There was a faint knock on her door. Nayeon had a pretty good idea who it was. 

She fought a sigh. “Come right on in.” She slid her sleeve back down, but didn’t put the glove back on.

The door opened with a hiss. Mina stood behind it, her hands clasped together. 

Nayeon frowned. “How’d you know this was my room?”

“Was it off limits?” Mina leant by the door. “May I come in?” 

“Sure thing.”

Mina walked over and sat beside her. The girl’s back was straight, but her head tilted to the side. To her credit, she wasn’t hiding her curiosity.

“Go on, ask me.”

She gave her a look. “You don’t want to answer that.” 

She was right there. Nayeon really didn’t. 

Still, she glanced down at her left arm. “I lost the hand during my old job, the next part of the arm and the replacement later. We got attacked after things got complicated.”

“Complicated?” 

“They wanted weapons for free.” Nayeon sent her a grin. “Can you believe it?” 

“And what was your old job?” 

Damn it. “That’s a question I,” she started.

Mina nodded. “That you don’t want to answer.”

“Right.” That was a surprising answer. Would the delay come back to bite her? Probably.

“Who made it? Dahyun?” 

“You don’t think I could build it myself?” 

She raised a brow. “No.”

Nayeon had to laugh. “You’re right. I just got a hand on some designs, Tzuyu made improvements to make sure my body didn't hate it, and Dahyun got the parts and assembled it.” They’d stolen one at some point so she’d have something until they were finished. She wouldn’t say that part. 

“We have ones that made of muscles, bone and skin,” Mina said. “It wouldn’t be a problem to add that to your reward.” 

She shook her head. “Might reconsider once we get there, but I’ve lived with this for quite a while. Wouldn’t feel right to me.” She let the fingers dance. Maybe she was sentimental. It never ceased to amaze her what they’d created, because it worked so well. Those had been some fun weeks too, debating whether or not to add a laser or flashy lights. She had one slot just in case she did want it weaponised. Tzuyu’s inclusion. “And I’m told it makes me look less adorable, so it works.” 

The corners of the Mina's lips tugged up. 

“Go ahead, tell me I’m still adorable. I won’t tell.” 

A proper smile appeared, revealing her gums. It erased the ice encasing her expression. Nayeon could see herself trusting that smile. “Sure thing.” 

Nayeon grinned. “Got another question in that head?” She definitely wouldn’t say it aloud, but it was a pretty head.

“Where are you from?” Mina asked. “I’ll tell you the same.”

Nayeon really didn’t want to. Jihyo would tell her she was being an idiot for trying to close off. It didn’t really matter if Mina knew where she was from. All of it was in the past anyway. She was more than separate from it. If not by memories, then by time and a whole lot of space. 

“I was born on Aphrodite,” Nayeon said. “In its big city of Olympus.” When the people got to Coruscant, they really wanted to outshine the names of the different planets. Earth had the Roman names, while they had the Greek ones. Kepler didn’t bother, one of the reasons she’d chosen to be in the system in the first place. 

Mina’s eyes scanned her face. Was she looking for a lie? Nayeon felt more than a little exposed. It almost made her defensive. 

“I’m technically from Texas, but I didn’t live there long,” she finally said. No wonder she nailed the Kepler accent. “My home is in Japan.” 

“Ah ah ah,” Nayeon wagged a finger, “on the scale we’re on now all the Earth cities are your home.” 

“Don’t start with that.” She scoffed. “Planets are large, space is even larger, but that doesn’t mean I can’t call a small piece of land home.”

Nayeon shrugged. “I guess you’re right.” 

Something changed in Mina’s eyes then. “I’m sorry if that was insensitive of me to say.” She spoke like the emperor. Maybe more of the Earthers talked like that, but Nayeon had only ever really bothered with the rulers and the odd traveler from there. Sometimes maybe a bit too much. 

“No worries,” she said. “We left a while ago.” At that moment, she knew she’d left the conversation to lead to the inevitable ‘why’. 

But Mina didn’t ask that. “You left the system with Dahyun?” 

And someone else, Nayeon thought. She didn’t say it. “Yep. And the rest, I guess, is history.” 

She nodded. Her eyes were focused on her folded hands. For a moment, Nayeon thought that Mina was actually the princess, that it was all some sort of coverup. Then she remembered that Sana’s face was actually pasted all over this part of the galaxy and that Mina had gone after her. Unless Nayeon was uncovering a huge conspiracy, Mina wasn’t the princess. What was she?

“Want to ask me something?” Mina asked. 

“What’s your actual job?” Nayeon was not in the mood to dance around the question. “It sure as hell isn’t being her guard.” Protection maybe, but she was no bodyguard. 

