Captain Rezo Kegawa muttered beneath his breath as he watched the scarlet form of the Kokoro match speed with the Hidalgo Sun and then maneuver laterally toward the freighter to line up their main hatches.  It had only been three days since the Kokoro's last rendezvous, when they had arrived to take his cargo master from him. His protests had been overruled by the president of Blue Horizon Freight, and then Mark Littlefeather was transferred to the company's new super ship, leaving him without a load master to coordinate the offloading of cargo when they reached Crescentis.

The red panda narrowed his eyes and ground his teeth together, making his navigator look over at him surreptitiously. He had always been in complete control over his crew, and it grated on his nerves to know that he had been powerless to prevent Mark's departure. Making command decisions for others had suited him, and although he had not always made sound choices, those responsibilities were his own and no one else's, mistakes and all.

Having to drop out of spatial warp to let the Kokoro dock with them the first time had put a strain on their shipping schedule, and now that cursed ship was back again, delaying them further. Master Tristen had not even bothered to contact him ahead of arrival, and the sudden appearance of the sleek cruiser had set off the freighter's proximity alarms.

Only when the alarms had been silenced and the whole crew was armed against possible pirates did a communication from the other vessel come across. Aboard the Kokoro was a passenger who had immediate business with the captain and his first officer.

Rezo grudgingly agreed to meet with this mysterious passenger that he assumed was Master Tristen, and ordered the Hidalgo Sun to drop out of spatial warp. A transfer coupling tunnel would have to be extended between the two ships once more, and the red panda grumbled again about the delay of his cargo delivery. He had already gotten into trouble with the company president this week. This setback would likely not go over well with the wolf either.

The intercom chirped and Rezo looked over at his communications officer. Riki Nori put the signal on the overhead speaker. "Bridge," the ringtail lemur responded.

"The coupling tunnel is extending now," Jasper Porter's country voice reported.

"I'll be right down, Patch," the red panda grumbled. Without looking at Riki or the black jaguar at the navigation console, Rezo left the Bridge.

"This can't be good," Tsarina remarked, glancing at the closing door.

By the time Rezo took the lift down to the Hold and had made his way around the cargo, the coupling tunnel had connected to the hull and was pressurizing. The captain's first officer stood nearby, a datapak computer in the orange feline's hands, and the raccoon engineer was at the controls beside the primary airlock.

"Any idea what this is about?" asked the cat.

"Jonesy, I have no clue."  Rezo walked over to the hatch and stood up on his tiptoes to peer through the small window. The only thing he saw, however, was the inside of the airlock chamber. "What's the status, Patch?"

The raccoon chewed on one end of an unlit cigar and tapped an indicator on the control panel beside him. "The tunnel is almost pressurized, and then whoever's on the other side can enter the airlock."

The captain sighed audibly. "I hope they make this quick," he said in annoyance. "We're already behind schedule as it is. Once we are under way again, I'll need you to give me all the speed you can squeeze out of the engines without putting them into danger."

"Aye, sir," Patch replied.

A moment later, there was a metallic knocking on the outer airlock hatch. Patch tapped a control that released the locking mechanism, and then the hatch opened. Rezo stood up on his toes again and saw a figure in a strangely shaped pressure suit step inside the chamber. The raccoon tapped another control and a yellow light came on inside the airlock. The occupant nodded its head and then shut the hatch. When he was sure the pressure inside was maintained, Patch tapped another control and then the inside hatch door unlocked with a loud clunk.

The inner door opened and the suited figure stepped inside, bowing his head to maneuver a javelin-shaped protrusion at the top of the helmet through the frame. The individual reached up and unlatched the helmet’s fasteners and then dipped his head so that the unique helmet slipped off a spiraled alicorn onto the floor.

"Hello again," the brown Silloni male said with a smile.

"Stoyan," Rezo replied with a nod of his head. "What brings you back to us so soon? Have you come to take another employee off my hands?"

