From Ashes and Dust (Book One)

Chapter 19.2

Tying off the end of her hair, Vatra draped her finished braid over her shoulder and walked into the dining room. She stopped when everyone's eyes fell on her. The silence was palpable.

"Don't let me interrupt," Vatra said gruffly.

Spyro appeared through the small hall leading to the cockpit. "Did you clean your wound?" he asked, ignoring the obvious tension in the room.

"You were hurt?" Revna questioned. She pushed herself away from the countertop of the small kitchen and walked over to Vatra.

Waving her hand in a dismissive manner, Vatra pointed to her forearm. "It was barely a scratch. We have bigger things to discuss." Her attention fell on the newcomers to the group.

Geb, Set and Fulgora were familiar faces to her. So far, they'd given no reason for Vatra to feel distrust towards them. However, three others had already betrayed them. Loki was dead, at least. But that left Nat and Laverna in the holding cells below. If they were all working together, they could easily free them and take over the ship.

No, they would have done that already. Right?

There was no one else left from the group Spyro and the others had brought aboard. Vatra glanced over at Spyro with wonder, momentarily considering if he felt guilty at all about bringing them on board. Not that he should, of course, but she couldn't help but feel curious about his level of emotions in such a situation.

Spyro remained stoic. "I think we should leave our newfound companions on the closest planet we can," he said.

"Don't we get a say in this?" Geb interjected. The god folded his arms, broad shoulders squaring. He looked around at the group as if searching for support.

"What, do you feel like joining our crew?" Enyalius teased. "I could see you working in the kitchen."

Geb's jaw flexed. "While we appreciate the lift out, we also don't have anywhere else to go. Those humans have painted a target on all of our backs, remember?"

"No shit," Vatra growled. "I say before we discuss who's going where, we try to get more information on our human problem. The gambol is going to last a while. We might as well make it worth it."

"Where are we going, anyway?" Hisato asked. He sat off in the corner, resting on a lowered bucket seat. Something resembling a piece of jerky flopped about between his thumb and forefinger as he used it to enunciate his words.

"Is that mine?" Vatra snapped her head when she noticed the food in his greedy hands.

Hisato took a bite of the jerky, ripping into the meat with a smile lighting up his face. "Of course not."

Vatra held a hand to her growling stomach. She bit her tongue, avoiding a long-winded lecture about people stealing her food. Going off topic would only waste time.

"I've made our gambol to Tau Honnor. It's the only station we can dock at that's neutral to any real policing. They won't need the Agkistrodon's registration or our ID's," Vatra explained. "I assume some of us," she paused to flicker her gaze around the room, "lost our identification when the mortals took us all captive."

A silence passed through the room, as did a few nods.

"Tau Honnor is lawless," Hisato said. "Are you sure you want us to go there? It's pretty much the same as how Belltower functioned, and I know how things are run in places like that."

"We just need some time to regroup and think. It's a good place to refuel, and it's certainly not the worst place I've ever been. The neutrality of the station attracts the worst, but it's safe there. The people know if they cause trouble, they'll lose their safe haven in the blink of an eye. Every political party around this solar system hates a good neutral zone," Vatra replied.

"It's not a bad plan," Enyalius said. "And I can't say I've ever been to Tau Honnor. It sounds exciting."

Spyro blinked slowly. "I cannot say I approve of this. Hisato is correct. Tau Honnor is lawless, and we were spared of violence the last time we visited the station."

"Oh, lighten up," Vatra said. "Let's get some music playing, food in our stomachs, and then we'll go ask our friends some questions before we get to the station. After all we've been through, you think I'd seriously lead us to some dangerous hell hole?"

"Yes," Spyro answered. "I will make sure our route is correct, however." Before he even finished talking, Spyro turned and disappeared back into the cockpit.

Chuckling, Vatra skipped over to the food displayed out across the countertops. She'd been eyeing the options while trying to keep her attention on the conversation. There was no denying her hunger, though. It felt like her stomach was trying to eat itself. 

Vatra placed a finger to the watch-face on her wrist as she mulled over her options. With a subtle swipe of her hand, music started playing from the speakers around the Agkistrodon. A Black Sabbath song, slower than the usual heavier rock, echoed through the ship.

The variety of chips and dried meat tasted even better than she could have imagined.

Small conversations sprung from the others. Vatra ignored the whispers and words that were passed around like gossip. She shoved food into her mouth as if it were the last time she was going to eat.

Magnetic boots thudded over the metal beside her.

Drawing her attention away from the plate she'd made, Vatra caught a bottle of water as Enyalius tossed it to her.

"You're going to choke to death if you don't slow down," the god said.

Vatra caught the metal bottle and took a swig, downing the water with a forceful gulp. "I've died of starvation before, you know. It's not fun to be hungry."

The grin faded from Enyalius' face. "No, I didn't," he spoke in a soft voice. Looking around, Enyalius paused for a moment before joining Vatra at the counter. 

"If you keep hanging around me like a shadow, I might think something's wrong," Vatra said. She swiped her mouth with the back of her sleeve, then returned to eating once more.

"I just don't like the situation we're in," Enyalius whispered. He turned and leaned back against the counter, scanning the room like a predator looking out for danger.

"Mmm," Vatra mumbled through a mouthful of jerky. "It'll be fine. I thought you liked chaos, war god." Using her free, right hand, Vatra struck out and landed a hard punch in Enyalius' ribs. The muscle beneath her hit was taut, as if he'd prepared for the strike, but she'd put more force behind the blow than she intended to.

The god inhaled sharply, wincing from her punch. "Dammit, that hurt. Wasn't trying to kill me more than once enough?" Enyalius looked at her with widened eyes, but then softened his gaze. He held a hand to his side and settled back even more on to the counter.

"Never," Vatra shot. "Anyways, I can't have you on edge. Chill out or go take a nap until we get to Tau Honnor."

"No way, I want to be there when you talk to those traitors. I need answers, too," Enyalius said.

Vatra considered his words. She hadn't thought about who was going to question Nat or Laverna. They couldn't all go down to the holding cell, after all. Who deserved to beat the hell out of the snakes the most?