No Longer A Safe Ship

Posted on Tue Aug 1st, 2017 @ 3:15am by Dixoho Saa (*)

Mission: Mission 4 - Combustion
Location: Deck 3 - Ward Room
Timeline: MD 01 :: 23:00
2291 words - 4.6 OF Standard Post Measure

Meandering into the Ward Room, Dixoho decided to take the weight off her aching limbs. She sat in a seat close to the railing and felt the warm heat trickle across her face, reminding her of the boomer ship she had grown up on. She didn't even open her eyes as she heard the door open.

Even though it was nearly midnight, local time, Micheal's body thought it was barely three in the afternoon. That was one of the drawbacks of space travel. Space lag. It was similar in idea to the ancient notion of jet lag, but much worse. In space travel, the time differences between two locations wasn't simply limited to hours. The difference could be day, weeks, even (in some rare cases) years. Thankfully, Micheal was only a few hours behind tbe local time, so his adjustment would only take a day or two.

As his body was telling him it was mid-afternoon, he was starting to feel hungry. So, using the map he had been given, he made his way to the wardroom. Upon entering, he noticed the only other person present was an attractive red head. What was it about this ship and being seemingly crewed mostly by beautiful women? he thought to himself as he glanced over at the woman, her eyes closed. He decided not to disturb her, so he moved over to the outdated replimat and made his selection of a ham and cheese sandwich on rye bread with salt, pepper and mayonnaise, along with a medium-sized black coffee, and a small slice of pumpkin pie for dessert.

As he was grabbing his food tray, his wrist comm vibrated, indicating that Alex had a message for him. Putting the tray back down, he pushed his left sleeve back and checked the message. The text read, Micheal, my records indicate that the woman in tbe room with you is Dixoho Saa. There is an outstanding bounty on her for theft. Bounty reward is ten bars of gold pressed latinum. The requester does not stipulate as to whether Miss Saa is to be captured or killed, so the choice is up to you. What are your instructions?

Micheal was surprised, first at the high reward price, and then at the nonpreference as to how Saa was to be apprehended. While he could definitely use the money, ten bars of gold pressed latinum could keep him going for a year, maybe two, something just didn't feel right. He'd have to investigate the situation further before deciding his course of action. He quickly typed in a reply. Stand by. Then, after sending the message, he picked his tray back up and moved over to sit at the table to Saa's left, slightly facing her. He set his tray down, then sat. As he picked up his sandwich to begin eating, he kept Dixoho in his peripheral vision.

Dixoho turned and jumped a little as she realized someone else was in the room with her and she didn't know the man as he wasn't one of the Ardanan's which meant he had been the man that she had heard earlier. She brushed a lock out of her face and looked at him.

"You've been given access to the Ward Room I see?" She said good naturedly trying to keep her voice level. Bounty hunters were never good for her.

Micheal finished the bite of food in his mouth before replying. "Yes, Ma'am. Your Captain is most gracious indeed." He took a slow sip of his hot coffee before continuing. "So, Miss Saa. What exactly was it, if you don't mind my asking?"

He was there for her She thought instantly as she felt her heart rate speed up. "How do you know my name?" She demanded instantly standing up ready for anything. She glanced around for a weapon.

Micheal seemed completely unfazed by Dixoho's reaction. There was a slight hint of bordom in his voice as, while he continued to not look at her while still eating his sandwich, he said, "Relax. Believe me when I say that if I meant you any harm, we wouldn't be speaking right now." He finished his sandwich, then wiped his mouth with his napkin. He then turned his head and gazed directly into Dixoho's eyes with such a focus, it seemed as if he was staring directly into her soul.

Dixoho just stared back at him, she wasn't scared by his gaze. She had nothing to be ashamed of in her actions while being on the run from bounty hunters, her actions had done a lot more good than bad. She wasn't the one going to be losing the eye staring.

Breaking eye contact, he moved his left leg under the table and gently kicked out the chair that was opposite his. Tilting his head towards the empty chair, he said, "Sit. Please."

"I am fine in this chair." She said, sitting back on the overstuffed comfortable chair with her book. She wanted some distance between them.

The corners of Micheal's mouth tilted up slightly. He then shrugged as he turned his attention back to his food. "Whatever makes ya happy," he said nonchalantly as he cut a piece of pumpkin pie with his fork, scooped it up and put it in his mouth. His eyes closed and groaned softly, as if he were in ecstasy. "Mm! You have any idea how long it's been since I had sctual pumpkin pie?!"

He took a few more bites and then sat back, glancing over at Dixoho, as he wiped his mouth again. "Okay," he began. "Let me tell you a little bit about myself." He took another sip of his coffee and then continued. "As you know, I'm a bounty hunter. I've been doing this for a couple years now, and I've gotten pretty good at it. Something else I am, is a pretty good judge of character. I can look into a person's eyes, and more often than not, I can tell whether they're a good person or not. You, Miss Saa, unless you're an excellent con artist, are a good person."

He sat back in his chair, took another sip of coffee, and continued. "Now, here's where my quandary comes in. You may or may not know that there's a price on your head. A rather high price I might add. The charge is theft and the reward for stopping you is ten bars of gold pressed latinum." He let what he said sink in for a couple seconds before continuing.

