The Sparrow

Chapter Three

Shoot to Thrill
Layla Lancaster

I awoke from my sleep by hearing someone step into the room. I was sitting back on one of the cockpit chairs, standing nearby were Dawn, Zade and Ex Talon. All looking at me with question.

"How long was I out?" I asked groggily.

Ex nodded his head and Dawn walked over to the control console. 

"About ten minutes out from target" Dawn answered.

"I was sleeping for almost twenty straight hours?" I spoke sitting up in my chair. Zade, held a glass of water and a sandwich, he handed them to me. Then he backed off and disappeared down the hallway.

Ex stepped over to me, taking a seat in the chair across from me. He looked at me with eyes of interest, he was scanning me trying to get into my head and figure out what I was thinking.

I took a bite out of the sandwich Zade gave me, there was so kind of meat in it, cheese, mayo, lettuce. It was stale, but I was starving and it was sure better then prison food.

"Dawn pulled up a data report on you, Withered Corp's report on you" Ex started. "Your a thief"

I nodded. "And you're a dangerous criminal who just killed a bunch of prison guards, you getting to a point?"

Ex smirked from that. "Yeah, that crystal you have in your hand, we need it. And since we can't remove it, we need you"

"What's in it for me?" I asked. 

"I don't kill you" Ex started. I starred back at him, he knew he wasn't going to kill me, if he needed the crystal that bad he would've sawed my hand off while I was sleeping. He has to keep me alive because he can't take the crystal from me. He nodded, seeming to understand what I was thinking.

"You may join my crew" Ex spoke.

"What makes you think I want that?" I asked taking another bite out of the sandwich.

"It's work, your'll be paid. And, we look out for each other on this ship, so you won't find yourself captured by the Comet Force without knowing that one of us is coming to get you"

"You have my attention"

"Your'll also receive 10%" Ex stated.

"20%" I spoke.

"I'm not here to negotiate, you take it or you leave it. Frankly it's not me who really needs the crystal, it's Max Withered"

"The inventor? The guy from Withered Corp?"

"Yeah" Ex spoke. "He's on his way to reach you, when he does he'll be removing the Crystal from your hand and paying all of us a fancy sum"

I nodded. "Alright, I'll stick around, but what happens after your friend comes to remove the Crystal? How can I be sure that your offer to join the Crew will stick?"

"My offer to join the crew will stick if I deem you worth the 10%" Ex answered. "Got it?"

I nodded. "Understood"

"Hey" Zade spoke entering the room with a pile of stuff. "I grabbed these things from our storage room, they aren't yours but I think there pretty close" Zade spoke handing me the bundle.

It was a new set of clothes, a chest plate to go along with it. A laser pierced sword, a plasma gun and a pair of pretty slick looking boots.

"Thank you" I smiled. Zade nodded and stopped.

"Your file said your a Kitsune, not a human" Zade started, Ex waved his hand and shook his head.

"Zade, you don't need to ask that. Layla you don't need to-"