Azula Amongst the Stars

Chapter 6

My'Rell sat at the captain's chair as the bridge officers went about their tasks. Kazima in full view in all of its glory. She can't wait to dock and get off the SeCore. The week-long detour from the pirate clearing job had thrown everything off. Her prized ship was damaged, its crew dwindled and the encounter with the Death's Head was less than favorable, although some good came out of it such as there brand new fabricator, the discovery of a new habitable planet, the termination of her biggest rival and her new subordinate, the former princess Azula.
However Azula was a wild card in all of this. The ego on her was plain for all to see and it came through with how she carried herself, she may have to be more assertive with her in the future. She had no doubt Azula was planning something as My'Rell could tell a schemer from a mile away, years working under the empire helped her see that. She'll just have to keep a close eye on her for now.
That didn't matter, now she and her crew were home and were in need of some rest.
"Send word to the station commander of our arrival and have preparations for docking made." She ordered her communications officer who complied.
Commander Shaul stretched his arms from his station by the captain's side letting out a pained grunt showing his age, "It feels as though we've been gone for years."
"You're telling me. I might actually take you up on that scheduled vacation."
Shaul let out a jovial chuckle, "We both know you won't take it, though."
"Of course I won't. This whole place would fall apart without me." She joked.
Shaul put on an expression of mock offense, "Captain, do you not have faith in my ability to take command?"
"Of course I do, commander. I have all the faith in the universe that you can keep the Crimson Storm together... for a week."
The two friends shared a laugh at the captain's jab but it was soon interrupted by the communications officer, "Message has been sent. Station commander Suldon is preparing the main hangar for docking and repairs."
"Good. Helmsman, take us home."
The thrusters of the SeCore burned brightly as the ship was propelled towards the asteroid ring of the planet.

