Pepper

I looked at this woman, easily under five feet tall, scruffy brown hair and weirdly toned while running around in coveralls.

"So yeah, I'll get the big boys loaded up on the Polaris and then you can have somebody chamber them! It's great finally meeting you, by the way!" The short woman says with a genuinely prideful smile.

"And I'm sorry, your name again?" I ask and feel bad.

"Fern, ma'am." Her smile is massive!

She seems like somebody I'd love to keep around for sure.

Pine however...

Just as short, longer dirty blonde hair down to her knees and in a different jumpsuit. You'd think she'd have escaped prison or something. Talks to herself, talks to Fern, but doesn't really communicate with anybody else.

Avoids eye contact like hell.

The torpedos are painted a VERY aggressive green, like the one you see around the detatrine outposts in pyro. The nose is covered in VERY cleanly welded steel sharpening the point and strengthening it. I genuinely wonder if these two are on the run while seeking legitimacy or...I dunno.

"Pine will modify the firing controls for when these are fired. Instead of staggering them one at a time, they're all gonna dump out at once and basically be a...shotgun."

Fern has a small tic when that word came around, not sure if the cold Terran air is getting to her or what.

"Neato!" I say with a smile. "Do we need to be extremely careful with these? Like jostle too much and they go boom?"

The way she explained it, the payload is inert and will be woken up close to the ground. Then the ordinance will take over and trigger the second it hits the ground.

Since the surgery, Grendel has been keeping an eye on me and working with the lab techs at Castra while Ravi managed to make a connector for the wrist and Waka HATED it.

She'd managed to rework some code and make it somehow MORE responsive while Grendel made sure nothing was hurting me.

"Miss Callie?" Fern asks me while staring at my arm.

"Yes, honey?" I respond sweetly.

"Is it if okay to ask Ravi for the code and schematics for your arm?"

My mobi starts buzzing and vibrating VIOLENTLY. You'd think it was an emergency, but one look and yep...it's Waka.

"Not right now, honey. I wanna get used to this thing before we start tinkering with it." I say as I pat and rub her head, which makes her purr gently. I like this one.

"Mmmokay, I just wanna help momma." She responds and I want to adopt her so badly.

She scampers off and I walk towards the boardroom, haven't been here in a while so I wanted to see what's going on.

Step through the door and see wires, cables, monitors and hardware strung out EVERYWHERE. In the middle of all of it is a woman with red hair so damn long it has to be three times her body length lounging casually in a chair.

"You must be Stone. What happened in here?!" I ask and she makes eye contact.

"Oh, hi Callie! Didn't think you'd come in here!" She says and I hear snickering under the mountains of wires.

"Who...who are you hiding in here?" I ask cautiously.

Ravi's head pokes out and she has the biggest smile I have ever seen, and I've seen her light up when Verdi kisses her.

"Tee hee...momcallie...Stone is best friend...hehehehehe" Ravi says and she disappears under the cables again.

<C: Verdi...what's with Ravi?>

<V: I don't know but it's fucking ADORABLE!>

If they don't end up dating Stone I'll genuinely be surprised.

<P: Ordinance loaded. Have a pleasant day>

Charmer, this one.

I look to the Polaris sitting on the pad, and see the black ops trio scramble down the ramp, away from the pad and into the Valkyrie before blasting off at mach-fuck.

<C: You guys good? Everything okay?>

<BO1: CALLIE THOSE THINGS ARE AGAINST EVERY UEE LAW IMAGINABLE!>

<C: Wut?>

<BO3: They have THREE colossus payloads in them. EACH!>

<C: Wait, so you're telling me I have four super nukes on my boat?!>

The mental math kicks in, and my blood runs cold.

<C: Fern, you really squeezed in three payloads?!>

<F: Yeh. Is this a problem?>

<C: I felt like I shoulda specified one each more clearly, I can't afford 12 size ten bombs!>

<F: But you didn't, I got them for free!>

<C: FROM FUCKING WHERE?!>

<P: We keep them in the STEAL warehouse>

<C: The fucking hwat?>

<D: Oh hahaha! Strategically Transfer Equipment to an Alternate Location. STEAL>

<G: Deacon honey I should have known you were a loot gremlin in the navy>

<D: I like shiney explodies>

What the fuck is happening to my crew lately?

