#i mean it's probably a name chosen by the crew later with more perspective on what is happening

[ymnes-odde]

Hymn for Pyriscent Seeds 1:1-6

From the teeth of the rats I will flee no more, to converse at some length with the stones— to discern when to burn and renew, renew— for my song it is long overdue! While fore'er they may gnaw on the bones, my bones, they have lost what my flesh may restore.

-transmitted by the lingering swarm-mind of an ancient thinkwright to the crew of the independent starship Queen of Argyll before the mind's destruction by wildfire.

[not-majestic-bluenicorn]

Crescent || Chapter 4

Fandom(s): ATEEZ

AU: Treasure Hunters

Genre: Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

Relationship: Everyone x Everyone, Established Hongjoong x Yunho

Language: English

Status: Ongoing

Chapter WC: 6,020 words

Warnings: Character Death, Stabbing, Fighting, Blood, Aliens, War, Funerals, Kidnapping, Attempted Kidnapping, Mentions of Child Abuse / Child Work, Explosions, Murder Attempt, more will be added.

Chapter Warnings: Mentions of Alcohol.

Summary:

"Dear patrons, our show is about to begin." A smooth, silky voice spoke from somewhere on the stage, gathering everyone's attention. "We invite you to direct your eyes to the stage and enjoy the performance. My name is Télos, your narrator, and I hope you'll be able to enjoy this evening with me."

AO3

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Tagged: @angel0taiyo​

San quickly discovered, during the first few days in outer space, that it was more difficult than it had first seemed to find time alone. He needed to report back to his boss so he could report back to their client on his mission, but it was almost impossible to do so. Eventually, he concluded that the only way to do so was go to the restroom and hope no one else would be there so he could make his call.

A few days into the journey, he managed to find the restrooms empty and quiet, and quickly took out his communicator and initiated a call. A few seconds later, the small holograph of his boss projected and San presented himself.

"Soldier San, code CS-710-28, reporting." He saluted briefly before putting his hand down and waiting to be addressed.

"It took you a long while to report, code CS-710-28. You were supposed to inform me when the ship sailed." His boss shook his head in disapproval. "Explain why."

"Sir, yes sir." San cleared his throat. "I've been appointed as Space Artist and I've been helping the Captain, er- the target, to decipher the map. It is very difficult to find time alone, sir."

"Are you trying to give me excuses?" The man huffed.

"Sir, no sir, my apologies." San was quick to apologize, preferring not to upset his boss before he could even get a chance at completing the mission.

"Whatever," his boss shook his head. "I want a statement on the state of the target and of the voyage."

"Sir, yes sir." San gave a quick nod. "The mission is going as expected, they still haven't made much progress with the map. However, it is difficult to approach the target, as he is always in the company of First Mate Yunho, who seems more like a bodyguard than the second in charge."

"Ah yes, the lapdog." His boss laughed. "The client did warn me about him. He's basically dating the target, be careful. Report to me once you progress on the mission."

"Understood, sir." San saluted again and just as fast the call had ended and he was alone once again.

San sighed and put his communicator away. He carded his fingers through his hair and took deep breaths, willing himself to focus once again. He hated this mission. It was difficult as it was, but working by himself when the target was surrounded by some of his best soldiers was basically a suicidal mission.

He also hated the whole 'sir' thing, it made his blood boil whenever he had to refer like that to his boss, who was nothing more than an abusive asshole. Still, it was what life had tossed at him, and he had no choice but to obey, after all, he had chosen to live. He hadn't chosen this line of work but he could still make the best out of it, or so he hoped. In the meantime, he had to go back and pretend to decipher that map.

--

"This is definitely in a different code from the last one," San sighed, rubbing his temples. "It seems like the codes to reveal each part of the trajectory change each time, how did you even decipher up until here, Captain?" 

"I didn't, not all of it." Hongjoong sighed as well, leaning back. "It was given to me started, and I'm just trying to complete the work." 

"Ah..." San nodded.

"But thank you, you're doing a great job, let's continue working like this." Hongjoong smiled, patting San on the back. San tensed up and nodded, but Hongjoong didn’t seem to notice.

They spent a few hours working on the map, trying to decipher it. They had been doing this for days but their progress was slow and uneven, which didn’t help raise their spirits. Hongjoong was getting increasingly more frustrated. He knew there must be a key to how all the codes worked, but he couldn’t find it anywhere, and the more he tried, the more the map seemed to laugh on his face.

Yunho, Hwanwoong and Siyeon came often to check on him and brought him food. It was obvious he was overworking himself but none of them wanted to mention it. They knew how important it was for him to do this for his brother and the Empire, but they wished he would at least take a break to take care of himself. Eventually, they had to force it on him.

"That's it, I'll tell Yunho to come fetch you." Hwanwoong said one time he walked in and saw Hongjoong muttering curses at the poor map. San looked incredibly awkward standing next to him. "Look at our poor Space Artist, he looks so uncomfortable."

"Leave me alone, I need to work on the map." Hongjoong muttered, pushing his hair back. "I'm getting closer, I know it."

"Sorry to say it Captain, but you look pathetic and you're really not getting anywhere." Hwanwoong scoffed. He noticed how San tensed up at the insult and laughed. "Don't worry, Space Artist, we're good friends."

"I'm not pathetic." Hongjoong muttered, on the verge of pouting. The fact that San was there was the only thing keeping him from losing his dignity.

"Sure," Hwanwoong left right after.

Sure enough, Yunho came in after a few minutes and clicked his tongue in disapproval. He forced Hongjoong to stand up from where he was seated and pushed him towards the exit of his quarters. San stared at them in bewilderment. How could anyone treat their Captain like that? Especially the people who knew he was a prince. Was this all a joke on him?