"This is a size four wrench! I need a size three wrench!" Cetro shouted at Azula who gritted her teeth as she tried her best not to burn the four armed alien alive.
"They look identical! How am I supposed to tell the difference?" She shouted back.
"Look closely, you five foot tall waste of oxygen!" He held up the wrench to her face, "This is a size four wrench," His lower arm dug into the tool box she held pulling out another wrench, "and this is a size three wrench."
Azula looked at the two tools seeing no difference between them other than they both had a different symbol etched into them.
"Please explain because I don't see a difference!"
He rolled his four eyes and spoke in a patronizingly slow manner, "The size four wrench has a bigger head meant for size four bolts and the size three wrench has a smaller head for size three bolts."
She looked at both heads of each wrench, finding the size difference to be very miniscule, "The difference is so small! How am I supposed to tell?"
"Then memorize the numbers on them you idiot!" He points to the curved symbol etched in them.
"I cannot read that! And how dare you call me an idiot when you so clearly are terrible at explaining anything!"
Their argument continued for quite some time as they stood in one of the hangars where Cetro was called to repair a broken down lift with Azula brought to hold his tool box with him attempting to give her a hands-on lesson on repairing mechanics, however it quickly devolved into a shouting match.
Their back and forth was stopped when a helmet collided with the wall near them, its visor shattering.
"Shut up!!!"
They turned to see Angara standing at the rear opening of the Shakarr, "I can't sleep with you two screaming!"
"I don't know who you think you are throwing helmets around like that!" Cetro shouted back and kicked the helmet back towards her.
"I'm the one who's about to take those wrenches and shove them down both of your throats if you two don't shut your damn mouths!"
Azula only rolled her eyes at the two arguing. She was already tired of hearing the engineer's angry rants and now she has no more mental energy to spare for Angara coming into the mix. She didn't even bother to give the tattooed bounty hunter a retort and instead watched the view of the red and blue planet come closer from outside the shielded hangar bay door.
"New Girl!" Cetro shouted, taking her out of her trance, "Pick up the tools! We're done here."
It seemed their argument ended while she was admiring the view. Reluctantly she complied, already annoyed with receiving orders instead of issuing them out herself.
"Is that all we have to do for today?" She asked, "It feels like I've been working nonstop."
The engineer sneered, "Fine! Yes! We're done! Since all you seem to do is complain! We're back home now anyway so I don't need you anymore. So get lost!"
"Glady." She shoved his toolbox into his chest and walked off before she could hear another remark from him.
She found her way back into the mess hall taking her seat by the window watching as the ship approached the ring. The sight was remarkable but she was already getting used to it. She could feel her inner flame growing as they approached the ring. It puzzled her how the strength of her bending fluctuates in space. Could it be her distance to the sun or something else? She didn't know and it was slowly driving her up a wall. She can't afford any possible setbacks for her plan.
Her introspection was interrupted when someone sat before her with a tray of food. It was the captain. She seemed to have gotten a break from her command duties to pay her a visit.
"Heard you had some complications with your powers while we were in transit." she said before taking a bite from an orange fruit resembling an apple, "Everything alright now?"
She was far from fine regarding this but lied anyway, "I'm fine. It seems there is much about my own bending that I don't know about outside earth."
"That won't be a problem will it?"
Azula met the captain's gaze expecting an honest answer. Truthfully she wasn't entirely sure what to say, "I don't know. I'll go to Lectro's lab later so he can do more tests and we can figure this out."
She turned back to the window watching as the SeCore entering the ring, colossal asteroids drift past that made the already massive ship look like a pebble in comparison.
"Please do. Lectro keeps pestering me to get you in the lab again." she said jokingly as she looked out the window with her, "I bet you've never seen an asteroid ring before. It's one of the many sights you'll see out in the galaxy. Beautiful isn't it?"
It was beautiful in some strange way watching the giant rocks fly past with the red and blue planet in the background.
"Why are we in this ring? I thought the planet would be your base of operations."
My'Rell answered after taking a sip of her drink, "Our homebase is within Kazima's ring, it used to belong to a small-time syndicate that was extorting the local Kazimen government until they paid us to clear them out and even let us keep the hideout."
Azula looked to her in confusion, "A small criminal organization was able to have a stranglehold on an entire world? How is that possible?"
"Kazima is a large planet but it's only a recently settled frontier world with no indigenous sentient life and only three major cities. It doesn't take much to hold a planet like that hostage."
Power dynamics were much different out here than she had thought but that could work to her favor.
"You want to see it don't you?" My'Rell asked, gazing at the big red continent that covers the northern hemisphere.
"I will admit that the idea of stepping onto a brand new world is exciting."
"Good, I'm heading to the surface once the SeCore is docked and settled in. If you want you can tag along."
"Going to give me a grand tour of the planet as well?"
"No, I'm going to collect the payment for the pirate job we were on."
"What of the fabricator?"
"It wasn't mentioned in our contract with the employer therefore it's staying with us." The captain explained as she ate her meal.
"I can't imagine your employer will be happy about you keeping something as valuable as that for yourself."
"The job was to get rid of pirates not to retrieve anything of note. They'll find out eventually but they won't do anything about it, after all when all else fails they come to us and it'll benefit everyone if we keep it."
She didn't know enough about the relationship between the storm and the local government so she decided to change the subject, "Once we've settled down and I learn everything I need to know, what will be my place within the Crimson Storm? I imagine it will be some combat role."
My'Rell finished her drink and wiped her face with a napkin, "I'm thinking something small like bounty hunting. We'll pair you up with a seasoned bounty hunter and go from there."
Azula supposed this was an appropriate start to her career as a mercenary however she remembered the name of one particular seasoned bounty hunter, "It isn't Angara I hope."
My'Rell let out a chuckle, "Angara is one of our best, however you two don't seem to get along too well so you'll probably have to settle for second best."
"Second best?" Azula sneered at the thought of this, "I am a princess. I don't do second best."
"Were a princess." My'Rell reminded, the sharp look of her father present in the captain's black and cyan eyes.
Azula bit back a response, she had to remember that she was still at the bottom of the totem pole, "Is there no one else better than Angara or just as good?"
My'Rell finished her meal, "I can think about two who are at the same level but they are currently indisposed. Hopefully they'll be back by the time you are up to speed."
As they looked out the window Azula saw an asteroid unlike the rest. The asteroid in question was the size of the Fire Nation capital covered in artificial structures dotting its surface with industrial towers extending out from various points like towers connecting to smaller asteroids acting as bridges with further structures built into those.
"Well we're here. Welcome to our home base."