by Tammy Walsh
“Help dress me,” he said.
I snorted. “Yeah, right.”
He just glared at me. “You’re supposed to be a maid. This is one of your duties.”
“A pretend maid,” I said. “There’s no one in here to pretend to.”
He raised the uniform.
“I think you’re big enough to dress yourself, don’t you?” I said.
He didn’t move a muscle.
I dumped the tray on his desk and stomped over to him. “Ugh. Fine. But don’t blame me if it looks terrible.”
I grumbled under my breath, less than one word in ten making any sense—even to me, as I took the uniform from him and placed it on the bed.
He leaned forward and held his arms above his head. I grabbed his nightshirt and dragged it off. I couldn’t help but stare at his muscles, popping out in places I didn’t know muscles could exist.
Nighteko placed his hands on his hips and cleared his throat.
I snapped to attention. “Yes. Right.”
I got to my knees before the bed and smoothed down his jacket. He cleared his throat again. I looked up at him. His eyes drifted downwards.
“What?” I said.
He looked down again, more forcefully this time.
His underwear?
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I said. “Seriously? You let Maisie do this?”
He didn’t move a muscle. And still, I gawped.
I licked my lips and, still on my knees, I shuffled in front of him. I placed my hands on either side and began to draw them down…
I wondered what he looked like under there. The same as a human but at a larger size like the rest of him? Or would I find something completely alien?
I guessed there was only one way to find out…
I took a deep breath…
And…
I got to my feet. “You know what? I think I’ve done enough here. Best not to do everything on the first day of the job. Sort of like when they don’t let you work the register until the second week at a clothes shop.”
I grabbed the empty bowl and the tray and backed away. “Thanks for explaining about the Absor, by the way. That was really useful.”
If I kept on talking, he couldn’t squeeze a word in edgeways and I could get out of there fast. I expected to bump into the door but it was a lot further away than I thought.
Did this ship grow?
Finally, my ass found it. “Bye!”
I swung the door open and took off at a run. I could swear, as I backed out of the room, the entire time, he had a smirk on his face…
I dumped the tray and its contents in the sink. I got to scrubbing at them. I was so embarrassed and angry, I decided to take it out on the helpless cutlery.
“Careful,” Maisie said. “Most of the bowls are already chipped. If we break more, the crew will have to eat off the floor.”
“Would they notice?” I said.
I braced the sink with my hands. “The captain is a monster.”
“He might seem like that on the outside but—”
“No, he is. On the inside too.”
Maisie wiped her hands on the front of her apron. “He’s always been nice to me. What did he say?”
“He…”
Maisie was of an age where talking about sex was generally discouraged. Meeting her eyes now, I didn’t think she would appreciate talking about it. “It doesn’t matter.”
I turned back to the sink to continue scrubbing. “But you’d have thought a man of his age would know how to dress himself.”
“Dress himself?” Maisie said with a frown. “Why would you say that?”
“He said it’s one of our duties. It isn’t?”
Maisie covered her mouth with her hand to suppress her laugh. It didn’t work.
He almost made me undress him…
The bastard. I swear, I’ll kill him…
Maisie returned to the main table at the back. She tossed a little more flour on the surface and used an old chair leg as a rolling pin to create the pastry. “He must like you. He never made me dress him—or undress him as the case may be.”
“But… He… No,” I said, growing flustered. “Just no.”
“Why not? He is a dish. And you’re young and nubile. You ought to make the most of your youth while you can. I wish I had.”
So much for thinking Maisie wasn’t up to talking about such things. I guess she was starved for discussions on topics other than decapitations and slavery over the years. She’d had no woman to speak with for… How many years?
“Maisie?” I said softly. “How long have you been here?”
“What year is it?” she said.
I told her.
She pressed down with her body weight to spread the pastry. “Oh, about thirteen years.”
I was gobsmacked. Thirteen years. I was learning the words to my favorite boybands at that age.
“And you didn’t try to escape?” I said.
“Sure I did,” she said. “Many times. The captain back then wasn’t as kind as Nighteko.”
I couldn’t see how that was possible.
“He ordered for me to be whipped and tortured,” she said.
I gasped. “That’s terrible!”
“Not so terrible as you might think,” Maisie said. “One of the crew volunteered to beat me. He took me down to the cargo hold, tore the shirt off my back, and then dropped the whip on the floor. He told me to mend my shirt and make sure it looked like I’d mended it. I had to limp around the ship for a few weeks to make sure my valiant defender didn’t get in trouble.” She turned to me with a glint in her eye. “Can you guess who that crewmember was? The one that risked being whipped and tortured himself?”
His name was a murmur on my lips. “Nighteko.”
“That’s right. I didn’t try to escape for a while after that. Then I got used to being here, I guess. So, don’t take it to heart, lassie. Believe me. Things could be a lot worse.”
He has a streak of honor in him.
Was there anything more honorable than putting yourself at risk when you had no cause to? It sent a tingle up my spine that I couldn’t easily explain.
