The Vrrl. Yvian shivered. In the lore of the Confed, there were three species feared by all. The humans, madmen of the stars. The Xill, machines of murder. And the Vrrl, hunters of the void. Humans were feared and hated the most, but the savage Vrrl were not far behind.

They stood upright like pixens, but the Vrrl had four arms, one set larger than the other. Each appendage was tipped with wicked curved claws. Their facial features were reminiscent of a picture Mims had hung up in his quarters, of a creature called a Kittycat, but their features were heavier, meaner. Their three eyes almost never blinked, and their cruel fangs were built for the rending of flesh and the crushing of vertebrae. The Vrrl prided themselves as the Apex hunters of the verse, Sapient bipeds were their prey of choice.

"How many are there?" Mims asked. "Are we talking fighters or capitol ships?"

"Fighters," Migo asserted. "Nine of them came after my station. There's a couple other groups out there, but they're going after freighters and such."

"You brought out the Paradigm Shift for nine fighters?" Mims scoffed. "Where the hell's your security fleet?"

"They ran the second the Vrrl showed up, the scrapsuckers," Migo cursed. "Not that it saved their hides. Vrrl chased 'em down. Pretty sure they're dinner, now."

"Are the Vrrl still there, or did they run off when you brought out the Paradigm?"

"They tried to run, all right," Migo had calmed a little at the human's businesslike tone. "But only five of them got away. I thought you were crazy to throw beam weapons on a carrier, but they sure worked a treat."

The Captain froze at the words. "Migo," he asked, voice grim. "Did you fire on the Vrrl after they turned to leave?"

"Course I did," Migo said proudly. "They attacked my station, didn't they? Killed my security fleet, scrapsuckers that they were. I can't let those three-eyed pricks get away unscathed after all that, now can I?"

The human cursed. "What Gate are they heading for?"

"What?" Migo seemed confused. "Why does it matter? They're running."

"What fucking Gate?" the human snapped.

"Uh...lemme check." A short pause. "The East Gate. Number XL34A."

"Initiating Jump," Mims put on his helmet. Yvian and Lissa did the same. "You better hope we get there in time, Migo."

"In time for what?" Migo's voice was starting to sound a little higher, again. "What's going on?"

"If you'd let the Vrrl go after they broke off their attack, they'd just look for easier prey. But you fired on them. That's a challenge." Mims informed him. "They're not running because they're scared. They're running to find a bigger ship to kill you with."

They emerged from the East Gate. Lissa ran a systems check. Yvian checked sensors. The remains of dozens of ships was scattered through the sector. Two small wings of Vrrl fighters moved among the wreckage. Vrrl in voidarmor prowled though the debris in small groups, retrieving corpses and the occasional survivor in a voidsuit.

The only other Confederation vessel was the Paradigm Shift. It stood motionless guard a few kilometers from a shipyard. The shipyard was small compared to the one at Milvari, a mere forty kilometers at its widest.

A third Vrrl fighter wing was headed towards the Random Encounter. They were moving at well over thirty kilometers a second and still accelerating. Yvian calculated they would enter firing range in thirty nine minutes.

"System check complete," Lissa reported. "All systems green."

"Acknowledged." The Captain hailed Migo again. "Migo, if you want my help, you need to give me control of the Paradigm."

"No way, Mims," Migo refused. "You'd jump out the system and let the Vrrl eat me."

"If I don't stop them from the leaving the system, they'll come back with bigger ships and do that anyway," Mims told him. "Get off my ship."

"I can't!" Migo insisted. "The Paradigm's the only thing keeping the Vrrl away. I got four hundred people on that shipyard, Mims. I can't let them get et!"

"If you don't return my property right now," Mims warned. "I will kill you."

"You can't," Migo told him. "With one little ship? I know you're good, Mims, but nobody's that good. I'm staying right here til the Vrrl are gone, and if you come anywhere near me I'll blast you out of the sky." He sighed. "I'm sorry it's gotta be that way, human. You been a good customer and I know it ain't right. But I gotta look out for me and mine."

"You were warned." Mims switched off the comm. He pulled up weapons control.

"Uh, Mims?" Yvian asked. "Shouldn't we do something about the Vrrl heading our way?"

"No need," said the Captain. "They'll blow right past us. My guess is there's a big warpack the next sector over. These guys are just a small part of a bigger raid. They'll grab a capitol ship or two and come back for the Paradigm."

