Starchildren Options

[Kane]

Two stories at once is a lot for me, so these updates may not be as frequent. I also did not plan on this but a certain young woman in my head refused to be quiet.

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Prologue (May 7th, 2330)
Ebbside, Neon City, Volii Alpha


Andromeda awoke with a start. Somebody was pounding frantically on the door to her sleep crate and had ruined a perfectly deep slumber after a long day of work and even longer night of partying to celebrate her birthday. There was no way in hell it was daylight already which meant she probably left her slate at Euphorika. Again.

The bleary-eyed young woman fumbled in the dark for her glasses while the pounding on her door continued. If whomever it was out there kept it up much longer, she felt like her head would start pounding, too. Having finally fished her glasses off of the cold floor Andromeda slid them on and then clicked her bedside lamp to life. Most of her clothes were strewn about the floor of her metal box, which also explained why she was now so cold.

Two minutes or so later, she was half-dressed, and her nearly decrepit Solstice was clutched tightly in her left hand. Please don’t fizzle out on me now old girl, she thought. Looking down at the worn laser pistol in her hand, she sighed and silently chided herself for never spending any credits on a decent gun. The little pistol had been thrown out for good reason, yet Andromeda had fished out of the garbage anyway and fixed it up in the most half-assed way possible. Each time she squeezed the trigger was just another gamble on whether or not the damned thing would even fire.

This time she prayed to gods she didn’t give a [censored] about that it wouldn’t let her down. And then she finally opened the door.

Andre burst into her sleep crate and slammed the door shut behind him.

“It’s about goddamn time you answered! What the hell took you so long, Dro?”

Andromeda blinked in surprise at the urgency in his voice. She’d known Andre for over six months now, and the man was usually as cool as a cucumber. Even when he drunkenly tried to flirt with her. Andre had taken a courier job for HopeTech on Valo and was reassigned here to Neon City, much to his initial dismay, but they had grown close in the time since. The man was of average height with dark skin and kind brown eyes that sometimes hid behind a mop of unkempt blue hair.

“Slow down, Andre,” she said. “What’s the big deal?”

“No time to slow down. The ‘big deal’ is that your [censored], Dro. Absolutely [censored].”

“Wha -”

“Gather up what you care about the most and stuff it in your bag. Security thugs are closing in already �" I set up a prox alert for when they get within twenty meters.” Andre saw her bag sitting on the floor near the door, grabbed it, and handed it to Andromeda. “Pack! Now!”

“Andre, I am not going to move another goddamn muscle until you tell me what the [censored] is going on!”

“[censored]. Fine. Start packing and I’ll explain while you go.” He waited until a few things had been shoved unceremoniously in her bag before continuing: “Those Ryujin files you hacked yesterday for your anonymous buyer? They were tagged for Bayu’s personal records. Dunno how he tracked you down so quick but if you wanna live to see your twenty-sixth birthday then we need to get you the hell out of this city.”

Her blood froze. Benjamin Bayu. The Administrator of Neon City and possibly the most corrupt man in the settled systems. His fingers crept into every business venture on the planet and the security force was at his beck and call. No one did business in Neon without giving him a cut, and his ruthlessness against would-be competitors was legendary. Everyone who lived in Neon lived comfortably by skirting his brutality.

If she was on his radar at long last, then she had definitely taken the wrong job, pile of credits notwithstanding. Being a Cyber Runner in Neon always ran the risk that Andromeda would one day cross paths with that monster, but she had always been careful about her choice of contracts in the hope of avoiding Bayu. Her luck had finally run out and yet she still was uncertain about leaving the only home she ever knew.

“I can’t just up and leave!” stammered Andromeda, freezing midway through emptying the contents of her wall safe. “My whole life is here! It’s all I’ve ever known!”

“Doesn’t matter. Bayu will have you killed just to make an example - “ Andre ceased talking abruptly at the sound of rapid beeping emanating from his slate. His face took on an unhealthy pallor and he nervously ran his hand through his hair. “Time to go. They got there sooner than I expected.” Andre pulled another slate out of his jacket pocket and gave it to Andromeda. “Here, take this and give it to Doc Manning at the clinic. He’ll give you a short makeover to fool security at the spaceport.”

