This is a well written story. I really like the style and characters, especially Kala. She seems like a badass, but also with flaws that lead to a well rounded character - her confidence in her ability and herself leading to her being beaten by that one, that was a nice touch. Her buying drugs on that station was a little out of nowhere. It could be helped with an addition beforehand of her drug use. And the interaction and backstory with Johannes was a good touch. I have some issue with the setup, since I doubt most pirates or raiders would stay with a captain when they've had that bad luck, but Johannes' reasons for staying are a little clearer.
Regarding Straxi culture, I feel lacking. I want to know more about them. I want to get deeper into their world. I like the development so far, but I think it could have been created earlier too. Maybe that's just me. (I love different alien cultures in my reading.) And I love the created language for Straxi. It's cool and having it translated after (As you do) is great.
I look forward to more of this.
This is really well written. More please❤️
Neat, good sci-fi stories are rare here. Look forward to seeing where this one goes.