Shore Leave

Circe parked at docking bay A32-4, the thirty second tower on the A Block, Level Four. Two downtrodden mechanics stood outside Nightwing’s hangar bay when we arrived. They carried several bulky knapsacks.

“Jeffries? Caspian?” I asked. “What are you two doing here?”

The pair handed us sloppy salutes.

“William Jeffries and Caspian No Name, reporting for duty aboard Nightwing,” the old man looked like he had tears in his eyes as he said it. So this was Ulysses’s punishment.

“You two the engineers who work on Circe?” Diane said. “Who’s replacing you?”

“The capitan will find someone,” Caspian sighed.

“Did his majesty give you two shore leaves?”

“No,” Caspian moped. “He said we are to do whatever Nightwing asks of us.”

“Is that so?” Diane asked. “Well, since it’s your first day, I suppose I shouldn’t be too harsh on the two of you.”

Jeffries and Caspian exchanged hopeful glances.

“We need a full restock of missiles, small arms, and venting coolant,” Diane said. “The railgun and the Lemmings-Hyder drive both need inspections, not to mention we need to watch the grease buildup on the exhaust pipes below the impulse drives. Complete at least half of those tasks, inform Vladimir here, who will be taking you two under his wing, and you’ll have the rest of our time aboard Archon Waystation to yourselves.”

“But any of these tasks might use up all of our time!” Jeffries complained.

“Well it’s a good thing there are two of you, don’t you think?” Diane smiled. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to my favorite establishment on the station. Crew quarters are on level three. Welcome to Nightwing gentlemen.”

We left the two engineers at the entrance to the corvette, looking even more depressed than when we had first met.

“You could’ve given them some time off,” I suggested. “What have I done since coming onboard?”

“Do you want to join them? I need a janitor to mop the floors.”

“No thanks.”

“Engineers deserve more shore leave than any of us,” Diane explained. “Unfortunately, Ulysses intends to set out. Soon. Nightwing will need to be ready. Think of it another way. If they do their jobs, then they’ll survive to enjoy their next shore leave. Doesn’t that sound fair?”

We left the hangar and traversed another series of elevators and catwalks and airlocks until we finally stepped outside Circe and onto the waystation’s docking platform. It almost felt like the halls of Circe were a maze meant to keep us locked in.

Metallic towers loomed above us. An artificial breeze generated by the station’s wind turbines and localized atmosphere drifted by us. Space taxis soared in the dense traffic across and around the towers.

We followed others off the docks, through a security checkpoint, and reached the ground level, where the atmosphere felt almost no different from a Caerleon metropolis. The streets were packed with people, shops sprawled out on the sidewalks, street carts, performers, and inaudible music.

“This is where we part ways,” Diane said. “Elaine, here.”

Diane placed a thin wristband and a pair of metal pods in my hand.

“The wristband can beam holographic messages from any of us,” she said. “Also tracks your location. The pods are for communication. You only need one. The other one is a spare.”

“When are we expected back?” Stephen asked.

“When I say so,” Diane said. “Have fun, but I can tell Ulysses is up to something. Try to stay sharp, and watch your comms.”

Nightwing’s crew dispersed. Stephen wrapped his arm around Vladimir’s neck, and I overheard something about a cocktail lounge. Diane walked over to a street vendor, paid for some meat skewers, and blended into the crowd. I didn’t even see Emiko disappear.

Then I was alone.

The obvious course of action here was to escape. It was inconceivable to me that they had left me alone. I could just toss the wristband and pods into the nearest garbage bin and scour the nearby parking towers for a light fighter or, if I was lucky, a comfortable corvette capable of subspace flight. I had never hijacked a ship before, but I knew the theory behind it. How hard could it be? And if all else failed, stowing myself away on some cargo ship leaving the waystation was an option.

I walked down the block, scoping out the other parking towers for suitable candidates. Fashion stores surrounded me. Authentic Caerleon silk blended with fake knock offs and AI fabricated facsimiles. Nobody else seemed to be able to tell the difference. Or maybe they didn’t care. They probably didn’t care.

