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"What happened?"

"We were hit by something."

"Damage?"

"Small hull breach." Seldovia's black-furred paws flew over the controls. The shudder hadn't been too violent, but she'd definitely felt it. "A few decks down, near the central core." A pause. Then a relieved nod. "Containment fields are in place."

"Did the deflector array fail?" Graham asked, hopping down some steps. He'd been in his office overlooking Ops when the alarm had sounded. "It's supposed to keep small objects away."

Seldovia stuttered. She had no idea. I'm a communications officer, not a scientist! "Um, well ... "

"Perhaps it was not debris we were hit by? It could've been a passing micro-singularity or some other phenomenon," Annika said calmly, stepping up behind the skunk. "This would explain why the impact felt greater than it should've for the size of the breach."

"Possibly," Graham said. "I would lean toward debris, though."

She tilted her head. "Regardless, it's clear we have a structural integrity problem."

"Well, this place is as old as the hills," the skunk told the two snow rabbits. She then glanced at her read-outs again. "Just because it's held up this long doesn't mean it's indestructible."

"Unfortunately not," said Graham. "But the High Command won't invest in a retrofit unless we prove our value." He paused, nose twitching. "Since it's not too serious, see who's available and assign them to it. Seward's needed in the docking ring." Reverie would be arriving in a few minutes, full of supplies. The station currently had no shields or major defenses. Get those up as quickly as possible, and then finish bringing power to every single deck and room. One thing at a time.

That's all they could do.

Annika remained by Seldovia's side, primly clasping her paws behind her back. "Do you need my assistance?" she asked the skunk.

"Sure," she mumbled. "Thanks." She was glad the ambassador had offered. Saved her from having to ask. But it still made her feel stupid.

"I'll be back in my office," Graham told them. "When Peregrine arrives to Ops, direct him to me." With that, he hopped back up the steps and through the sliding doors.

"Will Reverie be staying long this time?" the skunk asked Annika. She knew everything Graham knew.

"Three days. Then another trade run ... "

"Always coming and going. I'd get stressed out." She tapped a few buttons. They chipped and chirruped. Well, more stressed out than I already am, she corrected to herself.

"You've never served aboard a ship?"

"This is the first serious job I've ever had," the skunk replied. "So, no."

Annika nodded. She'd served on a few ships, herself. The female snow rabbit leaned her rump against the console's edge and held onto it with her paws, adding, "Being on a starship means a constant array of new experiences. You're always warping somewhere. Every day is full of forward momentum, literal or figurative. It can feel quite progressive. There is definitely an appeal."

"What does being on a station feel like, then? Being stuck in quicksand?" The skunk hadn't really spent much time in space. After fleeing home, she'd hopped from ship to ship, outpost to outpost. The bulk of her time had been spent on planets or moons. She hadn't had time to enjoy any of it. Too busy trying to track down fellow relatives-turned-refugees. She'd eventually given up on that and started looking for a new place to live. She was lucky the High Command had sent out discreet feelers for locals to work on the 'Redwing Reclamation Project,' as they'd called it at the time.

"Being on a station is less adventurous but no less unique. It allows for a greater sense of community," she insisted. "You can't fly away from the consequences to your actions. You have to face them every day. And instead of going to meet furs, they come to you."

"A very diplomatic response, ambassador," the skunk said.

She tilted her head, eyes smiling. "Thank you." She turned around, facing the large computer console, now. "Have you started the scans?"

"Yeah. I think I got it. You should probably double-check ... "

"If you wish." The snow rabbit did so.

"You seem very well-rounded," Selodovia mentioned. "Why didn't you become a science officer?"

"I prefer solving problems between furs rather than problems involving non-living objects. The results tend to be more satisfying."

"As long as you succeed. What happens when you don't?"

Annika paused, glancing directly at the bi-colored skunk. "A good diplomat never entertains the possibility of failure." The snow rabbit then tapped a few buttons. "There's no sign of singularities or celestial phenomenon. It must be a structural integrity problem. We're going to have to reinforce the outer hull at some point." This place had held up for hundreds of years. It would most likely be fine for another few months, or however long it took for them to fully address the issue. But it would definitely need to be addressed.

