In spite of all of Casey’s wishes, the day of her departure finally came. To her shock, however, something was waiting for her when she entered Dock 313 that morning.

The Benevolence was being given a brand new insignia. 

Not only that, half of the engineering team was gathered around it. She could see Reggie, Listher, and a few other members she had gotten to know, but the majority were mostly unknown to her. A few had heat guns, aiding the ship paint in drying and curing faster. At this distance and angle, it was difficult to tell what it was, but the colors looked familiar. Vulka, who was chatting with a few others who had nothing to do, noticed Casey – wearing an expression that could either be taken for either intense shock or anger – and hurried over, noodle arms wiggling ecstatically above him. 

“Casey! Come see, we got you gift!” he said, wrapping an arm around Casey’s head in a makeshift blindfold.

“What is… what? What’s happening?” Casey stammered as she was led to the side of the Benevolence. It was only her trust in the Spacewalker that kept her from giving him a left hook in the faceplate.

The rest of the engineering crew could be heard bustling out of the dock, shouting words of encouragement and well wishes. It was intensely overwhelming. She hadn’t even had any coffee yet. 

“How did you all get in here?” Casey asked, still blindfolded. “What happened to Benni?”

“Benni is fine, it agreed to this,” Vulka soothed.

“It– It what?!” Casey exclaimed.

“You’ll see,” Vulka said, then unwrapped his arm from her head.

Stunned silence was all Casey could manage as she beheld Engineering’s gift. Painted on the side of the Benevolence’s hull, just behind the cockpit window, was the insignia of Brock Station. On the shield of green, the head of a Brocken was centered, backed by six clawmarks. Then, Benni’s voice echoed from the ship’s PA.

“Do You Like My New Insignia, Captain?” 

“Benni!” Casey said. “You agreed to this?”

“Affirmative.”

“But– you weren’t worried?” 

“Vulka Asked For Permission, And He Is Your Friend. Additionally, He Told Me He Asked Helga As Well. You Told Me To Give People Opportunities To Earn My Trust. Vulka Promised To Watch The Engineering Team Closely, And He Did. Vulka Is Trustworthy.”

“I’m not very good artist anyhow,” Vulka said sheepishly.

This was the first time Casey had ever seen Vulka bashful. Was he embarrassed at being complimented by Benni, of all things? “It looks great, Benni,” she said. “You look great.”

“Thank You, Captain.”

“Your eye is leaking again,” Vulka pointed out.

“Oh, shut up,” Casey said, smiling as she rubbed at her eye (after an aborted attempt to wipe her eye with her left hand). “Thank you, Vulka. This really means a lot.”

Vulka wrapped an arm around Casey’s waist and pulled her close in a half-hug. “I told Helga my idea first. She said, ‘Wonderful idea, Vulka, you handsome floppy-armed blob’.”

Casey snorted, then had to quickly wipe a booger from her nose. “Yeah? She said that?”

“Of course! I would never lie,” Vulka replied, placing his other hand regally on his chest. “Now, as I said, I’m no artist, so I asked Reggie for help, who told Listher, and before I knew, half of Engineering wanted in. We couldn’t let you forget where you came from, right?”

Casey nodded, still teary-eyed. At this point, she knew that if she said anything she would start crying for real. The pair looked up at the insignia in silence for a while. The Brocken head glared outwards, warning anyone who saw it, ‘This one is ours’. To Casey, it declared her as part of this station of misfits. A family she now felt closer to than ever before. A family she now had to leave in order to keep them safe. This final reminder might have soured her mood, but the light of the cheers and well wishes of the engineers as they left the dock crystalized her sense of duty. 

Not only that, she felt immensely proud of Benni. Maybe she didn’t have to worry about it as much as she thought. It evidently did a lot more than sleep when she wasn’t around, and its ability to trust wasn’t as damaged as she thought either. When she unleashed Benni all that time ago, she wasn’t sure if she had done the right thing. Now she knew she had.

After a long and silent regard of the new insignia, Casey spoke. 

“I think its time I renamed the ship.”

