She woke with dread like a stone in the pit of her stomach and nausea that was hot and acidic in the back of her throat. With eyes closed tight and head buried in her pillow, she swallowed once, then twice, and pushed it down. She took a deep breath and rolled onto her back, careful not to roll off the bunk. She counted up and back down again until she felt like she was in control of her stomach.

The ship cut through the small white-capped rolls down along the water's surface, waves crashing as it drove. It created a constant noise that mixed into the almost vibrating hum of the engines below. The hull of the ship whined and groaned while the sea pushed and shoved and rocked, throwing its dark, reaching, hands up trying to drag the beast down. A hovercraft did not belong in the sea, and the sea knew it.

That's how Mezalie felt about it anyway.

She knew, logically, that the ship was sound for seafaring. Her Pod’s tevenise vapor-engine craft was exceptionally well maintained and had almost never had a leak or a downed engine while at sea despite it being practically ancient. She should know, since she spent an almost equal amount of time down in the engines as she did topside tending to the crops they grew on the upper decks. The knowledge, however, didn't stop her gut from protesting the ever-present rocking.

Five quick taps on her door told her that she’d already slept past what was politely late. She groaned out a miserable, ‘I’m up’, before she scooted to the edge of her bunk and swung her legs down to sit up. She took her time to stretch, twisting and shaking out the sleep from her body and her mind. The soft, plush rug she’d gotten at a bazaar in Voledesen, soltzets ago now, was still such a welcome barrier between her and the shock of the cold floor. A tap with the back of her heel and the compartment below her bunk popped open producing a variety of things including her worn-in, arcter fiber socks. The chill the metal ship took on in water was something she never really shook, no matter how many luel they were out to sea.

She pulled a blanket from her bed and huddled it around her shoulders before shuffling the short steps to her closet, secured and built into the ship like everything else on a TVE, and like her drawer, it popped open with a small push. Everything was designed to not open accidentally when travel became turbulent, whether it was land or sea.

There wasn't much space, in terms of both the room and her closet space but she managed to cram a great many things into it anyway. The closet was full of shoes and slippers, belts and beads and scarves and everything between on hooks and in bags, all packed as tightly as she could get it. Any clothing that fit on a hanger was hung and what didn't fit was secured in the drawer below her bed.

What her tiny bunk room didn’t have in furnishings she made up for in decor. The cold, drab walls were covered in faded, grainy photos of places and people across the world. There were flyers for shows she’d caught in towns they’d stopped in and posters for festivals in a variety of languages. There were no windows on the level her room was on and the beauty and fun she decorated her room with reminded her that driev like this were worth it.

She gripped the edge of the closet door and considered her options as she gently swayed in place. She felt…kind of awful, if she was being honest. The rocking of the ship the last several driev was getting to her and she spent less time sleeping and more time curled up trying not to puke. She picked a soft, comforting t-shirt that she could layer with a sweater and pulled on a thick pair of pants. She was on deck first-thing and while the greenhouse was warm, the outer beds were much chillier. She wasn't interested in being nauseated and cold. She grabbed her work boots from where they’d slid into the corner by the door while she had her nap and shoved her feet in.

The door to her room swung itself shut behind her with a gentle hiss and a click. The hall was empty, which she’d somewhat expected, and she padded as softly as she could so as not to disturb the silence. She found, as she often did, that her footsteps began to sync up with the rhythmic beating of the engines on the deck just below. The consistent beat was nice, a mechanical heartbeat she could rely on to keep her grounded when she’d been at sea too long.

The weather had been good. The water was mostly calm and the sky was mostly cloudless. They’d moved through two small storms, which she’d spent most of in her room or down in the engines with a bin nearby, but otherwise it had been rather nice all things considered. It felt a little unfair that her stomach was so uneasy despite optimal conditions.

The lights that dotted up and down the hall were dim, on the nente cycle; the ones that lit the staircases were brighter. As she ascended there were windows on the higher decks, though there was little light for them to let in yet. The sky ahead of them was completely dark still, the horizon a deep purple that was hard to distinguish from the dark water rising up to meet it. When she reached the top deck she could see the whole of the sky as Sol crept over the horizon in the wake of the ship.

