The conference room was larger than the lab, but not by much. The center of the room contained a long table. There was a small console and holoprojector in front of each chair. A larger holodisplay sat in the center of the table. A small counter in the back of the room held no less than six coffee pots, all brewing their special brew under the watchful eyes of Captain Mims. Three machines sat next to the coffee station, each ready to dispense a different selection of snacks. Yvian opened the display on one, but all the choices were small dead animals and fish.

"That one's for the Vrrl," Dr. Laswell told her. "You want the one on the right."

"Oh."

Yvian was debating whether or not she wanted a third cup of coffee when the door slid open. A human bounced in. Literally. She jumped into the room with a shout Yvian's translator didn't recognize. The sound was something like, "HEYOOOO!"

The sound was confusing enough to delay Yvian from taking in the woman's appearance. The woman's appearance nearly made Yvian drop her empty cup. The woman was a few centimeters shorter than Yvian, with pale skin and big eyes and curly frizzy hair. She wore an odd pair of glass circles on a frame over her eyes. She did not wear much else.

Yvian was no stranger to the female form. Nudity was common among pixens, and the human's outfit wasn't much different from standard pixen attire. In fact, a closer look showed her it was standard pixen attire. So why couldn't Yvian pick her jaw up off the floor? At the time she figured the woman was just that beautiful. Vivacious and shapely and not afraid to show it. Only later would she realize she hadn't seen many women other than her sister these past few years, and none dressed as provocatively as this one.

"Yuriko," Dr. Laswell sounded pained. "What are you wearing?"

"Oh, this?" Yuriko spun a circle, showing off a body that... Well. "I'm going native." She caught Yvian staring. Her smile widened, and she gave the pixen a wink. "Do you like it?"

"Where is your voidsuit?" Dr. Laswell asked.

"Undergoing maintenance." Yuriko's gaze lingered on Yvian a moment longer before she turned and made her way to the coffee. Yvian noticed she put a little extra sashay into her step. "Long story, not important." She poured herself a cup. "So. Are you going to introduce me?"

"I suppose." Dr. Laswell swiveled in her chair, gesturing at the half nude human. "This is Doctor Yuriko Miner, our biochemistry expert. Dr. Miner, this is Mark Mims," she pointed, "Kilroy, and Yvian."

"It's nice to meet..." Dr. Miner trailed off, frowning as she examined Yvian. "Hey... You're the one that almost killed us!"

"Uh..." Yvian gave an embarrassed little wave. "...Hi?"

The woman regarded Yvian critically for a moment longer. Then she smiled and waved back. "Hi!" At the pixen's confused expression, Yuriko shrugged. "I saw you commune with the Last Hope of The Ones Who Were Betrayed. I'm told you felt everything she felt. I'd want to murder us, too." She set down her cup and walked to Yvian, holding out her hand. "Friends?"

"Uh..." Crunch take it, Yvian needed to stop staring and pull herself together. Her inner monologue berated itself as she took Yuriko's hand. "Sure?"

"Excellent." Dr. Miner gave a firm shake, then used her grip to pull Yvian out of her chair and into a hug. The human was wearing perfume, something sweet and subtle that mixed with the smell of her skin. Yvian froze. In the few seconds it took for her to pull herself together, Yuriko let go and stepped back with a smile. "Friends it is."

"Dr. Miner," Dr. Laswell chided. "Can you please refrain from sexually harassing our employers?"

"I'm not harassing..." Yuriko started to deny. She stopped when she caught Yvian's expression. "Oh." The human's face turned bright red. "Oh, God. I'm so sorry. I thought..."

"Yvian doesn't like to be touched," Captain Mims spoke up. "Why don't you give her a little space."

"Oh. Right." Yuriko backed away, mortified. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean..."

"No." Yvian held up a hand. "No, it's alright. I was just..." She cleared her throat. "I was just caught off guard, is all." She grabbed her cup. "I need more coffee." She brushed passed the woman, closing her eyes and trying to breath slow. Her pulse was pounding in her ears.

Dr. Laswell changed the subject. "When will Matt be here."

"He won't," said Yuriko. "He's fornicating."

"Benjamin?"

"Also fornicating."

"That's..." Dr. Laswell pulled a comm pad out. "That's not acceptable."

"Don't bother," said Dr. Miner. To Yvian's immense relief, the woman plopped down next to Dr. Laswell, on the other side of the table. "They won't come."

