She can already tell by the tone in Arden’s voice that what the other woman is about to say, Vela isn’t going to like. She kicks her legs over the side of her bunk. Pulling away from the warm body next to her, she heads to the door. The body gives an answering grumble in return, before rolling over and shifting to face the wall. She sighs longingly at the broad shoulders she’s leaving behind, before cracking the door open with a scowl.
“This better be important.”
Arden holds up her hands in an apology. “Sorry. I know you only tapped out an hour ago, but we’ve got another one.”
Immediately, the distaste drains from Vela’s face, turning into something more akin to concern. “Are you sure?”
Arden nods. “Something’s fucking with the scanners, so we’re pretty sure that’s a yes, but we couldn’t open it without your confirmation.”
Vela nods, running a hand through her hair before glancing down at the rest of her. She’s half-dressed, having essentially just shucked her pants and anything else that would be uncomfortable to sleep in before collapsing into bed.
“I need pants. Just … give me fifteen to get myself together, and I’ll be right there.”
Arden nods. “I’ll have it pulled from deployment and moved to a waiting room.”
“Thanks, Arden. And could you drum up some caffeine while you’re at it? I feel like this is going to be a long night.”
“You got it, boss.”
Vela nods and closes the door behind her, before turning back to the rest of the room. Space is tight, just enough room for a desk, a dresser, and a bunk, but it’s enough for her and her partner to make it work. She moves over to the place where she dropped her pants the night before and is yanking them up over her hips when she hears the voice behind her.
“Another one? Are they sure?”
Cassius’ warm brown eyes look over at her with concern as he watches her get dressed again, gathering her essentials to move about the ship. She doesn’t meet his eyes, knowing that if she does, he stands a chance of talking her back into bed and letting the matter wait until morning. But this, if it is what Arden thinks it is, is too important to wait.
“They want me to confirm, which means they’re as sure as they’re going to get.”
Cassius frowns, before kicking his legs over the side of the bed and reaching for his clothes. “You know, I wish these assholes would respect the rules.”
“You and me both,” Vela replies, running a hand through her curly hair to have it look a little less unkempt. “Trust me; I would much rather be sleeping right now.”
“Would you?” he teases. “Or would you rather be doing other things and only pretend to be sleeping?”
She snorts in response, before turning and giving him a quick kiss. “Ask me again once we have her acclimated, and we’ll see.”
He laughs, before pulling open the door to the hallway and gesturing for her to move ahead of him. She does, stepping out onto the gangplank and making her way through the interior catwalks to the central area of the ship.
Anyone else, if they had only walked from Vela’s room onto the catwalks, would think that they had walked into a warehouse rather than a moving vessel. After working her way up through various upgrades and other jobs, this ship moves so smoothly through space that most people within don’t even feel it, which is an asset when it comes to situations like this.
It also turns the path to her bunk into a dangerous, wild twist of catwalks without worrying about someone dying trying to get to her in the process.
She and Cassius take the last set of stairs down to the ground floor. A good chunk of their crew waits for their commands. They flank an oblong white box, made of plastic, but as she gets closer, she can already feel the flare of magic that surrounds it.
Magic is not uncommon on the shipments they carry. Most members of the arcane guilds want to make sure their shipments arrive untampered with, but they can also use them to disguise the cargo, trying to ship contraband through the carriers who won’t ship those things.
In Vela’s personal experience, that usually means a girl in a box.
“Who shipped it?”
“The name is Hamish Battlebrand,” Justine sighs, pushing up from her crouching position to make her way closer. “But I searched and he’s not a real guy. So probably someone we’ve banned in the past who thought they could slip their way through the cracks. Asshole.”
“Indeed,” Vela agrees, before making her way closer and running her hands over the magical shield above it. She can feel the crackle of arcane power beneath her fingers, and she frowns in response. “Whoever they are, they’re strong. This spellwork is going to take some doing, as they probably have an alarm spell built-in.”
“Anything we can do?” Arden asks, one arm folded across her stomach. She’s delicately teasing a manicured fingernail, watching Vela’s every move as she examines the case. She’s the newest to the crew, rescued very recently, so she’s still learning the ropes of handling these types of issues. In all honesty, there’s not much Arden can do. She doesn’t have the magical skill to undo the wards, nor does she have the wherewithal to handle what will come after. But that doesn’t mean that she can’t be useful.
“Go get some clothes. Something loose fitting. And check in the med bay to see if we have any anti-nausea meds.”
Arden nods, before stepping back and heading into the bowls of the ship. The rest of them don’t leave, but instead, take a step back and give Vela room to work as she sets to work.
