The crew assembled on the bridge, anxiety racking most of them. Jerec tapped his foot desperately, his nervous energy filling the room. Leonia, ever the perfectionist, was once again touching up her makeup, trying to remove the smudges from earlier without disturbing her foundation. So-mi, however, stood up straight, hands on her hips, her sharp eyes fixed on the yellow speck that had now revealed itself to be a cloud of gas roughly the size of a moon.

  “And you’re absolutely sure you can’t get any readings on what’s inside?” So-mi asked, her voice firm but laced with frustration.

  Blender answered her question yet again, her tone clipped. “YES.” They’d been going in circles for at least five minutes now, with So-mi and Garrett alternating variations of the same questions. Jerec and Gazrael occasionally chimed in, probing for more information, but it didn’t matter who asked or how they phrased it—Blender’s answers remained unchanged. She gestured to the array of machines around the room. “Nothing is picking up anything besides radiation. It’s like it’s not even really there.”

  So-mi’s lips pursed, and she exhaled sharply, seeing Blender’s frustration. I need to back off, she thought. I don’t want to risk losing the small connection I’ve felt with her. She restrained herself from asking more questions, even though they still burned in her mind.

  Garrett watched the interaction with his arms folded, unsure of what to ask Blender himself. It seemed she couldn’t tell them anything new. He glanced around the bridge, noting that none of the instruments had picked up anything for hours. He lowered his arms and adopted a tone of authority. “We’re not learning anything else from it without going inside.”

  Blitzer let out a sigh of frustration, his voice tinged with exasperation. “Can we, for once today, not make a choice that involves gambling with our lives?”

  Garrett turned to face him, his expression hardening. “We aren’t gambling our lives. We have two probe droids. We’ll just launch and use them.” He paused, then continued, trying to sound reassuring. “If we tell the New Republic that all we found is an uncharted nebula, they’ll just order us to investigate inside anyway.”

  So-mi nodded in agreement. “We’ll send Murrietta a transmission now, another when the probe is launched, and again once it’s pierced the cloud layer. Three separate transmissions before we provoke whatever may be inside. At least then, we might get some help dispatched to save us. It’s more insurance than 6 had.”

  Garrett shot her a small, venomous glance. She needs to remember her place, he thought bitterly. This is MY ship, and I’M the captain. She seemed to miss the gesture, which was probably for the better, but his anger remained unabated. The problem was that her order made sense—especially transmitting before launching the probe to ensure their communications still worked and that they wouldn’t share 6’s fate. He couldn’t argue against her here and now. I’ll let it slide for now, he decided. But I’ll wait for her to overstep again. I need to reassert my authority on this ship, one way or another.

  “Okay, but who actually knows how to get those droids up and running?” Gazrael asked. He had been on the bridge the longest after Blender and did a good job trying to hide his unease, but his eyes betrayed the subtlest hint of doubt.

  “What an excellent question, darling,” Leonia quipped, snapping her mirror closed. She had given up on trying to redo her eyes and was now using Gazrael’s sleeve as a rag to wipe her entire face clean and start from scratch. Her pale, soft skin looked almost identical without foundation as it did with it. “I don’t remember anyone here ever mentioning that they were particularly versed in taking care of droids.”

  Garrett replied, trying to sound confident but failing to mask his uncertainty. “You just hit the on switch. What are you talking about?” The thought that one of them had been tinkering with the droids shot through his mind, and he couldn’t shake the unease it brought.

  Leonia struggled to clean her face as she replied, her tone dripping with condescension. “They’re old droids, aren’t they? We’ve never used them before, and you don’t exactly shell out for brand-new, top-of-the-line equipment. How do we know they don’t need maintenance?”

  “Well, go and see if they need maintenance, and then we’ll know if they need maintenance. Make yourself useful,” Garrett snapped at her.

  Leonia rolled her eyes and huffed, but she shot to her feet, snapping her mirror open again as she walked. She examined her reflection, trying to clean up even as she made her way out.

  Gazrael stood to follow her, but Garrett interrupted him. “You’re going to keep working on the ship’s guns and leave her to do that alone.”

  Gazrael shot him a skeptical glance. “Why?”

  “Because you’re here to work, not flirt,” Garrett replied shortly.

  Leonia’s eyes narrowed into slits again. She continued walking, but her pace slowed slightly, as if daring Gazrael to defy Garrett’s orders.