They’d stopped to rig the TVE for seafaring on the coast of Syskel as Sol had begun waning overhead, continuing its annual crawl through the sky. They’d made great time across the Folbenx Sea though so they’d come out well ahead of the light as they approached Arlenasch. Behind them a violent pink threatened to turn to red as Sol rose slowly, steadily over the sea behind them.

Sol Ahran Pods spent their entire time traveling just ahead of, or in the wake of Sol and Mezalie never got tired of the way the colors of the sky blended together in places like this. It was something to look forward to even when they were at sea. Ahraan, the smaller of the two moons, was just beginning to make its transit across the sky while the larger, ringed, moon would not be seen for another several driev.

She was on late shifts, when most everyone else in the Pod was sleeping. During the sailing portion of their travels it was possible to keep a minimum number of people active on the sleep cycle. It was quiet on deck, just the sounds of the waves crashing below and the wind whistling by as they went. It felt eerie, like she was all alone in the world sometimes and she desperately wished for the background chatter of people living their lives around her. She felt a shiver run down her spine and she took the steps up to the second deck two at a time until she could drag herself up the ladder to the roost.

Pidka no doubt heard her coming if he hadn't also expected her. She was a creature of habit afterall. Even so he kept his nose crammed in his book, a reading light swaying on the hook above him as she pulled herself up onto the platform. The single chair that sat upon the platform was pushed off to the side against the railing, blocking at least some of the wind. The thin cushion had been moved and Pidka sat curled upon it, back to the chair to block some of the wind, with several thick blankets tucked tight around himself.

The wind was worse up here, whipping her hair around her face, but the comfort of a familiar face was worth it. She didn't have to say a word as she approached, his arm automatically came out for her to nestle herself under. She curled into the warmth as she pulled the heavy comforter up to her shoulders.

"Rough one?" He asked, squishing her into his side to reach over and turn a page. She nodded into what was essentially his armpit.

"It's not even choppy out here or anything." She complained.

"You tried eating anything yet?" He asked, marking his place and finally setting the book aside. He looked over at her, even in the low light he saw the dark spots developing under her eyes from too much time at sea.

"Not yet. I just got up." She punctuated with a yawn. He shifted them both to the side as he reached around behind him. She heard something solid scrape along the floorboards and suddenly the arm wrapped around her was retracted but a dish was produced instead so she couldn’t be mad about it. She pushed the blanket down just enough so she could select a bun from the ceramic dish, still warm enough to give off a bit of radiant heat as her hand drew near. She stuffed one in her mouth and grabbed a second for good measure before the dish was retracted. She mumbled a barely intelligible thanks as she chewed.

“Thought you might not be joining us. I saw Klia go down that way a few times.” He said around his own bite as she groaned and sank further into the blanket.

“She’s obsessed with me, Pidka.” She complained.

“She’s our sister, Mez. She needed family and she took a leap of faith in joining the Pod. She’s trying to make friends.” Pidka reminded her. “And she’s excited.” He laughed as a gust of wind blew her hair into her face again as she was trying to take another bite.

“Nobody should be excited to-” she batted at the hair in her face, “nobody except you should be excited to do nente a mor.”

“You used to be.” He shrugged.

“Yeah because I was young and everything was exciting then,” she countered. He simply gave her a look and waited. The light hanging overhead cast long, swaying shadows over both of them as she narrowed her eyes back at him for a tes before finally breaking.

“Fiiiine,” she relented. “I see your point.” She rolled her eyes and stuffed the other bun in her mouth.

“She looks up to you. And she’s taking on a lot and it’s all new. You’re not that old, you remember.” He nudged her gently with his elbow and she elbowed him right back.

“I know you’re right and I hate it.” She huffed as she untangled herself from the blankets. She reached a hand out and steadied herself on the arm of the chair above them as she hauled herself up. Pidka moved to reach for his book.

“Have fun.” He bid her as she lowered herself over the side and down the ladder. At the last moment she stuck her hand back up over the edge to send him a rude gesture and his laughter trickled down after her as she went.