"Don't we need the Paradigm?" Lissa asked. "We're kind of screwed if the Vrrl blow it up."

"We'll grab it and jump out before they get here." Mims assured her. "We've got time."

"I think Migo might have something to say about that," Lissa pointed out.

"No he won't." Mims pressed a button. A quick vibration thumped through the ship. "I just killed him."

"What?" Yvian asked in surprise. "How?"

"MACdriver," the human explained. "Same one I used at Milvari. It'll take an hour or two to reach him, but the slug'll pass right through his shields and turn the son of a bitch into a puddle. Migo's a good engineer, but he doesn't know crap about space combat. He's got the Paradigm sitting like a lump when he should be doing evasives."

"Are you sure you're alright with killing him?" Lissa asked. "I got the impression you've known each other a while."

"We're not friends," Mims told her. "He works on my ships sometimes, and charges an extra thirty percent cause I'm human. Also he stole from me."

"Fair point." Lissa shrugged. "Dead it is."

The Captain's decision wasn't unreasonable, Yvian supposed. Migo had been offered the chance to return the Paradigm, and he'd threatened Mims instead. Murder was a pretty standard response to someone trying to steal your vessel. Still, Yvian couldn't help but feel a little bad for the mechanic. He wasn't a pirate or a monster like most of the people she'd seen the human kill. He was just a scared, desperate man trying to keep his people safe. That thought brought up another question.

"What happens to the shipyard?" Yvian asked. "After we kill Migo and take the Paradigm back?"

"The Vrrl will eat them." Mims shrugged. "Even if Migo hadn't pissed them off, there's no way they'd pass up an undefended station with four hundred people on it. That's a lot of meat."

His nonchalant response sent a chill down Yvian's spine. Was he really that callous? "We can't let that happen," she decided.

"Sure we can," the human responded. "It happens all the time. Space is a dangerous place, Yvian. If the Vrrl don't get them now, pirates'll hit them in a week or two. They've got no defenses. They're fucked either way."

"They don't have to be," Yvian told him. "We can save them."

"We can save them for now," Mims corrected her. "But why should we? It's not like they're paying us."

"Is that all you care about?" she demanded.

"We're privateers, Yvian," Mims reminded her. "We don't do anything for free."

"What about the Militia?" Lissa cut in. "Couldn't they help?"

Mims snorted. "Like they'd give a crap. The Militia exists to hunt smugglers and shake down innocent pilots. No way in hell they'll pick a fight with the Vrrl. Not for a bunch of dunks in some border sector."

"If we let this happen," Yvian pointed out, "We're not any better than they are."

Mims frowned at her. Then he grunted. "This is important to you I take it?"

What was it he'd said earlier? "The more we tell ourselves it's alright, the more evil we'll do," she quoted. She met his eyes. "Letting these people die when we don't have to...it's evil, don't you think?"

He held her gaze, searching. Finally, he gave a nod. "I guess it would be." He started typing into his console.

Yvian waited for thirty seconds or so, but he just kept typing. "What are you doing?"

"Not doing." the human finished typing. "Done." He activated the comms. "Migo, this is Mims. I'm sending you a contract. You surrender control of the Paradigm and pay my fee, and I'll protect your station."

"Mims, I already told you I ain't budging." The mechanic refused. "I got people to protect."

"And I'm giving you the chance to protect them," the Captain replied. "As a bonus, I won't kill you if you agree to my terms. I'll even help you get a new security fleet set up so pirates won't take your station later. But if we're going to save your shipyard, I need the Paradigm Shift. Be smart, Migo. You know you're in over your head, here."

Migo hesitated. "How do I know you'll keep your end of the deal?"

"You know me," the human told him. "You know my reputation. I have never failed, and I have never canceled a contract without cause."

The Mechanic grunted at that. "What's the fee?"

"Two million credits."

"Two million!?" Migo sputtered. "That's outrageous!"

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"The price would be lower," Mims explained. "If you hadn't stolen my ship." Mims checked his sensors. The five Vrrl fighters were getting closer. "I need an answer in ninety seconds. After that it'll be too late."

The mechanic let out a string of curses. "Fine, Mims. You got a deal. You can have the Paradigm back. Just let me dock and get off, first."

