Alex felt a hum beneath his skin, like a kitten’s purr against his chest. It was oddly comforting, and he felt soothed by the gentle vibrations. Against his head, something soft had been bunched up as a pillow for him, and the urge to go back to sleep tempted him to his very core. But a panic rose inside him as he sat up in alarm. He had no idea where he was or how he got there, so this was no time for rest.

He couldn’t see at first, his vision still blurred and faded from his impromptu nap. Blinking barely helped, so he resorted to desperate squinting. It was clear that he was in someplace small, which didn’t make him any less nervous- it only meant that there were fewer places to run if he needed to. But he realized that he shouldn’t have worried about that, even if he needed to run it was unlikely due to his state.

“Guys, he’s awake!” The sound of Neil’s voice instantly pushed back Alex’s nerves, and soon the vague outline of his friend was bending down to him. “I was worried that you wouldn’t wake up, man. I thought that maybe you got hit by some death ray or something!”

“It’s good to know you haven’t changed,” Alex said, revealing a smile.

Something green entered his field of view, which was all that he needed to know that Sophia was now with him. “It wasn’t any death ray, just dumbness.” Her words were stern, but her voice was soft.

“Glad to see you haven’t changed either.” Snarked Alex.

Someone else ran over, and by process of elimination, he guessed that it must be Timothy. “I’m so glad you’re awake.” He said, bending down for a hug. “Are you okay?”

The hug was nice, though a little awkward at the angle they were in. “I think so, unless this is all a dream, in which case just wake me up.”

“Nope, this is real,” Neil spoke. “Or maybe that’s just what someone in a dream would say? We could all just be the last fragments of your subconscious keeping you company as your body slowly dies.”

“Is it bad that I can’t tell whether or not you’re being serious?” Sophia said with a tilt of her head.

“I’m kidding, obviously.” He paused for a moment. “Or am I?”

Breaking free of Timothy’s hug, Alex positioned himself to stand up. “Where are we?”

“You don’t remember?” A fourth voice called from afar. “You lot have only been gone a day or two.”

The slight startle from Jenny McClain’s words was enough to give Alex back some semblance of his vision, just enough so that he could now see that he was laying in her ship. From the looks of things, nothing had changed. There were still hanging wires from the ceiling and what looked like jutting pipping along the walls. The cramped space seemed bigger without the three little green men there, but not by much.

“We carried you onboard,” Timothy explained. “Well, Jenny carried you, we just sort of watched.”

“How long have I been out?” Came the reasonable question.

“Not long, we’ve only left a while ago.” The pirate captain was at her post in front of a giant wheel, flying her ship with an ease that can only be accumulated with years of experience. “Take a look, you might be able to wave goodbye if you’re lucky.”

With a flick of a switch, a busted-out screen lowered from the ceiling. When I say ‘lower’, what I mean is ‘dropped violently and suddenly’, nearly knocking Timothy across the skull. The lights flickered on, showing a back view of the ship bordered by raging flames escaping from the engines as it trailed across space.

In the distance, quickly moving far beyond view, was the Ring. It looked ridiculously small, like you could point your finger out and have it fit snuggly around your finger. Beneath the massive circular structure, the Gravity-Core was still distorting the nebula behind it, sending waves of color swirling out and around it. Alex couldn’t help but feel a little sad as it slowly disappeared into the dark blackness, but that feeling would fade away as the ship carried him off to safety.

“I can’t believe we did it,” Neil remarked as the screen pulled back up into the ceiling.

Timothy raised an eyebrow. “Did what?”

“Survived!” He replied, exasperated.

Alex chuckled as he started to raise himself off the floor, but quickly found Sophia’s foot pushing him back to the ground. “Hey!” He cried, surprised.

“You’re not getting up until you’ve rested.” The girl insisted. “You promised, remember?”

The boy rolled his eyes, “what are you, the naptime police?” He tried to sit up but experienced a repeat of what just happened. “Oh, come on Soph, be real.”

“I am.” She said, crossing her arms. “You worked yourself until the point of collapsing, I ain’t going to let you do that again.”

“I solved the murder, didn’t I?”

“Yeah, and then you passed out.”

“Well, at least I did that after I did the important part.”

She shook her head, “the important part now is for you to get some sleep, and if you don’t want me to knock you out again, I’d suggest you lay down.”

Alex frowned, relaxing his body in defeat. “Will you accept sitting?”

She thought for a second, “fine, but don’t get any ideas.”

Clasping his hands together, Alex pressed his body against the side of his ship, feeling a tad bit like a kid in detention.

From over at the wheel, the pirate let out a soft laugh and shook her head. This irked something inside of Sophia, who decided to break off from her friends to go over and see what was so funny. “What?” The girl demanded.

Jenny merely shrugged. “Just observin,’ that’s all.”

“And what have you observed?”

“Only that I was wrong about you and your crew.” The pirate admitted. “When I first saw you, I thought you’d be dead in a day. I thought you were some little, yapping dog nipping at the heels of people you shouldn’t be, but now I see what you really were.”

Sophia pursed her lips, “and what was I?”