The intersection ahead of me expanded into a roundabout circling a stone fountain. At the end of the street was a shopping mall. Glittering dresses and gowns shone through bullet proof glass windows, and there, gawking with fingers pressed against the glass, was Kindred Lancer’s captain, Friede.

I considered just walking by and ignoring her. She was too busy eyeing an aquamarine dress. She would not have seen me if I walked by her. I spotted a possible escape craft, a pretty looking frigate at the other side of the parking tower. I started thinking about possible routes, where I would go…

…Where would I go? Back to Caerleon? Not with a price on my head. What about a fringe world near the Imperial Rim? Too dangerous. Rebels raided those worlds for sport. I realized my escape plans were half baked, and that perhaps Nightwing was comfortable leaving me alone because in fact I had nowhere else to go.

I looked again at Friede, who looked at the dress with wonder. For someone wearing sleeveless tank tops and intricate tattoos, this was most unexpected. I remembered what Diane had told me about playing nice. I approached her.

“That’s a fake you know,” I announced.

Friede swiveled so fast I dropped into a combat stance. Her eyes widened. A blush burned across her tanned cheeks.

“I was just looking,” she stammered.

“You were doing more than that,” I sighed. “So it’s not just our weapons, you like Caerleon fashion too? I guess I can’t fault you for having good taste.”

“I was just looking!” she repeated.

I grabbed her wrists. What the fuck am I even doing, I wondered.

“Sure you were. Come on,” I said. “I saw a real one back there.”

“Hey, hands off imperial dog!”

I let go.

“Fine,” I said. “If you don’t want it, you don’t want it. Besides, someone probably bought it already.”

She stood still.

“You can go now.” I said.

“Take me there,” she grumbled. “I just want to look.”

Friede sulked behind me. I retraced my steps back to a hole in the wall squeezed between two larger warehouses. An old lady stood at the counter. Inside was a single metal rack that extended into the back of the shop. Dresses, t-shirts, jeans, corduroys, suits all hung from the rack. I fetched the dress that Friede had been looking at.

“Here,” I handed the dress over. She frowned.

“This looks the same as the other one,” she said.

“It doesn’t, and even if it did, the knock offs for this brand are famously uncomfortable. They chafe the skin.”

Friede looked unconvinced, as if I was offering her poison.

“Look,” I groaned. “Do you want to trust your pirate eyes, or my indisputably superior royal eye for high fashion? Go try it on. Ma’am, is there a dressing room?”

I waited outside the fitting rooms and contemplated my life choices as Friede changed. I could have been hotwiring a frigate and setting a destination for anywhere-but-here by now, but I had chosen instead to help this emotionally confused pirate pick out a dress.

Friede walked out. The sleeves were a little long for her proportions, but she looked stellar otherwise. The minimalist dress fell to her heels and twirled in graceful parallel with her when she spun in front of a mirror. Her face lit up, and I had to admit, it made me a little happy.

“Well, look at you,” I mumbled. “Who knew you could look like that?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It’s a compliment,” I replied. “Where I come from, the women who wear these are about a head shorter and have never seen a tattoo in their life. I gotta say, the big cat you’ve got on your back makes everything better. Are you going to buy it?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t wear dresses,” she muttered.

I rolled my eyes.

“Lady, you are wearing one right now,” I turned to the old woman at the counter. “We’ll take this. Do you have the same outfit but in white or lavender? We’ll take those too.”

A few minutes later, we walked out of the store with a bag full of clothes. Friede looked annoyed and giddy at the same time. I felt the same, but for completely different reasons.

“Welp. I’ll be on my way,” I said.

Friede stepped in front of me.

“Imperial. Wait. Why did you take me here?”

“Look,” I sighed. “Pirates. Imperials. Whatever. Women don’t stare at dresses outside a shop unless they want them. And, they often want to wear them for someone. So wear them, okay? Now go enjoy the rest of your shore leave or whatever.”

I took off again in the direction of the parking tower closest to me, my eyes set on the frigate I had spotted earlier. Who cared if I didn’t have somewhere to go? Anywhere would be better than here. I could fake an identity and live as an engineer on Hadrian. I could fly civilian vessels or space taxis. What I didn’t want was to sacrifice my chance at freedom.