With food in her stomach and almost pleasant company, she did feel better than when she woke. She made her way from the front of the TVE to where the greenhouses sat near the other end. The level one greenhouse was internal and housed flora that needed Sol-light to bloom. There, they were able to use lighting and heat vents from the engines to control blooms throughout their travels, no matter where they were or where Sol was overhead.

She stuck her head inside and was relieved to find the familiar puff of curls bopping between rows of plants. The air smelled damp and warm and felt slightly sticky on her face as she entered. She could see the trails of water zig-zagging along the floors where the hoses had been flung back and forth and they led right up to Klia, hose in hand. As she got close Mezalie heard the quiet humming of a familiar tune and instead of announcing herself she chose to simply join in, humming along in tune with the younger woman as she stepped up behind her.

“Mez!” Klia perked up instantly at the addition and swung around, the hose spray going wide around her as she did. Mezalie had done that enough times to know better and was comfortably out of hosing-range. “I’m so sorry!” Klia cringed, redirecting the business end of the hose back into a bed. Mez motioned to herself.

“I’m still dry, no harm done.” She assured the younger woman. She offered a smile and stepped closer now that the threat of being soaked had passed. “Besides I deserve it for leaving you to work by yourself.” She leaned in and stuck a finger knuckle-deep into the soil of the bed being watered. Deciding that it was good enough she tugged the hose down to the next area with Klia running back to drag more slack around the bends.

“It’s okay. I couldn’t really sleep anyway. Switching my sleep cycle has been weird.” Klia called over the plants as she rejoined her. Mezalie reached up to dead-head the tallest plants that the others couldn’t reach. The tallest fruiting flowers would grow to the ceiling of the greenhouse and could grow much taller out on the seasonal deck.

“You seem to be adapting okay at least.” Mez smiled at her as she turned and dumped the plant detritus into the basket Klia had clearly been doing her own dead-heading into. “Already much better at sea-faring than I’ve ever been.”

“Aw, that's not fair. You can’t help that though.” Klia was quick to defend her. “Some people are just prone to seasickness. Plus,” she paused to heft the basket up onto her hip and take it to the end of the next row as they worked their way down. “I grew up on the coast, I’ve been on lots of little boats and they’re way worse than any TVE.”

“I suppose that’s a good point.” She heaved the hose down again. Klia had done most of the greenhouse before Mez had joined her, leaving just a few more rows for them to tackle. For several tes they were quiet, the sounds of steam hissing up through vents rhythmically every few moments accompanied by the sound of a heavy flowerhead softly thumping into the basket as the two girls worked, Mezalie pretended not to notice that Klia would often peek over at her and on several occasions opened her mouth as if to say something but at the very last moment decided against it. She could feel the nervousness radiating off the girl and she reminded herself that what Pidka said was right.

Joining a pod on your own was difficult at the best of times. Most folks nowadays were good about it but there were still those few in every Pod that felt that brietts needed to prove themselves before being completely accepted. Even without that though, leaving behind everything you know for constant change and new challenges daily was a whole other thing.

Around the time they were finishing up the last bed Mezalie had started forming an idea in her mind. Klia was younger, but not as young as Mezalie liked to act like she was. It had just been a long time since they’d had a new baby in the family and Klia was younger than the rest of them so it felt nice to be the big sister. She flipped the switch on the hose-head to stop the flow and turned to Klia with what she hoped was a conspiratorial grin.

“Hey, hear me out,” she started, “once we’re done with the upper deck how about we split a bottle of binent up in the farisses garden?” The flowers in question were in bloom presently and they smelled amazing; sweet and so, so, fresh. She raised an eyebrow as she saw a smile creep onto Klia’s face. Mez was a little startled to recognize her own smile in the tilt of the other girls’ lips. Klia shifted her eyes a bit, not quite meeting Mez’s.

“Sooo…What if I told you I’d already done the top deck?” Mez could see the deep reddish tinge that the tips of the girls' ears took on where they just peeked out of her hair. Mezalie dropped her jaw.

“Shut up, you did not.” She hissed but there was no venom in it. Klia covered her face with her hands, peeking out from between fingers.