Seldovia rolled her shoulders, tensely.

"I notice you are somewhat nervous around my mate."

"What?"

"Or am I imagining it?"

The skunk blew out a breath. "He doesn't make me nervous, exactly," she said, of Graham. "He's just so nice and understanding that I'm terrified of letting him down." She sighed. That sounded lame. "I'm not exactly the most qualified member of this crew."

"You keep hinting at that. But you do yourself a disservice. You are just as valuable as anyone else."

"You're just saying that ... "

"I am not," the snow rabbit insisted.

"Mm." The skunk analyzed the computer's data, furling her glamorous stripe-tail. "You're right. Gotta be a structural integrity problem, but it appears isolated to that area. As far as I can tell. I'll let everyone know it needs to be fixed once I can send all the information to their computer pads."

Annika nodded lightly, waiting a moment before saying, "Did I hear that you and Seward were forming a connection?"

Skipping the beat, the princess rubbed at her cheeks and whiskers before replying, "Is that a polite way to ask if we bred?"

A mew of restrained mirth. "I am simply curious. But my congratulations, if so."

"We, uh ... yeah," Seldovia admitted, clearing her throat. "Well, okay. We did. In the holo-suite."

"And?"

"And it was ... " It'd been so long since she'd had sex, that her ability to judge how good it'd been wasn't exactly reliable. Anything would've felt good. "It was nice," she finally decided.

"I am sure Seward is out of practice, as well. At least since becoming injured. Give it time."

"He's so ... " What was the word she was looking for? "By the book," the skunk admitted, quietly.

"Well, he is an engineer."

"He did all the right things when it came down to it. Was very gentle with me."

"I sense a 'but' ... "

"But he didn't really communicate very well. He had trouble adapting on the fly. I had to steer him. If I hadn't plied him with alcohol and my pheromones, I'm not sure he would've eased up enough to ... well, to do what we did." She didn't want to give too many details. Sure, she often talked about the stuff others did. But this was different. It was personal!

"He could simply be shy. Or introverted. I've observed as much. Not to mention his lingering mental and emotional scarring from the war."

"I know all that. I'm not oblivious." The skunk trailed off. "I just wonder if we can be a successful couple. I've always wanted a relationship like your and Graham's. Sweet, swoon-ful. Adorable. Or Petra and Peregrine. Intense, edgy ... " Something with feeling. Something that resonated with immediacy.

"Their relationship may be that. But they are both devil-may-care sorts who throw caution to the wind without a moment's notice. It will catch up to them. They are reckless. Which is, in turn, adventurous, which is desirable to those who are stuck in so-called 'normal' lives."

Seldovia made a face. Am I being lectured?

"As for me and Graham, I am flattered you find us adorable." She bowed her head, warmly. "But we simply gel. We didn't plan it. It's not something you can script. It just happens."

"But that's the thing, ambassador ... "

"Annika."

"Annika," Seldovia repeated. "Things aren't supposed to 'just happen' for me. They're supposed to be guaranteed. I'm supposed to have a lineage."

"If you think this, then perhaps you have not fully mentally abdicated your throne."

"I've been away from home for years," she insisted.

"But has it been away from you?"

Seldovia stayed quiet.

"When are you going to be with him again?"

"Seward?" She hesitated. "I was hoping tonight. He throws himself into his work, though. Always so busy compared to me. I feel like I have to convince him to relax."

"He throws himself into his work because he's scared of staying still. Afraid of nothingness." The snow rabbit straightened herself, preparing to go back into Graham's office. "You could very well fill his void." A playful pause. "Though, I suppose, technically, he would be filling yours?"

"Annika," Seldovia said, bashfully.

"I had to say it. I am still a rabbit, regardless of what kind."

"I'd noticed."

"And so is Seward." The snow rabbit put a soft, white-furred paw on the skunk's shoulder. "He needs someone. And you make a sweet couple if you ask me. Don't get discouraged because it may involve a little work." She slowly moved off, back up the steps and into Graham's office.

