Eric was glad the men would be able to forgive him, possibly but that relief quickly changed as the news got progressively worse. He thought to ask a question but quickly dismissed it. He would learn more as they went and it looked like they needed to get going as soon as possible. The last part was confirmed by both the captain and the person who had informed them on their shuttle. He looked to Ryan as he spoke and nodded his head. Ryan was in chargeâ€¦that would be alright. Stealing a glance at Kat he thought to reassure her it wasnâ€™t her fault when they were shuffled off. This was going to be an interesting trip.<br/><br/>Mudock felt himself slipping back into the shoes he once wore when he himself were in the Gendahl fleet. To think they had the nerve to do this sort of thing, did they not realize there would be repercussions? Pushing the thought from his mind he watched the three leave. He nodded his head in thanks and saluted Kat back before she left. He was going to tell her this incident had nothing to do with her but he knew it would be meaningless. She would believe what she believed and there was nothing he could do about it. Sitting back behind his desk he said a silent prayer, something he hadnâ€™t done in over ten years as a member of the military. He did not know if they would be able to make it out of this one unscathed this time. The public was calling for blood and the government was breathing down his neck. Those three were the only people he could trust, in his own way.<br/><br/>As Eric walked out the door he looked to Kat as she spoke. â€œIâ€™m not worried, if anything having a pissed off Samantha is enough to make sure we both behave.â€ He said chuckling a bit in an attempt to lighten the mood a bit. Letting it die down he said, â€œyou know this isnâ€™t your fault right? What happened with Riddick, it would have happened anyway the only difference is it would have been either me or the captain. That man knew the risks of what he was doing when he signed up for this.â€ He paused and glanced back at the captainâ€™s door. â€œI would hate to be in the Gendahl fleets shoes right now. It looked like the captain was concerned but there was something else in his eyes, it was the same look he had before he went to talk to Thomas.â€<br/><br/>The shuttle was ready and much to Ericâ€™s surprise there was a meal waiting for them. It wasnâ€™t as much as it would have been if they were in the cafeteria. Despite his earlier hunger he didnâ€™t quite feel it at that moment. There were so many things buzzing around in his head he couldnâ€™t focus on eating but if they were going into battle soon. He thought of it for a moment then chose not to do anything. If the others were going to eat he would too but for now he was calculating.<br/><br/>Taking a seat he slightly pushed the food away and asked one of the shuttle attendants for a handheld control panel. They looked confused for a moment then skeptical when he said, â€œcome on I have a few things I need to work out and I canâ€™t do that with nothing now can I?â€ Rolling his eyes he said, â€œYou think the captain would still have that ban on technology for me if he were sending me somewhere?â€<br/><br/>Reluctantly the handed him one and told him it would work wherever he was as long as mercury wasnâ€™t present. He nodded his head and smiled like a child on Christmas, taking it gratefully his fingers dancing over it easily. The first thing he did was hack into the mainframe of the ship without setting off any alarms. â€œThat might be a problem.â€ He said putting up some of his own wards and shields as he backed out. Everyone on the ship would be able to access what they needed to but if anyone tried to sneak in both he and the technical crew would be the first to know.<br/><br/>â€œSo far Iâ€™ve learned our ship computer system security sucks.â€ He said as soon as the shuttle left the dock. His fingers did some more tapping and he sighed shaking his head. â€œKat you are not going to believe this.â€ Turning the screen to her it showed the Gendahl fleet blockading Earth. â€œThey are taking this to a whole new level and it has nothing, I repeat, nothing to do with you. It says they are looking for new leadership, one where they are in control and not the â€˜current administrationâ€™ as they put it. It is nothing more than a power struggle. I guess what Thomas was planning had a phase two.â€