“I told you I’ve had a hard time sleeping! I figured starting a bit early couldn’t hurt and then I thought you were feeling too ill so I said ‘Well might as well get it done’ so…” She paused for a breath, finally removing her hands and meeting Mezalie’s eyes. “Yeah. I already did it.” She looked a bit sheepish still but the nervous energy had shifted at least.

Mez barked out a laugh, coiling the hose around her arm and walking past Klia to continue winding it back up.

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“Well, then let’s go rinse up and we’ll just have the drink before I have to go down to the engines?” She turned to look back and Klia hefted the dead-head basket onto her hip and followed after her.

“Sounds great.” She smiled and Mez felt that nervous energy drain away at last. She hadn’t even really realized that she’d been treating Klia as an outsider this whole time and she felt rather guilty about it. Drinking wasn’t necessarily the best remedy for closeness but Mez found that it often helped her greatly in breaking down the walls between herself and other people.

They parted ways by the greenhouse door; Mezalie setting out to find a bottle of binent she’d stashed away and Klia on her own mission to gather two glasses, and possibly a snack, she’d proclaimed.

“Lir mido.” She called out as she hurried down the steps she’d come from, an affirmative and a similar call coming from Klia as she went. As she rounded the deck and the roost came into view again she let out a long, high, whistle once, then twice before she saw Pidka’s head poke up over the side.

“Gonna have binent up in the garden.” She called, not too loud because despite the wind and the crashing of waves below it still felt odd to disrupt the silence of the nente even though she knew nobody below deck could hear them. She saw Pidka give her a thumbs up before disappearing back below the edge that she could see. It was unclear if that just meant he heard her or that he would be joining them but that was simply how Pidka was. Either was fine with her, so she continued on with her task of retrieving the drink.

She took the stairs back down the way she’d come up, making a detour all the way down to her room for a blanket which she draped over her shoulders like a cape. She ascended the stairs once more to check several pantries looking for the specific bottle she wanted. She didn’t find it in the first or second, which surprised her, and she resigned herself to checking the next level up.

When she finally made it up the steps to the top deck she wasn’t surprised to find Klia had beat her there. She was overjoyed to see the girl had brought another blanket in addition to the goblets and what Mez assumed must be a loaf of bread wrapped in waxed cloth.

Mez came bearing not one but two bottles of dark sweet wine, both her favorites but with very different tastes. She plopped herself down next to Klia on a soft curled grass patch in the center of the garden. It was the best place to watch the Sol rise or even watch the moons transit across the sky as they sailed for luel on end. It kept time from feeling endless without another solid landmark for as far as one could see.

She held both bottles up for the girl to see, letting her choose. She popped the cork on the chosen bottle, taking one goblet from Klia and pouring a sizable amount before presenting it to the other girl.

“More? Less?” She asked. Klia indicated for a bit more and Mez smirked at her. “Oh you surely are our ana’s daughter.” Klia took the goblet with a laugh and Mezalie poured her own.

“There wasn’t much to do on a small island but fish and there isn’t much to do when you fish but drink.” Klia shrugged, taking a swig from her drink. Mezalie took a long drink of her own glass and lay back in the grass, resting the butt of her glass on her sternum. She let the warmth of the wine settle in her stomach, the sweetness leftover on her tongue a good contrast to the subtle heat.

“You smile like her too.” Mezalie finally said.

“Oh I’ve been told.” Klia grimaced just the tiniest bit. “Everyone back home told me how much I looked like ana,” she directed her eyes to Mezalie’s face. “But if they could see you they’d know a more accurate copy exists.” They both laughed. Mez knew she looked like their mother.

“When I was little, everyone used to call me her mirror,” she huffed. “There goes bida Erid’”. She made a funny little running motion with her fingers in the air. “It was a little annoying when people continued to accidentally call me Erid as the Solcen passed though.” She narrowed her eyes at the thought. Klia pulled her knees up to her chest, balancing her goblet on one knee as she nursed it. She had pulled her own blanket up over her shoulders, however she wasn’t quite as bundled up as Mez was in her own blanket.