Jenny grinned in same way someone does when they had just finished a good joke, “you were just a bitch.”

The girl’s eyes narrowed, then raised as she started to chuckle. Jenny quickly joined in, and soon the rest of the group was wondering what they could possibly be talking about. “This was all your fault, you know?” Sophia finally said, after a good minute of laughing. “If you hadn’t kidnapped us, we wouldn’t have been in this position.”

“It worked out, didn’t it?” The pirate said with a slow nod. “I’ve got some credit, and you’ve still got your crew.”

“I told you, we’re not a crew.” The girl repeated, crossing her arms as she glanced over at her friends.

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“Then why are you acting so much like a captain?” Jenny countered. “I saw you at the cantina, don’t think I didn’t notice what ya pulled with Mr. Ham! That was ballsy and stupid. If he had been in a worse mood, you’d be deader than Vander right now.”

Sophia huffed. “I was trying to save my friend; what else was I supposed to do?”

Jenny’s metallic eyes flickered beneath her long-brimmed hat. “Something that wasn’t emotional and reckless! Save your friend or not, you could’ve gotten yourself killed. What were ya going to do if you had succeeded, anyway?”

“Look, I know what I didn’t wasn’t the smartest, but I wasn’t going to let Tim die without doing something.”

“I told ya before, you shouldn’t let yourself get too attached.” She took a look back at the other three, making sure that they still weren’t listening. “You’re setting yourself up for failure. Those connections you think you have; they’ll only be used to pull you down when the going gets rough. Believe me, it’s what always happens.”

The girl shook her head, “you’re wrong.”

“Am I?” Jenny snapped. “What happened when that boy was about to get shot, huh? What did you feel deep down inside when you thought he was about to kick the bucket? That feeling, that loss, it’s a weakness that people like us can’t afford to have.”

Sophia leaned in closer, standing her ground. “I’m not going to cut off my friends just because some kidnapper told me to!”

Jenny’s grip tightened on the wheel of her ship. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Her gaze broke off, looking off into the dark recesses of space. “I just want to prepare you, ya see? That feeling… it destroys you, over time. It crawls deep inside of you and eats away at you from the inside out, and there’s nothin’ you can do to stop it. Best cut the problem off at the root, little dog, cuz’ you won’t be able to save them forever.”

Sophia turned back to her friends once again, her face going long. Something in the pirate’s words spoke the truth, but she knew it was twisted and wrong. She remembered how she felt when she saw Timothy facing that cannon, and she knew that she never wanted to experience that again. She had thought that she would be able to save him, somehow, but she wasn’t able to do that. No, Alex had, and if he hadn’t been there, they would all be dead. Immediately, she felt a twinge of guilt enter her soul as she thought about the fight that they had.

“You’re wrong, Jenny.” She replied after a while. “What’s the point in living if there isn’t someone in your life that you care so much about, that you wouldn’t risk getting hurt just for them?”

The captain thought about this, her robot eyes narrowing. “I used to be so much like you.” She remarked slowly. “Some days I wish I could go back and be in your shoes, but those times are over now.” Turning back to her duty at hand, the woman nodded. “Good luck, Sophia, you’re going to need it.”

Over on the other side of the ship, Neil was twiddling idly with the shopping bag. He had grabbed it on the way out of the cantina, managing to scoop it up with a quick mind and an even quicker hand. His fingers glided across the lenses of an interesting pair of goggles, somehow, he had just known they were meant for him.

He bit his lip as he stepped away, his hand folding awkwardly into the pockets of his tattered coat. “Uh, Tim, could I talk to you for a second, I need to get something off my chest.”

Timothy looked concerned but he nodded politely and walked over. “Yes?”

Neil took a deep breath, his face going flush. “So, I’m sure you must be furious with me, and I’d just like to say, I’m so sorry.”

“Oh, why?” The boy replied, seeming confused.

“Isn’t it obvious?” He cried, matching his friend’s expression. “I almost killed you in there! I was accusing you left and right of being some murderous weirdo who probably had some secret evil motive for being with us! Instead of helping you out, I practically shoved you closer to the guillotine!” He crossed his arms, looking ashamed of himself. “I’m surprised you’re even talking to me.”

“I don’t feel that way at all!” Timothy said, completely taken by surprise. “I understand why you felt that way, so don’t feel bad! I know I come off as a little bit… off. People have told me that for ages, though I suppose that’s just a part of who I am.” He reached out and placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder and offered up a kind smile. “We were all scared, but everything worked out, didn’t it? We made it!”

“Are you sure?” Neil asked, his eyes full of worry. “Like, there’s no bad feelings at all?”

“Well, there is one,” Timothy admitted. “My stomach is growling a bit, and I could use a good meal.”

Neil snorted, “well, once we’re back on the Lavender, you can have your fill of… whatever that stuff is.” Suddenly, the worry escaped from him, and his shoulders relaxed. “Thanks, Tim, for understanding.”

“You’re welcome.”

In the corner, Alex was still following orders and sitting in his place. The ship didn’t make for a comfortable seat, and he found himself longing for the booth at the Candid Cantina. His makeshift pillow, which was a suit jacket from the shopping back, was pressed against his back for support. He made do with what he had, and he couldn’t help but admit that the rest was feeling rather nice.

