The hovercraft was the source of the light, of the humming, though it composed only a part of the shadow. Behind the ship a mess of cables and rusted metal plating drifted as if in tow. At first glance, the heap appeared to be a sentinel--though why it wasn't attacking...

Further inspection would reveal some differences. Four legs, tucked up to the body and mostly hidden beneath rows of waving metal tentacles; an elongated inner structure that gave the machine the appearance of a tail--it too trailing with its own tentacles; a head with not red glowing orbs, but green...

This ship must be the Corinthian, its commander the famed Fire-Eater, the woman who subdued a destroyer herself and brought it to fight for the human cause. At least, that is what most people would say. In truth, the machine that was following in the ships wake did so of its own volition. It--no, he followed the human craft just as if he were a part of the ship, a part of its crew. In a way, he was.

Inside, the light was not much better. Flickering fluorescent tubes lit the metal grate walkways and naked bundles of wires with a haphazard rhythm, illuminated the sleeping rooms where two humans rested in one another's arms, the mess hall where two more humans arm-wrestled and another cheered them on, the cock-pit where, at this moment, two more humans scanned for trouble, and a third reached over and pulled on a clunky headset. Her face dirty, her hair mussed beyond saving, this woman never the less had proud visage, and when she slipped the headset over her greasy hair, she might as well have been putting on a crown.

"Wake up, Guardian, how's it going back there?" She swung her chair around to face a computer panel, and tapped at the chipped keyboard until the windows she wanted appeared.

A voice, quiet and cool, masculine and yet... not, flowed back through the speakers. "Everything is clear, captain. There has not been any sign of sentinels for the past eight thousand, six-hundred and forty seconds."

"Plain speak, please?"

"Two point four hours, captain."

The woman nodded slightly. "And before that?"

The machine's voice was just as devoid of emotion as ever, "I dispatched it before it could send out a signal, and replaced it with a decoy."

The woman clapped one hand to her thigh and grinned. "Excellent. See Swift? I toldja hauling that hunk of metal would come in handy once in a while."

A man, dark of skin and with patchy hair, grinned back from his seat near the front of the cockpit. "More then once in a while, Fiy,"

"He is called Guardian for a reason," the third human, a youngish girl with a shaved head and bright eyes, drawled. "If it wasn't for him, you'd have had your ass handed to you by that agent, and where would you be now?" she smirked at the larger man for a moment.

"Knock it, Crank, that whole thing was your fault to begin with. If it wasn't for me, you'd still be swiping credit card numbers and lip-gloss." Swift took a hand from his console and whapped the girl over the head.

"Hey, quit it!"

"Both of you, stop that," Fire-Eater reprimanded. "Now listen up, all of you. You too, Guardian."

"I'm listening."

"Good. Now, I've been speaking with another commander who has some very interesting news to convey--"

"A new contact?" Crank turned around fully in her chair, her blue eyes wide with excitement. "Can I go with you this time to help out? I hate waiting out here and watching, I want to go with you!"

Fire-Eater grinned at the girl and raised a hand in a pausing gesture. "Hold your horses, girl, I'm not done yet." Her face more serious now, she continued, "We're not going into the matrix this time. We're going to meet the Dragonchaser's captain, Yana, and it will be here." She tapped at her keyboard some more, sending the location to the two navigators' consoles. "Did you get that, Guardian?"

"Yes. Would you like me to scan for anomalous activities?"

"Of course! Do I have to ask?" Fire-Eater stretched in her chair and scratched at her side. "And if you find anything, send an alternate route to Swift, huh?"

"I will."

"I could do it just as well," Crank pouted, but was silenced by a stern look from the captain.