The wind really wasn’t so bad in the open garden as one might expect. They had a considerable amount of permanent hearty bushes, some were nuts, some berries, at the front end and even a couple of medium trees who's root systems could be safely maintained. The garden was raised at the front end, sloping down just slightly toward the back, both for irrigation and to minimize wind on the smaller more delicate plants at the back.

“Did it bother you when ana stayed behind?” Klia’s voice was low, Mez could tell she was trying to be careful in asking this question.

“Not really.” Mez shrugged, taking another long sip. “I was a very independent child so by the time she hopped off I was already mostly doing my own thing.”

“But you’re close with Pidka?” Klia asked.

“That guy? Psh.” Mez rolled her eyes but she was smiling the whole time. “I guess so.”

“I don’t think he likes me.” Klia said in a quiet rush. She winced as she peeked over to gauge Mezalie’s reaction. She wasn't expecting the other girl to burst out laughing, spilling a drop or two of wine before sitting up to steady herself again.

“Oh no. Pidka is just like that, I promise. He likes you just fine.” Mez assured her but she still saw a small fear on the other girl's face. Maybe not fear, maybe vulnerability. She waited as Klia chose her next words.

“And you?” Two simple words was what she finally settled on. Klia was looking into the bottom of her goblet instead of anywhere near her. Mez reached behind herself to place her goblet safely out of the way before scooting over the small space to wrap her arms around the smaller girl. It was somewhat awkward with Klia holding her own glass so she unwrapped her long enough to take the cup and place it near her own.

“I like you just fine too. We’re family.” Mezalie said finally once she’d sufficiently wrapped Klia in the best ‘big sister hug’ she could manage. “I’m excited to have you in the Pod. Now I’ve got someone else to help me bully Pidka besides the children.” She felt Klia’s laugh as it shook her.

They finished the first bottle of wine and half the bread together and elected not to open the second in favor of simply savoring the light buzz while they compared growing up on the TVE versus staying in a single place. Klia complained about the fishy smell that clung to everything you had when you worked on the docks, and how when she realized she’d stopped smelling it that it was time to leave.

“I have a confession.” Mezalie said some time later, when Ahraan was creeping up in the sky and it transitioned from being Late to Early, the sky became a warm lavender as the soft blue light of the moon reflected back at them through the atmosphere. Klia turned her head to look at her. They’d taken to both laying back in the grass, watching as the sky turned. “I’ve been considering stopping off in Arlenasch when we land.” She admitted.

“That makes sense for you, I think.” Klia answered back. It was nice, Mez thought, that Klia wasn’t a born Solhaaran and there was no judgment in her voice when she said it. She really didn’t see a negative to the alternative lifestyle, she’d lived it.

“Yeah?” Mez asked, intrigued.

“Yeah. I mean, you grew up on a TVE. You’ve traveled with the Pod your whole life. It makes sense that you might want to try something else.” Klia reasoned, and it sounded so simple when she said it. Like it was just that easy.

“You’re extremely brave.” Mez said in response, to which Klia laughed.

“I don’t know if I’d call it brave or desperate,” Klia reached her arms above her head, stretching. “There wasn’t anything for me back home but fishing and I’ll tell you this secret-” She leaned close, bringing her hand up to her mouth to whisper her secret. “I kind of hated fishing.” They both laughed.

“And I can’t imagine you love seafaring-” Mezalie turned her head to the side to mock-retch into the grass. “And given that about half of Solaahran travel is on the water I honestly can’t believe you made it this long.” Klia’s reasoning was not only sound but spot on.

“Admittedly I have been thinking about it for a while now,” she admitted.

“Ana did it.” Klia pointed out. “And she was pretty happy with her choice. And if you hate it it’s not like you couldn’t come back, you know?”

“By the gods you’re more like Pidka than I could have guessed. So logical.” As they laughed together the sound of a high whistle blew somewhere past the garden followed by the melodic sounds of bells, still audible over the wind and their laughter. Mezalie pushed herself upright, reaching her arms high above her head in a stretch.

“Guess it’s back into the belly of the beast for me.” She joked as she helped Klia gather their things up before setting back towards the front of the garden.

“I’ll miss you if you do end up leaving.” Just before they reached the steps Klia spoke up. “But you should think about it. We must be coming up on landfall soon.”

