Sky Full of Stars (closed)

[Interstellar Bun]

Beatrice was excited to have work, to get off of Omega for a bit and Quill fed off of that positive energy of hers. He liked ships and, more than that, he liked being on working ones. He would poke around with the mechanics of the ship and that was when he felt most at home. Sure, he could hack datapads and other things, do jobs that Beatrice needed him to do in order to carry his own weight, but this was what he truly liked.


At least, he had until the ship stopped moving.


Quill felt it, slow and easy, his brows furrowing as he made his way up from the engineer room, his boots clanking on the metal steps. He frowned as he roamed the halls, peaking his head into various rooms before he found who he was looking for. Prak and, more importantly, Tap.


Beatrice was no where to be seen, but he supposed she was walking around trying to keep herself from feeling claustrophobic. God she wouldn't like what he was about to say.


"Why did the engines shut down?"

 

[SensibleSidekick]

Prak had been playing on her Omnitool idly, doing her damnedest to get that retro game of 2064 to work on it so she could have something to do for a little while. This was the part of bounty missions she hated the most. The travel. She'd rather just be there and bust some heads already. Tap seemed comfortable with it though.


Or, well, as comfortable as a geth can look, she figured.


Tap had taken it upon itself to monitor the ships systems from where it was on the main deck, alongside rewatching old episodes of Blasto in the background. If Prak listened closely she might have heard the theme song being played lowly, almost as if the geth were humming it under its breath. She was about to ask about it when Quill showed up.


"Good to see you too, pipsqueak."


"Scanning..." Tap replied, ignoring Prak's quip for expediency in finding an answer. A few seconds later, a 'tsk' sound could be heard, "Electromagnetic Field of some kind turned all functions offline. Backup systems for life-support have activated. Estimated Time for Evacuation: 23 hours, 54 minutes, and 36 seconds. 35 seconds. 34 sec-"


"Got it kid. Can you fix it?" Prak shot the human a look, brow ridge raised, "Or do we gotta send out a signal?"

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Quill watched Tap closely as the Geth spoke, hanging on every word. All functions offline. Those weren't words anyone wanted to hear when they were on a ship in the middle of space.They sent a chill down his spine, something made worse by Tap's counting down.


It was Prak's voice that made him blink, his eyes owlishly large as he stared at the Krogan. He blanched.


"Uh- I, uh, I-I," Breathe. "Maybe. Probably. It depends on how advanced the electromagnetic field was and what it fried and if there are any parts I can move around from unnecessary functions to at least get us moving again and- I should probably stop talking and get to work, huh?"


"Did we stop moving? Quill, why did we stop moving?" Beatrice had finally arrived, her heavy footsteps and voice announcing her presence before she even reached the door.


"Tap said it was an electromagnetic field. I should, uh, hopefully be able to fix it."


Her shoulders slumped, a hand reaching up to push her hair out of her face and ruffle up the locks. "Well that's a fucking great. I don't doubt you can fix it, mi hijo, you're a fuckin' god with tech and shit; right now I'm jus' really hopin' you get it workin' before whoever put that fuckin' thing out there comes to collect their prize."

 

[SensibleSidekick]

"This platform will assist in any way that is needed, Quill-guest." Tap had still not been able to find a new designation for the man. He was still a guest at All or Nothing, so the geth figured it was still applicable until a new one became more fitting. The geth stepped closer to the engineer, fingers tapping gently against each other for something to do with its hands, "While leaving our current position would be optimal in terms of likely survival, it is also suggested that life-support be a top priority as well. This platform does not need it, but rest of crew will."


Prak rolled her eyes, giving Tap a quick nudge which had the platform moving to readjust its balance like a baby deer on ice. The geth was still getting used to the ship's slipperier flooring. "Just keep an eye on the timer kid. No life support is gonna help when we got pirates so far up our asses, we'll have hooks for ears."

