Stepping into his quarters, Vathion took a deep breath and let it out. It smelled like Natan, but either it wasn't so strong now, or he was getting used to it. He dropped into a seat on the couch. On the low table was a pile the pile of random things he'd purchased during his tour of Baelton.

He sighed. "Why did I buy all this stuff?"

Leaning forward, he took the wood carving he'd gotten from someone at the Serfocile embassy. It was a handmade holy symbol, but hardly master craftsmanship. He could've refused it, but since it was a gift from a child... He could just imagine Linguist Aola's displeased look if he'd been impolite. Instead, he'd given a proper recitation of thanks in the Serfocile language. The child's parent had nearly passed out from shock.

As for what to do with it now... best to put it in a visible place. "Kiti, put this in my office."

Three minibots scurried across the room from a dispenser in the wall, took the carving, and trundled off towards his office door. Shaking his head, he sat back on the couch, staring at the rest of the pile. He picked up a video game that he would likely never have the time to play.

Maybe I can donate it. Auction it off for charity after I sign it or something. That would look good for the public.

His smirk faded quickly as he set the game down. He wanted to talk to Jathas.

Maybe I could call Mirith? He rubbed his face with his hands and slid sideways on the couch, too tired to get up, too depressed by Jathas' absence to want to reach out to anyone else. Jathas would have enjoyed this. Jathas would have teased him relentlessly about having actually enjoyed careening about the station like a drunk pop-star. Thankfully, Paymeh had nothing to say, and Vathion hoped it would stay that way.

He rolled onto his back on the couch, propping his feet up on the other armrest. Least I got a lot done today. No one was going to mistake him for his father again. Not after the scene he had made in the recreation area. He flushed slightly in embarrassment at how he had totally gushed at meeting Panden, the star player of the Baelton Graviball team.

Thinking about it, Vathion pulled the piece of paper from his pocket. "Kiti. Frame this and put it in my office." He handed the autograph to the minibot that appeared from beneath the couch.

"Of course, Stud Muffin!"

Vathion lifted one of the books he'd bought, then dropped it to the table with another sigh. He had, of course, met the Stationmaster. He'd picked at him a bit, trying to pry some information about the Shell Harbor. But covertly interrogating the man was harder than he'd thought it would be. He would figure out what was going on some other way.

Adjusting the pillow beneath his head, he relaxed and stared at the ceiling. He really should not have been sitting down. He had other things he had to do. He wanted to review the autopsy report again, find the surveillance files of cargo bay four, and go over what he had learned today.

Paymeh disengaged, dropping to the floor. Turning, he looked up at Vathion. "You did very well today." The Hyphokos sat back, three-fingered hands lacing together, backward-facing thumbs tapping lightly. "Natan is proud."

"Natan's dead." The last of his good mood evaporated. "I don't like you, piss off."

The Hyphokos’ ears flipped downward. "I have other things to do. You stay here. Stay out of trouble."

Sitting up, Vathion threw a pillow at the lizard. Paymeh dodged in a quick side-step, then slithered out the door. He eyed the door suspiciously. "How dare he tell me what to do. And what could he possibly be up to that's so important?" Heaving to his feet, Vathion pulled his shoes back on and stalked out after the Hyphokos. He was just in time to see Paymeh's tail disappearing around the bend in the hall.

Scowling, Vathion hurried after, rounding the curve as Paymeh's tail disappeared into the conference room. The door didn't immediately close, and Vathion arrived to find his first shift bridge crew, plus I'Savon, staring at him in confusion.

Gatas gave Paymeh an accusing glance. The Hyphokos shrugged.

Vathion strode confidently to the head of the table, taking the seat from Gatas and forcing him to take the next one down. "How good of you all to gather. I've been meaning to speak with you." Leaning back in the chair, he put a foot on the table and studied his nails. "I've done a lot of work today."