The unicorn frowned at the snide tone of the red panda’s voice. "Not exactly," he answered. There was a dull clunk at the far end of the tunnel near the other ship. Without looking back, Stoyan bent over in the stiff pressure suit and picked up his helmet.

All eyes went to the airlock when a silhouette floated up to the outer door frame and stepped into the freighter’s internal gravity field. Rezo’s eyebrows shot up when he recognized the face that emerged from the shadows.

"Hello, Captain," Merlin Sinclair said. The expression on the wolf’s face was neutral, hiding the true nature of his thoughts. He nodded to the others and added, "Hello, Patch… Jonesy."

"This must be serious if the company president himself diverts his resources to touch base with one of his ships," Rezo said, stepping forward. "Couldn’t you have just contacted me online?"

Merlin stood up to his full height, placing his hands into the pockets of the slate grey overcoat he wore over matching slacks and beige mock-neck shirt. He looked down at the short red panda and shook his head. "Something of this nature must be discussed in person," he replied. "I will need to talk to you and your first officer in private, right away."

Rezo crossed his arms and looked up at the imposing wolf, trying his best to keep from being intimidated. "Why don’t we discuss it right here?" he asked with a swallow. "I keep no secrets from Patch."

"In private," Merlin insisted.

Patch and Jonesy exchanged concerned looks. Rezo stared up at the wolf for a moment longer before he turned and walked away. "Suit yourself," he said. The orange striped cat followed his captain, and then Merlin turned to Stoyan.

"Thanks for your help," he told him.

"Sure thing," the Silloni computer tech replied. "Let us know if you need anything. We’ll be preparing for the return flight, to leave as soon as you’re ready."

Merlin gave him a nod and then followed the others to the lift. Patch chewed on his cigar silently, suddenly left alone by all parties. After Stoyan was through the hatch, he shut it quietly. The tunnel might be pressurized to ship-normal, but if a micrometeoroid punctured the thin side material, they would all be in trouble. Better to play it safe with a little inconvenience if anyone else had to come or go through the hatch.

Rezo, Jonesy and Merlin rode up to the crew deck in silence. When they stepped out into the corridor, the rest of the red panda’s crew was lined up against the opposite wall. They had all been curious about the mysterious passenger the Kokoro had conveyed, and all faces reflected surprise when they saw who it was.

Merlin gave them all a cursory nod and then followed the Hidalgo Sun’s command officers to the captain’s office. Once inside, the wolf shut the door behind him and gestured the others to take their seats. He remained standing, his hands back in the pockets of his overcoat.

Without preamble, he jumped feet first into the purpose of his visit. "Rezo Kegawa," he said in a somber tone, "In accordance with the written conditions of your signed contract with Blue Horizon Freight, I am terminating your employment on the grounds of numerous counts of insubordination."

"What?" Rezo exclaimed in shock. Jonesy opened his mouth and shut it quickly, swallowing hard. This had not been what either of them expected.

"You have openly challenged me on several occasions and I will not tolerate it further. You have been treading on dangerous ground ever since you came to work for me, and now that ground has given way beneath you."

"You… You can't fire me!" Rezo sputtered indignantly. "I own this ship!"

"Captain, as of this moment, you no longer work for Blue Horizon Freight," Merlin said in an even voice. "Since you purchased the Hidalgo Sun from me with the split in the profits, I cannot take that away from you, but the contracts of your crew belong to me. Before this is settled, you have a choice to make. There is room enough on the Kokoro that I can take the crew back to Dennier with me, where I will set them up on another ship. That will leave you here on board the Hidalgo Sun to continue on to your destination by yourself. Providing you can land it and unload your cargo alone, you can then hire a new crew at your convenience. The alternative I offer is to buy the Hidalgo Sun back from you at standard market prices. The Kokoro can then take you to the destination of your choice, while the Sun will continue on its way to Crescentis under the command of Mr. Jones, here."

