Navigating the Whaladon was not difficult. It was not the first freighter of it's kind that Daria had been aboard, though in spite of her familiarity with the design, she found it difficult to feel at ease within the bunk she had been provided. There were beds for twenty on board, though the Alliance had provided gurneys and folding beds to be used wherever there was space. Each bunk room had six beds and was just large enough to accommodate a small trunk of personal possessions for those who slept there.

Daria lay on one of the three top bunks, the ceiling a matter of feet away from her face. She could feel the heat the ship generated, radiating from the durasteel walls all around her. Beneath her, the mattress was rigid. Everything seemed to shake faintly. There was no one else in the room, but someone was coming; Daria knew who it was before the door clanged open.