Reluctantly, Ma'Gatas took a seat to Vathion's right. Paymeh sat on the table to Vathion's left. The others found seats around the table as they liked.

"As far as I saw, Ha'Vathion, you played around all day," Ma'Gatas pointed out boldly.

Smirking, Vathion lifted his eyes. "Exactly what I wanted it to look like. You weren't listening to the talk, were you?"

Gatas looked confused.

Ca'Bibbole spoke up then, ears flipping as he hesitantly, "You mean, those rumors about Ha'Natan running off to join the circus, or going to be a priest, or returning to Victory Station?

Vathion nodded. "Those were all things I sent out to the media." He put his feet on the floor and sat forward.

I'Savon's eyes lit up. "Meaning that if anyone even breathed that Natan was dead, it would be discredited as one of those silly rumors."

He nodded, although there were already hints that someone knew the truth.

Wo'Chira put her face in her hands. "I have to admit, you've got more brains than I'd first suspected."

Vathion stared at her, mouth open for a moment. "It tends to run in the family." Rolling his eyes, he sat back and continued, "In short, I ran around and made myself visible, blew off rumors, and reassured everyone that it would be business as usual with the Fleet. So, Gatas, do you still think I just played around today?"

The older man scowled. Vathion got the feeling Gatas had been the one to call the secret meeting he had walked in on. How had Paymeh known about it?

Ignoring Gatas' silence, Vathion continued, "I've read over the damage reports from the Fleet's last battle and decided that it's superficial enough that we can handle the remainder of the repairs ourselves. We'll be heading to Kimidas Station in the morning. I've got some things I want to look into over there."

Ma'Gatas slapped the table. "Absolutely not! If you knew anything, then you'd know that station was taken two weeks ago by the Rebels. We'd get shot up in a second!"

Vathion glanced around. "The West Wind defected in that battle, correct?"

"That scum, Ha'Rio!" Li'Codas thumped his fist on the table, "He'd been leaning towards their side for some time now. If he hadn't turned, Kimidas would still be ours!"

Lifting a finger, Vathion shook it. "I never said we were going into Kimidas. Just to it. I want to look around. You guys ever heard of Shell?"

They nodded.

Erekdra said, "Everyone knows Kimidas is a Carken Harbor for it."

"And Baelton's got its fingers in on the deals, too."

His officers stared at him.

"Baelton? A Shell Harbor?" I'Savon shook her head in disbelief. "Serfocile would never put up with that."

Shell was believed to be of Carken origin. The Carken claimed that they had gotten it from someone else. While it made the Carken hostile and gave them faster reflexes, it was a highly addictive depressant for Gilon, making them docile and happy. Thinking on it, Vathion realized that the word was from the Terran language, making him wonder what other alliances the Carken had that they had not told Gilon about.

Returning to the conversation, Vathion said, "If they knew about it. But Stationmaster's keeping it as quiet as he can."

"If he is, then how'd you find out," Ma'Gatas asked sourly.

Smile turning to a grin, Vathion lifted a single finger to wag. "That's a secret!" He turned back to the rest of his officers. "So, in the morning, we're gonna jump to Toudon."

"No!" Gatas snapped. "I've told you already that it's a bad idea to go to Kimidas! And to take us through Toudon to get there is asking for trouble! We haven't got the supplies for it!"

Paymeh stood, leaning aggressively at Gatas. "If he wants to go, then we're going!"

Gatas leaned across the table, finger pointed at the Hyphokos. "You--I can't believe you're actually taking this--this kid's side! He doesn't know anything! And you're supporting him!" Turning towards the other officers, Ma'Gatas spread his hands, "You all know that it's sure death for us to go that direction!"

"And you're a pigheaded old man! Too stuck in rules and how things should be that you can't think past your own nose! Shut up and give Ha'Vathion a chance! You've all trusted Ha'Natan's decisions before!" He looked around the table. "You really think he'd leave the Fleet to someone he wasn't sure could do the job?"

