Erika’s home, for the last few months, was the Hell’s Ark. The ship was a battered and bruised vessel closing in on its thirtieth birthday. Light fixtures in narrow halls had fallen into disuse a decade ago. The airlock doors groaned when they opened and closed. The lab retrofitted into ship, however, was state of the art. That was, according to SmallWorld, the only part of the ship that mattered.

  Mi-Cha maneuvered the shuttle into the Ark’s holding bay. The Carnifex woke up during the flight, though by the time it regained consciousness, the scientists had the alien strapped to a table. The creature jerked in its restraints, and when it realized it couldn’t escape, it stopped to conserve energy. Only a few creatures struggled beyond the first few seconds, at least in Erika’s experience.

  The Carnifex could move its head, so it focused on Erika. She rubbed her shoulder. It throbbed.

  “It got you good,” Luther said.

  “I need a few minutes to walk it off,” Erika replied.

  Luther rubbed his chin, a sure sign he was going to give unsolicited advice.

  “You should visit the med bay,” Luther said.

  “I’m fine, really.”

  “Even so, you can pick up painkillers,” Luther said.

  Erika sighed, then she nodded.

  “Home sweet home, everybody,” Mi-Cha called over the radio.

  Aymeric and Petra slid into the room.

  “We thought you could use some help with our new friend,” Aymeric said.

  “I can, thank you,” Luther said. “We’ve got it from here, Erika. Get yourself checked out.”

  Erika was fine enough to help carry the Carnifex, but she decided to keep her mouth shut and maneuver her way to the exit.

  “Oh, one thing,” Luther called.

  Erika turned around.

  “When you’re through at the med bay, come meet me in my room. There’s something I wanted to talk about,” Luther said.

  A spike of fear pierced Erika’s chest. Her eyes widened for a brief moment, then she forced her expression to neutral.

  “Okay. See you in a moment,” Erika said.

  She stepped into the elevator, and took it to the first floor. The machine moved slow, giving Erika time to think. She already knew what Luther would say: she’d disobeyed orders when she attacked the Carnifex, and Luther now had to put a write-up in her file. Erika did not look forward to the talk.

  The elevator opened to the bridge. Erika marched to the side, where the main airlock and med bay waited. She stepped into the med bay, climbed onto the examination table, and booted the AutoDoc.

  The machine woke slowly, but once awake, it wasted no time getting to its job. The AutoDoc scanned Erika over, and determined that her shoulder was bruised, but nothing below the skin was fractured. The machine gave Erika a shot of a healing solution and a couple of weak painkillers, which is what she expected when she stepped into the med bay.

  With painkillers in hand, Erika should have gone directly to Luther’s cabin to hear him out. But Erika needed to visit the lab. Petra could check on the aliens by herself; she knew the aliens well at this point, but Erika didn’t want to pawn her work off to her friend. Erika would talk to Luther only after she’d done her job.

  You’re delaying. Of course Erika was delaying, but she didn’t care. She was kind of hoping that, if she delayed long enough, Luther would forget all about the monologue he wanted to deliver.

  So Erika went to the third floor. Before entering the lab, she had to go through a decontamination procedure that took thirty seconds, which was thirty seconds added to her journey back to Luther.

  Petra and Aymeric were in the lab. Petra sat at a computer and tapped information into it while Aymeric inspected shock spears and net guns strewn on a table.

  Petra looked up from her computer. Her eyes widened when she saw Erika.

  “That talk with Luther was fast,” Petra noted. “How’s that injury, by the way?”

  “I wasn’t hurt too bad. I just needed an injection and some pain pills,” Erika said.

  “You’re a toughie, you know that?” Aymeric called. “If I got smacked by an alien, I’d take the whole week off. And find a therapist.”

  Erika cracked a smile in his direction.

  “Luther cleared you for work?” Petra asked.

  “Well, he never said I couldn’t work,” Erika said.

  “Did you actually talk to him?” Petra prodded.

