It's been four days since Drayzl's ship had been attacked, and four days since Lazuli had last seen the face of her little brother before contact had been lost with his vessel. Two days after that dreaded moment she had received word that his crew never made it to the delivery point and the crew was marked as lost to the void by the shipping company that managed her brother's ship.

But... Lazuli couldn't accept that. Her little brother was the last family she had left, and she wasn't about to just accept that he was lost to the void so easily. In the days following the official statement of the shipping company, she used what few resources that were available to her as a secretary of an influential political figure of the void station she called home to look into the public records involving the last known position of her brother's ship as well as potential threats in the area.

Through her research, she eventually managed to uncover the fact that a roaming fleet of void raiders had been sighted frequenting the star systems her brother had been operating out of. Finally, after ten days of not having a single clue as to what happened to him, she finally had a direction.

From that point, she had used up some of the many days of vacation she had piled up over the years and took a couple of weeks of leave. Now freed from her responsibilities at work, she began traveling from station to station; following extranet notice boards and advertisements for all sorts of mercenary companies or paramilitary groups of all sorts of races. But after five days of being turned away by groups not willing to engage in void combat with raiders on their home turf, her options were starting to become very limited and the hope of seeing her brother alive again was starting to dwindle.

Lazuli finds herself on the fifth void colony station she's traveled to in just as many days; having been turned away by yet another mercenary band who weren't willing to put their lives on the line for the possibility of finding a single person alive in the middle of unclaimed and raider infested space. She... She couldn't blame them, but at the same time, she couldn't help but curse them for being spineless cowards for not even considering the job despite just how many credits she was ready to put down to see her little brother home safely.

Walking down the streets of a void colony that orbited between a gas giant and one of its moons, she ended up stopping at a café of some kind and ordering a caffeine stim just to keep her going. Today's poison of choice was some kind of stimulant known as matcha. It was a tea from the human territories that apparently also had a number of health benefits. It... It tasted good, and at least proved to be an effective stim as she settled down in a corner of the café and started scrolling through the extranet on her omni-bracelet for any more mercenary or military groups she could possibly meet with.

After an hour of pointless scrolling through notice boards and information packets about various possible groups that she could reach out to in neighboring star systems; all of a sudden Lazuli was pulled from the fugue of scrolling when her omni-bracelet trilled with a notification.

Before she could wonder for too long about who it could be, she went ahead and clicked the notification when a video began to autoplay. What played out before her was a rather well-made advert for a group of... Combat couriers? The video in question was very reminiscent of some kinds of military propaganda that she'd seen, with snippets of scripted events playing out of heavily armored individuals crossing through battlefields to deliver rations to troops, or an action shot of an armored individual jumping out of a window with a pretty female while under fire from a hail of lasers and plasma bolts.

Throughout the video, she could make out quite a few different species being represented amongst the armored individuals, though one thing that stuck out was just how many humans were among them. This whole advert just felt overwhelmingly human, but maybe that was a good thing; She hadn't tried to reach out to any human mercenary groups, though that was likely due to the fact that they usually didn't have to operate this far from their territories and weren't always readily available to people like her.

It was only after the advert had finished that she noticed that there was another notification waiting for her to pay attention to it. Clicking on it, she found that it was a direct message to her personal line, which was rather odd, but she pressed on as she looked over the writing that populated the holographic screen.

'Good morning or perhaps good evening, Miss Lazuli Ferense Hroz. My name is Persephone, an individual affiliated with the Bouquet Combat Couriers. It has come to my attention that you have been searching for someone to rescue your brother from space pirates. Is this still true?'

"Space pirates? Do they mean the void raiders?" Lazuli murmured to herself as she glanced at the panel with the still image of the advert for these Bouquet Combat Couriers before looking back to the message again. Ultimately that was beside the point, what she had now was somebody who was actually reaching out to her about helping her brother, and it wasn't just anybody either, it was a group who apparently specialized in this sort of thing if the advert was anything to go by.

After another moment to consider the events playing out before her, she decided to take the offer dangling before her and press forward as she sent her reply. 'What you have heard is true. Money is no object when it comes to getting back the only family I have left in this world.'

Almost a full second after she sent her reply, her omni-bracelet trilled with a response. 'The courier I represent is on the station as we speak, I have taken the liberty to upload a waypoint to the mapping program on your omni-bracelet. Follow it to locate the courier so that you may negotiate with them the terms of your brother's collection and delivery to you.'

Sure enough, a data packet was quickly installed onto her omni-bracelet without her permission as a holographic circular map began projecting itself along with a green trail that showed a path that she could take through the station.