"Agreed." Mims set an intercept course for the Vrrl. "Lissa, keep your eyes on the Gates and let me know if anything comes through. Yvian, you keep track of the other two fighter wings. Let me know if they head for us, the shipyard, or one of the Gates."

"Got it." Yvian looked a the sensors again. The Vrrl had accelerated to almost forty kilometers a second "Uh, they're moving pretty fast. I don't think we'll be able to match speeds to fight them."

"They'll slow down," Mims assured her. He hailed the lead Vrrl ship. "'Here kitty kitty..."

"Show your belly, softpaw," A low, rumbling voice answered. "And thank your deity. We have no time for you. We're on the hunt for larger prey."

"It's your deity I should be thanking. I was running out of meat." The Captain gave an evil chuckle. "Here, kitty kitty..."

"A human." The Vrrl hissed. The fighter wing started to slow down. "You are far from the Federation, softpaw. What are you doing in this territory?"

"Hunting you," the human told him. "I thought that was obvious."

"Then you are a fool," growled the Vrrl. "Come then. It's been a long time since I tasted human."

Yvian checked on the other two fighter wings. The Vrrl were still hauling people out of downed ships. The group headed for the Encounter were slowing rapidly. They would be in weapons range in twenty minutes, moving at a reasonable speed for combat.

"They're really slowing down to fight us," Lissa remarked. "I think he hates you."

"The Vrrl pride themselves on being the dominant predators in the verse," Mims explained. "There's no quicker way to start a fight than to tell them they're not." He started typing into his console again.

"And I'll bet they hate humans," Lissa added. "Everyone hates humans."

"Not everyone," Mims said defensively. "There are plenty of species we get along with."

"Oh yeah?" Lissa smirked. "Name one."

He considered for a moment. "The Xill don't hate us."

"Yeah, and what's that say about you?"

"Shut up."

Two minutes later, a ship exited the North Gate and headed for Migo's shipyard. Yvian's breath caught when she got a good look at it. A Mivlo Mega Freighter. Heavily modified. Forty eight High Energy Plasma Cannons on retractable turrets. Upgraded shields. A top tier sensor array. It was the spitting image of The Wandering Lady. IFF showed the ship was registered as The Ancillary.

"Mims," she breathed. "You got me another one?"

"What?" the human glanced at her screen. "Hell no. The Ancillary is mine. Makes processing captured ships a lot easier, and she can defend herself."

"I don't know," Yvian quipped. "It looks like a new Wandering Lady to me."

"It isn't." The Captain told her. "And I think you should retire that name."

"What?" Yvian blinked. "Why?"

"Every ship you've named that has been captured or destroyed," he pointed out. "It's bad luck. You might as well call it the Titanic."

"I don't know that name."

"Famous water vessel in human history," he explained. "It was designed to be unsinkable. They said even God couldn't take her down. She hit an iceberg and sank on her maiden voyage, killing most of her passengers. Over a thousand years ago, and still that name is synonymous with failure and doomed voyages. No human will ever use it."

"So you're saying The Wandering Lady is synonymous with failure?" Yvian hoped Mims could sense her glare through the helmet.

"And doomed voyages," he confirmed. "Seriously, pick a different name next time. And you can't have the Ancillary. It's my last back up ship."

Yvian glared harder. "You're a dick."

Mims shrugged. "I know."

Fifteen minutes later the Paradigm Shift undocked from Migo's shipyard. Mims had Yvian take control. The carrier had eleven fighters and a corvette sitting in its hangar bays. Yvian deployed them and had them shift their position at random every five minutes. She programmed the Paradigm to do the same, making sure it and the others avoided the area Mims had fired his MACdriver at.

"Defense fleet deployed," she reported. "Do you really think this is enough to stop the Vrrl without the Paradigm?"

"Not really," Mims admitted. "Vrrl ships are vastly superior to Confed fighters. More shields, better firepower. They're faster, too, and the Vrrl only let the best of them pilot their ships. The combat programs in autopilot are decent, but no match for a trained pilot. Even with the Ancillary and its fighters thrown in, our defense fleet can't stand against either of their fighter wings."

"Why bring them out, then?" Yvian wondered. "What good do they do?"

"Plenty," the Captain lectured. "The Vrrl aren't at war with the Confed. This is a hunting party. All we really need is a show of force. If they think taking the station is more trouble then it's worth, they won't attack."

"Uh, Mims?" Lissa asked. "If Vrrl ships are so much better than ours, why are we about to fight five of them at once?" A thread of concern weaved its way through her voice. "Isn't that a little stupid?"

