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Chapter Text

"This is the Rendezvous' ship's bay, Mr Jin?" The reporter asked with a smile on his face as the cameraman followed behind.

"It very much is." The current tour guide Jin Minsoo waved his arm to the rest of the large room. They were surrounded by every space ship that had transported passengers to different parts of the universe. From small ones to large one, they could be found resting here until they were need to be used.

"This is very impressive, I never thought it was this big... well I mean I knew it was big, but this large?!" He covered his mouth.
"Are you a fan Mr Smith?" Minsoo raised his eyebrow.
"Frankly, yes, I always wanted to see it as a boy. And you supervise this whole shindig?"
Minsoo nodded, "24/7, I have a security camera in my room, if there's an emergency."

They continued down the stairs and were met with more ships. The reporter stopped at a large ship with its left wing broken and the cockpit missing.

"Is this the Fukuwari ship?"
"The one and only." Minsoo stood proud, "The first transport ship to hold passengers for the Rendezvous space station."
The reporter gazed upon its size, but before he could gawk at it more, the cameraman coughed.
"Sorry-- where were we?"

Jin Minsoo gestured in front of him and they walked towards the docking areas.
"Everything looks like they are in perfect condition." The reporter pointed at different points of interest for the cameraman to capture.

"Of course, we, on the Rendezvous space station, keep everything up to perfect standards for our workers and passengers' sake."

They wandered to the end of the row of ships covered by tarps, the reporter stopped again and points.
"This ship..." The reporter held his breath, "This is the emergency backup ship... Operation The World?"

Mr Jin sighed, "It was renamed to the Loossemble, only four members occupy the ship and, yes, you are correct about emergency backup. When everything else, they are here to save the day."

The reporter whispered to his cameraman.

"Could you tell me more about it?" The reporter faced Minsoo.

"Wouldn't want to see the Mars Rover?" He quickly changed.

"Oh, I would love to."

They walked past the Loossemble and inside from the ship, the commander, Kim Hyunjin, sighed as they walk out of her view from the cockpit. She looked back at her security feed monitor which she took from the security office as she always did. Switching through the camera feeds, she went from the cafeteria to the vast amount of hallways. She stumbled upon the docking bay where one of the larger ships were departing.

"The 12:00, leaving at 12:00." She rolled her eyes. Then, something on her screen made her squint. It was a bright pink light shining on the surface of the ship.

"What the--." She zoomed into it a bit more, but before she could find out the door of the Loossemble ship opened.

"There you are Commander Kitty!" Her first-mate, Wong Kahei, also known as Vivi, came in and behind her were the two other crewmates. Hyunjin whirled around to see them.
"Anything exciting happening?" Park Chaewon sat down on the couches surrounding the holo-map table.
"No, as usual." Hyunjin slid down her chair.
"Is that a camera feed?" Son Hyeju pointed over Hyunjin's shoulder.

Hyunjin closed her laptop monitor and shook her head.
"Hyunjin, you know you're off duty right?" Vivi tutted, "You're not allowed to take the equipment."
"You never say that to the other two." Hyunjin complained.
"That's because I bought my toolkit." Chaewon spun a wrench in her hand.
"And I'm still working." Hyeju hid her stethoscope under her collar, "Luckily we have a few patience left to take care of."
"Anyway, you guys up for lunch in the cafeteria?" Hyunjin asked.
"Of course, beats eating in here."

The crewmembers stepped out of the ship leaving it as an empty husk and they made their way to the cafeteria.

Commander's Log:

We've been experiencing a long halt in our emergency backup status. The day goes by without a given mission. My crew and I have been patient and are still wondering when our next rescue mission will arrive.

The loud chattering became deafening as they entered the cafeteria. The crew members always kept a low profile which was hard to maintain as the Loossemble ship was one of the most well-known ships in the universe. So as they were able to sit down, a few visiting passengers recognised them.