She didn’t look taken aback. “You’re asking for a very well kept secret of the empire.” 

Was Nayeon’s theory actually right? Did they have another, or a different, princess on board than they’d previously thought? 

“I’m a spy for the Minatozakis.” 

Every speculation went out of the window. It had been one of her theories, but hearing it like this was just—

“Are you messing with me or is that true?” 

“You can ask Sana or Momo,” Mina replied. “But if you utter any of those words outside of this ship,” she began, her eyes narrowing. 

“You’ll have to kill me,” Nayeon finished. “Gotcha.”

She wasn’t sure if she trusted Mina more or less now. She definitely wasn’t unaware of how spies operated, as well as the means and liberties available to them. Then her thoughts went to the catalyst of all these events. Minatozaki intelligence hadn’t been able to catch any word of the intended capture, even though the Aphrodite ships were already on the move, clearly. 

She thought of her previous theories, even though she’d proven that her speculations needed work. What if they had spread the plans for capture and whatever else over the three systems?

“Nayeon,” a hand touched her shoulder, “are you alright?” 

She looked up, meeting Mina’s eyes. There were shadows underneath them. How long had it taken her to get word of Sana’s disappearance, track them down, and then go all the way to Kepler? 

“Yes,” Nayeon said. “All good.” 

Mina stood then. Her eyes betrayed the fact that she didn't believe her. Yet she didn't ask for a clarification. 

“Thank you for today,” she said. “We know much more than we did before.” She squeezed Nayeon’s shoulder once. “I am sorry to have doubted you.” Then she left. 

____

They reached the border station without any issues, but on the other side, Mina had seen the streamline of ships lined up along the docking stations. All waiting. She recognised most of them.

“Alrighty,” Nayeon clasped her hands together. “I hope you know what you’re risking here. You two,” she nodded at Sana and Momo, “keep your mouths shut the whole time. Don’t even whisper. You have something to say, put it in the comms.” Then she sighed. “And it goes without saying, use our code.” 

Mina fought the urge to tell her that they knew how to hide in plain sight, but something held her back. The toothy-smiled captain could handle a crisis situation. She had proven as much. And yet there were moments where that slipped. Moments where fears of the past returned to her. She felt that the moment had not yet ended. 

“We won’t be long,” she said instead. They just needed to see who was flooding into the border station of Kepler. It would be something Mina could do. If she recognised emblems or faces, that might make things worse or better. If they saw anyone they trusted, perhaps they would have an . Maybe they could even find someone directly from Minatozaki. 

Nayeon shrugged. “I’ll get us out, those two are gonna do external repairs,” a nod to Jihyo and Chaeyoung, “and those two aren’t allowed off the ship.” Her eyes fell on Dahyun and Tzuyu. The former was not hiding her dissatisfaction. 

Mina put on the helmet, as did the others. The comms flashed to life. She was still known as penguin37. 

“Will they ask about the three others in the register?” Momo asked. 

“They have many in the registers,” Mina replied. 

Nayeon smirked at her. “So you really used your time online well.” 

Mina wanted nothing more than to wipe it off. 

“You could say they’re colleagues and clients,” Dahyun said. “We add and take them off.” She looked at Mina then. “But while the chat should be secure, still use code.” 

“Alright,” Sana said.

“But before you go.” The captain broke into a broad smile. “We can’t let you go without your very own Kepler-certified weapons.” She pointed to a case beside the ladder that led down to the common area. 

Sana was the first to go over to it. She opened it. Inside were nine smaller objects Mina could only assume were explosives, twelve cartridges, half of them glowing slightly, three pistols, less clunky than the one Dahyun carried, and three slender firearms. 

After a brief explanation of how they fired and reloaded, they left the ship.

Compared to the Breakthrough, the noise level of the border station was almost overwhelming. 

She was familiar with many of the people she saw. If not by their faces, then by the weapons they carried, the symbols their clothes were decorated with, or the emblems on the ships. No one they could trust. No one she would ever wanting reaping the benefits of the reward. 

There were several groups belonging to the same family or company. They intended to do a wide search of Kepler. From the chatter she heard, they were here for Sana. She wasn’t sure if the sheer number was a good sign. 

She recalled the minor chaos she’d caused on T16. The mention of one individual had caused a stampede. If they did need a distraction, then she'd repeat the action. It would be a sad sight if the same happened. As much as she didn’t want to believe it, she was quite sure those of Earth would act the same. The money alone held great weight. The possibility of gaining favour with the Minatozakis even greater. 

Then Sana grabbed her wrist. She pointed to their right. Mina stiffened at the sight. 

