(Unexplored sector, unnamed system, ice comet cloud, 1 cycle later)

"Hrm…"

Ruke grumbled as he scanned the asteroid belt again and again, he's been here for a while now, moving through the belt scanning for his target. A simple scout ship that went missing, owned by a not so simple group of people, a ship owned by the Bolyash empire itself.

Usually he doesn't really mess with things related to them, considering his life is literally under their control, but money is money, and fifty thousand is a lot. His mission here is to find it and take its black box, and there's a few possibilities he didn't consider that he just now realized.

One, if it is still operational, he needs to run away before they see him or he's dead, or rot in prison forever. Two, it's destroyed, but the black box is intact but now harder to find. And three, it was destroyed along with the black box. And he's only getting paid by one scenario, and that makes him worried.

He's hoping for the best possible scenario, it's intact, along with the black box. But that's wishful thinking, and the universe doesn't grant wishes, so there he is, suddenly regretting everything, in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by giant dusty space rock.

"Damn it…"

And he has to find it, because if he's not dead by the end of this he'll be in something worse, debt. And the empire's taxation doesn't play nice with Loners, best scenario? All of his possessions gone, worst? Slave, he's finished either way so it doesn't really matter.

Worse yet, the place was tricky to navigate, it isn't much a belt as it is more spherical, and it is not so much asteroids as they are more large chunks of ice and random clumps of space dust than the rock and metal most asteroids are.

And ice shatters, creating impassable clouds of hull breaching projectiles everywhere, the place was more dangerous than a literal minefield. No wonder that scout ship lost contact here, it might as well be erased from existence by all these micrometeorites.

Hours pass by, and he feels every agonizing second of it, maneuvering through this place is giving him a major headache. But there's no giving up now, he went too far and too deep into the field, he has to find it.

He started to just use his eye and looked out of his cockpit, it was clear the scanner wasn't sufficient. All he sees is the black of the void, white of the stars and the deep blue asteroids threatening to crack and split into numerous hazards.

He has a little trick though, he learned quite a useful trick back when traveling with other Loners then, if you're looking for a ship painted in black sitting in a black void, look for the shine. He knows Bolyash ships well enough, and he knows that they like painting it black.

A stealth paint, mixed with special materials that reduce the signatures of a ship, whether that's heat or radar, and to the naked eye it almost perfectly blends with the near total darkness that is space.

Almost is the key word, it has one particular flaw, a shine, Ruke smiled as he noticed a certain part of space that seems just a little too reflective in the distance. He flew his ship towards it and as he did an asteroid flew behind that particular part, and there it was, like ink on paper, the elusive Bolyash scout ship.

It looks… fine enough, the hull seems fine and spotless, if it weren't for the total lack of lights or any sort of activity he'd thought that it was still operational.

It isn't, hopefully, but that brings a question, why?

It was nice seeing it intact, it makes things easier, but at the same time he can't help but feel there's something odd about the scene. The feeling intensified as his ship got closer and closer, there was still zero activity, even the ship's core seems to be barely running, though that could just be its special coating hindering his scanner.

But he should be close enough for the coating to be much less effective now, so that's worrying. The frontal thrusters of his ship fired up, slowing down the ship and stopping it perfectly next to Ruke's target.

His ship is much smaller, Bolyash scouts are half frigates after all, which stretches the definition of its role a little, but no matter, the bigger it is the easier it is to get into. The exterior airlock used for space walks most likely won't accept him, and would be too thick to cut through with a laser cutter without taking at least a few dozen hours.

So he looks for something else as he scans its surface, with both his ship's scanner and his own eye. He spots it, a small panel/hangar door, drone bays, those are often thinner and made out of light materials so it can just easily swing open for a rapid deployment of drones.

They're very small in comparison to the ship itself, but just the right size for Ruke. He puts on his suit, his helmet, and before he goes for the ever so intimidating spacewalk he sets his ship to stay right next to the Bolyash scout.

The micro thrusters of his ship, meant for micro adjustments, fired on and off automatically to keep itself in sync with the scout ship, which was slowly drifting away. He waited with anticipation and some degree of fear as the airlock depressurized and he felt a sudden lack of gravity.

The airtight door opened to the sight of a black hull and a line of drone bays, he pulled himself outside, getting ready to launch himself. He waited for both ships to stabilize by themselves, and launched himself as soon as he was sure neither ship was going to move around too much.

