While they waited for Porter to finish inspecting his ship, Gareth and Yulia were chatting about a show named Food Around Orion. Valorie hadn’t heard of it before, but listening to them talk put her at ease. Valorie noted that Kurt was back to full attention, bordering on apprehensive. She stole a glance at him and saw that his focus was on Gareth as he listened intently.

Partway through his walk around, Porter noticed Gareth and rejoined their group.

“Captain Hughes, it is good to see you again. I see the transfer of my ship went well.” Porter fixed his glasses as he spoke.

“I oversaw the matter myself. I’m glad you find it satisfactory.” Gareth said. His distress from earlier was gone, and Valorie sensed his excitement. The change brightened Valorie’s mood.

“It is good that I have the lifeboat to return home with.” Porter sighed, his eyes grew tired as he spoke. “The one thing my colleagues hate the most is lost research.” He continued.

“With a limited budget, any setback must hit twice as hard,” Gareth said, and Porter nodded. “But we still have more to recover. The ship won’t be the only thing you bring home.” The strength in his voice stirred up the doctor’s hope, clearing the miasma around him. Valorie got a better sense of Porter’s light. Erratic, impatient, and so very bright.

“Good, very good,” Porter said.

“Wait, so this thing is a lifeboat?” Yulia asked.

“Well, yes. Painted, programmed, and tuned for camouflage. The smallest ship capable of jump travel.” Dr. Porter said. There was a note of pride in his voice, and it bloomed further as Yulia’s jaw dropped.

“And it can jump? Really?” Yulia asked, moving to walk alongside the spacecraft. Porter moved to follow her.

“This is the second iteration. It can not yet open a path into the space between, but it is capable of reaching the necessary speeds. It can also withstand the pressure in the space between.” The way Porter spoke made it clear he had explained this many times. It reminded Valorie of her trainers in the SCT program. Except Porter’s voice was more gentle. But the truth was most voices were more gentle than those trainers.

Yulia touched the side of the ship, eyes wide with excitement.

“With engines like those, I hope so. Oh man, I wanna have a look inside.” She grinned, still ahead of Porter as she studied the back. Porter frowned.

“Ah, well, technically, you are breaking confidentiality simply by looking at it. Going inside is, uh -” He said, realizing his mistake. That miasma began to swirl again. While they talked, Kurt stepped closer to Gareth.

“Captain,” He said getting Gareth’s attention. “I wanted to say, I truly appreciate your consideration regarding my application.” He said. His tone reflected his respect. Gareth smiled at him.

“Your resume was quite promising. I hope you will enjoy working on the Helianthus.” He said.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

“You mentioned your interest in working with the Database. I have to say, you’ve impressed me. Here we are, already working alongside one of their famous researchers.” Kurt’s hands moved as he spoke, accenting his points. One of Gareth’s eyebrows went up, but his smile grew with his excitement. His mood was a stark contrast to earlier in the day. Valorie remembered her interview with him and his wish for deep space exploration. Working with Porter might be why his mood had improved.

“Yes, it is a fantastic opportunity,” Gareth said. There was a light in his eyes that Valorie saw only once before. He had been talking about exploring back then, too.

“I’m excited to add my contribution. Working with someone of your caliber, I can not wait to show you what I am capable of.” Kurt followed his praise with a question about Gareth’s expectations. Their conversation had a smooth flow. Valorie felt that little angry twist in her chest again. She had felt it before watching her coworkers’ excited talk over a meal. Such a little thing was easy to ignore on the Anderson, but it was different this time. It cut deeper. She felt silly even thinking about it.

Porter approached Gareth, having given up on chasing Yulia. He straightened his jacket as he spoke.

“You have a very curious, very energetic pilot there, Captain.” He wiped his sweaty palm on his pant leg.

“She keeps things lively,” Gareth said before calling Yulia back. Without hesitating, she came right over, a grin on her face. She stopped by Valorie, giving her a quick pat on the shoulder as she did. Surprised out of her thoughts, Valorie looked up to her, but Yulia was already facing the Captain.

“That thing’s so cool, Captain,” Yulia said, catching her breath. “Wish I could try flyin’ it.” She added, resting one hand on her hip.

“It is quite the feat in design,” Gareth said before shifting her attention to Porter. “I can vouch that Dr. Porter is who he says he is.”

“After listening to him talk about that ship, I could verify he’s Dr. Porter, I bet.” She said with a laugh. “Are you guys all ready to see your rooms?” She asked looking from Porter to Kurt.

“Yes, thank you, Ms. Durand.” Porter bowed his head. She bowed in response and grinned.

“Alright, this way.” She patted Valorie’s back before leading the way. Valorie could pick up direct thoughts from physical contact. This time it revealed that Yulia was worried about Valorie’s distant behavior. That Yulia was planning to ask about it later. It seemed a little ominous but Yulia’s kindness pushed against the darker feelings. Valorie breathed in and prepared to follow after Porter.

“Valorie.” The Captain’s voice got her attention, “What do you think of them?” He asked once the group was out of earshot. She blinked, looking to the floor as she tried to think of some response. “Anything is fine, I want to know what kind of impression they gave you.” His voice was gentle. She sensed he was curious, working out a puzzle in his head.

“Dr. Porter is hard to understand and very worried. It put me a little on edge.” She picked her words carefully, “But he seems knowledgeable and polite.” She met Gareth’s eyes.

“And Kurt?” His tone was light. She had a lot of feelings about Kurt, but most seemed like an overreaction now. Gareth wanted her to act with honesty. She sighed.

“He is different based on who he speaks to,” She said. Gareth nodded, a knowing look in his eye. His curiosity wasn’t satisfied, so Valorie continued. “He is still friendly, despite his feelings.” She said. Gareth breathed a short laugh, the puzzle in his mind snapping together.

“Thank you, that helps.” He turned away, facing the bay exit the group had left through. “You should catch up and stick with Yulia for now. Have a good rest tonight.” He said. She thanked him and left, hurrying to catch up. She could sense the group ahead, it wouldn’t be hard to meet up. She used that same sense to watch the Captain’s light travel across the bay into the engineering offices.

What puzzle had he worked out? It had to be about one of the newcomers. Judging by her answers, it was something about Kurt. Valorie tried to guess what it could be, but she came up blank. Considering Gareth’s lighthearted response to her review, it couldn’t be anything too bad. I’ll just have to keep a closer eye on Kurt, she thought running to catch up with the group.