14 Salas 1117: Jumpspace
Today was thankfully quiet. I made a brief visit to the passenger deck, and everything seemed to be in order. Dr. Kovusar was in her usual seat near the forward viewscreen, in a quiet conversation with Chelis and Drakson. Shelly was at the back of the lounge, looking at her comp.
“Everything OK?” I asked as I walked over.
“Oh!” She started in surprise and snapped her comp shut. “Sorry, Derek. I didn’t hear you come up.”
“It’s fine. Where is everyone?”
“Passenger Lorentz never leaves his cabin. Ever. Passenger Gains hasn’t come out since yesterday. And…” She smiled a bit. “And Director Morn spends a lot of time in his cabin. A lot of time, if you know what I mean.”
I smiled and shrugged. “Hey, what happens in Jumpspace stays in Jumpspace, you know?”
She laughed. “Got it.”
I gestured over my shoulder. “I’m going back down. Let me know if something comes up, OK?”
“You got it.”
—-
Apparently, nothing did. I made an effort to stay in the crew lounge and talk to the others as they came through. Eventually, Jami, Saahna and I were playing a three-handed game of Sharik when Varan and Carma came out of his cabin. He glanced at us in surprise.
“Oh! Derek! I mean… Captain. I wasn’t expecting you to see you out here.”
“You inspired me to spend more time,” I said. I gestured to the sofa opposite. “Which means you’ve got real competition for a change. You in?”
He smiled. “Sure.”
Carma looked at him. “I thought…” she started.
He waved at her. “We’ll get something in a minute.” He looked at me. “You willing to play for choosing the place for the crew meetups on Tlianke?”
I smiled. “You think I can’t afford where ever you pick? You haven’t been paying attention. You’re on.”
Saahna audibly sighed and shook her head while Jami looked at me in surprise. “Captain?”
I shook my head. “We’re good.” I turned back to Varan and held up the deck of cards. “So… you in or out?”
He laughed and dropped onto the sofa. “I’m in.”
A few rounds later and… Jami won. She looked at us with a smug expression.
“You know who I used to Travel with, Captain,” she said, looking at me while shaking her head. “You don’t think we played a lot of Sharik?”
I raised my hands. “You got me. So… where are we meeting?”
She gave a mischievous smile. “I’ll have to think about that, Captain.”
I groaned audibly while the others laughed. About this time the overhead irised open and Shelly descended but stopped when she saw us.
“Sharik? And you didn’t invite me?”
“It’s been a while,” I said. “And I didn’t know you played.”
She tilted her head. “Better than you might think.”
I shook my head. “And I have enough trouble with one expert on board. Well, you’re too late. I already owe Jami here a dinner where she wants on Tlianke.”
She just smiled. “Next time then.”
“You got it.”
We all started getting up and heading towards the dispenser. I hadn’t realized how late it had gotten. Varan came up behind me and tapped my shoulder. I turned.
“Welcome back, Derek.”
I smiled and nodded. “Glad to be back.”