Val had never aimed to become “rich and famous.” She did not obsess over money, much less fame. But she did have expenses and the least she expected was to make ends meet. Which could sometimes be a challenge. Especially when you were unexpectedly thrown away from a scavenger job, and into the middle of an unknown battlefield.

Consequently, her interest had been piqued when Kaine had offered to pay her. That was not an offer she could easily have refused.

There would be challenges here too, though. But her dislike of the Imperium and seeing all these men caged had helped sway her to reason.

Before breaking the man free, she’d had to take care of the other prisoner. It would do them no good if he started shouting. And they hardly could take him with them, as he was sure to beg for.

She had turned and walked over to the other cage, under the malicious gaze of the prisoner inside. Then she had zapped him with her phaser. It was set to stun, so he’d be fine, but at least he’d stay quiet now.

After that, she had used the same weapon to shoot Kaine’s cage open.

That fool had wasted three precious minutes looking for his bag—she’d been tempted to just leave him there. But he had finally found it, and they had run.

Well, not literally. That would have drawn unwanted attention. But they’d hurried to the transit station and taken the first shuttle out.

Five minutes into the flight, she had realized her mistake.

“The fixer!” she’d cried out while pointing an accusing finger at Kaine. “Because of you, my ship won’t get fixed and we’ll get caught. Great job! Now we’re really screwed.”

The man had made a face. “I didn’t know you were stranded. What’s wrong with your ship?”

“How the hell would I know? I’m not a fixer.”

“Well, I am.”

She’d blinked in surprise. “You are?”

“Sort of. I used to apprentice with one. Depending on what the issue is, I might be able to handle it.”

“So we’re only half screwed. Got it.”

Getting out of the city had proved easier than either of them had expected.

They had arrived at the gate at the same time as a large congregation of kahdians. The guards were intent on checking everyone, but some of the men argued, and this led to a commotion. Most of the party had then been rushed through, and the two runaways had blended into the crowd.

Mimicking the fanatics had not been difficult: vacant stares and constant mumblings while marching slowly forward.

Once through, they had drifted away from the group and headed toward Val’s glider. She had left it nearby, and they’d used it to return to the ship.

Now safely inside, she turned to him with a proud grin.

“Welcome to Starrider, the latest in quantum physics!”

Kaine looked around him, studying the structure.

What he saw was faded paint, walls in disrepair, dangling cables, used parts, ancient control consoles, and even some damaged equipment. Plus, the soft humming coming from the walls did not sound natural at all.

Kaine smirked. “Oh, I’m sure it was ‘the latest’ fifty years ago.”

“Don’t let appearances fool you,” said Val with a grin. “Come, I’ll show you around.”

The rest of the ship, however, was very much in the same sorry state.

“You might need more than a fixer,” he remarked.

“She was flying fine until we got caught in that mess up there,” she said with a snort as she pointed toward the sky.

“Why, what’s up there?” he asked.

“You don’t know? How long have you been here?”

“On Rimzana? Two weeks. But the Impies caught me three days ago. Haven’t heard the news since.”

“So it’s a more recent development than I thought.”

She went on to describe the scene she had stumbled into, though she did not mention her interrupted scavenging expedition—or the rift the ship had gone through. This man was a stranger, and it was none of his business. Instead, she highlighted how the ship had been roughed up by the ordeal.

“I’ll need to see the engines,” he said. “Hopefully it’s not a thilium problem.”

“What if it is?”

He grimaced. “Even a fixer couldn’t help you with that. You’d need a scientist.”

“It’s not the core,” said Nim’s voice.

Kaine frowned as they walked. He glanced at the walls.

“Is that your AI?”

There was a short silence before Val answered.

“Yes. His name is Nim.”

“So what is the issue, Nim?” he asked.

“Mostly external damage to the hull, though some circuits have also fried under the blasts.”

“Alright. That I can handle.”

“How long will it take?” asked Val. “I’m concerned the Imperials could track us down. The longer we wait, the higher the risk we’ll get caught.”

“Believe me, hon, I don’t want to get caught either. But fixing takes time. At least a couple of hours. Maybe more, depending on the extent of the damage.”

A brow rose when he called her ‘hon,’ but she swallowed her protest when the rest of his statement registered in her mind.

“Crap.”

“You should put up a shield.”

She frowned. “We have a shield?”

Kaine laughed. “You’re kidding, right?”

Val looked up at the ceiling. “Nim! Do we have a shield?”

“I... I don’t know. Maybe?”

“Well, could you please check?”

Kaine frowned. “How could you not know if you have a shield?”

“We’ve never needed to use one,” she snapped. “Speeding into a battle head first is not something we have a habit of doing.”

“How about hiding from the Imperium?”

She grimaced. “A shield wouldn’t help much with that.”

“Depends on the type of shield. You said it’s a quantum ship? If so, I’d expect it to have an invisibility cloak.”

She stared at him. “Are you serious right now?”

“Very.”

“Nim?”

The disembodied voice responded with some uncertainty.

“There is something... I am trying to activate it. Ah, yes. I see how it works.”

“What about the invisibility thing?” she asked impatiently.

“It is now up and running!”

“Who would have known?” she whispered, shaking her head.

“Your AI should have,” remarked Kaine.

She did not comment as they made their way to the bridge.