Seldovia put her elbows on her computer console, resting her chin in her paws. She didn't mind working. As long as she got time off to play.

The circular door to the airlock rolled into the bulkhead with a ker-klunk, and Reverie crew members began to filter out. Most of them were pushing cargo containers on floating mag-carts. The majority hadn't boarded the station during the ship's initial visit and were looking around curiously, whispering to each other. A lot of rumors had gone around about this place.

Petra, Seward, and Herkimer were there to greet them, all standing to the side. Seward began to direct everyone around the corner toward the Promenade. They would take inventory there. Ideally, they would store the supplies in a cargo bay. But they weren't all fully functional yet. The snow rabbit hopped off with a computer pad in his paw, looking for his Reverie counterpart.

Herkimer watched him go. It looked like he was feeling better. Even more so now that he and Seldovia were an item. They were, right? I mean, that's that Barrow had told him. And the bat knew everyone's business.

Peregrine filed out next, taking a deep breath and locking eyes with Petra. He stayed quiet for a moment, a smile spreading on his lips. "Been a while."

"A few weeks," the rat echoed, nodding. "You missed my heat ... "

"So, I hear. I'm kicking myself over that," the mix-furred mouse replied, passionately. "Leaving you in such a state? I would've delayed our trip if I'd known. Or given the ship over to Talkeetna for a while and stayed behind."

"That's why I didn't tell you. We both got jobs to do."

"I'd rather do you."

"Such a smooth talker," the brown teased.

The mouse just grinned.

Petra chuckled. "So. What are you doin', now?"

"I gotta meet with Graham, go over some details." He took a deep breath. I think. "I'm free after that."

"Yeah?"

"I'm the captain, aren't I? If I wanna be free, I'm free."

The rat smiled, gesturing ahead of her. Peregrine padded forward, and they made their way toward the nearest lift, ropy tails crisscrossing behind them.

Herkimer watched them go. Those two raised the temperature of every room they entered. How was that kind of chemistry even possible? Will I ever have that?

"Hello, mousey."

He turned and blushed. "Oh. Talkeetna."

The red squirrel bowed her head. She and Herkimer were alone in the corridor. A few furs had remained behind on the ship, just to hold down the fort. But she was the last one to disembark. "How've you been?"

"I've been ... I'm managing," he decided with an honest nod, rubbing at his neck.

"Me, too. It wasn't our most exciting cargo run. Though I suppose that can be a good thing." Better than having run-ins with pirates or the Syndicate. A pause. "It's sweet of you to meet me here."

"I wanted to see you ... " He cleared his throat. "I mean ... "

"You seem distracted?" she observed, astutely. "What's on your mind?" She had a good idea, but he was going to have to admit it. She didn't want to beat around the bush.

"You know I like you, right?"

"I had an inkling." She winked.

Taking a deep, squeaky breath, the mouse asked, "What do I have to do to be with you? I'll do anything."

"Didn't realize you were so desperate."

"I'm not. I just ... you know, someone will snap you up, or something. I just don't see why I should wait. Why we," he corrected, "should wait. We're furs, after all."

"Last time I checked," the squirrel replied. She approached one of the walls and leaned against it. "That cat. You still hanging around her?"

"Um. Not really ... " On and off. Did that count?

"I don't really care for her," Talkeetna said, as if that hadn't been obvious.

"Well, you don't know her like I do ... "

"What's to know?" the squirrel challenged. "She's a manipulator. I know the type. Everyone is accountable but her."

Herkimer sighed.

"You know I'm right."

"I know. I'm just confused."

"Herkimer, you're a nice mouse. But I think you surround yourself with bad influences. And not just Advent. There's Barrow, Sheila ... " Even Petra, to a degree. Though the rat really wasn't that bad. She was only a curmudgeon on the outside. And because the squirrel liked Wren, she liked Petra by default. They'd also served together on Reverie. But Advent? She was a problem. And that bat.

"What do you mean?"

"They're all cynical and casual as hell. And you're not. I'm afraid they're going to ruin you."

