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When Marius first stepped onto the Aurora, he was expecting something much less elegant. Perhaps more like the starships he knew back on his home planet. Well, used to know. But no, this was quite the well maintained ship. Wires scattered the ceiling, clinging to the walls and draped just a bit on the floor. Technology he had never seen before was in every corner he could see. The ship was stunning, and it was his new home. A new, alien home. The next steps he took were slow and filled with awe, marveling the mechanics of the Aurora. He walked, looking over to the one who brought him in. She had offered him to come on the Aurora while his planet was dying, and how could he refuse? Now here he was, aboard this marvelous starship. She was watching him.
“Isn’t she beautiful?” She asked him.
“An incredible ship!”
A beep came from the small tablet that the woman held. She looked at it with a shy grin. “She thanks you.”
“Of course! A fine ship like this deserves her praise!”
As Marius walked further, his steps became more confident. The woman had to keep up with him while he ran, admiring the Aurora in all her glory. He didn’t even notice the obstacle in front of him until he crashed and fell. Looking up, he saw what could only be described as a wooden man. It was thin and short, just a few centimeters taller than him, and wore a spiffing moustache. It got up quickly, bending down to observe Marius. Then, as if he didn’t just smash into it, it spoke to him in a high, friendly voice.
“Tally ho, new friend! I’m sorry! Are you hurt?”
“What?”
It grabbed his hand, and before Marius knew it, he was back on his feet. He saw liquid and a plastic teapot scattering the ground. The wooden soldier looked at him with unblinking eyes, and even though Marius couldn’t see a change, he knew something was odd about the way it looked at him versus the way it looked at the woman finally catching up to them.
“Why are you even standing here, Toy Soldier? Shouldn’t you be in your room having your dumb tea party?”
“The tea was getting cold, Nastya! I can’t have a party with cold tea.”
Nastya rolled her eyes before turning to Marius. “Ignore it. Come on, I’ll lead you to-“
“Wait!” Marius stopped Nastya, never turning away from the Toy Soldier. “No, I want to speak with it.”
Nastya turned away, walking down the hall. “Fine, Marius. I’ll be feeding the octokittens if you need me. Oh, and welcome to the crew.”
“Wait, I didn’t mean-” He gave up. Marius turned back, beholding this wooden soldier. “You mentioned tea?”
“Why, yes, I did! But when you had your tumble, you knocked the tea out of my hands.”
“Oh, sorry about that. Need help making more?”
“Rather! Follow me, ol’ chap!” The soldier started marching down the hall, picking up the teapot as it went. Marius could do nothing but follow further into the Aurora. From how Nastya spoke with it, he got the strange feeling that the soldier hadn’t had many friendly conversations with whoever else was on the ship. He noticed very faint bullet holes through its body that it tried to patch up with sawdust, a few scratches here and there, even small marks most likely from termites. He frowned. This wooden man needed care, and a friend. He could use a friend himself in this new place.
When the Toy Soldier finally stopped, they were standing in what was he assumed was the kitchen.
“Let’s get to work!” It happily walked in. Marius began helping make the tea. The Toy Soldier turned around while preparing tea, meeting the eyes of Marius. He smiled gently, causing a clattering sound from the soldier’s metal joints. In the corner of his eye, he noticed it was staring at him and… smiling, maybe? It was hard to tell. And after a couple minutes, the tea was ready. The Toy Soldier poured the new batch into the teapot, stepping back to admire both their handiwork. Marius could hear the clattering again, which he assumed meant that it was happy.
“We did it, we did it!” It cheered excitedly. “Now to bring the tea. Come on!” And it dashed across the ship, out of the sight of Marius. For whatever reason, he felt compelled to follow it. Perhaps it was in need of a friend. So, he sighed, and tried to follow it to wherever it was going. He walked around the ship’s halls, encountering more rooms than he had expected at first. He found stairs leading upwards and followed them, assuming that was where the Toy Soldier went. On the highest point of the ship overlooking a window to the open sky was a tall, rusted metal man, eyes fixed all on the cosmos. It took him time to even notice Marius.
“Are you who Nastya’s been talking about?” the metal man asked.
“I do believe so.”
“Great,” he said plainly before moving aside and tapping the open spot. “Care to watch the stars?”
“Oh, no, I couldn’t. I’m off to-“
“Just for a moment?” He pleaded.
He paused. “I suppose a moment wouldn’t hurt,” and joined him. The stars shined bright, so far away.
The metal man brushed his hand against the observation window, turning his gaze. “I don’t think I’ve seen the cosmos so beautiful in a long time.”
“Very lovely.”
“Certainly.”
After a brief moment of silence, Marius sat up stiff. “Do you know anything about that wooden soldier?”
“So you met the Toy Soldier, did you? It’s harmless, so pay it no mind and you’ll be fine.”
He blinked. The metal man gave Marius a friendly look.
“Can get annoying at times, but means well.”
“Well, I have to find this Toy Soldier. I was invited for a tea party.”
“Ah, well you could probably find it down the hall. Always hosts in its room.”
“Thank you. It was nice to watch the stars together.”
