The Dream of the Lady burst out into the unknown. Yvian stared eagerly out the viewports as the blue light of the Gate faded away. The stars revealed themselves. Yvian frowned. "It doesn't look that much different."

"You might be surprised, Captain." Mims had his hands on flight control. "Permission to maneuver the ship?"

Yvian made a quick check of sensors. The sector they were in was empty. One Jumpgate. Nothing else. "Granted."

"Keep your eyes on the viewports," Mims advised. The Lady turned. The stars streaked by. Then there were less of them. A lot less. Barely a dozen points of light winked at Yvian.

"Bright Lady," breathed Lissa. "It looks empty, doesn't it?"

"We're on the edge of the central cluster of the galaxy," Mims explained. "What you're seeing out there isn't stars. It's galaxies. Galaxies millions of lights years away." He shrugged. "There are billions of them out there, but most are too far away to see with the naked eye."

"Billions," Yvian mused, "All of known space is just a few thousand sectors. There are a hundred billion sectors in our galaxy alone, and billions more galaxies just like it."

"Trillions," Kilroy corrected.

"I mean, I always knew the void was big," Yvian continued, "but I don't think I'll ever wrap my head around just how big it is."

"Or how small we are," Lissa agreed.

"Nonsense," said Scarrend. "What does it matter how many worlds or galaxies lie before us? Who cares how big it all is? In all the vastness of the verse, there is only one Apex. We stand atop it."

"Well said," Mims approved. He turned back to Yvian. "If we're done staring into the abyss, maybe you'd like to see where we're going, Captain?"

It took a moment for Yvian to figure out what he meant. She shrugged. "Sure."

Yvian saw the human's slight head shake as he turned back to flight control. She was pretty sure he was muttering to himself, but it wasn't being relayed through interior comms. The ship had been decompressed before the jump, a standard precaution they would be continuing as they made their journey. No air meant no sound.

On the other hand, Kilroy could detect vibrations through the deck of the ship. He could pick up anything anyone said as long as they were touching a solid surface. Yvian opened a private comm to the machine and asked what Mims was muttering about.

"Big Daddy Mims is disappointed in your lack of gravitas," Kilroy explained. Stars blurred by again as Mims maneuvered the ship. "This unit agrees. Making history is wasted on you."

"No it's not," Yvian protested. "I've got gra..." She trailed off as the Dream came to a stop. Light glared into the viewports. She'd never seen so many stars at once. "vitas..."

"Holy shit." Belatedly, Yvian remembered she was only transmitting to Kilroy. She switched back to full interior comms. "Holy fucking shit!"

"No fucking gravitas..." Mims muttered. This time he wanted her to hear him.

"There are so many I can barely see the void," said Lissa. "It's beautiful."

"I wonder how many of them have worlds." Even Scarrend was a little hushed. "What new prey might we find?"

"Not what we're here for," Yvian reminded him, "but I know what you mean." She spent another moment taking in the view. Then she checked the sensors again. The sector was still empty. She sighed. Now was as good a time as any. "Mims, can I talk to you for a moment? Private channel?"

"Aye, Captain," said the human. A moment later he asked, "What's on your mind?"

"What we're doing," Yvian hesitated. Did she really want to do this? No. She sighed again. It was the right call. "It's Fucking Dangerous, isn't it?"

"Borderline suicidal," Mims agreed. "We're going to traverse thousands of Gates with no idea what's on the other side. Not to mention we've got no idea what this Gate Forge is or what happens when we find it."

"Yeah." Yvian realized she was squeezing her leg. Her shoulders were clenched. She made herself square them up. "If it's that dangerous... I mean... Shouldn't you be in charge?"

"You want me to be Captain?" He asked the same way he would have asked if she wanted him to pass the butter.

"I don't," Yvian admitted. "Not really. But... This is too important. You were always in charge when we did the dangerous stuff."

"That's cause we were on my ship," Mims reminded her.

"Yeah. I know." Yvian caught herself rubbing the back of her neck. She made herself put her hand down. "I just... I feel like you should be in charge."

Mims regarded her for several seconds. He nodded to himself. "I don't."

Yvian blinked. "What?"

"Yvian, I've been a pilot for forty years, and a Captain for thirty." The human leaned forward, looking up at the pixen with a serious set to his shoulders. "Do you remember what I told you at Krog Prime? The difference between success and failure?"

It was a conversation Yvian wasn't likely to forget. "Decisions."

"Decisions," Mims agreed. "At its core, being a Captain is about two things. Decisions and communication. You need to make difficult decisions very quickly, and you need to communicate those decisions to your crew, along with enough understanding of the mission that they can act without further orders if they have to. The Yvian I knew at Krog Prime couldn't do either. If you were that Yvian, I'd already be plotting a mutiny."

"Crunch. Thanks, Mims," Yvian glowered at the man. Not that he could see it. Stupid helmets...

"You're not that Yvian anymore," Mims continued. "You've seen more action than most Federation Captains, and you did a hell of a job when we took on the Confed the other week. You've got intelligence, initiative, and the ability to think clearly in a crisis. You'll do fine."

