The Convicts Captain (Riddick Fanfic)

Filling In The Blanks

The night had started the same way Riddick's last few had. Him and Itiri both sat at the metal dining room table, an MRE split between the two of them. The pilot was doing her usual, rambling about one thing or another. Taking a bite of her food here and there, and seemingly enjoying the company. Despite the more tense circumstances she was under. And Riddick, as usual, was there to listen. Though he had grown to do it more than just half-heartedly like he had done before. Her little anecdotes had become one of his few sources of entertainment on the nearly empty ship. 

Her current subject, and seemingly one of her favorites, involved her brother.  A person she had spoken of often, though all her stories of when he was living on the ship with her. This not so short story she was currently chatting away about, centered on her brother's love of the food packets they were munching on. 

"Can't say I agree with him much." She said gesturing to the plate below her. Filled with items that could barely be considered food. Though Riddick couldn't bring it in himself to care. Food was food after all. "He always liked to pretend he was a soldier. Stuck on a special mission, sometimes I would pretend to be his comerade." Itiri explained further, despite Riddick not giving her much of a cue to do so. She grinned, picking up her plastic fork, and pretended to wield it like a sword. "Other times, I was the enemy monster he was on the mission to kill."  
Still. With every word she spoke, a sign question continued to itch at Riddick's mind. One that surprisingly she hadn't answered for him yet. She was an open book, and would tell him most things herself. So he had kept the question to himself, figuring that (like most things) he needn't wonder about it for too long. She would tell him eventually. However this was one topic she never seemed to touch. So out the question came. 

"Don't you have parents?" He asked before putting a forkful of soggy gravy covered hash browns into his mouth. He watched her reaction closely as he chewed. She seemed startled by it, her eyes widening before a more solemn look took its place. The smile she wore faltered, and she reached for her water.

"We did, they went missing." She began, fiddling with the cup in her hands. "I heard the ship they were on had crashed, and i heard rumours that some people had survived it but-" She put down her cup on the table again. "We haven't heard from them in years." Riddick was about to ask the name of the ship, but her mouth opened again. Itiri's head tilted, her eyes scrunching up as she thought. "The. . .Hunter Gratzner was what it was called, i think."

Riddick stiffened at the mention of that name, though only for a moment. However, that moment was enough for Itiri to notice. She look at him, curiosity burning behind her grey eyes. "Have you. . .have you heard anything about it?" She inquired softly, her tone lacking the certain spark he had usually heard from her. 

"I was on it." Riddick's reply was simple. Itiri's shoulders straightened a little.  An unspoken question weaving in her mind that hung in the air between the two, but before she could ask it he spoke. "Don't remember any redheads, or many couples." He wasn't going to offer her any lies painted as hope. Nor was he going to allow any to take root. In his mind, there was, and should be no beating around the bush with this matter. Her parents were dead, they hadn't even survived the crash of the ship like so many others. Arguably however, it was for the better. Especially the hell that transpired on that planet before he could escape with what little survivors had made it through.

Itiri's eyes turned a light shade of red. Even with his eyes Riddick could see the small shift in hue and the tears that welled up in the corners of them. Turning her head away from the convict the pilot cleared her throat. Doing her best to blink away the droplets as they formed. She looked back to her food, though she didn't seem to have any intention of finishing what little was left on her plate. 

The mood in the room had taken a drastic shift from the lighthearted atmosphere that was there before. It was now more of a nose dive into sorrow city then anything, but Riddick couldn't say he was surprised. Death was never easy news for anyone to handle. Except for him when it was the mercs always on his ass, he felt very little regret for them. However, he couldn't deny the pang of guilt that had lingered for the other pilot lost on that hell hole.  
The convict and pilot ate the rest of their meal in silence. Another thing that had become a rarity for them. The only sound was the occasional deep and shaky breath the woman let out. Itiri was never silent. She always had something to blab to him about. Now though, she was at a loss for words. Her eyes glued to the plate in front of her. After she had forced down the last of her meal, she washed her plate and cup.