Episode 2. The Stowaway

“What did you do?”Shocasta’s tone is one of disdain already as she inspects the pre-teen stowaway on the kitchen floor. Naturally, Dev feels compelled to prod at those feelings by acting aloof.

“Me?” Deviax raises his hands in protest and voice in farcical defiance. “I did nothing. You knocked him out.”

The young Zabrak woman prods the boy with the toe of her boot, poking his ribs before getting closer. She escalates to giving flicks to the boy’s eyelids, watching for a response. None comes. She looks up at Dev, frowning. Dev just looks back and gives a non-committal shrug.

Lifting the boy, Shocasta grunts. “I did, huh?” Dev can tell he’s already gotten under her skin. The stowaway combined with the attempted boarding in a free port by a syndicate carrier has Sho’s crimson skin red hot. “How in the fluffy Force are you going to pass blame for this to me?”

Much to her sneering chagrin, the shaggy smuggler has a retort. “You really should announce to the crew when you’re making a jump to hyperspace. It’s a standard safety protocol.” As Sho carries the boy to the small singular infirmary bed, Dev fiddles noisily with the wrapper of a protein bar. He had picked up the snack that had fallen from the very same cabinet from which his child attacker had only recently sprung. The wrapper torn, Dev takes a bite. The snack tastes like blood thanks to the drainage of blood from his sinus down the back of his throat swishing with each swallow. “Good thing you didn’t. Kid tried to kill me. Was carrying a vibroblade. Nice one too.”

Setting down the stowaway, Sho straps the unconscious boy to the medical table. “That’s the second person today you didn’t shoot. This one I’m actually glad about. At least for now. You think he took something from the MOD?”

Deviax inspects the vibroblade hilt for any distinguishing marks as Shocasta gets the stowaway secure. “I think it’s too big a coincidence that carrier tried to detain us on a day we just so happened to have an uninvited guest. Search him.”

“Me?” Shocasta takes immediate offense. “You search him,” Sho responds indignantly, snatching away the protein bar half in the wrapper and tosses it into a red biobin normally for soiled bandages. “He’s a male. I’m not risking touching something.”

“You think I do want to risk rummaging through some kid’s pockets? If anything, it’s worse for me. You’re closer to his age.”

“Don’t be child.” Sho backs away towards the door, smirking in triumph. Deviax is pretty sure Sho was thinking at least this far ahead in their conversation. “Besides, I knocked him out and carried him. Time for you to chip in. Now what’s our heading?”

Giving a grunt, Dev looks at the unconscious unwanted guest. Flashes of purple sand and even darker foaming waves pop into Deviax’s head. Shocasta just waits for him to think it through. For a few moments, they simply stare off in silence. “Let’s try Nowhere. Maybe I can get Munheia or one of the Debrizy brothers to snoop for information and find out how deep the shit is we’ve fallen into.”

“Waist deep, at least,” Sho grumbles turning away. “Fine.” She leave Deviax and the kid alone to get acquainted.

Dev on the other hand, has no desire to rummage through an unconscious kid’s clothes. Shrugging, knowing Sho is out of earshot, he moves to the ship intercom and calls his Bothan engineer. “Patches, could you come to the infirmary real quick?”

Deviax takes a moment to lean against the wall, twirling the kid’s vibroblade, analyzing as the kid sleeps. “Why’d you have to pick my ship, kid?”

“N-no id. N-no c-c-credits. Nothing, Cap.” Patches reports with a shrug.

“Not even a datastick or an implant?” Dev folds his arms, annoyed. Maybe the stowaway is a coincidence. Can’t exactly ask the Merchant of Death or his people directly what exactly they are after. He’s just hoping they didn’t get a good enough look at the ship and weren’t smart enough to interrogate the dockmaster on Rishi about him and the crew.

The stuttering Bothan shakes his head, scratching a small patch of skin devoid of fur from neurotic friction.
“Perfect.” Dev flips the compacted vibroblade he took from his uninvited attacker for two rotations before catching it in the opposite hand. “All that’s left is asking him. How long do concussions last?”
Patches gives a shrug and unknowing look. His talents are electrical and mechanical in nature, not biological.

“Think I should just space him and hope for the best?”

Patches looks sad and shakes his head.

“Right. Sho would hit me. Besides, we need to know if he’s what the MOD is after.”
Patches vigorously nods.

“Good man, Patches. Thanks for the talk.”

Patches smiles widely and pats Deviax on the shoulder, leaving for the engine room and his fish friends. Once more, the privateer is left alone with his minor savage attacker.

Arms folded, Deviax simply stares at the kid for several moments, trying to reach some far out of reach revelation about his situation. Being wanted by powerful men put a pit in his stomach that makes him unsettled. Or maybe it was just the blood and protein bar intermingling in his abdomen, causing heartburn. And Sho was being uncharacteristically deferential to his authority letting him pick Haider’s destination. The kid is breathing fine. Dev moves to the medical equipment and searches through the bins. Pulling out a cortical monitor, he puts it on the kid’s forehead, finally giving the stowaway some medical attention. Dev waits for a reading.

“You put me in a bind, kid. Not to mention the kid to the face. Which hurt. Not a lot. I can take a punch. Had to throw fists here and there in my day. But Mama always said it’s better to be a lover than a fighter. Not my mama, mind you. Twi’lek woman. She liked me to call her Mama. Met her on… Lakesh? Lekesha? Sho would know. Patches too. Had these interesting flying fish there. Had gills that closed so they could leap out of the water, flap their fins, and catch insects out of the water. Funniest thing you ever saw. At night they’d jump out of the water, lured by the neon of the colony. Drove the locals crazy-“

“Please,” The boy exhales with a wince. “Stop talking…”