Upon Vestia: Chapter Thirty-Eight

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Shane nodded agreement. "Let them sort themselves out, when they are ready, if they ever are, they can admit it publicly as Starr and Armin have done with their dating.

~~~
Danika chuckled softly and shrugged "It's just part of the game, most of the situations are made up things to give a reason for adding money to your bank." She waited for him to put the amount in then picked up the dice to roll them, using the chance to show him how they were normally rolled without saying so. She landed on the starship (train) and immediately bought it

"A bounty is when someone offers money for the capture or death a specific person," Vestia explained to Ivor. "Bounty hunters are people who actually do the capturing or killing."

~~
Ellie smiled at the kids as they headed off, as if she wasn't super worried about whatever news the crew was about to get. Yeah, it was much better for the kids to be somewhere else for any bad news that was on the way.

She shot Matt a grateful smile for thinking of sending them away.

"let's explore." Lana suggested with a grin as she led the way.

Matt chuckled. Ahh kids. He nodded to Ellie. "So who are we waiting for to get this show on the road?" He asked.

---

Ivor nodded slowly. "everyone will be worried. Is... is it going to be dangerous for us?" Wasn't it always? that's what the others always said anyway. He couldn't help but wonder why Hytar had sent he and his sister here if it wasn't safe. Had he believed otherwise? The crew did seem fairly capable, despite the dangers. "Where is Sister?"

---

Esk sighed and taking his tablet with him, headed to this meeting. He wasn't looking forward to this.

Skye and Moone headed for the meeting once they returned. It was important and they both wanted more info.

Starr sat quietly, thinking about the way things were and what threat might come this time.

Shane joined the gathering, going to sit near Matt and Ellie.
~~~~
Vela smiled and followed, wanting to see more of Vestia's rooms and glad for the company.

Lana grinned and picked a direction at random, heading off eagerly. She liked exploring.

----

(let's get this meeting sorted! lol)

(Meeting! Meeting!)

"It might be dangerous, it usually is," Vestia told Ivor. She'd tell him where Silence was.

~~
Once everyone was back on the ship, Tala would head to the meeting. She was a little more at ease now everyone was accounted for, but that wasn't saying much. This situation was extremely unsatisfactory.

Zara, seeing how many people were in the room, asked Vestia to transcribe for her. Reading transcriptions off her tablet was a lot easier than trying to lipread a roomful of soon-to-be-upset people.

When everyone was assembled, Vestia would start by describing the basics of the situation. Since she didn't know all the details she'd leave that for the people who had been there to fill in, but she could provide the basics at least.

Ivor went to find Silence, who was making her way to the meeting. As a result, he ended up with her when she ambled into the room and hunched down toward the back.

Ivor frowned, wary of all the various thoughts and voices. This was stressful.

Silence reached out a clawed hand to him and he clasped it gratefully. Glad she was here to help calm him.

Meanwhile Esk waited til Vestia had finished filling everyone in before taking his place at the front.

Matt and Kay exchanged glances and Matt couldn't help but call out "wait.. YOU called this meeting?!"

Esk glared at Matt but turned his attention back to everyone else. "You know I wouldn't do this unless it was important. If it was just me in danger i'd leave, but it's not just me." He held up his tablet. He still had dried blood on his face, evidently he hadn't viewed getting cleaned up a priority.
"Mourn reactivated my credentials. For now, I still have access to the bounty lists and dark web conversations. Our reappearance hasn't gone unnoticed. Even the regular web has people talking about the ship that disappeared and then reappeared again. Several people are blaming us for the rift in the first place but that's beside the point." He shook his head, keeping his eye on his tablet rather than the crowd. He wasn't much one for this kind of public speaking. "Over the years conspiracy nuts have come up with some wierd rumours, but they've also helped put together a crew manifest and it's.. quite disturbingly accurate. Our reappearance, me popping back up on the radar, it's got people talking. People i'm sure a lot of us really would have preferred thought we were still gone. " He exhaled sharply. "to be brief, it's not safe here. The longer we stay in one place, the more likely it is someone will come looking. We already got one, it's likely there's more already on their way."

Starr frowned and glanced around "Is there any reason to stay here while we talk?" She asked, wanting to be sure their business was done in this station. After all, they could leave and still talk.

James shivered. "The future just keeps getting better and better, doesn't it?"

Zara let her grip on her tablet tighten. This crew had warned her that they tended to attract trouble, she really couldn't blame them for delivering on their promise a lot sooner than expected. She glanced over to Ivor, remembered how sensitive he was to strong emotions, and tried to conceal her fear behind peaceful images of pretty clouds like she had before.