Perhaps he should've invested in a spacewalk suit with thrusters to help him navigate, but he's already here and it's not like he had the economical capacity for that. He landed feet first, and before laws of physics could throw him away he activated the magnetic boots, causing him to latch on the hull like a stubborn insect on a hot day, thank God that special coating isn't diamagnetic. He landed right where he needed to be, on top of the drone bay, he took a step back and pulled out his laser cutter.

"Wooh… let's make this quick…"

—-~----

"Oh… I better be paid good for this… shit…"

Ruke exclaimed as he walked through the door he just cut open. He had managed to cut the bay door open, kicked the drone off its mounting and squeezed inside without much trouble. He didn't see a lot at first, the ship was dark, and oddly quiet, with only the faint hum of the reactor present.

There was an odd lack of crew as well, well… at least until he found a locked door and cut it open, only to see… a pile. He hates the Bolyash as much as he hates his life, but he wouldn't even wish this upon his worst enemy, this…

"Slaughter…"

Bodies lie here and there, some were simply shot dead, some were… picked apart, literally, not as in something cut through them, something *ripped* through them, he doesn't even want to know what can do that. It was a sickening sight, even for him, and judging from the smell, maggots and dried organs they've been like this for a long time.

He couldn't handle it and put his helmet back on, limiting his vision a little bit but at least it reduces the horrid smell of decomposition. As he navigated his way to the bridge, stepping through ransacked hallways filled with either wreckage or corpses, or both, a certain fear made itself clear in his mind.

What if the thing that did this to them is still here? It certainly was a terrifying possibility. He almost doesn't want to think of it, fearing it'll become reality simply because one thinks of it too much, a popular superstition in his species's culture.

Bolyash are big and strong, strongest so far in fact, physically speaking, but who or whatever it is that got through here didn't care in the slightest. The bodies follow almost a path, with minimal pileup, as if the culprit of all this got through most of it with one swift motion of continuous killing with no scuffed group fights, which suggest that it's alone, which is even worse of a thought.

He realized that it did have a path, it went straight for the bridge, and started somewhere from the engine compartment. Now he's nervous, the bridge is his goal and yet it is where the trail of bodies leads to. As he prepared his laser cutter and loosened the holster on his handgun he realized his hand was shaking, and had to grab it with his other hand to stop it.

Well… there's no going back now right? He cut a rectangular hole in the door and kicked it open. The thick steel fell to the floor on the other side with mighty reverb and a hiss of air being heated by molten metal.

Ruke steps inside when the hiss stops, finding just about what he expected inside, more bodies. He noticed a peculiar body though, seemingly belonging to the captain of this ship, it had no head and was laying down next to the captain console. It looks a bit different, he doesn't know why but his death seems to be a little personal, looking at the fact that only his head is missing, compared to… the missing lower half of many others.

He went to the bridge for a reason, a key, a physical one, often kept by the captain themselves, a key to the ship's black box. He searched through the dead captain's pockets and found it, a small cylindrical thing with some holes cut into it.

He knows it's here somewhere, the black box, there should be a panel in the bridge that gives direct access to it. It's often placed on the floor which means… he grimaced as he looked behind the captain's console, and saw the puddle of rotten and half frozen blood with maggots crawling through in search of any last piece of flesh.

This is not going to be fine… he sifted through it, carefully feeling the floor as the sludge of rotten flesh and blood coated the hand of his suit. He felt a small handle and pulled it, it unlocked the lock of a panel on the floor, he lifted it to find some sort of vault, it had a slot on it and nothing else.

That was easy enough (if incredibly disgusting), he inserted the captain's special key and it hissed open. And there it was, the key to his success, the black box, still intact and working just fine, if a bit coated in corpse goo.

"Oh yeah… here we go…"

He lifted it up from its cradle, it was unexpectedly heavy and very uncomfortable to carry.

"Let's trade you for some creds"

—-~----

<.....>

—-~----

So far so good, Ruke thought, as he placed the heavily armored black box next to his seat in the cockpit. Now to get out of here, he took manual control back of the ship and made some distance from the scout ship.

He looked for a clear and straight gap on the cloud his ship can pass through, he found a suitable gap and prepared for a micro jump. No time to check on the systems, since the gap wouldn't last for long, but he should be good, he checked it before he went here anyway.

He strapped himself in his seat, and prepared for the strange sensation of being pulled in every direction possible, such a sensation in a normal jump only lasted for a moment before fading out, uncomfortable, but you get used to it the longer the jump is.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

But in micro jumps, it is especially insufferable, it lasts just as long, but it doesn't fade out, it just ends immediately, which messes with the nerves, he's seen some people straight up have a stroke and die due to the shock. In fact, it's quite a notorious cause of death to those with a sensitive heart.

