Sparrow bobbed her head in an imitation of Vishal and said, “Sure thing, Doc.” Then an evil little grin spread across her face. “Just using this as an excuse to get your hands on me, aren’t you?”

Color bloomed on Vishal’s cheeks, and he stuttered. “Ms.! I would—That is, no. No. That would not be professional.”

Trig laughed through a mouthful of food. “Ha! Look, he’s blushing.”

Sparrow laughed as well, and a faint smile appeared on Hwa-jung’s broad face.

They continued to tease the doctor, and Kira could see him getting more and more frustrated and angry, but he never snapped, never lashed out. She didn’t understand it. If he just stood up for himself, the others would knock it off, or at least back off for a while. She’d seen it plenty of times before on the mining outposts. Guys who didn’t punch back always ended up getting picked on more. It was a law of nature.

Falconi didn’t interfere, not directly, but she noticed how he unobtrusively steered the conversation in a different direction. As they took up another topic, Vishal sank back in his seat, as if hoping no one would notice him.

While they talked, Kira went to the Entropists, who were hunched over a bluish, oblong-shaped object on their table, turning it over as if trying to find a key or a latch to open it.

She sat next to Veera. “What is that?” she asked, indicating the object. It was the size of both her fists combined.

The Entropists peered at her, owlish under the hoods of their robes. “We found this—” said Jorrus.

“—on the ship of the Jelly,” said Veera. “We think it is a—”

“—processor or control module for a computer. But to be honest—”

“—we are not entirely sure.”

Kira glanced back at Falconi. “Does the captain know you have this?”

The Entropists smiled, mirroring each other’s expression. “Not this specifically,” they said, their voices coming in stereo, “but he knows we salvaged several pieces of equipment off the ship.”

“May I?” asked Kira, and held out her hands.

After a moment, the Entropists relented and allowed her to take the object. It was denser than it looked. The surface was pitted slightly, and there was a smell of … salt? to it.

Kira frowned. “If the xeno knows what this is, it’s not telling me. Where did you find it?”

The Entropists showed her via footage from their implants.

“The Aspect of the Void,” said Kira. The English translation tasted strange on her tongue; it was accurate, but it failed to capture the feel of the Jelly original. “That was the name of the room. I didn’t go in there, but I saw the sign.”

Veera carefully took back the oblong object. “What, in this instance—”

“—does the word void refer to? Likewise, what does—”

“—the word aspect?”

She hesitated. “I’m not sure. Maybe … communication? Sorry. Don’t think I can help you any more than that.”

The Entropists dipped their heads. “You have given us more than we had previously. We shall continue to ponder upon this matter. May your path always lead to knowledge, Prisoner.”