"Now, normally, a price like that, I would act first and nor ask questions. However, the simple fact the bounty instructions don't state that you should be returned alive means that your death is required. For a simple theft, that just don't sit well with me. So, I'm conflicted here. That's why I asked what it was that you stole. Give me the details of the issue, please. "

"You're conflicted?" She burst out laughing at the sheer notion that a bounty hunter was conflicted in taking care of the bounty in question. "That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard come out of a bounty hunter's mouth," she said, standing up and heading to the small bar in the corner and pouring herself a healthy measure of a strong looking liquid.

Micheal chuckled softly as he responded. "What can I say? Though the money is good, that's not why I do this. I do this job to rid the universe of true filth. You, as far as I can tell, do not fall into that catagory. So I ask again, what was it that you stole?"

Dixoho rolled her eyes and moved back to his side of the ward room and sat elegantly in front of him. "Star charts... I stole Star Charts from some very bad men." She downed the glass and put it down. If he was going to kill her at least she was going to die drunk.

Micheal's brows furrowed closer together as he listened. "Star charts?! To what, the location of the Holy Grail?"

"To them yes." She whispered softly standing up. She pulled up her shirt to show him the long scars that crossed her stomach. "I did the right thing that day. Those merchants wanted to go down to a civilization and take things from people who had never seen an outsider, let alone guns," she told him putting her tee back down, looking at him.

Micheal's demeanor changed instantly when he saw the scars and realised the meaning of them. Sitting forward, he growled softly. "They did that to you? Who are they?"

"Of course they did." She hissed looking away. "What do you care? Kill me and just get your bounty." She said opening her arms in a go-for-it gesture.

Micheal sat stone silentfor a few long, tense, seconds. Suddenly, he stood up, looking down at Dixoho. "No. I won't kill you." He started towards the door, but stopped prior to reaching it. Glancing back over his left shoulder at her, he added, "However, I do have a way to make it appear that you were killed, thus freeing you from the bounty."

Dixoho just stared at him not believing him for a second as he walked away looking angry then stopping before the doorway. She just looked away, moving to get another drink from the bar.

"Follow me to my shuttle. You can bring someone with you if you don't want to come alone. I swear on the memory of my murdered family, I will cause you no harm."

"Sure you won't. You were all about getting your ten bars a minute ago." She said, leaning back against the bar, looking at him. It was an act, she had never been tough before in her life until she had made that choice between right and wrong.

Micheal turned to face Dixoho. He could tell that she was putting on a tough front. He suddenly realized just how innocent she was. Speaking in a soft, non-threatening tone, he responded. "Actually, all I did was tell you the price on your head and ask what you took. You have nothing to fear from me." He puased for a second, and tben decided that his best bet to gain her trust would to be completely honest about himself. Taking a deep breath, he began.

"Let me tell you a little bit about myself. Perhaps then, you'll see that you have nothing to fear from me." He paused again and then continued. "I served for nineteen years in Starfleet, protecting our way of life. I saw more horrible atrocities than you can imagine in that time. After I retired, I married my best friend and went to work on my family's ranch back home. We were happy. And then we were blessed with a set of beautiful twins, one a boy and the otber a girl. They were everything to me. One day, while running a herd of cattle to another ranch, my home was broken in to. My wife was home alone with our babies," his voice cracked as he continued. "The intruder raped my wife several times, and then he slit both her throat, and the throats of..." He stopped and turned his tear-filled eyes away from Dixoho. Clearing his throat, he continued. "He was later captured and returned, by a bounty hunter. I knew then what to do with my life. I would rid the universe of as much filth as I could. So, I got a ship, and began hunting. To date, I have apprehended or terminated fourty-three criminals. Their crimes ranged from kidnapping to murder. I am very good at what I do. That is why I know, without a shodow of a doubt, that you ate innocent. Thus, you have nothing to fear from me."

Dixoho stood there watching him more and more intently and sighed softly. He was trying to be none threatening but she was skilled at seeing lying and dishonesty and she couldn't see it in him which frustrated her to say the least. She tugged her hair into a sloppy ponytail.

"Fine." She murmured crossing her arms.

Micheal tipped his head forward slightly. "Thank you. Please give me about twenty minutes to get everything ready, then meet me at my shuttle."

Dixoho shook her head. "Stay out of my life and stay away from me. I don't want anything to do with you." She said softly as she moved around him to the door. It wasn't like her in the slightest but she didn't want anything to do with him at all. She wanted to laugh, he had come to kill her but yet he was the only person who knew her truly, it was irony at its best.

Micheal wanted to stop Dixoho. There was something about her that made him want to protect her. However, he knew that if he forced the issue, he would be wrong. So, he let her go. As she passed him, he did say, "Please reconsider. Trust me when I say that as long as your bounty is open, others will come for you. I doubt another hunter will be as conscientious as I am." That said, he moved aside to allow her enough room to pass by.

Dixoho just ignored him turning her head away in disgust and anger.She was safe as long as she didn't leave the ship anymore and she didn't plan on doing that for awhile as she just wanted her bed.

OFF::

Micheal Robertson
Bounty Hunter
Alexandria

Dixiaho Saa
Chief Navigator
SS Mary Rose
(PNPC Gregnol)