"But what if I don't?" Yvian asked. "What if I screw up and get us all killed?"

"You might," Mims told her. "Or you might do everything right and watch us all die anyway. That's the job." He shook his head. "I used to have the same fears."

"You did?" Yvian would never have guessed. "How did you get over it?"

"I didn't," the human told her, "You shouldn't, either. It's part of the burden of command. You're supposed to look fearless and in control, but you should never ever actually be fearless. Fear keeps you sharp." He straightened, dropping his forearms to rest on the armrest of his chair. "You can do this, and you're not alone. You've got the best crew in the verse, and we'll be there when you need us. Just like you've been there for me."

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

"Thanks, Mims." Yvian's throat was tight. "That means..." She cleared her throat and tried again. "That means a lot."

"No charge," said the human.

"Are you sure?" Yvian refused to sniffle. "Are you sure you want me?"

"We all do," the human assured her. "It was a unanimous decision."

"Oh." Yvian closed her eyes, letting herself cry silently for just a moment. Mims believed in her. They all did. "That's..." They all did? A jolt of shock interrupted her warm fuzzy feelings. "Wait. You all talked about this behind my back?"

"Right after the meeting with Exodus," Mims confirmed. "While you were occupied with Dr. Miner."

"Seriously!?"

"It was a big decision." Mims was unphased. "The whole verse might be at stake."

"You could have told me!" Yvian groused.

"I just did."

Yvian considered that. The meeting had only been two days ago, and Mims had spent most of that time in a med-pod. Even if he'd been up, no one would risk talking about the mission outside of Black Mesa Station. Yvian still wanted to be annoyed, but she had to admit the human had a point. "Fair."

Mims grunted. He looked... annoyed? "Are we good now? Can we get back to business?"

He sounded annoyed, too. "Not if you keep talking like that," Yvian pushed back. "I'll throw you out the airlock for disrespecting the Captain."

Mims snorted. "I'd like to see you try."

"Oh, I won't do it myself," she smiled sweetly at him. "I'll ask Kilroy to do if for me."

"Affirmative." The Peacekeeper unit commed in. "In which airlock should this unit deposit Big Daddy Mims?"

"Point taken." Yvian could hear the human's smile. "See? I told you you've got the goods." He stood and saluted. "Permission to return to duty, Captain?"

Yvian saluted back with a grin. "Granted." Then she remembered she's not supposed to salute while sitting down. Crunch. She shrugged a shoulder in embarrassment, then decided it probably wasn't a big deal. She switched her helmet back to standard interior comms.

"All cleared up, Sis?" Lissa asked.

"That's Captain Sis to you," Yvian grinned, knowing her sister would pick up on it. Half a moment's thought left Yvian sure Lissa had been the one to organize a talk about Captains. She'd probably known Yvian's doubts before Yvian did. "Thank you, Lissa."

"Don't mention it, Captain Sis." Lissa grinned back and threw a salute.

"I have pledged my life to the Scargiver," Scarrend spoke. "If he has chosen to obey your orders, then I will as well."

"I appreciate it." Yvian smiled at the monster.

"We are the Apex." Scarrend blinked slowly. Yvian idly wondered if the blinking thing was the reason the Vrrl were using transparent visors in their helmets. Then she wondered if she could order everyone to change their visors so she could see faces. Would Mims agree to that? Would it be petty to ask?

"You are the Creator's favorite," Kilroy's voice broke Yvian's chain of thought.

"Who's your favorite?" Lissa asked.

"This unit will never tell," said the Peacekeeper. "This unit will say that Captain Mother Yvian is sufficient. This unit will now prioritize Captain Mother Yvian's orders over those of Mother Lissa and Big Daddy Mims." His eyes flashed yellow. "Within reason, of course. This unit reserves the right to exercise its own judgment."

"I wouldn't have it any other way, Kilroy." The Peacekeeper, at least, could see Yvian's smile. "You're the best!"

"This unit knows."

"Captain?" It was Mims.

"Yes?"

"Now that we've got all that sorted..." the human glanced at his sensor display, then back at Yvian. "Do you think we can break for dinner before we get started? I haven't eaten in a few days."

Dinner was a quick affair. Pizza and beer. Yvian limited everyone to one bottle. She didn't want to get sloppy. Once they were all back on the bridge, she tried to think of something cool to say before they started on their journey. Something with gravitas. She came up empty. She settled for, "Alright, let's do this. Take us through the Gate."

"Aye, Captain." Mims turned the ship around. The blue light of the Gate loomed before them.

"May Fortune favor us on the cusp of The Crunch," Lissa intoned. Yvian cursed to herself. She should have thought of that one.

"And may we find worthy prey," Scarrend seconded.

"We will be sufficient." Kilroy's eyes glowed white with pride.

The Dream of the Lady touched the light. The Gate Effect wrapped around them, and deposited them in a new sector thirty seconds later. This sector had two Gates and a white dwarf star. Nothing else.

"Well that was anticlimactic," Yvian quipped.

"Space is a big place." Mims shrugged.

"Do we know where we are?" Yvian asked Kilroy. She frowned. "I probably should have asked that before."