Despite his short stature, Rezo Kegawa drew himself up to his full height and glared directly into the wolf's amber eyes. "I'm not afraid of you," he hissed. "Get off my ship right now. My crew is staying put."

"Do you really want to tangle with my lawyer? The contracts for you and your crew were tendered with me when you joined Blue Horizon Freight. Yours is the only one I have cancelled. If you want me off your ship, so be it. The others are coming with me."  He turned to the orange cat and said, "Mr. Jones, inform your crewmates of the circumstances. Since we are all unwelcome here, we must leave immediately, so they may have to abandon most of their belongings. I will reimburse them for clothing they leave, so they should only take what cannot be replaced."

Jonesy swallowed and glanced quickly at Rezo, and then nodded slowly to the wolf. "Aye, sir," he acknowledged.

"You're going to just abandon me?" Rezo exclaimed. Jonesy hesitated by the door.

"You're only two days away from Crescentis," Merlin said calmly. "You've spent weekends by yourself before, haven't you?"

"One person can't operate this ship alone!"

"Yes, this is true," Merlin agreed, "but without a crew, I'm sure you'll do the best you can."

Rezo sputtered obscenities beneath his breath. "You're doing this just so you can get your hands on my ship!"

The wolf arched an eyebrow at him, refusing to get caught up in the anger. He had gone over the conversation in his mind over and over, and things were progressing just as he had thought they might. "If all I wanted was your freighter, I could buy another one myself. By taking my people with me, I will have to do just that, since they are contracted to crew a ship for me. I do not need the Hidalgo Sun itself. She's all yours, Captain." Once again, he turned to the orange cat. "You have your orders, Mr. Jones."

Jonesy nodded with a frown. Although life aboard the Sun was no picnic, he did not hate Captain Kegawa enough to abandon him out in space, but it appeared the wolf had a pair solid enough to do it without remorse. He swallowed and then left the red panda's office. The corridor outside was now empty, but he was hesitant to go look for the others with the news.

As soon as the feline was gone, Rezo looked in panic at Merlin. Without the First Officer in the room, he buried his face in his hands. "Don't do this to me," he pleaded. "I lost my ship once, and I don't want to do it again. Please, give me another chance! Don't fire me!"

Merlin sighed inwardly. This is the part he had dreaded. "Mr. Kegawa," he said in a quieter voice, "I have warned you against insubordination, many times. Despite constant reprimands, you continue to rebel against me when you do not get your way, even though you have openly admitted that your life has been better off since you joined the company. As someone in authority over others, you should be well aware of the dangerous position you place yourself every time you challenge my orders, especially when you flatly refuse. Since you joined us, I have allowed you to run this ship in the manner you wished, but I have received numerous complaints against you at the home office. I am well aware of the way you treat your crew, but that is not the issue here. The issue is with my patience, which has finally run out. You have given me promises to adjust your attitude, but you constantly prove otherwise. Morale under your command is dangerously low, and this is not healthy.  No, Mr. Kegawa. You have run out of chances. Your temper tantrum on my decision to transfer Mr. Littlefeather to the Blue Horizon was made without regard to the repercussions. Instead of trying to talk me out of it, you chose to challenge me by refusing. You have apparently never enjoyed working for me, so as of now, your association with my company is at an end. I have cancelled your contract, so you are now free to do as you wish without my interference."

The small red panda looked up at the wolf with pain in his eyes as he struggled to keep his tongue civil. "If you're going to take my crew away from me," he said quietly, "please wait until we've landed. I – I can't do it alone."

Merlin shook his head. "I need to get them into another ship as quickly as possible," he explained. "I'm paying my people to work for me, and I seem to have had a lot of my employees just sitting around lately."

"That's because you gave them time off to attend the birth of your cubs!" Rezo complained.

"True, but that's my prerogative as president of the company, don't you think? Samantha and I served with most of them for years.  That aside, are you willing to hire my people at standard per-voyage salaries to get your ship to Crescentis and unload it for you?"

