The days passed by as they would for Oswald. He hurried along busied neon streets that buzzed alive with light and life amidst a smoky atmosphere re-recycled time and again in this bubble colony in Kepler-six. Tied upon his back was a rack of heavy metals and polymers far too heavy for any human to carry, and so the duty was delegated to him, the only android in the colony’s ship station. 

‘Oswald! Late by a few minutes!’

The perspiration upon the android’s face was dense.

‘Sorry, sir. Won’t happen again!’ He apologised to Algo, the station master.

‘Sorry doesn’t turn back the clock. I’m gonna have to dock your pay like last time.’

Oswald, sweating bullets and with shaky knees, proceeded through the shutter doors of the main entrance of the monumental concrete slab of a structure that was the station. He took a moment to sigh and inhale a deep breath, glancing at a poster bearing a colourful cast of characters, human, android, and mechanical lifeforms, with the backdrop of rainbows of various colours that flowed from behind those characters to the sky above them with the emboldened word “Unity” on top. He adjusted his back-rack then went on marching along to hangar 12.

Resha, hangar 12’s manager noticed the android’s arrival.

‘Oswald! You’re-’

‘Late, yes! I am very sorry, it won’t happen again.’ 

In a moment, the rack’s rope came undone causing a loud crash causing every nearby engineer to seek out the source spotting out Oswald, and as the clattering crescendo of  the metal finally came to rest, they then returned to their own business as if nothing at all had occurred, although a few did trade a few whispers, glances, and giggles before returning to their work.

‘I’m sorry.’

Resha briefly squeezed her eyes closed as she massaged the bridge of her nose. ‘Clean up, Oswald. Then get the materials to the welders before our client checks in to see our repair materials all over the floor.’

‘Yes, ma’am.’

Minutes passed and Oswald scurried about for the final few scraps that slid away during the collapse of his rack. ‘Where was that last part.’ He whispered to himself as he scoured the floor with his back bent like an old man. He scurried about the hangar with eyes glued to the floor, and as he caught a glimpse of a glint of metal under a freighter-class engine suspended a few centimetres off of the ground, he began to run around to get a better reach.

Reaching the other side of the engine, he was primed to dive in for the missing scrap but was too late as he saw another worker crouched down with the scrap in hand.

The worker, donning a welder’s mask, examined the scrap before their eyes turned toward Oswald.

‘This yours?’ They asked.

‘Ah, yes. Very sorry.’ Oswald replied.

The worker hands the scrap over to him before speaking once more. ‘Don’t apologise so much, they’ll step all over you.’

‘Huh? Oh, it’s no issue at all.’ A confounded Oswald replied.

‘I’m serious.’ The worker now held their hands to their hips, this time taking more of a forceful tone. ‘You’re gonna regret it if you don’t draw a line. Doesn’t matter if you’re an andy.’ 

‘Ah, no, I need to work extra hard for the bonus.’ 

‘Bonus?’ The worker scoffed. ‘Don’t be ridiculous, they don’t give bonuses.’

‘Oh, but they do!’ Oswald exclaimed. ‘It’s how they get people to work so hard.’

The worker paused, their expression covered by the mask they wore. Perplexed in tone, they questioned the android, ‘uh, why would you think that-’

‘Carpenter!’ A voice ripped straight through the metallic clangs and blowtorch sizzling sounding through the facility.

‘Oh shit, gotta go.’ They panicked, ‘meet me after our shift is done. I’m still curious about you.’

Carpenter… That was their name, Oswald thought. Oh, but now was no time for thinking, he had the final piece of scrap for the repairs, and he needed to get them all back to the welders before he had a chance to get in trouble again.

He carried on through the day, the station’s errand boy, doing all sorts of jobs assigned to him from various managers, some of which conflicted with others, which got him in trouble again and again, until those managers finally made communications with each other to get those problems settled. All the while, Oswald would get by with his usual grovelling and apologies.

He continued with his business until the end of the station’s gruelling workday, which was announced by a sudden flash appearing in the corner of his vision, neon-blue words that read out “Your shift has ended. You may now leave the facility.”