 

[Interstellar Bun]

The idea of being attacked by pirates set Quill's nerves on edge. He liked ships, but he rarely got to work on them. And what if he didn't have any of the parts he needed? What if things were too strange, too different compared to what he was used to? What if he couldn't get it working and he was the reason that everyone got killed?


He was ripped out of his thoughts when Beatrice grasped his shoulder. He watched her for a moment, letting her ground him.


"You got this, mi hijo. Let the rest of us worry, you just do what you do best. Yeah?"


The breath he had been holding released and he nodded. "Yeah." He looked to Tap, rubbing his arm out of habit more than anything else. "Could you head down to the engine room with me? Two heads are better than one, after all, or, you know, that's what everyone says."

 

[SensibleSidekick]

Tap's headlight, now the usual bright white to unnerve any individuals they were to come across, or so Opso-Boss said, blinked at the comment before tilting to the side, "This one does not have a human head. If you are looking for a second head perhaps Prak-Bouncer should-"


"He means two individuals thinking are better than one," Prak interjected before it could finish that thought. There were some days where she wished Opso had found a Soda Fountain machine instead.


"Oh." It went quiet for a moment before nodding, "Very well. This platform will follow you."


As the two went off to the engine room, Prak looked to Bea with a sigh, "Welp, might as well get ready for a fight, huh? I did not miss this." Which wasn't the complete truth. Being a bouncer had its moments, but it was much duller than her bounty hunting life had been. It'd be nice to get her hearts pumping again. As she dismissed her omnitool and began towards the lockers to get herself ready she said with a chuckle, "That kid is gonna give himself a heart attack before anything. How'd you find his ass again?"

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Beatrice watched them leave before she followed Prak with long, easy steps. She had her omnitool, upgraded with tech to make it a pretty nice hand to hand weapon, but would likely run back and grab her shotgun before long just as a backup. Truth be told, she didn't like using guns. The kickback was nothing, but aiming was a bitch, making the shotgun the only viable weapon she could ever really use.


She snorted when she heard Prak's question, looking amused.


"Picked him up right after the Alliance told him to fuck off cause he was too scrawny and nervous. Poor kid was heart broken and didn't really have anythin' else going for him, you know? 'Round that time I was runnin' with an...let's say interestin' group, so I took him on. He got to fly and we had someone to keep our shit runnin' so things were good. Left a bit after that 'n he tagged right along; we've been a team ever since." She smiled, a fond expression rather than the loud and fake one she usually sported. "He's a good kid, probably shouldn't be runnin' with me if I'm bein' honest."


Not that she ever was.

 

[SensibleSidekick]

The krogan huffed, an amused sound, "You probably shouldn't be running with you if we're really bein' honest. Every time I see you there's trouble not far behind." Prak grinned as she holstered her weapons and equipped herself proper: her assault rifle, lovingly cared for and painted with some rather crude words in her native tongue, two pistols when her assault rifle was out of ammo at each hip, and her vest, well worn and having saved her life more times than she'd like to admit, the sturdy fabric having molded itself to her body from years of use. "You ever think about taking up a nice quiet job like, I dunno, librarian or some shit?"


"Quill-Guest?" The geth trailed behind the human as quietly as its metal frame would allow, realizing that the human was agitated and loud noises would likely make things worse. The Blasto theme was playing lowly again as it seemed to hum along to another episode, its particular favorite judging by how many times its played the vid by now. This one being when hanarian hero finally found the lair that held the hostages inside along with his nemesis, and the protagonist entering with guns blazing and saving everyone. Its fingers continued to click together, "Are you well? Despite a situation you are most suited for, you seem to be quite uncomfortable. Is it this one's presence?"