…

The last step of registration with the Haulers was later that day, a few hours before departure. Papers were filed, forms had been filled out, and the ship’s cargo space was ready, but the final step of becoming a Hauler involved a low cost haul as a trial run. The largest worry Casey had – trying to register a stolen Ulthean ship – turned out to be unfounded. Provided you could fly it, it had ample cargo space, and a way to defend yourself, you could register any ship as a Hauler. That was a check, check, and a big last check. The gunship practically bristled with guns.

Being wanted was somehow even less of an issue. Getting shot at was a standard risk every Hauler took any time they left the safety of a dock. It didn’t matter the cargo, pirates were a fact of life in the Frontier, and they would take any loot they could get. As long as she stayed on well used trade routes, Casey would be just as safe as anyone else. 

Frances showed up in the last hour before takeoff, Hauler registration already in hand. While Casey, Vulka, and Helga were overseeing the loading of the cargo, she sauntered up to the group, the usual knowing smile plastered on her face. 

Casey was the first to see her coming, and frowned. Helga and Vulka, noticing the change in her demeanor, followed her frown to the approaching Pasci.

“Worried you got lost,” Helga called.

“Wouldn’t make a good navigator if that were true,” Frances said. She ran her eyes over the trio, then turned her smile to Casey. “It’s just us two, is that right?”

“Yeah,” Casey said, and gestured. “This is my friend, Vulka. He’s just here to see me off.”

“Ahh, right!” Frances said, offering a hand to Vulka. “Frances Arsenault. Nice to put a faceplate to a name.”

Vulka shook her hand. “Pleased to meet you. I didn’t expect Casey to tell you about me.”

“She didn’t,” Frances said. “Where should I put my bags?”

“Excuse me?” Vulka asked.

“Where do I put my bags?” Frances repeated.

Casey rolled her eye and gave a grunt of frustration. “She’s an information broker, Vulka. She’s been watching us.”

“I haven’t been watching anyone,” Frances smirked. “I–”

“Yeah, okay, you have people, blah blah,” Casey said, cutting her off. “Just go up the cargo ramp, you’re in the crew quarters. Benni can direct you. No funny business.”

“Fine, fine,” Frances said, hands raised in mock surrender. “I’ll wait for you there.”

As they watched her lug her bags up the cargo ramp, Helga said, “You’re still sure about this? It’s been less than five minutes and you’re already bickering.”

“She certainly seems knowledgeable,” Vulka said, lightly miffed.

“I’m sure,” Casey said through a sigh. “I can handle her, I think. I’ve got Benni, it’s got me, and like Vulka said, she knows a lot.”

Vulka scoffed, a short burst of meaningless static. “Too much, maybe.”

“Is Benni not changing its name?” Helga asked. “I would have thought, y’know, with the ship…”

Casey shook her head. “Benni is the name an old Captain gave it. The only other person to treat it even close to an equal. Besides, what would I call it, Undie?”

Helga barked a laugh. “No, maybe not. Benni it is. What made you go with that name anyway? Still feels pretty Ulthean.”

Casey took a moment to consider that. Maybe it was her devotion to her friends? Or maybe the many times she barely made it out of deadly situations. It could be the ship’s recovery from completely trashed to fully operational. Possibly, it was even a taunt to the Blessed. 

After a thoughtful silence, Casey shrugged and said, “It might sound Ulthean, but it’s genuine, not like ‘the Hope’ or ‘the Benevolence’. You were right, I might be harder to kill than I thought.”

Helga looked concerned. “Make sure you stay that way, alright? Don’t do anything stupid.”

“Or at least tell us first,” Vulka said.

“I’ll try, but stupid things tend to happen to me more than the other way around,” Casey said. “Speaking of, I better go see how Frances is doing. I’ll be out in a bit to say goodbye, I think they’re almost done.”

Vulka and Helga watched as Casey made her way into the ship. They started up a new conversation, and she heard her name once before she was in the ship proper, but didn’t think too much about it. To her relief, Frances was actually in the crew quarters. The Pasci looked up from her bags as Casey entered.