"Are you ever cynical?" Herkimer wondered. He didn't think so. But as long as she was asking him ...

"No. I try not to be. Granted, it's hard, but ... you needn't worry about me turning sour."

"Optimism can survive in any environment. I'll be okay," the mouse whispered, assuredly. And then added, hopefully, "And maybe we'll be even better together."

"I knew you were going to say that. Or something like it." She smiled. "Very romantic." She paused. "Reverie's leaving in three days for another weeks-long mission. Think you can handle that? Month after month?"

He nodded quietly. He could. And there was always the possibility that, when they got the station up and running fully, Talkeetna might join them here. "I can deal with it. Most parts of me ... "

"Oh?" She raised a brow, bushy tail fluffing around. "Which parts wouldn't be able to? Just out of curiosity ... "

"My heart," he insisted, fighting off a big smile.

"Uh-huh. Think there are a few other parts ... "

"We haven't even kissed! I wouldn't dare get that far ahead of myself."

"We'll have to remedy that before I leave," she told him. She came right up to the mouse, almost touching noses. "I'm hungry. Can we get something to eat?"

Herkimer nodded, heart skipping a few beats. "What are you in the mood for?"

The red squirrel winked and began to move down the corridor. "That would be telling."

Herkimer blinked and scurried after her. "So, I have to guess? Talkeetna? Wait up!"

"I don't know why I have to help repair this breach," Advent complained grumpily. She knew that Reverie had docked and that Herkimer had gone to meet Talkeetna. Nothing she could do about that, unfortunately. Bastard.

"Because Seward can't be in two places at once, and everyone else is busy but us," Sheila said, plugging the tiny hole with a finger, preventing the corridor's air from leaking out into space. She'd turned off the force field. "Now shut up and hand me the welder."

The jaguar scowled and sorted through the toolkit. "I don't see it."

"It's there," Sheila insisted.

Advent threw a few tools aside, digging. "Mm." There it was. "It's a different issue than the ones I've seen before. I'm not familiar with High Command equipment." She grabbed it and thrust it at the hare.

Sheila took it.

"You're welcome."

Her fluff-tail flicked upward. "You and I don't have to like each other to work together."

"What a relief."

The hare reached out a paw again. "Visor." To protect her eyes while welding. Not that it was a big job. But safety regulations existed for a reason.

The feline tossed it at her.

Juggling it for a few seconds, the hare finally secured it, placing it on her forehead. "I hear you were spending time with Herkimer, again." There was suspicion in her tone.

"So?" A scowl. Who was spying on whom, now? "Who I spend my free time with isn't any of your fucking business."

"I'm chief of security. Everything is my business. And I know what you're like when you become unhinged."

"Do you?" Advent whispered.

"He's going to move on, eventually. Maybe even soon," Sheila said, of the mouse. "I think I saw him on his way to the docking ring."

"Unlike some furs on this station, Herkimer and I are mature individuals. When the time comes, we'll part ways," the jaguar insisted. He was probably meeting that squirrel right now. Probably finding a way to get in her pants.

"Cause that worked out well the first time, right?"

"What you and Barrow are doing isn't anything different."

Sheila avoided responding to that by saying, "If Barrow wanted to leave, I wouldn't stop him."

"But you know he won't. You wouldn't talk so big if he went after Seldovia or someone. And Herkimer's the one that came back to me ... "

"Say what you want. I just know that felines hold grudges," was Sheila's reply.

"Not just felines." Advent unsheathed her claws, inspecting them carefully. "You hate me just as much as I hate you. And you always will."

"Hate is a strong word."

"And an even stronger feeling," the cat confirmed. "You made it quite clear you were Herkimer's official 'police protection'. Not just his, but everyone's, actually. Some kind of righteous warrior. Redwing's moral compass. Which is laughable, at best. You're everything that's wrong with the Federation. You know that? You're inflexible and self-righteous."

"And what does that make you?"