  Erika gave a noncommittal shrug.

  Petra shook her head.

  “Well, take it easy. Don’t run any experiments by yourself,” she said.

  Erika went through a door on the side, into a small room with three heavy duty airlocks. She stepped into the rightmost door and into an observation room. The massive window in front showed a familiar scene from Tartarus–rocks and fleshy fauna analogues. The Carnifex lied in a heap in front of the window.

  Erika checked its vitals from the command board. The creature’s body pulsed at a steady rate. The two other creatures captured from Tartarus pulsed at steady rates, too, so Erika figured the Carnifex was stable. She knew all too well that this was speculation on a creature she knew nothing about. Even life on Earth had a million and one variations, and nothing suggested that Tartarus had a less diverse biosphere. All Erika could do, however, was speculate, and her intuition told her the Carnifex was doing fine in its new enclosure.

  Next she checked on the Aranea. Movement from behind a rock caught Erika’s eye, but she couldn’t see the creature inside. She knew what the Aranea looked like, though: it was the bastard child of a tarantula and a cockroach. It would have just been a gross bug, if it wasn’t the size of a Labrador Retriever.

  The Aranea was, honestly, one of the least interesting species from Tartarus. SmallWorld didn’t want the most unique creatures though; they wanted aliens that the general public could point to and say, “that looks like a tarantula crossed with a cockroach.” Erika let so many unique aliens out of her grasp because they wouldn’t be marketable. Who cares if this animal can photosynthesize, or if this fungi grows in dry ice? The general public wouldn’t know what to make of creatures like that; they came to SmallWorld zoos to see something strange, yet comprehensible.

  Erika checked the Aranea’s habitat to ensure the temperature, humidity, and air makeup were a perfect simulation of Tartarus. Erika tried to find the Aranea through the cameras, though it was well hidden. Still, the glimpses she made out of the creature made it look content, so she decided everything was fine.

  “There you are.”

  The voice made Erika jump. She spun around. Luther stood in the doorway, face unreadable.

  “You got me.” Erika put a hand on her chest. Her heart hammered against her ribcage.

  “I was hoping you’d come to talk before you came to the lab,” Luther said.

  “The aliens need to be checked.” They didn’t need to be immediately checked, though. Erika should have taken a nice, long shower, or taken a nap in her room, or done something else to delay this stupid talk.

  “I needed to talk to you about that last mission and what happened,” Luther said.

  “I disobeyed orders. I’m sorry.” Erika wanted to say that it wouldn’t happen again, but she figured that she would eventually do her own thing again. If she was going to make a promise, she wanted to make one she could actually keep.

  “I am upset that you disobeyed me, but that’s not what I wanted to talk about,” Luther said.

  Erika tried to predict what Luther would say, but she didn’t know where he was heading.

  “You put yourself in extreme danger,” Luther said. “I appreciate your effort, I really do, but our safety is the most important part of this job. It’s more important than studying and capturing the aliens.”

  Erika’s defenses fizzled up. She wanted to say something, but she didn’t quite know what she wanted to say.

  “I want us to all be safe, okay? I want the company to succeed, but not at the expense of my friends.” Luther was honest, too; the scientists were more than coworkers, they were friends. Erika just hadn’t expected anyone to say that out loud.

  “Yeah, I understand.” Her voice came out small.

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  Luther’s features relaxed. He glanced to the Aranea enclosure.

  “Is this your first check of the day?” He asked.

  “I looked at the Carnifex, too. I think it’s stable,” Erika said.

  Luther’s left eye glowed blue as he checked his IRIS.

  “Okay. Are you up to run an experiment with me?” He asked.

  “That’s the job today.” Erika nodded.

  ? ? ?

  Something was always broken on the Hell’s Ark. If it wasn’t the water pressure, then it was the food printer. If it wasn’t the food printer, then a stabilizer needed repairs. If the stabilizer was good, the air recycler needed work. The Ark always made sure Theo Salvador had something to do. Today, the water pressure was weak.