“Andre, I...” Andromeda was at a loss for words. The sudden shock of what was happening and the thought of fleeing her life �" Neon, Andre, the friends and people she’d grown up around �" was too much. Hot tears fell down her pale cheeks and splashed on the floor of her crate. She raised a hand to brush them away, and then shoulder her bag. “This isn’t over,” she finally said with a firmer resolve than what she felt inside. “Bayu isn’t chasing me out of my [censored] home forever. I’ll come back for all of you, I promise.” Andromeda stood on her tiptoes and planted a kiss on Andre’s cheek. “I promise.”

“We’ll do what we can to clear your name. You need to go. Now. They’ll be here any second. I can keep them occupied for a few minutes but they’ll tell me to get lost before long. Go!”

Andromeda pulled her hood up to hide her vibrant fuchsia hair and fled into the night without another word. The garbled chatter of Neon Security radios echoed up from the alleyway to her right, so she moved silently away from them and ducked into a dark alcove that was still within view of her crate. It was hard to much of anything, but she recognized the dim form of Andre now standing back outside of her door and soon heard him pounding on it once again.

“Yo! Open up, Jen!” Andre’s voice rang out. “Open up!”

Flashlights illuminated and three security goons stood at the ready, their guns trained on her friend. Andre’s hands flew skyward while the nearest guard began to pat him down.

“Who are you? What are you doing here?” demanded another guard.

“Damn, take it easy, bud,” said Andre. “My friend lives here and she’s gonna be late for her shift at Generdyne again. Just trying to get her ass on the move!”

“Jen, huh? Yeah, sure pal.” The guard shoved him aside and addressed one of his partners. “What do you got, Reg?”

“Andre Mitarn, known associate of one Andromeda Renault. Courier for HopeTech.”

“Did ya hear that you lying piece of [censored]?” laughed the first guard. “Jen my ass. Where’s the girl?”

“If I knew where Jen was I wouldn’t be here, officer.”

“Yeah, sure, whatever, punk. Reg, you know the drill �" get him out of here.”

Andre lowered his hands to leave while Andromeda released a breath she didn’t realize she had been holding. Her friend turned to walk away but Andre only made it a few paces before two sharp cracks rang out through Ebbside. He fell to the ground in a pool of blood while Andromeda watched in silent horror. She shoved her hand in her mouth in a desperate bid to stop herself from crying out.

“Dump that sack of [censored] over the side. The chasmbass will get rid of the evidence for us.”

Two of the security goons forced open the door to her sleep crate and disappeared inside while the third dragged off Andre’s lifeless body and heaved it over the railing and into the churning waters far below. Andromeda slipped away unseen and headed silently for the Neon Core, wiping away the tears as she went. The nearest door to Bayu Plaza wasn’t far, and within five minutes she had stepped through it and darkened her glasses against the garish light that gave Neon City its name.

Every type of store and service imaginable spanned the length of the Core, brilliant neon signs and lights shining down upon everyone who walked the expansive length from Ryujin Tower to the Trade Tower. Even late at night (or early in the morning, as it was now), the walkways were teeming with citizens, tourists, guards, scumbags, and dregs.

Andromeda’s destination was Reliant Medical and thankfully it was only a short distance away. Doc Manning seemed to never sleep and with her life crumbling around her, Andromeda was grateful to see him sitting at his counter.

“Ah, there you are, Dro! Andre warned me you were coming �" c’mon around back and we’ll get you fixed up.” He paused at the signs of grief that had stricken her normally carefree face. “What’s happened? Wait… where is Andre?”

It took everything Andromeda had to not scream in frustration and anger. She settled for kicking helplessly at the front of his counter which only resulted in a stab of pan shooting through her foot. “They [censored] killed him, Joe! Bayu’s security goons iced him without a second thought and threw him over the rails of Ebbside!”

