The flight to Nokior was uneventful. A bit boring, even. Gaylen piloted, Jaquan stayed in the engine room, and Kiris divided her time between assisting the two of them. They ate as a group during stops, slept on the same hours and played games when they weren’t doing either of those things and waiting for the engine to cool.

The Freestates were more of an umbrella term than any kind of formal entity. They collectively refused rule by any of the major powers, and officially were indeed free. How much subtle influence they were subjected to was, of course, a matter of quite some debate.

But none of that concerned Gaylen. What mattered was that most of the Freestate worlds had no law enforcement treaties with the Federation, and so he didn’t have to worry about the distant past catching up with him.

Nokior was one of the more Fringe-wards Free Worlds, making for a relatively brief journey. The population wasn’t all that high for a large and catastrophe-free world, but there was very little dry land and so the people were tightly clustered in a handful of cities. Gaylen followed flight signals down to cruising height and flew over the vast ocean that covered much of this world.

He found himself missing Herdis’s company, and the opportunity to share or hear observations about a new planet. But Herdis was far away and Kiris was taking a little nap, and so he simply observed on his own.

One problem with a land-poor world was that those who owned significant portions of it could set whatever prices they wanted. Between that and a rather high volume of traffic, Nokior was somewhat infamous for issues with affordable landing spaces. The cheapest option was to land on one of the platforms floating offshore and take a boat ride to the city, but nabbing a spot within a reasonable distance was like finding gold in a toilet.

So instead Gaylen went with an intermediate option and scanned for adverts from minor outfits in the city. Once he found one in a semi-decent location he got into contact and negotiated the docking price. Then he followed the signal in over the city.

The capital was undeniably a stylish place, being a neatly laid out grid of square high rises, built largely from rock mined from the ocean bed. It was just a shame that it rained almost constantly.

Their dock was on top of a medium-sized apartment building not that far from the waterfront. With the proper permits, basically anyone who owned a top storey could play port manager, and so it made for a popular sideline.

There was one other freighter on the roof as Gaylen slowed down to landing speed. A woman, presumably the manager, stood and gestured at a space marked off by bright red cones. Gaylen set the Addax down gently and the woman outside waited with her arms crossed as he and Jaquan did their respective finishing work before the engine was fully shut down.

The three of them met by the airlock. Kiris covered her head with both a hood and one of her scarves, leaving only her eyes visible, Jaquan had a hat, and Gaylen attached a hood to his coat.

“It’ll be a bit of a commute to get back here,” the golden woman commented, and patted a pack on her hip. “I don’t know about you, but I’m bringing everything I think I might need.”

“Some here,” Gaylen said and patted his own pockets. “Now just remember: We’ll get away with carrying our guns here, just keep them out of sight.”

“Right, right,” Jaquan said and smiled. “Now let’s play spies.”

“No spying here,” Gaylen said. “Just opportunism.”

They stepped outside into a moderate rain and went through an utterly standard procedure with the woman. Gaylen paid for connecting the Addax to a charging port, got a well-rehearsed list of explanations in accented Larin, and then that was that.

There was an elevator shaft going all the way through the building, but it was explicitly for residents only and the port woman insisted she couldn’t get her neighbours to budge on that. So that left them walking down the exterior emergency escape.

Gaylen felt like he should be grumbling on the inside, but his coat was thoroughly waterproof, the air temperature wasn’t that bad, and it all meant a few minutes of getting to take in the view.

The locals fought against the inherent gloom of their planet with vibrant dangling lights and neon signs. Trains passed by on rails suspended above the almost entirely pedestrian streets and hovering cars cut through the morning dimness with bright lamps.

Some inhabited planets could boast of preserved natural beauty. Others had gorgeous and awe-inspiring architecture. Nokior had style, and Gaylen rather liked it. Even with the rain.

“So how well do you two actually know this place?” Kiris asked as they neared the ground.

“Not as well as all that,” Gaylen admitted. “There was a period when I made regular stops here, but that was in the early days of... my other career. Connections and players are bound to have changed.”

“The two of us did one stop much later,” Jaquan went on. “But it was in another city. And we mostly stayed within a shipyard.”

Gaylen looked down at the teeming mass of hats and hoods down below, getting closer with each step.

“I’m not the least bit surprised that there is a potential buyer here,” he said, getting serious. “I’ve done my share of work in the Freestates. They are in an interesting spot, on the galactic stage. The big powers all want a piece of them, but them seeking it openly is just about the only thing that will unite the planets. It’s also a convenient place for them to work against one another’s interests in a neutral area without someone shouting ‘Act of war!’. So there is by all accounts a whole lot of skulduggery. Poking about in the shadows.”

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

He spotted a public comm booth.

“And of course just plain old organised crime,” he added as he walked towards it.

“Black ops agents and gangsters tend to shake hands quite a bit,” Jaquan pointed out.

“Yes. The bottom line is that there are a lot of back alley dealings. So there shouldn’t be anything that unusual about us coming along with an offer.”

He entered the booth. It wasn’t fully closed, but a plastic shell at least provided relief from the rain and slight noise insulation. Gaylen paid for a local call and unhooked one of the receivers. Then he went through the list of dining places until he found the one Vika had told him about back on the station.