"Starr is right," Tala agreed, "there is no reason to stay here. It is better to leave with all haste."

Asher winced. "The kids have people they care about here on Unity, I'm sure they'd like to say goodbye if possible," he said quietly. "And there are still things at the apartment that haven't been moved yet. I realize neither of those things are high priorities at the moment, but the kids have been here most of their lives, and leaving like this could be difficult for them."

Esk nodded, relieved that nobody saw fit to argue this. Maybe they were all learning after all.

Kay chewed his lip anxiously.

Matt looked around. "It won't take long to grab things from the apartment, a lot of us can help move things if you need. " He suggested, hiding his own anxiety well.

Armin wrung his hands, worried, but he remained quiet.

Ivor tightened his grip on Silence's arm but managed a weak smile of gratitude toward Zara when she glanced back at him. He could tell she was trying to think of nice things and he appreciated it, even if it was rather lost in the rest of the noise.

Hewitt scoffed. "Well then, go get your things, fetch your offspring, say your goodbyes and let's leave." He spoke matter of factly, as if they were all being ridiculous making a fuss about it.

Starr nodded and sighed "Right, Nova and the kids can go say goodbye and take what is left, Asher too if he wants. If anything happens, they can use the stones while we get clearance to leave." She said as she stood up. "Is there anything else?" As if this wasn't enough, at least it wasn't too bad yet. They could handle a few bounty hunters as long as they were aware.

Esk nodded, then hesitated. "it won't just be bounty hunters..." he pointed out. "There's still people out there pissed off at a lot of us for various reasons. A few of them may decide to take a more... personal approach."

Kay frowned.

"With all due respect..." Armin spoke tentatively. "That is nothing new for us." He bowed his head.

Esk nodded. "Yeah. Good point."

"Leaving will only delay the inevitable." Jarral spoke up from the corner of the room, his tone flat and matter-of-fact.

"Not if we keep moving." Matt suggested. "I mean, granted Vestia isn't gonna be able to hide, but..."

"I would suggest sticking to known cruise routes." Hewitt suggested in a casual tone that implied he wasn't really overly concerned. "One cruise ship among many won't be as obvious. "

Asher nodded to Starr. "I'll go with Nova and the kids to pack and say any goodbyes they'd like to make. If anyone else wants to come along and help us move things, they're welcome to join." He stood with a sigh. Much as he wanted to stay for anything else that might be discussed, he trusted these people to handle things. His job was to be there for the kids.

"You think people worse than bounty hunters will be showing up?" Ellie asked Esk warily. She thought of some of the people who had come after them in the past and shuddered. "Would have been nice if they'd lost interest in us while we were away," she added, looking grim.

"One benefit of us heading into the Imperium is that it will be difficult for our pursuers to follow," Tala mused. "The threat of the Satare Empire will be great of course, but many other hostiles may prefer not to follow us into such hostile territory." Optimism!

"Delaying the inevitable..." Starr frowned as she looked to Jerral then away as she continued to speak. "I prefer to think of it as taking time to prepare, since we know the danger, we can face it with preparations. We are not just going to run, we know our enemies will find us eventually. We made pretty decent traps last time, without much time to prepare. We can do better this time." Hopefully without hurting Vestia too.

Riigel sighed and left, going to get the ship ready for departure. No matter what, it needed to be ready to go. Luka needed to go.

~~~~
Vela frowned, stopping where she was. "Mom says we have to go say bye to the people on the station and get whatever is left in the apartment."

Lana paused, frowning a little. "We're leaving already?" She wondered what had happened.

---

Luka looked anxious. This rather hurried along her own plans and she wasn't sure she was quite ready for that. But she rose and followed Rigel. There was a lot to do.

----

Esk shrugged. "I don't know." He admitted. "All I know is there's a lot of people and ... other things.. out there that really don't like us."

Kay chewed his lip. He wasn't at all prepared to deal with god-like beings again. Couldn't they get a break for once?

Matt's eyes narrowed "Yeah well they've tried it before and like all those other times, we'll win."

Esk frowned at his brother but thought better of pointing out that a lot of their encounters hadn't been anything any sane person would consider 'a win'.

Kay shook his head and rose from his seat. [We should prepare to leave then.] He hesitated, glancing at Tala. [and figure out precisely where we're going.] He wasn't keen on the idea of travelling through Imperium space, he understood how risky that was, but Tala did make a sound point about hostile territory. Still, the idea troubled him and felt more immediate than possibly bounty hunters or worse.

Matt stood. "I'll help with the moving."

"As will I, if it is required." Armin added, bowing his head gracefully.

"You speak with good sense," Tala told Starr approvingly. "We shall prepare for battle, and yearn for the day when we smell the blood of our enemies upon the wind!"

"We can't do much to prepare if we don't know how they'll attack, can we?" Ethan said tiredly.

James noticed Rigel and Luka heading off in a hurry, and frowned. Was this a Silver Devil thing, or was this some sort of romance thing? Who could ever tell?
He decided to stay out of it just in case.

~~
Asher would nod gratefully to anyone who volunteered, and head off the find the kids. Ellie would go along too.

Starr nodded and looked to the ones leaving before focusing on the dragons. There was a lot they could prepare though another fight was not what she wanted.

Rigel looked to Luka as they headed to stock the Devil. "I want you to try to go, before any new fights come up. I can let you know where we are after you find your people. I would rather go with you, but you have already said that won't work." He was rambling a bit.