Kegawa's mouth dropped open. "I… I don't have that kind of money in my personal account," he admitted.

Merlin nodded. "I thought as much. If you are desperate, I can float you a loan to cover their salaries, as I have done in the past. They will stay with you until you land, and will unload your cargo for you. I will fly ahead on the Kokoro so I can begin making preparations to purchase another used freighter. I will need it ready to put my people back into operation to take over the shipment the Hidalgo Sun was assigned to pick up on Crescentis and deliver to Fyn. Once your ship is unloaded, I will present you with a bill for the crew services with a payment installment plan. You will need to hire a new crew and secure a customer right away so you can begin your payments."

The red panda gave the wolf a sneer. "You've got this all planned out, haven't you?" he spat. "If I have to take a loan to pay your crew for the next three days, you know I don't have the startup capital to hire another crew!"  He stomped his feet while he ranted, but Merlin simply watched him calmly.

Kegawa sat down heavily in the chair behind the desk and closed his eyes. He was silent for several moments before he buried his face in his hands and spoke without looking up.

"Okay, you win," he muttered in resignation. "I want nothing more to do with you. Rather than being indebted to you with another loan, just pay me for the Hidalgo Sun and let me out once we land." He paused for a moment, and then added, "I am tired of freighting anyway. Perhaps I will use the money to buy a boat and take up fishing with the Crescentis fleets."

Merlin took a seat opposite that of the red panda and sat back with a sigh. "I am sorry, Rezo," he said in a soft voice. "I think that you were your own boss for so long that you were unable to accept my authority over you. I did not want to do this, but you have challenged my decisions too many times."

"Yeah, whatever," grumbled the panda.

The wolf stood up and looked down at the former captain. "Prepare the Hidalgo Sun's title to be transferred over to me. I will arrange a transfer of the funds directly into your account as soon as I get back over to the Kokoro."  Then, without waiting for another disgruntled reply, he reached across the desk and toggled the intercom control for a ship-wide announcement.

"Attention all hands," he said, "This is Merlin Sinclair. I need everyone to assemble on the Recreation Deck in thirty minutes. Mr. Jones, please return to the Captain's office immediately." He closed the circuit and then waited for the orange feline.

Rezo sat back in his chair and then looked up at the wolf darkly. "May I go to my cabin and start packing?" he asked. "Or do you intend to embarrass me further in front of the crew at this meeting?"

Annoyed at the whole issue, Merlin just said, "Go."

Rezo Kegawa got up from his chair, fighting the urge to give the wolf a rude gesture, and then quickly departed the compartment. He bumped into Jonesy out in the corridor, but did not bother to excuse himself as he stormed away.

The orange striped cat entered the office with a frown. "You needed to see me, sir?" he asked.

Merlin sighed, nodded, and then gestured toward the chair that Rezo had just vacated. "Have a seat, Jonesy. There's been a change of plan."

Merlin and Jonesy stepped out of the lift together onto the tan-themed Recreation Deck. With the exception of the red panda, the rest of the crew was seated on chairs and couches in front of the forward vidscreen. Jonesy had changed out of his tee shirt and jeans, and was now in a crème colored polo shirt and grey slacks. Since the cat had not had time to carry out Merlin's previous order to inform the crew of the whole command mess with Rezo, no one had an idea what the assembly was about. They all knew that the Kokoro had docked with them and the president of the company they worked for had come on board on urgent business, so there were several worried faces amongst the crew.

Merlin was aware of what they must be thinking, assuming their jobs were on the line; fortunately for them all, the news was not that dire. Only one of them had lost his job today, and he had elected not to take part in the assembly.

Dr. Carmen Burgess watched him from her seat with rapt attention; the polar bear was afraid she would miss something if she looked away. Beside her on the end of a couch was the raccoon, Jasper Porter, gnawing silently on the end of an unlit cigar. The chief engineer was familiar with Merlin's tactics and quietly waited for the wolf to spring a nasty surprise upon them all.