And so he left, but remained by the entrance as crowds of grease-stained rust-reeking engineers made their way past the solitary android. He waited for precisely an hour extra before Carpenter emerged from the monolithic structure that was the station.

Carpenter stepped out, puffing a cigarette as they noticed the android. ‘Huh, you waited for me. Thanks.’

‘Of course, you invited me. Why did you come out late?’

Carpenter sighed before continuing, ‘some shmuck took a day off when I specifically told him not to ‘cause there ain’t no one to replace him if he did, so I ended up picking up his slack.’

‘That’s terrible.’ Oswald exclaimed.

‘Nah. I’d have done the same.’ They replied before taking another drag from their cigarette. ‘Ah, but I’m hungry as hell. Let’s go eat.’

‘Alright.’

‘Wait, do androids eat?’

‘I’m told we have the ability to gain our energy back that way, but it’s faster for us to just recharge in our port.’

‘Huh, that’s neat. Never really thought about it.’

The two waded through the artificially darkened streets packed with waves of people and ended up at a food stall that was apparently a favourite of Carpenter. They bought sandwiches and fries that came in recycled cardboard take-out packages, which they took through a tram to a small cliffside in the colony’s nature reserve overlooking the entire city.

There they sat and enjoyed their meal in contemplation of the day’s events. The silence that followed them as they finished their food eventually invited each other to conversation, an invitation that Carpenter took first.

‘Let me guess, debt?’

Oswald, wiping away left over sauce on his lip, put away the napkin he used and responded, ‘my son. I’m doing it for him.’

‘Son?’

‘Yes.’ Oswald briefly paused before realising the confusion caused by an android having a child, ‘ah, I mean the original me.’

‘Tell me.’ Carpenter prodded.

‘His name is Max, and he’s got a brilliant mind. The original me needed money to send him to the Flight Academy, to become a pilot for the ESF.’

‘Earth Space Fleet… How ambitious.’

‘Yes! He’s a brilliant boy. Selfless too! I remember having to tell him to slow down when it came to defending the other kids from bullies. He used to get into so many fights.’

Remaining in that state of reminiscence, Oswald remembered everything about his son, from the day he was born and those little hands grabbed on to his index finger, to the day when he announced to his father his intention to become a space pilot, to Oswald bringing his teenage son to the local planetarium to see his eyes light up with wonder and passion at the possibility of seeing other planets and stars. Then as a tear welled up in his eye, he rubbed it away and continued to talk.

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‘They were paying good money for people’s brain scans. That was when I had the idea that if there were multiple versions of me working hard, we could all make sure that he’d achieve his dreams. Even if the companies got most of the cut since they created my copies.’

‘Damn... You’re a good guy, Oswald. Everyone at the station knows you, but I guess no one really got to know you.’

‘I’m only doing the same thing any father would.’ He stopped when he made a specific realisation, ‘but what about you? I don’t know you that well.’

‘Huh? Oh…’ Perhaps Carpenter never really thought of anyone wanting to get to know them, but given the openness of Oswald, it would be rude for them to refuse to open up. ‘I’m from a mars colony.’

‘Mars?’

‘Yeah. I got a couple of folks who believed in me, my dad included.’ They paused, seemingly thinking their story over, then continued, ‘they saw that I was “gifted” with electronics and what not, so they busted their asses to get me off planet no matter what. They wanted to make sure I didn’t die in that scrapheap we lived in, “any where’s better than mars” they said. So here I am.’

Carpenter stopped once again as their eyes turned downcast. ‘When I was a teen, my dad worked at some chemicals factory, don’t remember what kind, don’t really care. Just knew that one day he came home feeling a little sick, and the next day he was paralyzed.’

‘That’s horrible.’

‘It is. And here I am, paying off the debt I incurred trying to save his life.’

Oswald found himself at a loss for words. He reached out to Carpenter to give them a hug. He couldn’t replace the feeling of a father giving their child a hug, but perhaps he felt that it was necessary given that he knew exactly the feeling of being separated from his child, even if “he” was merely a copy. He felt Carpenter raise an arm to pat him on the back.