  Gazrael muttered to himself, watching as she left the bridge alone. Something feels off, he thought. He noticed the change in her eyes through the small pane of her mirror and how she seemed to walk just a bit slower. He felt the urge to defy his orders and stay with her—not just the urge, but a compulsion, as if something bad would happen if she left the bridge alone. But he followed his orders, turning left to the port-side firing deck. The door hissed open, and he stepped inside, his unease lingering.

  Garrett now turned to those remaining on the bridge. “Alright, we’ll announce it on the PA as we learn more. Everyone, get back to work on the double.”

  He turned to leave, Jerec following him closely. They both vanished behind the door to the recreation room as it hissed closed. They wouldn’t be far behind Leonia.

  So-mi waited a moment, taking a quick moment to let her eyes explore and admire Blender as she sat in her piloting seat, focused on her work, the light catching ever so subtly off he rblonde hair. A soft smile crossed So-mi’s lips. She’s incredible, she thought. Strong, capable, and so focused. Finally, she turned and left the bridge, her thoughts still lingering on Blender.

  ************

  Leonia sang to herself gently as she poked around the droid before her, almost subconsciously and unaware the tune was leaving her lips. “I saw in you what life was missing, You lit a flame that consumed my hate.”

  The droid looked… fine? The problem was, for a droid like this—old and outdated—she wasn’t actually sure what counted as “fine.” There wasn’t any sign of rust or damaged wiring, but that didn’t mean it would run. She could just flip the switch and see if it turned on, but even if it did, it could die the second it was exposed to the vacuum of space. Her lips still carried on her song, not her song, but the one her mother had passed down to her. “I’m not one for hollow words, but I’d hold you deep in my sweet embrace.”

  A clang behind her brought her singing to an abrupt stop. She had promised her mother she’d only share the song with special people, and there was only one of those on board.

  She glanced around to see who had made the noise, and her mood plummeted as she saw Garrett entering the cargo bay where the two droids were stored. Of course it’s him. She wasn’t surprised—she knew he’d come—but she was disappointed. The second he’d ordered Gazrael to break from her, she knew he’d find an excuse to approach her.

  The way he was looking at her as he approached was the same look a starving hound gives an undefended scrap of meat. She’d foolishly catered to him very early on, seeking a little validation, and now he seemed to have the expectation that she was the easy one, his performing monkey. He’s certainly not worthy of my mother’s song.

  She continued poking around the droid and pretending not to have noticed him yet, but she knew his attention was on her body, not her work. It’s always the thighs that do it for him, she noticed. Always my thighs.

  Now was the time for their routine, every 2 or 3 days this same argument plays out. Will today's end in angry screams or him sulking away? “Anything I can help you with, Captain?”

  He tried shooting her the same shark smile he always used. It never seemed to occur to him that the smile looked more off-putting than comforting. “Just making sure your hands are hard at work, dear.”

  She knew better than to respond; it would only encourage him. He’d already used that line before, thinking it was a clever way to implant the idea of giving him a handjob in her head. Instead of verbally responding, she leaned forward a little, allowing her butt to stick out further and her thighs to show a little more tone. The baggy clothes she wore undermined her efforts, but it didn’t seem to lessen Garrett’s ogling. The motion derailed his pre-planned dialogue tree for how he was going to try to win her with words.

  Exactly as expected, he seemed to have forgotten what his second line was, scrambling to come up with a new one. “Oh, so your hands do actually get dirty sometimes. And here I thought your eyes were your best quality.”

  She hid the scowl she felt forming on her features. All the effort she put into her makeup and he just comments on her hands twice. Tasteless. She kept her fake flirty voice as she replied. “Oh, Captain, I always tell you that my eyes aren’t special. Violet eyes are a perfectly standard phenotype for humans of an Eriaduan genome. My best quality is obviously my personality.”

  She could see the squirming in his eyes as he tried to think of how to address her personality in an inoffensive way. It never failed to entertain her making him squirm. “You’re right, doll face. You keep things exciting. The ship wouldn’t be the same without you.”

  “Oh, thank you, Captain. A girl just wants to have a little fun, you know.” She batted her eyes and did a cutesy little hair flip. “And you let me have so much fun, Captain.”

  “Ah, well, I can’t have you feeling bored on our journeys, now can I, dear?” He reached out, trying to put his hand on her shoulder. That was the red line. She’d entertain him to sate him, but she wasn’t going to let him actually touch her. He couldn’t have her, and she wouldn’t let him think he could. Her mind was already consumed though, her face blank, her hand drifting.