Dr. Laswell scowled. "Why not?"

"Because..." Dr. Miner gave Yvian a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry sweetie." She pointed at Yvian. "Because she's here."

Dr. Laswell blinked. "What?"

"She's motherless," Yuriko explained. "Her mother disowned her and struck her name from the Registry of Families."

"So?" Dr. Laswell shifted in her chair. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"It's a severe social stigma," Dr. Miner informed her. "Think Nazi or pedophile. Pixens usually kill motherless on sight, and anyone who associates with them gets shunned the same way." She shook her head. "And Yvian's not just any outcast. She's famous. The pixens here still get broadcasts from the Confederation, and the news has been painting Yvian as a mom-hating anarchist pirate for the last several months. Most of our researchers have been eating that shit up. They hate her with a passion that's almost holy."

"I suppose that explains why the rest of our staff declined the meeting," Dr. Laswell muttered. "But that's no reason Doctors Paulson and Nelson shouldn't come."

"Are you kidding?" Dr. Miner raised both eyebrows. "I told you anyone who associates with her gets shunned. The boys are pent up researchers with no social skills who suddenly found themselves on a station full of beautiful, exotic women famous for their libidos. No force in the verse is enough to make them risk giving that up."

"Crunch." Yvian should have anticipated this. She knew perfectly well she wasn't the only pixen who'd risked their freedom for an education. She should have known there were pixen scientists, and the problems her presence would cause. "Maybe I should go?"

"Don't even think it," said Mims. "You're the Mother of Pixa, whether they like it or not."

"What about you?" Dr. Laswell asked Yuriko. "Aren't you concerned about this... social stigma?"

"Obviously not. I'm here, aren't I?" Yuriko sipped her coffee. "Besides, the whole idea is stupid. Giving a parent the power to exile their kids? If my Mom could've done that..." She shook her head. "No. I won't stand for it." Then she smiled. "Besides, I'm too charming to be shunned."

"Of course you are." Dr. Laswell sighed.

A few minutes later, the door opened again. Three Vrrl walked in. Hulking brutes in armor the color of blood. One was gray with a black mane. One was orange with red stripes and a brown mane. One was green with black spots like Scarrend. The orange one took the lead. He spread his arms and gave a roar that shook the room and froze Yvian's blood. As the sound reverberated off the bulkheads, he took a fighting stance. "SCARGIVER MIMS! I CHALL-"

A bolt of white light struck the Vrrl just above his middle eye. The monster fell. Yvian snapped her gaze over to Mims, leaning against the coffee counter. He was still holding a cup to his lips, casually pointing a stunshot at the other two Vrrl. He raised an eyebrow at them. He spoke just loudly enough for Yvian to hear over the ringing in her ears. "Anyone else?"

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The two Vrrl looked at their fallen comrade, then each other. The gray one held out a hand. The green one snarled and passed over a credit chit. The gray one looked pleased with himself as he gave Mims a respectful nod. "Scargiver. Where is Scarrend Scathach?"

"He's with Lissa, meeting with the Emperor." Mims holstered his pistol so fast Yvian couldn't follow the movement. "After that he'll be on leave for a few weeks."

"Ah, yes." The Gray one rumbled. "I'd heard he was going to reproduce." He tucked all four arms behind his back. "I am Therik Gatto, First Maf of this station." He nodded his head at the green Vrrl. "This is Cait Thune, Fifth Maf. The one on the floor is Tegris Krull, twelfth Maf." He turned to Yvian along with his companion. Both of them thrust their bellies in her direction in the Vrrl gesture of respect. "Trainer Yvian, it is an honor to meet you. Both Scarrend and Warmaster Scathach speak of you with reverence."

"Many of us would relish a lesson from you," Cait Thune added. Yvian noted she was female. "Or a spar, perhaps, if you can find the time."

"Thank you," said Yvian. She stood and clasped her hands behind her, thrusting her stomach out in turn. "I'll see what I can do."

"Your twelfth Maf will wake up in a minute," Mims said. "Why don't you grab him and set yourselves up at the table. The krog should be here shortly."

The entrance of the krog was more mundane than the others had been. They were nearly as tall as the Vrrl, but so wide it gave them a squat appearance. Sharp teeth and oversized nostrils. Beady eyes and greasy black hair. The krog wore voidarmor similar to Yvian's, but they'd used PALLETESWAP to make theirs black, like the Captain's. Yvian stared in shock when she recognized the leader.