Next to him was Roger Paxton, his Palomino mechanic, who was nervously grooming his mane with an old brush. He swallowed and licked his lips several times, but kept his eyes on the floor at his feet. Riki Nori watched him in concern, and put a gentle hand on his arm. He jumped, and then gave her an embarrassed smile.

Upon a second couch, Sheila Aval and Tsarina Ahnya sat together, the kangaroo and the jaguar talking animatedly in soft whispers. The red-tailed hawk, Danaher sat stiffly upon a chair by himself, slightly removed from the others. He tended to be a loner, but the accountant was good with numbers and had never turned in an error to the Home Office.

When Merlin and Jonesy walked together to the front of the room, all eyes went to them immediately. There was some confusion when they realized that it was Sean Jones who stood with Merlin, rather than the absent Rezo Kegawa.

Assured he had everyone's full attention, Merlin put his hands behind his back, unconsciously standing in a military parade rest stance. He had shed his overcoat, as he did not wish to intimidate the crew.

"Hello, everyone," he said in a calm voice. "I won't take up any more of your time than necessary, but this meeting is an important one. I will ask you not to comment or open up discussion until I have finished." Several faces displayed open fear. He had hoped to give some background behind his decision before making the announcement, but there was no time. From the way the scent in the room was growing, he would have to make this quick before there was a panic.  "As many of you have noticed, Rezo Kegawa is not in attendance. This is because I have relieved him of command of this vessel."

Stunned expressions gazed back at him, and the scent of fear wavered in the wolf's nostrils. Several voices started up, but Merlin raised a hand with his palm out toward them.

"Quiet, please!" he commanded. "I am not finished." 

Patch scowled openly toward his former captain and crossed his arms across his chest. Of all those on board, the raccoon had gotten along with the temperamental red panda best of all; he had considered Rezo a friend.

"From the start of Mr. Kegawa's employment with Blue Horizon Freight, many of you have contacted me with complaints against your captain. So long as deliveries were made on time and expenses kept within budget, I have allowed this vessel to operate under the captain's discretion. However, at times when personnel complaints were on the rise, I did talk to him as requested. I have since learned that often afterwards, he would threaten retaliation on those who spoke out against him. This in itself was inexcusable, but unknown to me until this afternoon."

Several eyes went to Jonesy, but the orange feline kept his face and focus carefully neutral.

"Nevertheless," Merlin continued, his hands still clasped behind him, "Rezo has constantly challenged my business decisions and commands, usually openly in front of others, and as many of you know, I handle all challenges to my authority with a serious single-mindedness." He looked around at their faces and saw that the fear had left them, but everyone was now focused on his words. "Normally, I try to work with those who have a problem with me, but despite promises of respect to my authority, Mr. Kegawa never changed his ways and became a constant thorn in not just my side, but that of the business."

He unclasped his hands and raised one up to gesture around him. "When I first brought you all into the company, it was done out of a sense of responsibility to pay back a similar favor done for me. I set Mr. Kegawa as captain of my second freighter, and even allowed him to name this vessel. Thanks to scheduling by an efficient Home Office, the Sun managed to pull in a good profit for the company and I allowed half of those profits to go toward the purchase of the ship for Mr. Kegawa. Last year, the purchase debt was paid off and I transferred the Sun's title to him, with the option of staying with Blue Horizon Freight or buying out your contracts and going into business for himself. He chose to stay. You all have been a good asset to my company, but despite all this, your numerous complaints against him have been heard, and his insubordination against the chain of command has unraveled all this."

"Wait a minute!" Patch exclaimed, sitting up straight in his seat, "If Rezo now owns the ship, how can you—?"