  She felt her hands glide over the hilt of a screwdriver on the workbench before her as his hand landed on her shoulder and gave her a reassuring squeeze. Her fingers gripped the screwdriver tightly, and she turned in a fluid motion, driving it into the artery of his neck. As she pulled it out, his blood sprayed everywhere, covering her and splattering all over the walls and floor. Now she drove it into his abdomen, stabbing over and over again, watching as he fell before her and the light left his pathetic, useless eyes. I’m so beautiful with how his blood contrasts my pale skin.

  She shook the fantasy out of her head as quickly as it had intruded, her face going straight into a visceral anger, her fell still and stepped back as he reached out, her flirty voice now gone, replaced by a cold, zealous conviction. “Don’t touch me. I’m taken.” As she spoke, she shot up straight, letting the bagginess of her clothes deny him the sight of her curves. She was no longer entertaining him.

  Garrett’s face contorted as the fluster hit him. “Oh, you started dating some deadbeat for five minutes, and now you’re too good for me?”

  He had the nerve to slander her love here before her. Her hands instinctively reached for the screwdriver, but she got a hold of herself before she could lift the improvised weapon. She practically spat the words “I’ve always been too good for you, you pathetic worm.”

  “Oh, but the broke boy who barely wants you is good enough for you?” he countered.

  “I’LL BREAK YOUR FUCKING JAW, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!” she screamed, her entire mind subsumed by the jab at her love.

  He should have expected the outburst from her—it wasn’t like screaming violent threats was anything new for her—but he was still taken aback by how quickly she’d gone from tolerating his flirting to threatening him. Instead of replying, he looked her up and down as if expecting to find she was some sort of imposter.

  She forced her thoughts away from Gazrael, trying to relax herself to continue with a calm and even voice. “And you’re not broke? How many debts has Daddy paid you out of now, Garrett? How’s Daddy gonna feel when he finds out this whole business he funded for you is just your newest scheme to make women sick?”

  He lifted his hand as if to strike her. Like with the others, he towered over her small form, but she stood defiant, unflinching, unintimidated, her eyes begging him to land the first strike, yearning for him to give her an excuse to ram the screwdriver into his throat in self defense. To her dismay, he lowered his hand. “You’re not worth it. If you were ever worth anything at all, it died when the Empire did.”

  She shot back her counter, her voice dripping with venom. “And this same time tomorrow, you’ll be calling me ‘babydoll’ and telling me sweet nothings again. Dismissed.”

  His nostrils flared. “Oh, don’t worry. I wouldn’t waste more time on a broken whore like you.”

  He left, feeling victorious. As the door hissed shut behind him, she exhaled. “That’s what I’m counting on,” she muttered.

  She already knew he’d be back. It hadn’t been the first time he’d tried to touch her, and it wouldn’t be the last.

  But there was something else, something darker beneath his advances. She’d caught the way his eyes lingered on her, not just with lust, but with a calculating gleam.

  She deftly returned to her work, the more she thought about the encounter, the angrier it made her. Her hands were shaking from anger, and she saw it vividly before she could stop it.

  She followed him, tapping his shoulder. He turned, expecting a fight, but instead, she leaned in for a kiss, utterly disarming his defenses as he believed he’d gotten exactly what he wanted. But her lips stopped a paper’s width from his as she drove the concealed knife into his throat. The urge to drink the fluid overcame her, filling her mouth with his crimson blood.

  Her hands still shook with rage even as she snapped the intrusive fantasy from her head, too shaky to work on the small and fragile interior of the droid. Those fantasies used to calm her down themselves, she'd just vent everything into them and the anger would dissipate with them, that stopped working at the imperial academy, now the fantasies just seemed to taunt her for not acting on them.

  Mother’s song was always there, though, and mother’s song always calmed her. Glancing around to make sure no one could hear her, she began singing again. “I saw in you what life was missing, You lit a flame that consumed my hate.”

  She had gone through the first verse, the first chorus, and started the second verse when another clang rang out, abruptly stopping her singing. She turned to see who it was this time. Please, not Garrett again. But it was So-mi, also unworthy of her mother’s song, but no doubt a much-desired upgrade from Garrett.