"Don't worry," he assured her. "We've got two advantages they can't overcome."

"Yeah?" Yvian was curious. "What advantages are those?"

"The first," the Captain said, proudly, "is me. The Vrrl are good. I'm better. Hell, I'm probably the best pilot in the verse."

"That's conceited of you," Yvian pointed out. "What's our other advantage?"

"The Random Encounter," Yvian could hear his grim smile. "Is not a Confed ship."

Thirty seconds later, the Vrrl opened fire. Lances of red light formed a massive column of death as they sped towards the Encounter. By The Crunch, how many guns did the Vrrl have? Yvian remembered her orders and checked on the other two hunting packs. They had circled one of the other stations. They were pounding on its shields. A glance out the viewports showed red light flashing past as the Captain dodged. Lances of green light flared as he returned fire.

She examined the Vrrl ships. Three of them were Hissiths, the size of the Encounter. Flat half disks, that flared into a larger block at the back. Each carried a dozen weapons in its main battery, with two additional turrets at the top and bottom of the ship. Each turret sported four additional cannons.

Two of the ships were Clawwings, twice the size of the others. A thick triangular frame, with two large appendages on each side. The top appendages were larger and heavier than the others, tipped with metal fingers that were in turn tipped with metal claws. The sensors told Yvian the appendages were exactly what they looked like, metal arms designed to grapple other ships. Their main batteries carried eighteen weapons, with another six manned turrets sporting six weapons each.

As the Encounter closed on the fleet they broke formation, scattering in all directions. They weaved and dodged with an agility Yvian would never have expected from ships that size. They tried to surround Mims, but the human's ship was slightly more agile. He slipped out of their grasp, spamming plasma into one of the smaller vessels as he maneuvered. There were too many angles of fire for the human to dodge all at once, and the ship shuddered as the Vrrl weapons stripped a third of its shields.

"Crunch, Mims!" Lissa shouted. "What happened to being the best pilot in the verse?"

"Shut up," he snapped. "This is a lot harder than I'm making it look." The ship shuddered again. Shields were down to forty percent.

The Encounter was flying backwards now, twisting and dodging around columns of enemy plasma. The Vrrl were still maneuvering, but Mims managed to keep them from circling him again. The Encounter's cannons suddenly went silent. A torrent of missiles approached from the fleet.

"Missile defense activated," the ship's computer informed them. Beams of yellow light flashed from the Encounter's anti-missile turrets, shattering the Vrrl ordinance. The Vrrl's plasma cannons never stopped as missile after missile was fired. The human's ship did not generate enough power to fire cannons while his point defense was active, and Mims dodged frantically, a steady stream of curses flowing under his breath.

The barrage continued for a full twenty three seconds. Mims was able to avoid most of their fire during that time, but the ship still took a few grazing hits. Shields were down to thirty five percent. Mims fired off a few missiles of his own, but the Vrrl turrets shot them down with ease.

The missiles finally stopped. Mims resumed firing on the ship he'd targeted before. The Hissith class fighter still had sixty percent of its shields, but the Encounter was starting to whittle them down. The fighter dodged and weaved, moving nearly as fast as the human ship. It didn't have the Encounter's omnidirectional movement system, and couldn't keep its main battery pointed at them while it dodged, but its turrets still sent streams of fire their way. Mims kept his weapons trained on it, even as he dodged and spun around two dozen columns of plasma himself.

The Hissith's shields were much better than the Encounter's. It took Mims another two full minutes to batter through and destroy the ship. The human had managed to avoid enemy fire for that time, and the shields ticked back up to forty one percent.

One of the Clawwings managed to shift position for a better angle of attack. It's turrets strafed across the Encounter for half a second as Mims repositioned. The shields were knocked down to twenty six percent. The Captain swore.

It was only after she glanced out the viewport again that Yvian realized just how fast they were maneuvering. Ships and plasma shifted so rapidly she couldn't keep track of them with her eyes. Looking at it made her dizzy and a little nauseous. How could the human even track the motions he was making? How could he process so many vectors at once? How could he track and dodge so many angles of attack while still focusing fire on a target of his own? It shouldn't be possible. Were all humans like this?

Was Mims even human?