"Sorry, you can take a break, he's probably kept you working almost as long as him, that isn't quite healthy." Yunho told him before he finished pushing Hongjoong out of the Captain's quarters.

"Stop pushing me," Hongjoong groaned. "I can walk for myself."

"Alright," Yunho smiled. "Come on, don't look so grumpy, the rest of the crew is looking."

Hongjoong looked around and certainly, the other crew members on the main deck were looking at him. He sighed and relaxed his expression. Maybe stepping away from the map wasn't such a bad idea, he needed a break to feel refreshed and go back to it with a new perspective. Just a little time off wouldn't hurt. And poor San needed rest too.

"Captain!" Hongjoong turned around as he was called and noticed two of the crew members Yunho had picked, Mingi and Jongho, approach him.

"Did something happen?" Hongjoong asked, already playing all the possible worst case scenarios in his mind.

"Nothing sir, we just noticed you've been working for a long time and wanted to bring you something." Jongho smiled, offering him an apple. Mingi offered him a bottle of fresh water as well.

"Don't be discouraged sir, you'll solve the map soon." Mingi added, smiling brightly at him.

"Thank you." Hongjoong smiled and accepted their little offerings, opening the water bottle and taking a long sip out of it. He hadn't drunk or eaten anything proper since he had basically locked himself and San inside his quarters to work on the map. "How's everything looking in the rest of the ship?"

"Everything is in order," Jongho explained. "I just finished doing a routine check on the artificial atmosphere and the fuel tank and they're working perfectly. Mingi helped me." Mingi nodded enthusiastically and Hongjoong chuckled.

"Heh, that's cute." He commented offhand, failing to notice the way Mingi blushed slightly. Yunho raised an eyebrow, an amused smile on his lips. "Is it your first time on board lad?"

"It is my first time working on one..." Mingi mumbled, his face growing redder. "Jongho has been helping me get used to it.”

"That's very nice of you, a crew needs to work together in order to make the most of it." Hongjoong nodded, satisfied.

These two seemed to be becoming friends just fine, and the rest of his soldiers were mingling well with the rest of the crew. It seemed like they would be able to pull the feat successfully if they didn't lose sight of their objective. Yunho tapped his shoulder and Hongjoong looked at him with a raised eyebrow. The First Mate smiled and gestured towards the Forecastle Deck, where Hwanwoong was making signs at him.

"I think they need us over there Captain." Yunho supplied. Hongjoong nodded and turned his attention back to Jongho and Mingi.

"I need to go, but do me a favor. San, our Space Artist and navigator, is inside my quarters possibly still trying to figure out the map." Hongjoong put a hand on Jongho's arm. He was taken aback by how firm it seemed, but his brief hesitation was only caught by Yunho. "Drag him out of there if necessary; if I'm going to be forced to rest, he should be too."

Jongho laughed and nodded, saluting his captain before pulling Mingi along with him. Hongjoong and Yunho made their way over to Hwanwoong, who kept exaggerating his gestures the longer they took to arrive. Hongjoong walked slower in turn, annoying his cousin.

"What was all that just now?" Yunho asked, a playful smile on his lips that widened when Hongjoong's step stuttered, as if he had been caught.

"What do you mean?" He mumbled, avoiding Yunho's gaze.

"I told you before I don't mind if you flirt with others Captain, but let's make it a little less obvious, shall we?" Yunho teased, shoulder's shaking slightly as he suppressed a chuckle.

"I was not flirting..." Hongjoong muttered. 

"If you say so." Yunho nodded. "In any case, let's see what it is that your cousin wants."

--

"Captain Hongjoong is not what I expected a Captain to be like." Mingi commented offhandedly as Jongho guided him to the quarters.

"What do you mean?" Jongho stopped to look at him.

"Well, I thought a Captain would be more strict? But he's very friendly." Mingi explained, shrugging softly, like he wasn't sure of what he was saying.

"I suppose so," Jongho hummed. "Maybe he's scary when he gets angry? Although, First Mate Yunho seems more strict than him." Jongho shrugged and proceeded to the door, opening it easily. "Whatever, let's get San."

Just like how the Captain had said, San was sitting at the table, focusing on the part of the map that reflected on it. Mingi stared at the room with his mouth agape, eyes moving frantically as if trying to devour everything on sight. Jongho looked at him and chuckled softly, confused as to why Mingi was so surprised.

"Close your mouth, had you never seen an holographic map?" Jongho asked, causing San to look up as well.

"Who are you?" San asked. His body tensed up at their appearance but he seemed to relax once he recognized them. "Ah, it's you two."

Mingi immediately closed his mouth and eyed San with distrust. He still remembered their first meeting and how cold and scary the other had seemed, plus they hadn't really interacted much the days following their departure, so Mingi didn't know how to move around him. Jongho seemed to quickly catch on on this fact and decided to do all the talking.

"Captain sent us to fetch you, he said you should take a break." Jongho explained. San looked at the map and nodded.

"I suppose I should." He closed the little box and Mingi gasped when the projection disappeared, earning himself the attention of the other two.

"Ah..." Mingi exclaimed, his voice reddening as he stammered to put out a coherent explanation. "It's not common... where I come from."

"You mean... projection maps?" San asked, showing him the box. Mingi nodded. "Would you like to look at it?" Mingi nodded again, more enthusiastic this time, but he soon stopped as he seemed to remember something.

"Ah, maybe later, you should take a break." Mingi insisted, looking at Jongho for support. Jongho was already looking intently at him, like he was trying to figure something out, but he still nodded in agreement.

"Alright?" San seemed dubious himself, but he put the box down on the table and nodded.

The silence was so uncomfortable and heavy and none of them knew how to break it, until Jongho finally suggested they went to look for something San could eat. The other two agreed and followed him silently. Mingi almost wanted to grab onto Jongho's arm, still a little bit scared of San, but managed to not embarrass himself even more as they went out to the main deck.