~~~
Vela sighed and turned to return to the exit. "this meeting must have been about leaving." She said with a shrug.

Luka fidgeted anxiously as she walked, nodding though she didn't look happy. Her heart ached. Leaving one family for another was never going to be easy, but she'd hoped she'd have a little more time to say goodbye.
"I WILL find you. I promise." She looked like she was trying to fight back tears. What if something happened to them while she was away? What if she never saw them again? All those fears kept running around her mind and wouldn't leave.

---

Matt and Armin went with Ellie and Asher and anyone else who'd volunteered to help move.

Kay stared down at his tablet miserably before snapping his attention back to Esk, who still had blood on his face. He marched over to his brother. [You're hurt.]

Esk glowered. "i'm fine."

[No, you aren't. I can see the bruises forming. Go get yourself cleaned up. And rest, exertion isn't good for you right now.]

Esk's expression soured all the more. He realised Kay was just doing his whole medic thing to distract himself, but that didn't mean it wasn't fucking annoying and patronising. He grunted in irritation and walked away, hands clenched into fists.
Of course, Kay did have a point. He had a lot of bruises and scrapes and his ribs throbbed. But still, he'd been in worse states and he could handle it.

--

Ivor looked to Tala worriedly, then to his sister. "a... are we really going back to Imperium space?" He asked her quietly.

Silence shrugged.

Once they'd found the kids, Asher would explain that they had to leave in a hurry, and they were going to need to pack and quickly stop by to visit with anyone they wanted to see before they left.
He hated that they didn't have more time, but this was an urgent situation.

Ellie tried not too look too unhappy and worried.

~~
"As the Imperium has absorbed space all around my homeworld, it is necessary to travel through their space to visit," Tala explained to Ivor. "So yes, going through there is the plan."

James sighed. "Out of the fire, into the frying pan. Yay us."

~~
Vestia watched Rigel and Luka's actions uncertainly. "Hey, uh, where are you two going?" she asked them.

(I'm pretty sure they didn't tell her yet, right? Unless I'm forgetting something, haha)

Rigel looked to the nearest camera then back to his work of preparing the ship. There wasn't that much left to do anyway. "Remember that Luka wanted to check on her family, maybe bring them to us? I figure this needs to be done before the next battle we get into." He explained simply.

Vela nodded and ran off to say bye to the few kids she had made friends with, Kerr nearby for the moment.

Danika stayed with Asher and the others. She hadn't made friends as easily, being quieter than her siblings. She would help pack the little that they hadn't already got out.

~~~
"We will do our best to keep you safe." Starr said, glancing over to the two, Ivor and Silence. They might not speak to one another much, but she still wanted to do that much for everyone on this ship. As long as tasers weren't in the battles, she could keep her word pretty well on this.

Lana went to say goodbye to various people and sneak a few last sweets from the adults she could bat her eyelids at.

---

Ivor looked uncertain but he said nothing, simply nodding at Starr's reassurances.

Jarral took the oppertunity to slink away at last.

Kay tapped his fingers on his tablet, thinking. He was about to write when he remembered Tala couldn't read his tablet anyway. Bah. He shook his head. He was sure there would be a meeting about this soon enough.

"If we're going to risk Imperium space, we either better have a damn good disguise or be extremely quick." Esk remarked. He knew this mattered to Tala though. "I hope one of you has a plan that won't get us all shot immediately." And with that, he made his way for the exit.

----

Luka looked a little uncertain as she glanced up at Vestia's cameras. "I... didn't expect to have so little time. I.. I need to explain to everyone. To say goodbye..." She wrung her hands, clearly stressed.

Soon enough Vela would return to the apartment, frowning a little from saying goodbye.

