he wasn't allowed proper access to showers and partially because it made practicing and exercising easier. All in all, he thought, looking down at himself, he probably didn't look like an officer. He looked like a prisoner.

He looked back up at the two people outside of his cell. So far he'd been surprised to find that most people on this crew didn't seem half bad. He only got a cut throat feeling from the captain himself. The others just seemed like normal people, making their way through the universe. Except the priest. Kaden still detested him. But it wouldn't do any harm to befriend those he could. If nothing else it may make them less likely to shoot him.

"I am as well as can be expected. Thank you for asking Mr...?" Kaden left the end open, inviting him to fill in his name.

[Daxen]

"Massive pecs...ER, I MEAN, D-D-D-DAXEN. Name...Daxen...name's D-Daxen...yeah..." He blushed again and tried quickly to make more conversation. Why? He had no idea. "S-So...you don't s-seem like a m-mean guy. Wh-What's your name?" He mentally berated himself for stuttering so much. Sure, he had every right to be nervous, but he could at least make himself seem a little more manly.

He turned to Fitter and gave her a slight nudge forward, hoping that she would eventually take over. He would much prefer watching from the sidelines, not stand there like an idiot trying to make small-talk with a prisoner he had once seen naked, even if it was brief. He whispered in her ear, "A-Ask him how he got s-so fit..."

[Kaden]

Kaden didn't hear Daxen's plea to Fitter so he answered Daxen's question. "Forgive me Daxen," Kaden said as he pushed himself to his feet and set his food aside. "I've been terribly rude to you both. My name is Kaden kai'Zeke," he said bowing first to Daxen and then to the girl.

"I hope you'll forgive my current appearance," he said, picking at the tight undershirt that was the standard garment worn under UIR flight uniforms. The flight suit he'd discarded in the corner allowed him to interface with the Falcon properly and the undershirts kept the flight suit from negatively affecting his skin. "I am not usually so...unkempt," he said choosing his words carefully. It was obvious to everyone here that his imprisonment kept him from appearing as he'd choose, freshly bathed with clothes pressed, but he did not want to get too close to that truth lest he alienate his current company.