Taking apart the wards on a box like this one is delicate work, more akin to disarming a bomb than picking a lock. One wrong move on the wrong ward and the protection could destroy everything within, rather than hurt the people trying to attack it. If there’s anything Vela’s learned over the years, is that some masters of the arcane or mad scientists would prefer the package lost than risk someone else getting their hands on it. And with cargo as delicate as this, that is a risk that Vela couldn’t take lightly. Not when she’s seen the result of when you’re not careful.
She closes her eyes, resting her hands on the top of the box, but this time she pushes through the top layer of magic to the locks that rest below. Arcane symbols wind around the exterior of her arms, almost like the tumbler lock of a [FIND THAT WORD FOR THE FANCY STORAGE THING]. Cassius comes up behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders gently and adding his power to her own.
“Where are we going?” he asks. Vela opens her mind’s eye and allows the spell to welcome her. She stands in a field of flowers; all the scents are cloying and sweet. Vela knows she’s smelled it somewhere before, but Vela couldn’t quite put a name on the most dominant scent, and that seems to be the clue Vela needs. The flowers tempt her to indulge and bask in their blissful scents. Still, she stays focused on the goal.
“A field of flowers.” She takes a deep breath. “There’s a soft floral scent, but sweet. Maybe honeysuckle?” One hand leaves her shoulder, moving to the dials that wind around her arms, and he shakes his head.
“Nothing here that matches that. It’s too short a word.”
She takes another breath, trying to find the notes that she’s missing, the thing that would make it more distinctive. She focuses on the small white flowers, taking in their shape, and suddenly it hits her. “Tuberose.”
Both hands leave this time, spinning the dials winding around her arms until all the letters fall into place, and the spell dissolves around her, freeing the first arm. She relaxes some, as step one of the process is complete. But there’s still one more ward left to break.
She sinks back into the vision again, and this time she finds herself in a more humid setting. She can’t make out the trees to be anything more distinctive, but this particular adventure isn’t about the plants. It’s about the animals. A pair of golden eyes hover before her, distinct and animalistic in shape. She tries to pull back and see more, but aside from the humidity of the space, she can’t see as much.
“It’s animal eyes. It’s humid, but I can’t see anything more than that.”
“Humid climates, it could be a jungle. Describe the eyes.”
“Feline, I think. Gold with slim pupils.”
“Jaguar?”
She takes another moment to stare before shaking her head. “No, it’s too small for that. Jungle cat.”
Cassius moves over, starting to turn the dials on her arm, and for a moment, things begin to feel too tight, but not entirely sliding into place. Still, Cassius gives it one final twist, and the dials disintegrate, falling apart next to her. The spell snaps her back into place on the ship, and she watches as the top of the container lifts and pushes back, and the room begins to fill with mist.
Vela pushes up onto her feet, before peering over into the container. Curled up on her side, completely naked, is a girl. She has long blond hair that curls neatly around her shoulders. Glittering arcane tattoos, similar to Vela’s own that curl around her wrists, cover her deep brown skin. With the box open, the girl slowly begins to come to, and Vela reaches forward and places a hand against her shoulder gently. The girl jerks away, trying to get away from the touch, and Vela holds up her hands and retreats.
“It’s okay. You’re okay. You’re safe now.”
The girl’s violet eyes spin around the room, taking in the cargo hold of the ship, and then realizing that she isn’t wearing anything. She pulls her legs into her chest to cover herself, and Arden steps up, offering her a long, loose-fitting dress. The girl takes it and starts to try to stand to put it on, but she wobbles, as her legs can’t hold her quite yet. Vela reaches out, arms extended in an offering, and the girl catches herself, letting her weight fall forward into Vela.
“It’s alright. I know things are terrible now, but everything will be alright.”
The girl nods. Vela can feel the tears dotting her shirt as the girl slowly takes one step out of the box, then another. Justine steps up from the back and helps get her quickly into the dress. Vela then pulls back to look her in the eyes, so that she can make sure that the girl sees and understands her.
“We’re going to take you to our medical bay, alright? So the ship’s medic can have a look at you.”
Her mouth works once or twice before she manages to get out a raspy question. “Where am I?”
“You’re on the Hellion. We’re a shipment vessel.”
“How did you get me?”
“Someone tried to ship you through our services.” Vela makes a face. “We have a strict no-girls-in-boxes policy, so when my crew suspected you might be one, we let you out.” Vela reaches up, before brushing a thumb against the girl’s cheek to wipe the tears away. “What’s your name, sweetheart?”
“Idira.” The girl swallows hard. “You won’t give me back to him, will you?”
Vela shakes her head as she turns to escort her to the med bay. “No, love. You’ll never have to see him again.”