I guess him playing a trick on me wasn’t so bad compared to what the previous captain might have done.
I forced myself to be angry at him, though it was now only halfhearted.
Maisie cut away some of the pastry and placed it to one side. She rolled them into flat circles and began to etch shapes into them.
“What are you making?” I said.
“A cake,” Maisie said. “To celebrate returning home.”
“You don’t have to do that,” I said. “I’d prefer for you to make something you’d like to eat.”
“That’s what I’m doing.” A smile quirked her lips. “Besides, it’s not only you’re celebrating.”
Her words caught me off guard. “You mean you’re coming back to Earth? With me?”
“Sh!” Maisie said, shushing me and glancing at the empty canteen’s door. “Keep your voice down. We don’t want the crew overhearing about our plans now, do we? I’ll return with you, once… everything’s been sorted out between you and the captain.”
I tried to gauge what she knew by her expression. Had Nighteko told her about the poison in her food? Did he want her to be a part of it?
“I don’t know the details,” Maisie said. “And I don’t need to. You’re up to something. You were so intent on returning home when I met you that I doubt you would accept working here if going home wasn’t on the table. And I’ve decided to join you. I’ve spent too long running away from old demons. I’ve seen a whole lot worse than what awaits me back in Scotland.”
I embraced her. She was kind and good and deserved a good retirement.
Maisie wiped a tear of joy from her eye. “Now, be a dear and go fetch the cake tin for me. It’s in the pantry.”
I entered the pantry with a hop in my step. It was great news. I would take Maisie under my wing the sa
me way she had taken me under hers in this place. I would make sure she was comfortable and cared for. I couldn’t wait to show her how the world had changed.
The door shut behind me with a solid thump. It was heavy enough for it to be a struggle to get it open in the first place.
The pantry was lined with entire shelves of ingredients. Most were completely unknown to me—which wasn’t much of a surprise considering how little I knew about cooking.
Here, there was some crushed blue flower in a plastic pouch. It was labeled in Maisie’s delicate hand as: “CINNAMON POWDER”. Although, I had to say, I’d never seen blue cinnamon powder before. I guess when you were traveling the galaxy, you had to make do with whatever you could find.
On another shelf, purple orbs that seeped oily liquid that gathered in the corners of their plastic pouch. I curled my nose up at it. I read the label: “CHOCOLATE”.
My mouth fell open and my eyes bulged. I became fixated on it. I glanced at the pantry door. She wouldn’t mind… would she? Of course not. She was a human female. She understood these things.
I couldn’t help myself. I reached inside for one of those slimy little balls. I hesitated for just a moment. What if this was a trap to see if I could keep my dirty little mitts off the ingredients? If I could be trusted? I shrugged. It was worth the risk. I pressed the ball to my tongue.
At first, it tasted nothing like chocolate, but musty and old like I’d just stuck a dirty flannel in my mouth. And then the flavor came. It wasn’t just chocolate. It was chocolate mousse and black forest gateau all in one. Once you got past the initial taste, it really popped.
I wiped the juice off my mouth and licked my fingers. But the liquid stained the tips of my fingers. There was no getting it off.
Caught purple-handed.
I slipped the tray back on the shelf and looked for the cake tin. I moved along the long shelves until I reached the end. With so little space in the kitchen, the pantry was the only place to store the larger cooking utensils.
Much of it was dented and cracked, but it was all polished to a high shine. I imagined Maisie promising the crew the most delicious food the galaxy had to offer… so long as they salvaged the best equipment they could get their hands and hooves on. That was probably how she got so many ready ingredients too.
Living on a ship packed with testosterone-fueled males was just about tolerable so long as they had a good meal in their bellies.
The cake tin was at the top. Of course. I brought the stepladder over and climbed to the top. It was a little rickety beneath my feet. I grabbed it and came back down. Me and stepladders were not a good mix.
The moment my foot hit the floor, I heard a thunderous crash.
I shuddered and thought I’d caught something with my elbow—it wouldn’t be the first time—but when I noticed there were no shards on the floor, I knew the noise had to have come from outside.
My blood turned cold.
The stepladder clattered behind me as I raced for the door. I shouldered it open and stepped on a piece of broken crockery.
The ceramic shards lay scattered, powder drizzling as if it were raining. But none of that caught my attention.
Maisie lay on the floor, unmoving, curled into a tiny ball, a fist pressed tightly to her chest. She lay still.
Too still.
“Maisie?” I said, dropping to my knees beside her. “Maisie?”
I clicked my fingers and poked her gently. She didn’t respond. I pressed my fingers to her throat and felt for her pulse.
There wasn’t one.
Nighteko
I placed the white sheet over Maisie’s delicate face. All her warmth had drained, turning her skin dull gray.
In my culture, we left the deceased’s eyes open so they could forever watch the stars circling above. This was not the human custom. Alice insisted on closing Maisie’s eyes. It made her look like she was asleep and hadn’t left this world.
The crew looked somber, their hands clasping their hats before them. I nodded, and they stepped forward to pick her tiny body up before gently placing her inside the escape pod located in the engine bay, in an object Alice called a coffin.