"Master Knifehands." Mims gave a slight bow. "I was surprised to learn you joined our team."

Knifehands, Krog Master, renowned weaponsmith, and the asshole who tried to kill Mims two years ago shrugged. "King Tallest say you need best. Best is Knifehands."

"I'm not arguing that," said the human. "I'm just surprised you agreed to it."

"Still hate you, Mimseycake." the krog admitted. "Still think you not krog. But Knifehand's ass not dumb. Chance to play with human tech. Vrrl tech. Even Xill tech. Too good pass up." His beady eyes gleamed. "No worry, Mimseycake. Knifehands Master. Masters professional. Do good work and make good guns."

"Fair enough." Mims set down his coffee. "Lets have a seat and get started. We've got a planet to save and we don't have a lot of time."

After a quick round of introductions, Mims pointed at Dr. Laswell. "First order of business. Dr. Laswell's in charge."

Vrrl and krog alike sputtered in outrage. Objections quickly broke down into insults between the two groups as they each argued why they should be in charge of the others. Phrases like "Mangy Vrrl" and "Fat Softpaws" escalated into outright threats. Knifehands raised his fists and extended the blades he was named for. All three Vrrl crouched slightly in preparation for a leap. Mims put a stop to it by shooting the Vrrl and Knifehands all in the space of a second. He was using the lowest setting on his stunshot.

The combatants were only out for two minutes, but they woke up to find Peacekeeper units standing behind them, with an additional two for the krog who hadn't been shot. Mims set his stunshot on the table and drew his blaster.

"Like I was saying," the human spoke. "Dr. Laswell's in charge." He glanced at Kilroy. "She has my full confidence and I will come down like the wrath of god on anyone who threatens her or offers her harm. Got it?"

"Gribshit," said Knifehands. "Wicked pervert human not even know weapons. Knifehands best qualified. Knifehands should be boss."

"You're more qualified," Mims agreed. "So is First Maf Gatto. It doesn't matter." The Captain pointed at both of them. "Neither of you is willing to take orders from the other. The Peacekeepers aren't interested, and our pixen scientists are scared to death of you. That leaves Dr. Laswell."

"You can't seriously expect me to report to a human," the First Maf objected.

"If you don't like it, go home," said Mims. "Having three research teams is only useful if they can coordinate. Making that happen is Laswell's job."

"I have no interest in interfering with your teams directly," Dr. Laswell added. "I'll be facilitating the sharing of information, requests for material, and helping solve problems when they arise. We'll have a conference every few days to discuss progress and set goals." She looked from the Vrrl to the krog. "A video conference, most likely."

"That said, her word is final." The Captain spoke firmly. "That's the deal, people. If you don't like it, there's the door. Any takers?"

There was some grumbling, but both groups grudgingly agreed. Mims holstered his guns. "Good. Then lets get down to business. Dr. Laswell?"

Dr. Laswell typed into her console. The big holodisplay in the center of the table activated, showing a mass of ships exiting a Jumpgate. "Sixteen hours ago, ten thousand Federation YEET Artillery Barges entered New Pixa Sector through the North Gate. They stayed in place for forty three seconds before leaving via jumpdrive. We believe they were targeting New Pixa itself."

"North Gate not defended?" Knifehands asked.

"Yes and no," said Mims. "We've got captured Klaath Queenships and about two hundred thousand stingers covering it, but they were behind the Gate and couldn't reach the YEETs in time. Previously we had the Lucendian ship Skygem covering the area with it's-" He glanced at Yvian. "-with her anti-tech field. The ship flew itself over to the Last Hope when we brought her into the sector, and we haven't been able to coax her away from the mothership."

Knifehands grunted. "So what problem?"

"The problem is that we have an unknown number of undetectable shield piercing half ton chunks of tungsten heading for the planet at two hundred eighty eight thousand kilometers per hour," said Dr. Laswell. "Even a few of them making impact will be an extinction level event."

"That not problem," said Knifehands. "Just shoot down."

"How?" asked the Doctor. "We can't see them."

"We don't need to," said First Maf Gatto. "We know when they were fired. We know their velocity, and we know their target. Stingers are as fast as a Federation gladiators and equipped with beam weapons. They should have no trouble sweeping the area where the YEET rounds will be."

Knifehands glowered at Gatto, but added, "Human SHIELDBREACH weapons delicate. Stinger beams should disable in tenth of second. Then YEET rounds just rocks. Easy see. Easy nudge off course." Knifehands shook his head. "Dumbass humans. Shoulda come different Gate. Would have hit planet already."

