Arachna peaked through the top of her box near the undercarriage of the large metal food cart. The head chef, Rupert, carefully pushed the cart into an open space that was covered with beautiful lights and decorations.

It was stunning. Arachna wouldn't have thought that these Yumens had any sense of style but this actually looked quite nice. There were green-needled plants strung along the walls and rails tied down by soft red bows. Strands of wire covered in miniaturized light covered the plants, decorating them like Xitherium coral along a cave wall.

At the center of the large room was a single tree, shaped almost like a pyramid. At its top was a glowing object with five pointy sides. Along its branches were strewn glowing white lights, just like the ones along the walls and rails.

The room was filled with men and women dressed very differently than Arachna had seen before. They were all wearing neatly pressed uniforms. Each had a set of shiny silver buttons going down their chest and abdomen. Several had floppy pieces of cloth hanging from their necks as well — ties. The word materialized in her mind. Ties appeared to be useless pieces of cloth used purely for decoration.

She noted thankfully that there did not appear to be guns in the room, at least that she could see. However, several of the Yumens carried shiny silver swords at their wastes. These had carved handles with images of strange reptilian-looking creatures on them. Not quite Krath-like but still rather fierce-looking.

"Happy Holidays, Commander," Rupert said, as he entered the room.

"We say Christmas, here," a large man said as he smiled warmly and shook Rupert's hand. "Merry Christmas."

This man must be the one known as Commander Rip, Arachna thought to herself.

"Such an arcane holiday, Sir," Rupert said. "Is this a museum or a starship?"

"What can I say," Commander Rip said. "It's a good reason to throw a party. Keeps a man sane in the Void of space. Today coincides with the exact day that Old Earth celebrated Christmas."

"Celebrated," Rupert said. "Earth is dead."

"What can I say?" Rip said. "I'm a believer. I think that Earth is still out there somewhere, floating around in the stars."

"Myths and legends, Commander," Rupert said. "But very well, enjoy your Christmas party."

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"Thank you, Rupert," Rip said, patting him on the back. "You're a good chef."

Interesting, Arachna thought to herself. Wasn't their destination the Yumens' home planet Mars? What was this Old Earth they mentioned? Old meant ancient, didn't it? If that was the case, then was Mars ancient? The Yumens did not refer to Mars as old so did that mean that Earth predated Mars at least in terms of habitation? She decided she wasn't sure exactly what it all meant but was curious to learn more.

The chefs began unloading the food cart, bringing out the delicious hot vat of soup, pies, and several other foods she hadn't seen them preparing. There was a tray that contained several different roasted animals. They were covered in various spices and surrounded by leaves and soft vegetables. The Yumens must have previously prepared the meal and loaded it on the food cart before she'd arrived.

Everything smelled delicious. In addition to the food, a separate cart arrived filled with rather delicate-looking glass cups. They were thin and ornate, like something used for decoration. Not exactly hardy objects. Inside the cups was a bubbly yellow drink. That piqued her curiosity. Something she made a mental note to try if she made it out of here alive.

The chefs slowly worked through the various shelves of the food cart, moving from top to bottom. As they worked Arachna's twin hearts began to beat more rapidly. What in the horde was she going to do? They'd find her soon enough.

She thought she could perhaps try to scamper out but there were so many people in the room one of them was bound to spot her.

Hide, hide.

Arachna desperately wanted to find someplace to hide and disappear. There were thousands of those miniaturized light bulbs strung around the room that she wasn't sure she'd be able to hide in a corner or even on the ceiling. Horde, what was she supposed to do?

Galactic Mother, if you hear me.

Maybe she could leap out and attack the Yumens. They did not have any weaponry besides those flimsy-looking swords. As long as they didn't have any guns, she'd likely be able to fight her way tut.

No, that would not be smart. Then they'd hunt her down and kill her. She'd only been able to survive this long by hiding out.

Rupert pulled out the shelf of food directly above her. "Ah here are the plates," he said. "Clean as a whistle, just the way I left them."

The head chef handed the stack to one of his colleagues.

Here it comes, Arachna thought. Maybe she could use her psionic abilities to get Rupert to turn away.

She began focusing her thoughts.

But it was too late.

Rupert was already staring right at her. With the shelf above her hiding place removed, she was completely exposed. She stared, wide-eyed back at Rupert, who tilted his head in confusion.

"Strange," Rupert said, turning away. "I thought I packed the cutlery in the bottom shelf. Must have left it empty."

What just happened? Arachna thought to herself. How could Rupert have been staring right at her and not seen her? It made no sense.

She lifted up her knobby forearms. Then she glanced at her hind legs. Then her abdomen.

Arachna was invisible.

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