Leaving the captain at her post, Sophia walked back to him, taking a seat beside him in silence. The two sat for a moment, perhaps thinking of what to say.

“I’m sorry.” They both declared simultaneously.

“What?” Alex’s eyes narrowed. “Did I hear that correctly? I must be dreaming.”

“Don’t make me pinch you again.” The girl snapped. “I said what I said.”

“Me too.” He replied, leaning away to get a better angle at her. “Why’d you say it?”

She rolled her eyes, “you know why.” She huffed when he waited for an explanation. “That fight we had, it shouldn’t have happened, and that’s why I apologized. I still stand by my feelings about putting Tim in the pilot seat, but on that planet, it was the right call. Now, what were you apologizing for?”

“Same thing.” He admitted. “I didn’t mean the things I said to you, well, most of them. I was just thinking about the situation logically, and I didn’t consider whether or not Tim would get hurt in the process. Was it the right call, yeah, but it was still dangerous for him.”

“It saved us though, and he’s still alive,” Sophia remarked with a glance at her blond friend. “Somehow.”

“The boy has the luck of a…” Alex’s thoughts trailed off. “What’s something lucky?”

She shrugged, “I don’t know, a lion?”

“A lion, really?” The boy shook his head. “The luck of a lion- never heard that one before.”

“Don’t make me hit you.”

“Soph, with all these threats of violence, you may have to deliver on them one day.”

“Don’t make it today.”

“Point taken.”

A moment of silence fell over the two again, but this time the room seemed somehow lighter than it had been before, like something heavy had been left behind.

“Alex?”

“Yeah?”

“You were trying to ask me something at the cantina before all hell let loose,” Sophia remembered suddenly. “What was it?”

The boy frowned and turned away. “It was nothing, don’t worry about it.”

“You can’t lie to me, remember?” She reminded him bluntly. “I can see right through it.”

“That’s very annoying, remind me to find a way around that,” Alex said with a flourishing wave.

His theatrics did not deter her from the question. “Well?”

“It was stupid.” He sighed.

“Tell me anyway.” The girl insisted.

Alex sat up straight, leaning over to his friend with a distant frown. “I get in my head a lot if you haven’t noticed. When I’m in there, I think all these awful thoughts about myself. I tell myself that I’m not good enough, that I’m stupid and a failure, and all that insecure shit. If I could stop it I would, believe me, I’ve tried, but it’s persistent. But sometimes, when I let my thoughts rage on for too long, I notice something that bugs me and that I can’t let go.” He gritted his teeth, not wanting to go on.

“What was it?” Sophia asked, curious.

“I wanted to ask you why you’ve never given me a nickname.” Came the reply. “You’ve mentioned it before, how you give all of your friends a pet name. You call Neil Neilsky, and you’ve been calling Timothy Timbo, but you’ve never called me anything but Alex.” He looked away, covering his face in his hands. “Oh, god, it’s such a stupid question! Forget that I ever asked that, please.”

It was clear that Sophia had been taken aback by the response, and her face showed it. She pressed herself back against the side of the ship as if someone had taken the wind out of her sails. “Huh.”

“I thought for a while that maybe I just wasn’t good enough for you to consider me a friend,” Alex admitted. “But I realize now that I’ve just been overthinking it, haven’t I? I did all that worrying for nothing.”

“Yeah, clearly!” She sat up, looking him dead in his eyes. “Alex don’t think for one moment that I’ve ever considered you anything less than a friend. Sometimes I want to beat the crap out of you, sure! Maybe sometimes we don’t get along, but that’s never because you haven’t been ‘good enough.’ You’re my friend, Alex, and don’t you forget that.”

“That’s nice to hear,” Alex replied, and he meant it sincerely. That nagging voice inside his head had wanted him to believe that this wasn’t the case, that his insecurities were telling him the truth. But as his friend spoke, those fears slipped away, filling the boy with a sense of appreciation, and welcomed relief. “You’re my friend too, Soph.”

“Good.” The girl said blankly, although it was clear that she felt his sentiment. “That’s enough of the stuffy shit, I’ve got to think of a nickname for you.”

Alex’s eyes lit up. “Oh, really? Took you this long to consider it?” He said, giving her a devilish grin.

“No, I’ve thought about it before, for your information.” She insisted with a pout. “But what kinda nickname goes for Alex? I can’t think of anything.”

“Al?” Was the first thing he could think of.

“Nah, it doesn’t feel right, you don’t look like an Al.”

Alex glanced over himself. “I don’t?”

The girl shook her head, “doesn’t suit you.”

“Well then, you could go with…” His brain went empty. “Huh, I can’t think of anything either.”

“Albert?” She suggested, but her nose upturned in response.

“That’s so much worse.”

“Mr. A?”

“No, reminds me too much of that song.”

Sophia threw her hands up, “I got nothing.”

“Maybe… Sir, Alex?” The boy suggested, giving a dainty nod of an invisible feathered cap.

“Not in a million years.” Sophia scoffed. “Damn it, I’ll think of something… eventually.”