His heart is strong enough to take it, but the stinging, painful sensation, which felt like thousands of small needles stabbing him, is beyond annoying to deal with, which is why he doesn't do micros much. But now he has to, but whatever, anything to get out of here quickly, he still thinks about the dead bodies.

He still found it strange about the way they are killed and the fact that the killer seems to somehow get in the ship despite the total lack of exterior damage. But he chose not to think too much about what got them out here, all that matters is that if he's fast it won't catch up to him like it did to them. Hopefully anyway, he thought as he initiated the jump, he felt every single atom in his body being pulled apart.

It really felt like one would just shatter, like glass after being hit with a hammer, only for it to end, causing the body to feel like it just came out of intensely freezing water covered in needles while just a few seconds away from drowning, and for the nerves to panic as they weren't biologically coded to deal with micro jump shocks. Ruke was having some trouble regaining his breathing when the ship shook, he immediately did a ship wide diagnostic, as that isn't normal.

"Shit…"

He feared for the worst, engine failure, hull failure, anything, but the scanners didn't pick up anything strange. Except for something In the engine room, right next to the fuel tanks, the scanner detected, quote on quote: "Unknown biological matter" his ship had no cameras, too small for the Investment to be worth it.

So he decided to look for himself, his breathing and composure returned as he put his helmet on and took out his handgun. He passed through a small room on his way to the engine room, and noticed the lights inside blinking for no reason.

Something's not right, and it's messing with the fuse box whatever it is. It was a short walk to the engine room, it didn't give him much time to prepare and think, and only now did he realize that this, whatever it is, could be what took out that Bolyash scout. For it to mysteriously appear in his ship's engine room is enough to scare him already, as he recounted where the trail of bodies started on that other ship.

With newfound fear he slowly opened the door, it creaked open menacingly as it still used hinges instead of sliding open, the nature of an outdated ship. The first thing he saw was a trail of black and reddish liquid, fragments of rotten bones following the trail, which itself led to…

"By the gods…"

A… something? Someone? He's not sure, it stood on two legs, and was dressed in mostly gray and black. It was clearly injured, as it tried to stand up on broken legs, using a fuse box on the wall as an aid. The thing had no tail, and was quite tall, taller than him, still slightly shorter than a Bolyash, and it wore a thick hooded coat.

Ruke can see a bit of its hands as it held to the fuse box, it was covered in a rusted metal shell which itself was covered in layers upon layers of both new and rotten bandages, both of which were blackened by some sort of black liquid. Perhaps the most striking and eye-catching detail was the spear jutting out of its back, seemingly pierced through its spine.

There were a few weird looking devices on it and some blinking lights from the spear itself, the rapid flickering and sparks coming out of them suggests neither is working well. A faint red light emanates from its hidden face, and a thin veil of strange black smoke covers the whole figure, it gets thicker the closer it is to its face.

The figure let go of the fuse box, stumbling backwards as soon as it did, and something was odd about the fuse box. The cover was incredibly rusted for some reason. This ship is old, but it's not that old. The figure struggled to keep up straight and fell to its back, there was a crunch and a snap and a sound of a metal frame snapping as the spear on its back got pushed by the floor and came out of its chest covered in black and reddish liquid.

It convulsed on the floor for a moment before becoming motionless, Ruke watched the whole thing unfold in fear and sheer confusion. Thinking it's safe, he slowly approached it; he could see more of its details as he got closer. It has no face, or at least he can't see one, it wore some sort of goggles with rectangular lenses and what looked like an armored gas mask. It wore some sort of primitive protective vest on its body, seemingly just being a simple yet thick steel plate, same with the arms and legs.

And one thing is the same about anything metal on it, they're all rusted, he noticed how the spike that pierced it was actively flaking, falling apart right before his eyes. The spike snapped in half, revealing some cabling inside, and some more weird looking devices. Ruke was watching in disbelief when he realized something alarming, the floor, it started to rust rapidly on any part that was touched by the figure's "blood". Not wanting a hole in his ship he rushed out of the engine room to look for a large sheet of plastic he knew he had.

He's been using it to seal a leak on his refrigerator, and to catch any dripping water from it to prevent it from oxidizing with the floor. Now it'll serve a similar purpose, just somewhat differently.

—-~----

"*What in God's name are you?*"

Ruke whispered as he looked back and forth between a massive rust spot on the floor and the corpse of the thing that just appeared in his ship, now resting on a sheet of plastic.