  Theo made a final twist of his wrench, then stepped back from the pipes.

  “Try it now,” he said.

  Clive was already in position. He was a broad man with heavy features and a clump of enamel pins on his navy jumpsuit. He was the muscle aboard the Ark, hired to haul, carry, and push things around. When he wasn’t doing that, he helped Theo make repairs.

  Clive turned the shower handle. The water jet out in a satisfying spray. Clive turned the water off.

  “Should we do anything else?” Clive asked.

  “This will work,” Theo said.

  With this repair out of the way, Theo could continue with his checklist.

  He and Clive headed to the fourth floor, where the reactor room waited. They stood in the control room for the reactor, a sealed box just in case the core started throwing off radiation. A thick window gave a clear view of the reactor.

  Theo ran diagnostics from the control room console, prompting a string of systems to appear. The results were a mix of green and red. Those red lights indicated minor malfunctions. The issues had sat on the back burner for months, and though Theo wanted to make those repairs, there was always something more urgent to snatch his attention.

  A new, unfamiliar red line appeared. The starboard engine was hotter than its thresholds. If left alone, it would burn out.

  Oil sloshed in Theo’s stomach.

  The starboard engine usually ran hot, but it stayed just below the danger line. That was something Theo wanted to fix for a while, but it was never an urgent enough problem to deal with.

  The engine’s in real trouble now. That has become your main issue.

  “We need to go outside and make repairs on the engine,” Theo stated.

  “That will mean slowing the ship down, right?” Clive asked.

  “Yes.”

  “We should check in with the Captain,” Clive said.

  There was no point in checking in with anyone; the engine needed to be fixed as soon as possible. Theo would have gone out alone, but a spacewalk required at least two people. He needed Clive.

  Theo drew in a breath, and forced his features to be calm. There was no need for his emotions to appear on his face.

  “Let’s get the Captain,” Theo said.

  ? ? ?

  Aymeric didn’t know what Luther and Erika were planning, but they didn’t need Aymeric or Petra for it. The pair stayed in the lab just long enough to finish their tasks.

  For Aymeric, that meant making sure the weapons worked, then cleaning the beakers and test tubes scattered around. He’d gone through the weapons already; the shock spears were in their charging bays, and the net guns were loaded and cleaned. They’d be useless during the journey back to Earth, but SmallWorld protocol dictated that the weapons be cleaned and loaded after every hunt, so Aymeric made sure the weapons were ready.

  It made sense for Aymeric to handle weapon maintenance, but cleaning the lab equipment? SmallWorld hired Aymeric because he was one of the best big game hunters on Earth. He was hired so the scientists knew how to capture whatever ugly thing caught their eyes. That was Aymeric’s job. He was not supposed to be a fucking lab janitor.

  He placed the last of the equipment in the drying station, then flicked the power button. Aymeric dried his hands, and turned around. Petra had stood up and was stretching her arms to the ceiling.

  She was hired as a veterinarian, and her job was to make sure the aliens were stable as they traveled. It wasn’t the glamorous position Luther and Erika held, but at least she got to tend to the aliens. Aymeric didn’t even have clearance to look at the aliens without a babysitter.

  “All done?” Aymeric asked.

  “Almost.” Petra grabbed her drawing tablet from the table. “I need to check on the Carnifex before I go.”

  Which was code for, “I’m going to sketch this weird-ass alien.” SmallWorld rules said that no personal recordings or drawings could be made of the aliens, but Petra got away with it. She didn’t sell her sketches; she only wanted to show the aliens to her five-year old boy. The kid was so cute that Petra got away with bending the rules.

  “I guess I’ll find something to do myself,” Aymeric said.

  Petra left for the enclosures.

  Once Aymeric put away the dried lab equipment, he headed for the bridge. Mi-Cha was in the pilot’s seat, back turned to the rest of the ship. She tapped at the screens in front of her.