“Bastards,” sighed the Doc. “I keep hoping this city will change some day but I don’t think I’ll ever live to see it. Despite younguns like you fighting back, Bayu’s grip never seems to relent. All the more reason to get you out of here, I guess.” Doc Manning waved her towards the back again and dismounted from his stool. “Go on, I just have to lock up real quick.”

The back room had a small biological modification chair that the doc had somehow procured from one of the Enhance! stores that were peppered throughout the local galaxy. It must have cost a small fortune, but she once again found herself thanking gods she didn’t care about for its existence in the back of the clinic. Doc Manning followed her in a few seconds later and instructed her to take a seat in the chair.

“Okay, so Andre...” Joe trailed off and made a gesture that Andromeda had never seen before. His hand moved across his face in the shape of a ‘T’.

“What was that for?” she asked him.

“The cross? It’s from an old-Earth religion that most have forgotten about. I’ll explain some other time. Anyway… so Andre most have been tipped off pretty early and with a good bit of info. Bayu has your name, financial history, work records, and physiological profile; but not your DNA records. We lucked out there. A few cosmetic changes will get you past the spaceport sniffers.”

“Joe, I can’t pay for any of this,” said Andromeda. “All my accounts are probably seized and I have less than two-hundred credits in my bag.”

“You don’t owe me anything, Dro. You’ve already done so much for the hard working people of this city that your friends are lining up behind me to get you safely out of this place.”

Andromeda sniffled and dabbed at her eyes with a tissue from the box Doc Manning held up to her. She knew it would be a long time until she saw those friends again, and the thought of that hurt more than anything else. Then she laid back in the chair and closed her eyes while the doctor powered up the alteration arms. She knew it would take thirty seconds to a minute for the machine to fully boot, so Andromeda pressed her friend on what would happen next.

“I have another slate from Andre,” he said. “It will transfer enough credits to get you on an outbound freighter, and provide a new identity. But the tricky part will be getting you to the port with perfect timing. We need to have you at the gates just as the ship’s thrusters begin to burn, so that the guards will hopefully rush you through without looking to closely at your records.”

There was lot that could go wrong with that. However, she trusted her friends implicitly and so she closed her eyes again and let the doctor go to work. The procedure was relatively painless, but she did flinch from the occasional needle or sharp prod. Some calibrations to the machine were in order when she returned. If I can return, she thought. Benjamin Bayu had a long memory, and she doubted he would forget about her anytime soon.

Ten minutes elapsed before Doc Manning leaned back on his stool and powered down the alteration arms. He grabbed a mirror from a side table and handed it to Andromeda. The same brown eyes stared back at her, but Joe had completely changed her hairstyle and its color: the long ponytail she had entered the clinic with was gone, and only a small knot was tied up in the back. Instead of fuchsia, her locks were now dyed an incredible opalescent prism of stunning colors, and the strands on the right side of her face fell down past her cheeks while being tucked back tightly on the left side.

She noticed the bare skin of her neck and left cheek and inhaled sharply. “Did you get rid of my tattoos?! Those were really personal to me, Doc!”
“Relax, I just covered them up with some foundation. Keep your hood up a the spaceport or the rain will wash it away and give up the goose. They’ll stick out like a sore thumb. Oh, and leave your piercings here. Those are easily replaceable.”

Andromeda frowned but did as advised. She popped the studs out of her ears and nose, removed the loop from her septum, and slid the barbell out from her nose bridge. Doc Manning collected them all in a small steel pan and then dropped them into a medical waste bin. Andromeda slid out of the modification chair and gave him a hug.

“Thanks for everything, Doc. I’ll be back to repay you some day.”

“I already told you your credit is good, Dro. Just promise me you’ll be careful out there.”

“I’ll try. But you should know better than most that the trouble usually finds me first.”

“That I do!” laughed Doc Manning. “Damn, almost forgot �" lose the glasses, too. I have some lenses for you instead.”

She removed her glasses and chucked them in the bin with her piercings. The good doctor handed her a set of icy blue colored contact lenses and after a couple minutes of struggling, she managed to pop them in to obscure her natural eye color. Another hug for the Doc Manning. Then he tapped a slate to hers and ushered Andromeda out the back door of Reliant Medical. Syndal, her best friend from university and one-time lover waited somberly in the trash ridden alley running behind the shops.

