"...happens." She finished as they stumbled to a stop.

The momentum of their forceful trip sent the trio skidding across the slick, metal floor. The gentlemen looked up at the gracefully, still standing redhead from their places on the floor. "Who in the bloody hell are you?" Smith spat as he clamored to stand.

Jones elbowed the now sleek pack into a more comfortable position as he stared wide-eyed at the man, "Mr. Smith, how dare you speak to... to..." Jones looked suddenly confused, "I do believe we have not been properly introduced, madam." Putting his hand to his waist, he gave a little bow, "Mr. Archibald Jones at your service."

"Jones! What are you wearing?" Smith exclaimed, pointing towards his comrade in the most rudely of fashions.

"It's a spacesuit," the misses replied, referring to the fitted suit the men wore. "Your clothing and weapons are subject to the loop. And the name's Chris, by the way."

Jones startled, the confused look still upon his face, "Chris?" he asked, "I say, that's a man's name."

Smith interrupted, "Jones—"

Kris, one hand on hip, tilted her head towards her accuser. The tilt sent waves of red hair tumbling over her shoulder. "Not if it's short for Christina, sir."

"Jones, my lady," Smith tried again.

"But why would you ruin a perfectly soft, feminine name such as Christina by replacing it with the name of a man?"

Chris stepped closer to Jones, "Are you saying I'm not a lady?"

"Well, you are dressed in men's pants. Wait, why is your clothing unchanged?" For Chris was still dressed in her leather that left little to the imagination. It was not that Jones minder, per say, but the principle of the matter.

"Because I'm not affected by the loop same as y'all."

"Because you started it, I suppose." Jones spat rather venomously.

Chris' mouth fell open, "Who pissed in your grits?"

Jones gulped air in surprise, "Such language!" he scoffed. "First your name, then that ridiculous attire, now—"

"MR. JONES!" Smith stated firmly.

Jones ceased his tirade, throwing his hands down, and causing his pack to shake, "Mr. Smith!" He returned, "What do you want?"

The two ceased fighting long enough to give Smith their attention only to find him very still, with a somewhat frightened look on his face. As their eyes followed his hand, their faces slowly transformed to match.

"Holy—" Chris started only to be cut off by Jones.

"What in the bloody hell?"

Smith inched across the platform, closer to his traveling mates, "Normally, this would be the time I would be so inclined to point out that your use of the English language is not suited for mixed company."

Jones ignored him and instead looked over to Chris, shaggy brows furrowed over his matching brown eyes, "Missus Chris, would you care to explain our situation?" he spat out of the corner of his mouth.

Chris scoffed, "What? Why'm I the one with all the answers?"

Jones rolled his eyes, "Maybe because you are the one who got us into this metal cavern in the first place." His tone was increasing in speed and volume. "You could at least have the decency to explain why we are surrounded by these, these foreign creatures!"

The foreign creatures as Jones so eloquently put it were actually the m'Vemjsunp—a particularly gruesome blob-like alien race with numerous tentacles and imposing stature. Jones, Smith and Chris had landed themselves plop in the middle of the m'Vemjsunp ship's common area, where the creatures were currently congregated. The good news was that Smith, Jones, and Chris were on a raised platform in the center of the room—intended for entertainment, for the m'Vemjsunp were a particularly lively crew when not faced with intruders or stowaways. The m'Vemjsunp slapped their appendages against the metal interior of the ship, spitting and spatting as they began to move, stirred to action by the intruders' silence.

The bad news was, "They're coming straight for us!" Smith said in an elevated tone. Wasting no time, Smith raised his gun, only to look at it in a perplexed fashion; the clockwork and dials had been replaced with a sleek, shiny black and grey stripe that matched Jones' space suit nicely.

In the moment that it took Smith to reconsider his weapon, Chris stepped up and swatted it down, simultaneously gathering Mr. Smith in her surprisingly strong arms while muttering something about stupid men and their guns under her breath.

