In wounded ballet, without the direction of the chimp to confirm or deny the request, the airlocks were mated. Quen felt the shudder through the whole of the Agniastra. Then the hollow, grinding clang of the seals and locks. He overrode the alarm system, to get some bit of peace and quiet back on the bridge.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Pressure equalization in progress.</span><br/><br/>Heâ€™d been halfway to the engine room â€“ which took up nearly a quarter of the space in the cramped ship â€“ when the chimp decided to warn him it was preparing to let whoever was in the other craft onboard.<br/><br/>â€œWhat? I didnâ€™t authorize that!â€ Okay, yes, it would have been his second task, but he hated it when the chimp made decisions like that on its own. The state of the engines and hull were more important. He wasnâ€™t in the mood to even look at whoever had caused his current batch of problems. They were going to be arrestedâ€¦ It didnâ€™t matter what they did, or why, or how sorry they were, he was not happy.<br/><br/>The computer either didnâ€™t know what to do with the statement, or ignored it altogether.<span style="font-style: italic">Biometrics indicate one living being, presumed human.</span>At least everything on the inside still worked, even if the chimp couldnâ€™t tell him engine status or if there might be a breach somewhere. There was no hissing anyway, that was good.<br/><br/>Stupid AIâ€¦ Quen was beginning to wish he had a partner instead of a lobotomized computer intelligence to keep him company. He snatched his sidearm from his bunk â€“ there was nothing out here, ever, so despite regulations heâ€™d stopped wearing it during all waking hours â€“ while the lights beside the airlock doors went through their progression from red to green. When they had, he punched in the code that let the doors slide open.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic"><span style="font-weight: bold">Hazard! Airlock open</span></span>! Another alarm started up. His patience was wearing thin.<br/><br/>â€œShut up, stupid chimp!â€ The AI still couldnâ€™t tell the airlock was mated, but it couldnâ€™t make the decision to close the doors either. Not knowing that the code had been entered manually.<br/><br/>On the other side was a bloody woman, appearing very determined not to pass out. Her face made something click in Quenâ€™s memory, but he didnâ€™t know quite what it was.<br/><br/>The chimp did though. The chimp didnâ€™t forget and its memory didnâ€™t lag.<span style="font-style: italic">Identified: Zilah DronstrÃ¶m. Imperial Space Corps number three most wanted. Wanted on sixteen planets and seven major stations. Wanted forâ€¦</span>Quen simply said, â€œEnd,â€ and the chimp abruptly ceased its list. He had the presence of mind to level the weapon at her, beaten up as she looked. â€œYou are under arrest for numerous crimes against the Human Empire. Your ship will be commandeered and impounded. You will be taken to the nearest Imperial holding center for detention and trial.â€<br/><br/>Quen still couldnâ€™t decide if the universe was playing a joke on him, or if this was the best nightmare heâ€™d ever had.