“Time to go, doll,” said her diminutive cohort. “Ship leaves in six minutes.” Syndal was tiny even compared to the slight 1.6 meters Andromeda rose to. The top of her head just barely made it to Andromeda’s nose. She put a hand on the back of Andromeda’s head and pulled her down to a reasonable level, kissing her very briefly on the lips. “For luck,” she explained to Andromeda’s quizzical stare. “Don’t think we’re ever getting back together or anything.”

“Fair enough,” said Andromeda. “Are we taking the main elevator down?”

“Have to. It’s all you have time for. “Let’s go, and try to keep up. Security is swarming the Core for you.”

Andromeda nodded and followed along in Syndal’s speedy wake. It was easy to unobtrusively hang a few steps back and still keep tabs on the impressive length of platinum hair falling past her friend’s hips. It swayed to and fro in the constant gentle breeze flowing through Neon City. The draft was one of many effects of living on massive platform built high above the roiling seas of a water world. A world that Andromeda had never left. Or had ever planned to leave. Those idle thoughts helped keep her features neutral when they stepped back onto the main thoroughfare and snaked their way towards the spaceport elevator.

Neon Security had fallen for the gambit. None of them paid her any mind, despite having her former appearance projected on the inside of their helmet visors. Syndal led her right past squad after squad of the corrupt officers until they reached their destination.

“You’re on your own from here,” said Syndal. “Take the lift down to the port and make a show of rushing, but don’t outright sprint. Play the part of the late departee who is trying to make their flight. The guards down there are a different detachment than the Core goons and generally skew towards being less of an asshole than the ones chasing you up here.”

“Okay, I’ll try. Never was much of an actor but I can do this. I have to do this.”

Syndal slapped her on the ass. “Quit stalling. You’ve got less than two minutes.”

“Right. Bye, Syn. And thank you.”

The elevator doors opened and Andromeda rode the lift down to the docking port. Two guards flanked the it at the bottom but the alterations Doc Manning made to her appearance seemed to have fooled their scanners. She showed them her slate and they told her to get moving else she miss the freighter. Settling for a speedy trot, Andromeda sighed gratefully and flitted down the long catwalk spanning over the ocean below, squeezing her hood tightly to her face. The warm, wind-driven rain splattered against her while she half ran to the ship waiting for its final passenger.

It was an ancient Deimos model that took up most of the landing pad. Bright lights illuminated faded letters above the ramp: The Gryphon. A crew member ushered Andromeda inside with little patience and directed her to a jump seat in the main cabin. Unsure of how the seat worked, her fingers trembled while she tried to strap herself in.

“First time in space, dearie?” A middle-aged woman next to her smiled gently at Andromeda.

“Yeah. I’m scared shitless if I’m being honest.”

“There’s nothing to it.” The kind woman reached over and showed her which buckles went where, and pointed out the safety pouch under the cushion. “Mouth guards in there if you’re worried about biting your tongue off. Once we take off, just keep your mouth closed and you won’t need them.”

Andromeda thanked her, and the woman went back to humming an off-tune key. Voices rang out over the loudspeaker and warning signs began to light up all around them. The entire ship rattled and shook, and the message on the flight console on the wall across from her changed from ‘docked’ to ‘achieving thrust’. Seconds later the engines roared into life and the sudden g’s from massive acceleration pressed Andromeda back into her seat. Unable to move so much as a finger, she closed her eyes and whimpered slightly as the ship gained altitude.

And then the pressure was gone. She opened her eyes and the porthole in the ceiling above revealed the deep black of space, dotted with innumerable points of light blinking back at her from incomprehensible distances. For the second time in as many minutes, her breath had been taken away for very different reasons.

She had done it. She had escaped Neon City and the closing grasp of Benjaim Bayu.