 

[Interstellar Bun]

She snorted louder at that, laughing as though Prak had said the funniest damn thing in the entire galaxy. Beatrice rubbed her face before shaking her head. "With a sense 'a humor like that you could go be a fuckin' comedian you know that? Nah, quiet jobs don't suit me well. I got a real specific skill set doesn't much translate into anythin' legal besides contract work for mercs and bodyguards." That's the only thing she had ever done. She'd grown up knocking teeth in and getting her nose broken, with scraped knees and broken bones. She had spent too long valuing her life based on her strength because now she didn't know what else to do. Beatrice had no fall back plan. She had always thought she'd die fighting and, really, she was just impressed she had manage to survive even this long.


"Besides," she continued, her tone lightening as she refused to remain serious for more than a second at a time. "I couldn't come flirt with my favorite Krogan if I were tied down at some real job; an' I know you'd really miss me."


Quill had been staring at his hands as they walked, long thin fingers twisting against themselves as he thought. He could hear the quiet sound from the Geth behind him. Was it music? It sounded like...Blasto. The thought made his thin lips quirk into a quick smile before he looked back at Tap. "What? No. Uh, no you're fine. I, you know, kind of feel better having you here, actually. Is that dumb? That sounds dumb." He was getting off track. "But, no, I'm fine. I think. I'm just nervous, tend to get that way every time lives are on the line...or with anything really." Was he talking too much? He felt like he was talking too much.

 

[SensibleSidekick]

Prak snorted, patting herself down to make sure she was all set, "Oh how fuckin' awful that life would be. You know, I hear there's a merc company hiring in Andromeda. Why not head over there?" She nudged Bea playfully, the action a little stronger than she would normally use for Quill or Tap, knowing the woman could handle it. "Alright, Casanova, let's go see how our nerds are doing. Gods know they're probably tangled in something." Quite literally, she thought. She could see the smaller human getting knotted up in things just by his panicked breathing alone. Poor kid.


"Your self doubt is unfounded," Tap said matter of factly, as if it were reading the inventory for All or Nothing instead of trying to boost a companion's self confidence. "Previous experience has shown that Quill-Guest is well versed in all things technological and shows less signs of anxiety than when with others of his kind. Or others, would be a more accurate statement. A qualifier was superfluous. This platform apologizes for the inaccuracy." The geth stopped to the right in the maintenance hallway, fingers pausing in their clicking, "Problem area identified. Main Temperature Regulator. Status: Offline. Cause: Unidentified, presumed Electromagnetic Field. Extent of Damage: Uncertain."

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Beatrice rolled her eyes and nudged Prak right back with the same amount of force. "If I didn't know any better I'd say you were tryinna' get rid 'a me." Andromeda. She wouldn't admit it, but the idea kind of stuck with her, one of those little things she held in the back of her head, tucked away with dreams what were just that. Dreams. Prak started off and Beatrice followed after her. "Well, at least we can't lose them if they're tangled up."


Quill listened to Tap as they made it to the maintenance hall. "Main Temperature Regulator." He thought for a moment before activating his omni-tool and stepping inside. "Yeah, yeah that would make sense. Okay, if it was the electromagnetic field that did the damage then the processors should be fried, which is going to be why it's offline." His omni-tool made a little blooping noise as it connected to the mainframe, allowing him to read the network connection data. The nervous tone that always covered his words was starting to fade. For once, he seemed rather normal, at ease. "We should be able to take parts from the water purifying system if I'm right about the model. They won't fit exactly but with the right wiring we can jerry-rig them into working as a temporary fix." He looked up from the glowing screen on his wrist.


"How does that sound?"

 

[SensibleSidekick]

"I ain't too good with knots, Bea," Prak held up a hand, digits wiggling as she spoke, "Fingers are a bit too thick for that dexterous shit. You're on your own for that."


Tap went quiet for a moment, light dimming as it went over Quill's plan before giving a quick nod, "All circumstances considered, dismantling of water purification more likely to sustain life than temperature regulator in disrepair. This one will acquire part needed by Quill-Guest." The platform was already pulling up schematics of the ship in order to locate the system needed, "Should this one acquire anything else?"