Slapping his hand on the table, Vathion raised his voice, "Gentlemen!" They both looked at him. "Enough. We can't afford to waste time arguing with each other."

"Instead of chasing Shell, maybe you should focus on how Ha'Natan died?" Wo'Chira asked. "You suggested he was murdered. Whoever did it might still be on this ship."

"I've taken precautions." Ma'Gatas folded his arms, chin lifted to look down his nose at Vathion. "I've discharged all known spies from the Fleet."

Nails biting into the wood of the table as Vathion felt himself chill, then heat. "Fool!" Overtaken by something that didn't feel like himself, he lifted a fist to shake at Gatas. "Idiot! You just killed all chances of finding out who did it! How stupid could you be?"

Taking control of himself, Vathion reined himself in and lowered his voice. "Did it ever occur to you that those people were useful?" His sudden shift in volume had the full attention of his officers. "Did you think that maybe Natan left them for a reason?"

Ma'Gatas stared down at him, the scars on his face pulling his upper lip into a sneer. Vathion made a mental note to start planning for a Worst-Case Scenario. Gatas had always done everything by the textbook, which led to the injuries.

Tapping his fingers on the table, Vathion continued to stare at Gatas, making him uncomfortable.

First off, the Emperor was going to be pissed, as were all the other people who had had spies on the Natan Fleet.

Sure that he had his temper under control, Vathion said, "I want a list of the people you fired as soon as this meeting is adjourned. We're heading to Heartland tomorrow instead to beg the emperor's forgiveness."

Gatas looked confused, but his eyes were smug, "Why? Spies are information leaks!"

"Natan knew about them, didn't he?" Vathion surged to his feet. "And he left them, did he not?" This time, Gatas gave a scowl and nod. "Then there was a reason for it! Spies are just fine so long as they're not sabotaging things and you know who they're working for. I want that list on my desk in ten minutes, Gatas, or your ass is toast. I will not put up with incompetence in my second in command. I will not tolerate further insubordination."

Gatas stared at him wide-eyed.

Codas gulped, practically sliding beneath the table. Erekdra eyed her nails while Savon sat back in her seat, watching. Chira and Arih looked worried. Bibbole's tail tapped on the table. He had spent the whole meeting either looking at Vathion or Paymeh in concern.

Vathion took a breath. "When we get the chance, we're picking up new crew." He did not mention that he was going to see if he could get some of his father's old contacts to run a thorough background check. Ma'Gatas would only use the official channels to get information. He was turning out to be a liability.

But who could Vathion replace him with? It was the question of keeping the known fool around or finding someone with unknown allegiances. It was frustrating enough to make the young man want to pull his hair out.

Vathion pressed his lips into a hard line. "These secret meetings will stop." He twirled a finger around to indicate the room. "I know what you're up to. My father has been training me to take command for quite some time. I'll not lead you astray. I want the best for the Fleet; for the Empire."

"If you do," Ma'Gatas interrupted, "Then let me take over! We've been here! We know how to run things! All you have to do is sit back and look pretty."

"Right. And first battle we get into, everyone will know who's running things."

"You don't know anything about battle anyway, so what would it matter?"

Vathion clenched his teeth. "You've yet to see me fight." He had never been this angry in his life. He was so angry calm had settled on him. He stared at Ma'Gatas. He straightened, hands at his sides. "You trusted Ha'Natan's decisions in the past." He swept his eyes over the rest of the group, meeting their eyes individually. "Did you not?" Reluctantly, they nodded. "Then trust them now. He did not betray you."

Bibbole shook his head, hair and long ears swaying, "Natan's looking after us," he agreed, "I speak for all the Xarian Hyphokos. We still follow Ha'Natan, in whatever fashion." He hopped down from the table, the tip of his thick tail twitching in irritation as he left.

Vathion decided to leave then, before he lost his mind and punched Gatas.