"Yeah, it's quite a mess around here, isn't it? Don't worry, someone'll fix it sooner or later. 'S long as it isn't me, heh."

You nod, only to realise Sloth will have trouble seeing you do so. Apparently a thick fog bank has entered the Scourge's berth and crept inside the ship. You follow the Vahki's silhouette as best as you can.

Sparks. The sound of cables being dragged across the steel grid floor. Clicking noises. None of which sound very comforting. As you walk along, the noises grow louder.

A surprise attack! Something rushes at you from the mist full-speed, and you reach for a weapon that isn't there.

You blink. And blink again.

"Yah, those Repair Nektann always surprise me, too. Darn the little buggers, but at least they're fixing things. The last thing I fixed was the protosteam engine, and we've had the upgraded version ever since..."

The fog gives way to darkness, the path sparsely illuminated by faltering neon lights. After a while, you draw Sloth's attention to the sound of steps behind you. Drawing out his blade, he motions for you to take cover behind him. As you hide behind a bulkhead, Sloth takes on his fighting pose. Which little to your surprise is no fighting pose at all, unless you count leaning on your cutlass.

The savage roars of a large cat echo through the corridor. Remembering the stories of Percy, Schizo's large mutated bobcat, half reptile, half feline, you fear for your life. Sloth, however, relaxes. Completely unnoticeable, but you get the point.

"It's alright, it's just Darcy."

Though this would be the smaller 'cousin' of Percy, lacking the reptilian DNA, you are not quite reassured. From the darkness comes the beast...

"Hardly recognisable, is he? He's going through some kind of hip goth phase, he even died his fur. The cat's crazy, man, we keep stepping on him in the dark now. I prefer the radioactive lime glow of his real fur, pretty handy when you need an escort to the galley for a midnight snack. At least, according to Gluttony."

The thing slashes at you. As you hurriedly take a few steps back, it makes a great show of ignoring you whilst indignantly holding its paw up to Sloth. From it he removes a note. Unfolding it, he laughs.

"A letter from the Cap'n. Check this: 'While I am sure we all prefer more modern ways of communicating, the com system is still down, so this letter will have to do. As you can see, the place is still in disrepair, though at least it is being worked on. SPIRIT just called me on my new cell (a pity none of you are equipped with wireless receivers), it appears he is experiencing some difficulties in obtaining the final equipment from the Ta-Metru forges. How silly of him to get caught by that naughty Morbuzakh. While I am away to lend him a helping hand (or cutlass), do try and find someone somewhat competent in Japanese. My new jacket appears to have a few katakana on the hood, but as my knowledge of the Japanese language is nil, I'd appreciate it if someone could decipher them for me. The jacket sleeve does feature an image of Sun Wukong (Son Goku in Japanese, from the Journey into the West legend), so I assume there could be some connection, but still...

I will see you all later. Also, put Gluttony on a diet or something, I don't want to come back to discover the ship's been eaten whole.'

Well, that's all it says. You wouldn't happen ter know any Japanese, would you?"

You take a look at the (poor) rendition of the katakana, and shake your head.