Turns out it did work, he had expected it not to, but whatever that liquid is it only affects metal. The thing is still dead, and hopefully it stays that way. He had removed the spike piercing its body and threw it out of the trash chute in fear it was a tracker, though to be honest he's more in fear of whatever this thing is.

He swore to God he saw the corpse twitch every now and then, it makes him anxious that it would just suddenly wake up. But that's impossible, its chest had burst open and its leg looked like it had been crushed. But if that thing can live with insides that looked like it had melted, burnt to a crisp and then melted again he's not sure those will take it out. He watched it from afar, not daring to take his eyes off it, he really doesn't want to be anywhere near it.

But natural curiosity takes over and he wants to look closer. With fear he stepped forward, one by one, while trying to catch any new detail with each step.

The closer and closer he got the more the corpse seemed to move, he waved it off as his imagination as he took his final step and is now right next to it. He crouched to look closer at its face, black, rusted and foreign, and snoutless, that too. There were three symbols on the right side of its gas mask, he didn't know what it meant, but if he had to guess, it's numbers.

He tried to see through the red tinted lenses of the goggles it was wearing, he could see something, not quite an eyelid, it was too… empty, like an eye socket without the eyes. Physically empty anyway, he can feel something as he stared at it to try and understand, it was looking at him, somehow, right through his own eye and into his soul if that's even a thing. It… wants something, and it calls him, a call for help, a cry, it draws him deeper into the void of its eyes.

He wanted to answer, but he doesn't know how or even why he felt like doing so, but he did. It only makes everything worse as a faint glow emanates from its eye, it snaps him out of his delirium and he jumps backwards in primal fear as the corpse convulses once again and smoke starts to come out of the wounds on its body.

The wounds close and the holes on its armor somehow fixed itself, Ruke's mind says to run as fast as possible but his body is not responding, still in shock and incapable of movement. With fear and a degree of awe he watched the thing's ribs snap back in place before a mass of blackened flesh covered them up.

It recovered enough it seems, as the smoke stopped and things sat up in a flash. Ruke thought he was going to die when its head snapped towards him and it stared at him right in the eye, those eyes, those soulless red eyes, it wanted his soul. But nothing happened, it just stared at him, and that's it, it didn't get up, it didn't start attacking, it just sat there, like it was lost or something.

The two stared at each for a long time before Ruke realized he probably shouldn't be laying on the floor in front of a creature that just came back from the dead. Its head moved, following his movement, more specifically it was trying its best to look him in the eye, he tried not to look back, maybe it'll stop that way, but it won't stop staring at him.

Feeling more weirded out than scared he ran out of the room and locked it, he sat down on the floor and leaned on the locked door as he realized the weight of his situation.

This isn't just a one off freak thing, he just discovered a new race, where they come from he couldn't care less, he couldn't decide if he should report this or hide it. The thing isn't reptilian, so if the Bolyash knew, that would be guaranteed extermination.

But at the same time… he really doesn't want to see what these things can do, came back to life and made metal rust with its blood, this is no ordinary species, it's a demon as far as he's concerned. He held his head in frustration, this can't be happening, not to him, not now, it can't be.

But it did, and there's nothing he can do about that.

"What did i get myself into?"

—-~----

(1 cycle later, Reyzen checkpoint station)

"Here it is… the black box"

The man from the bar inspected the armored box carefully, after a few seconds he nodded in approval.

"Wow… can't believe you did it, and in one piece"

"Yeah…"

"How'd you find it? The ship i meant"

"It was abandoned in an asteroid field, well… abandoned as in no one in there was alive"

"Oh… well… sorry you had to see that, here's your money, as promised"

He took the chips and shook the man's hand, rather limply, the man noticed it and asked if he was good.

"I'm good… just… something's in my mind, that's all"

"Hmm… that's not what your eyes say, but okay, good doing business with you, wanna keep my contact? Might have some more jobs for you later"

"Sure… here"

He gave the man his personal datapad, after some sounds of typing and ping of confirmation he gave it back to Ruke.

"Hey… you're not gonna question how I found it?"

"No, I honestly don't care what happened to them… i care about this black box, now excuse me"

The man donned his hood and walked out of the alley, leaving Ruke alone to his thoughts, he still thinks about the creature currently locked inside his ship's engine room. He can't forget about it, no matter what he tries, sometimes the creature makes some sounds like banging or grunts, he can hear it through the walls, and he hates it. He still doesn't know what to do with it, all options look like the wrong option.

