“Well, you could do worse,” Vulka said, sipping on a nutrient pack. “At least it’s not bounty hunting. Just don’t be pain in the rear like over half of Haulers we meet.”

“I promise to annoy only you,” Casey replied, brushing her free floating hair out of her face. Her voice was still flat and tired from the past few days, but she was making an attempt. 

The pair sat a safe distance from the Benevolence in Dock 313, watching Listher operate a heavy grabber arm that protruded from the ceiling. He and Vulka had been aiding Casey in transferring the Hope’s engines to the Benevolence. Other members of the engineering team were hard at work salvaging the rest of the Hope in Dock 314, stripping it down into more marketable pieces. It had now been two days since Cowl’s visit, during which Casey tried to avoid talking to anyone (except during mealtimes, where she barely offered more than a few words), but she had no choice but to oversee and help out with the engine installation. A trial run of socializing again.

“Do you have a copilot yet?” Vulka asked. 

The grabber arm carefully hooked into the metal cage that held one of the four engines to be installed. Two tines on each side of a claw stabilized the cargo.

“Not yet,” Casey said, taking a water bottle from where it floated in front of her. She took a drink. “Most of the people Helga’s tried say no after they hear about me, but there’s one that gave a maybe. We’re going to leave after dinner, it’s a few days trip.”

Slowly, the engine was maneuvered towards the mounting pins on the side of the Benevolence’s starboard wing.

“I still say you should take me when you leave for real,” Vulka said. “You need lighthearted sidekick to keep spirits up on long journeys.”

“Bless– Wandering hell, Vulka, I already told you I’m not taking you,” Casey shot back. “If someone I don’t know wants to put themselves in danger next to me, fine. Not you.”

Vulka finished his nutrient pouch, folded it up, and stored it in a pocket on his suit. “Fine. I know better than to push. But you better visit, or I’ll come find you.”

Casey sighed, thankful she wouldn’t have to continue the argument, but at the same time sad he hadn’t tried harder. “Maybe. I can’t be sure Ulthea isn’t going to be watching Brock Station, though. They might try to ambush me the second I enter the system.”

Listher gathered up a couple of tethers, ends linked to the floor, and pushed off of the ground towards the engine. Once the tethers had been secured, he made his way around to the wing, and pushed off of it towards the ceiling, aiming for another bunch of tethers that had been prepped earlier. 

“Maybe…” Vulka said. “Very difficult situation. I’ll miss having you around. Would you at least call?”

“Of course I will,” Casey said. “I’m… I’m going to miss you a lot.”

They fell quiet and returned to watching Listher work. Every tether connected brought her closer to leaving. It wasn’t fair. She had finally built a life here, in a place full of friends and people who cared for each other and for her, and it was being torn away. A life of running and hiding in a lonely galaxy stretched out in front of her. Tears began pooling around her eye, surface tension keeping them in place in the zero gee. “I d-don’t want to go, Vulka…”

“Oh dear,” said Vulka, pulling a clean rag from another pocket. Despite his static language, his words were soft. He dabbed at Casey’s eye to soak up the tears. “Don’t worry. I’m sure it won’t be long before they forget about you.”

“Are you making her cry?” Listher shouted from across the dock. He finished tightening the tethering at the top of the engine, and pushed off towards Casey and Vulka, safety tether trailing behind. “What did you say?”

“I didn’t say a thing,” Vulka sulked as Listher halted his momentum on a nearby table. “You know what she’s been through.”

“It’s fine, Listher,” Casey said, pulling herself together. She took a deep breath and let it out in a quick exhale, then took out a hair tie, wrangling her hair into a ponytail. “I’m fine. Is it ready?”

Listher gave her a sort of sideways frown, but nodded. “All set. Let’s get your mind off things, yeah? Some work will do you good.”

The trio set to work restoring the Benevolence to flight-worthiness. Each engine was installed, inspected, then tested to Casey’s satisfaction. Benni’s assistance was invaluable, its database of pre-flight checklists and manuals from Ulthea providing guidance when the team were unsure. As a team, they worked well. By lunch time, the starboard engines had been installed, and they had the port engines installed an hour before dinner came around. It helped that Casey had prepped the engine mounts well in advance, in case her luck came around. Luck was an optimistic word for what had actually happened, but she did her best to see it as honoring Nate’s memory.

The work went some way towards easing Casey’s mind. Listening to Vulka and Listher banter as they all worked kept her mind occupied, and – likely mindful of her mood – their letting her work in silence was appreciated. Installing the engines also helped her get acquainted with her new arm. It still wasn’t ideal.

“Looks like you two are starting to get along,” Vulka said at dinner, gesturing at the prosthetic. “That thing is strong.”