  Aymeric padded forward.

  Mi-Cha hadn’t turned around. Maybe she knew Aymeric was coming. Probably she didn’t.

  Aymeric held his breath as he drew closer.

  A strand of Mi-Cha’s pink hair waved out of her ponytail.

  Aymeric leapt forward.

  “What’s up?” He said.

  Mi-Cha nearly lunged out of her chair.

  Aymeric laughed.

  Mi-Cha glared at him.

  “Fucking asshole. I should have left you on that shit-ass planet,” she spat.

  “I’m here to talk about that, actually.” Aymeric leaned closer.

  “Oh yeah?” Mi-Cha’s features hardened.

  “I wanted to thank you for not jetting off,” Aymeric said.

  “Yeah, well, I was thinkin’ about it,” Mi-Cha said. “Glad I didn’t, though. I would have gotten chewed the fuck out.”

  “Is that all?” Aymeric asked.

  Mi-Cha pretended to think.

  “Yep, that’s it,” she concluded with a grin.

  Aymeric grinned back.

  “You almost through here?” He asked.

  “Yeah, I just need a moment. Then we’ll go to my cabin,” Mi-Cha said.

  “Ma’am, yes ma’am.”

  ? ? ?

  The ship crew were good people, really. Sometimes they got on Naoki’s nerves and he had to remind himself that the crew really were good people. When he talked with Captain Fox Ryder, Naoki usually reminded himself twice.

  The Captain of the Hell’s Ark leaned back in one of the galley’s chairs with a lazy expression, like a cat after he’d gorged. Ryder either didn’t understand what Naoki was saying or he didn’t care. Naoki wasn’t sure which alternative was more frustrating.

  “I mean it, Ryder, we are behind schedule. I know a few hours sounds okay, but SmallWorld is strict. If we show up even a minute late, the managers will have questions.” Naoki urged.

  “Chill, chill,” Ryder said.

  “The managers will not chill,” Naoki warned.

  Ryder waved his hand between the two, as if he could wipe the concerns away. SmallWorld might be light years away on Earth, but the shadow of the corporation reached the Hell’s Ark. As corporate overseer on the ship, Naoki knew that better than anyone.

  “We’ll make it on time,” Ryder said. “We don’t need to make any stops from the ass-end of nowhere to Earth. Hell, we might end up early.”

  “Really?” Naoki planted his hands on his hips.

  “Yes, really. Look.” Ryder’s left eye lit up blue as he accessed his IRIS.

  A message from Ryder appeared in Naoki’s vision, on his own IRIS. He opened it, and saw a flight plan the Captain drew up. At the Ark’s current pace, it should arrive back on Earth a day early.

  “You seeing this?” Ryder said.

  “Yes, I see.”

  “We got nothing to worry about.” Ryder flashed his crooked grin. If the data he sent over was accurate, he was right. Even so, Naoki felt the weight of the company on his back.

  The elevator doors slid open. Theo and Clive stepped out. Theo wore his signature stone-carved expression. Even after the months of flying with Theo, Naoki couldn’t read his emotions. Clive was easier to read. He had a severe expression.

  Theo and Clive approached the table. Ryder turn in his chair to face them.

  “Done early?” Ryder asked.

  “There’s an issue,” Theo stated.

  ? ? ?

  Son of a bitch.

  Naoki’s expression became guarded.

  Theo should have asked to speak with Ryder alone, or maybe sugarcoated the issue if he really needed to bring it up in front of Naoki.

  Nothing you can do about that now; it’s time for damage control.

  “Okay.” Ryder hauled himself to his feet.

  “It’s the–”

  “Let’s talk about it in my cabin, alright?” Ryder cut Theo off.

  “Naoki, I’m sorry to cut this short, but duty calls,” Ryder said with an apologetic smile.

  “I hope it’s nothing serious,” Naoki said.

  “I’ll let you know if it is.”