  “Garrett sent me. How’s the droid—” So-mi scowled as she saw circuitry scattered across the workbench. “You were just supposed to turn it on and see how it runs. How do you fuck up a task that easy?”

  Leonia shrugged without looking at So-mi. “I thought really hard about it, and then remembered I didn’t want to do that. So I didn’t.”

  “Are you fucking breaking it?”

  Leonia smirked at the accusation but shook her head no, speaking with a condescending tone. “I, personally, thought it made sense to look through its guts before we launched it. So, I personally decided to do that. It’s easier than having it crash in the middle of space and having to figure out a way to bring it back on board.”

  So-mi cocked her head and approached the workbench, examining the contents of the droid spread out over it. “I suppose I’m just not used to you actually being helpful. That was good thinking on your part.”

  Leonia felt a little warmth at the small hint of validation but kept a straight face, continuing her work.

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  “Do you actually know what you’re doing?” So-mi asked.

  “I just told you what I’m doing,” Leonia replied dismissively.

  “No, like, do you actually know how to fix a droid like that? What kind of damage are you looking for? How would you fix it if you find damage?”

  “No, I don’t know, and no idea,” Leonia answered, the questions beginning to wear at her patience. “Not really important.”

  “That’s very important, Leonia. The whole plan revolves—”

  Leonia cut her off impatiently. “Nobody knows how to do it. I’m just as good as anyone else. So it doesn’t matter.”

  She felt her anger starting to build up. I’m sure I’ll get a fantasy soon if So-mi keeps pushing it. Luckily for them both, So-mi didn’t have any more questions. She seemed to do the math herself. Even if she didn’t like Leonia, Leonia had made a good call wanting to examine the droid before launching it, and Leonia was as qualified as anyone else here to look it over—if you trusted her not to sabotage it, anyway.

  Leonia finished her inspection of the droid’s innards and began putting them all back in their right spots. She wanted So-mi to leave, but instead, So-mi seemed to watch her, still not trusting her. Leonia’s anger slowly built as the other woman wouldn’t leave.

  “Did you need something else?” she asked So-mi coldly.

  So-mi looked away, thinking of how to broach the new subject she had in mind, but being blunt and forward was likely her best shot. “What did Garrett do?”

  Leonia was taken aback briefly. So-mi asked as if she actually cared. How touching. “He didn’t do anything. He’s too much of a coward to try.”

  “That’s good.” So-mi’s tone and expression didn’t seem to show any sign of actual relief. Perhaps I gave her too much credit. She mused. Only one person on this ship actually cares about me.

  **************

  Gazrael fired one last volley of lasers from the heavy cannons and pulled his hands from the controls. Why am I even still here? he thought, frustration simmering beneath the surface. They’d confirmed the cannons worked hours ago, and this wasn’t actual target practice. Fuck Garrett and his orders. I’m done with this shit.

  He flipped the switch to open the door, hearing it hiss open as he stepped out. He glanced around quickly—Blitzer was in the pilot seat, turned in his chair to watch Gazrael’s movements as he left. Blender wasn’t on the bridge; she must be somewhere else. Gazrael turned to his left and opened the door to the recreation room, stepping through and out of Blitzer’s sight.

  He crossed the room and was about to open the next door when he stopped, pausing as he heard two voices arguing. What’s going on now? He did what Leonia would want him to do and cupped his ear to the door to listen, see if he could find any juicy details that she could take advantage of.

  Blender’s voice came through first, sharp and exasperated. “We’ve already talked about this before, Captain. You can’t be ordering me to leave the bridge every time you want to have a personal chat.”

  Garrett’s voice answered, calm but with an edge. “It’s not personal, Blender. It’s business.”

  “It’s always personal,” Blender shot back. “You’re going to ask how my day is, if I’m taking care of myself, if my hands are hard at work. It’s not business—it’s you trying to check that I’m being ‘good,’ and I’m tired of it. We’re not dating.”

  Garrett’s tone shifted, annoyance creeping in. “Blender, my girl, you’re special—”

  “I’m not special,” Blender interrupted, her voice rising. “You do this to all of us. You just had Leonia and Gazrael separated earlier so you could lay some moves on her.”

  Gazrael’s hand dropped from the door. Of course. How didn’t I see it earlier? The way Leonia had slowed when Garrett ordered him to the firing deck, the pointless orders designed to keep them apart—it all clicked into place. He's trying to steal my starlight. His fist clenched as he pushed the button and the door hissed open, startling Garrett and Blender.