"Just Advent. Plain, simple Advent. I am what I am, and I make no effort to hide it. At least I'm honest. And, oh, I could easily take you down." The hare's beat down on her in the wardroom? A fluke. An maybe I don't train as hard or often as the hare, but who does? She's obsessive. "Unfortunately, Graham would probably kick me off the station. His new 'peacenik' mate thinks I'm a bad influence, too."

"Annika? She told you that?"

"She won't tell me anything. She avoids me."

"I'm sure you're imagining it."

"Maybe." Was that sarcasm? The jaguar could be a little paranoid, sometimes. Always thinking furs were talking behind her back. It was just something she'd have to live with, if true. Because as much as she hated to admit it, she had nowhere to go. Just like the rest of them. The Federation had promised her a ship or some sort, even if it was a small one, in exchange for reporting on Redwing's activities. They probably wouldn't honor that agreement. But, then, she was used to being disappointed. She'd become hardened to it.

"I can sympathize with being disliked," Sheila told her. "But I think you enjoy playing the victim too often. We all struggle. But you complain about it the most."

"I deserve more."

"You, Seldovia, Barrow ... everyone on this station deserves more out of life than what they've gotten. At least, that's the vibe I pick up. Most of you think that. Yet here you are, in the middle of nowhere, on a station that's springing leaks. You're going to have to accept that sooner or later. The 'golden age' is over. Welcome to the Uncharted Territories."

"Lovely speech." The jaguar clapped her paws together. "I suppose you're never a victim?" Advent countered. "Even after the Federation betrayed you? Even after the wasps tortured you? After Pyro left you for some new floozy? Bet he's knotted with her as we speak."

She didn't take the bait. "I don't blame anybody for anything that's happened to me. I simply take it. If I'm a victim of anything, it's circumstance," Sheila said. "And that's completely beyond my control."

"It doesn't make you mad, though? Doesn't make you furious?" the impassioned feline asked. "Doesn't make you want to kick own every wall you see with those freakishly large foot-paws?"

Sheila lowered the laser torch and flipped her visor up. "It's fixed. That should do it."

"Are you going to answer me?"

"No."

"Then the universe has truly beaten you down. And you call yourself a fighter."

"You just don't know when to quit, do you?" the hare snapped. "You don't know when to tone it down or scale it back. That's why you pushed Herkimer to his limit. That's why he left you the first time. And that's why he'll leave you again. That's probably why you lost your ship and wound up here. 'Restraint' is a foreign concept to you, isn't it? All you know is ego."

"Still more than you know." Advent blew out a deep breath, packing up the tool-kit and bouncing upward, striding away.

Sheila followed, remaining several paces behind. There was no point in giving a response. It would only encourage the jaguar further. "Promenade," she told the computer.

And it whisked them away.

"I missed you," Peregrine breathed, licking one of the rat's hardened tits, "so much." Lick, lick. Then outright suckling on it. They were in Petra's quarters. He'd met with Graham. Done all he needed to do. Well, except his mate. But he'd take care of that very soon.

"I hear ya." She played with his head-fur, eyes half-open. "You didn't have any run-ins with the Syndicate, did ya?"

"None," he promised.

She nodded. That was a relief. She'd been worried about that.

Popping off her nipple, the mix-furred mouse looked up at her, pelt steely grey with those patches of brown. He touched their noses together. "I almost went crazy from repressed desire in your absence."

"Not as much as me. I tried recreatin' you in the holo-suite."

The mouse laughed, kissing her shoulder. "How'd that go?"

"Not as good as the real thing." She lowered her voice, paws rubbing up and down his bare back. "He couldn't get me to orgasm." Probably because, psychologically, she'd known it wasn't real, and that had hampered her arousal.

"Well, that's not very accurate, then," he replied, smoothly. "Speaking for my photonic counterpart, I am sorry." He kissed her lips, lightly. "I shall have to make it up to you." He nuzzled her cheek, then. "Unfortunately, Reverie has no holo-suites, as you know. I could only use my paw."

"Didn't meet any pretty females at your ports of call?"

"I kept my nose clean."

"Must've been hard for a former philanderer like you. Your penis deserve a reward." She reached for it. It'd left its sheath quite a while ago.