‘Thanks, Oswald.’ They muttered then let go. ‘It’s been a long time since I’ve told someone that.’

‘It’s no problem at all.’

Carpenter laughed. ‘Look at us. The two loneliest fuckers in the station actually talking.’

‘You are lonely?’

‘Yeah. Hard not to be considering what I am.’

‘You are an android as well?’

‘What, no.’

‘Then what are you?’

‘I’m transgender.’ Carpenter said raising an eyebrow. ‘You never knew?’

‘That… explains quite a bit. You are a woman, I take it?’

‘Yeah. Yes I am. Never quite passed off as one quite well though.’ She laid herself down on the ground they sat on. ‘It’s my voice that betrays me.’

Oswald paused and thought back to the poster at the front of the station, emboldened with the word “Unity”. ‘You are like one of the people on the poster.’

‘Poster?’

‘The one at the entrance.’

She laughed. ‘That poster’s full of shit! They put that there cause they’d rather look like they’re accepting of all people.’

‘How so?’ Oswald naively asked.

‘Oswald.’ She sat back up and continued, ‘if they were serious, you wouldn’t be treated the way you are now. You wouldn’t get those cold glances from people who think they’re better than you just because you were something other. You wouldn’t get suspiciously pulled aside for the smallest perceived mistakes that other folks get away with. To them we’re something less than human.’

Oswald never thought about such things, and never really understood. To him, those stares only meant that they were looking at him and nothing more, and so he remained with a confused look upon his face.

Carpenter continued. ‘You really don’t get it.’

‘I’m sorry’

She sighed as she realised how he’d never truly get it. ‘No, I’m sorry. I got aggressive and that’s on me.’

‘Could you tell me more of what you are talking about?’

‘Nah.’ Carpenter smiled with concern ‘I honestly think you might be better off not knowing.’

She stood up and brushed dirt off herself. ‘Well, I gotta go. You should too. We got work in the morning.’

Oswald smiled warmly at Carpenter. ‘It was a pleasure talking to you, Miss Carpenter.’

Carpenter smiled back ‘Likewise, Oswald. Thanks for accepting me.’

And so their night concluded. Carpenter went home and Oswald was left alone to do the same.

That night he dreamt of his son, and the days they spent together in the beach. He’d always wanted to bring him to the finest hotels available, but ultimately had to settle for bringing their own tent and supplies to camp at some secluded secret spot of the shore, the wind bellowing and threatening to pull the tent along with the tide of the wind. The tent was held down by boxes of canned drinks and other cheap snacks they’d bring with them along with their own weight. But they’d enjoy it all the same. They had each other. And it was enough.

The rising of the sun simulated by the large hexagonal LED screens that made up the inside of the bubble’s skybox announced the coming of the next day, and Oswald was spending another day at the station doing odd jobs for whatever manager ordered for him to complete.

He once again found himself in hangar 12, this time hauling tools contained in crates on wheels for the engineers who were working on the damaged space ship that idly floated from the tractor beams.

Resha was talking with another engineer in earshot of Oswald, who heard a few words from their conversation. ‘Look, I don’t care if it’s unsafe. The client needs a demonstration of the engine’s overclock-’

‘Oswald, keep moving!’ Someone shouted at Oswald giving him a sudden shock to continue his work.

It took a few hours for the haul to be complete, and they received sudden orders to leave the ground floor of the hangar. Oswald walked over to Resha who was checking in with a holographic checkboard to question her. ‘What is going on? I thought launch testing wasn’t for another two days.’

Resha, who unwittingly shot him with a restless glance replied, ‘the client paid extra to see an engine test. Admin said we’re footing the refund if we refuse.’

‘But it’s unsafe! The engine might explode since we haven’t followed proper testing procedures.’

‘We don’t have a choice here, Oswald. The client is someone the admin really wants to impress.’ Resha sighed, ‘we’re going through with this no matter what.’