  Garrett recovered quickly, his voice sharp. “Why aren’t you in the fi—”

  Gazrael’s fist connected with a sickening crunch, cutting him off. He didn’t give Garrett a chance to recover, shoving him into the wall with enough force to send a crashing sound through the vent. The sound echoed through the ship.

  Before Garrett could retaliate, Blender sprang into action, shoving Gazrael back. She and Blitzer were second in height only to Jerec, and her push sent Gazrael stumbling, knocking him onto his back with a groan. Harder than I meant to, Blender thought, but at least it stopped the fight, she hoped.

  “STAY OUT OF THIS, SARA!” Gazrael roared as he started to get up.

  “Don’t call me Sara,” Blender snapped back. She was about to demand they break it up, but Garrett pushed past her, kicking Gazrael while he was still on his knees. The fight reignited despite her efforts. Fucking testosterone fueled assholes.

  “I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS, YOU FUCKING DEADBEAT!” Garrett screamed, landing another kick. He braced for another, but Blender tackled him this time, sending him careening into the wall.

  “BREAK IT UP, YOU TWO!” she yelled, though she felt more like a wildcard in their grudge match than a peacekeeper.

  Her words fell on deaf ears as Gazrael recovered and grabbed Garrett by the hair, slamming his head into the wall. He pulled back to repeat the motion, but Blender yanked him away, forcing him to drop Garrett. She managed to restrain Gazrael long enough for Garrett to get to his feet, but the commotion had already drawn attention.

  Leonia’s shrill, panicked scream filled the hallway. “MY LOVE!”

  Before Blender could tell her to stay back, Leonia cartwheeled into view, using the momentum to deliver an upward kick to Garrett’s chest. Her face was cold, her eyes filled with hate. She didn’t even register who she was kicking—only that they’d dared lay hands on her love. She braced for another attack, but So-mi rushed in, scooping her up before she could strike.

  Leonia’s face twisted from cold fury to rage as she thrashed in So-mi’s arms. “EEEEEEUUUUUUUGHHHHAAARRR!!! LEMME GO, YOU BITCH!”

  Blender and So-mi’s eyes met for a brief, delicate moment, exchanging sympathetic glances. This is a mess, Blender thought, and now we’re the adults in the room.

  The distraction was all Gazrael needed. He broke free from Blender’s grip and surged forward, landing another punch on Garrett’s jaw. Leonia cheered him on, still struggling against So-mi’s hold. Jerec arrived next, tackling Gazrael with his massive frame. Unlike Blender, Jerec was big enough that Gazrael wouldn’t be breaking free anytime soon.

  Garrett stood, brushing himself off. He tried to speak, but Leonia’s impassioned wails drowned him out. “NOOOOO! FUCKING KILL HIM!”

  Garrett reached out, covering Leonia’s mouth with his hand, and turned to Jerec. “Lock him in the hangar bay.”

  Jerec nodded and started pushing Gazrael away, but a sudden stabbing pain made Garrett scream. Leonia had bitten his hand, her teeth sinking deep enough to draw blood. She smiled like a vengeful spirit, the blood dripping from her mouth as if she was intentionally displaying it, her eyes alight with pride. That’s what you get for touching me, she thought, smirking at his stupidity.

  Garrett pulled his hand away, wincing, and gestured to So-mi. “Lock that cunt in her room. I don’t want to see her again.”

  So-mi met his gaze, her mind flashing to the conversation she’d just had with Leonia. What did Garrett do? If she followed this order and he approached Leonia again, she’d be complicit in his predation. If she allowed that, she’d be normalizing his behavior—not just toward Leonia, but toward herself and Blender too. He’d already approached her earlier in the engine room, timing it perfectly when Jerec had left.

  It took her only a second to organize her thoughts, but the tension in that second felt like it could snap the fabric of space. Her face hardened, and she spoke simply and evenly. “No.”

  She set Leonia down. As soon as Leonia’s feet hit the ground, she lunged at Jerec, trying to break his hold on Gazrael. Her kicks and punches didn’t faze him, but her determination was unwavering.

  “Excuse me?” Garrett snapped at So-mi. “That was an order.”

  “And I said no,” So-mi replied, her voice steady. “Have someone else do it. I’m just a mechanic.” I wish I had Leonia’s bravery right now, she thought, watching the short slender woman square up against someone who could snap her in half. The weight of her actions pressed down on her, but she held her ground.

