Chapter Text
"Captain Marik, and the crew of the Ra-sing Sun, thank you for joining me today."
Yugi watched on as his Captain saluted the Director of Inter-stellar Communications between Intergalactic Solar Systems and Individual Independent Planet Nations (lovingly described as "dicks busy peeing" for short, thanks Joey). The director had a name, Yugi knew it, but between his translator set to audio only to save space in his files, and he hadn't fixed his glasses to translate text in time, having tinkered with the glasses since they broke 2 months ago, meaning he couldn't check the plaque on the desk. Luckily, Captain Marik is the only one required of their 5 person crew to do all the formalities, because Yugi has truly forgotten this man's name (Corraks are a gendered race, right? It's hard to remember their pangolin bodies. Make a mental note to read up on that again, later.)
"Thank you for having us, Director. What is the nature of our summons, none of my crew were given any details."
(Ahhh, Marik doesn't remember his name either. Cool cool cool.)
"Well, it is a small diplomatic mission,” the pangolin alien carried on, “we have been contacted by the king of Kemtempheti and he is sending out a party to learn about the intergalactic alliance. Their people have begun the process of far reaching solar system travel, reaching their 11th planet, however, to reach inter-galactic levels, they require more stable and consistent refuel stations, which is where we come in. Ergo, where you come in."
Marik didn't say with words, get on with it, as that would be impolite. Luckily, his scowl was often just deep enough to have even the most dense aliens move along in their overly long speeches. Blond gravity defying hair making him appear even taller than his 6ft frame suggested. Yugi, barely 5’5, even when his hair was longer, couldn't relate (His bangs, which he dyes, frame his face, but the rest of his grown out buzz cut has been bullied into a small ponytail with an undercut. It's professional enough).
"For you see," the Director continued, "the King has requested a small, minuscule party, of members of our hired crew to travel to Chancie-o'hearto, so that a small party can meet you and listen to your…” The Director looked to the side, long blinks before deciding on, “‘unbiased’ experiences as spacemen among our vessel and to create an alliance between our base and their future space travel."
"So instead of them making the calls with all of you...they want to meet some C list scrappy space craft flyers for....?"
(Marik is certainly a wordsmith. A man of many talents.)
"For our purposes, consider this a test. We have had virtual meetings with the King and his council from Kemtempheti but there is a conflict of interest in terms of gaining power on either side and having leverage over each other. Instead of meeting with the most important members of either side, coming to a neutral planet with little to no allegiances to either side. We still require a small team to explain the culture, our expectations, our policies in a way that a...lay'man may understand it. Of course, it can not be overstated that your team came with great recommendations when it came to small diplomatic discussions. We thought you were perfect for the role."
Yugi looked over at Captain Marik and received nothing in return. They used to give great diplomatic missions, but nothing recent since Valon's passing. Either this was such a low stakes mission they'll take anyone, but Yugi got the impression that, in fact, Captain Marik was being tested as well.
"When do we fly out?" the Captain asked.
"Excellent. Preparations are already underway-"
"When?"
The director squinted his eyes. Captain Marik was not to be messed with, he did not falter under scrutiny.
"Very well. In 3 days time.” The Director held up three fingers, petty. “We suggest you pack light. Co-ordinates will be sent to your ship for the planet Chancie-o'hearto. The conference should last no more than a day. We'll be looking forward to your report."
Captain Marik nodded as the team said their goodbyes to the director. As he left the room, Marik signalled for his team to follow him. They went to a meeting room that had been debugged months ago and no one in upper management had noticed (or cared enough) to fix it. It was hard to pack Captain Marik, lieutenant engineer Yugi, pilot Keith, Medic Mako Tsunami and Senior Officer Rafael, but they had been in smaller spaces before.
Captain Marik turned to address his crew. That was the assignment, this was the meeting.
"Chancie-o'hearto is a frozen shitbox, pack accordingly. The only envoys that I know of that have any merit are the Bakura's. My job now is to guarantee that those are the folks who are our 3rd party. If they ain't now, they will be soon. Once that is sorted, I will message you that we leave on my signal. They say 3 days but they never account for solar fields, sleep shifts and warp restrictions. Pack today to earliest be ready to leave tonight. I ain't meeting a new cohort with my tail between my legs. Alcohol is prohibited but I won't fucking check. If any of you act out, good luck finding a way home on a planet with inter-steller flight path restrictions. Any actual questions?"
When met with a small chorus of “No Captain,”, Captain Marik nodded and walked out the door first. A quick whistle and then everyone filed out, there conversation never recorded, so no one could be offended or use that info against anyone else. There had been instances before.
---
Leaving on time and with plenty of fuel to do another round trip, the Ra-sing Sun arrived above the upper atmosphere of Chancie-o'hearto. Standard protocol messages of greeting were sent out and as they waited to be received, Yugi listened to some old old old old music on his reclaimed headphones. While he had an interest in newer technology, he still had a love for older, comfortable design from the 2000's human decades. He remembers fondly going through wrecks as a younger person in the first space program, after the federation made contact with the wider Space Colonies. (Don't think about it, don't think about it)
Keith Bandino tapped his shoulder and as Yugi moved his headphones downwards, they asked, "The design coming in good?"
Yugi has made a bit of a reputation for himself in designing spacecraft. He had started as a young lad imagining what could happen in the stars and, in his lifetime, started perfecting his designs to what can happen. His designs were infamous on the space station, as his designs took the everyday lives of the crew into account and attempted to make travelling space, le gasp, enjoyable for the people living in it. He eventually had plans to make his designs more accessible to everyone, but one did need the funds. (Good thing Joey had married a multi-billionaire with a competitive spirit and businessman practicality, so it wasn’t as impossible a dream as it was years ago.)