“This is Happy Fish!” a female voice said as the call was answered.

“Yes, hello,” Gaylen said. “Can you tell me what your opening hours are?”

“I’m afraid we will be closed for a few days, sir,” the woman told him. “While repairs are being done. We wouldn’t want our customers to suffer any inconvenience.”

“I wouldn’t mind a little inconvenience, really,” Gaylen said. “I’ve heard good things about your place.”

“That is good to know, sir. But still...”

“Can I talk to Jan?” Gaylen asked.

“Jan?” the woman replied after a moment’s hesitation.

“We went to school together.”

That was the code Vika had supplied him with. And if this didn’t work and the place refused access, he didn’t really know what the next step would be.

“Jan will be here tonight,” the woman told him after another, lengthier silence. “To help with inventory. And if it means that much to you, sir, we can let you have a seat. Please just don’t let it get out that we made an exception.”

“Of course not. And thank you. When can I come over?”

“Jan will be with us at around twenty tonight. Will that work out for you, sir?”

“It’s fine,” Gaylen told her. “And please tell Jan I have a special treat.”

“I will pass that along. See you tonight, sir.”

Gaylen ended the call and stepped out of the booth. He checked the time. It was still morning, and the twentieth hour on the local clock was eight hours away.

“So, we’re on?” Kiris asked.

“Yes. Yes, we’re on.”

“All very dramatic,” Jaquan said with a grin. “Very spy movie of you.”

“Crime... spying... same thing really,” Gaylen said.

He clapped his hands together and looked around.

“But we have eight hours to kill. What do you two say we play tourists for a bit, since Herdis isn’t here to do it for us?”

He couldn’t see Kiris’s mouth, but from her eyes he could tell that she smiled slightly.

“Sure,” the woman said. “On her behalf.”

They started with a simple aimless walk, sticking to the wider, more business-friendly streets. Just like tourists. Up above there were the imposing concrete towers; not beautiful, but sturdy and full of character, and in every other direction there was a hodgepodge of people and small businesses.

Like most planets with no core native population, Nokior had a little bit of everything. There were large businesses that dominated entire high rises, marked by huge, glowing signs high up above the streets. There were high-class restaurants, casinos and hotels, but also tiny family shops and eateries, offering a downright bewildering array of cuisine and styles, from gaudy to dull and everything in between.

The only really unifying thing was the need to account for the rain, and so everyone wore a large coat, robe, poncho or cloak and a head covering of some sort. Was that why this place was apparently so popular with shadowy types? The fact that no one looked twice at someone hidden under a hat brim and popped lapels?

The landmass the city stood on was divided into several large reefs, and so bridges were a major feature of the overall look. Halfway across a particularly wide one was a little mini-restaurant and they agreed to take a bit of a break.

Feeling adventurous, Gaylen forewent all the more familiar options and ordered some local broth-like drink in a mug before taking a seat beneath a canopy tent. He took an experimental sip of the broth and first impressions were good.

“Well, this is a break from it all, isn’t it?” Jaquan said. “Just three old friends, sitting together.”

“We’d better get used to it,” Kiris commented.

“What do you mean?” Gaylen asked.

The woman played with her mug for a moment before replying.

“Herdis has a big family to get back to. This is inevitably a temporary thing for her, and we’ve known it from day one. Ayna has a wild, wandering heart. I think...”

Her golden eyes went distant, as they did when she consulted those bizarre people-reading abilities of hers.

“... I think it might have to do with growing up on a planet that demands great caution to survive. Now that she’s away she’s bouncing around. I think she’ll want to break away from the Addax soon enough. At least for a while. And Bers... he is aimless in a different way. I don’t think he’ll ever go back home, but I also don’t think he’s looking for a new one. So for a lasting crew I think it’s just the three of us.”

She sighed and seemed exasperated with herself. Then she inhaled deeply before continuing.

“For a pleasure slave I’m quite bad at this,” the Chanei said to them. “I’m really not trying to be negative. My point is...”

She hesitated again and Gaylen could see her struggle a bit.

“My point is that I’m glad we get along. The three of us... we worked well together before and we work well together now. And I’ll be happy to stay on board for as long as you’ll have me.”

“Of course,” Jaquan said with sincerity. “Of course we’re happy to have you on board.”

“Well, yes,” Gaylen said. “People need each other.”

“Yeah,” Kiris said. “I tried going off by myself but... I’m just no good at it.”

She cleared her throat.

“I know I’m crabby. I fight it as well as I can.”

“Diamonds have hard edges,” Gaylen said and smiled at his own awful line.

Kiris smiled as well.

“Oh, you poet you. You missed your true calling”

She slowly brought the mug to her lips and gazed at Gaylen over the rim.

“And my edges are soft.”

Gaylen swallowed.

“Well, let’s have a toast,” Jaquan said and held his mug up. “To being friends.”

“Sure,” Gaylen said. “Sounds good.”

They clinked their mugs together and spent a little while just sipping in companionable silence. And Gaylen felt happy.