And so he was resigned to an anxious fate. He looked at everyone else watching from the metal scaffolding that hovered metres above the ship and watched with bated breath.

The ship’s engines whirred to life as power began to flow into the bottom thruster which then glowed a brilliant blue light like the heavens themselves. The whirring began to grow louder and louder which brought everyone's hands up to their ears in a desperate attempt to escape the noise. 

Oswald looked to Resha who was clenching her fist on the railing before her. Her face shimmered with sweat and she was hunched over intently staring into the engine which began to shake.

At this point, everyone was staring at the vibrating engine. It was like a jack in the box was placed at the centre of a room full of children who watched on with terror for the inevitability of the jack's escape. The engine's hum got louder and louder, somehow managing to cut through the sound of the already screeching thruster, which caused Resha to clench even harder. She even seemed to mutter something under her breath akin to a prayer to a god that may or may not be listening.

She looked at her clipboard and waited watching numbers and bars grow larger and longer until it reached a line. 'Alright, hold it! Keep it there! 

And so the engine and thruster got no louder, but everyone remained staring at it with horrible looks. What else could they do? 

There they remained drowned in the thruster's bright glow and a few moments pass until Resha raised a hand. 'Alright, that's good.'

And the engines began powering down. 

Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief. Oswald looked at their manager and saw her bearing a prideful smirk causing to smile in turn.

However, he soon noticed that despite the engine powering down, the thruster remained blasting away. Everyone was so intent to see the engine's work, that no one had considered the thruster. 

'Everyone. Out. Now!'

The engineers began to evacuate in droves as the thruster powered up and tore itself from the tractor beam. Oswald saw it blast straight toward  Rekha causing him to bolt toward her. His hands reached out to her and-

Progress report: Engine test successful.

Addendum: A recorded conversation between Administrator Matthias Crewford and Hangar 12 Manager Resha Sharma.

H12M Sharma: The engine is still functional. Thankfully, I am too. But the thruster's beyond repair. I don't expect you'll have us pay for it, would you?

ADM Crewford: That’s fantastic news! Don't worry about the thruster. That was only supplied to us for testing purposes. They didn't really care about it so long as the engine remained intact.

H12M Sharma: What was the engine? We've never seen any model like it.

ADM Crawford: It was an experimental anti-matter engine.

H12M Sharma: Anti-matter!? Sir, what the hell!?

ADM Crawford: Everything went well and according to plan.

H12M Sharma: That could have blown out a hole through the entire station! A lot of our folks could have died.

ADM Crawford: But no one did, and it's all thanks to you and your team. You should be celebrating!

H12M Sharma: That’s the thing. When the thruster went haywire, it barreled straight for me, but someone pushed me out of the way. And he's…

ADM Crawford: Ah. Send my condolences to his family. I'll get in contact with our insurance provider and get his family compensation.

H12M Sharma: It was Oswald.

ADM Crawford: Then there's no issue. We can have another andy shipped in in no time at all.

H12M Sharma: I'd like the same model. He saved my life.

ADM Crawford: Oh… I don't think I can arrange that.

H12M Sharma: What? Why the hell not!?

ADM Crawford: When they have your brain scanned for replication, you'll usually need to sign off to have the replicant service be able to use your likeness beyond your death. Problem is, our poor Oswald's original never did. And we have- well, had the last one in our possession.

H12M Sharma: So we can't have him replaced.

ADM Crawford: Sorry.

H12M Sharma: Shit. How long ago was his brain scan?

ADM Crawford: Uhhh… It says here… 120 years ago.

H12M Sharma: 120 years!? Jesus he's old…

ADM Crawford: Yep. so we can't exactly dig him up to ask him. Not that we could since everyone poor gets cremated anyway.

H12M Sharma: What about family. Couldn’t they sign off his likeness?

ADM Crawford: No luck there either. He doesn't have any remaining family. Last one was his son, and he died in service to the ESF before his old man.

H12M Sharma: Fuck…

ADM Crawford:...Is there anything else?

H12M Sharma: No… No, that will be all.

-End of transmission.-