"Just smile and wave girls, smile and wave." Hyunjin smiled towards them. Everyone knew about them in more ways than others. You have the youngest member, Son Hyeju, a talented medic on board and in the space station. She lived on the planet, Eden and she was the top of her class in space cadet training and had always been a team player so when she was scouted to become a medic on the Loossemble ship, that was her dream.

Next you have Park Chaewon, who lived on a planet called Newtopia. She was the most popular amongst the cadets and the best mechanic they had seen. When a job opened for the Loossemble, she took the chance.

Wong Kahei, who lived on Earth. The right-hand to the commander of the ship. The most reliable person you could have. She is the long lasting member of the Operation The World even after its changed name. She used to serve the captain of the ship before her passing and works as the pilot of the ship.

Kim Hyunjin, the commander of the Loossemble ship, who lived on the planet middle earth. The latest member of the Loossemble and acted as a supervisor of the ship. After the passing of the late-captain, she was promoted to be the commander.

Yet when they aren't called upon an emergency. They had to get a job on the Rendezvous to sustain their lifestyles. Hyeju worked as a doctor, no one was surprised here. Chaewon became the lead mechanic of the Rendezvous, in which she made a few changes for the space station to stay afloat. Vivi became a flying instructor for new space cadets in a simulation test. Hyunjin was a security guard, all day she walked around and watched the CCTVs for any threats. They may not find it as exciting as being on their ship, but they were emergency backup. Times have changed and for the better with updated safety. The Loossemble members weren't as needed as before.

This was their life as they continued to eat their lunch in peace.

Chapter Text

May the 4th marked the day of the South Korean Space Cadets' final test: An exam. The best and smartest space cadets were to perform their hardest to get a place to work out there in space.

Im Yeojin, who was placed in top 5 for her physicality test in the nation, was sitting in the South Korea's Space Training Hall. She glanced at her fellow classmates around her stumping on questions that she too was taking her time. Looking at the time, only 30 minutes were left until it finished. All she had to do was to push through.
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The outside parking lot was crowded in a few seconds as the space cadets wait for their results to tally up. Yeojin sat with her two friends, Minjee and Taejun,

"Who do you think will fail?" Minjee chuckled.

Taejun nudged her, "Pilwon for sure and his girlfriend." He pointed at the couple snuggling next to each other.

"That's so rude," Yeojin shook her head, "and very true."

"And what will the first-place-taker do after she graduates?" Minjee placed her hands on Yeojin's shoulder, shaking her.

Yeojin laughed, "You already know."

"Oh right, the 'Loser Crew'." Minjee scoffed as Taejun pushed her.

"It's the Loossemble crew, and I'm still going through with it."

"Don't you want something, I dunno, better?"

Taejun pulled at her arm, "Minjee!"

"What, it's a genuine question."

"Whatever Yeojin has in mind, we'll still support her. We stand right by you." Taejun shook his friend and Minjee nodded.

"Thanks. I just always wanted to be in a small crew." Yeojin smiled and the trio went in for a hug, but that's when the horde of cadets swarmed together to the front of the parking lot where a scientist in a white lab coat was standing.

"Your results are now up. It was a pleasure marking your work and if anyone has any questions or any potential resits..." She stopped and looked at Pilwon and his girlfriend nuzzling each other, "I'll be in my office."

The crowd rushed into the hall exam and the trio fell right behind. The results board stretched across the room. Few of the cadets leave the board satisfied and a few of them leave with hands in their faces running out of the exam hall. They watch as the crow are still scrabbling at the board to see their names, Yeojin wasn't taking her chances to fight her way through no matter how small she was. Minjee and Taejun started on the left where less people were and where the top students knew they did well. Yeojin waited until the crowd in the middle dispersed.

"Umm Yeojin." Minjee waved her over, her friends had a startled expression on their faces.

"Yeah?" She walked over to them.

Taejun pointed at the top of the leaderboard.