…What freedom, I wondered. Was living in obscurity, in fear of capture, freedom?

I entered the tower. A long line waited outside the central elevator. The stairs were an option, but the frigate was likely stationed above the hundredth floor.

So I waited. The people outside the elevator carried cardboard and digital signs, glow sticks, metal bracelets, and chattered among one another with gusto.

“Aren’t you that new imperial dog aboard Nightwing? Funny seeing you here.”

A gruff voice approached from behind me. I turned around and recognized the voice but not the man that stood before me. Alexis, captain of the Edge of Knight, had cast off his edgy trench coat and replaced it with a bright t-shirt featuring a beautiful young woman. He too carried neon glow sticks and an analog sign that read “We all love you Nana!”

“Excuse me?” I asked.

“It is you,” Alexis said. “I didn’t take you for an enthusiast.”

“You mean Nana,” I remembered the name. “The… GalactaNet popstar?”

“There’s a concert in the tower,” Alexis explained. “Nana’s just released a new album. We need to see it. Who knows when’s the next time we’ll get shore leave?”

I realized I had made a terrible mistake coming here.

“Right,” I said. “You know, I was waiting in line, but it looks a bit too packed for my taste. I think I’m just going to try somewhere quieter.”

“Don’t worry,” Alexis brushed past me. “Come. I know the bouncer.”

I wanted to bolt and run, but the whole purpose of coming to this tower was to find a spacecraft and commandeer it. I decided to follow and slip away when Alexis was next distracted. He made for a burly security guard at the front of the line, who was checking identification before allowing others onto the elevator.

“Kyle!” Alexis laughed. “It’s been too long.”

“Alexis!” the man pulled Alexis into an embrace. “Somehow, I knew I’d see you here today. If there was any day I’d see you, it would be today. How long are you here for?”

“Long enough to see Nana,” Alexis beamed. “Can we take the express up?”

“Can you?” the guard scoffed. He motioned at the fans already standing inside the elevator. “You. All of you. Get the fuck out. We got a VIP coming through.”

The fans looked like they were about to explode, but Kyle brushed his hands upon the sidearm holstered at his waist and they did as they were told. Kyle grinned at us and we stepped onto the elevator.

“Have fun you two,” he winked.

“Have you heard anything from Nana’s newest album?” Alexis asked after the doors had closed.

“N-no,” I muttered. “Not yet.”

“Good,” Alexis nodded. “You’re like me then. You listen to it raw during the live show.”

“But…” I started.

Nana didn’t perform “live,” is what I wanted to say. Even if she did, I doubted the galactic superstar was going to visit this waystation of all places. At best we were just watching a pirated recording. But I held my tongue because Alexis for whatever reason had not seen through the ruse, and I still planned on slipping away during this so-called concert to find my ticket off of the station.

The elevator stopped at the seventieth floor, thirty odd stories below where I wanted it. Alexis ushered us both into an already crowded venue. A bar sat at the center of the room passing around drinks. There was almost no standing room left.

“Shit,” Alexis cursed. “Got here a bit too late. Over there. That spot might be our best shot.”

He led us to a small open pocket near the bar with a clear view of a platform at the front of the room. Shortly after, the lights began to dim. A holographic image fizzled onto the stage, and a young woman, dressed in a black leather cap and a bright red sweater and skirt, materialized on stage.

“Hello everyone!” Nana’s voice pierced the concert venue.

“Nana!” Alexis and others around me hollered.

Aaaaaand… that was my cue to leave. While Alexis lost his mind over his favorite popstar, I dipped into the crowd. He would probably just assume I had gotten washed away by rabid fans.

I forced my way back to the elevator and slipped inside after a fresh group of Nana fanatics streamed out while chanting her name. I tapped the doors closed and rode the conveyor up another three dozen floors. Through the window I spotted the frigate of my choice. Its chromatic alloys gleamed amidst the station lights. The shaft slowed, and the elevator pinged to confirm we had reached my destination. The doors slid open. A man stood waiting for me.

It was Ulysses.