It's been giving him intense frustration lately, and he had to buy some meds when he finally arrived at the station. He took another pill as he walked out of the alley himself, intending to go somewhere to relieve some stress, and there's only one place for that, a place he's sure has someone waiting for him.

—-~----

Angel waits by one of the rounded couches on the club, today was a bit of a relaxed day, there weren't many people that came by. So she was mostly free, though her boss wouldn't like that. Despite this, she stayed in despite having the option to just go back to her room and sleep out the rest of the day. She's waiting for someone, has been so for the last two cycles, someone special. She held something in her hand, a lockbox, from someone she'll never forget.

"*Sigh*"

She still remembers the shock she had and the slight tinge of fear when she first opened it, inside was more than enough credits to pay off all of her smaller debts. Now all that's left is her main debt, the one that kept her in this damned place, her chain, something she had tried to break all this time to no result.

Once she pays that off she won't have to live this horrible life anymore, but there was a small issue. She's not sure she can live out there by herself, she can't even remember the last time she lived normally, she would need some help to get used to it.

"Angel?"

So she waited, for someone who she believed could guide her, someone with experience, someone to give her another chance at life. She shifted her seating when one of her colleagues came by.

"Hi Vyn…"

She wasn't sure what to say when he comes back, nor is she sure if he will ever come back, but that won't stop her, it didn't stop him, how would it stop her?. It can't, and never will, she believes in it, she believes in him.

"What are you doing?"

"Waiting…"

"For who?"

"Vyn, can we keep this a secret?"

"Sure… lower your voice"

"I know"

"So, who is it?"

"You remember how I was able to pay off all my side debts some time ago?"

"Yes?"

"I'm waiting for the reason why that's possible"

"Ooh… who are they? Do you know them?"

"No, he just came one day, look at me all crazy, i think he's in love or something, and… hurt my tail"

"Oh, *that* guy two cycles ago?"

"Yes, he just-"

"You know he's a Wanderer right?"

"I know, but-"

"Angel, those people are always up to no good, why do you think they don't have citizenship?"

"But he was… well… strange, he just ran off after giving me money, but there's good intention i know that"

"You're only going to be in more trouble, it's bad enough here, it'll be worse with him"

"How do you know?"

"Because i used to be with one, i used to be like you too, i thought i was with someone i can trust, then one day he just left, and guess what? Turns out he sold me here"

"Well… they're not the same people"

"Still, trash is trash even if its different, you do you Angel, i can't control you, but remember my words"

She left and walked towards a watcher, someone whose job is to watch the strippers and make sure they do their job.

"Whatever…"

Hours pass by as quickly as a flash of light, it took the sharp pain in the stomach to make her realize how long she's been waiting. She's hungry, to most people it isn't an issue, they can just cook their own food or buy it.

Not for her, as the guards standing by the door wouldn't let her out, ever, it's the rule here, she's not allowed to leave until she pays off her debts, with the only alternative being the sweet release of death, or be the boss's personal slave until you're reduced to nothing but a drug addled toy, at which point he'll either dump you out the club with nothing on you or make you an exclusive service that has to be paid for.

Even if one escaped they would be hunted down, being a stripper isn't her job, it's her punishment. How she gets food is complicated, she needs to serve at least two customers a day to be given a stamp. Stamp that she would then exchange for some sub-par food by giving it to today's watcher.

Or whatever those bloody wretches call themselves, she still can't forget her first ever day in this accursed place, how he grabbed her by the waist when she said she didn't get a stamp, and that perverted smile.

She was just about to give up when the club's door swung open, she wasn't the only one who turned her head to see what it was, everyone of her "colleague" was hoping to woo a man that day so they can maybe get their stamp, but unfortunate for them, said man is only interested in one person.

"Ruke!-"

She didn't get to finish her sentence as he grabbed by the arm and led her to one of the private rooms, her colleagues watching in envy as he slammed the door shut. He let her arm go after they were inside.

"What happened?"

He gave her another large sum of money, five thousand, about a third of what's in the lockbox, but she's happy nonetheless, but…

"O-okay… but what-"

"*Sigh* let's just make this quick"

He said with a degree of frustration as he took his clothes off. It dawned on her, and she undressed as fast as she could.

—-~----

"Rough day?"

She asked as they lay in bed, butt naked, exhausted after a rough session, two rough sessions actually, that would get her today's stamp and a generous sum of money. She doesn't care about that just yet, what she cares about right now is the mental health of the man that cares for her. She caressed his head in an attempt to calm him down, it seems to work nicely.

