Krejjh

Krejjh is the pilot aboard the smuggler ship Rumor, a Dwarnian, a war veteran and an army deserter. Like Arkady, Krejjh has definitely killed people. Unlike Arkady, Krejjh is social and sociable, a bit silly, freely gives and gratefully accepts compliments. Krejjh is a thrill-seeker, daredevil, and adrenaline junkie. They are engaged to Brian Jeeter and are fluent in both Dwarnian and Earth-English.

## Early Life

Like many Dwarnians, during their school years Krejjh studied the language Vree Chel Nokean, but has since forgotten all but about ten words. Krejjh previously worked as a stunt pilot on Thlaskin, though that career choice is not considered to be a respectable position by Krejjh's diplomat family member, Eejjhgreb. Krejjh's clan is largely made up of politicians and diplomats, especially among their subclan.

Krejjh fought during the Human-Dwarnian War, but deserted 6 days before the war's end, after the final battle at Nreech-shlegga had already been fought. When the news of the battle's outcome reached Krejjh, they were on leave in the Neutral Zone, which is where they met Brian Jeeter. Though the circumstances are not specified, Brian and Krejjh saved each other's lives during the first week they knew each other. It is suggested that Krejjh and Brian may have met because Krejjh was seeking an English interpreter on Ryedell Station, located in the Neutral Zone. Approximately 6 months after the end of the war, Krejjh began flying with the crew of the Rumor.

Since meeting Brian Jeeter, Krejjh has embraced some aspects of human culture and Earth-English, but is skeptical of many others. Krejjh is largely fluent in Earth-English and has adopted several terms of Earth-English slang ("hep cats", "aces", "hunky dory", "cool your jets"), but occasionally struggles with other words and phrases and sometimes asks Brian for help ("spouses", "peanut butter", "No way, Jose"). Though they are enthusiastic about attempting "Earthling sarcasm", certain contextual jokes don't land with Krejjh, such as Arkady's personification of the difficult ship computer system, E.L.L.A., as female and suggesting she suffers from P.M.S. This joke's lack of effectiveness is likely due to the fact that Dwarnians have no concept of gender, and consider the human gender binary funny and confusing.

Presumably at least in part to aid with communication and Earth-English, Krejjh has chosen to use they/them pronouns, but does not seem entirely comfortable in that choice. Arkady uses "them" to refer to Krejjh in the episode Checkpoint Osiris, so it appears as though Krejjh has already communicated their pronoun preferences to the crew, but when Violet asks them about pronouns in the following episode, Krejjh pauses to ponder the question and acknowledges that none of the options are great. Their hesitation may suggest that they are reconsidering their choice of pronouns. Despite their lack of a cultural notion of gender, Krejjh occasionally uses masculine terms to refer to their fellow crew members ("fellas", "man"), but is also fond of the neutral "folks".

## Aboard the Rumor

Krejjh joined the crew of the Rumor a year and a half before the beginning of the story. It is not known whether the Rumor had another pilot previously, or whether the ship was newly built when Krejjh came aboard. When the failsafes on the Iris I are tripped while the Rumor is tethered to it, Krejjh uses their piloting skills to outmaneuver the explosion, saving the crew. They are watchful and vigilant in the cockpit, alerting the crew to potential dangers on scanners, such as Vree Chel Noke nanobot swarms.

Krejjh has some challenging encounters with human norms and preconceptions aboard the Rumor, including Violet's original panicked reaction to learning that the pilot is a Dwarnian, fighting with the ship's automation software that doesn't recognize their name, and needing to hide in a secret compartment while an IGR agent on Elion boards and inspects the ship. Krejjh addresses all of their crew members by their title and surname, including their own fiancé ("Crewman Jeeter"), in following with the Dwarnian custom of names including information about one's occupation and clan membership. Krejjh and Brian lament the fact that marrying is currently illegal everywhere in the universe, though it is unclear whether human-Dwarnian marriage is specifically outlawed, or interspecies marriage in general.

Following the Human-Dwarnian War, Krejjh has come to feel a degree of guilt about the war and the harm the Dwarnians inflicted on the human population and their people's ability to easily move on after losing the war, as opposed to the humans' difficult road ahead in rebuilding after their decimation. They have become disillusioned with the leadership of their planet, especially thrusting them into a war which the majority of Dwarnians disagreed with in the first place.