Keith Bandino had requested a design for a booster pack that Yugi had been tinkering with. A little out of his wheelhouse, but it had boosters, thrusters, accelerants, fuel, ignition and safety precautions. But...
"Yeah, it's coming along, I just haven't figured out the right combination of elements to make sure you don't set on fire when you ignite the pack."
Blink blink, "Shit, yeah,, a very important safety feature."
He left Yugi back to his listening to ancient music. Yugi sighed and turned to look at the thick glass window out into space, the round planet in full view, blues, greens and whites twisting. Yugi loved looking at the outside of planets, watching the clouds of any planet go by. So funny how you watch clouds as a child and you rarely see them from the top. How the years have changed. Everything's changed.
Contact was made as a robotic message was heard through the concert, the speaker with a pleasant english accent.
*Beep Beep. Hello, this is Envoy Ryou Bakura coming to you from Sector 0250 of the death breaker manor.*
"Greetings, Captain Marik of the Ra-sing Sun, requesting permission to land."
*Beep Beep. Permission revoked by thee, unless you answer these riddles 3.*
You can hear how hard Captain Marik rolls his eyes.
"Ryou,” Marik lists off, rehearsed, “the egg comes before the chicken, because dinosaurs had eggs before chickens existed. There is no God in the eyes of the Lord because the lord is blind to all domains except his arsehole and I have no refrigerator on my ship, so no, I don't need to chase it."
*Beep beep. Whelp, there goes my entertainment. Better get down here so I can see your smug face. Douchebag.*
Marik sets the course as the call cuts off, grumbling, "Fucking Cats," and goes through protocol as the crew prepares for entry.
The heat, the turbulence, the extreme speeds fall away as the snow covered landscape fully comes into view. The icy mountains, the frozen black lake, the giant trees completely covered in a blanket of white. A small town seen off north west as a spacecraft hanger sits just south of the ridiculously black gothic themed manor, large and imposing.
The Ra-sing Sun sets down, the crew put on varieties of jackets and overcoats to walk down to the hangers floor, where Ryou Bakura, with his bright eyes, albino cat features and tailored waistcoat greets them.
"Would you believe me if I told you I had three other riddles in mind?" Ryou asked Marik, sharp teeth visible under his downy fur.
Marik comes to hug the smaller cat man, "Nah, you've never been that good at lying."
Ryou's laugh is adorable and sweet, his ears flicking as he addresses the rest of the crew.
"Hello, to make proper acquaintance, I am Ryou Bakura, and my partner and I will house you for the duration of your stay. There are enough rooms for each of you and yes, each room is heated, we promise." Polite chuckles respond in kind. "If there is anything we can do for you, please let us know. The only hiccup is if you do stay longer, there is a 3 hour wait for basic supplies as you can imagine driving through this snow is quite dangerous. Takes us 45 minutes each way, safely. Any other questions?"
"Yeah," Marik replies, "Has Akefia beaten his record? Also, where is the bastard?"
"He's coming by later. He is the one who had to pick up our guests to bring them in. Their spaceships are large, but not built for such a long trip. That does mean your crew does have dibs privileges, so I would take advantage now. Please, come in."
The crew sets in, the high walls of gothic architecture and design, inset with modern appliances, all in a variety of colours from onyx to tourmaline. The rooms for others to visit are much more muted, a subtle grey in comparison to the darker tones of the rest of the home. The crew all comes into the living room, with plenty of seats and a chaise lounge that Ryou sat on next to Captain Marik. The rest of the crew starts using the amenities, different species having different food intake needs, and others start snacking in solidarity. Ryou and Marik were talking quietly to each other, Yugi couldn't see Marik's face, but Ryou seemed happy. They knew each other, though Yugi could only guess how far back.
The midday turned to evening, becoming night, as everyone went to their rooms to sleep for the night. Yugi noted that Marik's open door meant he did not go into the room he was assigned that night…and then Yugi decided to mind his business.
The morning came, still cold, the door still open, as Yugi heads down to brew some coffee and get some waffles from the food synthesizer.
A large bang came as the front door swung open and a man with caramel fur and a long mane of hair came in, wearing a deep red overcoat with his space bodysuit, as he twisted over and his red scarred eyes squinted at Yugi, sitting at a table, eating pretty mid waffles.
"You better be part of Marik's crew," the man threatened (the threat was heavily implied).
Yugi, having his mouth full, simply raised his arm and pointed to the insignia on his jacket. The Ra-sing Sun logo with the federation insignia underneath. He continued to eat.
Akefia, presumably, motioned for others to come inside, holding the door open for them. A tall man with tattoos over one side of his face and wearing a ceremonial cloak. A woman came in, with white robes, a headdress that came down over her forehead, the loose curtain flowing gracefully either side of her face. Next was a man with red hair, blond bangs framing his face, tanned skin and dressed in practical attire. Last to step in was a man with a shock of bleach blonde hair, wide lavender eyes as he looked everywhere around the space. Clearly the youngest, he started talking in a language Yugi's translator couldn't pick up. Yugi noted how the four new crew members seemed to wince, but Yugi couldn’t see why.
Yugi pressed a few keys on his wristband communicator. [Ra-Sing Crew Channel] -They're here. It's time for d-d-d-d-diplomacy.
The Captain immediately blocked him. So did everyone else.