Gideon rested his hand on the metal plate windowsill, his eyes locked on the sight that floated past one the Lusaka's dirty, smeared windows.

Scores of stars and planetoids swiftly drifting downwards as the ship's sub-light engines rumbled like thunder, hurtling the Sentinel-class frigate at full tilt through the void. The reddish-brown gas giant of Vishnu bulged and then waned away within minutes, while the Amundsen Nebula's grey-green clouds of vapour and minerals hung at the bottom of the glass, a looming eldritch terror reaching to draw the ship back into its embrace.

The sight of this locale made James feel weary. The Lusaka had finally returned to Union territory after its foray into the Cartel Fringe, but they still had a long way to go. They were halfway, to be specific, and that meant an order was set to sound over the PA any minute now.

He also felt the cold claws of sadness grip his heart as he saw the nebula fade away. A nebula he had spent months living beyond, posing as an outcast Earthborn who wanted to leave the Union behind for good.

And now that fake life, that lie, had been revealed. The deception ripped abruptly away, the status quo restored... and it felt strange.

Whenever one of his missions ended, a nagging feeling lingered in James' mind. A feeling of alienation, of disparity. Returning to the blue-grey, sterile interiors of Union battleships after spending so long on ill-kempt Cartel rustbuckets was like walking on an alien planet, so different to what living beyond civilisation had made him used to. The air was still stale, but felt cleaner.

The exact same thing happened when he returned to Earth after his tour on Sita, or when he came to Bellona for some R&R after living amongst Nalyr socialites for eighteen months. After such a long amidst the alien, the alien had become normal, only to be whisked away.

James stared at the stars, a burning glint in his gaze. Against the darkness of space, he could see his reflection mirrored in the window. His face was pale, starved of ultraviolet light due to months of living on Hermes station, contrasting with his head of chestnut hair. But it was nice that they no longer bore a grimy, grease-licked shine that came with water rations. One shower a week was all he could afford back there... and he was one of the lucky ones.

When Colomar and Airra were dragged aboard, every crew member within six feet started coughing. The Cartellers' water supply was whatever they could steal, either from the nebula or from Union mining vessels. Made hygiene a luxury, one that came with serving the Cartel bosses, who controlled everything.

James glowered, thinking about the suffering he had seen out there, beyond the Union's borders. Five-year-olds running drugs to dealers. Mothers starving so their children could eat. Unreliable assets flushed out airlocks or skinned alive, their flayed remains sent to their family as a mocking reminder.

He clenched his fist. He had seen first-hand what the Cartel did. How scum like Airra, Colomar and Tharkus spent their miserable lives. And the Union would end it all. One day, those unlucky enough to be born in that miserable patch of space would be liberated and brought to live under a true government.

One day, they would be free. And this capture mission would bring that day closer than ever before.

"All hands, midpoint of journey is approaching." The Lusaka's PA crackled to life right on schedule. "Please proceed to your designated stations. Kindly ensure all heavy objects are strapped down or returned to their place of storage."

The Lusaka's AI sounded its monotone voice through the corridor, its words echoing slightly off the metal walls and floor. With a short huff of breath, James turned and made for the doorway, which promptly slid open as he approached it.

A sudden wave of sound greeted the human as he stepped out immediately onto the frigate's bridge, its various ensigns and other officers all moving promptly to their seats.

All except one, who was already seated. Twisting his head around, Captain Ward's bearded chin cracked a smile as his gaze fell upon James.

"Gideon!" he exclaimed.

James nodded. "Sir."

"Nice to have you back with us, son. You've been out there for nearly an hour. I've had to have Ensign Elitra running your job." As he said that, he pointed to a willowy figure sat in James' position on the bridge.

Upon hearing her name, the figure craned her head around before leaping to her feet, revealing the flat, blue-green face that between her two massive, bat-like ears.

Ensign Elitra was the only alien aboard the bridge, standing out amidst a crowd of humans. Unlike everyone else aboard, the Nalyr was not wearing the deep grey space suit of the Union Navy. Instead, her clothing was jet-black, with overlapping scales of armour rather than the plates of James' attire. Far more suited for her species.

"Sir?" she asked tentatively, her smooth voice full of nervousness.

Ward smirked. "It's alright, EE. At ease." His hand gestured for her to relax.

James looked at the alien. "Anything to report, Ensign?" he asked.

The Lusaka's acting tactical officer quickly turned back to her computer, tapping at the touch screen with her bony gloved fingers. "Nothing so far sir. Just the normal space debris and a few mining vessels. All responded to our hails as per regulations."

James nodded. "Good."

Captain Ward clapped his hands. "Alright, EE, you're relieved of tactical duty for now."

"With all due respect, sir, my name is Elitra. Not 'EE'." When the Nalyr spoke, the four bony plates she had instead of teeth revealed themselves openly, along with the nostrils embedded within the roof of her mouth.

Captain Ward gave her a wry look. "And with all due respect yourself, my dear, I don't give a damn."

Elitra's eyes widened. "But-"

"Word of advice, darling." The Captain cut her off. "When talking to your superiors, don't use the words 'no', 'not', 'but' or 'won't'. That's how we do things here in the Union Navy." He eyed the alien for a moment, then looked at his hand, his face and voice full of disdain. "They taught you that in candidate school, didn't they?"