#006 ~ handle with care ~ original ~ 1,983
“Vela?”
She can already tell by the tone in Arden’s voice that what the other woman is about to say, Vela isn’t going to like. She kicks her legs over the side of her bunk. Pulling away from the warm body next to her, she heads to the door. The body gives an answering grumble in return, before rolling over and shifting to face the wall. She sighs longingly at the broad shoulders she’s leaving behind, before cracking the door open with a scowl.
“This better be important.”
Arden holds up her hands in an apology. “Sorry. I know you only tapped out an hour ago, but we’ve got another one.”
Immediately, the distaste drains from Vela’s face, turning into something more akin to concern. “Are you sure?”
Arden nods. “Something’s fucking with the scanners, so we’re pretty sure that’s a yes, but we couldn’t open it without your confirmation.”
Vela nods, running a hand through her hair before glancing down at the rest of her. She’s half-dressed, having essentially just shucked her pants and anything else that would be uncomfortable to sleep in before collapsing into bed.
“I need pants. Just … give me fifteen to get myself together, and I’ll be right there.”
Arden nods. “I’ll have it pulled from deployment and moved to a waiting room.”
“Thanks, Arden. And could you drum up some caffeine while you’re at it? I feel like this is going to be a long night.”
“You got it, boss.”
Vela nods and closes the door behind her, before turning back to the rest of the room. Space is tight, just enough room for a desk, a dresser, and a bunk, but it’s enough for her and her partner to make it work. She moves over to the place where she dropped her pants the night before and is yanking them up over her hips when she hears the voice behind her.
“Another one? Are they sure?”
Cassius’ warm brown eyes look over at her with concern as he watches her get dressed again, gathering her essentials to move about the ship. She doesn’t meet his eyes, knowing that if she does, he stands a chance of talking her back into bed and letting the matter wait until morning. But this, if it is what Arden thinks it is, is too important to wait.
“They want me to confirm, which means they’re as sure as they’re going to get.”
Cassius frowns, before kicking his legs over the side of the bed and reaching for his clothes. “You know, I wish these assholes would respect the rules.”
“You and me both,” Vela replies, running a hand through her curly hair to have it look a little less unkempt. “Trust me; I would much rather be sleeping right now.”
“Would you?” he teases. “Or would you rather be doing other things and only pretend to be sleeping?”
She snorts in response, before turning and giving him a quick kiss. “Ask me again once we have her acclimated, and we’ll see.”
He laughs, before pulling open the door to the hallway and gesturing for her to move ahead of him. She does, stepping out onto the gangplank and making her way through the interior catwalks to the central area of the ship.
Anyone else, if they had only walked from Vela’s room onto the catwalks, would think that they had walked into a warehouse rather than a moving vessel. After working her way up through various upgrades and other jobs, this ship moves so smoothly through space that most people within don’t even feel it, which is an asset when it comes to situations like this.
It also turns the path to her bunk into a dangerous, wild twist of catwalks without worrying about someone dying trying to get to her in the process.
She and Cassius take the last set of stairs down to the ground floor. A good chunk of their crew waits for their commands. They flank an oblong white box, made of plastic, but as she gets closer, she can already feel the flare of magic that surrounds it.
Magic is not uncommon on the shipments they carry. Most members of the arcane guilds want to make sure their shipments arrive untampered with, but they can also use them to disguise the cargo, trying to ship contraband through the carriers who won’t ship those things.
In Vela’s personal experience, that usually means a girl in a box.
“Who shipped it?”
“The name is Hamish Battlebrand,” Justine sighs, pushing up from her crouching position to make her way closer. “But I searched and he’s not a real guy. So probably someone we’ve banned in the past who thought they could slip their way through the cracks. Asshole.”
“Indeed,” Vela agrees, before making her way closer and running her hands over the magical shield above it. She can feel the crackle of arcane power beneath her fingers, and she frowns in response. “Whoever they are, they’re strong. This spellwork is going to take some doing, as they probably have an alarm spell built-in.”
“Anything we can do?” Arden asks, one arm folded across her stomach. She’s delicately teasing a manicured fingernail, watching Vela’s every move as she examines the case. She’s the newest to the crew, rescued very recently, so she’s still learning the ropes of handling these types of issues. In all honesty, there’s not much Arden can do. She doesn’t have the magical skill to undo the wards, nor does she have the wherewithal to handle what will come after. But that doesn’t mean that she can’t be useful.
“Go get some clothes. Something loose fitting. And check in the med bay to see if we have any anti-nausea meds.”
Arden nods, before stepping back and heading into the bowls of the ship. The rest of them don’t leave, but instead, take a step back and give Vela room to work as she sets to work.
