Page 2 of Mated in the Stars
Sara smirked as she watched the lift doors close, carrying him down to the shuttle bay where they managed most of their scavenge hauls. She felt certain Doug would scavenge even if she didn’t pay him. The thrill and rewards of scavenging outweighed anything else, even the potential lethal consequences.
"Berg keeps us ready to get the hell out of dodge, and Cat, I want continuous sweeps of the immediate area. No surprises while we have men off the ship."
"Always, Captain." Cat replied, as she turned back to the console, her fingers dancing lightly over the controls. The blueish glow of the console screen flickered over her face, highlighting the concentration lines across her face.
Unease prickled at the back of Sara’s neck, like a plasma charge ready to be dispelled. She felt the weight of her crew’s safety on her. As the captain, she needed to ensure their safety while they picked at a scavenge find. She wanted nothing morethan to call her men back and get out of here at full speed, but without a good reason she'd feel like a fool to turn tail.
"Captain, all of us are suited up and ready to head out." Doug's voice crackled through the speakers on the bridge. Sara could easily imagine the smirk of excitement on his face as he thought of the potential hiccups they might run into and the thrill of seeing what was out there.
"Let me know if you run into any trouble. Otherwise, we'll keep our eyes peeled up here."
"Rodger that." Doug responded, the sound of metal boots clinking against the floor of the ship as he and the crew readied themselves.
"Oh, and Doug,” Sara added, “I want fifteen minute updates." The feeling of unease still gnawed at her threatening to send her flying up from her captain's chair. Tapping a finger against the armrest of her chair, she tried to find a different outlet for her nerves.
"Rodger that." Doug’s voice steady, helping to calm some of her jitters.
"Something wrong, Captain?" Berg asked as he shifted in his chair, leaning forward slightly, his eyes flicked over to hers. His eyebrows knitted, as his expression shifted from one of focus to one of concern.
"Just a feeling." Sara leaned on one of her armrests, her gaze locked onto the debris field floating around in front of them. If she played some classical music, it would almost look like a ballet of junk. But it was less beautiful when she thought of the life that had probably been lost. Whatever happened here had been a violent destruction.
"Sometimes a gut can be just as good as a sensor at detecting something." Cat commented, her gaze unwavering on the screen in front of her, the console lights flickering across her face.
"Learn that in prison?" Berg asked, a smirk dancing across his lips, teasing Cat in an attempt to lighten the mood on the bridge.
"Yeah." Cat said flatly. "Trusting my gut in prison saved my life on multiple occasions. You learn quickly how to read people and situations when you’re surrounded by blood thirsty people."
“Damn straight.” Sara nodded her head in agreement. “You were on one of the worst prisons I know of. More people die than live out their sentences.” She looked back at Cat, "You don't see anything on the scanners?"
Cat slowly shook her head as her eyes continued to stay glued to the console in front of her. "No anomalies, Captain, but like we all know silence can be one of the loudest warnings.”
"Then we stay. It's a sense of unease, not a feeling of immediate danger. Maybe more a sense of... something to come." Sara tried to describe it to them.
"Probably just the ghosts of these people who died." Berg offered unhelpfully. “Let’s hope whatever got them doesn’t bite us.”
“Thanks." Cat growled, her eyes narrowing into slits on Berg. "Now I have to worry about ghosts attaching themselves to me."
Berg chuckled softly as he swiveled around in his chair, then leaned back, folding his hands in front of his abdomen. "A prison-hardened woman like yourself can't possibly believe in ghosts." His tone went teasing, but they all knew that was all it was. They were like a mismatched family.
"You'd be surprised by the shit I've seen." Cat snapped back at Berg, each word laced with the past horrors she must have experience while imprisoned. "Ghosts wouldn't surprise me." Her eyes flicked towards the viewscreen, where the debris floated among the inky void of space.
"Maybe let's switch topics." Sara suggested, her voice barely above a whisper, as goose bumps spread over her skin as if ghostly fingers crawled along her arms. She’s have some trouble sleeping tonight.
"Don't like ghosts, Captain?" Berg asked, his smirk widening into a grim. When she scowled at him, he chuckled as he turned back around to his console.
"And no, I don't like the idea of ghosts." Sara replied as a shiver rippled over her. She resisted the urge to wrap her arms around herself. "Maybe we should say a prayer before we leave."
Cat snorted. "Do you know any prayers?" Her brow lifted skeptically as a flicker of amusement shifted in her eyes.
"No. But someone on board probably does." Sara reasoned.
Both Cat and Berg snorted in unison.
"You've hired us." Cat shook her head. "You know no one here is religious."
"It doesn't need to be anything real.” Sara countered with a shrug. “Just well wishes for the dead. Couldn't hurt." She didn’t want to be one of those ships with tethered spirits moaning through the halls. Though the non-believers said it was just the hull adjusting to the effects of space.
"We've never done it before, and we've scavenged hundreds of debris fields." Berg chimed in. “If we were going to be haunted, it’s probably already happened.” He nodded his head slowly as he pursed his lips. “Just saying.” He raised his hands in a slight shrug.
