A quick note about my free fiction: this is raw draft with little editing. I don’t know where the story is going, or if it’ll even get completed on the blog. But it’s fun to do.

The clips from this story stay up for a limited time and then they will turn back into a pumpkin. Those available at the time I’m writing this are:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Let’s proceed, shall we?

Deep Space Omega (#5)

by Dawn Blair

The station needed a lot of work. Mouse had been right about it needing a lot of upkeep. Jadz fell into the easy rhythm of pulling maintenance records for each area of the station and just getting to work.

“Have you eaten anything today?” became a frequent question from Mouse, who often showed up with a wrapped sandwich in hand which she tossed at Jadz with a wink. “Don’t stay too much passed your shift.”

“Who’s going to take over for me?” Jadz replied. Then, when her aching body reminded her of how much she needed sleep, she returned to her cabin and slept well until awaken by her alarm.

Best of all, zoning out about her work kept her mind off of him.

Jadz rose and stretched. The pants of her pajamas felt a little loose on her hips as she noted the added bonus of losing some weight. Her decision to come out here had been a good one.

Once she’d dressed for the day and grabbed a piece of fruit from a bowl on her table, she fetched her list of the next items in the section she’d been working on yesterday. Not everything could be done at once.

The cabin door slid open before her.

Mouse leaned against the wall across the corridor. “Not today.” Mouse pushed away from the wall and snatched the tablet with the list out of Jadz’s hand. She tucked it into the pocket of her overalls as she pirouetted around, her ponytail bobbing. “Follow me!”

“Where are we going? Don’t tell me that it’s a surprise. I don’t have time for surprises, and I don’t really like them.” Ryhn walking out had been a surprise. Yeah, Jadz really didn’t like them.

“We’re on a space station at the furthest reaches of space. The least I can do is show you some of the sights.”

“I really do have a lot of work.”

“And you have plenty of time to do it. Look, you haven’t taken any time off since you got here. How long ago was that now? Four weeks? Seven weeks?”

“Six weeks.”

“See! For Six weeks I’ve let you go about your day, working away with your wrenches and your scanners, but you haven’t taken a moment to really enjoy the station or even gotten to know its crew. Shame on you!”

Jadz stiffened as Mouse chastised her and her mind flooded with thoughts of her parents. Shivering at the memory of her father’s lectures, she knew Mouse had been right about her: she could leave the United, but its effects remained.

Deep Space Omega – copyright ©2020 Dawn Blair * Published by Morning Sky Studios