Merlin held up a hand. "Quiet!" he commanded. "I will take your questions and discussions after I have finished. However, I will go ahead and answer this one. Mr. Kegawa has agreed to sell the Hidalgo Sun back to the company and get out of freighting altogether. Upon landing on Crescentis—"

"Did you strong-arm him to sell?" Patch asked with a growl.

Merlin narrowed his eyes at his former crewmate. "He was left with two choices to make following his dismissal," he replied.  "He could retain ownership of this ship while I removed the crew to another ship I would have to purchase, or he could sell the ship back to the company. He does not own your employment contracts, Jasper, only the ship. Without a crew, he cannot operate his ship, and since he does not have the personal capital to hire another crew, he chose to sell out."

"So you did strong-arm him!" Patch exclaimed.

Merlin stood his ground. "The only other alternative would have been for him to buy out all of your work contracts. He did not have the funds for that transaction either."  He crossed his arms and stared down the brazen raccoon. "Now, shut up and let me continue." The engineer could not meet his gaze for more than a moment, and had to turn away.

"Upon landing on Crescentis, Mr. Kegawa will take his leave from us. He has expressed a possible interest in joining the fishing fleets, so he is already taking his future in hand." Merlin looked over at the orange feline beside him and his expression softened. "At my behest, Sean Jones has agreed to fill in as your captain to keep the crew and the business in operation. He has requested that he fill this merely as a temporary promotion, so I have allowed him this caveat. If his performance is satisfactory and he wishes the position to be permanent at a later date, he and I will work out the particulars of his contract at that time. Effective immediately, he is now your captain."

With the possible exception of Jasper's perpetual scowl, the rest of the crew seemed to be okay with Jonesy as their new commander. He had been their first officer for years and he seemed to be universally well-liked among them. Merlin had never received a complaint about the feline, and Jonesy was already familiar with the daily routine, so he felt the ship would be in good hands.

Merlin had nothing more to announce, so he gestured to the cat to take over. Jonesy cleared his throat and seemed embarrassed by the attention of so many pairs of eyes focused upon him.

"Well," he said in hesitation, "I don't have anything else to add. Any questions?" Tsarina held up a tentative hand.  "Yes?"

"Do we call you 'sir' now?"

Jonesy suddenly grinned, the first time since the Kokoro had arrived. "Only if you want to," he replied. "Don't expect me to be making a lot of changes. We already work well together, so I'm hoping things can go a little more smoothly now that… uh, now that…"

"…Now that the arrogant little snot is no longer in charge?" Sheila finished for him cheerily. Although unknown to the rest of her crewmates, the kangaroo lass had suffered greatly under the red panda's acidic tongue and she had lodged the most complaints with the Home Office. Several of the crew looked at her in surprise, but Jonesy nodded with the return of his frown.

Roger Paxton held up a hand, and the orange tabby pointed at him. "Yes, Pax?"

"As Mr. Sinclair reminded us," the equine mechanic said, speaking with a southern drawl, "the name of this ship was chosen by Captain Rezo, after his old ship. Now that he's neither the captain nor the owner of the Hidalgo Sun, will you rename it?"

Jonesy looked surprised, and looked over at the wolf. Merlin raised an eyebrow and then placed his hands into the pockets of his slacks. "Things have happened so fast regarding all this," he said, "that I had not even considered that."  He looked at Jonesy and then back out over the faces of the crew. "Mr. Paxton has a valid point, but at the moment I don't have an answer for him. If you all wish to choose a different name for your freighter, I have no objections. Mr. Kegawa is now preparing the title to be transferred over to me, and I will submit it to PA Registration when I get back to Dennier.  If you wish to talk it over between yourselves, you will need to let me know what you've chosen no later than tomorrow so I can register that along with the title transfer."

Riki raised her hand, and Jonesy pointed to the red-eyed lemur. "Yes, you had a question?" he asked.

"Merlin said Rezo hinted that he might join the fishing fleets on Crescentis," she said after clearing her throat. "Does that mean he is still going to be with us for the next couple of days, or will you take him there on the Kokoro?"

