Wavedancers

01 - Pilot

Even after half a dozen coffees, Orion still struggled to read over the list of names Kaya essentially shoved into his face.
     "There is no time to waste," Kaya had explained earlier, "I suggest haste, the faster we get a crew together, the easier it is to fly under the Admiral's radar and leave the system before they can do anything about our leaving."
     "I get that, but its the middle of the night." Orion argued.
     But Kaya's light shone strong, unrelenting, and Orion soon crumbled to her 'suggestion.'

Impatiently scrolling though the list of pilots, Orion unconsciously sighed at the repetitive nature of both the task, and content of the data.
      The tablet in Orion's hands chimed as Kaya turned her attention to him, "Is something unsatisfactory, Captain?"
     "Yes? No?" Orion said with another sigh as he rubbed his tired eyes, "It's just.. most of these are extremely samey. Every other profile contains only shirtless pictures of men or loosely clothed women or-"
     Kaya interrupted Orion, "Is that not to your liking? Your file indicated that you are attracted to all kinds-"
     "While I wouldn't mind the imagery in any other circumstances, its rather distracting when trying to put together a crew." Orion said, exasperated. "Wait, you got that from my file? Like, my Federation file?"
     "... Yes..."
     Orion sighed heavily. He buried his face in his hands for a moment before looking back at Kaya's interfacing tablet, "are my 'sexual interests' also on my file?"
     Kaya's light dimmed slightly, as if embarrassed, confirming Orion's suspicions.
     "What the fuck?" Orion exclaimed, angry and embarrassed.
     "You needn't worry, Captain. I will not judge you any differently."
     "Did you use them as another part of my possible... 'compatibility' with any potential crew members?"
     "Possibly."
     Orion sighed once more, and pinched the bridge of his nose. "We need to have a serious conversation about your privacy settings."
     "Noted sir. Now, if you would continue?"
     "Fine."

- - -

By the time the suns finally rose over the Federation home planet, Kerrada, Orion had been swiping through profiles for almost five hours. "O-kaaay, I feel I have narrowed it down enough for a final decision." Orion declared victoriously.
     The light of the tablet shimmered and began to glow brighter as Kaya came back online. "Congratulations, Captain."
     "Now," Orion began after taking a manic sip from his tenth cup of coffee, "I've got it down to three primary candidates.

     "One; A pilot that goes by the name Tenno. Apparently they are like, part war machine, I'm not a hundred percent sure how true that is, but they look badass. Their ship seems fast, but apparently they cant open every door on their own ship, so I think makes them the lowest pick on the list.
     "Two; This guy seems badass as well, impenetrable armour and amazing shooting skills to boot. However, he is a single father of a small green magical child. His ship only has room for one regular sized person though, so I don't think he will work out, but still worth mentioning.
     "Three; Shuna Ravaan, been working in the mining business for a while with her own ship. Skilled pilot and generally tough kinda lady, and apparently a painter, I don't know, its just on her profile. She also has one hell of ship, a 'Heavenwarper,' that's just the commercial name, apparently it has a miniature void artifice, basically a little black hole maker for mining and clearing debris. From what commercial plans I could find for that type of ship, it can hold up to eight crew comfortably, and I believe that kinda vessel would be perfect for anything we might come across." Orion finished with a gasp for air.

     "You know Captain, you could have simply pointed out the selections and I could have read through the files faster than you had explained them to me."
     "Oh..." Orion uttered, crestfallen.
     "However, I do appreciate you obvious enthusiasm for the task." Kaya quickly added.
     "Thanks?"
     Kaya's light dimmed momentarily before returning to normal. "Looking over the options myself, I believe that Shuna Ravaan would be the optimal choice. Not only would she be the less copyright infringing option, her history shows optimal performance in high stress situations. Also I believe you two would make a cute couple."
     "Kaya!" Orion exclaimed, his cheeks faintly turning red.
     "Apologies, Captain." Kaya replied, her light flickering playfully. Orion had a feeling that is how she politely laughed. "Now onto collecting a crew."
     Orion planted his face into his hands, "Shit." he said into his palms. "I forgot about that part."
     "Oh."
     "I'll just... stay up and look through more profiles I guess..." Orion sighed.
     "If you want, Captain, I can handle the search and selection of crew for you."
     "You... You could have done that this entire time?!"
     "Of course."
     "Couldn't you have done that with pilots?!"
     "I could have, however your decision is far more important for the selection of a pilot. As the person who you will most likely be closest to throughout the mission, your mind will me more at ease-"
     "Kaya, just stop. Please. I'm going to pass out now. just... do what you need to and wake me if you need me- Actually no, just let me sleep." Orion states as he tossed the tablet onto his desk and crawled into his bed, cocooning himself in comfort before allowing slumber to take hold of him.
     "Understood. Have a nice nap, Captain." Kaya whispered, her light dimming as she began her own kind of sleep.