Boxjelly1

For those new to the story, and for those who have't read it in a while, here's everything you need to know before reading the recently posted Chapter 12:

• Dr. Kala Leahy is a Hantae and a medical officer in the Galactic Federation
• Like all Federation officers, she has a tracking chip that monitors her location and health readings  
• Kala looks like this:
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• Kala's ship crashes after it's caught in the wake of a mysterious golden comet
• Kala is captured by a Legrathian Slaver named Artemis Hind and taken to the slave planet Texth to be sold at auction 
• Hind looks like this: 
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• Kala is purchased by Captain Varden Treta, a famously fearsome pirate lord. Treta, an Asmurian, is both intimidating and intriguing
• Treta looks like this:
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• A Zorich Bioman is also purchased and both slaves are delivered to Treta's equally famous ship: The Monoceros. 
• After a rough night in the brig, Kala is retrieved by the ship's first mate, a Devourer by the name Vico Dioli, and brought to the Captain's cabin. 
• Vico looks like this: 
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• Captain Treta tells Kala that he'll let her live if she helps him steal the Aceso Power Cores from the Tractatio Medical Center where she was previously stationed 
• The cores are very valuable, a one of a kind power source
• Treta tells Kala that he plans to use her knowledge of the station's security, to help his crew break in, take the cores and sell them
• Kala refuses to betray the Federation and Treta asserts himself by pinning her to the table and cutting the Federation chip from her neck 
• That night, he hacks into the chip, changing it to make the Federation believe he's torturing Kala. Treta also gathers intel about her sister from the Federation's records to use as blackmail 
• At a distant Federation station, Admiral Jacob Fletcher is overseeing the search and rescue of the kidnapped Hantae. 
• He appears more concerned about the political fallout of her abduction than the doctor's safety
• Once well-meaning, earth-lover Corporal Archibald Heinlein informs them that Kala's captor is none other than the infamous Captain Treta, Fletcher sets his sights on not only saving Kala, but capturing the elusive pirates as well 
• Fletcher launches all Federation Battle Cruisers in the quadrant in pursuit of the pirates, unknowingly leaving the rest of the territory unguarded  
• Heinlein looks like this: 
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• The next day, Kala is summoned again to the Captain's cabin, but not before witnessing the alien diversity that makes up Treta's crew. This causes her to speculate about the Federation's exclusiveness of species and the equality they claim to support 
• It's on deck where she first lays eyes on Cono, a feral Calian, and wonders about the risks of having such a dangerous alien on-board
• Cono looks like this: 
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• In his cabin, Treta shows Kala that he has eyes on her sister and her patients, and will hurt them all unless she agrees to help him steal the cores 
• Feeling trapped by his offer, Kala agrees to help him and temporarily join his crew, in exchange for the protection of her sister and the lives of her patients
• With the Federation warships zeroing in on their location, The Monoceros prepares to jump, but not before Treta forces Kala to destroy her own chip to make them believe she was murdered 
• The Monoceros uses it's Quantum Drive to open a hidden channel through space and jump to other side of the quadrant just before the Federation ships arrive 
• Left with an ominous message from Treta, Fletcher retreats to prepare for the fallout that he fears will arise from Kala's murder 
• The Monoceros appears in the Tractatio Nebula, pulled toward the mass of a white dwarf, and safe from the threat of Federation patrol 
• When Treta shows Kala her quarters and tells her that she must tend to his crew, Kala refuses and claims she won't heal "murderous beasts"
• Treta yells at her and calls Kala out on her prejudice. “Don’t start disappointing me now with this Federation superior bullshit," he says. "Before anything else, you’re a physician, Dr. Leahy. And I expect you to honor that code, even when treating my people." 
• Treta leaves Kala to reflect on her position and takes the helm to steer his ship out of danger from the ravenous outflow of the white dwarf
• Finally he tells Dioli to summon Cono and the ship's head engineer, a Star Child named Nyoto, to discuss their plans for the Tractatio assault 
• Nyoto looks like this: 
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And that's it! Now that you're all caught up, go read Chapter 12: How to Proceed! If you have any questions, please let me know. I'd be more than happy to answer them and discuss any aspect of the story that you're curious about. Before posting Ch. 12, I did a pretty in depth edit of the previous chapters in which I attempted to fix several plot holes, add important details and just fix some awful phrasing and grammatical errors that were still hanging around. So if you'd like to revisit the story and see what's new, I highly encourage you to check it out from the beginning. 
You can find chapter one here: 
The Nebula's TideSpotting Stars
A golden comet. That was the last thing Dr. Kala Leahy saw before her ship was struck off course. An orange halo, cradling its burning treasure through space, cut suddenly through the spangled darkness. Offsetting the doctor’s equipment as it passed, Kala hardly heard the ship’s warnings before she caught a glimpse of the rare sight.
Comets in the beta quadrant were exceptionally common. But even the most diligent star chasers would not likely spot a golden comet in their entire lifetime. Though its beauty only served to amaze the doctor for a brief moment, it kept Kala’s eyes away from the controls just long enough for a cloud of debris to come racing toward her starboard engine.
The spacerocks collided with the Federation craft and as they shattered, the fiberglass like particles were instantly sucked into the forward compressor, jamming the rotary propulsion and sending the doctor’s ship spiraling out of control.
Kala tore her eyes away from th 

Or you can read it here on Inkitt.com. Inkitt is a lovely platform for hosting fiction, and personally I think it's a much more enjoyable read than the Deviantart format. 
Wherever you read it, I hope you comment and tell me what you think. Your comments, good or bad, are what fuel my creativity and inspire me to continue writing and developing my stories. I already owe you all so much for helping me bring The Nebula's Tide this far. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for your ongoing interest and support. I love you all so much, and I can't wait to keep writing and sharing my story with you.