<span style="font-style: italic">â€œSo what's on the menu?â€ she asked.</span><br/><br/>Dren went to the Kitchenette and stood in front of the replicator. He could just make the finished dish there, but the machine didn't make it the way he liked, nor had that personal touch.<br/><br/>"Well, I figure I should take it easy on meat, so I'll make us some Guorin." he said, then looked up, deep in thought for a moment, "Um, Guorin is sort of like a vegetable stew I suppose, but there are things on Neka in it that you wouldn't classify as neither fruit nor vegetable..." He trailed off as he began working the console, pulling out large oddly shaped vegetable things and unidentified produce from the replicator, which he had copied the programming from the replicator in his new lab to. Moments later he was dicing and slicing them and another was cut up and put in a pan to fry. The rest was tossed in a large pot he pulled from the cupboard. As it began to boil, he began searching the drawers and cupboards for something in particular, yet couldn't find it.<br/><br/>"Yuri, have you seen my spice?" he asked. Yuri appeared beside Angela, crossing her arms as her form solidified.<br/><br/>"Still in that box you were supposed to unpack." She said, then pulled out the chair at the dining room table to sit down, "Honestly, what kind of Nekan Soldier carries around his own 'Secret Spice'?" Dren shot her an annoyed look and fished the  bottle out of the box and stared as he shook a sparse amount into the pot.<br/><br/>"I do. I take the taste of the food I prepare very seriously." he said, "And I've never told anyone what this stuff is and never will."<br/><br/>"So secretive!" Yuri said with a laugh, "You're willing to share Nekan technology with these nice people, something punishable by law on Neka I might add, but won't even tell your sister what spice you use in your Guorin? It sounds a little fishy. Is it crushed up bugs or something?"<br/><br/>"That's just gross." he said, sticking out his tongue and he smiled, "It's nothing like that, nor is it dangerous to your health. If anything, it boosts your immune system." He looked to Angela's quizzical expression and laughed, "I think a Mankind would like it. We had to compensate for a lack of meat on my planet somehow. It makes the stew taste sort of meaty."<br/><br/>As he continued to stir the pot, he glanced out the window at the stars and sighed, "But I suppose it's time I sit down and talk to your Captain" he corrected himself, "My Captain now I guess. I know your engineers have looked over the Paladin to the best of their ability, but I'm going to unlock all of it's systems and share whatever technologies you want with the rest of you Mankind's. If I'm going to be a part of this crew, I can't be keeping secrets that could help us, besides my spice, of course."