The patrol ship was a functional design. They had six gun turrets and a number of pursuit weapons. The sensor array was rather large, as were the engines. As it docked, they saw that the apparatus was equipped with cutting devices, allowing it to double as a boarding system.

A grinning, blue skinned being wearing a bright red uniform stepped out of the docking arm. A high hat sat atop his head. He was escorted by several fully armored troopers. A grey skinned woman wearing a white robe and a pair of large goggles walked beside him.

Eli did his best to greet him warmly, “I’m Captain Cisneros. Welcome aboard Cavalier.”

“Captain!” the man proclaimed in a boisterous voice, “You have a fine ship!”

“Thank you,” Eli said, “It’s seen better days, but we try to keep it in good shape.”

The woman with the goggles gave Eli a long look, “Eli Peña Cisneros: Atlath Agent number Ü993403. Registered as the legal owner of this vessel.”

The official looked at the marks on his neck, “Another victim of the Sad’Daki scourge. I hope that when the time comes, the coalition does the right thing.”

Eli nodded in appreciation.

The woman with the goggles looked at Tarl’s butar, “Tarl Uwais Chamavi: ex-military, Makka space force. He’s a registered trader in several areas,” then she looked at the woman in the armor, “Gami Zari Urush: former member of the Isenmok Security Service, holds over a dozen mercenary and bounty hunting licenses.”

“Put her in the queue for registration,” the officer instructed.

Then she looked at Savaa, “Nothing on file,” she reported.

Savaa was quick to speak up, “I go by Savaa Kalkar. I’m a refugee.”

The official shrugged, “Well, you’re not from anywhere that has an extradition treaty with us. I wish you the best of luck, sir.”

Savaa thanked him. The woman scanned Anara, reported that she didn’t show up in their system either.

“My name is Anara. I’m an exile from Tylanax.”

The officer looked at his assistant, “We only have a basic trade agreement with the Bhanu, and they wouldn’t want an exile back anyway.”

The Coalition officer proceeded to walk around, seemingly at random. His eyes went everywhere. No part of the ship escaped his gaze. The friendly expression remained unchanged. The woman wearing the goggles did the same, examining every nook and cranny.

They entered the cargo hold. Eli was glad that they weren’t smuggling anything at the moment.

“Looks pretty empty in here,” the Coalition officer remarked.

“We’re between jobs,” Eli countered, “You got any work for us?”

“Perhaps,” the officer mused as he moved on.

Eli struggled not to wince when they entered the work area. The armory was built into one of the walls. The officer made a beeline for it. He spent what felt like an eternity looking over the collection of weapons. After giving Eli a satisfied nod, he checked out the rest of the room, looking over everything carefully.

Eli felt his heart skip a beat when they entered the passenger section. Sure enough, Rotek put on the same old display, tearfully begging to be rescued from the evil people that had falsely imprisoned her.

The Coalition officer and his companions were unphased. After checking the other cabins, they walked over to the prisoner.

The woman with the goggles spoke to the officer, “Rotekalanochala Morloth. She’s wanted for many acts of piracy. The Kingdom of Moraff had her registered as a privateer.”

“Excellent,” the officer purred, then he turned to Eli, “We’ll give you forty thousand Wendigoth ducats for her.”

Eli did some quick math in his head, calculating exchange rates. It was a decent amount of money, more than enough to fix the ship, but still way less than what they would get from the Pygram. He glanced at the Coalition troopers before agreeing.

“She gave us some trouble,” Eli explained as Savaa and several of Tarl’s bodies labored to open the door that had been welded shut.

“Yes,” the woman with the goggles said, “She has a record of escapes.”

“Don’t worry,” the officer assured them, “We’re counting on her being a master of such things.”

The cell was finally opened. The troopers took Rotek into custody.

The prisoner smirked at the crew of Cavalier, “Sorry that you missed your big payday,” she mocked.

Eli smirked back, “It is what it is. I’m sure that you’ll make it home someday.”

Her smirk turned into a leer. They led her onto their ship. With a few final hollow farewells, the patrol ship detached and went on its way.

“What a disappointment,” Gami lamented.

Eli responded right away, “It will get us enough fuel to get to the Funhouse and get us new engines too.”

“Whatever.”

“Eli did what he had to do,” Anara said, “They had us dead to rights.”

Gami started walking away, “Let’s just get to the next stop off.”

“Fine,” Tarl agreed, “There’s a world just off the lane. They have several starports where we can get the engines replaced.”

“Take us there,” Eli ordered.