Taking apart the wards on a box like this one is delicate work, more akin to disarming a bomb than picking a lock. One wrong move on the wrong ward and the protection could destroy everything within, rather than hurt the people trying to attack it. If there’s anything Vela’s learned over the years, is that some masters of the arcane or mad scientists would prefer the package lost than risk someone else getting their hands on it. And with cargo as delicate as this, that is a risk that Vela couldn’t take lightly. Not when she’s seen the result of when you’re not careful.
She closes her eyes, resting her hands on the top of the box, but this time she pushes through the top layer of magic to the locks that rest below. Arcane symbols wind around the exterior of her arms, almost like the tumbler lock of a [FIND THAT WORD FOR THE FANCY STORAGE THING]. Cassius comes up behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders gently and adding his power to her own.
“Where are we going?” he asks. Vela opens her mind’s eye and allows the spell to welcome her. She stands in a field of flowers; all the scents are cloying and sweet. Vela knows she’s smelled it somewhere before, but Vela couldn’t quite put a name on the most dominant scent, and that seems to be the clue Vela needs. The flowers tempt her to indulge and bask in their blissful scents. Still, she stays focused on the goal.
“A field of flowers.” She takes a deep breath. “There’s a soft floral scent, but sweet. Maybe honeysuckle?” One hand leaves her shoulder, moving to the dials that wind around her arms, and he shakes his head.
“Nothing here that matches that. It’s too short a word.”
She takes another breath, trying to find the notes that she’s missing, the thing that would make it more distinctive. She focuses on the small white flowers, taking in their shape, and suddenly it hits her. “Tuberose.”
Both hands leave this time, spinning the dials winding around her arms until all the letters fall into place, and the spell dissolves around her, freeing the first arm. She relaxes some, as step one of the process is complete. But there’s still one more ward left to break.
She sinks back into the vision again, and this time she finds herself in a more humid setting. She can’t make out the trees to be anything more distinctive, but this particular adventure isn’t about the plants. It’s about the animals. A pair of golden eyes hover before her, distinct and animalistic in shape. She tries to pull back and see more, but aside from the humidity of the space, she can’t see as much.
“It’s animal eyes. It’s humid, but I can’t see anything more than that.”
“Humid climates, it could be a jungle. Describe the eyes.”
“Feline, I think. Gold with slim pupils.”
“Jaguar?”
She takes another moment to stare before shaking her head. “No, it’s too small for that. Jungle cat.”
Cassius moves over, starting to turn the dials on her arm, and for a moment, things begin to feel too tight, but not entirely sliding into place. Still, Cassius gives it one final twist, and the dials disintegrate, falling apart next to her. The spell snaps her back into place on the ship, and she watches as the top of the container lifts and pushes back, and the room begins to fill with mist.
Vela pushes up onto her feet, before peering over into the container. Curled up on her side, completely naked, is a girl. She has long blond hair that curls neatly around her shoulders. Glittering arcane tattoos, similar to Vela’s own that curl around her wrists, cover her deep brown skin. With the box open, the girl slowly begins to come to, and Vela reaches forward and places a hand against her shoulder gently. The girl jerks away, trying to get away from the touch, and Vela holds up her hands and retreats.
“It’s okay. You’re okay. You’re safe now.”
The girl’s violet eyes spin around the room, taking in the cargo hold of the ship, and then realizing that she isn’t wearing anything. She pulls her legs into her chest to cover herself, and Arden steps up, offering her a long, loose-fitting dress. The girl takes it and starts to try to stand to put it on, but she wobbles, as her legs can’t hold her quite yet. Vela reaches out, arms extended in an offering, and the girl catches herself, letting her weight fall forward into Vela.
“It’s alright. I know things are terrible now, but everything will be alright.”
The girl nods. Vela can feel the tears dotting her shirt as the girl slowly takes one step out of the box, then another. Justine steps up from the back and helps get her quickly into the dress. Vela then pulls back to look her in the eyes, so that she can make sure that the girl sees and understands her.
“We’re going to take you to our medical bay, alright? So the ship’s medic can have a look at you.”
Her mouth works once or twice before she manages to get out a raspy question. “Where am I?”
“You’re on the Hellion. We’re a shipment vessel.”
“How did you get me?”
“Someone tried to ship you through our services.” Vela makes a face. “We have a strict no-girls-in-boxes policy, so when my crew suspected you might be one, we let you out.” Vela reaches up, before brushing a thumb against the girl’s cheek to wipe the tears away. “What’s your name, sweetheart?”
“Idira.” The girl swallows hard. “You won’t give me back to him, will you?”
Vela shakes her head as she turns to escort her to the med bay. “No, love. You’ll never have to see him again.”