The tears came again anyway. Her life as she knew it was over and she had no idea where things went from here. She didn’t even know where this ship was bound. She was alone among the stars. And then the engines powered down while the grav drive engaged, folded space around the ship, and leapt from the Volii System in a blazing show of cosmic light and energy, carrying Andromeda far way from danger with a dumbfounded expression on her face..

This post has been edited by Kane: Jun 20 2025, 12:59 PM

[Acadian]

Great job of developing both Andreja and Annie Andromeda here. Andreja sees that Dro is more that just a complete combat rookie and has some serious brains and hacker skills. And Dro sees that Andreja is quite a bit more than a mirthless mercenary.

Wow, a house! Well, I guess she’s got the cash for it so why not?

[Kane]

Great job of developing both Andreja and Annie Andromeda here. Andreja sees that Dro is more that just a complete combat rookie and has some serious brains and hacker skills. And Dro sees that Andreja is quite a bit more than a mirthless mercenary.

Wow, a house! Well, I guess she’s got the cash for it so why not?

They are going to have quite the friendship before long! And the house comes from my dislike of the outpost system and decorating in Starfield. I enjoyed it way more in Fallout 4

*****************

Twelve – A House Call

Villa Renault, Nesoi, Olympus System

If true bliss existed anywhere in the known universe, it still eluded Andromeda. Purchasing this home on Nesoi, however, certainly felt like a passable facsimile of bliss and that was more than enough for her. It had been just over ten days since her chartered spaceship landed outside, and she lugged her belongings inside to make this home her own. Unfortunately, Andromeda still didn’t own very many things, so that entire endeavor only took about thirty minutes.

But that first day was still young and the weather warm, so she donned her bathing suit and dove into her swimming pool to begin the first real vacation of her life. After a few laps in the cool water, Andromeda dried herself off and set to ordering food and beverages to stock her kitchen and wet bar with. The galactic shipping rates gave her a fair amount of heartburn, but she still had plenty of credits, and, as much as she’d like to stay there forever, Andromeda knew without a doubt that someone from Constellation would come calling before too long. Especially since Sarah refused to let her take The Frontier for more than three days.

And that someone, at just past one o’clock in the afternoon on the tenth day, arrived with the sound of ship thrusters roaring down into the clearing below her house. Andreja found her poolside only a few moments later, Andromeda’s midday nap now thoroughly ruined.

“This does not seem very productive, Annie.” Andreja frowned slightly at the sight of Andromeda laying poolside without her bikini top on. “Could you at least make yourself decent?”

“My house, my rules,” said Andromeda. “You’re welcome to join me if you’d like. I think you need a vacation almost as much as I did.”

“I do not understand how you can be content to lie there and do nothing. Surely you miss the work, yes? Or the rest of us back at The Lodge?”

Andromeda propped herself up on her elbows and stared at Andreja in disbelief. “Seriously? You think I miss getting shot at? Or touching strange Artifacts that yank me across the universe and make me lose consciousness? No, Andreja, I don’t ‘miss the work’ just yet. My life has been a [censored] show since I had to flee from Neon City, and this is the first time I’ve truly been able to relax and take care of myself in the last four months. Maybe ever.”

She laid back down with her eyes closed and waited for a response from Andreja, but it never came. Instead, she heard footsteps receding a minute or so later, and then their return five minutes after that. When she opened her eyes again, they found Andreja sitting in a nearby chair with two ice cold drinks on the table beside her, the crystal-clear glasses sweating in the warm air around them.

“Come sit with me,” said Andreja. “But please, cover your breasts before you do so.”

“Ugh, fine. Only because it’s you.” Andromeda sat up and grabbed the top she’d thrown to the side. After slipping it back on and tying the straps together, she joined Andreja for a drink. “Gin?”

“Vodka.”

“That works, too.” She clinked her glass against Andreja’s, took a sip, and then leaned back in her chair. “So, what brought this on?”

“It struck me that your plight is valid, and that I should not have judged your choice for some time away without understanding why you feel that you need it. I would like you to tell me more about yourself, Annie. We know so little about one another, and yet we have fought side-by-side, each of us depending on the other to keep them alive. Sarah has mentioned some of what brought you to us, but not all. I am curious as to what makes you tick, so to say. You are, much like myself, very different than the others in Constellation and I find that to be intriguing.”

