“Are we ready? Okay. Begin docking protocol.” Bella held down a button on the keypad beside the small set of screens mounted to her seat in the helm. “All hands brace for docking.”

  Blackrock nodded. Beneath the mask, he was, perhaps, nothing special. But he knew his piloting abilities were — commanding for everyone to brace was superfluous to his talent. They wouldn’t even know they’d docked. But he wasn’t going to supersede Bella just to say that.

  He oriented the controls, lined the four docking prongs up with their magnets. Not only was this an exceptionally simple maneuver, the station they were docking with had automated commands for half of the necessary translocations. The magnets would keep them steady, the prongs were already lined up. It was just the matter of a few stray NM — and Blackrock had flown every manner of vehicle, he was all too familiar with the exact distance.

  “Huh. That was it?”

  He looked up from the controls. The screen showed all green. Four prongs attached to four magnets. Docking complete, just like that.

  “Good job, Blackrock. I had my worries for a moment.”

  Blackrock smiled beneath his mask, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

  But just as quickly as it began, his praise was over. “All hands, to the docking bay please. Pressurization will be—”

  Blackrock coughed. His voice was muffled through the mask: “Pressure has already been adjusted.”

  “Oh.” That took Bella by surprise. “Nevermind, we’re all clear. Everyone to the docking bay; we’re here.”

  Aellyce stepped out first into the big, empty hangar, approaching the landing bridge with a look of curiosity. “Where is here, exactly?”

  Longwood, beside her, said, “Sector M-5. We’re out of Earthside by a good stretch.”

  Celeste hid behide one of the construction bots: “T—There’s people out there! I’m not going!”

  Cruze, a big, bald man of darker skin, smirked. “I haven’t been here in a fortnight. Wonder if Rafflesia is still around?”

  Then Bella arrived, behind them all: “Everyone’s accounted for except supply, huh?”

  Cruze answered, “He jettisoned himself back in B-3. After, you, uh…”

  “Terminated him. A fitting end to someone who showed up only to fiend on our rations. Is food the only sector that suffered?”

  Longwood said, “And coffee.”

  Celeste said, “N—nobody’s cleaned my room…”

  Cruze said, “Was nice to have someone to clear out the debris from the forge once in a while..”

  Aellyce asked, “Can’t Proton do those kinds of jobs?”

  The whole group turned to her.

  “I mean — Proton likes helping, right? Do we need another member? That’s more pay, more overhead, another mouth to feed… Doesn’t Proton have the resources…?”

  Celeste said, “Not enough RAM. It would interrupt my… work.”

  Cruze said, “I don’t know how comfortable I am with a computer doing everything…”

  Longwood said, “Okay.”

  Bella felt the vein throbbing in her forehead. “Aellyce, you’re in charge of finding potential recruits for hospitality. Scout the mess halls.”

  “Yes, ma’am!”

  “Cruze, get whatever metals we need.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Longwood... Don’t get into any trouble.”

  “Aye.”

  “Celeste, I’ve given you a budget as well. But I’d like to see everything you bring back with you — I want to know my money isn’t being wasted on booze and smut.”

  “Oh, the options. I mean — yes, ma’am.”

  “Alright. Dismissed. Be back at 1800 hours tonight. That’s 6 P.M.”

  And all together, “Yes, ma’am.”

  They all stepped out onto the bridge, forming a semi-orderly line, interrupted only by Longwood shoving a flustered Celeste out of the way with a playful smile on his face.

  When they were gone, Bella only muttered: “Behave, you all…”

  And then came approaching footsteps from down the same landing catwalk. And then there was a voice: “I thought that looked like White Horse.”

  Bella felt her body tense up and freeze.

  “So finally, I get to survey the mercenaries I’ve hired…?”

  “Avalacia—”

  “I don’t want to hear it. I’m paying a lofty sum for this, Beautiful Bella. So — won’t you show me around?”

  Bella could only grimace…

  Aellyce walked through cramped market stalls and shops with an eager look upon her face, surveying all of the goods as she passed, leaning forward to see as much as she could from every vendor. The crowds were so dense, it felt half the time like Longwood was grabbing her by the collar or sleeve ro keep her from getting too lost. “Hey, Longwood?”

