Mako Calcifer walked perilously down the corridor leading to the escape pods of The Dark Horizon, one of the most notorious pirate ships in the cosmos. The lights had been deactivated in this sector of the ship, and Mako had no sense of how close she was to the airlock. She could feel Captain Cygnus’ breath on the back of her neck, and the tip of his ray-gun digging into her lower back. She had to keep moving, or she’d be blasted. It served her right for attempting a mutiny with little support from her fellow shipmates.

 

“Y’know I didn’t mean it,” she began, inching further towards the airlock, “It w-was just to test the rest of the crew's moral fibre.”

 

Cygnus sneered, his ray-gun poking further into Mako’s back. “I’ll tell ya this, ya got some gall trying to win me affections, lassie.”

 

Mako realised the footsteps that had been following her had come to an abrupt end. Much like my time on The Dark Horizon, she thought. She hit the lip surrounding the airlock with the tip of her boot and stepped over it.

 

“I would say it’s been a pleasure, Calcifer,” Cygnus growled, his iPatch casting a dark orange glow around him, “But ya know me. I’m a man of me word.”

 

The airlock snapped shut, Mako turned around in the small escape pod and watched as Cygnus’ iPatch faded from view as her escape pod was jettisoned. She suddenly regretted attempting her mutiny so deep in space that there was little to no hope of drifting into the gravitational pull of a planet, or crashing into a moon, or being picked up by any other ship.

 

Mako drifted in the pod. The concept of a day this deep in space was nebulous to say the least, but she’d found herself having four deep sleeps before seeing anything of interest from her porthole. Mako found herself questioning why Cygnus had charted The Dark Horizon into this desolate part of space when a transmission came over the escape pod’s intercom.

 

“Ahoy there! This is Captain Phoenix, interstellar scoundrel of The Star-Crossed Voyager. It seems you’ve found yourself in a bit of a dilemma, doesn’t it, good sir?”

 

A smile grew in the corner of Mako’s mouth before she replied. “I think you’ll find it’s good ma’am actually.”

 

There was a brief pause, followed by the sound of Captain Phoenix clearing his throat. “My apologies,” Phoenix continued “I shouldn’t have presumed. I-”

 

“You’re right,” Mako interjected, “You shouldn’t have presumed. I’ve been floating around here for ages, are you gonna haul me aboard your ship- what was it called again?”

 

“The Star-Crossed Voyager” Phoenix replied proudly.

 

“Never heard of it, but it’ll be better than where I am currently.”

 

There was no immediate response from Captain Phoenix, and Mako was worried that she’d talked herself out of another ship, this time without even boarding it. Then came a welcome movement of a gravitational corridor pulling the escape pod through space. Mako’s heartbeat increased with every moment until she felt the thud of the escape pod being docked and the airlock hissing open. She allowed herself a moment to compose her thoughts and plan an introduction before journeying into the depths of The Star-Crossed Voyager.

 

As she walked down the corridor that led to the rest of the ship, Mako found herself getting used to the thrum of the engines below. They were unlike The Dark Horizon’s, or any other ship she’d found herself on. It was a subtle feeling in her feet, but one she was sure she’d get used to. As she approached the end of the corridor, she saw a withered man flanked by two retro androids.

 

“You must be the good ma’am, I assume?” Chuckled the man, looking Mako in the eye with a warm smile.

 

“I am indeed, name’s Mako Calcifer. You must be-”

 

“Captain Phoenix, yes. My apologies for assuming you were a man earlier. Most escape pods are manned by… well, men. Anyway, welcome aboard The Star-Crossed Voyager, the home of rescues and strays from across the cosmos.”

 

Mako found herself unsure how to react to Phoenix. She used to pride herself on being able to read people easily, but there was something about the captain that made her uneasy. She studied him intently, then the androids that were clearly salvaged too.

 

“Pick up many escape pods then?” She asked.

 

“I’ve been at it for years. Not just escape pods though, any debris that might be useful I try to repurpose.”

 

“That’s… noble of you, sir. The universe only has finite resources after all. Is there anywhere I can relieve myself, sir? I’ve been in that pod for so long, and there aren’t any facilities in there.”

 

Phoenix’s eyes widened, “Of course, of course. The deck above us, port side, clearly marked. I’ll meet you on the bridge once you’re done.”

 

Mako bowed her head out of courtesy as Phoenix and his androids shuffled away. Instead of going to the upper deck, she bounded to the lowest deck to check out the engine room. Once she found herself there, Mako was taken aback by what she saw. The engine wasn’t fuelled by antimatter or carbon like most other ships. It was powered by the crew. The stronger ones were flinging the weaker ones into a furnace, burning them alive.

 

“What the hell is going on?” She enquired at one of the stronger crew. They just shrugged as they hauled a weaker member into the furnace.

 

“I don’t like doing it,” he said, “But it’s the Captain’s orders.”

 

She knew she didn’t have the strongest moral compass, but Mako knew something had to be done. Innocent stranded people were being brought aboard and used as fuel.

 

“This might be somewhat forward, but how do you feel about a mutiny?” Mako asked, with a confident grin. “You have a decently sized crew and the Star-Crossed Voyager’s a lovely ship. You’re just lacking a decent captain.”