--

"We are getting nowhere with this!" Hongjoong exclaimed, raising his arms.

Yunho and San looked at him before looking at each other. It was obvious Hongjoong was getting fed up with the impossible to interpret map; they had already been sailing for a couple of weeks and were getting nowhere with their progress. Yunho sighed and stood up, signalling San to close the box, which he did.

"Okay, I have a suggestion." Yunho spoke, claiming the attention of the other two. "Let's anchor at the nearest planet to get more supplies. We can use the opportunity to get information about the treasure as well."

"How would that even work?" Hongjoong huffed, exasperated.

"Locals," San mentioned, quickly catching up to Yunho. "Who better to know about legends and traditions than locals, we might actually get some information." Yunho smiled, and Hongjoong's expression brightened as he understood.

"Exactly, it's good that we have someone as smart as you on board San." Yunho complimented him. San seemed a little taken aback and just nodded.

"You're right, that is an amazing idea, both of you." Hongjoong nodded. "What is the nearest planet?" He looked at San. San fumbled slightly with the map on the table, the one they used for actual navigation.

"That would be Zemia, Captain. It's part of the Kim Empire, a small planet focused on exporting entertainment." San said, showing him the map.

"That's where we're going now then, send the information to the map on the quarterdeck." He ordered San, who nodded. "Let's go." This time Hongjoong looked at Yunho, who nodded and followed him outside.

Hongjoong walked up to the quarterdeck and stood behind the wheel. He looked at the map that marked their new destination and smiled to himself. With a loud whistle, he claimed the attention of the rest of the crew present on the main deck, who looked back at him and awaited his orders.

"We're changing route to Zemia to restock the ship and look for information on the Treasure of the Seven Galaxies, prepare to anchor!" Hongjoon ordered.

"Yes sir!" Everyone replied in unison.

Hongjoong turned the wheel and the ship changed directions easily towards their new destination. The small planet was fairly close to them, so they would probably land on it within a couple of hours. They needed to establish contact first and make sure they had permission to anchor, Hongjoong didn't want problems with one of his own planets when he was trying to keep his identity hidden.

"Siyeon!" Hongjoong called, and the soldier immediately turned to him. "I have a favor to ask you." She quickly approached him.

"What is it, Captain?" Siyeon asked.

"I need you to establish contact with Zemia and make sure we're clear to anchor," he explained, pulling out a small passport from the inner pocket of his coat. "The permit we have guarantees we'll be received in any planet of the Kim Empire, but better safe than sorry." He gave it to her.

"Understood Captain, I'll take care of it." She smiled and set off to the Captain's quarters, where they had all of their communication equipment.

"Doesn't it worry you that you let people in and out of your quarters so easily?" Yunho asked him once Siyeon was gone.

"You mean our quarters." Hongjoong corrected him easily, as he looked over the ship from the quarterdeck.

"That is beyond the point." Yunho chuckled.

"I just don't have anything worth stealing other than the map, which is safely in San's hands right now, and my compass, which I always carry." Hongjoon smiled, patting his chest.

"What if someone steals me?" Yunho raised an eyebrow.

"You? They'd probably be dead before they managed anything." Hongjoong scoffed. Not for nothing had Yunho become sort of a personal guard of his when they were younger, before they began dating.

"Okay but what if someone steals my heart?" Yunho insisted. Hongjoong huffed and rolled his eyes.

"Then they better be okay with sharing with me, 'cause if not..." Hongjoong looked at Yunho. "Then they better pray we're anchored somewhere when I make them walk the plank." Yunho laughed at this.

"Are you a pirate or what?"

"Shut up, you would literally do the same..." Hongjoong smiled. "Or worse."

"You know me well." Yunho smiled.

"Of course I do," Hongjoong nodded. "I do love you, after all."

"I love you too."

--

Aside from Yunho, Hongjoong had brought San with him so he could take notes on the clues they found to deciphering the map. He also brought Hwanwoong and Siyeon, his most trustworthy crew members aside from Yunho, and Jongho and Mingi, whom he had started to like quite a lot and felt like keeping close. He had left Jaeyoung, another good soldier and friend of his, in charge of another small group that would look for the supplies. The rest of the crew had stayed aboard to guard the ship.

They didn't have an actual course of action, so at first they just wandered around the port city, trying to see if they could find anything useful. It was obvious though that just walking around hoping for something to happen wouldn't suffice. They needed to do something about it, the question was what.

"Why don't we go to a bar?" Mingi suggested after a while of walking around.

He blushed profusely once all eyes were placed on him. The suggestion had been genuine though, those were the places where the people at his hometown would gather to discuss the day's events. Whether it was another explosion at a mine or rumors on a new law that would be passed, the fastest way to obtain information was to go where the common people reunited.

"A bar?" Hongjoong asked, his interest had piqued.

"Y-Yeah, well..." Mingi's voice lowered, and he seemed hesitant to speak. San looked at him intently and nodded.

"I think it's a good idea, I'm not sure if this is the reason why he's making the suggestion, but places like that are goldmines of information." San explained. It was a risk to speak like that, but something in Mingi's fear of speaking out had prompted him to help. He should be figuring how to kill the prince instead. "The regulars and the staff will have picked up information from other patrons, it's a good place to start."

"That seems like a great idea!" Hwanwoong agreed.

"It does, thank you Mingi, that's brilliant." Hongjoong agreed, praising the other with a wide smile. Mingi just shook his head and murmured a quiet thank you. 

"I'm not sure it's a good idea." Yunho intervened, hesitant.

"Why not? I think it sounds exciting." Hongjoong insisted, already having made up his mind.

