Chapter Text
“So, this is what all the fuss is about?” Sapnap said, staring into the cell through the temporarily clear wall. The fuss-maker in question sagged against the far wall, unsettlingly still, half sitting on a bolted-down sleeping pad. Its wrist was cuffed to the wall. The specimen was pale and lanky with a mop of messy, dark blond hair. Small scrapes pockmarked its body like a galaxy of stars while bruises from the cables of the auto-stabilizer winded through them. Sapnap couldn’t tell if it was supposed to be that thin. “It looks kinda… small.”
George gave a small hum in agreement. Too tired from sedating the package and dragging it to the cell to do much else.
Sapnap turned to look at him and noticed the slightly alarming amount of spores floating from his cap. Agari, like George, were incredibly resistant to poisons and sedatives due to their unique biology. Their bodies expelled toxins through their caps. Some agari’s spores were still poisonous themselves but types like George converted everything into fairly harmless dust. Not fun to breathe though. After a successful capture, it wasn’t uncommon for them to need to clean the ship of all the dust. But what threw Sapnap off was just how tired George looked. Normally he’d be awake enough to help clean up and prep the ship for travel but this time he looked ready to pass out where he stood. “George, are you sure you should be up? You look ready to drop.”
George stifled a yawn. “I’m fine.”
“Alright then… I’ll start up the ship's filters. Can you set navigation?” Sapnap asked.
George hummed and walked over to the control system to enable autopilot. “Nearest warp gate?” he asked.
Sapnap paused.“That’s kinda expensive, Gogs. Do we have the money?”
George stalled for a moment, calculating. He sighed. “No. We don’t.”
Sapnap put a hand on his shoulder. “We’ll be alright. The trip’s only like a cycle. We’ll be there before you know it.”
George silently turned back to the controls and punched in the instructions before lumbering off toward the dorms. It was routine for George to take a power nap after a sedation, even if it was just so he didn’t leave spores all over the ship. But something felt different this time. Sapnap found himself wondering just when things would go wrong.
.
George didn’t wake up. His nap had lasted nearly twice as long as it should have. Sapnap was always very intent to give George his space when he was filtering. The process was energy intensive and he didn’t want to mess something up, but if George was sick, or hurt, or anything and was left to suffer Sapnap wouldn’t be able to forgive himself. He was on the verge of convincing himself to go in when he heard the door open on it’s own.
George looked a lot better. The spores were no longer surrounding him like a veil and he no longer looked like a bit of wind would topple him. But he didn’t look as rested as he should be. He didn’t stay awake either, trundleing back to his room after checking on the package.
.
It was always quiet, now. That wasn’t something Sapnap was prepared for. It was a moderately big ship but once George took his nap they often stuck together. On the trips back from missions George would perform maintenance on the ship’s systems while Sapnap either kept him company and talked about future bounties. But George already put in the drop-off coordinates and Sapnap didn’t want to plan the next mission without George’s input.
At least he could do basic maintenance. The ship was designed for a larger crew and needed more upkeep than they could afford to give it. The main engine in particular was volatile and required frequent check-ins and tweaks. It was also the loudest place on the ship. The constant drone of the power source echoed off the walls and amplified the sound. Perfect for drowning out thoughts. Even if the ache in his shoulder made it painful to work too long.
He could never let George know how much it still hurt.
.
Sapnap found himself checking on this package more often than he usually did.
It had shifted since he last saw it, and George went in to check its breathing several times a semicycle, but the fact that he hadn’t seen the package active or even conscious since boarding the ship was… concerning. It could be going through a hibernation phase. He knew that some species did that, but it looked too thin and its breathing was too shallow. He shook it off. It’s fine, George’s the expert, and he even wakes up to check on it every once in a while.
Sapnap frowned.
I wish he could just keep resting, though. All this waking up can’t be good for him in this state.
Sapnap shook his head. It didn’t matter much, anyway. The drop-off zone address was just over three cycles away. All he had to do was fly there, drop off the package, get paid, and forget any of this had happened. And make sure George doesn’t get worse, part of his mind hissed.
Sapnap swallowed. That too. He admitted.
.
There was a noise echoing down the halls.
“George… you need to stop doing this. You’re supposed to be resting.”
“I’m just checking on the package,” rasped George. “Don’t worry so much, Sapnap.” He pushed his way past and continued down the hall. Sapnap ran up to stop him.
“You know, George. I was thinking maybe you could show me how to do the check-ins.”
“It’s fine, Sapnap. I know how to do this. I know what to look for,” George said as he pushed past him.
“I can learn. Then you don’t have to keep waking up.”
“Trust me, it’s fine.” There was an edge to his voice that made Sapnap pause.
“... okay.” Sapnap watched as George walked away. His shoulders were tense as he shuffled down the hall. Sapnap felt something twist in his chest. He hadn’t meant to make George so uncomfortable. He sighed and walked into the storage room. Keeping everything organized was more of George’s thing, and frankly, Sapnap was happy to leave him to it. Unfortunately, he was running out of other things to do on the ship.
Just inside the door was the large metal case the Dreamons gave them. They couldn’t figure out where to put such a big box when they received it, so it had been lying on the floor. Well, if the box was too big, maybe he could take out the sedatives and just find a place for those. He took the lid off and froze.
Several sedation vials were missing.
.
He raced across the small ship to the holding cell, and his suspicions were immediately confirmed. George was clutching one of the misty grey bottles.
The dense ball of worry that had been sitting in his gut turned white hot at that sight. “You’ve been exposing yourself to that stuff regularly?!?!” Sapnap raged. “It’s too potent! Even for you!”
George bristled, some of the exhaustion fading from his eyes. “We need to keep it sedated!” He argued back. “You saw what it could do at the Dreamon base! You heard the reports! If this thing gets loose, it’ll take the ship down! It’s not worth the risk!” He took a breath to compose himself. “I’m doing what needs to be done. We need the credits. Now, let me pass,” he demanded.
Sapnap stood firm. “If you use another weakness potion, I will throw the package out the airlock myself.” He softened. “Go get some sleep, George. I’ll watch it. Everything will be fine.”
George’s face drew into a pinched frown. “That’s what you said when we started this whole mission.”
“And we are fine,” Sapnap said, trying to reassure him and holding open his hands.
George searched him with a frown before handing over the weakness canister with a little more force than necessary. “... If anything goes wrong. You get me. And I sedate it.”
“I will,” Sapnap vowed. “I will, I promise. Please get some sleep.”
George must have heard the worry in his voice because he left without any more argument. Sapnap watched him slink into his room. The hiss of the closing door sounded angrier than usual.
Sapnap sighed and turned to face the cell. The package still lay sleeping, completely unaware of the contention its presence caused. Truth be told, Sapnap would prefer that it stay unconscious the entire trip. But George couldn’t afford to keep sedating it, so this was a risk they had to take. With that thought in mind, Sapnap tucked the weakness away with the rest. And grabbed some basic rations as an afterthought. It would be hungry after being in forced hibernation for so long, and this bounty was worth more alive. Carefully, Sapnap returned to the front of the cell. In one hand, he held the food, and in the other, he clenched a blaster as he sat down and waited to see what exactly they had brought on board.