"What?" Yeojin chuckled in their faces, but when she looked over to where he pointed, her smile faded away.

1) Im Yeojin. 100%

Her name was plastered there at the very top.

"I was kinda, but kinda not joking about that first-place-taker name for you." Minjee shook her friend's shoulder. Yeojin stood in awe with her name being there.

"You could get in anywhere!" Taejun raised his voice.

"What about you guys' results?" Yeojin snapped out of it, but her friends just smiled at her.

"Im Yeojin, the newly graduated 21-year-old, the top of the nation." Minjee wrapped her arm around Yeojin's neck.

"That..." Yeojin sighed, "Doesn't seem half bad."

Chapter Text

It's May 11th and the Rendezvous Space Station was still up and running thanks to the staff and crew who made it work. Down in the basements of the station, the engineers and technicians keep the station intact. One of those talented people was Park Chaewon, one of the team leaders in her field.

She just finished a mechanical issue in one of the space station jet engines. Taking off her space suit, she sat down onto the bench of the locker room to hide away from her colleagues. A few of her colleagues looked up to her and put her on a pedestal, some take her to be an idol, but Chaewon isn't much of a fan of that. She opened her locker and took the water bottle to take a long sip.

A crackling sound emitted from outside of the room.

"Can the crewmembers of the Loossemble come to the Ship Bay office."

Chaewon sighed, dropping her water bottle in the locker.

"What trouble did we get into now?"

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It had been a busy day in the sick infirmary. More passengers came in by the day and more of them seem to get sick as they arrive. Son Hyeju ran around to tend all those who she can whilst being under the supervision of her mentor. Again, she was the most adored junior doctor that the Rendezvous had to offer and unlike Chaewon, her colleagues were mostly jealous of her.

Hyeju was tending to a child who contracted chicken pox, his mother was beside him. She took his temperature and laid him down on the bed.

"How are you feeling, Marcus?" Hyeju asked, fixing her mask.

"A bit better, I think." He spoke in a soft tone.

Hyeju looked at his mother, "Nothing unusual right now, and I think after today your son will be in the best shape."

She nodded and held her son's hands, "Thank you."

"Of course, happy to help." Hyeju left the room and headed to the staff room.

She got out her packed lunch made by one of her friends in the canteen. She was sat alone most of the time since the Loossemble crew couldn't come in and most of her colleagues that were nice to her were off to their duties. She heard whispering from the front of the room, but Hyeju ignored them. Then, the intercom turned on.

"Can the crew members of the Loossemble come to the Ship's Bay office."

The whisperings cease as they watched Hyeju stand up from her table. She took her bag and leaves.

"I can never catch a break." She sighed.

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Hundreds of training cadets came to the space station for a special training lesson to pilot a small spaceship. Wong Kahei, a.k.a Vivi, was one of the driving  conductors. She was sitting with one of her students in the cockpit of a sleek spacecraft called the Red Dwarf. It is suspended in the air and a large screen turned on.

"Okay Yuki, this is a simulation, so whatever you do will just happen virtually." Vivi said, "First you will have to take of and then just fly through the course."

Yuki nodded and took a deep breath. She starts the engine and the whole ship started to rumble. She pressed a number of buttons, turning on the lights and the warning lights. Pushing the throttle they started moving forward, she pulled up on the control wheel, the ship pulled up and they are out in space.

Even if it was a simulation, everything that happened was simulated to feel real.

"You're doing well, flatten out where the blue line is." Viv praised her, "After you cross this line, the flying course will start."

Yuki nodded and passed through the blue line. Blue lights lit up a path and at the very end a red light indicated the end. Vivi watched as Yuji manoeuvres through the course with ease and as a cleanly as she could.

"Great job, almost there." She looked at her student who was shaking at the control wheel.

"It's okay." She patted her shoulder, "You can make it."

Yuki took another deep breath and with Vivi's words in mind, she stopped shaking.

