“Friend Silk!” Omi practically shouted as the shuttle took off again. Leaping from his seat, he rushed over, headless of their precautionary maneuvers- the Rach clearly had no intention of suffering another attack. “Umi!... Is she... I mean, where...?”
As his Rach friend struggled for words and nervously searched the truck with his eyes, Oliver simple released the man's niece from the warehouse. He had been concerned over how it would work, considering they were at terminal velocity when she was stored... That was why he had made a point to test it before he left the planet... Mostly by jumping off of buildings and storing objects while he fell, then releasing them later to see if they still held any momentum.
He didn't know how the system did it exactly, but everything came out without even the slightest movement. Of course, he was still a bit nervous about releasing the girl- after all, there was a big difference between a short jump and the free fall they had experienced. Still, he was reasonably confident.
And, when Umi popped out and landed with no more trouble than stepping out of the truck beside them, he sent a silent thanks to the system- or the person behind it, if it really was a person.
While the Omi hugged his niece joyously- much to her confusion as, from her perspective, they had just fallen from the shuttle moments ago, Oliver shook off the constantly mounting questions about the system... He hadn't slept since boarding the shuttle the day before, and all the running around – and killing people- had left him exhausted.
He slumped into the nearest seat and closed his eyes... Only for them to snap back open as an exuberant hand clapped him on the shoulder, accompanied by an enthusiastic shout. “Friend Silk! We were worried... but you made it back! And you rescued Umi! Incredible!”
Glancing warily at the small Rach beside him, Oliver sighed. He imagined that Omi and Umi would have a lot of questions, but with Vadrin here as well... It would be more like a never ending stream of questions.
“Hey, Vadrin. Good to see you too.”
“How did the two of you survive the fall? What was the planet's surface like? Were there any interesting or useful plants? And why did you bring this odd conveyance with you? Did you get it from the locals? Does that mean some of them are peaceful? Would it be possible to negotiate with them?” Vadrin rattled out in a single breath without pause, his eyes gleamed with curiosity.
“How did I go from falling to suddenly standing on a shuttle with my uncle?” Umi chimed in before Oliver could respond and Vardin could continue, having moved over to join them as soon as her uncle set her down- though Oliver noticed that she was staying close to the older Rach, likely still a bit shaken up from the experience.
“I am curious about that as well, friend Silk.” Omi added as he took a seat nearby, though his gaze shifted warily to where Henrietta perched atop the truck. “Also... Is that not one of the aggressive 'squirrels' you mentioned before? What is it doing here? It is not hostile, is it?”
Sinking deeper into the seat, Oliver sighed... No rest for the wicked, apparently.
“Ok, let's see if I can get out of this with the short answers. First, that is Henrietta. She's friendly -mostly- and my familiar. Umi... I protected with some special magic. It sort of froze her, temporarily... That's why the past day is missing for her.”
“As for the planet... All the locals I met were very hostile. Like, kill us on sight levels of hostile. The truck, and all the stuff loaded into it, are pretty much 'spoils of war'... I mean, it wasn't really a war, but whatever. So, no, negotiation likely isn't possible. And I strongly discourage the attempt, especially since they speak a different language from you.”
“That pretty much covers everything.”
Closing his eyes again, Oliver enjoyed the silence... for about two seconds. Then all three erupted with questions.
“What is this 'magic' that you speak of?”
“War? Does that mean you fought with the locals? Was it dangerous?”
“I was frozen? But I don't even feel cold!”
He could only sigh again... It had already been a long day, and it was about to be even longer. Especially since he expected more questions from their leaders when they returned to the Ark.
----------------------------------------
“-and once I had their leadership under control, I had them order the rest to just sit patiently for me to leave. Then, I kinda just forced them to load up all the materials in the truck, sent Omi that message, and waited for pickup.”
Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.
“And these materials... What do you intend them for? Do you have need of them? Or do you mean to trade them to us?” Cici Vassler, Omi's superior, asked after a moment of hesitation. She was clearly a bit disturbed by the level of violence that had occurred, as well as Oliver's casual disregard for it- this strange man they called friend showed little remorse for ending so many lives... A cold knot of fear slowly formed in her chest at the thought of such a person running rampant through their Ark.
Not that he had ever shown any inclination towards doing so, but still, fear wasn't always reasonable.
