The habitat module sits in a rare pocket of calm. Vent fans thrum softly overhead, and the relay glow on the wall pulses weak and uneven, like it is too tired to care who is watching.
Nahuli and Lahani spread the access map between them, along with the clipped notes and hacked telemetry traces they have gathered. For a while, they only compare lines, routes, and timing, letting the work fill the silence.
Lahani
This is better than guessing. With this map, we can move cleaner.
Lahani taps one route with a claw-tip, then leans back with a tired half-smile. The tension in her shoulders loosens a fraction, as if the room itself has finally agreed to stop pressing on her.
Lahani
We were one bad call from getting folded into someone else’s plan.
The ventilation hum fills the gap again. Nahuli can hear the station beyond the walls, distant and ordinary, while the paper map between them starts to look less like a trap and more like a tool.
Lahani
If we keep this pace, we can still build something solid. Crew first, then the rest.
Director's note
Only Avali live here, no other races
“"And it seems like Ranuko got a job elsewhere. Unfortunate. You are a wonderful pilot and navigator and I can keep things running. Who else do we need?"”
SUCCESS (Fair Diplomacy, rolled +3)
Nahuli
Ranuko got work elsewhere, unfortunate. You are a wonderful pilot and navigator, and I can keep things running. Who else do we need?
Lahani
Her ears flick, then she lets out a short, surprised laugh. That helps more than you know. If we are building a crew, we need someone who can read salvage fast, someone who can talk without starting fights, and one more pair of hands who can be trusted around a live circuit.
Lahani slides the map closer and points with a claw-tip, tracing three names in the margin. One is crossed out, one is half-finished, and one sits under a fresh note tied to a shuttle maintenance bay.
Lahani
I already have a lead on the salvager. She owes me a favor, and she knows how to spot a false panel from across a hangar.
She taps the datapad beside the map. The reissued seal catches the relay glow for a second, and a thin crackle runs through the station feed beyond the wall, like someone changing channels too hard.
Lahani
If you want the clean version, I can also ask around for a quiet mechanic who is not already married to some dock boss. Or we can take the practical route and use the favor first.
She looks up at Nahuli with an intent, tired patience, already waiting to see which lead he wants her to pull first.