Lazuli couldn't help but just blink at what just happened, second and triple guessing the supposed safety measures she was promised when she purchased this particular model of omni-bracelet, or perhaps she should be more concerned with how little the Bouquet Combat Couriers cared for the sanctity of such security measures.

Regardless, she now had a literal way forward for the first time since she began looking for help. Now that one presented itself to her, she would be a fool to ignore it.

Quickly taking her leave from the café, she followed the holographic map through the void colony as she crossed through various districts, shopping centers, and neighborhoods until she finally reached the district where the courier was located almost twenty minutes later.

Once she had gotten to be around one hundred feet from the courier, the map was then suddenly replaced by a green arrow that pointed her in the direction she needed to go. Slowing her pace, she looked up from her omni-bracelet and studied her surroundings while slowly following the arrow. There were quite a few beings around her, even a number of humans who went around just going through their daily lives.

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It wasn't until she followed the arrow to her destination that she spotted someone who reminded her of the couriers she saw in the advert. Sitting there at some kind of drink kiosk was a helmeted individual wearing a thick jacket made of some tough-looking brown fabric. There were a few markings and sigils that decorated the individual's jacket, though one that caught her eye was a circle of thorny vines that surrounded a single rose; beneath the circle was a cross followed by three lines, but those didn't make any sense to her.

After having hesitated on her initial approach, Lazuli managed to steel herself and step forward before gently tapping on the individual's shoulder. "Excuse me, are you a courier with the Bouquet Combat Couriers?"

The individual jolted at her touch with what she could only assume was surprise as they turned to look at her, though what she saw was merely a distorted reflection of her own face in their tinted visor. They didn't respond right away, but after a few seconds, a heavily modulated yet masculine-sounding voice spoke out. "Yes, I am affiliated with them, is there something you need?"

At the mere confirmation that this individual was the person who could help her save her brother, or at least affiliated with the group who could do that; her mood dramatically improved as she held out her hand in one of the more commonly accepted forms of greeting. "My name is Lazuli Ferense Hroz. Your representative informed me that you would be willing to hear me out and negotiate the recovery of my little brother."

The individual, the man perhaps, reached out and met her hand with a firm yet surprisingly gentle grip that radiated an inviting warmth.

Her thoughts suddenly turned to her father, and how he always told her that you could learn a lot about a being from how good their handshake was, though that rarely ever translated well between different species. Yet at that moment, she remembered the advert she saw of the courier leaping from the window with the female held securely in their arms. As the man pulled away, she somehow knew that if her life was suddenly in danger in the next few seconds, this man's first action would be to protect her.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Lazuli." The man replied with a surprising amount of politeness, though he tilted his head at her when he continued to speak, a vaguely confused tone managing to reach through to her despite his modulated voice. "But... What do you mean by my representative? I don't have a... Oh, that's what happened." The man stated as he seemingly had a revelation while slowly shaking his head. "Perci, what have I told you about taking on job requests without giving me a heads-up first?" He spoke out in an admonishing sort of way.

Lazuli couldn't help but look at least a little confused as she glanced over her shoulder before looking around, wondering just who this 'Perci' was or where they were.

However, her confusion was soon replaced by mild bewilderment as she watched a hologram of a small human female in odd-looking garb and a crown of thorny roses appear on the man's shoulder. "Oh come now, Rosie, she wouldn't have found us otherwise, and she really needs our help." The small woman enthused with a smile on her little face as she pantomimed tapping her knuckles against the reflective visor of the man. "I already screened most of the background info around this job, and it shouldn't be much trouble for you." She explained further before just sitting on his shoulder.

The man just let out a modulated sigh before shrugging a bit. "I suppose if you put it that way, I don't really have much to argue against, now do I?"

"Of course, you can always argue, but it won't benefit you in any way this time." She mused with a mischievous-looking smile. The confusion must have been quite evident on Lazuli's face as Perci smiled even more. "We've spoken before, at least through messages." She's mentioned cheerfully before gesturing at herself. "My full name is Persephone, but Rosie here calls me Perci for short." She explained as she acted out patting the side of the man's helmet.

"Yeah, though I only call you Perci because a regal name like Persephone doesn't suit a scamp like you." He said though, despite his words, Lazuli could make out a distinct tone of mirth even with the modulation to his voice.

This caused Perci to pout, though before she could reply, Lazuli managed to cut in as she regarded Perci and lowered her head in a show of gratitude. "Then it is thanks to you, Miss Persephone, that I have the opportunity to set things in motion that will see my brother home safe... Thank you so much." She expressed as sincerely as she could while doing her best to keep her composure as she could feel all the stress of being unable to move forward finally start to melt away from her shoulders.

