—Initiating landing sequence. Mother Base, welcome home, Leynad. —The ship, with its pleasant feminine chime of a voice, announced the return unnecessarily, for Leynad was in the cockpit and could perfectly see the massive gates of the cosmoparking opening to let him through.

Even so, as always, he appreciated the notice.

—Thank you, Dalara. Current time? —Twenty-two fifteen. —Okaay.

While the ship completed the landing procedure, Leynad stretched and finished putting on the “street clothes” he had left hanging on the copilot’s seat—a chair rarely occupied by anyone, but very convenient for these purposes. Then he walked toward the exit airlock, ready to return to “normal life.”

Normal life was normal for him, but it would have seemed very strange to the vast majority of human beings alive at that time. He was a Planet Discoverer, one of the thirty-eight active at that moment. Or at least that was what he liked to think—because in reality, he was much more.

—Parking complete. You may exit, Ley. —The ship spoke gently. —Thanks, Dalara. I’ll be back tomorrow to take care of a few things. Until then, remain in standby. —No problem. Have a good one, Ley. —You too.

The ship opened the door and Leynad stepped out easily. He was returning from one of his usual discovery journeys. And he was returning to what had been his home since he was born thirty-three years earlier: the Interstellar Mother Base of Otinev & Sorentti Space Industries… better known as “The OSSI Sphere.”

The OSSI Sphere was an enormous space complex which, from afar, looked exactly like… a ball. It resembled a dark sphere, opaque and dotted with thousands of twinkling lights shining in many colors. Up close, however, one could see that the complex was formed by thousands of rectangular modules that gave the whole structure the appearance of a “pixelated ball.”

It measured a little over twenty-seven kilometers in diameter and possessed its own gravity, amplified by one of the most famous inventions of its creator—none other than Leynad’s late father.

Despite its immense size, its habitable space was not particularly large, nor especially comfortable, nor especially cheerful, since ninety percent of the Sphere consisted of pure machinery. Machinery that allowed more than a thousand people to live and work inside.

The Sphere was exactly the same age as Leynad. In fact, he had been born there three days after its inauguration. He knew it like the back of his hand. So he knew that ten fifteen at night was an hour when some residents were finishing dinner and thinking about going to sleep, while others were considering going out for a drink and a bit of fun.

He also knew that most of his fellow Discoverers were not around, because in that cosmoparking there was only one other ship besides his own, parked about fifty meters away. And it was one of the newer ones, judging by the identification number tattooed on the side of that yellow vessel.

Leynad walked along the disembarkation corridor toward the parking exit, wondering whether to head straight to his cube-home or stop first at Jim’s Cantina to see what was going on.

However, something pulled him out of his thoughts. Voices were coming from the direction of the yellow ship.

The vastness of the cosmoparking, combined with the fact that it was almost empty, amplified the echoes. Although the two people speaking seemed to be trying not to raise their voices, Leynad heard them more clearly as he approached. They appeared to be arguing.

—Give me three more weeks. One more trip. You know there’s something good in that sector—you said so yourself. You’ve seen the same numbers I have. It’s the best option. —The male voice spoke with a condescending air, but with the tone of someone pleading.

—No! —The female voice surprised Leynad. She was no longer whisper-shouting like moments before; now she was yelling outright.—That’s enough! I’m not going with you to get lost in space for another three weeks! And I’m certainly not waiting for you here!

Leynad smirked slightly. It sounded like a hundred-percent classic couple’s argument. Well… he had seen worse. Discoverers’ partners rarely liked the Sphere.

He kept walking over the steaming metal grates of the parking bay while the voices continued behind him.

—But, darling… think about it. Without the money we won’t be able to give her opportunities. We won’t be able to raise her properly. Don’t you want the best for her? You still have almost three months before giving birth. If we leave today, we’ll be back in less than a month. I’ll request the permit and we can depart tonight—

—No! If you want to go, go alone! Let’s see who does your calculations then! I’m going home right now! I’m taking the midnight ferry! And if you don’t come with me… we’ll see whether I let you come later! If you’re not there when she’s born, you can forget about me—and about her too! Do you understand?

Ouch.

This time Leynad grimaced. The situation seemed more serious than he had first thought. The woman appeared to be pregnant. That was unusual.

The company granted generous parental leave to employees who needed it, and giving birth on the Sphere was not particularly advisable.

There had been births there before—starting with the one that had brought him into the world—but usually they involved employees from other departments who actually lived there permanently and didn’t travel constantly. The Discoverer job was usually temporary and very well paid. Most people preferred to accumulate a good amount of money, switch jobs, and only then start a family—if they wanted one at all.

What was going on with those two?

As he passed in front of the rookie’s ship, Ley turned his head with curiosity and saw them standing beside it, about thirty meters away, gesturing while continuing their argument. The man noticed him at the same moment and immediately lowered his voice, though he kept talking.

Leynad paid little attention and continued toward the exit. He didn’t like getting involved where he wasn’t invited.

But he noticed again a few seconds later when he heard a loud PLONK—the unmistakable sound of a spaceship door being shut manually… and not very carefully.

He shrugged and passed through the exit, having already decided which direction to take:

The bar.