"How is going to a bar exciting, Captain?" Siyeon chuckled. The others also looked mildly entertained that their captain would find such a simple activity "exciting", it was kind of cute. They were smiling and Hongjoong couldn't help but blush.

"Do not misunderstand me!" He exclaimed. "Anything that could possibly guide us to the biggest treasure in the Universe is an exciting prospect." Hongjoong quickly excused himself.

"Fair enough, let's go then." Siyeon smiled.

Yunho still wasn't entirely convinced, but he followed them anyway. He was worried about it precisely because of Hongjoong, who didn't quite know how to act like a normal civilian. Hongjoong was certainly more down to earth than his brother Yijoong, but he was lacking in commoner experiences. Even when Yunho had grown up with him, he had still spent a lot of time with the rest of the castle's inhabitants instead of with the royalty, he knew how society worked.

After asking around for a bit, they were recommended to check the Seven Galaxies restaurant bar, which was the most popular stop in the city they had anchored at for their storytelling presentations. The sun was already setting in Zemia, which made it an ideal time to stop by and try to get some information. They walked in and grabbed a table, settling down with ease.

"The tab is on me, you can order whatever you like." Hongjoong said as a waiter offered them some menus. "I'll be right back."

Hongjoong stood up and walked towards the bar portion of the place. It was placed opposite to the scenario, where it seemed like the actors and actresses were getting ready to present that night's story. The place was only just starting to fill up, as it was still somewhat early, so they had probably arrived at a good time. 

"I'll go with him." Yunho quickly excused himself and followed Hongjoong. Hwanwoong and Siyeon both laughed.

"There he goes," Siyeon sighed. "Does he even have eyes for anyone else?"

"Are Captain Hongjoong and First Mate Yunho dating?" Mingi asked, out of pure curiosity.

"Well..." Hwanwoong gave Siyeon a knowing look and shrugged. "You should ask them about that if you're curious. One thing is for sure though," he continued as he opened the menu, "if they stay apart for more than a minute, one of them will suffer a horrible death." 

"What?!" Mingi yelled, scandalized. Jongho immediately covered his mouth and Hwanwoong broke into a laugh. Siyeon berated him and looked at Mingi apologetically.

"Don't listen to him, he's just teasing you." Siyeon pushed Hwanwoong's shoulder, who complained dramatically. "But I agree with him, if you want to know, just ask Hongjoong or Yunho."

"You refer to them by their first name only?" San wondered in a plain voice, it was the first time he had spoken since leaving the ship and everyone looked at him with a bit of surprise. "Ah, sorry, I don't mean to pry." He apologized quickly.

"No it's fine, and yes, we're close." Siyeon nodded. "The four of us are what you could call 'childhood' friends." She smiled. "Good to see our Space Artist is not mute, it would be difficult to relay information like that."

San blushed ever so slightly and pushed the menu towards Jongho and Mingi. The topic quickly morphed into a discussion of what it would be good to try at the bar and San was silently thankful for it. Jongho focused on choosing whatever sounded best before passing the menu to Mingi, who took it hesitantly.

Mingi stared at the menu for a few seconds, eyes quickly scanning the options on it before closing it and giving it to Hwanwoong. Jongho contemplated him with curiosity and wonder. How could someone so tall not be hungry after a whole day of going around the city. As he questioned this, Jongho moved his legs to re-accommodate on his spot and accidentally hit Mingi's left leg.

"Oh, sorry." Jongho apologized, briefly glancing under the table. Mingi did the same.

"It's alright." He smiled once he confirmed that the wooden pole he used as a prosthetic was alright.

Jongho had been wanting to ask him about it since day one, but he knew it wasn't appropriate to pry into other people's business. He also didn't know Mingi well enough to be wondering about his private life. He could, instead, ask him about something else though.

"Aren't you ordering anything?" Jongho asked, his head gesturing towards the menu Hwanwoong was holding as he spoke with Siyeon and San about the options.

"Ah, no," Mingi shook his head quickly. "I don't feel like eating right now." He explained vaguely, eyeing the menu once again.

"Not even a drink?" Jongho insisted.

"No, I'm fine, really." Mingi insisted back, looking clearly uncomfortable.

Jongho was quick to change the topic and ask him about something else. They talked while they waited for the food to be delivered. Still, Jongho couldn't help but wonder more and more about Mingi and his life previous to joining the Crescent. For such a sweet and helpful personality, Mingi was completely wrapped in mystery, and Jongho couldn't help but want to know.

--

Hongjoong sat at the bar and looked around with curiosity. The place was really clean and had good ambiance, which he hadn't expected. It was probably because it was also a restaurant, but he liked the place. He was only slightly surprised when Yunho sat next to him. It was almost funny how much time they were spending together now that they weren't busy fighting an invasion.

"The crew's gonna suspect we're dating and that you're only First Mate because of that." Hongjoong commented, smiling at Yunho.

"And is that a lie?" Yunho smiled back.

"Partially," Hongjoong nodded. "You're First Mate because you're the person I trust the most and also the best at everything you do, who better to be First Mate?"

"Thank you." Yunho ruffled his hair softly.

"What can I get you?" At that moment, the bartender, a beautiful dark skinned person, approached them to take their orders. Their skin glowed in a way it told Hongjoong they weren’t human, but he couldn’t quite pinpoint what they were.

"We're not from here, so could you give us a couple of mugs of your best beer?" Yunho asked.

"Right away." The bar tender nodded and returned after a little while with two mugs full of foamy beer. 

Hongjoong took a large gulp and sighed in relief after swallowing, feeling refreshed and pleased from the bitter taste. Yunho drank more calmly next to him, enjoying the flavor. They drank in silence, observing the bartender with critical eyes until they were free again. Hongjoong used the opportunity to ask them and try to gain a little more information.