"Please tell me that reward is rat pussy," Peregrine replied, desperately, paws all over her body. Nose drunk on her scent. He began humping at her fingers.

"You're a smart one." Her thighs fell apart, legs rubbing, tangling, tails flailing.

"My heart's practically fused with yours."

"And a charmer," she added.

"Aren't I?"

She kissed him, rolling with the mouse across the sheets. They nearly went over the edge of the bed. He stopped them in time, though, wrestling with her, rolling back to the middle of the bed. Taking her arms in his paws. Grabbing her wrists. Pinning them over her head as he dipped between her thighs and, looking deeply into her eyes, smoothly penetrating her. She was sopping wet already and felt like heaven itself. He couldn't hold back the shivering sigh. "Ah-h ... oh, my."

"I could say the same for how you feel," the rat murmured.

"Mm-h." He began to thrust.

Minutes later, the two rodents were squeaking up a sweaty, fur-shedding storm. If absence made the heart grow fonder, then they had a lot of fondness to express, indeed. It was probably going to take all afternoon.

Aria primly clasped her paws behind her back, speaking to the main view-screen. The sleek starship Arctic was on its normal patrol route along the border, between planets. "A ship with your designation code has been reported in violation of High Command law."

"That is preposterous!" was the meerkat's animated reply. "Lies!"

"We have the sensor records to back it up," the snow rabbit continued.

"I am an honest trader. Nothing more." In the background of his bridge were many more meerkats. Wandering about, working at stations. Aria had heard that, as a species, they had an instinct for congregating. But a whole ship of them? That would test her patience.

Aria glanced over her shoulder at Elim, and the tactical officer said, "We 'acquired' some of your goods. They are, in fact, relics and artifacts from a planet just outside the border, in the Uncharted Territories. Possibly of great historical value." It was the planet mere hours from Redwing Station, actually.

"You are more bureaucratic than the Federation. You have no right to my goods! Or that planet! I found it first," the freighter captain insisted.

"He has a point," Kaplan, the young comm officer said. He had a habit of injecting himself into most things. Sometimes in the form of opinions. And often in the form of certain appendages.

"Mm," Aria went, looking over to the ensign. She was forced to concur. She glanced back at the meerkat on the viewer. "We will not confiscate anything. However, consider this a 'reminder' that, in future, you must clear your goods with the High Command before dealing them."

"Thanks for the advice," the meerkat said, sarcastically. "I'll be sure to follow the proper protocols." With that, he cut the channel and his ship sluggishly turned and fired its thrusters.

"Difficult sort," Kaplan added.

"He may well think the same of us," Aria replied, trying to be tolerant.

"Do you think the artifacts he's trading are related to the ones found on our own Home-world?" Elim asked. "Dragon technology?"

"Their vast network of gateways allowed them to colonize countless far-flung worlds. And while Redwing was built by avians, birds and reptiles have a shared heritage."

"But not a recent one."

"The avians could've been political allies of the dragons. Back before mammals formed organized governments." After going five hundred years back, historical records became a little shaky. They had no way of knowing for sure. She paused. "We need more information." Unfortunately, Arctic couldn't deviate from its patrol route at the moment. "Send a message to Redwing Station. Tell them we need a 'survey' of their mystery planet."

"They might be hesitant to comply. They are operating on a skeleton crew as it is. And they only have one shuttle."

"Then the Reverie will have to help them out. Redwing is under High Command jurisdiction, and I am the ranking officer in this area of space."

Elim's eyes sparkled. He loved it when Aria laid down the law.

"If anything on that planet poses a security risk, even incidentally, it would behoove us to know." She sighed and stretched. "In the meantime, I will be in my ready room. Eating a salad."

"Will you require dressing?" Elim asked. By now, the entire crew knew that he was the third member of an ongoing threesome that included the captain and Ross, her mousey mate. Everyone else on the bridge perked their ears waiting for a response.

"I'll go without," she replied, matching cheek with cheek. Then hopping into her office.

Elim looked down at his computer and mewed. He couldn't wait 'til his shift was over.