The wolf nodded toward the lemur. "Despite the hard feelings that some of you harbor against him, Mr. Kegawa will be continuing on with you to Crescentis," he replied. "The Kokoro's Hyld system requires a twenty-four hour recharge before it can be used again, so even if we took him on board the other ship, we would not be able to depart for another day. Master Tristen allowed me the use of the Kokoro and its crew for this last trip, but once we have returned and the Hyld is recharged once more, the Kokoro will be returning to Sillon; I will need to return to Dennier just as soon as my business here is finished, so I do not have the time to go on to Crescentis. If circumstances had been different and we needed to transport the lot of you back to Dennier once you got to Crescentis, that extension would have been allowed, but now that it is not, I need to get Master Tristen's ship and crew back to him."

"Although he is no longer our captain," Jonesy added, "we are going to treat him as if he is a passenger. I do not want any retribution enacted against him due to any hard feeling among you. Losing his ship and his business will be punishment enough."  He looked directly at Sheila, but she only smiled back at him innocently. Finally, he looked around. "Are there any other questions?"

No one else raised a hand or said anything more, so the orange feline nodded. "Okay, then. Merlin and I are going to discuss hiring a new cargo master to fill Mark's vacant position, before he goes back to the Kokoro. Once the coupling tunnel has been retracted, we will need to get underway and try to make up lost time as best we can. I will contact the customer and inform them of our delay, and then we can get back into a routine. Everyone's dismissed."

Jonesy turned toward the grey wolf while everyone else began to disperse amidst new conversations. "Well, that went better than I expected," he said.  Before he could say anything more, however, Patch approached them.

"Yes, Jasper, what's on your mind?" Merlin asked of the raccoon. He was reluctant to hear anything the engineer might want to say, but he had long offered an open door policy with all of those he employed.

"Am I next?" Patch asked with a dark look at the wolf. "Are you going to can me next on insubordination for questioning you?"

Merlin knew he was being baited, but shook his head at the shorter male. "You had a valid question," he responded diplomatically, "even if you ignored my orders to keep your questions until I was finished. I can't fault you for asking, but I shall warn you not to challenge my authority. That was the mistake that Mr. Kegawa made, time and again."

Patch pulled a partially chewed cigar from the shirt pocket of his coveralls. He studied it for a moment and then looked up at the wolf. "What would you say if I requested that you terminate my contract as well?"

Merlin raised an eyebrow. "Why would you request that?" he asked in genuine surprise. "Do you have a problem with serving with Mr. Jones in command?"

"No, I think he's capable enough. It's you I have a problem with," replied the raccoon boldly.

"I see," Merlin said with a frown. "You've always seemed to harbor something against me, even though I gave you and your brother an extraordinary amount of leeway running my engine rooms."

For the first time since they had known one another, Patch looked up at the wolf and was able to hold his gaze. "You were never the commander you should have been," the raccoon answered truthfully. "With your prior military training, you should have kept a tighter ship than you did, and I sincerely believe that a lot of the difficulties we ran into were caused by your lax attitude."

Merlin's expression darkened. "Despite my background training, the Blue Horizon was not a military freighter, Jasper, and I refused to treat her as one. I gave everyone on my crew the opportunity to serve in a relaxed atmosphere for reasons of morale; I have never regretted that decision, though I am sorry if you did not appreciate what I did for you all."

Jonesy directed a rare scowl at the raccoon. "I suppose that's the reason why you were sticking up for Rezo," he said in annoyance. "He has been beating down this crew's morale for far longer than you've been with us, Patch. The greater majority of us were sick and tired of his iron fist, and you can bet your cigar that I'm not going to follow his lead!  Earlier, I was bothered that his actions had resulted in getting himself fired, but not anymore. He pulled that down upon himself and got what he deserved! Is that what you want for yourself?"

