Among Stars

Random Encounters

Naina stood in front of the info panel and glanced between that and a holographic display that was projected above her wrist. She was muttering something under her breath.

The elevators were frequently used, and people of all kinds of colors, shapes, and backgrounds wandered in and out of them. Naina stood at the side and continued muttering and glancing between the display and panel. After half an hour or so, a couple of people approached her. Humans. A younger boy and what appeared to be his parent.

"Excuse me, miss", the parent said. They had messy brown hair, dark brown eyes, and they were dressed in casual-looking clothes. Almost a head and a half taller than Naina, they looked like her parent too. A blue sweater and jeans. The boy, somewhere in his teens, was wearing a black t-shirt with a unintelligible text that was probably a metal band logo.

He was probably Naina's height, if not an inch or so taller, too. He had blonde hair though, and his faded blue eyes barely had pupils in them. A half-elf! Naina wondered if they were socially accepted here, outside the Empire borders as much as inside them.

Contrary to popular opinions, Naina thought that the Empire was actually a really good place to live. Laws were fair, acceptance was the norm and local governments were pretty much free to govern their planets however they wished, provided they adhered to the bigger rules, of which one were universal healthcare and universal income. The Empire paid for the poorer planets if they couldn't make it themselves. The man cleared his throat and Naina shook her head and stopped spacing out.

"Sorry," she said. "I was just... You're a half-elf, right?" she asked the boy. The boy nodded.

"Yes. Excuse me, ma'am," the man said again. "But do you happen to have seen another elf here? It's his mother we're looking for. She disappeared a few days ago and we've been looking ever since."

"I'm really sorry," Naina said, "but I've just arrived myself not many hours ago. I know nothing of the station's populace."

The man looked defeated. He nodded at the boy and they took off. Naina felt sorry for them, but there was absolutely nothing she could do to help them. She resolved to keep her eyes open though. But for now, she returned to her boring task of translating Glaxxian runes.

"Not many of you in Valkyrie space," a harsh voice sounded behind her, and Naina jumped, made a surprised sound, and turned around.

A woman, two heads taller than Naina, dressed in what looked like a piecemeal armor collected from various military surplus stores, with the Valkyrie logo brightly glowing on her left cheek.

Naina nodded slightly. "Mmh, true," she muttered, not knowing what the newcomer wanted.

"You came in the bucket?" the woman said and pointed towards the landing pads. "The Sirius trash that looks like somebody found it under a rug."

Naina glanced towards the landing pads and grimaced inwardly. That might have been the most apt description of her old ship in her current state. "Yeah," she answered, "been out for a long time. Not many repair shops beyond the lines."

The woman nodded. "Well, your kind is always welcome here," she said, looking at Naina's ears. "We wouldn't be here without you."

Naina nodded. An old tale, almost as old as her. The Valkyries were at first a mercenary operation working under the Empire. But the Blackjoints betrayed them, framed them for a plot to overthrow the Emperor, and threw them under the bus. It was the Quenstar Royal Navy who aided the Valkyries, since they knew the truth. It was her kind that told the Emperor the truth and it was her kind that made the Blackjoints retreat to the unknown reaches. The Valkyries were free, but their reputation was tarnished, and they set out as frontiers.

"I heard the story too, when I was young," Naina said. "It's the reason why I dared to come here. You're the only people here that are not just a bunch of criminals."

"Too true," the woman said. "People call us Marauders, and flock us with the rest of them, but we're not that far from the Empire." She sighed, looked at Naina, and gave her a little smile. "Well, I just wanted to come and see. I've never seen a Quenstarian myself."

Naina looked down. It was true. Her kind was disappearing, and there weren't many of them anywhere, except in graveyards.

Naina looked up at her and gave her a bright smile back. "Well, now you've seen one," she said and grinned. "Hopefully not for the last time though," she added under her breath.

The woman nodded, adjusted her helmet and inclined her head towards the info screens. "I'll let you get back to whatever you were doing. Have a pleasant stay," she said, bowed, and walked away. Naina looked at the Glaxxian chart on her wrist and grimaced, then got back to translating.