Andromeda let out a long sigh while she debated internally on whether or not she wanted to get into all of that again. Despite how much her life had improved since fleeing from Bayu, the death of her best friend still cut deeply, and she didn’t know if she could talk about him again. At the same time, she was also flattered that Andreja considered her to be intriguing.

Sensing her hesitation, Andreja offered a way out that she didn’t end up taking. “I understand if you are not comfortable with that. We may simply enjoy our drinks in peace if that is easier for you.”

“I appreciate that, Andreja. But it’s fine. Talking about it is supposed to help, right? And I enjoy talking to you – have since we met.” She took a few more sips of her drink to imbue some liquid courage within herself before launching into the winding tale that had brought her all the way to Procyon III-a.

Andreja listened intently and never interrupted, sensing that her new friend getting it all out again would be important for her. For both of them, and the friendship they were building. Some parts of the story surprised her a great deal, but the reputation of Neon City Security did not, and Andreja was not at all surprised by what they had done to force Andromeda out of her home and put her on the run.

One hour (and three drinks) later, her tale wove its way to the present.

“Thank you for telling me all of that, Andromeda. I appreciate that you already trust me so.”

Andromeda shrugged lazily. “Better to hear it all at once instead of the bits and pieces everyone else has.” She set her empty glass clumsily down and shook her head in a vain attempt to clear it. “Um. How strong were those drinks?”

“I prefer doubles.”

“Noted.” Andromeda got clumsily to her feet and gestured around the small villa. “Make yourself at home, beautiful. I’m going to pass out on the couch.”

She shambled inside the house where the cool air eased away the warmth of her sun-kissed skin, tried to lay down on said couch, but slipped off with a resigned grunt, and settled for a nap on the area rug instead. Andreja followed right behind her but was not quick enough to keep her on the sofa.

“Oh, dear. I better see if there is a Junk Flush on The Frontier.” She grabbed a throw pillow and slid it under Andromeda’s head before dashing back to the ship to rummage through the first aid kit.

* * *

Three hours later, Andromeda came to with an all too familiar headache and was ready to devour a three-course meal. But first, she sat up on the floor and cradled her head in her hands. “Ugh. That’s the last time I let you fix the drinks,” she grumbled.

“I apologize,” said Andreja, who was seated on the couch Andromeda had missed. “I did not take into account the fact that you may not have eaten anything for lunch. There are some latkes for you resting on the kitchen table. Vladimir mentioned they were your favorite, and he shared his recipe with me before I came to find you. Please, help yourself.”

Andromeda stood up as quickly as she could manage without seeing stars, placed her hands on the side of Andreja’s head, and kissed her. “I forgive you.” And then she dashed off to the kitchen in search of a plate and silverware. She had just sat down to dig in when Andreja joined her across the table.

“Why did you do that?” she asked.

“Do what?”

“You know what you did, Andromeda. Why did you kiss me like that?”

“I dunno, really. But I’ve been told that I’m too forward sometimes.”

“Please do not do it again.”

Andreja flipped some latkes onto a plate of her own and departed from the kitchen. Andromeda ceased chewing on the deliciously crispy snack and focused on the back of her newest friend as she was walking out. For not having intentionally focused her empathic abilities up to this point, she found it surprisingly easy to do so. And she immediately regretted her actions after sensing the inner turmoil she’d caused Andreja. There were a lot of conflicting emotions at play within that mysterious woman.

Feeling a desperate and sudden need to make it right, Andromeda got up and followed her outside where Andreja had seated herself on a bench overlooking the surrounding green forest interspersed with vibrant purple trees.

“Andreja, I’m really sorry I did that without your permission. I didn’t mean anything by it, and it won’t happen again. I promise.”

“It is fine, do not trouble yourself about it,” said Andreja. “Noel warned me that you are sometimes overly affectionate. I should have heeded her word.”
“I can tell that it isn’t fine, but I’ll make it up to you.”