  “What?”

  “What’re you gonna spend your money on?”

  “Mm. Probably beer. Something to drink, at least.”

  She looked up at him from her deep forward lean, slowly stood upright as she trailed beside him. “You in a funk?”

  “Huh? A funk?”

  “It’s something Celeste says. Are you… in a bad mood?”

  “Nah. Not really.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Aellyce, would you…!” Seeing the soft, unknowing face on that immature girl gave his annoyance pause. “I’m not upset, or in a funk, or depressed even. But I know why we’re here.”

  “Hmm?”

  “Supplies, sure. Food, maybe a pair of extra hands for preparing it. More coffee; our beans are almost run out and the instant has been low for a few sectors. But we’re here really so Bella can meet with our current master.”

  “Current master?”

  “Y’know… Our employer?”

  “Oh.”

  “So that means we’ll have more weight on our shoulders. No more slacking. No more simulators, and no more hanging out below deck with Cruze. Hell, Cruze and Celeste might end up riding alongside us in combat.”

  “No way…”

  "Depends how much of a hardass they turn out to be." Longwood looked around through the sea of people, the loud, rowdy shops, the coffee cups in every single hand… For him, it felt too much like Guanghua, before the war came to Earth. It reminded him of a simpler time, building computers, tinkering with arduinos and bread boards… It almost brought a tear to his eye. It almost made him remember who he was, before all hell broke loose.

  “Come on,” He grabbed her hand and started in a rush down a narrow side passage. “You’re coming with me.”

  Aellyce did not protest. Before long, they’d tucked away into some dingy dive bar, all dark oak and moody lighting, empty except for a few seedy-looking characters. Aellyce figured they were bounty hunters, like the old west.

  Longwood waved to the bartender as they came through the door, a slender Asian man who seemed to recognize him, especially by the way he was already pouring a drink.

  “Two today.”

  The man nodded, and already was he shaking silver cups between his hands.

  Just as Aellyce and Longwood sat, two martini glasses of brown liquid were presented. Aellyce asked, “Whats this?”

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  “Espresso martini.” Longwood ate one of the garnish beans on top. “You’ll notice that most bars out here have a fixation on coffee — decades ago, this drink was just a shitty trend. Now it's one of the only things you can manage to get. Whisky, rum, gin... That stuff gets harder to come by every day.”

  “Is there alcohol in it?”

  “Duh, you brat. Come on, you’re gonna get us kicked out of here. You’re at least 18, aren’t you?”

  She nodded, and made a deliberate, careful sip from the cup. The burn of the alcohol made her face twist, though she couldn’t complain about the flavor. It tasted just like the coffee they had aboard White Base.

  “Eat the beans on top. It’ll keep your jitters at bay.”

  “Oh? Why don’t we just eat the beans, then…? Wouldn’t that be cheaper?” She bit one, and her face instantly contorted.

  “That’s why. Not very pleasant, huh? But fifteen to twenty grams of the stuff and you’ve got yummy coffee.”

  Aellyce quickly slurped down more of her cocktail, trying to defeat the taste of the bean. The burn made things worse, and soon she was feeling nauseous from the taste alone.

  Longwood held the base of his glass between two hands, sat patiently, and waited.

  When Aellyce finished coughing, she asked, “Is this all you do when we dock? Drink and wait?”

  “Pretty much.”

  She didn’t know how to answer to that. After all, this was her first time docking since rejoining Bella's expeditions. She wasn’t sure there was anything better to be doing. Though, maybe it would have been more fun to be around Celeste, or Cruze… Longwood was oddly moody so far away from the ship.

  “Do you… like your job?” asked Aellyce.

  “Huh? Who likes this kind of work?”

  “Well I mean, did you ever think about doing something different?”

  “Like what? You’re either a soldier or you’re dead in today’s world.”

  “I thought Jupiter was still safe from any war?”

  “Now you’re talking about money that I don’t have. Jupiter would cost more than I could make in a lifetime… Thinking about going?” He sipped his drink.

  “No. I like Earthside. I always just wonder if we could bring it back. If Earth could be…”

  “Restored? They’ve tried and tried. They’re still probably trying down there, on the surface. You could always join their efforts.”