The end is in sight, Yuki pushed the throttle more and they speed through the end.

The message pops up:

Flying Course Cleared

"Well done!" Vivi cheered and Yuki skids down her chair, "See I knew you could do it." Vivi held out her hand to help her up.

"Thank you Miss Wong."

"After learning to land, you'll be able to do you actual flying test, just keep practising." She pattered her back.

Leaving the simulation, Vivi went to her office to write a report on her recent student, until the intercom was heard. Vivi heard its muffled noise, she poked her head out to hear it clearly.

"I repeat: Can the crew members of the Loossemble come to the Ship's Bay office."

Her other colleagues popped their heads out and looked over to her.

"This will be interesting."

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The Central part of the Rendezvous was always crowded with people going to different terminals to catch their ships in time. There were also food chains for people to grab a bite, outlets for people to buy from and a small stage in the middle for performances that usually happen 24/7 by different musicians and artists. It wasn't called the biggest space station in the whole universe for nothing. They even have two hotels.

Kim Hyunjin was lucky to work in a place like this. Especially with her on the security team. Most times on the Rendezvous everything went well. The other times were either done by complete weirdos or threats, but with their strict-strict rules and checking they were able to go trhough the year without any problems.

Hyunjin stood watch on one of the balconies where security was only permitted. She looked over the stage and saw a band called Moon Hollers who had a few fans in the audience. Then, Hyunjin received a call from her walkie-talkie.

"Anything to report up there?"

Hyunjin replied back. "Nope, but that boy group was entertaining."

"Alrighty, I think you deserve your break."

Hyunjin chuckled and headed down the stairs and into the security main room where a selected few of her colleagues were assigned to monitor the cameras.

"You deserve a break Kim, you've been out there for hours." Her team captain, ben Kalypso, patted her back.

"Yeah I know." Hyunjin sighed.

"Have your lunch break and I'll assign you to watch over the food stalls."

Hyunjin nodded and goes straight to the food court where all sorts of foods from different regions of the universe could be found here. Hyunjin's favourite cuisine was definitely from her neighbouring planet called Broucette where a flower of the same name is used in all of their dishes. However, Hyunjin settled on a dog and a soft drink from the Earth stall. She was leaning near the barriers that kept everyone away from the windows that looked out to space.  She munched on her hot dog and relaxed.

There were people walking past that were either tourists wandering around to get to their platform or employees going about their day trying to get through till the end of their shift. Hyunjin stared at her badge made in silver metal. Her name was written on it, Kim Hyunjin.

She may be a part of the Loossemble crew, but each they all had to have another job since they were rarely needed in situations. Of course, the Loossemble have been called a few times in the past years, but recently it had been a few weeks since they were called upon.

"I just want some time off this space station." Hyunjin took a sip of her drink.

"Can something happen? Everyone is too careful these days... but... that's probably for the best." She tried to lighten herself up, "Why did I even say that?" 

Just then, an intercom speaker turned on and the food court went silent.

"Can the crew of the Loossemble come to the Ship's Bay office."

Hyunjin's heart beats in excitement as she was filled with joy. Whatever it was they were needed for, she hoped it was another mission. Finishing off her food, she cleared off any crumbs and headed to the Ship's Bay.

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All of Loossemble rushed to the Ship's Bay office, Hywang Yerin. One of their supervisors of the the bay.

"What do you think we're here for?" Chaewon asked, she wiped a bead of sweat that was from her previous job.

"Trouble, we always get told off for loitering in our ship. Even though it's our ship!" Hyeju exclaimed, grabbing both ends of the stethoscope around the back of her neck/

"Can we think of positive thoughts please!" Vivi stared at them.

Hyunjin put a finger to her lips, "Let's just go in." She turned the handle and opened it. They were met with Yerin with a big smile talking to a young short girl in front of her.

"You're all here, that's a great start." 

Everyone turned their attention to the unfamiliar person behind her.