Jasper's eyes widened. He had never seen the orange tabby so animated before, and he unconsciously took a step backward in surprise. Momentarily flustered, the raccoon did not have a reply. Merlin crossed his arms and looked down at the engineer.

"If you feel that I have been too lax with you, Jasper, I am about to grant you your dream," he said with a hardened gaze. "Your request for the termination of your contract has been denied. You still have a little over a year on your contract to fulfill before you have the option to seek employment elsewhere. Until that time, I expect you to give Jonesy your best in military efficiency as his chief engineer. Is that understood, mister?"

To the surprise of both the wolf and the cat, Jasper gave them a lopsided smile. "Now that's more like it. Aye, sir. You can count on that." He gave his captain a crisp salute and held his pose until Jonesy smirked and returned the action.

"Unless you have anything further," said the feline, "you're dismissed."

Patch nodded and stuck the end of the unlit cigar between his lips. "I've said my piece," he said. "Despite how everyone seems to claim that Rezo treated them, he has always been fair to me. I do not intend to shut him out for the reminder of our voyage, as I suspect the others will do. He is my friend."

Merlin relaxed and said to the raccoon, "I am glad to hear that, Jasper.  Everyone needs a friend, especially when life is not going well."

The raccoon nodded and then excused himself. The three of them had been the only ones left on the recreation deck, and soon it was just Merlin and Jonesy.

The Kokoro departed an hour and a half later. From the window of his cabin, Rezo watched the scarlet cruiser's running lights shrink into the distant darkness of space. The vessel's Hyld system still had the greater part of a day to recharge before it could be of use on the return journey to Dennier, but it could make headway using standard LightDrive engines. The Hidalgo Sun would resume course to Crescentis just as soon as the engines were powered up and the navigator had recalculated their route.

The red panda uttered a mouthful of curses directed at the lupine passenger of that Silloni ship, and then he took a drink of amber liquid from a square glass of crystal he held in both hands. When he turned from the window, he moved to the computer desk and called up his personal account. He was now one hundred seventy-five thousand credits richer than he had been a few hours ago. He had signed over the title of the freighter to Merlin and he was now just a passenger for the next two days.

With the credits in his account, Rezo planned to play tourist on Crescentis for a few days before looking for a job with one of the ships in the fleet. He had considered buying his own boat, but he had to admit to himself that he lacked the necessary skills to start his own fishing business right away. He would seek out a local boat in need of deck hands and learn the ropes before trying to run one of his own. He knew it would be hard work, but if it meant that he would never have to take another space flight, it would be worth it.

Merlin Sinclair relaxed upon his bunk in the small cabin that had been assigned to him on the Kokoro. He had not needed it for more than a few minutes on the flight out, but now that he had hours to wait out the Hyld recharge, he had taken advantage of the time to rest and reflect upon the situation.

After the Blue Horizon had departed Dennier on its return trip to visit the lapin community on Se'rei, Merlin knew that it was time to confront Rezo Kegawa while he had certain resources available to him. With the birth of Samantha's cubs and the prototype Kirin freighter delivered as the new Blue Horizon, Master Tristen would soon be returning to Sillon. Merlin had begged the use of the Kokoro for one final voyage so he could put an end to Rezo's insubordination once and for all, face to face. With this trip alone, he was already convinced how such quick transportation would be greatly coveted by every world in the Planetary Alignment.

He had already sent the freighter's title ahead to the Dennier branch of the PA Registration office in Grandstorm, but the name of the ship would remain Hidalgo Sun, as voted upon by her crew. None of them could agree upon a new name, so in the end they had chosen to remain with what they were used to, despite its origin. He agreed it would make things easier, especially with the company paperwork.

Later, when the ship-wide intercom beeped for attention and then the captain's voice announced the jump time was imminent, Merlin roused himself from his meditation to prepare himself for the gut-wrenching that was associated with a Hyld jump. Once through on the other end, he would soon see his family again. That alone would make the discomfort worth the trip.