“Eh, I came here to help you find salvage. Figured I may as well grab some while I was down there, seeing as I doubt we will be going back. Plus, I kinda like your people. You're all friendly, in an innocent sort of way.”
“So you plan to just... give us those supplies?” She asked, a hint of disbelief creeping into her voice. From his story, this man was a cold killer... But he was just giving them vital supplies? Because he liked them?
“And the truck; I've got no use for it anyway. But, yeah. Pretty much.” Oliver just shrugged, clearly done with the near endless stream of questions.
Seconds passed slowly as the Rach shared a number of looks among themselves, their emotions ranging from confused to simply grateful. Before long, Cici nodded her head, gratitude clear in her look. “Thank you, friend Silk. Vadrin has already assured me that these materials are enough for us to restore some of our grow facilities to operation. You... You basically turned our situation from 'critical' to manageable.”
“While it won't be easy, we should at least be certain of our recovery from here. I think that, at this point, even our Admiral is contemplating meeting with you to offer his thanks for your assistance.”
Oliver waved it off without even thinking about it. “That's not necessary. I take a job, I get it done. Simple as that... And, honestly, I'm fine with not having to deal with anyone else. I'm not exactly the most 'sociable' person.”
“I mean, you, Omi, Umi, Vadrin, and the rest of the crew I worked with... that's probably my social limit. Plus, people in charge have a tendency to ask awkward questions... Things like 'could you help us with one more thing' or 'we could use someone like you'... And, no offense to any of you, but I'm kinda looking forward to going home soon.”
Cici tried not to look too relieved by his answer. While he had been very helpful, she wasn't certain she wanted him anywhere near the Admiral. Or any of the other Ark Leaders... And a part of her was glad that he would be leaving soon. “Then, on behalf of everyone, I thank you friend Silk. For your help, as well as the materials you brought back today... And I apologize for keeping you so long to answer questions, as it is clear that you wish to rest. Please, do not let me keep you any longer.”
“Awesome.”
With that, Oliver was out of his seat and heading back to his temporary accommodations. There may have been a week left in the job, but for now... He wanted to sleep.
----------------------------------------
After two more salvage runs, during which the most dangerous things were a few poisonous plants and a very grumpy bear- one surprisingly similar to a black bear, to the point that Oliver couldn't actually tell the difference- and the job and finally run its course. No more salvage runs, no more weird plants or dead worlds...
And no more unexpected dangers. Oliver was particularly happy with that point.
“We really don't know how to thank you, friend Silk.” Omi said for perhaps the tenth time as he led Oliver along.
A wry smile on his face, Oliver shook his head as he clapped the Rach on his back. “Then don't, ok? You hired me, so I did it. And we're kinda friends now, right? So no need to thank me.”
Omi's eyes gleamed with happiness at the statement. “Yes, of course. I will remember that, my friend... You will still accept the reward for taking the job, yes? I know it isn't much, but perhaps you will find some things useful to you among our contraband. Not everything in there is bad; most of it is simply off limits within the Ark.”
“Yeah, I'll have a poke around and see whats there. Never know what I'll find, right?
Umi, who had been following along silently, spoke up slowly. “How will you get back home? And will you ever visit us again?”
Oliver sighed softly. Ever since their little free fall incident, the normally stoic Rach had turned a bit... sentimental. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but it was more obvious now that there had always been a young girl beneath the quiet exterior... One that would apparently miss her odd new friend when he left.
“I honestly don't know if I'll be able to visit again... And as far as me leaving... Well, I'll probably just disappear. Almost like I was never here.”
Umi snorted in forced amusement, clearly attempting to recover her mask of indifference. “Like we could forget you...” She muttered softly to herself.
Neither man was dumb enough to comment on that, though they did share an understanding look.
----------------------------------------
Oliver sighed softly as he stared up at the moon. He wasn't quite home, except in the sense that Earth was his 'home'. Standing on a beach in South America, the very same one he had left just a few weeks before, left an uncomfortable feeling in his chest...
He actually did kinda miss his Rach friends.
“Maybe I'm the one that is getting sentimental...”
“I should head home and check in with Sweet T... and Marty, Ed, and Gary...”
“Maybe I should call Poli, too... I miss her...” Oliver whispered his contemplation as he turned and started walking, trying to escape the sense of melancholy that had settled over him.
It was supposed to be an easy job... So why didn't it feel like one?