  She saw the gravel that covered her parents. “No thanks. I just wonder. You don’t… I don’t know, sorry. I just feel so chatty all of the…” Her eyes landed on the empty cocktail glass.

  Longwood laughed, shot down the rest of his. “Two beers — in the cans is fine.”

  “I can’t drink more! I’m already…!”

  “Ease up.”

  “I have to find a new member, Longwood! How am I supposed to—”

  “Lower your voice, calm down!” He laughed. “You dumbass, quit drooling everywhere!”

  Aellyce embarassedly wiped her lips, covered her mouth with a white napkin.

  “I'm just not much of a thinker or worrier, that all. I'm alive. That's more than can be said for half the people I've ever flown with.”

  She lowered the napkin.

  “I don’t see much point in getting ahead of ourselves or finding meaning in every little thing. We’re here, and one day we won’t be. That’s all there is to it. If you still have hope, your best bet is staying right here.“

  “Huh?”

  “I’d cover for you. You just… wouldn’t go back to White Horse. I mean, what were you even doing in the time between this adventure and the last?”

  “I…” She tried not to remember.

  “So, you could just stay here. Could find a job up here, make minimum wage. Probably wouldn’t be able to afford a roof over your head. Well… maybe, but not without doing some sort of unsavory work.”

  Her brows furrowed. “Hey—!”

  “Not that, you dumbass.” He bonked her atop the head with a closed fist. “There’s work out here that could be worth the while; we just have it a lot easier under Bella. For now. The fighting’s gonna start soon.”

  “...I’m scared.”

  Longwood looked down at her. She’d hung her head, letting her hair hide her pained expression. He sighed, and gently put a hand on her knee. “I’m your backup, Aellyce. I’ll keep you safe. You’ve got my word on that.” Then he looked up: “Oy, bartender! Where’re our…?”

  Two cold cans of beer appeared suddenly, brown labels wrapping them. Longwood snatched his quickly, and began to work at it.

  Aellyce slowly reached for hers and inspected the can. “Coffee stout…?”

  Longwood paused his over-eager slurping for her: “Everything is coffee branded these days… It’s pretty much inescapable.”

  “Hm.” She sipped it, and recoiled hard. “Ugh! It tastes like… It tastes like an old guy died in my can…! It smells like my grandpa!”

  Longwood laughed again, put his can down, and began to choke on his beer.

  Aellyce smiled softly. Longwood wasn’t so bad, after all. “Hey, by the way — I haven’t seen any aliens out here.”

  “Aliens?” He wiped his mouth, picked up his can again. “Well, they’re probably not real. But if they were, this station has a ban on them anyway.”

  “Huh? They’re not real?”

  “Nahhh, that’s comic book shit.”

  “Then why’re they banned?”

  “Dunno. I guess just in case? Doesn’t hurt to have a ban; maybe they’re worried they’re gonna be like… like the monsters in The Thing, and they’re gonna start infecting people. Or like from Alien. But then I guess those aliens wouldn't really follow a starbase's laws...”

  Aellyce laughed. “I’m guessing Celeste showed you those?”

  “Nah, I saw those movies way back. On Earth…” His expression darkened. She’d triggered something in him — and she’d never seen him darken that way.

  “Well, uh, I do have to find that recruit…”

  “Yeah, I figured.” He seemed disappointed in a way. Then he reached into his pocket, and handed something to Aellyce.

  She was surprised to receive his PDA of all things. “Huh? How’re you going to pay for all this without—”

  “Oy, barkeep!” He waved, and made a playfully innocent grin. “I forgot my wallet at home.”

  The bartender only smiled and bowed his head, then turned and went back to cleaning the back bar where all of the bottles were held.

  Aellyce furrowed her brow in confusion: “You…?”

  “—Won’t need to pay. Me and this guy go way back, actually. He just doesn't speak much since what happened when he was a soldier. So treat yourself to something nice, Aellyce. That cash is better spent on somebody whose still got some hope left.” He smiled, a new, warm smile, like she’d never seen from him.

  “Th…Thank you!”

  Uggggggghhhhhh… Why did I drink that!?!?

  Aellyce was dizzy, lost, and confused in all the corridors of the station. The people were starting to look like aliens, just by the ways their faces contorted and twisted and warbled… It was like a nightmare.