Ramon Lyga. According to the public, he was the most well suited to marry Sana and become ruling emperor at her side. Mina couldn’t agree less. 

“Slouch,” Mina whispered. It would be no surprise if he had committed their gestures to memory. It would also be unsurprising if he could recognise her by . Either way, he would strive to be the hero of the day. Perhaps he had a better ship, perhaps their journey would be less unsteady, but she didn't want the end effect to happn. She knew Sana didn't either. “We’re going back.” 

penguin37: got groceries

“How much must we pay to be let through,” someone asked. “The longer we spend here, the longer the princess stays trapped.” People's heads shot up just at the word. 

How wrong they were. 

bunny: cleared. wait 5 

Mina tensed. Someone else was at the ship. 

____

“So you just got blasted out of there?” Joy asked. 

“Yep,” Nayeon replied. “If you feel like risking going to Luna 4, there’s a nice little bit of Aphrodite tech there.” How she hoped the girls would listen to their message. She trusted the RV crew, but they were not above the allure of money. 

“But there’s another ship there, right? One you didn’t down.” Wendy frowned. 

“Nope,” she replied. “So either go lights out or not at all.” 

“I don’t like it,” Irene said. 

Couldn't agree more, Nayeon thought.

“When you’re back,” Yeri began, “can we please have whatever you got from the ships.” She grimaced. “If I have to get shot at by a DP flyboy one more time, I’ll expose their little hideout to one of the Earthers.” A chuckle. “Let them find the lost deliveries for themselves.”

“You could tell them the princess is there,” Nayeon replied. “If we're not put on the radar with them, we'll get those to you.” 

“Great.” Yeri squinted at the other ships. “You might wanna leave soon. We got clearance. Those Earthers’ll riot.” 

“When did you get in?”

“An hour ago,” Irene laughed. “I heard complaints about running outta drink, running outta meat,” she shook her head, “I’d offer em ours, but you know how they’d be.” 

They’d probably pour out a perfectly good drink, saying it wasn’t the same. Even though the yeast that they used on Earth was just about identical to the one Kepler used, the same for Coruscant. 

“Thanks for the warning, anyway,” Nayeon nodded to them, “anything happen on Ceres?” If they needed it, the asteroid’d have the engines they needed for replacement. 

“Nope,” said Seulgi. “We got a discount on the fuel and engines together after that last delivery.”

“Still hella expensive,” Wendy added, “but better.”

Nayeon nodded. Then they parted. She watched them go into the crowd. Their deep red ship was in the distance. At first Nayeon had thought it was a little too close to the colour of blood. Then they’d reassured her that it was modelled after the Earther dessert. Some type of red cake. 

bunny: engines up?

Tiger: we’ll fly 

That was the best they could hope for. 

Nayeon opened the door. She glanced back, hoping to find three heads coming their way. Instead she saw five. 

Her heart clenched. 

bunny: u get fuel?

Then she spotted the three to her left. She waved them over. The five then turned off. They wore very bright uniforms. Gaudy colours of bright yellow and green. She wondered if they were even trying to be subtle. 

“They’re harmless,” Mina muttered as she passed. “Textile lord.” 

Nayeon laughed aloud then. She walked into the Breakthrough. 

“Lord of Textiles?” she asked when the door closed. “You have a Lord of Nutrition too?”

“Yes,” Sana said. “Different branches got their own titles. Every three years, the most successful business holds it.” 

“And that works?” Dahyun asked. 

“They hold little true power,” Mina said. 

“So you fan their egos,” Nayeon finished. The ship lurched and they started moving. She felt the relief flood through her. 

The princess grimaced then. “Maybe.” None of them were taking their helmets off. Good. 

Nayeon chuckled. “Well, if that’s a thing, you can call us,” she slung an arm around Dahyun, “the queens of the Breakthrough.”

“And what are we,” Jeongyeon raised a brow, “your royal servants?” 

“Grand duchesses,” Dahyun began, “of healing, foreign affairs, gears, and navigation.” She shook her head. “I expect you all to address myself and my queen with adequate respect.” 

They just saw the girls’ smiles.

“And you say our accents are bad,” Momo muttered. 

Nayeon couldn't help but laugh again. 

____

Sana made her way to the engine room. She’d gotten some fuel on her arm. It had burned terribly, but Tzuyu had seemed to know exactly what to do. Sana now knew what made the crew respect her so much. Even with a bad arm, she did everything quickly and without any mindless chatter. Her reassurances were said in a quiet and calm voice, joined by a tiny smile. 

Now Sana was looking at her hands. 

Dahyun’s were covered in scars, the skin more frayed than not. She was pretty sure they were burns. Fuel as well? Had she worked without gloves at first? Or had the fuel just been that corrosive? 