"We'd have shut them down," said Mims. "MAC cannons don't need to be charged, but YEETs are another story, and they can't power up while the ship's jumpdrive is active. There'd be ten whole seconds for Admiral Zhukov to hit them with an anti-tech field from the planet." He turned to Kilroy. "Can you ask the Stingers to do what Knifehands said?"

"This unit already has," said Kilroy. "The Stinger units will sweep for YEET rounds, then turn back to sweep for slower moving MAC rounds. No ordinance will reach planet New Pixa." The purple light of worry flashed in his eyes. "This will leave the North Gate undefended."

"Not if we destroy the Gate." It was Yuriko. She'd been silent for most of the meeting. Now that she was speaking, Yvian was once again struggling not to stare.

"Destroy Gate?" Knifehands scoffed. "You crazy?"

"It's not like we're using it for anything," Dr. Miner pointed out. "As long as we've got the other two Gates we'll be fine."

"I don't think we need to go that far," said Mims. "I'll talk to Admiral Zhukov and we'll figure something out." He let a breath out through his nose. "Well, that's one problem solved. I didn't expect it to be that easy."

"I'm disappointed you didn't figure it out yourself, Scargiver," Gatto agreed.

"Stupid meeting," said Knifehands. "Shoulda just used comms."

"I kill things for a living." Mims shrugged. "I'm not a scientist." He got up and wandered over to the coffee counter.

"Well." Dr. Laswell addressed the others. "I think this was a productive first meeting. I'll comm you all tomorrow and we'll set up a video conference. For now," she yawned, "I think we'll call it a night."

The Vrrl and the krog left, under the watchful eye of Peacekeeper units. Dr. Laswell got herself another cup of coffee. She offered one to Dr. Miner as well, but Yuriko declined. The new Director for Pixen Research and Development plopped back down in her chair with a yawn. "I'm still not sure about this." She frowned. "Or about you, for that matter."

"I know." Mims closed his eyes, leaning back in his chair.

"Aldara wasn't his fault," Yvian protested. "He did what he did trying to stop the Klaath."

"He wiped out a fifth of humanity," said Dr. Laswell, "Then spent thirty years as a killer for hire in a slave state."

"He's a good man," Yvian insisted.

"Yvian." The Captain sounded tired. "Let it go."

"I'm not sure we're in a position to throw stones, Sara." Yuriko pointed out. "All things considered."

Dr. Laswell sighed. "Perhaps not." She shook her head. "Researching alien biology was my dream. I just wanted to discover something new. How did it all go so wrong?"

"It wasn't your fault," Yuriko told her. "We couldn't know what XTRO was going to do." She reached and put a hand on Laswell's shoulder. "We just have to do what we can to make it right."

Dr. Laswell nodded slowly and drank more coffee. She met the Captain's eyes with furrowed brows. "Do you think it's possible, Mims? To make things right?"

"No." The Captain was certain.

"No?" Yuriko eyed the man. "Why not?"

"Because some things can't be redeemed." Mims looked down at his cup, frowned at it's emptiness, and set it down. "Some stains you just have to live with." He stood. "And on that note, I'm going to bed. It's been a long two days." He ran a hand through his hair. "Good night, doctor."

"Goodnight, Mark!" Yuriko smiled and waved.

"Goodnight." He walked out. Yvian got up to follow.

"Wait!" Yuriko hustled around the table. "Yvian."

Yvian faced the woman warily. "Dr. Miner?"

"Uh... look." Yuriko half reached out to Yvian, then pulled her hand back. "I'm sorry about earlier." She brushed her hair back behind her ear. "You looked like you could use a hug, and I..." She shifted awkwardly. "I get carried away sometimes." She lowered her head. "I have transgressed. Lend me your forgiveness, and I shall make amends."

Yvian's heart was hammering again. She swallowed. "Forgiveness is lent."

Dr. Miner raised her head and met Yvian's eyes. "Thank you." She took a breath. Yvian somehow managed to resist the urge to glance down. "Speaking of making amends, maybe I could start with dinner?"

"Dinner? Oh." Flustered as she was, Yvian had enough presence of mind to know that going to a pixen mess hall was a bad idea. "Um... I don't think I'd be welcome."

"Of course you will!" Yuriko grinned a wicked grin. "Dinner's at my place."