“Too strong,” Casey said. She rolled her left shoulder absent mindedly. “I nearly broke two of my torque wrenches. If I didn’t have them we’d be spending half the day rethreading bolts.”

“Well, once you’re used to it, it should be pretty helpful, yeah?” Listher said around a beak full of food. He swallowed. “Sorry. Not to make light of how you got it.”

“It’s alright. I’m getting better, I think,” Casey said, at the same time wishing she could throw it in an airlock. “At least, I remember to do my exercises most of the time. This is the longest stretch I’ve worn it for. I don’t really like it.”

There was silence while the three friends focused on their dinners, unsure of where to take the conversation. 

Eventually, in a timid voice, as if bringing up the topic would throw her into the furthest reaches of space upon its mention, Casey asked, “What is it like? Out there?”

“You’re asking if it’s dangerous,” Vulka said.

Casey shrunk a little. “Yeah, I guess.”

“I think anywhere is dangerous,” Vulka said. “Ulthea is dangerous to its people. Brock Station is dangerous if you pick wrong fight. You have to know where is danger and how to avoid it.”

“It can be pretty dangerous if you’re wanted,” Listher added. “I don’t mean to scare you, but with a price on your head, you’re going to have people looking for you, allegiance to Ulthea or no.”

“Oh,” was all Casey could think to say. She shrunk even further in her seat, worrying at her mechanical fingers.

“However,” Vulka interjected pointedly, “You will have partner hand-picked by Helga, as well as combat ready AI who would likely fry its circuits before letting you come to harm. Your ship is flying fortress, and your partner will know where is safe.”

“That’s true,” Listher said. “Different civilizations police their areas of the galaxy differently. Some of them don’t let bounty hunters operate in their territory. You could run trade routes in pretty safe areas.”

That lessened Casey’s fears somewhat, especially the points about Helga and Benni. “Thanks,” she said. “I’ve always been told the Frontier is just, this lawless expanse. Brock Station felt like a sanctuary from that.”

“The three unions did a lot to curb that,” Listher said. “They’re no government, but it’s better than nothing. They do more good than harm, y’know? There wasn’t even a unified currency until they came around. Of course, they control it, so…”

He trailed off pointedly, and took a drink of water. Casey got the picture. They might not be a formal government, but they held most of the power in the Frontier. “Do you know what it’s like working for the Haulers?” she asked.

“There’s always a job, I’ll tell you that,” came Helga’s voice from behind her.

Casey jolted in shock, and turned quickly,  throwing her left elbow back in reflex. Luckily, Helga caught it before it could impact her stomach, exclaiming “Whoa, girl!”

“Don’t sneak up on me!” Casey said, angry at the surprise. She wrested her arm from Helga’s hands and stood up. For a moment, there was a genuine feeling as though she was back in the engine room on the Benevolence. Her heart felt like it was beating out of her chest. How could someone so big move so quietly?

“Wasn’t trying to, but I see your point,” Helga said. “Sorry. Good reflexes. Are you alright?”

Casey gave her a nasty look. “I’m fine.”

Once again came that look of disbelief, and away again it went. “Okay. Well, I came to check in,” Helga said. “My ship is ready, just wanted to see how long you’ll need.”

“Your ship?” Casey asked, desperately trying to sound level. “Can’t we take the Benevolence? It’s ready to fly, and there’s plenty of room for two.”

“No offense, but not a chance,” Helga said. “Flight ready or not, that ship is a beacon. Even if Ulthea’s choosing to hang back and observe for now, I can’t expose my associate. She takes pride in staying under cover.”

Casey clenched and unclenched her fists, unable to get the earlier shock out of her system. Focus. Had to let Benni know, had to pack for a few days… Had to calm down. “Give me an hour.”

“Sure,” Helga said. “Dock 101, I’ll see you there. Sorry again.”

She gently took Casey’s right shoulder with a large hand and gave it a light squeeze, then turned and left. As Casey watched her go, she took a deep breath and let it out slowly, but her usual calming ritual wasn’t working. 

“Casey?”

This reaction to getting surprised like that was new to her, and even though the cause of it was clear, she wasn’t able to shake the jitters she had on logic alone. 

“Casey, are you okay?”

She took another deep breath, and another, fighting down memories of glowing eyes and a strong hand on the back of her neck. Something touched her right arm, and she whirled around, a wild look on her face. “What!?”

Vulka jerked his hand away in shock. “I asked if you were okay,” he said, voice radiating concern.

Casey just stared at him, mouth half open. Her face was fighting over anger at being surprised yet again, and fear at what was happening to her. Then, she became aware of the sudden circle of silence and stares brought on by her outburst. White hot shame at having yelled at two friends who didn’t deserve it poured into her stomach. It was all getting to be far too much. She mumbled an apology and fled from the canteen.