  Garrett turned to Blender, but before he could speak, she raised her hands. “Sorry, Captain. I’m a pilot, not security. Not in my paygrade.” Please tell me you have a plan, So-mi, Blender thought, hoping she wasn’t risking her job for nothing.

  Garrett sputtered in disbelief. “What is this? A mutiny?”

  So-mi wanted to say yes, but she bit her tongue. “Mutiny? No. But I won’t be taking orders from you anymore.”

  Garrett growled. “That’s what a mutiny is, you dumb bitch.”

  So-mi pushed through the anxiety clouding her mind. This is it. No turning back. She took a deep breath and spoke. “Then it’s a mutiny.”

  Jerec paused, looking between them. “Am I still locking Gazrael in the cargo bay?”

  “Yes.”

  “No.”

  So-mi and Garrett answered at the same time.

  “I uh… I’ll just let him… go?” Jerec released Gazrael, glancing at the others in the hallway, trying to gauge the mood. Leonia’s thrashing ceased as she immediately ran to Gazrael, examining every bruise and cut on his body with an angry huff.

  So-mi exhaled, the anxiety choking her. This is it. I’m responsible now. The implications of mutiny loomed large—the New Republic, the nebula, the potential battle ahead. But she couldn’t let Garrett’s predation continue. She owed it to Blender, to Leonia, and to herself.

  For a brief moment, she looked at Blender, taking in her piercing green eyes, her long blonde hair, the strength in her arms. Even now, she’s defending me, So-mi thought, her anxiety easing slightly. I can do this.

  “Blender, back to the bridge,” So-mi ordered, her voice firm. “Leonia and I will launch the first probe droids. Gazrael and Jerec will lock Garrett in the storage room on the top deck and then take charge of the guns.” She didn’t issue orders to Garrett; she knew he wouldn’t take them.

  Blender saluted her, a small smirk playing on her lips. “Aye aye… ma’am.”

  Leonia let out an irritated snort as she was separated from Gazrael again, but there was a tinge of relief in her expression. At least she wouldn’t be alone.

  Jerec dutifully grabbed Garrett. “Let me go, you traitorous wretch,” Garrett spat, but he didn’t resist physically. Probably doesn’t like his odds against Jerec, Gazrael, and the three of us, So-mi thought.

  Gazrael scowled as he was ordered back to the firing deck, but he followed without protest. As he left, Leonia reached out to him dramatically, and he mirrored her gesture, their fingertips brushing as if they were being torn apart by some malevolent force. So-mi rolled her eyes at the theatrics, but at least they were following orders—even if they lacked urgency.

  **********

  So-mi hit the buttons for the PA controls. “Hangar Bay to Bridge, we’re ready to fire Probe 1.”

  Behind her, Leonia had the second droid’s circuitry spread out over the workbench, performing the same examination she had done on the first. It was clear she had lost interest in the work, frequently getting distracted by her own nails. So-mi had to snap at her repeatedly to stop fiddling with her nails and focus on the task at hand.

  “Copy that, Hangar Bay,” Blitzer’s voice echoed back.

  “Leonia, bridge, now,” So-mi barked out the order. Without hesitation, Leonia’s tools clattered on the table, and she began making her way to the bridge with an eager bounce in her step. Closer to her love, So-mi thought with a mix of irritation and resignation.

  So-mi made sure the first droid was secured airtight and safely in the launch tube before following Leonia to the bridge. As she walked, her anxiety spiked. A lump formed in her throat, her blood felt like it was in open rebellion against her veins, and her stomach knotted so tightly it couldn’t be untied. Sweat began to pool on her skin despite the ship being a bit too cold for her liking. This is the moment of truth, she thought. Whatever that probe finds likely won’t just solve the mystery of the Silver Sparrow’s wreck—it could doom us to share its fate. Duty compelled her to move forward as quickly as she could, but her survival instincts screamed at her to order the pilots to turn around and plot a hyperspace jump back to the safety of her homeworld, Pantora.

  The door hissed behind her as she and Leonia stepped onto the bridge. Everyone else was already waiting. No one had decided to oppose So-mi’s mutiny—Blitzer was the closest, not because he was against the idea, but because he knew the timing for a change in leadership was poor. That didn’t stop him from questioning her leadership, though. He now asked the question for what felt like the hundredth time. “Are we sure we want to probe the big scary nebula? Are we really sure?”

