The ex bounty hunter Vane sat nervously on the medical chair in the Uju Kanu infirmary. He wasn’t bound, but he didn’t need to be. He knew what would happen if he ran. Vane had come quietly after Lily threatened to expose him to the other religious devotees, but it wasn’t the fear for his immortal soul that held him in place now, but rather for his frail and very eatable body.

The room was dark except for the big headlight mounted on top of the chair, which flickered slightly, revealing just enough of the clean medical room, including a note attached to the freezer that read 'Acro's Corpses / Keep Out!'. 

Vane eyes it nervously before turning to look forward, drawn to the looming figure stepping out of the shadows, which grabbed the headlight and thrust it menacingly into his sweating face.

“Hey there,” said Acro, their faces now only inches apart. “I brought you some...coffee.”

Acro raised the steaming cup with their mechanical hand, holding it rigidly in between them. Vane accepted it nervously, unable to look away from the big bright yellow orbs squinting down menacingly at him.

“Um, thanks.”

“You’re welcome!” yelled Acro, pointing a menacing metal finger at Vane.

Lily took that as her cue to step in, pushing Acro out of the way and taking a seat in front of him. She wanted to appear relaxed and in control, dangerous even. As her mother used to say, the deadliest blade is the one that is already slightly unsheathed; quicker to draw, and to strike with.

“You know Vane, I was surprised to find out you even existed,” she said, her tone almost playful. “I mean, desertion is so rare among us. Usually, once you go into the life, you do it for, well...life.”

“You don’t know what it’s like yet,” said Vane, looking straight at her. “You’re still wet behind the ears when it comes to this ‘life’, but it catches up to you...and when you can’t run anymore, all that’s left is to hide.”

“Oh no, no, no,” she said wagging her finger reproachfully. “We are not doing the self-pity sob story; I know you’ve been a naughty boy, Vane. You took some shine that wasn’t yours and ran for it.”

“That’s what space pirates do,” he countered, looking angry.

“I grant you that, but not to your own crew.”

Vane said nothing, but a bead of sweat did start to trickle down his shaven dome. He let his face fall into his hands as if a great weight were on him, but Lily wasn’t impressed.

“I’m not here to be your priest, Vane." Lily got to her feet and closer to him, her hand touching the silver hilt at her waist as she did. “The only thing I am to you right now is a woman with a sword and very little patience left.”

“Oh do bugger off, you HPA bi-”

He got cut off by Lily grabbing him by the collar and shoving him against the chair. She wasn't smiling anymore; the blade had been drawn.

“Go on, say the word. Then I can follow suit with a few cutting remarks of my own...or maybe just some cutting.”

She made her fiercest expression, trying to look scarier than the 6-foot red giant bug next to her, but Vane refused to meet her gaze. 

“Please, if I tell you he will come after me this time.”

“Oh, don't worry about him. I'm the one who's here,” she said barely above a whisper and began to reach for her sword.

“And I'm the one who got you some cookies, cause we just bought some recently and they’re really nice!” yelled Acro, their tone as menacing as Lily’s but diminished by the box of sugary treats they shoved in between them.

Vane looked at the box and then back at Lily utterly confused, and Lily really couldn't blame him. She released Vane with a sigh, letting him slump back into the chair, and then dragged Acro into the corner of the darkroom.

“This isn’t working,” she said plainly.

“What? You told me to play good cop,” said Arco defensively.

“I don't think you understand how that works.”

“You know what, this is crap,” they grumbled. “I’d eat people like him for breakfast if you’d let me, so let me!”

“Perhaps you’re right...oh, very well, let’s switch. Make him pee himself and I’ll swoop in and sweet talk him into singing.” They both nodded and returned to the chair.

“Vane...darling,” she said with a friendlier tone, “perhaps we got off on the wrong foot. See, we don’t want to hurt you.”

"I definitely want to hurt you," countered Acro.

"No, you don't," argued Lily, keeping her smile.

“All right, truth be told; I just want to eat you...part of you, anyway. Maybe the liver?”

"And being eaten doesn’t hurt?” she asked, crossed.

“Not if you do it right,” and added reassuringly as they placed their arm gently around Vane’s neck, “which I can.”

Acro got practically cheek to cheek with him, drawing Vane's attention to the small sonic scalpel they held in front of him. Acro turned it on and Vane gulped nervously at the sound, as it vibrated with an eerie hum. Lily felt that fear justified, she had seen them use it to cut flesh like butter before.

“The things I can do with this little baby...well, keep being as chatty as you are now and you won't have to imagine.”

Vane looked like he was close to tears now, and Lily seized the moment to add salt to the wound. “It’s true, some of our captives keep disappearing around here. It’s my fault, really. I don’t feed Acro properly.”

“Yeah, the food here always sucks!”

“What?” said Lily, taken aback and not a little bit hurt.

“Oh, I mean…” said Acro quickly, looking more than a little panicked. “I’m just playing along, Captain. Your cooking is a gift,” they added hushed up in Lily’s ear.

Lily looked back at Astor and Leon, who had been standing behind the glass window all this time, and both nodded in agreement, if a bit too enthusiastically. They gave her a thumbs up and she smiled back, reassured.

“As for you buddy, I got just one word ….sweetbreads. And yes, it is one word, and yes, they are oh so sweet.” Acro began to move a mechanical finger teasingly above the spot where Vane’s pancreas would be.

“He’s in Caldera!” yelled Vane, unable to take it anymore. “For the love of the ancient gods, he hides in that molten wasteland! I can give you the exact spot where his ship is, just please don’t let this giant bug eat my organs!”

‘’Tch, I wasn't gonna eat all of them,” said Acro, annoyed at being denied his meal and dropping the sonic scalpel on a metal tray.

“There, there, the mean old bug doctor isn’t gonna eat you...anymore,” said Lily as comfortingly as she could. She placed a blanket over his shoulders and handed him over to Leon, who guided the poor man out of the infirmary and towards a spare room where he could cry in peace.

Intimidation wasn’t one of Lily's preferred methods, but she was glad it had worked. Tracking down people may be their job, but it was often easier said than done. Especially when dealing with other bounty hunters. Roin was about her age, but unlike her, he had been doing this since he was a boy. He knew how to move across the system, and how to hide if need be.

And yet, he had missed Vane. A clear weakness. Was it carelessness? Or perhaps just arrogance. No one opposed the 4 Rulers, even the HPA stayed out of their way to Moray’s deal with them; as long they did as they were told by him, of course. It’s possible simply didn't think anyone would dare come to him even if they knew where his base was.

Well, then they certainly won’t be expecting us to drop by, and with that thought, she exited the infirmary and headed towards the main deck to set course for Caldera.