Marius thought about the information he’d learned. Down the hall and he’d find it. As he traversed the Aurora, he found many different people and had friendly conversations. He talked with a person with a metallic voice, and when he mentioned the Toy Soldier, they gave him a look of pity. He met a man with strange eyes who barely payed him any attention, pointing to the general area he’d find the Toy Soldier. That’s when he met another man, this one had a manic energy to him, and he locked eyes with Marius.
“Are you Marius?”
“That would be me! I’ve been walking around the ship for a bit now if you noticed me. It’s a beautiful ship.”
He smiled, “I’m sure Nastya would love to hear that. Actually, I think that she might be in the Doc’s lab if you want to tell her yourself.”
“I already did, actually. But I’m really busy trying to find the Toy Soldier.”
He gave Marius a dirty look. “Toy Soldier? What could you want with it?”
“Oh, nothing, I just made some tea and it wants me to join the party.”
“Really? That’s…”
“What? Does it not often make tea?”
“Often,” he said. “It invites the crew, but we never go, except maybe Brian, but he just feels bad for it.”
“Never go?” Marius took a second to think about that. He pictured the Toy Soldier all alone, pouring tea into a single cup and making conversation with itself. He felt its loneliness even in his made-up scenario. He patted the man’s shoulder, causing him to jerk away. “It was nice talking to you. Let’s meet up again, yes? I have to leave.” So he walked away to find the Toy Soldier.
He didn’t know where exactly to go, until he smelled the comforting scent of earl grey. A tea party, most definitely. He followed the aroma to a quaint little room, where he found the Toy Soldier.
The room was small but in a cozy way. Weapons of all kinds lined each wall, Marius even recognized some from his home planet. There was no bed, but instead a cardboard box filled with packing paper. In the center was a small table with metal chairs surrounding it. It was just the Toy Soldier in the room. It looked up from pouring tea, and met the eyes of Marius with a warm smile.
“Room for one more?”
“Oh, rather!”
Marius sat down next to the Toy Soldier, letting it pour him a cup of tea. He took a sip, burning his lips with hot earl grey, but the flavor took up his mind instead. The tea was excellent. He looked over to the soldier, and gave a subtle nod.
“Do the others not come?”
“No! They’re too busy.”
“How long has it been since they last attended?” He took another sip of tea.
“Hm, not sure! Perhaps… two centuries?”
Marius nearly choked on his tea. He turned to fully face the Toy Soldier. He saw no sadness in its face, but just a hint of loneliness.
“I see. Well, if you ever need another to hold a tea party with, I’ll be happy to attend.”
The Toy Soldier clattered delightfully, “You mean it? I’d love that!” And it gave him a tight hug. Marius was surprised at first but returned the hug softly. Its wooden body was rough against Marius, but he didn’t mind. Once it pulled away, it went back to drinking tea.
They continued their friendly conversation, drinking now lukewarm tea. Marius couldn’t help but notice the Toy Soldier watching with… affection? He couldn’t tell. They had a friendly conversation, talking about the effectiveness of different mechas and weapons. The Toy Soldier went on and on cheerfully, talking about all the wars it had been in, all the battles it so bravely fought in. Marius gave an ear. It spoke with great enthusiasm, listing all kinds of weapons and fighting it had been involved in, all Marius could do was listen. It had a way of spinning tales that was enthralling. And once it was finished with its story, it blinked, waiting for Marius to add on. So, Marius began his tale, though a lot of his own story was starting to slip his mind. Even with his muddy memory, the Toy Soldier looked absolutely captivated. When the story was done, it clapped its hands together.
“Jolly good, Marius! You are such an exceptional storyteller!”
“Thank you.”
When the tea was all gone, Marius stood up and walked to the entrance, when he was stopped by the Toy Soldier.
“Hold on, hold on! Wait right there!”
It sprang out of its chair, holding out its hands.
“Close your eyes, Marius. Please?”
Marius didn’t know where it was going with this, but complied, keeping his eyes shut. He heard the Toy Soldier walk to the corner of the room, fishing something out of packaging paper, and was suddenly nervous of what it was doing. It ran to Marius and told him to hold out his hand. He felt the weight of cold metal in his palm.
“Now open your eyes!”
When Marius opened his eyes, he gasped. What Marius found in his hand was an intricate monogoggle. He put it on, and it fit perfectly over his left eye. He caught a glimpse of himself in the reflection of a polished rifle on the wall, and saw a new self, a better version of himself.
“I wore it in the army alongside the Rose Reds, but it’s not my style anymore. I thought it would look splendid on you, though! Do you like it?”
Marius was speechless. When he tried to push out words, he couldn’t, choosing to just embrace the Toy Soldier instead. The Toy Soldier wasn’t surprised, just happy he loved it. They remained in that hug for a long time, and when it finally was over, he walked out of the room of the Toy Soldier.
“Please come back for the next tea party, Marius. We’ll have a jolly good time with some earl grey again, and maybe Brian will come this time.”
“Of course! Even if Brian doesn’t come, I’ll be happy if it’s just the two of us.”
“So long, Marius!”
And as Marius once again began to traverse the Aurora, his brain kept replaying the tea party. He touched the new monogoggle on his face tenderly. As the stars passed through the windows, the walls felt closer, homey.
Perhaps his new life on the Aurora wouldn’t be so bad.