Mezalie made a show of acting like she was thinking hard, she rolled her eyes, pursed her lips, rolled her shoulders.

“I guess I’ll think about it.” She said finally.

As they came down onto the main deck it was no longer empty and dim. The lights that dotted along the deck had brightened and several larger overhead lights posted up had come on to better illuminate the deck as the first few people made it on deck bright-eyed and awake. Mez and Klia waved to most and stopped for pleasantries as they passed the elders headed for the garden themselves for their first hot cups of navaroot.

Unbeknownst to Klia, Mez was headed straight back for the roost. She was delighted when they rounded the corner and Pidka was still standing at the base having a chat with Drenna before they swapped roles. She waved to catch his attention and they both turned to the two girls as they came to join them.

“Kol driev!” Drenna called out as they approached. She was always in such a good mood it was rather contagious.

“Kol driev.” Mez repeated back with a smile. Drenna was a tiny thing, especially standing next to the three of them. All three had gotten Erid’s height and stature, even if Klia had a slighter, more delicate frame. Mez tipped her head in Klia’s direction.

“I’m down in engines for a bit,” she started, looking to Drenna. “I was wondering if you might like some company?” The other woman was the perfect candidate she thought, friendly and outgoing, to get Klia to branch out and get comfortable with the others. Sure enough, Mez saw her face light up, her smile somehow brightening.

“Oh of course!” She wasted absolutely no time at all in reaching over to take Klia’s hand. “I love company in the roost. It’s so boring all alone up there all the time.” She gave a pointed look at Pidka who, Mezalie’s short visits aside, spent his shifts alone. Her dramatics could be a bit much for Mezalie but Klia seemed perfectly enchanted.

Mezalie quietly excused herself from the group as Drenna and Pidka tussled over the benefits of company. She gave a little wave to Klia as she headed back down toward the main stairs. Down, down, down she went to the lower deck, below the last sleeping quarter level where her own bunk was. There was a single living quarter on the engine deck for the engine master though hardly anyone ever actually stayed there anymore. The noise of the engines and the vibrations of an ancient, pre-war, ship like theirs would rattle anyone down to their last nerve.

She pulled the door open to the entryway into the main engine cabin. Inside the noise was deafening and she hooked a pair of earmuffs securely over her ears, blocking out the worst of it. She shed her heavy sweater and hung it near the door with a single other jacket. At the end of the small room was an open closet full of loose zip-up suits made of stiff, thick fabrics. She clunkily pulled one on over her clothes, hearing the scratchy fabric scrape across itself.

The cuffs of the suit were covered in a sooty blackness, as were several other places, whether from a dark greasy oil or charring it was hard to tell. She tucked the suit over the tops of her work books. Finally she pulled a pair of gloves on and tucked the cuffs of her suit down into them. When she dragged the heavy inner door open the heat hit her like a wall. It was enough to take a person’s breath away and made it hard to take that first breath, like swallowing fire.

Mezalie took a strong, deep breath in and relaxed for the first time since she’d awoken. Even through the suit the heat warmed her to her core and she felt well in a way she otherwise didn’t when Sol was far from overhead. Like the overwhelming majority of Solahrans, Mezalie possessed a fire fen, like her ana and hers before that. It was said the fire in their blood is what drew the first Solahrans to follow Sol around the world in a never-ending voyage to bask in the warmth and the light. During their longest sailing, across the Folbenx Sea, Mez enjoyed spending her time in the engines, letting the heat ease her chilled bones.

The door opened to the first engine, a massive central casing with a dozen enormous pistons pumping in time. The entire room rattled along in time with their firing. It was a familiar tune that she knew well. As she crossed the room she heard a whining sound and was unsurprised when she picked up the task list for the shift that there was a belt marked as needing attention.

She made herself busy attending to belts and checking pressure gauges. She crossed off tasks left for her and marked down new ones as needed. By the time she was ready to head into the second engine her hair was damp and sticking to her forehead where it sat. She ran the back of her arm over her face again, no doubt leaving behind a grime.