  So-mi rolled her eyes, now answering for what felt like the hundredth time. “Garrett may not run a ship well, but he knows New Republic protocol. We don’t want to make ourselves enemies of the controlling interest in the galaxy.”

  Blitzer’s voice took on a mocking tone as he poorly imitated So-mi’s voice. “Don’t worry about the big death cloud. The New Republic is certainly scarier than the big death cloud. It’s perfectly safe inside the big death cloud. Ignore the ship we saw destroyed just this morning—it’s perfectly safe near the big death cloud.”

  So-mi’s voice became stern. “Are you done yet?”

  Blender watched them out of the corner of her eye. She certainly hadn’t wanted Blitzer trying to flirt with So-mi, but the way he had become antagonistic the second she was in charge was even worse for her nerves. I wish they’d stop arguing, she thought, but she remained silent, not wanting to broach the subject of why she wanted them to get along.

  Blitzer scowled as So-mi asked the question, but he spat out a venomous, “Yes, I’m done,” before returning to his work. “Firing probe in T-minus five seconds.”

  Blender rolled her eyes at the countdown and flipped the switch from her own piloting seat. “Oh, oops. My fingers slipped.” She told the lie bluntly and emotionlessly, not bothering to sell it.

  “WHY WOULD YOU? FUCK, SARA, WHAT THE FUCK?” Blitzer shouted, his voice rising in frustration.

  Blender didn’t turn to acknowledge him. “There wasn’t any sense in prolonging our wait. And don’t call me Sara.” She flipped her eyes to the monitors before her. “What the… it’s gone.”

  Blitzer looked ready to keep yelling at her, but his eyes wandered down to his own monitors. They widened as he confirmed what Blender had just said. “It is gone… The second it passed through the cloud, it stopped transmitting back to us.”

  So-mi felt her eye twitch. Maybe I should go upstairs where we locked Garrett up and let him out so accountability falls on him again, she thought bitterly. “Did we get anything useful from it at all?”

  Blitzer checked his monitor again. “No, not a thing.”

  “Marvelous,” So-mi exclaimed sarcastically. “We’ll give it an hour to come back to us if it’s still operating. If we still don’t have any updates by then, we’ll launch the second one.”

  “Is the second one ready?” Blitzer asked.

  “We need to shut its hull and lock it into a launch tube, but it should only take a few minutes.” She looked over at Leonia, who was massaging Gazrael’s arms. “Let’s get to it, then.”

  Now Jerec’s voice interrupted. “Why’d it cut out?”

  Blender looked at him softly. “We really don’t have any way of knowing. It could’ve just crashed because of its age, or whatever’s in that cloud that’s stopping us from getting readings could also be interfering with the droid’s comms.”

  “Oh, so not only is it a giant death cloud, it’s a giant death cloud that will stop us from calling for help,” Blitzer remarked.

  “Stop calling it a giant death cloud,” So-mi shot back.

  “Yeah, call it a giant cuddly cloud,” Leonia’s voice cut in, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

  So-mi turned to Leonia and Gazrael. “I said get the second probe ready for launch.”

  Leonia shot straight up to follow the orders with an unusual amount of enthusiasm. She must be excited to be with Gazrael somewhere with a bit of privacy, So-mi thought. Gazrael, on the other hand, had much less enthusiasm, yawning and getting up slowly. As the door hissed shut behind them, Blitzer spoke up. “You really expect the problematic lovebirds to get anything done without supervision?”

  So-mi dismissively waved her hand. “Gazrael may be a dick, but he does what he’s told. Besides, they just need to screw its hull shut and load it into a tube. A few minutes of work tops, and they have an hour.”

  She now turned to Jerec. “Go take Garrett some water and a ration bar. Don’t let him out of the storage room.”

  Jerec began making his leave, and now So-mi was alone on the bridge with the two pilots. Each of the three seats now had its respective occupant. I might as well get used to the feeling of the bridge now rather than later, she thought, sitting down and glancing around. She tried to take everything in fully for the first time—what sensor or sweeper each monitor seemed to be for, the subtle hums and beeps each one emitted, the way Blitzer and Blender sat in their seats skimming the data. It was very different from what she was used to in the engineering bay. The engineering bay is dirtier, louder, and requires more hands-on work, but I already know I prefer it back there. As soon as this mission was over, she’d need to step down and see if an actual captain would take the mantle.

