Friday Five Writing Prompt July 14

Banana, embark, pillow, ego, foot

Astra Ardent was standing in front of the flashing computer screen listing all the shuttle leaving and arriving on the Sixkills, a type of the line galactic cruiser.  Human of all stripes were bustling around the hangar bay carrying equipment and shouting orders. This was the true heart of a space cruiser; not the main bridge. This was were space exploration actually meant something. 

”Astra, I’m sorry but we really don’t need you,” the mission coordinator Ophelia Rifkin Stone smirked when she said it, tapping her right foot impatiently, as if she had better places to be and better people to talk to. She had a massive ego and a bad attitude, but so did every Moon citizen-Lunas-Astra had ever encountered. When the wars had engulfed Earth, the wealthy had fled to the Moon colonies. Earth was much better now; but Lunas were descended from generations of the entitled. 

And those born on Mars? If you were from Mars you were a miner or a child of miners. There was nothing on Mars but mines, factories, and pollution. Astra winced at the memory of those horrible, clunky breathing masks she’d had to wear on the grade school playground. Mars Citizen. Aresians, as in Ares. But everyone just called them Martians.

“Maybe we got off on the wrong foot,” Astra tried to look contrite. And serious. That was hard to dressed up in a banana yellow tech uniform and green boots smudged with oil. 

“No, that is not the issue. We are going on an archaeological dig. Top secret xeno-archaeology. You don’t have any skills we need. You don’t have the credentials.”  You don’t have the credentials, Martian. That what you really want to say. 

“I do tech,” Astra said flatly.

“We have technicians,” Ophelia waved her off. She was only half-listening anyway; her ear implant comm was flashing a green light to show that it was on. Wow. Astra didn’t even rank high enough to have her full attention. Still, she was desperate.

“Look, can’t I serve on someone’s shuttle?” 

“ I don’t know why you are so eager. Are you just that determined to get off this ship?

Yes. Yes I am. At this point I’ll wash dishes, fold clothes, fluff your pillows if that’s what it takes. 

“I don’t have time for this,” Ophelia said. “ I have to prepare to embark in less than 48 hours. “She glanced at Astra with a smug look. 

That’s what you think. 

Knowing Ophelia would be arrested along with anyone else on the Sixkills when Security Forces arrived  in less than 12 hours made her feel satisfied. Except she was going to the brig beside her if she didn’t find a way off this ship. Astra didn’t say anything. There was no point. Ophelia has already turned away. She stomped back across the landing docks, heavy boots beating against the concrete. She was terrified, but anger was a better emotion. She had to get off the Sixkills. 

Astra had risked it all to send those messages. She’d broken into a secured comm channel. She’d put her own image out there to verify who she was. The Security Forces said they were thankful for her assistance. She took a risk being a whistleblower. When word got out on what the senior officers were up to heads would roll. Astra had asked about protective custody. Her contact had only said that they would be taking the whole crew into custody.

“So what should I do?” Astra had asked.

“Be off the ship when we arrive,” her contact had responded. And then there was silence. 

Where do I go? Astra thought. I’m on a galactic cruiser in outer space. Once again, the universe was not on her side. She had to go it alone. 

copyright 2023 Echo Ishii