Escalation

Star Core: Wild Space Chapter 15

“I heard that Clarke is seeking permission for some sort of op out beyond the Kuiper Belt,” Coel Hen said, his words slightly muffled by a mouthful of the day’s latest serving of 3D-printed synth chicken and vegetables. The mess hall was bustling with the Camelot’s crew. Matthews had been enjoying his meal alone until Coel and half the squadron decided to join him, crowding the table with their presence.

Matthews looked up from his plate. “Where’d you hear that?” Only he, Valdez and Admiral Clarke knew that information as far as he knew.

“Just the rumour going around,” Coel replied, but Matthews wasn’t convinced. He fixed Coel with a hard stare, making the younger pilot squirm under the scrutiny.

“Okay, okay,” Coel relented. “Lieutenant Dai on the command deck overheard some chatter.”

“Lieutenant Dai? The sexy brunette, Lieutenant Dai?” chided Ortega with a knowing smirk, leaning forward with a mischievous glint in his eye. Coel blushed slightly, unable to hide his embarrassment. “Yeah, that’s the one. We might’ve had some... recreational time last night after our shifts.”

Matthews shook his head, unable to suppress the smile tugging at his lips. “Fraternization is an offense, Coel,” he rebuked, albeit half-heartedly. They all knew that romantic entanglements among crew members were far more common than the top brass liked to admit. As long as these interactions didn’t harm performance, they were usually ignored. Space was cold and lonely, and intimacy was just a natural way for humans to cope with homesickness and the void.

“It’s probably something classified enough to keep us in the dark until we’re knee-deep in trouble,” Matthews continued, taking another bite of his meal.

“Isn’t that always the way?” Flight Officer Yumi Tanaka chimed in, her voice laced with dry humour.

Goode, sitting next to Yumi, chuckled. “We’re always the last to know. I swear, they like to keep us guessing.”

Anya Verhov, leaned back in her chair, her piercing blue eyes observing the group with quiet amusement. “Speculation won’t do us any good. We’ll find out soon enough.” Anya, hailing from the rough colonies of the Asteroid Belt, had a pragmatic approach to almost everything—a steadying influence on the more excitable members of the team.

“She’s right,” came the deep voice of Tom Carbin from the table behind. “Focus on your assignments.” Carbin had kept his distance from Matthews since the raid on the pirate corvette, but he wasn’t openly hostile anymore—just distant.

“Whatever it is, I just hope it’s more exciting than the last few simulation runs. I didn’t sign up for virtual action,” Coel complained, clearly itching for something more thrilling. The mission to Neptune had been two weeks prior and ever since Valdez had been putting them all through intense combat training in the simulators.

“Well, I’m sure it’ll involve something that’ll get us all nearly killed,” Ortega said with a grin, his accent giving his words a slight lilt. “But hey, at least it won’t be boring, right?”

Matthews smirked, shaking his head. “You’re too eager, Coel. You’d think you were getting paid by the number of close calls.”

“Hey, the closer the call, the better the story,” Coel replied with a mischievous gleam in his eye. He thrived on the adrenaline rush, always looking for the next thrill.

Corporal Royth Rand, who had been quietly working through his meal, finally spoke up, his deep voice rumbling like distant thunder. “As long as it doesn’t involve dealing with any more pirates. The ones we had in the brig weren’t right. How can people be like that? They were barely human.”

Specialist Kaito Nakamura, sitting at the edge of the group, glanced up from his data pad, his brow furrowed in concentration. “I’m more interested in what we’re supposed to find out there. There’s not much beyond the Kuiper except for more pirate bands and marauders.” He paused, his expression growing more serious. “I met a trader once in a bar on Nexus Prime a year or two back. He claimed to have travelled out that way. Said it was the most terrifying journey of his life. There are things out there far worse than pirates.”

Yumi raised an eyebrow, intrigued. “Maybe it’s another stolen ship like the Spectre. Or something even more classified.”

Jabari laughed, her eyes twinkling with mischief. “Whatever it is, you can bet Clarke knows more than he’s letting on. We’ll just have to be ready for anything.”

Matthews turned his attention to Nakamura, who was still staring off into the distance. “What do you mean, things out there worse than pirates?”

Nakamura paled slightly as he recalled the trader’s words, the others leaning in closer, eager to hear more. “He talked about strange signals, ghost ships that appeared out of nowhere, entire colonies and outposts disappearing without a trace. And there were rumours... of other things lurking in the dark.”

The table fell silent, the weight of Nakamura’s words hanging in the air. Even Coel, usually the first to crack a joke, looked unsettled.

“Well,” Matthews finally said, breaking the tension with a forced lightness in his tone. “Let’s hope we’re not the ones who find out if those rumours are true.”

The team exchanged glances, each of them pondering what might await them beyond the Kuiper Belt. The conversation gradually shifted back to lighter topics, but the unease lingered.