Joey stretched, yawning in boredom.and looked out the cockpit side-window at the swirling vortex sucking them into darkness. He leaned back into his chair, bored, only to hear a rather loud grumbling noise coming from his stomach. He figured it had been a while since he'd eaten, and looked at his partner a few feet away, manning her station, canvas in hand and a variety of things being held in her mouth; pencil, paintbrush, and a ruler. while she arranged her materials accordingly, she scanned the black hole in front of them with stunning curiosity. As he watched, she tilted her head to scale the size, but he was getting hungry.
""Zya,"" he interrupted her concentration, and she turned swiftly, looking at him with bright sea blue eyes. Her eye color changed based on her mood, and it changed quite often at times.
""What can I do for you, Joey?"" she eyed him intently, her voice slightly muffled by the objects in her mouth, and clearly sensing what was off, and he suppressed a shudder. He hated how she could sense just about everything about him, and the others on their crew. She was borderline empathic, and even though it had helped some issues between the team in past problems, it was still offsetting. She inquired him slightly. Even now, she could sense his emotions.""Let me guess,"" she smiled genuinely, ""you want a sandwich."" He just laughed and nodded, and she nodded back, plucking the objects out of her mouth and getting out of her seat, leaving him be. The others had already gone off to the bunkers. He went back to looking at what she was drawing...
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She closed the door and sighed, walking off to the kitchen, listing the recipe she had in her head as she strided down the corridor, stopping at an open door, and questioned what she'd find inside. Another hungry passenger, most likely. creeping in closely, she heard some whimpering, and could almost taste the fear and unease on whatever lurked inside. Rolling her eyes, she slipped through the door, finding a small child about half her size curled up in the corner.
""Hi there,"" she whispered, and the child looked up, and the fear vanished, replaced by a sense of... curiosity? ""are you lost honey?"" the child nodded, and stared at her. She sighed, smiling to mask her disappointment. It's always the same with others, she looked different, and that was enough to attract attention. She'd grown used to it, so it no longer mattered to her. ""What's your name?"" The child hesitated for a moment, blinking at her slowly.
""Uh,"" he seemed to ponder for a moment, and stumbled on words, the poor boy must be nervous, ""Chaol."" She smiled.
""Well, Chaol,"" she prompted, hoping to find some clue as to where his parents were, ""my name is Zyardran."" he smiled, clearly pleased at the greeting. ""Where are your parents?"" It was obvious he was hungry, so she leaned back, opening the fridge nearest to her, and pulling out a bowl of soup. He looked down, and a wave of grief wreathed around her. She instantly realized her mistake, and when she looked at the boy, he was about ready to cry. She leaned down, patting his head, and offering him the bowl. ""Chaol, dear,"" she spoke softly, as to not provoke any withdrawal, ""all you need to remember for yourself, is that they are always with you."" She gave him a small hug, and sent him off, and he ran off. She let him be. He knew where his sector of the ship was. She turned, pulling out some bread-
""Thank you, Zyardran."" a whisper from behind her, but she didn't bother turning.
""Of course, dear."" She hesitated, listening to the pitter patter of small feet on the warm metal floor, and continued on. Food making was like a different type of art to her, and soon enough, she smiled at her handiwork, sprinkling some garnish on top, and walked back to the cockpit, keeping vigilance for any other refugees wandering around.
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Walking into the cockpit, it was eerily quiet, as if the captain had disappeared. There was no music playing quietly, no choir practice from the captain. She placed the food beside the captain's chair, and it was only until she looked down did her heart skip a beat.
There lay the captain, it looked like he had been dead for decades, as nothing more than a skeleton remained. How long had she been gone? What time was it even? She looked out the window. the black hole didn't look any closer. A sense of panic overwhelmed her, and she stumbled back, her thoughts clouding with anxiety. Who else had died while she was gone?
What time even was it? Wait, that was already asked! A strange sense of confusion came over her and she swore under her bre-
""Wait a minute, who put this skeleton here?!"" A familiar voice shrouded in, and she looked up. No, the captain wasn't dead. But then, who or what was on the chair? ""Zyardran, where have you been?"" She looked at him funny. She'd only been gone a few minutes. ""I had to go looking for you, what took you so long anyway?"" She sighed, relieved. At least his appetite was still there.
""I was only gone a few minutes, Joey."" he looked at her weirdly, and just shook his head, looking at the sandwich.
""Thanks for the sandwich though,"" she watched him as he tossed the skeleton aside, murmuring something under his breath, and sat down, sliding the plate off the side table and started crunching down on the food.
Walking over to her space. She scanned her utensils cautiously, and noticed some had been rearranged. Smirking, she let it be, and felt the passive tensity off the captain. Of course he had. She supposed one look wouldn't have killed him after all.