“How do you… Ah. Of course. Sarah told me of your knack for reading the emotions of others. I suppose I cannot fool you in this matter.”

“Believe me, Andreja, I wish you could.”

“I imagine it would be exhausting to constantly feel the emotions of those around you.”

“And sometimes, tragic,” sighed Andromeda.

There was little left to say on the matter, and so they both focused instead on eating in silence. Andreja finished her portion first and started perusing a pile of slates in a box at the base of the outdoor table. Most of them were meaningless information drops that Andromeda had collected on her adventures and needed to be consolidated. But the one that caught Andreja’s attention had also piqued Andromeda’s interest, brief as it was:

Loyal to your crew, I get it. But screw that. Beg, borrow, steal, kill to get to Denebola I-b. There is a Secret Outpost we're trying to crack. Once in a lifetime opportunity! You will regret it for the rest of your life if you don't get your ass over here.

“What do you make of this, Annie?”

“The secret outpost one? Dunno, really. It sounds like spacer drivel, but still… there is something about it that I just can’t shake. Nor is it something I can hope to undertake on my own, especially if more of those maniacs are heading to the Denebola System.”

“Perhaps we can visit this place together? It could be an excellent opportunity for me to teach you sound defensive practices, and perhaps a better way to approach combat.”

Andromeda thought about it for a few moments. She didn’t know where exactly Denebola was in the galaxy, but it can’t be too far if spacers at Luna might have been actively seeking whatever score they were trying to crack at the outpost. And she felt it might be fun to go check it out with Andreja.

Fun? What the hell is happening to me?

The answer to that question, obviously, was Andreja herself.

“What do you think?” asked Andreja. “Would you feel up to some field training?”

“Uh. Sure. We can do that.”

“Very well. Gather your belongings and I will prepare the ship for takeoff.”

“Wait, we’re leaving now? Andreja, you drank me under the table and I feel like [censored]! Can’t we leave in the morning instead?”

It took her a few anxious seconds to mull it over, but Andreja did relent. However, she was utterly uninterested in lounging around the house for the rest of the day, and she insisted that they take some time to practice using Andromeda’s weapon, and how to properly maintain it. She set up a shooting range target near The Frontier and taught Andromeda the intricacies of using a ranged weapon, and she wouldn’t let her go back up to the house until all her rounds consistently hit the target at center mass.

“You drifted down that time,” Andreja noted. She lifted the Beowulf with one hand and used the other to steady Andromeda’s trigger grip. “Breathe in, and the exhale slowly when you squeeze the trigger. It will become second nature before long.”

Andromeda glanced sideways at her and lost focus. The hazel eyes of her mentor were staring back at her expectantly as she waited for Andromeda to take the shot. “Ya know, you have these little flecks of green in -”

“Focus, Annie. Take the shot so that we may retire ahead of the setting sun.”

“Right. Sorry.” Andromeda breathed in deeply. Then she exhaled and a bullet flew forth and struck the target dead center.”

“Excellent! You should have no trouble with our enemies at his rate. When we get to our destination I will teach you how to move around quietly so that they will not hear us, either. Your short frame will lend itself well to that endeavor.”

“Hey! I’m not that short!”

“How tall are you? 1.6 meters?”

“...1.5.”

“And I am 1.8 meters tall. You are a dwarf in comparison.”

“You’re lucky your cute,” muttered Andromeda.

“What was that?”

“Nothing. C’mon, let’s head back up. I’m starving.”

They went back up to the house together, but this time it was Andromeda who cooked an evening meal while Andreja nursed a hot tea at the kitchen table and spoke of her time in Constellation. As it turned out, she’d only been a member for about six months. Andromeda had a hard time wrapping her around things like that. Six months ago, she was living carefree in Neon, partying with her friends at night, and stealing from rich assholes during the day. And now she owned her own home on a beautiful planet, and had become enlisted in a renowned organization of explorers who felt they were on the trail of humanity’s greatest mystery yet.

It still made her head spin, which is why she requested another drink from Andreja. A double, naturally.