Yvian dismissed the question. She'd seen him in the med pod. He was as organic as she was, and the only implant he carried was his translator. Engineered enhancements, maybe? Eugenics were a restricted technology in the Confed for the same reason as artificial intelligence. Maybe the humans didn't have the same reservations.

She checked that the other fighter wings were still attacking the mining station, then stared at Mims. She couldn't see his face, but his posture was one of total focus. Yvian had assumed the fight would get a little easier after he destroyed one of their ships, but the Vrrl had spread out more. They were spreading their fire over a wider arc, making it harder to dodge and trying to catch him in their crossfire. They were good. Yvian had logged hundreds of hours in the simulator, and she couldn't approach the level of skill the enemy was showing.

The human was better.

Three minutes later, another Hissith was destroyed. The Encounter's shields ticked up and down, regenerating only to be hammered again as columns of red plasma grazed the ship. Mims was completely silent, now. No curses, no grunts, just the steady rhythm of controlled breathing.

The third Hissith was more skilled than the other two. It increased the distance between them, using the fire from the Clawwings to keep Mims from getting too close. It dodged and strafed at the edge of its effective weapons range. Mims took another series of hits trying to bring it down. He succeeded in nine minutes, but his shields were down to nineteen percent.

Only then did things get easier. The Clawwings were much faster than a Confed heavy fighter, but not nearly as fast as the Hissiths had been. Their sturdy shields and massive firepower were countered by the human ship's absurd maneuverability, and Mims steadily wore them down. It took fifteen minutes a piece, but the Encounter suffered no further damage. When it was done, Mims slumped back in his chair.

"Yvian, send the Paradigm Shift over to us," he ordered. "Lissa, damage report and system check."

Yvian remote accessed the carrier and input the command. Lissa ran a system check and reported no damage. All systems were green. Mims set a course to rendezvous with the carrier.

Yvian checked on the other Vrrl. They were still circling the mining station. "Uh, Captain?"

"What is it, Yvian?"

"Do you think we could try to help that mining station?" Her sensors showed there were ninety seven people on that station. Their fleet had been small, only nine vessels. The Vrrl had torn through them like paper.

"Do you think they can pay?" Mims asked. Yvian gave him a look. "Privateers, remember? I won't charge that much."

Mims pulled up the station on his screen. Each of the Vrrl fighter wings contained four Clawwings and five Hissiths. Eighteen ships poured plasma from six hundred thirty two cannons into the station's shields.

Mims let out a thoughtful grunt as he looked at the screen. "I hate to say it, but there's no way I can beat that many Vrrl on my own." He took off his helmet and grimaced. "If we charge in with the Paradigm we risk them running off and bringing in capitol ships."

Yvian took off her helmet and raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you saying we can't help them?"

The Captain snorted. "Course not. I'm saying we need a plan. It'll take them..." He typed some calculations into his console. "...about four hours to knock down that mine's shields. That's plenty of time to link up with the Paradigm and figure out what to do."

"Uh, Captain?" This time it was Lissa.

"What is it, Lissa?" Mims used the same wary tone he'd used when Yvian asked.

"You might want to put your helmet back on." Lissa managed to look grim despite the mirrored visor hiding her face. "Two Vrrl battlecruiser's just came out of the East Gate."

"Shit," Mims swore. "Do we know where they're headed?"

"They're headed for..." Lissa checked the vector. "They're headed for the mine."

"Ok." Mims nodded to himself. "That's not good, but it's not as bad as it could be."

"Can we stop them?" Yvian asked. "Can the Paradigm take them on?"

"I doubt it," Mims told her. "The Paradigm might be able to take one battlecruiser, if we're smart and lucky. Two is suicide. That's not even counting the Hissiths and Clawwings. That mine is fucked." He sighed. "On the bright side, the shipyard should be fine. The Vrrl Migo pissed off are all dead, and we'll move the Paradigm Shift to protect the station. That should make it a hard enough target the Vrrl won't bother with it."

"Uh, don't you think the other Vrrl might be mad that we killed their friends?" Lissa asked.

"The Vrrl are very loyal to their own social groups," The Captain scratched his head. "But they won't usually concern themselves with another party's business. I don't think they'll hold a grudge."

"I think they might," said Lissa. "The cruisers just changed course."

A terrible suspicion grew on the face of the human, but his voice was calm. "Where are they heading, now?"

"They're heading for..." Lissa double-checked her sensors. "Us. They're heading for us."

"Shit."