She deposited her satchel there and started for the bridge, wondering what she was going to say to all the people she'd just said heartfelt goodbyes to before immediately changing her mind. They must think she was a complete flake.
Halfway there she felt the rumble of the ship taking off and quickened her pace.
Once again everyone was on the bridge, even Belix. The elfin woman gave her a quizzical smile, and Ali nodded to her. Barix gave her a welcoming leer, which she ignored, while Aiden glanced at her and then away, focusing on his piloting.
As for Dax, he must've known she'd entered, but if so he gave no sign of it. Lana was sure something was up with him when she made her way to the terminal near his station, and he still didn't so much as glance her way, back rigidly straight and eyes intent on his display.
“Get buckled in, crewman,” Aiden told her. “Protocol for maneuvering in atmosphere, remember?”
She nodded and hastily put on her restraints, remembering how the weapons officer had shown her to do it during the landing; he didn't seem in the mood to instruct her at the moment.
Was he mad at her? Disappointed she'd decided to stay? Worried? Relieved? She supposed that was the problem with having a friend who did his best to never show his feelings. If he even had any.
It didn't take long to climb out of the atmosphere and into space. Once they were on their way to the location of their first rift jump Lana worked up her courage to lean closer to Dax, whispering. “So, what's on the docket for training today?”
He still didn't glance at her, although thankfully he at least replied. “I hadn't anticipated you still being here, so I'm afraid I didn't prepare any material. Perhaps you can assist Belix in the engine room while I think up a new regimen.”
The elfin woman across the bridge jumped and whirled towards them, icy blue eyes widening in surprise as a delighted grin spread across her face. “Really?” she practically squealed. “You're finally giving me a chance to work with her?” She scrambled out of her seat, practically bolting over to grab Lana's hand and start tugging her towards the exit. “Quick, let's get out of here before he changes his mind!”
Bemused, she allowed herself to be towed along by the Ishivi, looking over her shoulder at Dax as she left.
Only to find that the young man had finally turned to watch her leave. He didn't try to jerk his gaze away when he realized she'd caught him looking, and with his inscrutable expression, it was hard to know what he was thinking.
Lana smiled at him tentatively, hoping to patch whatever this rift was between them. After a brief pause, he nodded at her, then turned back to his work. Belix had been tugging at her hand more and more insistently as she dallied, and she finally allowed herself to be led away.
“Do you think he's mad at me for staying?” she asked the elfin woman as they wound their way through the corridors.
Belix snorted. “Who the void knows, with him? Constructs aren't intended to be worried about, so they only let you know what's going on with them if it's pertinent to you or there's a problem.”
Lana frowned. “I think that's pertinent to me.”
The Ishivi rolled her eyes. “I meant pertinent in a good way, something you actually want to hear and not pointless whining. Otherwise, they'll keep their mouth shut, so if you're really curious you'll have to ask him directly.”
She supposed that was fair enough. “Um, what about you? What do you think about me staying?”
“Well, I can't say I think you were smart to change your mind,” Belix said, leading her into the engine room and handing her a multitool. “But it's also nice to still have you here to talk to.”
“Thanks,” Lana said hesitantly. “If you don't mind me asking, why do you choose to stay?”
The elfin woman laughed. “Not for our noble Captain's war, I'll tell you that much. Although I'm certainly no fan of the Movement, and however I may despise that talking hemorrhoid sitting in the pilot's chair, the one thing he's got going for him is he makes it his life's work to hit the Deeks in the coin purse over and over again until they bleed chits.”
Smiling at that imagery, Belix settled back against the bulkhead, seeming happy to postpone getting to work. “But as for why I'm here, the answer is simple . . . piracy pays very well if it's done right, and the Last Stand does it better than anyone. I blow money on every luxury I can find whenever we stop at a station or visit a planet, and I'm still obscenely wealthy.”
Lana felt a moment of disappointment. “That's it?”
“That's it,” the elfin woman said cheerfully. “Since this life is going so well, there's no reason to walk away from it until I'm at the point where I can buy my own planet, then lie about eating obscenely expensive delicacies for the rest of my extravagant, advanced medical technologically enhanced lifetime.”
She furrowed her brow. “Why would you want to lie about eating delicacies?”
Belix blinked at her. “No, I mean lie around. They're synonyms, you should know that.” She waved that off. “Ideally, one of my first luxury purchases will be a male version of Ali. As in an adult companion, not a man that looks like the gaping pustule's toy.” She snickered. “I plan to order my own robot in the largest size, if you catch my drift.”
Lana couldn't help but blush slightly; after spending this much time around the Ishivi, she had a feeling she did.
“Who knows,” the elfin woman continued wistfully. “I might decide to get an Ali, too, just so I can parade her around in front of him. Along with my