~~~
Starr gave a gentle smile back to Ivor then stood, thinking about what Esk said. What would they do?

~~~
Rigel looked to Luka and put down the box he was unloading to go to her and take her hands in his. "This isn't goodbye, this is just a see you later. Remember that." He said gently.

Vestia watched Rigel and Luka uncertainly. "You two are taking the Silver Devil?" she asked. "I guess that does make sense. I really can't drop you off myself."

She hated the thought of some of her passengers going into such dangerous territory without her protection, but realistically she knew she'd be no help at all. A ship like her, sneaking that deep into Imperium space, was bound to be noticed.

~~
Asher packed and worried, because he was just that good at multitasking, and tried to be reassuring for Danika. He smiled with relief when Vela returned; the sooner they were out of here and away from Unity, the better.

Well, probably better.

Ellie packed too, a little slower because of her injured hand, and the fact that she wasn't familiar with where anything was in the apartment. Mostly she was there to offer emotional support anyway.

~~
Tala huffed out a breath of air, dissatisfied. It was true, they were going to be risking everything by going into Imperium space. They had magic and a lot of smart people on their side, but that didn't guarantee anything.

Hopefully by the time they entered that territory they'd have a proper plan but... there was no guarantee. And in Vestia was noticed and fired upon, she wasn't going to win that encounter. Not when she was still recovering from her last battle.

"How good are your peoples' illusion magic?" Tala asked Starr, because magic was the main advantage they had.

Zala, glancing down at her tablet screen, gave an odd start as she read the question before looking deliberately casual.

Hewitt had made himself scarce at some point. He was small and light on his feet, made him pretty good at stealthily just leaving when he got bored.
Amity however remained, hovering uncertainly near the door in case someone needed something.

Kay paused, looking to Starr. She usually had plans didn't she? She was good at those.

"Easier to teleport." Silence mused with a lumbering shrug. It wasn't a suggestion, just a passing idle thought that her necklace translated automatically.

---

Matt and Armin helped pack as best they could. Matt kept trying to disappear things into pocket space by reflex, especially the small things. He kept forgetting they had boxes.

Armin however dutifully carried things and even offered to bear the weight of heavier bags on his back. He was strong after all, he could carry quite a bit of weight if they strapped it to him properly.

---

Luka squeezed Rigel's hands, smiling sadly and nodding. "I know." She was trying to project a cool collected demenour but failing miserably.
She glanced to Vestia and nodded slowly.

Starr frowned in thought then shrugged "We could have several work together, then the illusion should be unbreakable. One on one only stronger magic can see through, normally." She answered then nodded at Silence "Easier and harder. To move Vestia herself would take a pretty big stone, but moving individuals can just take a small stone."

~~~
Vela looked around when they were done, smiling at the help they had then going to Armin's side. He was her 'dad' figure pretty much after all.

Kerr had yet to show up, he had gotten distracted and lost track of the time.

~~~
Rigel knew she wasn't as calm as she tried to show, but wasn't certain what to say or do to help her. After some internal debate, he moved, hugging her tightly for a moment then gently.

Luka hugged back, fighting back tears yet again. It was going to be so hard to leave this place, to leave Rigel. But she needed to see her family. She couldn't get this close and not. She pulled away. "I should pack and... make sure everything is set."

---

Armin bowed his head to Vela. "Is this everything?" he asked.

Rigel nodded and stepped back a little, looking at her face then away to the ship. "I'll make sure everything is flight ready, so you can go when you are ready to."

~~~
Vela nodded and glanced around again. "The rest was here when we arrived." She answered then looked back up to him again, giving a sad smile and speaking softly. "I liked it here, there was a lot to learn about, but I missed you guys to much to be really happy."

"We can get more people away if we go in person, with Vestia," Tala said. She blew air out her nostrils unhappily. "Of course, there is also the fact that if we risk too much, we may not survive at all."

She desperately wanted to help the Minotaurs. But then again, could she really ask Vestia's crew to risk themselves and their families like that, knowing they might all wind up dead and unable to help anyone?

When Tala really thought about it, she was unsure whether she was approaching the situation objectively any more.

~~
Asher smiled sadly at Vela. "I'm sorry we didn't get more time to prepare. Leaving is never easy," he said.
He smiled a little hesitantly at Armin, the guy was wonderful but he hadn't quite come to terms with the fact that Armin was dating Starr yet.

Ellie might go looking around for Kerr, keeping a hand near her pocket in case she needed to make a quick, magically aided escape.
A handful of seeds was much more subtle than a gun.