“Bonjour, Captain,” Frances said. “No funny business, as you said. I like the jacket, by the way. Suits you.”

“I didn’t ask for your opinion,” Casey said.

“Don’t worry, I do pro bono work,” Frances replied, still putting clothes into an empty storage locker.

Casey frowned, but refused to rise to the bait. “Do you need anything before we go? We’re scheduled to take off in forty-five minutes, and I didn’t expect you to show up so close to our departure.”

“I’m fine,” Frances said. “Do whatever you need to do, I’ll be here until you get me.”

“You don’t want to familiarize yourself with the ship?” Casey asked. “It’s not built to Galactic Standard. The cockpit especially.”

“I don’t think that will be a problem,” Frances said.

Casey practically growled. ”I’ve had it up to my horns with your cryptic little hints. I’m not an idiot, I know you know a lot more about Ulthea than you’re letting on. Have you flown an Ulthean ship or something?”

“I know you’re not an idiot,” Frances said, and sat on the bunk. She cocked her head. “You’re just ignorant. But it’s not your fault.”

“Then cut the crap and speak to me like a person!” Casey argued. ”What if that information would be helpful to what we’re doing next?”

Frances shook her head. “It wouldn’t be, not yet. Look, I’m on your side, you don’t have to worry about what I know.”

“You realize that doesn’t make me any less suspicious of you,” Casey said. 

“C’est la vie,” Frances shrugged. “You need my help, and you’re useful to me. What choice do we have but to trust each other for now?”

Casey clenched and unclenched her hands, trying to decide whether to kick Frances off at the last minute, or see where this was all going. “Fine,” she said, coming to a decision. “For now. Just remember Benni and I are watching you closely.”

“Oh I know,” Frances said, waving a lackadaisical hand. “These ships have all sorts of secret cameras.”

“What? No,” Casey said. She almost asked how Frances knew, but caught herself just in time. “I took those out as soon as I could. The only surveillance cameras are the visible ones in common areas. Benni and I are keeping a normal close eye on you, I’m not Lawsek.”

“Well…” Frances said, looking impressed, or at least feigning it. “Like I said, not an idiot.”

Casey rolled her eye and headed back towards the door. “Sure. I’m going back outside. I’ll be back in a half hour to go over the flight plan.”

“Au revoir,” Frances said, waggling her fingers.

…

Too soon, it was time. Frances had been briefed, and was waiting in the cockpit. The cargo was loaded, some basic supplies headed to a station halfway across the galaxy. Weapons were given a final check, and seemed to be in working order, though Casey hoped she wouldn’t have to use any of them. She stood by the cargo ramp with Vulka and Helga again, now joined by Listher and a few others from the Engineering team. Casey didn’t know how to feel, what to say. 

Looking up at Helga, she opted for, “I guess this is it.”

“Yes, and no,” Helga said. “Remember you can still call us, and you can send us messages. We’ll save a seat for you.”

“We can meet on other stations,” Vulka offered. “Wouldn’t be problem, I have vacation days burning hole in my pocket.”

Casey sniffed. The feelings came then, sadness about leaving, guilt about putting her friends through this, happiness at how much they still wanted her as a part of their lives. Before she could stop herself, she lunged into a hug around Helga, tears pouring down her face. Her arms were completely unable to wrap around Helga’s midsection, it was like hugging a furred slab of granite. Helga, despite her surprise, returned the hug, enveloping Casey with tree trunk arms. In turn, everyone received the same, each goodbye weighing Casey’s heart even further down. She knew she could call, could message, but it wouldn’t feel the same. 

As she made her way slowly up the cargo ramp, she kept her composure, despite the massive lump in her throat. 

As the cargo ramp closed, she kept the faces of her friends in view as long as she could, their wistful expressions breaking her heart even further. 

As she trudged down the corridor to the cockpit, she dreaded the coming months with Frances and her stupid little smile. 

As she sat down, as the engines spooled up, as the ship’s systems powered on one by one, she keyed the comms.

Deep breath.

“Brock Station, this is the Undying. Requesting permission for takeoff.”

THE END