"Why Seven Galaxies?" He asked, mug already halfway empty. "Is it because of the Treasure?" The bartender smiled and nodded.

"It is, Zemia is the planet of entertainment, at least one place here should have the name of the greatest lost treasure known in the story of the Universe." Their eyes lighted up as they spoke, gesturing towards the bar.

"Do you know anything about it?" Yunho asked, and the worker's sight sharpened.

"If you mean its location, no I don't." The bartender shook their head. "It is said that there was once an indecipherable map that could guide you to it, but it's been lost for decades."

"Do you think the treasure is real?" Hongjoong continued.

"I don't know if the treasure is actually hidden somewhere, but every legend has a bit of truth in it." They smiled. "This was one of the planets that Thisa stole from, there is even a statue downtown, where the battle took place."

"It happened here?" Yunho asked, slightly surprised.

"Yes, and you're both lucky to come here today, the presentation will be about the legend of the Treasure of the Seven Galaxies, you should watch it." The bartender explained. "Maybe you'll learn a thing or two."

The bartender left and both of them returned to their table, cold beers in their hands. The others were being served their food. Siyeon immediately stopped the waiter and asked Hongjoong and Yunho if they wanted to order something, but they both declined. As the rest dug into their food, Hongjoong fixed his eyes on the stage and waited, his desperation growing stronger as they seemed to be nearing another dead end.

"Mingi, you didn't order anything?" Yunho asked next to him. He was leaning over the table towards Mingi, seeming a little worried as the gunner nodded, a little overwhelmed at the attention. Hongjoong looked at him as well and clicked his tongue. 

"Why didn't you order something?" Hongjoong asked, his attention leaving the stage for a moment.

"I'm not very hungry..." Mingi mumbled, overwhelmed by the attention now that everyone was looking at him because the Captain had asked.

"Don't worry Captain, I'll share with him if he gets hungry." Jongho intervened, noticing how uncomfortable Mingi was starting to feel.

Hongjoong nodded and smiled at both of them, reaching his hand to pat Mingi's hair softly before his attention returned to the stage. Yunho also nodded, satisfied enough with the answer as his attention also returned to the stage. As Hwanwoong and Siyeong went back to talking to each other, San cleared his throat softly and looked towards Mingi, who was sitting between the Captain and Jongho.

"Mingi, can we change places? I want to talk to the Captain without disturbing the talk too much." San requested with a quiet voice.

"Ah, sure." Mingi smiled and stood up, easily changing places with San.

"Thank you," San said once he was sitting in his new place. "You can also eat from my plate if you want, by the way. Don't be shy."

"Ah, okay." Mingi nodded, once again falling into an awkward silence.

San felt the heavy eyes of Yunho on him as he leaned towards Hongjoong and talked to him about the map. He tried to pay him no mind, but it was difficult. Truth was, San had evidently not fulfilled his mission yet, and the reports were getting more difficult as there was not much for him to report on, but it was just impossible to fulfill this mission. Even disregarding the fact that half the crew were Hongjoong's most trusted soldiers, Yunho was literally always by his side.

"Dear patrons, our show is about to begin." A smooth, silky voice spoke from somewhere on the stage, gathering everyone's attention. "We invite you to direct your eyes to the stage and enjoy the performance. My name is Télos, your narrator, and I hope you'll be able to enjoy this evening with me."

Hongjoong went silent as his eyes scanned the stage and San decided they could talk after the show. He silently reprimanded himself as he found out he was working too seriously on deciphering the map, he guessed it was because Hongjoong's enthusiasm was contagious. San sighed and his eyes stumbled upon Yunho, who was still looking at him intently. There was something so unfamiliar in Yunho's look that he was forced to look away, feeling too strange about it.

The lights dimmed and the velvet red curtains opened. A single light turned on the stage, revealing the face of the narrator, who was wearing a glistening dress that resembled the look of outer space. It was breathtaking, even when all of them had been to space already. The narrator paced around the stage as they began to talk. Their expressions were controlled and their voice flowed like a calm river, captivating them all.

"Decades ago, not long after humanity joined the spacial race and began competing against other species to make a name for themselves, the most daring pirate ever known in the history of the Universe stole their first treasure." Another light appeared on the right part of the stage, illuminating a young actor dressed as a pirate.

"Their name was Thisa." The narrator walked further away, making space on the stage. "As an adolescent, Thisa became known in their town for constantly defying the authorities and tricking the rich out of their money without ever being caught." A couple of actors dressed as officers came on scene and played out a fight with Thisa, but they evaded them easily and made a fool of them, making the patrons laugh.

"Thisa was not alone. Their brave actions soon gained them a following, which rebelled against the government and started a revolution that spread through his whole country and then his planet." Around the narrator, the actors and actresses fought each other with fake weapons that glistened under the lights.

"When they won the revolution, Thisa and their crew built the legendary Týkhé, the bringer of fortune, and set sail into space." The actors disappeared and instead a replica of the Týkhé was projected into the stage, sailing across space. "The Týkhé visited countless planets, where the crew led revolutions and stole innumerable treasures all across seven different galaxies." Flashes of different planets passed by in quick succession, with images of the wars waged in them.

"Many think that the only reason Thisa and their crew didn't make it to many more galaxies was due to their mortality, because they were unstoppable." The images stopped, and once again, there was only the narrator on scene. "According to the many diaries left behind by Thisa and their crew, the treasure is hidden in Télos, 'The End', but no one knows where that is or what it even refers to.

"However, before their passing, Thisa left a map and a poem that contain the clues necessary to find the Treasure of the Seven Galaxies."  Numerous images of the diaries were projected on the back of the stage, and finally, the map in Hongjoong's possession. "The map has been lost for a very long time, but the poem goes as follows..."

I left my mark everywhere,

grotesque monsters of jagged teeth.