Perci just flashed a little smile before shaking her head. “Oh don’t thank me, I was just being nosy is all.” She said while waving her hand in a dismissive way. “Now then, how about you fill in Rosie here with all the details so he can give you a proper quote.”

At that, Lazuli nodded dutifully before looking to the man’s visor and at her own reflection as she began sharing her files and everything she turned up on the possible void raiders that attacked her brother’s vessel.

Even though she couldn’t see his face throughout the explanation, the man just nodded while reviewing the files for himself, and once Lazuli was done, his modulated voice spoke out. “Alright, doesn’t sound too difficult…”

Those words brought a smile to Lazuli’s face as she couldn't help but feel even more relieved with each passing moment. “Great! So I take it that you just need to gather up your team and make your way over? Do you happen to have an idea how long it’ll take you to be ready?”

The man and Perci tilted their heads at her in unison before the man just shook his head at Lazuli’s words. “Team? There’s no team, it’s just me, myself and I… And Perci of course.” He explained while tilting his head again to gesture at the holographic woman on his shoulder.

Lazuli’s eyes just widened in shock at the revelation that the man intended on going on this rescue mission all alone when entire mercenary bands had turned her away. “W-what? Surely you’re joking, right?”

It was then that Perci spoke up, wagging an admonishing finger at Lazuli. “He’s not joking, and don’t call him Shirely.” She said, holding a serious expression before flashing a smile.

The man just sighed at Perci’s comment before turning his expressionless face towards Lazuli again. “Don’t worry about it, I’m made of pretty sturdy stuff, and the hardware I deploy with is top of the line.” He explained rather matter-of-factly.

Lazuli just shook her head at that. “I’ve heard the stories that humans are heartier and more durable than most, but only just barely so when compared to other races on your level. I’ll gladly pay more if that is what it takes to send you with some support.” She offered frantically. While she certainly was grateful to the human, she wasn’t about to just let him run headlong towards his own death.

Perci just laughed at Lazuli’s expense while the man held up his hands in a placating manner. “I mean it, you don’t have to worry… I’m quite literally built different when compared to most other humans.” He explained before he started shrugging off his jacket and revealing to Lazuli that the entire length of his left arm, all the way up to his shoulder, was artificial. He then pulled off the glove that had been covering his left hand and reached down, tapping his metallic knuckles against both of his legs, which also rang out with the sounds of metal. “See? I’ve got augments geared towards movement and combat, as well as a few other things I can’t really show off here.” He explained dutifully, his modulated voice sounding oddly reassuring as he pulled his glove and then jacket back on.

Now Lazuli wasn’t squeamish, and she’s been around people with cybernetics often enough with a prosthetic hand or arm being a general norm in day to day life… But she’s never met a being with so many augmentations at once. She couldn’t help but wonder if the man before her was more meat or machine, but at the very least, he seemed to be far more prepared for a fight than she ever could be. “I… I see.”

The man nodded, seemingly in satisfaction as he settled back in his seat, turning his attention to a drink that he had been mostly neglecting since she arrived. It looked like some kind of extra thick vitamin shake. It was a grayish mixture with a slight green tint that had a straw that was more than wide enough for how thick the mixture looked. Lazuli watched on with interest, wondering if she was going to see what the man looked like, only to feel a sense of confusion as she watched a small port open around where she would assume his chin would be. The straw seemingly was slotted into something as the man took a big sip before setting the drink back down.

“Now then, let's talk about service packages… Based on everything you’ve told me so far, I’m thinking you’re going to want the ‘Guardian Angel’ package for rescue, protection, care and transport of your brother, now there are other-” He went on to explain as he held up his left arm when a holographic screen with a listing of prices and descriptions of services began scrolling out before Lazuli.

But before he could go any further, Lazuli piped up looking rather apologetic. “I’m sorry, but before we go any further, could you perhaps tell me your name?” She had heard Perci refer to him as Rosie, but she didn’t want to be rude and offend the man; and now that he was getting ready to risk his life for her family, she felt it was only right to make sure she knew what to call him.

The man before her hesitated for a moment before setting his arm down and sitting up a little straighter. “My ID is Rose-13, but you may refer to me as R13.”

Lazuli couldn’t help but be taken aback at his introduction. It was hardly a name at all, and he only wanted to be referred to by a mere letter and two numbers? “Oh, very well then um… R13… Thank you, again, for everything you’re about to do.”

Rose-13 just watched her for a moment before offering a slow nod. “It’s just my job. Your payment will be thanks enough.” He said simply before holding his arm up again. “Speaking of which…” He mentioned before holding it out for her again.

At that, Lazuli just smiled softly before bobbing her head in response. “Of course, what were the packages again?”