There was a moment of silence as Eltira hung her head and shut her eyes. "Aye, Captain."

"Then I suggest you put that lesson to good use." Ward smarmed as he glanced back at her. "Now, return to your post, Ensign. The Lieutenant will take it from here."

Elitra nodded and immediately stepped to, her gracile legs striding across the bridge as she walked to the back of the bridge. But as she passed, James noticed the expression on her face. Her eyes had narrowed to slits, her ears were pulled back and the skin of her face had wrinkled into a sneer. James watched her for a moment, then began to move towards his seat, sensing her displeasure at her commanding officer.

He understood why she felt like that, but didn't speak on her behalf. Life meant putting up with things you don't want to deal with.

The captain clapped his hands. "Alright, ladies and gents, let's get the old girl turned around." Upon his order, everyone immediately set to work preparing for the upcoming procedure. One they needed to do before they docked.

When simply travelling through or into star systems, ships could keep their thrust as normal, slowly accelerating to provide thrust gravity to the crew. When a ship was set to dock in a starbase, however, things changed. The ship had to rotate around and fire its engines in the opposite direction to gradually slow down, while still maintaining gravity for the crew.

Rotation change, or 'flipping' as the crew called it, occurred at the halfway point in the journey. The Lusaka was ten light years from its intended destination; the Union starbase in the Bellona system, deep in The Red Frontier. Another few weeks, and the mission would be complete. Colomar would be prepped for interrogation, and Airra would be transported to Tartarus so she could pay off her debt to society.

Thinking of the two of them made a strange sensation pang in James' chest as he took his seat. One he couldn't comprehend.
They were Cartellers, he was Union. Airra was a Voyager and Col was a deserter. They worked for an organisation he loathed and wanted to see burn...

So why was he feeling longing? A longing for the times when they sat in Banderson's Bar and Canteen, playing cards and drinking shitty beer. For Colomar's groanworthy jokes that still made everyone laugh. For seeing Airra and Tharkus together, childhood friendship blossoming even amidst the Cartel's villainy.

Why did he want that? Why did he want what he hated?

Those thoughts turned over in his head until Captain Ward threw a spanner in the works.

"So, Gideon..." the bearded man asked. "... how are your scummy little captives doing?"

James didn't look at him. "The brig reports no abnormalities, sir. A few bangs on the cell doors, but nothing else."

"Reports?" Ward inquired, his tone of voice confused. "Haven't been down there yourself?"
"No. Sir."

"Why not, son?" the captain asked.

James reached for the belts and clipped them across his body. "I don't want to look into the eyes of those I've betrayed." As he said that, he glowered. "The fact that they want me dead... not something I want to deal with right now."

A few heads turned to their conversation. The Captain replied with "Lieutenant, you didn't betray them. They betrayed the Union. They're the festering cancer, and we're the cure." He paused to let his words sink in. "Besides, we're Unit 19. Dealing with those who want us dead us an occupational hazard. Two Cartel crooks are nothing to worry about. Especially for you." He leant forward in his chair. "Do you hear me, sailor?"

James twisted around, meeting his commander's gaze with a blank, unfeeling stare. "Yes, sir."

The captain of the UWS Lusaka smirked. "Good. Now let's get on with it. Those Cartellers are precious cargo to the Union, and if we don't get them to Bellona, our entire plan goes out the airlock." He then turned to the frigate's helmsman; Lieutenant Moore, a tanned Janusan with a thin jaw and crooked nose. "Send out the final warning, Mr Moore."

Moore nodded. "Aye, sir." While still being human, the Janus-born's otherworldly heritage came out his thick accent, a bizarre blend of the many Mediterranean accents back on Earth. "Ship will reverse orientation in T-minus thirty seconds. All hands, strap in and ensure all nearby heavy objects are secured."

Everyone on the bridge was already buckled in, and so they continued to work at their assigned stations. Bracing for the flip, James gripped the edge of his seat, continually glancing at the screen before him. The electronic display showed the frigate from a bird's eye view, its outline surrounded by a defined white line and cycled by radar. In the far distance, the outlines of moving planetoids and hunks of space debris could be seen drifting past.

The ship's alarm began to sound, beating its rhythmic shriek. Moore kept his gaze fixed on the controls, white-knuckled fingers hard at work as he managed the ships thrusters and sub-light engines. James felt himself become lighter and lighter as the ship's speed decreased and thrust gravity lessened. He felt his chest rise as his organs were pressed upwards inside him, and his feet began to tingle with pins and needles as they lifted off the floor.

Several crew members flipped their magnetic boots on. Specks of grey began to float above the instruments as the dust and dirt levitated off them. The entire ship was plunged into zero G's as it flipped itself over, the sounds of its external thrusters thrumming through the hull and making everything shake.

Ping. Ping. Ping.

A noise began to rise from James' monitor, piercing through the rumble of the engines and the screech of the alarm. A slow, steady dinging noise. The radar. Immediately glaring down at his monitor, James saw a gracile object, slightly smaller than the Lusaka, moving steadily towards them...