Under their watchful gaze

the stone-made guardians

protect the steps

that lead the way to the end.

Not long after the presentation ended, everyone finished eating and Hongjoong paid for their meal. He had become eerily silent after the presentation, and everyone was worried that he was angry for not obtaining much from their visit to Zemia. Yunho knew better though, and was quick to reassure them that things were fine once they got to the ship and everyone retired to their quarters.

"Are you okay?" He asked once they were in the privacy of his and Hongjoong's quarters, away from everyone else.

"I'm just thinking, don't worry." Hongjoong replied as he changed clothes.

"Thinking about what? The others are worried that you're angry." Yunho smiled, also changing into more comfortable clothes.

"Angry? No, not at all." Hongjoong chuckled. "I fully believe that Thisa made it so their treasure could be found, but if it has to be someone worthy, then it must be someone as clever as them to interpret the poem." Hongjoong explained. "I'm just trying to decipher it."

"Of course you are, anyone who thinks Kim Hongjoong would easily give something up is a fool." Yunho muttered. He laid down and patted the space next to him, prompting Hongjoong to join him. "Now stop thinking for a moment and go to sleep, I can hear your thoughts over here."

--

"Still no progress, code CS-710-28? You do realize this is an urgent mission, don't you?" San's boss scoffed.

San stood in the restrooms again, in complete silence, as the projection of his boss reprimanded him once again. He just had had no luck in killing Hongjoong like he had been tasked to do, and to be honest, he was starting to become fed up with the whole mission. Who had even requested such a task?

"My apologies, sir." He apologized, but didn't even attempt to excuse himself. There was no point in doing so anyway.

"I do not care for your apologies. The p-... The client is very impatient and wants you to be done with your mission as soon as possible." His boss urged him. "If you disgrace the name of our planet, code CS-710-28, I'll make sure to give them your head in return, understood?"

"Yes, sir." 

The call ended and San let out a long, deep sigh. He cursed under his breath and punched the wall, feeling nothing from it. Taking into account the situation he was in, he knew it would be impossible to kill Hongjoong without the others realizing who was the culprit and taking their revenge. Did it even make a difference? If he killed his target, the others would take revenge, if he didn't, his boss would murder him instead. How had he even gotten in this situation?

[starr-fall-knight-rise]

Humans are NOT Space Orcs “First Contact”

So, I wanted to do something from the human’s perspective for once. This will have a part 2 from the aliens perspective to add a bit more humor to the whole thing. The idea was to show just how humans are scary and they totally don’t see it.

Don’t forget to send me your ideas, and as always I love comments questions critiques, and anything else you can think of :)

So, I may, or may not have been snooping through Krill’s reports while he’s returned home for, “mating season” sort of hope he meets a nice hot….. Whatever he is…. What makes you guys attracted to each other anyway…? Is it the size of the inflatable sack or something?

That’s beside the point though, I thought you all deserved something from a human perspective. Krill has this tendency to make us sound super freaky. I mean calling babies parasites is a bit much. He makes them sound like monsters who feed of a woman’s organs or something like that. I actually think babies are cute, and sure, we eat weird food, but none of us ever get actually HURT by it. The amount of poison in those foods aren’t enough to do anything to us, so it’s not a big deal.

As for me, it’s a little known fact that I was part of the human crew and team that made first contact with E.Ts (Extra-terrestrials). It was the maiden voyage of the USS Enterprise (yeah I know kind of nerdy, but we had to do it. Who makes their first interstellar ship and doesn’t name it the Enterprise, it would be sacrilegious). Personally I fancy myself a bit of a Kirk, and Krill could be Spock (Him being the voice of reason and all) you know if Spock had eight legs…. And emotions. Off topic, anyway, I was straight out of the academy had all my limbs and both eyes, and I was chosen as part of the bridge crew for our first voyage.

I was honestly surprised when the thing didn’t explode as soon as we went into warp, but we held together, and all of a sudden we are in an entirely different galaxy. It was more intense that I could have imagined. One of our infrared specialists detected hits of a heat signatures on a nearby asteroid, so of course we were going to check it out. I volunteered for the mission first, if anyone was going to see an alien, it was going to be me. So we suited up with a team, and sent a landing craft. Imagine our surprise when we sensed signs of life.

***

“Look at this, Captain, these structures, it’s like nothing I’ve ever seen.” Captain Kelly moved over to examine the pillar with the rest of the crew speaking quickly an excitedly.

First Lieutenant Vir ignored them wandering over to the other side of the room to kneel down on the polished stone floor. Through the armored space suit, and full-face glass visor, he examined the walls around him. He already knew what this was, aliens, he was sure.

He glanced down at his equipment glowing softly at him through the visor of the helmet …. Wait, that hadn’t been there before.

Atmospheric readings.

But they were in the middle of space….. There shouldn’t be atmosphere, and it was a pretty complex one to, sulfur, hydrogen oxygen, and carbon. Still not breathable in those percentages, but… damn.

He turned to get his captain’s attention, but just then, a small sound caught him through the microphone of his suit. A soft click, like a rock falling, he snapped his head in that direction, just in time to see a flicker of movement and a dash of metallic blue.

He threw his rifle over his back and bolted after the movement.

“LIEUTENANT.”

He ignored the voice and raced after the fleeing figure clambering off the small incline and onto a pathway. He scrambled from his hands and toes onto his feet and followed the creature at a dead sprint. The thing skidded around a corner. He followed slamming into the wall before shaking himself off and giving pursuit.

A moment of pure exhilaration added adrenaline to his run, and he spend closer letting off a gleeful laugh, there were aliens, he knew it, he knew it.

The creature took another hard fast turn, and he raced after it, catching only glimpses as the creature raced forward. It was about waist height, but ran on all fours. It had a tail and maybe…. Six limbs.

