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“Deep Breaths, deeeep breaths. You got this. You got this.” The girl whispered as she entered her new home.
It took her two years before she was accepted into the program, but at last, she was chosen as a new crew member to explore the stars on the S.S. Oramizda.
No one really knew what their assignments were until they were aboard the ship, but the head of the program told her that every job was just as important as the other and at each stop, if you don’t feel like your assignment is the right fit for you, they would be willing to assign you somewhere else.
They seemed like they really cared about their workers, which is really rare nowadays.
Her last job was a bit different. Long hours, little pay, and a boss that didn’t care if you were on your deathbed. You had to be at work. She would work, eat, maybe sleep, and work some more. It seemed like her whole existence was working there, but not anymore. Now she was somewhere where she could be free to explore new exciting places, meet new people, and have an adventure past her wildest dreams.
She stood by her new crewmates, bouncing on the balls of her feet in anticipation. What kind of job would she have? Would she be in navigation? Maybe Engineering? Heck, she would probably be fine with cafeteria duty or janitorial! She didn’t mind the work. She was just excited to try something new.
She looked at the girl next to her, who looked like she was about to burst with nerves. She smiled at the girl and waved at her, which seemed to make the other girl calm down a little and wave back shyly.
“Hi,” she grinned at the other girl.
“H-hi,” she replied shyly, playing with a strand of her long dark hair.
“I’m Rosaria.” She introduced herself, holding out her hand.
The other girl looked at the hand before slowly taking it and giving it a small shake, “I’m Jet.”
“Oh, like the gem-” She was cut off when their leader came in holding a sheet that held their future.
This was it.
She took a deep breath, glanced at her new friend, and offered Jet her hand, which she took and squeezed appreciatively for comfort.
“Hello.” The woman said, dressed in a suit of pure white, “I am the captain of this ship, Captain Ilene Ivory.” She placed her hands behind her back and started to pace down the line of the newest crew members, “I am here to give you your tasks and to guide you as you learn them.”
The woman gestured to the people standing with her, “These are the leaders of each department and the ones who will train you in what your tasks and duties will be. They are here to mentor and guide you, please show them respect, and they will do the same to you.”
She took the sheet in her hands and looked at it, “Before I hand out assignments, I would like to go over the rules. If any of these are not followed, you will be immediately terminated and sent home.”
She took out a pair of glasses and put them on the tip of her nose, “There will be no harassing, belittling, persecuting, or bullying of any kind. We will treat everyone with respect, and you will do the same. If you have a problem with a crewmate, you will discuss it among yourselves. If it is serious, we will host a meeting and discuss it as a group.”
She walked over to a door that said “Exit” in bright red letters, “Stay away from these doors when we are in space. You may be sucked out and suffocate.” She looked at the new recruitments, “You will be given suits to wear at all times, but even those have a limit on oxygen, so please, for your safety and the safety of the crew, don’t open these doors.”
A young man who stood next to Jet raised his hand, which caused the captain to stop and nod to him, “Mr?”
“Forrest, ma’am.” The man replied, straightening his back and saluting the Captain.
“Mr. Forrest, what is your question?” She stopped in front of him and looked at the new crewmate with interest.
“In case of an emergency, what plans do you have to evacuate? I hope it’s not a titanic situation where you have the lifeboats but not planning to use them.” He asked, adjusting his glasses.
“Well, Mr. Forrest, we have several escape pods at ready if they are needed, all of them with coordinates set for the earth.” She looked back at the notes with a frown, “Yes. Please respect the rules, or you will be fired. I will post this in the cafeteria, and there will be a copy in your welcome packets.”
At that, the leaders stepped forward, holding packages of different colors. Five colors. Black, Pink, Blue, Red, and Green.
Rosaria squeezed Jet’s hand tighter as the captain gestured to the leaders once again, “The leaders will give you your assignment and your personalized space suit. The suits were custom-made with your medical conditions in mind and a perfect fit with your measurements. With these suits, you will be able to do your tasks quickly and efficiently.”
A leader in a purple shirt walked up to Jet and gave her the black package and a soft smile, which caused the poor girl to relax and smile back.
Like a wall being torn down, the leaders then went to each new crewmate and presented them with their package.
Forrest got the green, a girl with coppery hair got the red, and Rosaria got the pink. The only one to remain was the blue.
Captain Ivory frowned, “Where is Slate?” she asked, looking over the recruits when a young man ran in. sheepishly.
“I am so so sorry!” he apologized and scratched the back of his head, “I was on my way when my bike stopped running and-”
“You will have to redo orientation, Mr. Slate. In the meantime, please take your package and get in line." The Captain said, gesturing to the space next to Rosaria.
"Cool." he smiled and took the blue package, and went to stand next to her.
"Hey." he winked at her, causing a soft blush to form on her cheeks. This was definitely going to be an adventure.
---
Electrician! She got Electrician on her first try! She could not believe it! And on top of that, Jet was staying in the room next to her. Things couldn't get any better.
That is until Slate came into the Electoral with their leader. They would team up and be in charge of making sure the ship was running smoothly with power flowing to all the places it was meant to be.
Rosaria couldn't believe such a handsome man would be her partner. She always saw herself as plain compared to other girls at home, but when he looked at her, she felt like the most beautiful creature in the universe: pink space suit and all.
It's been a few weeks since they took off into space, and they got to know their tasks really well. Sometimes they would still get lost in the different halls of the ship, but thankfully the suits had a built-in map that they could pull up at any time to help show them where to go.
Life started to become a routine. She would get up, go to the cafeteria for breakfast, chat with Jet, and then get to work with Slate. Things were perfect.
As she and her partner got closer, the more her feelings for him grew. He was funny and friendly and just fun to work with.
She wanted to tell him her feelings, but she was scared he didn't feel the same. Also, how awkward would it be to see him every day and know that she would never have him?
She couldn't live with that. So she just bottled up her feelings and smiled and giggled and teased him when prompted.
"Hey, Pink." Slate grinned at her, coming up with a fresh set of wires, "Daydreaming about me again? Careful, you might start drooling." he teased with a wink and a chuckle.
She flushed and let out a huff, "In your dreams, Blue."
"Every night." he looked at her seriously before laughing, "Come on, let's finish up the tasks. Today's taco night in the cafeteria, and I don't know about you, but I don't want Green to get there first."
"Well, if it means that much to you." she giggled and opened the panel next to the administration.
"oh, to have a crunchy taco? that would be incredible." he laughed, and right at that moment, the lights started to flash red.
"What is that?" Rosaria panicked, looking around as other crew members ran past.
"It's the reactor!" Forrest shouted at them, following Jet.
"Quick! we got to help!" Stale cried, taking Rosaria's hand and running in that direction.
They almost made it when Ruby, the one who worked as an administrator, ran through their locked hands, causing them to break apart.
"No, Blue!" she cried, but he disappeared. Running quickly to the reactor, she made it just in time for them to fix it. It was really odd. How did the reactor malfunction?
Suddenly, Stale was next to her again, holding her hand with that charming grin of his. And everything seemed to be okay.
That is until there was a scream.
Someone had been murdered.