  And yet, she felt warm, and happy, and relaxed. She felt like she could slump right over into any bench anywhere and conk out, have a great nap. It seemed like plenty of people had taken to the same idea, too, by how many people she saw sleeping on the benches scattered around the gray, brutalist structure that was the station.

  Her eyes tracked those people as she meandered down the long dark halls. There were poor people in space, too — it wasn't the utopia she'd been promised. Billboards all over Earth had once promised a new life, a life greater even than the ones of Upper Earth. Was it all really a lie from the beginning? Or had life in space started to unravel since the Planetfall?

  Aellyce kept walking. If my parents were rich, we could have lived in Upper Earth. More rich than that, and we could have been living all the way up here, away from the war. And then, they wouldn't be...

  Someone suddenly lunged out from ahead of her.

  Aellyce darted — there was a sudden reflex, like a fighter's trained impulse, as she spun around the target, immediately turned her gaze upon them so she could assess the threat.

  ...But it was just a young, ditzy woman, with curled pink hair, and a soft, round face. She turned to Aellyce with her thin brows furrowed and her tiny, weak voice as powerful as she could muster: "Be careful! You're gonna walk into me!"

  Aellyce looked at the girl's hands; she was hugging a wooden basket full of bread rolls. The smell was immediately intoxicating — freshly baked, doughy, buttery... Only then did Aellyce realize how starved she was. "Sorry. I'm a little tipsy, I think." She tried to smile, but realized she already was.

  The girl's face softened. "I can tell. You ought to go find some coffee and get it taken care of. The guards don't care much for public intoxication."

  "Public whozzit...?"

  "Have a good day." And as she turned to leave, she handed a loaf of bread to Aellyce.

  "You too..." Aellyce stood in freshly-breaded confusion, barely having followed the conversation. And by the time the woman had left her sight, joined the vast throngs of people all around her... Her brain snapped back into place. I'm supposed to be looking for a cook! And this bread — she took a bite, and thought tears might run down her face at the taste, and at how it melted in her mouth — she would have been perfect! Gah! You idiot, you dummy!

  Her internal beratement of herself caused her some physical cringing and spasming, which many people stared at in alarm.

  No, we can't just pick any random girl who comes along!

  ...But she would have fit right in.

  There's plenty of other chefs in the sea!

  ...But none with bread as delectable as that.

  You don't know that!

  ...I want to give up and we've barely started.

  Be strong! We'll accomplish this in no time!

  Her face became resolute. She made a firm harumph of determination, and began to storm off toward the food court...

  Aellyce soon cried out, her face flat on a filthy food court table.

  The alcohol had definitely worn off by that point. She'd been asking for hours, every vendor, every chef, every funky-looking person who walked through the aisle. A few had even said yes to her proposition of working aboard White Horse... And then they'd turned out to be crazy in one way or another, and Aellyce fled as quickly as possible.

  "...Maybe using Proton wouldn't be such a bad idea after all..."

  She looked at the notebook she'd purchased and took an inventory. Some of the people she'd interviewed had been extra mean, and at this point, she'd just started adding characters from Celeste's manga books to her list of candidates. They were just as capable as anybody else she'd met. There were chefs aboard the station that were just selling frozen food as fresh — in fact, that was most of them!

  "Is it really this hard to find one competent chef? With how crowded this place is, I'm shocked I haven't found even one single person remotely qualified. Not even one!"

  Someone approached her from behind and asked, "Hey, are you eating? I'm just trying to find a seat, so if you're done..."

  Aellyce was up and walking away before he finished his sentence. She was disheartened, too defeated to even try to converse. Too defeated to hold another interview...

  "—Hey, let go of me!"

  She looked up from her stupor. There was the pink-haired woman again, between the parting crowd. Everybody seemed to be moving away, and for good reason — five station guards in thin black Hyper Armor were surrounding her, and their batons were at the ready.

  Aellyce felt the pulling impulse at her legs to approach, to try to help — but someone else was faster, and vaulted over a mess hall table toward the pink-haired girl: "Longwood!?"

  He was approaching swiftly, his hand in his jacket pocket, planning something stupid, or daring... Or maybe a little bit of both...