“If you don’t get your ass topside with that ammo, I’ll beat ya’ to death meself, ya hear, boy?”

  Rank breath cascaded over my face, climbing up into my nose, setting up shop free of rent. My eyes darted back and forth from his yellow, cragged teeth and his old, tired, fearless eyes. The ship rocked violently, tossing me to the floor. I smacked my arm hard as I came down, letting out a yelp.

  A metal panel fell to the floor, cttering amongst some loose debris. Trash was spread about the maintenance room; More I’d have to clean.

  “Good for nothin’ dick cover! Git!” Muns kicked me in the stomach while hanging onto the ‘oh shit’ webbing attached to the top of the room.

  I coughed up some spit as I tried to get back to my feet. Muns smmed another ammo crate on the table, muttering to himself. Lights began to fsh yellow around us. I grabbed the two ammo crates and rushed them out into the corridor, almost tripping on the lower doorframe.

  Munis Muns ran his hand over his white, balding hair, “Can’t even walk right. Why Cap’ take you ‘board? Thinks with his second head, I swear by…” Munis voice faded as the ship vibrated violently again.

  I braced myself against the wall, smming into exposed wiring; something that was a casual visual on the Arc Star. Metal chimed and creaked around me as I could only think about the ship ripping apart in deep space, sucking me out into the cosmic abyss and freezing my body into an ice cube. Not before my eyeballs explode from my head though. I shivered as I regained my footing and squeezed into the dder shaft. I guess it would just be more of my punishment.

  “Hey! Maelstro? Rolfo? Anybody?” I looked up the shaft waiting for someone to answer. Heaving these crates up the dder was a bitch. By no means did I want to, but I had no choice, I didn’t want to get beat, or shed, or passed around the crew again. My ass was still recovering from the st time.

  My arms were working overtime as I finally got the ammo up the dder. The small mess room that led off to the barracks and the helm was scattered with dishes and grime as food had flown off the table. “God damn.” I was the one who was going to have to clean up this mess.

  “Nikki!” Maelstro’s head shot from behind the transfer pod’s door, his grey snout was adorned with a fresh, pink scar from our st haul. “We need those bullets now! Hustle!” He barked at me over the sounds of explosions and gunshots, buzzers and arms, and the rattling of the Arc Star.

  I ran as fast as my legs could carry me, ammo cates in each hand, until I rounded the doorway and bent down inside the room. It was hot, moist, and stinky, filled with several of my mates. Maelstro, Rolfo, Frag, McCaw, and Brutus were all suited up and ready for boarding, weapons in hand, all gring at me.

  My skin flushed red with embarrassment and fear. I squeezed my way past them, not even one moved to help out or make it easier on me. I smmed the crates down and they pounced on them, loading up shells, cartridges, and energy packs into their weapons, and the extras into their bck space suits. Bullets fell to the floor in the disorganized mess, rolling back and forth across the dirty metal floor.

  The intercom piped up, squawking away like the speaker was stuck in an old tin can, “Ready your asses, were ‘bout ready to board!” The captain’s voice picked up, “Lock and load, and take everything not bolted down! Riches and Death!”

  “Riches and Death!” The small room broke out, deafening my ears. I tried to squeeze back through to start cleaning up mess hall, but a rge bck-suited arm stopped me.

  I looked up to Brutus’s wide, bck face. His voice was deep and booming, “Where you going, bottom bitch?” His massive arm casually shoved me back, but it might as well have been a heavy shove as I flew back down to the floor, smming hard on my back. His huge frame towered above me.

  I gasped out for air, frantically looking about the crew for help. I knew they wouldn’t help me. No one ever did. This was my life. The life I deserved.

  A bck suit plopped down next to me, just about my size.

  Maelstro bent down next to me, his gray ears twitching, a smile spread across his muzzle. I could see all of his pointy teeth as his faced neared mine. “You ain’t bailing on us this time. Wolves stick together in a pack. You’re coming with us.” He stood up, loading a magazine into his submachinegun. “Now, suit up.”

  I swallowed hard. They never let me board before, so what was new now? I stood and began to strip off the yers of baggy clothing I wore every day. I tried to hide my body as much as I could, even from myself. Something about it was just gross, strange, and like it wasn’t really mine.

  There was no privacy on this ship. I could feel the crew eye-fucking me as I pulled my pants off and stood in my underwear with a small bulge. I quickly pulled the bck space suit up over my body, trying to hid myself away from them. It didn’t matter in the end. Anyone of them could take me anytime they pleased, and there was nothing I could do about it. I tried to fight back once, and my face was swollen shut for a week.

  Maelstro spped a pistol in my hands. “You best know how to use this. If you don’t shoot first, you’re dead.”

  “And if you even think about using that on us, I’ll crush you myself.” Brutus chimed in, bck tuffs of fur ruffled against his helmet before he sealed it around his suit.

  The others lined up at their jump-pods, ready to go. Maelstro pushed me to the pod next to his, “Just hit the button when the Captain signals and then hold on tight, clench your butt cheeks, and pray to whatever god you believe in.” Maelstro climbed up into his pod, “See you on the other side, Nikki.” He smmed his hatch shut with a cng.

  I grabbed a few more bullets and attached my helmet before climbing into my narrow pod. The metal walls were already closing in on me before I shut the hatch. I held the pistol in one hand while I shut the hatch with the other. As soon as the door tched shut, my anxiety spiked. The ship rattled and my hands shot to the sides of the pod.

  “Oh my god, I’m going to die in here.” I whispered out to the God I hope was listening. The same God my parents told me about my whole childhood. The same god the Gelly priests were saying would bring down justice. The same God that was punishing me for being a sinner.

  “Keep your dicks inside at all times, gentlemen, it’s go time. Brace yourselves for impact!” The captain’s voice rang out into my suit’s comms. “Bstoff!”

  I looked up to the small red button above me. My hand hesitated to push it. I could hear the other pods getting unched off, one by one. If I didn’t press this, I would be punished by captain and the crew again.

  I didn’t want that. I closed my eyes, held my breath, and smmed the button.

  The pod hissed and whined before it jolted forwards. My hands shot up to the hatch to brace myself against the bst. All sound deafened out as the sub-rockets kicked in and shot me deeper into space. The metal casing around me was chilling down, gzing over with a thin sheet of ice. My breathing was becoming more erratic; it was becoming harder to control my lungs. My chest began to cramp and feel heavy. My heart was racing and my thoughts were jumping between flying off into deep space and getting lost until I died of starvation and thirst, or that of being hit with a stray shell from the other ship and blowing into atoms in an instant. To be honest, both of these situations sounded much better than staying on the Arc Star.

  No. I was being punished by being on the Arc Star. Every night there was because I was evil, naughty in the eyes of God. That’s what my parents said. That’s what the priests said. I was an evil person. This was my penance for such a life.

  Boom. It rung throughout the pod. Violent vibrations. I shot to the bottom of the tube as it came to an impact. I listened as high-pitched whines took over the air, like metal grinding on metal. The bottom of the tube started glowing orange and red. I could feel the heat rising even through my suit. Smoke filled the pod, blotting out my vision.

  Hopefully, I died here. Hopefully, this was it and my misery would just end. Hopefully, there was no God, and I could just disappear into the void.

  My ears popped as an explosion rang out, sucking me out of the pod and into the unknown.