“No underground city? What do you mean, no underground city? I thought...” Kaine spun to face Val, pointing an accusing finger at her. “This isn’t what we agreed upon!”

“You said I could drop you off on the first planet we found. Guess what? This is it.”

“It was implied that I could find a way off said planet...” He turned back to face Onna. “I’m assuming there are no ships headed out?”

“Not on a regular schedule, no. Next one won’t be here for a month or two, I expect.”

Kaine threw his arms in the air as he looked back toward Val.

“See? What am I supposed to do here in the meantime? Twiddle my thumbs? I got places to be.”

“Not my problem. Now, if you’ll be so kind as to pay what you owe me—”

“I don’t think so.”

“A deal’s a deal!” she retorted angrily.

“The deal wasn’t about leaving me stranded on a backward world.” He glanced at their host. “No offense intended.”

Onna shook her head. “I think I’ll let you two sort things out while I go find us some food.”

Without waiting for a response, she turned and walked away.

Before Kaine could say something else, Val spoke.

“Look, I know this isn’t ideal, but it’s not my fault if this world isn’t what you expected. It’s not like I’d ever been here before.”

“Would you have avoided this place if you had?”

She paused at the question. It was a good one. She might not have under normal circumstances, but this guy made her uncomfortable.

“That’s not the point. You haven’t been straight with me, and I’m not a cruise ship. I can’t go flying you around. I got places to be, too.”

“What do you mean, I haven’t been straight?”

Despite the question, she could see the man was nervous as he turned his gaze away.

“I still don’t know what you were doing on Rimzana or how you got caught.”

“I told you! I—”

“And don’t give me that crap again about your stupid joke. We both know that was not why they arrested you.”

He crossed his arms.

“What is this? An investigation? You work for the Impies now?”

She groaned. “You know what? Keep your money and I’ll just get out of your hair. Goodbye.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Val turned and started to walk back toward the vehicle.

“Fine,” she heard him say behind her. “There are multiple warrants against me. Happy?”

She stopped and turned to look at him.

“Warrants? What for?”

“Nosy much?”

She crossed her arms and waited.

He sighed. “All sorts of stuff. Mostly smuggling.”

“A smuggler,” she muttered. “Don’t you need a ship for that?”

“The Impies seized it when they captured me.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t try to get it back.”

“Not an option. They were all over it. Besides, it wasn’t really my ship.”

“No?”

“I, uh, borrowed it.”

She laughed. “I see. Alright. I suppose I can put up with you until the next planet.”

Not that she trusted him more now, but it didn’t feel fair to leave him here.

He beamed. “I knew you had a heart!”

“Don’t push your luck, smartass.”

“Can’t a guy be nice?”

“A guy, sure. You, I have my doubts.”

He chuckled. He was about to say something else when Onna returned with two boxes. She motioned for them to follow her.

They went down a corridor that ended in a large cafeteria. Aside from a couple of people at the far end, the room was empty.

Onna sat at one of the tables and they both joined her.

The woman placed the boxes in front of her and opened them, one after the other.

“What’s this?” asked Kaine with some curiosity.

“Likely food,” ventured Val.

Onna nodded as she pulled out smaller boxes. These were made of transparent plastic, and they could see what was inside each of them.

When the woman was done, they had a large selection of dishes set before them.

Kaine stared at it for a moment, then looked at their host.

“You don’t even have a holodis?”

“We did, once upon a time. But it broke down decades ago. No one knew how to repair it, so...” She gestured toward the boxes. “This is what we have now.”

Val pursed her lips. “How can you even grow any food in this weather? Is it like that all year round?”

“Pretty much. Sometimes the winds stop roaring, but the cold never goes away. As for the food, we don’t grow it—at least, not all of it—, we import it.”

“Then why not import a holodis?” asked Kaine.

Seeing the guests were not eating, Onna shrugged and grabbed one of the boxes. She opened it and pulled out a roll stuffed with vegetables.

“You misunderstand. We do not deal with the Imperium, but with other planets at the rim. Most of them do not have any technology either. Or when they do, they have no way to share it. The knowledge to fix or build these things is lost. We’d have to turn to the Imperium. Some have done that, but not always with pleasant consequences.”

Val knew what she meant. The Emperor cared little for these worlds and was more likely to punish them for making a request than to actually help them. The only times the Imperium would pay attention to the rim were if they needed to expand, or to fight a battle. Neither of which had happened in centuries.

She frowned. That wasn’t entirely true, was it?

There now were warships above Rimzana.

“What do you trade for the food?” asked Kaine.

“Raw material. There is plenty of that under our feet. We have several dig sites spread around our settlement.”

Val started eating.

“Have you ever traded with Qevahr?” she asked.

Onna blinked as she glanced at her.

“We have. Why?”

“How about Rimzana?”

The woman frowned. “Too many Imperials, there. Never understood why. They rarely pay attention to rimworlds.”

“There’s a battle going on over there. Between the Impies and a fleet of Qevahri ships. Any idea what that might be about?”

Onna stared at her.

“Are you serious?”

“It’s true,” said Kaine softly.

“That is concerning.”

“Why?”

“Because...” She took a deep breath. “The Qevahri are led by the Church of Saan. But there has been some... turmoil within their ranks. A new leader has come forth. According to the accounts I’ve heard, she has unearthed ancient, long-forgotten texts that talk of Rimzana as sacred land that may even have been their world of origin.”

Val thought about this for a moment.

“But they’re not attacking the planet, they’re attacking the Impies.”

“Why would they attack the planet? It is sacred to them. As for the Imperials, I can only assume they consider them as sacrilegious invaders.”

“It’s madness! By this action, they declared war on the Imperium. This could affect all of the rimworlds.”

Onna nodded. “Indeed. Which is why it is concerning.”

They fell quiet.

Outside, the winds continued to roar.