She didn’t knock on the door, but just went in. 

She found Dahyun lying on her stomach, her eyes glued to a screen. A cable connected it to the controls for the shields.

“Dinner’s ready,” Sana said. 

“I’ll have it later,” she replied, her tone sharp. Then she grimaced. “Sorry, but I’m not hungry right now.” 

Sana knew that line well. 

“You mean busy.” She went over to Dahyun and set down a tray. It was a curry she’d made with syn-rice. 

“I,” the captain began, before she saw the food, “thanks.” She smiled slightly.

“Can I help with anything while you eat?” Sana asked. “You can talk me through it.” She sat down beside her. 

“Well,” Dahyun sighed, “I’m actually sorta figuring out that we can’t transfer the shields. Aphrodite’s upgraded.” 

Another reminder that Dahyun knew a lot about the other system. It sounded a lot like she wasn’t exactly keeping it a secret, at least not anymore. She and Nayeon knew the ships and knew their workings. 

It meant something beyond just coming from the system. She just wasn't sure what that was yet.

“But,” Dahyun smiled slightly, “this will be good to try and recreate for the Breakthrough as time goes by. Probably won’t sell it, because they’d think I destroyed a ship of theirs.” A small frown. “Technically did, right?” The frown deepened. “And killed four people.” 

The look in her eyes was one Sana knew well. Shame. “We had to,” she said. “They would have done the same to us.” 

A nod, but the look didn’t fade. “I guess you’re right, but that doesn’t change the fact that we don’t know their names, their families, all that, huh?” Then she shook her head. “So, you were pretty good at handling the ship,” Dahyun smiled slightly, “redirecting power like a pro.” Her eyes narrowed then. “What’s your secret. Chip in the mind? Imperial training program?” 

“Training,” Sana said. “So that I had a good grasp on all our production lines.”

“And the know-how for business and politics?” 

“Earth business and politics,” she corrected. 

“Ah,” Dahyun nodded, “so you still have to get to a Kepler and Coruscant training program.” 

Sana smiled. “You could say that.” She should have done more research on the system itself. They’d looked at the dangerous routes, volatile stations, and public figures. They hadn’t looked at much of the history or even a lot of their technology. That had been one of their main mistakes. 

A hand squeezed her arm. It was gloved. “A system’s massive. Earth’s most of all.” 

Sana shrugged. “I guess you’re right.” 

A small silence. “I know I'm the last person who should say this, but you stole my line.” 

Sana laughed. 

The silence came again. There was just the thrum of the engines, which, once they were actually running, didn’t make any alarming noises. 

She wanted to ask about Dahyun’s hands, about her past. She wanted to know why Dahyun knew so much about Coruscant and why she was so afraid. But exactly that last part held her back. 

Dahyun wasn’t hiding her fear. Her face was pinched and her eyes almost wide as they took in the shield monitor. As if it were a puzzle she absolutely had to solve. 

“Mina can send word to Earth pretty soon,” Sana said. “It’ll be secure. Just a message to let them know we’re on our way.” She didn’t say the word ‘safe’. What if Dahyun thought they were the absolute opposite? “And if we make it to one of our main stations, we can organise a patrol.” 

She nodded. “You’re sure they won’t try to get you back themselves?”

The words sunk in.

“No,” Sana admitted. The border station came back to mind. Ramon had come himself. He wanted the glory of being there when they 'saved' her. And he belonged in the same boat as everyone else. 

Dahyun shrugged. “Well, to be fair, we kinda want you all to ourselves, so we’re just as bad as the ones lined up at the border.” 

She still couldn't believe the sheer amount of ships lined up. Was it Kepler trying to prioritise its own? Or paranoia based on anyone else coming in?

“You’re still a rank above,” Sana replied. 

Her brow rose. Dahyun looked away from the screen. “How so?” 

“You did save our lives,” she said. “Twice?” 

“Doesn’t count if we got you in that position.” 

“I’m trying to comfort you,” Sana pouted, “let me do that.” 

Dahyun laughed. “Thanks for the effort,” she winked, “is this also yours?” She took a tentative bite. “Before you tell me who’s it was, I can already say it’s good.” The smile she gave her wasn’t as bright as the others, but it still put a light back into her eyes. 

“It’s mine,” she said. She probably should have looked away then, but she didn’t want to. 

Had someone told her about Dahyun, about what she’d be doing on this ship, about how she managed her quasi-business, Sana would have never guessed she was so young, nor that she looked like this. 

Dahyun nodded then, her gaze had truly softened now. Then she looked away, her brow furrowing slightly. 