"Very rough"

"What happened?"

"*Sigh* work… let's just say one of them got me bad"

"You poor thing…"

"I got paid well though… eighty thousand creds"

"EIG- eighty?..."

"Yeah… already ten thousand on you, how much do you need?"

"I- wait, what's your plan here?"

"My plan?"

He got out of her hug and went on top of her.

"Get you out of here… take you with me, simple"

"Wha- i mean… i was… thinking about that too, but… we only know each other for-"

"And so? I've been inside you thrice now, came thrice"

"Uhm.…"

"Okay, not a good reason, but what's stopping us? I don't have to say what I felt when I was here the first time, right?"

"No… it's obvious, I get it… but to this length? This fast? For… me?"

"Yeah, that fast, that's what I'm willing to do, so how much do you need?"

"Ruke, i-"

"How much?"

"I can't take it from you, i-"

He interrupted her with a kiss, a deep kiss, their tongue intertwined as they exchanged saliva. It made her feel a bit hot, despite their cold blooded nature, maybe it's just her mind playing tricks on her, but she really felt something hot deep in her chest. He let go after a few solid minutes, she didn't realize, but he had her pinned down by holding her both of her hand and keeping it to the side. In between hot and heavy breaths he spoke, with some authority in his voice.

"How… much?"

"Fifty…"

"Paid"

"I'm sorry…"

"Don't feel sorry for yourself, feel sorry for that bastard that keep you here, because he just lost the most beautiful worker he has"

She doesn't know how to respond to that, other than to feel flustered and perhaps quite humbled.

—-~----

Ruke walked inside the club alone, and he walked out with a partner in hand, the "discussion" with her boss was quite tricky, he didn't want to let her go just yet, saying he really values his workers (as if) Ruke had to haggle, he ended up spending ten thousand credit more than he really should. But it's worth every effort, and every piece of credit, his fruit of effort tightened her grip on his arm, keeping him close as the walked the busy streets

"I just realized…"

"Hmm?"

"What's your name? Can't actually be named Angel right?"

"Oh, yes… almost forgot, name's Svya"

"Sv- how do you pronounce that?"

"Just call me Sevi, that's what others call me, but if you want to know, Svya can be translated to angel"

"Native?"

"Native, not some mere Bolyash common, you?"

"Native too, Ruke's been my name since forever, Sevi… i like that name"

"Mmh… You know?... For an Algor…"

She playfully tapped his claws.

"You're way less intimidating than i thought, most just… try to look scary"

"And you're so much more than the average Varash"

"Thank you, but what i meant is that most of your kind i met seems to pretend they are a Bolyash or something"

"Well… we're the closest thing here to a Bolyash around here…"

"Hmph… as if just a Bolyash isn't bad enough…"

"Hmm?"

"I'm just joking… I know what they did to you… to everyone…"

"No use crying about it now right?"

"No… so… where are we going? Do you have a house or apartment here?"

"I have… a ship, small, old, i'm… sorry"

"It's fine, i don't care, as long as i'm free, and far, far away from that damned club"

Suddenly Ruke stopped, he remembered something, something he doesn't want to remember, the creature in his ship's engine room. He can't have that, especially if she's going to live with him, it'll be too dangerous for her, no, she can't see that thing, he can't allow it.

"What is it?"

"How about… we look for an apartment?"

"For what?"

"I just… think the ship's not enough for the two of us… so what about we look for an apartment to stay in, and I'll… work, get a new ship"

"No need, i'll be happy wherever"

"No-no-no, i'm serious, i don't think it can sustain us both"

"We'll find a way"

"We can't! just trust me, you want to look for a place to stay here for a some time while i look for a new ship"

"Ruke, you're a good man but that's a little too much-"

"No it's not"

"Why?"

"Because… because i want the best for you, that's all"

"...."

"I know you don't like being here, you want to leave, i know… but-"

"Really? That's what you want… for me?"

"Well yes-"

She shut him down with a soft touch to the mouth.

"Ruke, we've met each other… for less than a day… in which you were inside me three times, paid off all my debt and some more, tre

ated me like a person and now you want to look for a new ship just because you think the old one would be too uncomfortable for me?"

"Yeah?"

"....fine, if you insist, let's look for an apartment, love…"

He felt his heart stop for a moment, before feeling that intense heartburn again, he couldn't believe his ears, what did she just call him? Love?... Suddenly he forgot all of his burden, and he continued walking with her with a much lighter step.