So cool.

He had to catch it.

A moment later the thing had bolted into a shaft. He followed looking up watching as the creature was carried up by a thick-fiber rope. Alright, he could do that.

Crawling into the shaft, Lieutenant Vir pressed either leg against the wall and began scuttling up after the thing. He was growing closer.

Through the visor of his helmet, he swore he could hear a high pitched keening note. Was that coming from the creature?

He was close now.

He could see it better, about five feet long all together, with six limbs and a tail. Reaching out, he snatched at the tail. The keening continued as the creature hurried it’s frantic pace upwards. Its body was covered in a thin hide like snake skin metallic blues and purples leading up to an almost raptor-like head.

He must be dreaming, there was no way this was happening. He scrambled from the shaft racing after the creature and quickly catching up, at the last moment, the thing took a sharp turn leading him into another wide room. It was made almost like an amphitheater starting with a small bowl and widening upwards towards the top. Thousands of dark black eyes blinked at him from those heights. Glowing substances cast the room into bright green luminance.

And then a circle of trailing water burst down from the ceiling crashing around him to the floor trailing away at the edges of the room. He stopped where he was in confusion and shock.

What the hell.

The creature he had been chasing collapsed near the far end of the chamber body rising and falling heavily.

He looked around at the water again, realizing awkwardly how this must look. He didn’t mean to scare the creature, and now that the thing had stopped running, it probably meant it thought it was safe…. How would water stop him though? Vir decided to stay where he was for the moment, maybe let them ease up.

He waved a hand at them through the trails of water.

“Hey, it’s alright, I’m not going to hurt anyone. I just want to talk.”

The room around him shifted. He could see it through the visor of his helmet.

Hm…. Well it wasn’t really likely they could understand him, was it?

He paused shrugged, and stepped through the wall of water, shaking himself as he came out wiping droplets from his visor.

The room broke into pandemonium as the creatures freaked out. Water cannons went of splashing him from left to right with the substance. It wasn’t even enough to knock him off his feet, and he just stood there hands raised in front of his visor.

He had a feeling that if he had brought a super soaker to the party, than he would absolutely dominate.

Eventually the water ran out and he was still standing looking up at them with his arms crossed.

“Are you done?”

The room was very still.

Wiping his gloves on some of the glowing moss, he approached the first creature, curious. It pulled back against the wall still breathing heavily.

He glanced at his hands to make sure there were no water droplets left. It was probably allergic or something, maybe?

He reached out.

The creature pulled back

He tried to be gentle, running a gloved hand along its ridged back as it pulled away from him. He patted it a few more times. Wow, it felt weird.

That’s when Captain Kelly and the others burst into the room, “ADAM!” They held their weapons up brandishing them at the creatures high above.

“STOP.” Vir yelled, “STOP.”

They did, weapons still aimed.

“Damn Lieutenant, are you ok/”

He walked over, “I’m alright, I think I freaked them out a bit though.” He wasn’t expecting the open hand slap that clubbed him on the side of the helmet. And the other one as the captain backhanded and then forehanded him repeatedly, “You… absolute….. F******…. idiot….. You could have gotten yourself killed.”

It hit him only then what he had done.

Whoops

“Sorry, Captain, I guess I just got…. A little overenthusiastic “

She glared at him through the glass in her visor, “Deal with you, later. Idiot boy.”

He wilted and moved to the back of the group.

But secretly, inside he was thrilling with their discovery.

It must have been a dream, who would have thought he, and average kid from earth would have been the first to whiteness E.T life

****

I like to think I’ve grown up a bit since then. Not so dumb as to chase unknown lifeforms by myself in an unknown alien ship. For that I was NEARLY demoted, and suspended from active missions for over a year. The crew also made up an entire reward ceremony for the, and I quote “THE UNIVERSE’S BIGGEST IDIOT.” As far as I know, I think it’s still instituted in some areas of the glazy.

So you see, first contact story, no big deal, pretty innocuous if you ask me. Nothing to show that humans are scary or anything.

I honestly don’t know where all these weird rumors came from.

Humans aren’t scary.

[thekoshertribble]

“You can't play a game without rules. Even Grups ought to know that.” Women of Star Trek Blog Entry #5 Miri

Hello dear readers! I’m back with another blog for your reading enjoyment! Today I’ll be discussing one of the more controversial episodes of the Original Series: Miri. And, as you probably guessed, my subject from this episode is the titular character herself, Miri. 

Miri is a human girl from an alternate Earth the Enterprise encounters on its travels. The crew comes across the planet because of a mysterious SOS signal coming from the planet. Upon beaming down, they find a deserted wasteland that once was a small town, and hiding among its ruins, they find a girl. 

In our first scene with Miri, the crew talks to her and pieces together her account of an apocalypse: a strange plague wiped out all the adults, causing them to become extremely violent before mercifully succumbing to death. The only survivors were the children who had yet to reach puberty. The plague decelerated their growth, so that they would only age a month every hundred years. So although Miri appears to be 14, she is in fact 300 years old by the time the crew of the Enterprise finds her hiding in a closet. They soon realize, as they become ill and learn more about the disease, that Miri’s days are numbered. Once she reaches puberty she will become a violent, scar-covered zombie-like creature before finally dying.

As if puberty was bad enough already.

Miri’s character has essentially been sculpted by her surroundings. As a young teenager, she witnessed all adults, including all her relatives, teachers, neighbors and mentors, go violently mad and commit unthinkable atrocities against themselves and innocent children. Therefore Miri, as well as all the other child survivors, “the Onlies,” developed a deep distrust of any adults they might encounter. Most of the Onlies therefore treat the Enterprise landing party as hostile intruders, either hiding them or throwing rocks at them from the cover of shadows. 