Smith startled as Chris pushed him into the Chest of Jones, "My lady, I do—"

"Shut it, Smith," Chris said as she sandwiched him between them, blowing hair out of her face as she reached around Jones to his pack. "Hold on, boys," and with a press of her finger, Jones felt his feet leave the floor.

A very startled Smith threw his arms around the woman in front of him, only to notice that the woman in question had looped her arms around him and through the straps of Jones' pack.

"An anti-gravity pack," Chris supplied as they shot up in the massive cavern of the ship, past the ways, walks, and levels packed with slapping, spitting m'Vemjsunp. "Jones!" Chris shouted over the rising noise. They were almost at the ceiling—a breathtaking dome filled with more stars than either Smith or Jones had ever imagined were beyond their small island on their small planet. "Left!"

Jones, without hesitation, grabbed the nearest railing, and shot the odd group to his left. The three picked up speed as they propelled themselves through a large rounded tunnel, past large crowds of startled m'Vemjsunp who were headed in the opposite direction.

"There!" Chris said with a point of her finger that sent them of course, bouncing into the nearest wall.

Jones spit out a mouth full of red hair, "Madame, if you do not mind."

"Sir, I am trying to get us to a ship," she returned.

"A ship?" Jones rebuttled, "Who will drive the blasted thing?"

Smith could feel Chris roll her eyes, "Well, if you're good, I might fly it for you."

From his sandwiched spot, Smith supplied, in a wide-eyed fashion, "Ground!" for in their arguing, Chris and Jones had failed to realize that their last run in with the wall had killed the anti-gravity pack. The trio had been falling, though they were none the wiser. They did, however, notice the small group of large m'Vemjsunp herded around a moderately sized dull, black ship.

Chris hit the ground first, and used her own momentum to propel the men rolling in the opposite direction. "Smith!" she yelled. "Your gun!"

"Miss Chris, I do not know how I feel about shooting—"

Before he could finish, "Put the thing on stun, then!" Chris suggested, taking off toward the ship—and therefore, the aliens she expected Smith to take care of—"Let's go! Come on!" She yelled back over her shoulder.

Smith looked down at his weapon, and sure enough, there was a small dial with two options: stun or kill. Smith opted for the former and began shooting, mindful not to hit the quick moving woman.

"Smith!" Jones shouted, "behind you!"

In one smooth motion, Smith turned his back to the stunned m'Vemjsunp, his dueling partner, and the woman who was not shimmying into the bottom of the ship they were in the process of pirating, only to find a host of angry aliens headed their way at a remarkable speed.

"My, they do move at remarkable speeds for such dense creatures, don't they?" Jones remarked, watching the approaching hoard with a slight tilt to his head.

Smith pulled the trigger, releasing a small pulse that rendered the front lines of the mass immovable. "They do, Jones. Quite remarkable."

Chris interrupted their observations by sticking her head out the bottom of the ship, hair falling wildly, "Move your asses, boys!"

Smith and Jones, officially shaken out of their revelry, turned, sprinting towards the ship. Smith folded his hands, and as Jones put his foot on his friend's laced fingers, remarked, "What kind of woman have we found ourselves keeping company with, Smith?"

Smith shrugged in response as Jones reached down to pull him up, "A quite unordinary sort, that's for sure. I would dare say she's remarkable." Jones slapped the hatch shut and smiled off after Smith as he ducked into the control room where Chris was a flurry of action.

"Sit down and buckle up, boys," she said as she slapped buttons and jerked levers. Both Smith and Jones did exactly as requested without question. The ship gave a shudder as she pulled a large lever down slowly, "It's time to blow this popsicle stand."

With that, the ship shot forward--back over the heads of the hoard of m'Vemjsunp now filling the hold, and through the tunnel in a wibbly-wobbly fashion.

Smith and Jones grappled for restraints as they zipped out into the open space of before. "Miss Chris! Where do you think you are taking us?" Mr. Jones yelled as his belt finally clicked shut.

From the front of the ship, Chris smiled at no one in particular as she pointed the ship at the large glass dome. "I don't know, boys," she said, flinging her hair back and winking over her shoulder. "Wherever the loop takes us."