I walk away from the boardroom and see spacewife to my left on a bench while bundled up happily. She's always been a fiend for the cold while the only time I can stand it is when I'm curled up in bed with another warm body.

Walk over and sit next to her, then lean in close to steal some of her warmth.

"Have you heard from Kat lately?" Arcantha asks and leans into my cuddle.

"Not really, after your surgery she vanished again and I'm wondering if she went off to chase Kreyla more."

Kreyla removed herself from my life and honestly it didn't even feel like a hard dig or deep cut. As heartless as it may sound, it kinda just rolled off my back.

"I only want people around who make me money. Don't even come near me if you have nothing to offer."

Kat refused to accept this and remained hellbent on fixing things, but I genuinely hope she gives up soon.

Some people are beyond redemption.

The cold wind blew through the trees and what few leaves left fell gently in the breeze, I forgot about Fall being a season after I left. Maybe coming back to a planet with seasons is a good thing?

"Callie? Callie you there, hun?" Arcantha nudges me and reality reminds me that life is rolling with or without me.

"Yeah, I uh...just thinking."

"About?"

"I...think I have a few years left in me before I retire. I've been through the ringer, and life has so much to show me."

"Are you sure this is how you feel? You have a family here and dad is still kicking ass at his age."

I look at my synthetic arm and really mull life over. This life of danger and trouble has made friends, enemies, and gotten me deep inside the UEE's darkest secrets, including them trying to kill me. Do I really need to keep this going?

My mind checks out again, and I stare at the pink, white and blue metal of my arm. Flesh that I could never have again aside from regenerating.

<K: Callie, Ivy, I wanna catch up with you two. Where are you?>

Arcantha nearly jumps and squeals in happiness.

<A: KAT! WE MISSED YOU!>

<K: Missed you both too, hope we have a plan for the old home?>

<C: Yeah, we're nuking it from orbit tomorrow>

<K: Ha ha, nuking it! But how big are the payloads we're dropping?>

<C: Kat...they're nukes. Actual nukes>

There was five solid minutes of no response.

<K: Callie, where did you get nukes? Actually, I don't wanna know. But uh...>

<C: If you wanna come with, yes you can>

<K: FUCK YEAH!>

"Callie, I'm tired and wanna cuddle. We haven't shared a bed since all this shit started and the Polaris has single beds." Arcantha says as she holds my hand while leaning her head on my shoulder.

She's right, that ship is no place to set up home with a family. Staff it with a crew but never a couple or anything beyond.

<C: Grendel, do you have a double bed somewhere? Babygirl and I require cuddles>

<BIRB: Feel free to take my bed, I'm rarely home anyways>

<C: Thanks, papa!>

Arcantha is already up on her feet and tugging at my hand. "Callie let's go!"

I smile as I stand up and get helplessly dragged off to dad's home. Small, fuckload of armor displays, spears and other Tevarin weapons along with an impressive rack full of every human weapon he could find.

Our heads hit pillow, blankets went over and I can tell immediately dad has NEVER slept here before.

Goodnight, world...

Somewhere at Levski...

At the deepest depths of the station was a woman, wrapped in blankets and tattered clothes while freezing and holding on dearly to life.

She didn't ask to be born, she didn't ask for this life, she wanted to be a free citizen but life is hard when you have nothing, and nobody to reach out to.

Except him.

Today was the day he made his visit, and she tracked the days closely. Every 5th day he came in, gave her food, water and company, but ultimately left because the UEE had put her here so long ago, cut off from the only good life she had.

The elevator opened, and he spotted her hiding in the same corner as always. Where the UEE expected her to remain in obscurity until the day she died.

"Have you been doing well? Is there anything I can do to help you?" The tall cloaked man said.

"I...I'm cold, papa. I don't know why I'm here." She said, covered in dirt and shivering in the street. "I just want a home and a life. Even just a ship is enough..."

His heart broke, not because she asked for so little, but because giving it to her would earn the ire of the UEE cryptids.

"I'll free you of this place one day, Moira. I promise..."