  She leaned back into her seat and shifted her gaze to Blender’s tall, muscular form. At least the view on the bridge is prettier than the one in the engineering bay, she thought. That’s when she noticed it—a familiar little royal purple book, one that wasn’t supposed to be here.

  “Where did you get that?” So-mi’s voice was filled with anger as she pointed to her diary.

  Blender looked at her, surprise written on her face by the sudden anger in So-mi’s voice. As she redirected her gaze to where So-mi pointed, her face widened with shame and guilt. I should’ve brought this to her attention myself, she thought. Now I look culpable. “It’s not what it looks like.”

  “WHERE DID YOU GET IT?” So-mi repeated, her anger still boiling over.

  “Leonia had it, and I couldn’t let her kee—” Blender wouldn’t get to finish the explanation. So-mi was more interested in being angry than actually trying to hear her out calmly.

  “YOU GOT IT FROM LEONIA!”

  Blitzer watched from the sidelines, slowly lowering himself in his seat to conceal himself from view and holding his breath in case So-mi’s anger was redirected his way. This is between them, he thought, leaving Blender to face this alone.

  “She was trying to taunt me. Please, just lis—” Blender tried to explain.

  “OH, I’M LISTENING ALRIGHT!” So-mi certainly did not seem like she was listening. “WHAT ELSE HAVE YOU AND YOUR BEST FRIEND LEONIA BEEN WORKING ON?”

  Blender breathed in deeply. She didn’t want to match So-mi’s anger, but it seemed there was only one way to get through without interruption. “I’M NOT WORKING WITH LEONIA. LISTEN TO ME!”

  “I AM LISTENING!”

  Blender restrained the urge to tell her to shut up. Just because she was yelling didn’t mean she needed to be mean. “NO, YOU’RE NOT. I CONFISCATED IT!”

  So-mi’s volume dropped a little, but her tone wasn’t any softer. “Confiscated it?”

  Blender breathed in before speaking. She saw Blitzer cowering behind his seat out of the corner of her eye. Leonia said she’d break his heart, Blender thought. Now it seems it’s time for that. “I left the bridge for a walk. Leonia and Gazrael were waiting for me in the recreation room. They already had the diary. I confiscated it to stop them from snooping through your privacy further… I had intended to give it back, but with everything going on, it slipped my mind.”

  So-mi’s eyes bored into her, looking for any sign of dishonesty. She seemed to calm down bit by bit as she considered the story. “Give it back, please.”

  Blender reached for the diary and stepped forward toward So-mi, offering it up like a peace offering.

  “How much of it did you read?” So-mi asked, her voice still tinged with anger.

  “Nothing. I haven’t opened it,” Blender said, relieved that this was the truth. If I had actually looked through it and So-mi found out, she’d go straight back to screaming at me. “But Leonia read a passage out loud to me before I confiscated it. Something about stars being possibilities and you wanting to open each one… and being immortalized with someone as a star for all time.” Why am I mentioning this now? She was just yelling.

  So-mi’s anger immediately turned into a wave of blush, and she let out one of her awkward, out-of-place laughs. “Oh, yeah, that. Heheh. What did you think about that?”

  Blender’s eyes flashed to Blitzer. He wasn’t cowering anymore. Despite how he’d been talking back to So-mi earlier, he was still crushing on her, and now he was eager to know who So-mi wanted to be immortalized with. Perhaps he hopes it’s him, Blender thought. He hadn’t actually talked to So-mi much today—or in general, besides to argue with her—but Blender knew that face he was making. He may not really know So-mi, but he feels like he’s pretty close to her.

  She could answer vaguely, preserving Blitzer’s hopes a bit longer, but what was the point? He’d have to find out sooner or later. So Blender didn’t mince her words, neither for So-mi nor Blitzer. “I’d be honored to become a star with you, So-mi. But perhaps we should talk about it over dinner first.”

  So-mi’s face froze, as if her brain had suddenly rebooted. Blitzer’s face entered a state of bewilderment. “What do you mean, ‘become a star with her’? What does that even mean?”

  Blender reached out to take So-mi’s hand, but just before she made contact, So-mi pulled away, her face twisted with vitriolic anger. “LEONIA!”

  For the second time that day, Blender had the opportunity for a tender moment with So-mi, only for So-mi to abruptly leave.