Save for Stryder, who stood at my shoulder, my entire crew was inside the escape pod. I felt a sudden spike of adrenaline at the idea of slamming my fist on the controls and locking them inside and hitting the launch button. Then, my mutinous crew problem would be solved.
Except I would still have to recruit a new team. And they would want the same thing, the thing I could never bring myself to provide them…
The tension in my shoulders eased as the crew stepped from the pod.
After the initial shock of learning Maisie had died, I felt certain she would have wanted a traditional human funeral. She’d always been old fashioned like that. Then I realized I knew next to nothing about human death ceremonies. Thankfully, Alice took over the arrangements.
I was about to step forward with Maisie’s worn mop and bucket when Alice placed a hand on my arm. She did it so the whole crew noticed. Then she took the items off me and placed them in the coffin with Maisie. I knew she would have wanted to take them with her. It wasn’t like any of us would use them.
I was supposed to be badly affected by the sickness. I was supposed to look weak so when the Challenge came tomorrow, I could play against my crew’s expectations and defeat them. But it sure wasn’t easy. A Titan was supposed to be strong at all times. Allowing myself to appear weak didn’t come naturally. It could mean the difference between life and death. Here, among my mutinous crew, it was weakness that would ultimately prove my strength.
Alice leaned forward to kiss Maisie on the cheek before stepping back. She returned to my side and placed her hand on my arm. I liked the feel of it there.
Maisie had died from something called a ‘heart attack.’ It was common enough among humans. Either they were born with a heart defect or they became too old for their heart to continue pumping. It was a tragic way to die.
Stryder moved to the controls and looked at me to give the order. I stared at Maisie in the pod. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t let her go. Maisie had never been anything but kind to us all. She took care of us when we were sick, fed us when we were hungry. She cleaned up after us.
How would we cope without her?
Alice’s face was pale and she couldn’t watch. I felt the urge to wrap my arms around her, but to show emotions was a weakness my race didn’t tolerate. It wasn’t the kind of weakness I should present to the crew either.
Alice squeezed my arm, giving me the courage I needed to nod.
Stryder pressed the button and the doors slid shut. He pressed the button again, and the pod ejected Maisie into outer space. She would sail among the stars for an eternity. She was likely to outlive us all.
It was little consolation. I would still miss her more than my heart could stand.
After Maisie’s funeral, I stood at the window in my quarters, looking out over the vista of planet Tordal, my homeworld. I had many memories of it, and not many I wanted to keep. I shook my head of them and focused on more important things.
It was only when your health was threatened that you truly appreciated it. For the first time in weeks, I could think clearly and move without agonizing pain. The whole time Maisie thought she was helping me recover, she was unknowingly bringing my doom. Her meals were so delicious, it was almost worth the pain.
I could discuss money and strategy matters with Stryder but Maisie was the crew’s heart. For the longest time, she was the only person I could speak honestly with on all subjects.
I stared out at the vast expanse of space and imagined her escape pod zipping through it at ever-increasing speeds. Some species in the distant future might look up to see an asteroid pass overhead, without realizing it was Maisie sailing endlessly through space and time.
A knock came at the door.
“Come,” I said.
Alice entered gingerly armed with a tray laden with food.
She’d have to work extra hard in the kitchen now that she was alone. “Your dinner, captain.”
“Put it on the desk, please,” I said.
She did and clasped her hands together. “Anything else you need, captain?”
Why was she suddenly acting so formal?
I shook my head. “No.”
She nodded and turned to leave. But I didn’t want her to go.
“I’m sorry about making you dress me yesterday,” I said. “I didn’t mean to offend you.”
“It’s okay, captain,” she said. “It doesn’t matter.”
She turned to leave again.
“Wait,” I said. “Maisie’s been a part of our crew for many years, and yet I know so little about her culture. Your culture. I want to learn more about where you came from.”
“Why?”
“Your culture’s the same as Maisie’s. You’re a human female, the same as her.”
“And you’re the captain of the ship that abducted her from her home,” Alice said, her tone cold and devoid of heat. “She didn’t ask to be here. She didn’t choose to be here. You forced her to be here.”
Anger flared in my chest. I understood that she was upset but to hear her blame me for Maisie’s situation was too much to bear.
“She came when I was a new recruit,” I said. “When I became captain, I offered to take her home, to give her money for the years she’d served. I made the same offer every year on the anniversary of when she was abducted. She turned me down every time.”
Alice appraised my expression, searching for a lie. There was none to find.
“Why would she refuse?” she said.
I took a seat on the corner of my bed. “She said she belonged here. She said she wouldn’t know what she would do if she returned.”
Alice sat on the opposite corner of the bed. “She changed her mind before she died. She told me she wanted to return with me. She was making a cake to celebrate.”
This was news to me. “Why now?”
“She knew something was going on between you and me. She didn’t know what but she knew I would be returning home. Maybe I reminded her of the way she used to be. She tried to escape before. She always failed.”