  Ryder guided Theo and Clive to the cabins. Naoki’s eyes bored into his back while he walked.

  This better be simple. Dear God, let it be simple.

  Ryder led his crew into his quarters, then locked the door behind them. He faced Theo and Clive. He wanted to snap at them, but the anger would be misplaced. It wasn’t their fault that the Hell’s Ark sprung yet another mysterious issue.

  Ryder took a deep breath, and breathed out the anger.

  “You know we don’t talk about ship problems in front of the Einsteins. We especially don’t talk about ship problems in front of Naoki,” Ryder said.

  “I’m sorry,” Theo rumbled.

  “Don’t beat yourself up over it. Tell me what’s fucked,” Ryder said.

  “The starboard engine is unstable,” Theo said calmly.

  Oh great, the engine was screwed up. And here Ryder was afraid the problem would be massive, but if Theo was calm about it, then Ryder should be, too.

  Ryder slammed his fist on his desk. His computer and knickknacks wobbled. He rose his fist off the desk. The side he’d slammed against the desk throbbed. He wanted to slam his fist down again, but he was sure a few scientists were in the cabins, too. He didn’t want to disturb them.

  “Okay.” Ryder nodded. “How unstable is unstable, exactly?”

  “We need to slow down and make repairs,” Theo said.

  “You know, Naoki says we’re running a few hours behind schedule, and that’s enough to lose us our contract,” Ryder said. “I was literally just talking to him about that.”

  Theo didn’t even suggest a solution.

  “Why don’t we take it easy on the engines? A few months shouldn’t be too bad, and once we’re on Earth, we can really fix the old girl up,” Ryder said.

  Theo drew a breath.

  “That might work,” he said. “I stand by the belief that immediate repairs are the best option.”

  “I get it, it is the best solution,” Ryder said. “What if we…one moment.”

  Ryder tapped the comm in his left ear, and pulled Mi-Cha into a conversation.

  “Now? Fuckin’ seriously?” Mi-Cha answered.

  “Sorry to wake you, but we need an emergency crew meeting. My cabin, as soon as possible,” Ryder said.

  Mi-Cha groaned, but she didn’t list off a string of insults, so that was a good sign.

  A few minutes later, Mi-Cha shoved her way into the room. Her pink hair was out of its ponytail and floating erratically around her face.

  “This better be good,” She muttered.

  “The starboard engine’s busted,” Ryder said.

  “Shit on a tit! That is not what I wanted to hear!”

  “Voices down,” Ryder hissed. “Remember, we live right next to the scientists.”

  “So what? Nobody can hear shit through these walls,” Mi-Cha marched to the edge of the cabin, and rose a fist. When she saw Ryder’s expression, she drew her arm back.

  “Mi-Cha, I need you to take it easy on the thrusters. I mean real easy,” Ryder said.

  “You don’t think I can be delicate?” Mi-Cha snorted.

  “I know you can.” But Ryder also knew that Mi-Cha liked to open the throttle and jerk the controls around. “I want you to promise me that you’ll be gentle, though.”

  “I will. You think I wanna blow up in the middle of bumfuck nowhere?” Mi-Cha demanded.

  Ryder turned to Theo and Clive.

  “What can we do about the engines, aside from slowing the whole ship down?” Ryder asked.

  “We might be able to temporarily stabilize the engine, but it’s not a guarantee,” Theo said.

  “Mi-Cha will be careful.” Ryder said.

  “Could we explain the situation to SmallWorld when we get into radio range of Earth?” Theo asked.

  “You expect a bunch of corporate suits to care about ship troubles?” Ryder said. “We’re gonna make it on time, and nobody outside this room is gonna know anything’s wrong.”

  “So don’t be a pussy,” Mi-Cha added.

  Theo nodded to Ryder.

  “We’ve got our tasks,” Ryder said. “If anyone asks, we’re doing routine garbage work.”

  On that note, the crew funneled out.