"Affirmative." The Peacekeeper reported. "Our Stellar Cartography has been updated. This unit also took the liberty of switching our Nexus Node to a frequency only Exodus the Creator can monitor. The Creator is recording our position and progress, though it is unlikely to risk the mission's secrecy by sending assistance."

"What about the rest of the expedition?" Yvian wondered. "I know we've got Peacekeepers impersonating us, but..." She shrugged.

"Exodus the Creator is monitoring the Expedition as well," Kilroy assured her. "The Creator will ensure the decoy ship functions exactly as we would in its place. Extensive measures have been taken to prevent discovery."

Extensive measures? Yvian didn't want to know. "Good. Ok." She pulled up her Nav Console. The Dream was on the edge of the big cluster that was the Galaxy's center. The Gate Forge was near the center of the cluster. Far, far away. Beyond that, the console only knew the locations of the sector they were in and the one they just left. Yvian would have to look for Gates pointing in the right general direction and hope for the best. "We've got a long way to go, so let's get to it." She remembered something. "Is Stealth active?"

"Affirmative." Kilroy's eyes flashed combat red for a moment. "Stealth is lost when the jumpdrive is active, but this unit will continue reactivating it every time we enter a Gate."

"Good." Yvian nodded. "Keep doing that."

The next few hours settled into a routine. The Dream of the Lady would enter a sector and look around with passive sensors. If they didn't see anything, they'd perform an active scan. Once the scan was complete, they'd activate the jumpdrive and go to a new sector. The whole sequence took a little under three minutes.

Exploring new territory was dangerous. Extremely so. Things could go sideways the instant they entered a new sector. That didn't change the fact that exploring new territory was boring as Crunch. The thrill of adventure faded as they passed through sector after sector. Stars, nebulas, gas giants and lifeless rocks passed by in a monotonous blur. Fortunately, Yvian had a lot of practice staying vigilant during boring routine. She didn't have to start herself awake when they finally found something.

"What the fuck is that?" Yvian stared at an electromagnetic anomaly. The source was small and moving fast.

She hadn't meant to ask aloud, but Kilroy answered anyway. "A spacefaring vessel. The vessel is emitting energies that fluctuate in nature and intensity."

Yvian changed her display settings and got a visual. The ship was a mostly flat disk, with a raised half bubble in the middle. It was twelve meters in diameter. It was moving towards the sector's east Gate at a velocity of four hundred kilometers per second. Yvian's ship had just come out of the North Gate, several million kilometers away.

"Do you think they see us?" Lissa asked.

The disk changed course in a way that defied the laws of physics. It didn't slow down, or stop, or curve into a turn. It was simply and suddenly heading straight for Yvian's ship at a speed of thirty six hundred kilometers per second.

"Did you see that?" Scarrend growled. "That shouldn't be possible."

"Let's not stick around to find out what else they can do," Yvian decided. "Activate jumpdrive."

"Aye, Captain." Mims typed into his console. The Dream thrummed.

"Lissa, run an active scan while the drive charges," Yvian ordered. "Let's learn what we can. Kilroy, ready weapons."

"Yes Captain."

"Affirmative."

The jumpdrive had been charging for twenty seconds when the disk disappeared. It reappeared right next to the Dream of the Lady. Barely a kilometer away. It was motionless.

"The Crunch?" Lissa swore. Yvian pulled up the scan readings. The disk... No. The Disk was still emitting crazy amounts of electromagnetic energy. There was no rhyme or reason to the frequencies or wavelengths that Yvian could see. It was enough to trigger the Dream's shields, though not enough to do any damage.

Before Yvian could see more, a column of light nearly blinded her. Her visor darkened enough to let her see. What she saw was the metal of the bridge's bulkhead rushing toward her. "What!?"

Yvian passed through the bulkhead. Then the next. She felt a force like gravity, pulling her inexorably towards the source of the light. Yvian didn't know how the light was pulling her, or why she was passing through solid metal like it wasn't there. It didn't matter She focused in on the only thing that did. She was being abducted. "Fuck! Shoot it! Shoot it!" Yvian kept yelling to shoot the damned thing as she passed through the final bulkhead and tumbled into the void. "Shoot it!"

The Dream of the Lady opened fire. Four beam cannons struck the Disk with lines of yellow death. The beams passed through the Disk like it wasn't there. Thirty two of the ships Photon Pulse Cannons spat lances of purple light. The photon lances didn't do anything either.

Yvian activated her jetpack. She tried yanking herself out of the column. When that didn't work, she tried jetting backwards. No good. She kept falling towards the Disk at the same speed regardless of what the jetpack did.

Yvian considered drawing her own weapons. If the Dream's cannons couldn't touch the Disk, it was unlikely Yvian's dinky blaster pistol would fare any better. Screw it. Yvian drew and activated AIMASSIST. Her gun swiveled to point unerringly at the source of the light. She fired.

It didn't do a damned thing.

Two seconds later, the Disk lurched. The light cut off. The jetpack jerked Yvian backwards, halting her momentum a mere ten meters from the ship. She looked around and saw the other columns of light were gone, too.

Yvian let out a shaking breath and checked her comm was still active. "What the fuck just happened?"