The second engine room was still hot but significantly cooler in comparison to the inferno that was the first. It was similar in build to the first however the pistons on this one ran much slower as did most of the components. In a similar fashion it needed much less attention, working at a much more leisurely pace. She was able to knock out the entire task list, all two items, in barely any time at all. She was able to spend the rest of her time on thorough cleaning, part of the upkeep she did often. Vell drilled into everyone that the best way to avoid greasy grime on everything was to not let it build up in the first place. Not everyone was as dedicated to the procedure as Vell was but Mez liked to think she did a pretty good job.

She was thankful for the ease of her day. While she really was feeling better than she had when she woke, time at sea really did wear her down. Nearing the end of their trip made her yearn for solid ground even more, knowing they were so close. She thought about what Klia had said as she sprayed a degreaser into a small crevice before jamming a cloth in to wipe it away. The cloth came out with minimal residue and she moved on. She thanked the gods she only had to do engine two, of the four.

It really was a miracle that she’d lasted as long as she had in the Pod. She delighted in the travel aboard the TVE. She’d seen so much of the world in broad strokes as they went along but she’d never explored as much of those places as she wanted. When Erid had chosen not to continue on with the Pod all those solcen ago it had seemed like such a foreign decision to Mez. Her whole family, her whole community, was on the ship. The idea of starting over somewhere new with nobody was something she had a hard time thinking of without making herself feel a little bit ill. She moved methodically from one end of the enormous engine to the other.

Klia had done it though, she reminded herself. And Klia was younger than her, though she seemed a fair bit more outgoing than Mez herself felt in most situations. It wasn’t that she had a hard time with people or anything. She preferred company to alone time unlike Pidka but she often found herself struggling to initiate, struggling to consistently reach out.

She had a pile of somewhat grimy rags at her feet when she was done. She was no longer sweaty but she felt thoroughly warmed from her fingers to her toes all the rest of the way in between. She gathered the rags together and piled them into the cloth bag that sat on the floor just inside the utility closet door. The bag was rather full at the end and she elected that it was time to bring it up for washing. She hefted the bag up over her shoulder and brought it with her back through the scorching heat of the first engine room where she shed her suit and gloves. Those went back where they came from.

With her sweater donned she nudged the wash with her foot back out the door and into the hall, hauling the engine room door solidly closed behind her. She adjusted and settled back into her sweater as the chill of the hall tried to spread its icy fingers along her skin where she’d sweat along the back of her neck. She was about to heft the bag back up when she paused, straightening as she looked down the hall, to the end.

She pushed the wash bag up against the door to come back for on her way out. She instead found herself making her way to the door for the number three and four engines and pushing the door open to a dark room. This room did not have an oppressive heat wave nor was it quite as loud as the mechanical engines. The lights blinked to life as she entered, roused by her movement. The room was alive with the buzzing of hundreds of fans, all whirring to life at their own pace dependent on what bank of tech they were cooling. Along each wall were rows upon rows of power banks, masses of cords protruding to connect them all to each other. A third row in the center split the room in two all the way to the end, creating a loop of sorts. There was only a single monitor connected to the wall at the front of the room near the door, the contents of which were of no concern to her.

“Who’s ‘at?” A voice called out from somewhere deeper in the room. Mez made her way down the side of the corridor the voice seemed to have come from. She almost walked right past Vell when she did finally find the other woman. Mez stooped down to peer under the counter that Vell was presently wedged beneath. She’d removed a large panel in the siding and had crawled into the guts of the engine. She had a small square light box wedged up between her and the wall and a cable between her teeth with a mess of others around her. She was methodically swapping ends of some cables for others that looked no different to Mezalie.

“You look busy,” she said.

“I’m always busy.” Vell answered, swapping another end, absentmindedly placing another cable between her teeth as she ran out of hands. Mezalie dropped into a sit at the mouth of the cave Vell had created. She watched the woman work, checking small fuses and plugging and unplugging before checking a small device for a readout. Thus far it hadn’t given a read out that Vell had liked since she continued her guess and check procedure. The floor was cold, even through her pants and a chill tickled up her spine. Mez hugged her knees to her chest, throwing her arms around them.

“I think I might want to stay behind in Arlenasch this Soltzet.” She finally offered up. Vell paused to look at her, met her eyes, saw the set of her jaw and the way she sat, before she spoke again.