Sana felt disappointed then. 

“You should go sleep,” Dahyun said. “Or hang out in the kitchen.” She gave her a crooked smile. “After today, you earned it.” 

What about you? Sana wanted to ask. But she got the message. For whatever reason, Dahyun wanted to be alone. 

And then Dahyun was looking back at the screen.

Sana took her hands and put the spoon in them. “The shields started working an hour ago.” 

“They need more work.” A distant look appeared. She set the spoon back down. 

“I checked everything, so did Nayeon. We’re fine.”

“Fine, maybe,” Dahyun said. “Not perfect. They got through. I need to give us a better buffer.” 

“No you don’t.”

“I do.” The girl looked up then, all humour gone from her gaze. “You have to get home and we all need to stay alive. Seconds mean everything if you’re being attacked.”

“Dahyun,” Sana said. “You have to go to bed.”

“I will when I’ve added five seconds to the shield duration.” Turning away, she began to tinker with the machine again. “You should go to bed, if I have to be.” 

“Doesn’t work like that,” she replied. “Tell me what I can do. I’m not useless when it comes to repairs, remember?” 

Dahyun sighed. “Booster nine was getting a small leak. Started this morning. I’ve been meaning to get to it.”

Sana grinned. “Will do!” 

They worked in silence. Sana liked it that way. It was simple and distracting from everything else. Sana didn’t have to think about the attack nor that she was always looking out the window or the now replaced cameras. She braced herself each time something other than empty space was in view. 

Instead she could focus on the ship. It was pretty straightforward. Some of it she recognised from Earth ships, but these were styles from at least twenty years ago. Yet it was all in great condition. Either she’d modelled these after those ships, or was just really good at maintaining this standard onboard. Maybe both. 

“All done.” Sana set down the tools she’d used before. “There was also the start of something with the engine. Patched that up.” She lightly tapped Dahyun’s cheek, forcing her to look away. “Staring at a screen for hours isn’t good for you.” 

Dahyun gave her a look. “Maybe, but I added 6.5 seconds.” 

That meant energy transfer. Sana wondered if the temperature in Dahyun’s room had plummetted. 

Her face warmed slightly at the thought. Why was that her first one?

“Now, you overachiever. We’re going to bed.” Sana gripped her arm and pulled her up, careful not to make her put pressure on her legs. 

Dahyun went willingly, swaying slightly. No wonder they sometimes had her on lockdown. 

“Is this how all your underlings are commanded around?” 

“Only those who go against my orders.” Sana winked, handing her the crutches before getting the bowl of curry. 

They walked through the corridors, Sana in the lead. 

“You know your way around already?” Dahyun asked. 

“When I can’t sleep, I explore,” she replied, stopping at one door. It was Dahyun’s. “Now I’ve got your ship layout committed to memory.” 

“Very valuable knowledge, eh?” Dahyun tapped the console and the door slid open. 

Sana let that sink in as well. “What do you mean?” She slipped past her to put the curry on the table. She'd been right. It was already getting colder in the room. 

“Your mind contains plenty of blueprints, mechanical and electrical knowledge, as well as the politics of the galaxy.” She wrapped a knuckle on her own temple. “A map of my ship is quite the match for all that.” 

“Right now it’s the most important thing,” Sana replied. “I know where the centre of the ship is, where the outer guns are, where the kitchen is, where my room is, and where yours is.” She nearly balked at her own word choice, but it was too late to take it back. 

Dahyun smiled, looking down at the floor. “Alright then.” 

“You’re not going to tell me that’s bad knowledge?” Sana raised her brow.

“I feel like that’ll talk me into a verbal trap of yours.” 

Sana laughed. “I think you’re too good for that.” She lifted her hand, but dropped it just as quickly. That probably wasn’t a good idea. “Sleep well, and you better actually sleep.” 

Dahyun bowed her head. “Will do, sleep well as well.” She smiled then. 

She felt her smile widen. “I will, Your Majesty.” She dropped into a curtsy. “And eat your curry.” 

The captain/mechanic laughed then. It was the hearty one she’d heard a few times before. “Thank you, Milady.” 

_____

Author's Note 

I definitely needed a lighter chapter like this for a change! Hopefully you're fine with the Minayeon 'secondary' ship. I quite enjoy writing their back and forth, but also the gradual warming up to one another on both sides. 

You will have to be tolerant with me when it comes to the 'real' space travel in this story. Great distances like the ones here take long to travel, but just like in some video games, movies, and books (not that this story is on that level, but you know what I mean), I'm allowing myself to bend the rules a tad. 

Regardless, I hope you're enjoying the story. 

See you next chapter!