Higgins’ Moon was known for two things: the Canton Mud Factory and a salvage yard for old spaceships. The transport Nordic Troll and her crew had come to make use of the latter to scavenge for parts to repair the ship.

The crew had returned from their morning parts search, deposited their take in the cargo bay, and regrouped in the mess compartment for a meal and a brake. Having finished their meal, they were listening and laughing as the ship’s captain, Nick Gerrin, recounted a war story.

“So,” he continued, “this junior lieutenant, obviously from a sheltered childhood, was still complaining about having to carry that rifle: ‘Why should officers have to carry a weapon, that’s an enlisted’s job.’ So, when she got tasked to move a roller out of the yard, she leaned the rifle on the roller track and forgot about it. We didn’t find out about it until after the fact. Anyway, she came back in the dispatch tent a few minutes later with this bent piece of metal we couldn’t recognize at first. Then-“ Gerrin chuckled at this point. “- she holds it up and says ‘I had an accident with it. Do you think the mechanics can straighten it out?’” Gerrin broke down in laughter.

Even Heather “Doc” Marshall, who had fought for the other side, was laughing. “But what happened to the rest of the rifle? Or wasn’t there anything left?”

“Well,” Gerrin lifted his face from his hand, laughing. “When we asked her where the rest of it was, she said ‘Um, I’m gonna need a trash bag, too.’” The rest of the crew laughed with Gerrin.

Anna Howard broke it up. “Okay, you guys have to get back to work, and I have a mess deck to clean up. Go on, I’ll see you all later.” The rest of the crew stood up and returned to work. Anna began wiping down the fold-up tables. Before leaving, Doc turned back and asked Anna “So, did you tell him yet?”

Anna nodded “Just after we touched down. He always knew this was temporary, so he understood.”

Doc nodded. “He couldn’t blame you, not after what happened out there. You’re not leaving soon, are you?”

Anna folded the table she had just finished wiping back into the wall. “After I’m done here, I’m going to check with the ships in the area and see if Lewis and I can catch a ride. If we find something we’ll come back, pack our bags and say our goodbyes.”

“Well, don’t take off before tomorrow, if you can avoid it. Loomie wants to throw you a going-away party.”

“If there’s time” Anna conceded.

“So, where do you think you’ll go? Back to Verbena?”

“No, I think it’s time to go home-home. Persephone’s not that far off, so it shouldn’t be hard to find something heading that way”.

“Okay, well, good luck.” Doc turned toward the door. “I have to get back to work. Just don’t take off without saying goodbye.”

“I’ll be back. See you soon.” Doc departed as Anna turned back to her work.

Anna and Lewis finished cleaning and storing the tables and stools. Anna said “Okay, let’s go see if we can find a ride home.”

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Lewis asked.

Anna looked at him. “It’s too dangerous here. It’s time to go home.”

With that, they went to their quarters, picked up their jackets and left the ship, with no idea that the next time they set foot on the Nordic Troll, they would have no desire to leave again soon.

..........To Be Continued.