“Why don’t you tell me about it then.” She said finally, not unkindly. She leaned back into her task, flicking her eyes back to Mezalie in a show that she was still listening. Mezalie took a deep breath and released a sigh.

“It’s not just the seasickness, to be clear.” She started. “But that’s certainly part of it.” She placed her forehead against her knees, gathering her thoughts.

“I’m having this dream... I’m in a big open field but I can’t see anything past the edge of this fog.” She closed her eyes, imagining it. “But I’m not alone. There's something or someone else beyond the fog, I can sense it somehow. But no matter how fast or how far I run I never get past it but I know I need to. Whatever is past the fog is so important but I also feel afraid of the unknown of it.” Vell is nodding along as she tells her story.

“I think maybe I need to go find myself somewhere out there and staying where I’m at is preventing me from seeing past the fog. I’m looking for something that’s not here... And with Klia joining us it’s got me thinking about Erid too.” Vell plugged her connectivity sensor in once again and finally a small chime played along with the readout. She set about gathering up the various bits and bobs that had spread themselves around her.

“I think maybe I want something different. At least for now. And Arlenasch is never lacking in agricultural work, especially for the luel before solrise.” She added. Mezalie unbent herself and scooted out of the way as Vell crawled backwards out of the paneling. Once out the woman twisted this way and that, popping her spine and stretching herself out.

“Are you trying to convince me or you?” Vell asked, her voice light.

“I don’t know. I guess I’m still trying to decide,” Mezalie groaned.

“Well, we’re just about there you know. Any driev now.” Vell reminded her and Mezalie simply groaned again. Vell let out a small chuckle. “It sounds like you’ve put some thought into it though so it seems like you’ve made your decision.” She said in a more serious tone.

“I talked to Klia about it a little and I guess it made me feel brave. Like if she could do it, I could do it, right?” Mezalie reasoned.

“Oh you’re talking to Klia before me now?” Vell put on a dramatic, scandalized front. “I see I’ve been demoted to second-” she narrowed her eyes, waiting for any protest, “-confidant now.”

“Oh don’t you dare.” Mezalie rolled her eyes.

“Really though,” Vell had managed to separate out all the cords that needed to come out and stuff in all the cords that needed to go back in, “I’m glad you’re finally really talking to her.” She picked up and placed the panel she’d removed to get into the cubby, back where it belonged, popping it back into place. Mezalie huffed.

“Yeah. It feels like such a waste that it took until now and, well, if I leave…” she shook her shoulders as Vell collected the various tools and bits of cabling left over from her fix. Neither woman said anything as they stood and made their way back to the front of the room. Mez watched as Vell methodically placed tools back in cases and bins.

“Are you upset?” Mez finally asked. It felt silly leaving her mouth but she had to ask it anyway. Vell stopped where she was, frozen for a moment.

“Of course I’m upset!” Vell practically shouted into the cabinet. Vell looked over at her before resuming her previous task. “I’m very upset. I’m gonna miss you so much.” She closed the cabinet with a soft click. “But I’m not surprised by this at all and that tells me that it’s probably the right thing, ya know?”

“I hope so.” Mez nodded to herself. “I can’t help but feel this dread though the closer we get.” She absently placed her hands on her stomach.

“That’s the seasickness, actually.” Vell said.

“Oh shut up.” Mez batted at the other woman as she passed. Vell turned back to face her, taking several backwards steps.

“Are you staying to help me with rul?” She asked. Mez hooked a thumb over her shoulder towards the door.

“Can’t. I’ve got grease rags that need attending,” she said.

“Alright well, like I said. Any driev now.” Vell waved her off, turning back around to make her way down the opposite corridor.

Mez stood there a moment, her hand on the door handle to the hall. She still felt the heavy dread in the pit of her stomach she’d woken up with. It wasn’t seasickness, but it probably was the fact that their arrival made her choice more real. She didn’t intend to split off from the Pod right away or anything but the realness of it frightened her as much as it thrilled her.

She opened the door and headed back out into the hall to grab her bag and take it up to soak. She had plenty of things to keep herself busy until then.