Miri, while at first terrified for her life when she is cornered by Kirk and his crew, seems to trust them enough to stay and help them. This decision on her part makes her stand out from the rest of the Onlies. While they all know these strange new “Grups” are different, only Miri acts on her curiosity and is brave enough to follow help them in their strange quest. She could have escaped their grasp or tricked them so she could sneak away - we know she’s clever and cunning because she successfully kidnaps Yeoman Rand later in the episode - but for some reason, she makes the risky decision to stay with them. And I’m going on a limb to suggest why...

It’s all in the name. Miri is a shortened version of Miriam, the name of one of the Torah’s great matriarchs. In summary, Miriam was the sister of Moses, the man who would guide the Hebrews out of slavery in Egypt. Miriam lived out the first half of her life as a slave, but despite this bitter life she did not give up her faith in God, who would later command Moses to free His chosen people from Egypt. 

I believe that Miri, like her Biblical namesake, had a silent, underlying faith - perhaps not in God, but in a world better than the post-apocalyptic, Lord-of-the-flies Neverland hell she lived in for most of her life. Curiosity may be one reason Miri decided to stay with Kirk and his crew, but I do believe she followed them because she knew (perhaps only unconsciously) that’s these people would make her life better. So no, I don’t agree with Kirk’s thesis regarding why Miri followed them along: “Loneliness? I don't know, curiosity? I think children have an instinctive need for adults. They want to be told right and wrong.”

Which brings me to the next, much more controversial topic of this blog: Kirk and his interactions with Miri. I’ve read many reviews of this episode and they all discuss how Kirk’s interactions with Miri just feel weird if not outright creepy. From the swelling romantic music to the awkward romance jokes (”I never get involved with older women”), the episode feels like its seriously setting up Miri, a 14 year old girl, as a love interest for 34 year old Kirk. And that’s...really, really not okay. At all. Period.

That being said, I personally do not believe Kirk is attracted to Miri. If I did I wouldn’t even be writing this because I wouldn’t be watching the show. While I do agree with other reviewers that Kirk uses Miri’s attraction to him to get information and cooperation from her, I cannot accept the James Kirk that I know - the one that respects his female crew members and protects children from distress - could even consider such an immoral thought. Yes, he does compliment her on her looks and her name, “pretty name, for a pretty young woman,” but I believe this is his way of attempting to gain her trust, nothing more.

Speaking of Kirk, I think I know why Kirk seems to have so much interest in the Onlies, especially Miri - it’s because he’s been in her shoes before, on Tarsus IV. At Miri’s age, Kirk witnessed a devastating plague and the cold-blooded massacre of 4,000 colonists. We don’t have canon information regarding how Kirk survived these horrors, but I can guess confidently that when he realized what Miri has been through, he identified with her position. This is my only explanation for why he is so attentive and (almost creepily) gentle around Miri.*

But let’s focus back to Miri herself, shall we? Let’s talk character strengths. Besides having (perhaps unconscious) faith, Miri also possesses great bravery and cleverness. Although she does cry out of fear several times during the episode, this does not mean that she isn’t brave. I would say she is the bravest of the Onlies, simply because she 1) stays and helps the new Grups, and 2) continues to stay with them even as they begin to lose their tempers as the disease begins to affect them. Even her planning and executing the kidnapping of Yeoman Rand tells us that Miri is not only clever enough to hatch a risky plan, but also gutsy enough to carry it out.

Which leads me to discussing Miri’s main weakness. Miri’s actions are almost exclusively driven by her emotions. While not totally irrational, she is rather sensitive, considering she’s been living in an apocalyptic wasteland for 300 years. The best example of her emotion-based action is her kidnapping of Rand. She does this purely out of revenge. She sees Kirk trying to comfort Rand and decides that “Mr. Lovey-Dovey” needs to be taught a lesson. She doesn’t consider the consequences or fallout from this act, she just lashes out. I hate to say it, but much of this is just hormonal behavior for a girl her age.

I can understand where Miri is coming from. I attended an all-girls middle school for three years, and it was angry hormonal dramatic hell every. Single. Day. The teachers didn’t really care what we did or said to each other as long as we followed the dress code. So girls constantly lashed out at each other either out of spite or petty revenge. (It was actually by watching Star Trek that helped teach me about balancing my emotions with logic in a healthy way, but that’s a story for another post).

I know exactly how Miri felt when she saw him and Rand hugging. Seeing your first crush with another person is like getting hit with a meteorite in the chest. Getting revenge on Rand and Kirk is quite rash and dramatic but it makes a lot of sense from Miri’s perspective. As Kirk points out, Miri doesn’t understand what’s happening to her - she probably didn’t get “the talk” before the plague. She may not even know about menstruation. She is blinded by emotions emboldened by new hormonal changes, and even worse, she has no idea that it’s happening.

Emotional struggles aside, Miri comes around and helps Kirk rescue Rand and help the children. Again, she does the braver thing, confronting her mistakes and siding with Kirk when challenged by Jahn, the leader of the Onlies.

Miri: Listen to [Kirk].

Jahn: You listen, Miri!

Miri: I did. What do you think I brought him here?

Without Miri’s help, without her faith in Kirk, the Enterprise would have lost its captain and chief officers to plague and the Onlies would have starved to death in a few months. Like her biblical namesake, she believed in a better future for her people, and her faith helped to lead them there.

Thanks for reading this, everyone! Again, I hope you enjoyed it. If you did, please like and reblog, or maybe leave a comment to continue the conversation. Stay tuned for my next entry: Dagger of the Mind!

*important note: I recognize that this a rather awkward and delicate topic. I completely understand if you have a differing opinion from that if my own and I welcome hearing it. As I said, my theories regarding Kirk’s behavior in this episode are purely speculative and based on my own intuition and biases.