"I've bought you here today to introduce to you a graduated cadet, Im Yeojin." She stood beside her and gestures.

Yeojin bowed.

"She wanted to be the newest member of the Loossemble." Yerin said.

The members froze as they look at their commander. Hyunjin crossed her arms and shut her eyes.

"Can I talk to you privately with my crew, Miss Hwang?" Hyunjin huffed.

Yerin nodded and whispered to Yeojin to wait outside. They heard the door close and Hyunjin was tapping her feet.

"Can you tell your boss that it's not funny to keep tricking us with new members." She raised her voice and moved in towards her with her crew surrounding the poor supervisor.

"No no, it's the truth. She wants to be a part of your crew." Yerin backed up to her desk grabbing a piece of paper, "Look at her CV." She held it up in front of them. They looked at the bottom to see her statement which highlighted her enthusiasm to join the Loossemble ship.

The members fall back.

"She's a smart girl who scored 100% on her recent test and placed top 5 in the physical test in South Korea." Yerin stumbled back to her feet. 

Hyunjins grabbed the CV to check all her grades and other achievements she mentioned. She shook her head and opened the office door.

"Hey kid!" She called out to Yeojin who was standing beside the door, "Don't waste your talents on this." She said bluntly and left without any hesitation.

Yeojin opened her mouth and tried to call out, but Vivi bowed and said, "I'm sorry about that" and turned around to the others, "I'll handle it."

Vivi ran after Hyunjin who was going straight to the Loossemble ship.

"Hyunjin, just wait a sec!" Vivi caught up with her and stopped Hyunjin in her tracks.

"Come on, isn't it great to have a new member?"

"She deserves something better than being stuck on this space station... All of you do, all the wasted talent on the ship." Hyunjin continued, "Chaewon's an excellent engineer, Hyeju can mend all the wounded, you can manoeuvre through asteroids. You all could have gone to different planets. All of you don't deserve to waste your time here--."

"And what about you?" Vivi asked, her voice was in a harsh tone that Hyunjin even was taken aback, "Our late-captain picked you to be our commander, she saw the potential in you and all of us. You have a strong mind and a big heart, you lead us through missions like it was no big deal. And you this is all a waste?"

The silence is defeating. Hyunjin tapped her food and nodded her head. Vivi rubbed her arm.

"People will always see us as backups or reserves, but that's exactly who we are. We help those when every emergency help fails. We're not one of those big crews with fancy technology and high-tech androids. we keep it fast and sleek." Vivi nudged Hyunjin to the direction where Yeojin and her members were.

"She reminds me of you, a girl passionate to work here."

Hyunjin smiled, "Thanks Vivi, Haseul would have been proud."

Vivi patted her back and they both head to the other members. With determination in Hyunjin's eyes, she saw Yeojin and it took her back when she was young, about 17 years old. The first time she was recruited to the Loossemble.

The captain took her in after much begging and when she was put on trial to be on the ship, Hyunjin showed her worth by trial and error in a simulation test. She risked her life and limb to save every person and even if the members of the Loossemble saw her as a life-risk. The captain saw her to be a valuable member and that's when Hyunjin met Vivi, the captain's right hand crewmember. Then a few years later, Hyunjin recruited Chaewon and Hyeju just before the captain's passing.

Hyunjin took a deep breath and faced Yeojin.

"I'm very sorry for my behaviour earlier," Hyunjin bowed her head, "I didn't mean the words that I said." She took another deep breath and held out her hand, "If you're still willing, we would accept you into our crew."

Yeojin immediately shook her hand, "I accept."

"Commander, guess what." Hyeju chuckled, "She's two years younger than you."

"Oh, then I shouldn't have used 'kid'."

"It's alright commander, I'm here on duty."

Vivi stood alongside with the other two members, "And to think Hyeju isn't the youngest anymore."

"I thought I would be forever the youngest." Hyeju crossed her arms.