Taban: Show me what? There’s nothing out here, Daley! Nothing! No crystal mountains, no ships, no shards, no ferroxes—

Daley: No. There is. I found it. It’s not far . . .

Taban: No. No fucking way. We’re going home.

Daley: Fin. Please.

Taban: No.

HARE: USER Daley’s oxygen is at 90%.

Taban: No one asked you.

Daley: Fin. I swear. It’ll take—five minutes. Less. I was coming back to get you when I tripped—but it’s right there! (He points to something presumably a few meters away) Or at least let me take the HARE to look at it. It needs to record it. This is important.

Taban: How important could it be?

Daley: It’s the most important thing in the world.

Taban: . . . (rubs his visor in a circular motion, as if rubbing his face) No.

Daley: Please. After this, I’ll never ask anything of you again. You can go back to the ship after. I’ll leave you out of it. I just need to know if you can see it, too.

Taban: I’m counting down from five minutes. If we don’t see anything by then, I’m going back. With the HARE. And I’ll leave you here. I don’t need you anymore, Daley.

Daley: I know. Thank you. I know, Fin.

[The two men rise to their feet, Taban pulling up Daley by the hand with an effort. The HARE scuttles up to Taban and seems to lean against his leg, perhaps to lend support. It stares off in the direction that Daley indicated, while the two men push their helmets close to speak.]

Taban: Tell me the truth, Daley. We came outside to look for you, and we couldn’t see the distress beacon on the ship flashing at all. The light’s still broken. It hasn’t been fixed in all the time we’ve been here. So how did you really know we fixed the comm system?

Daley: . . .

Taban: Daley?

Daley: I don’t know. I can’t remember. I guess I dreamed it.

15.

Park seized Fulbreech’s arm. “There’s a stranger,” she hissed.

He looked at her, startled. “What?”

“A stranger,” Park repeated, her voice low and urgent. “Aboard the ship. Someone I’ve never seen before.”

His brow furrowed; he put his hand on her elbow, even though Park knew she wasn’t shaking. “Where?”

“Over by the door. He’s gone now. But I saw him.”

“Are you sure it wasn’t just a trick of the light?” Fulbreech asked. He tried to smile. “Maybe your eyes deceived you for a second—mine do all of the time—hell, sometimes I don’t even recognize myself when I look in the mirror. Could you have imagined it?”

He was looking at her with that face again, that expression of open and genuine concern for her wellbeing, like a puppy not quite knowing what was wrong with its master, and despite herself Park felt a surge of irritation towards him, even hatred. No need for that look, Fulbreech, she thought. I hardly know ye. But more than that—no need to imply that she’d simply been foolish. She’d examined every person on this ship on a daily basis, for God’s sake, something even Chanur didn’t do. She couldn’t have just imagined a stranger.