"Hey, sleepyhead." Jerka tickled his nose.

  "What?"

  "We'll be ready in 0050."

  He was wide awake. "Sorry," he mumbled and hurried through the hatch to the bathroom. And then on to the cockpit.

  "Simon, status!"

  "Marik, main engine warm-up pleted at 1 % in 0012. We are already ihe window, but I reend jumping in 0034. At Jasper we only have 3000 to the jump point. Based o time, your patch is timed at 98.2 % of the nominal dose."

  "Simon, thanks." He took the drug-ced patch from the dispenser. "Simon, I see you have warmed up all the main engines?"

  "Marik, regutions for Jasper. But I will only use 1 and 4 this time, that should be enough on this short jump. "

  He still had time, so he stuck his head down. "Jerka, all is well. The nominal jump duration is 1+4719. And, uh, cuddling was nice."

  She looked out of her hatch with a smile. "You o work on your delivery, but the pliment is well received. My is open to you anytime. And don't worry about me for the jump."

  Well, worry was the wrong word. He was certainly thinking about her a lot. And she made him feel like a hatg. "Ok, I am back to piloting." Which of course the AI would do in 4D.

  He found the most fortable position in his pilot's seat, tightehe 4D-save belts and waited for the tdown to end.

  The space folded, his hand pced the pat his cheek and darkness shut out the 4D chaos.

  * * *

  "Hello, Marik?"

  "Hmm, what?" Someoipped his nose again. "Jerka!" He looked around. The main drives were on. "Simon, status."

  "Marik, we entered real space 0002 ago and are on point. The main engines are still ramping down. I have set a flight path with 0.05 g, which gives us 3156 to the jump point."

  "Simon, thank you."

  "Marik, there are friendly AI at the jump points. I have submitted our flight path to their system. This means that we only ge it in an emergency or if we annou beforehand. I am afraid, no sudden ges of acceleration in this system."

  "Simon, I uand, it is fine."

  "Marik, the AI is very aodating, I think we still ge it whenever we o. We just have tister first."

  He grinned. "Simon, thanks. Have fun talking to the AIs then."

  Jerka was still o him in the cockpit. He unbuckled his belts, which took a few moments and rubbed his hands to get the circution going. "Just go ahead."

  She hopped dowch without a word, vertically, like a cardboard cutout disappearing into a stage floor. He followed with a rougher, boung performance down the dder, his joints still stiff with the rest of the drugs cirg through his system.

  She caught him before he hit the opposite wall. "Please, get your pad. you get aernal feed?"

  "I haven't even sy with Simo. Why not use yours? Seems better than mine."

  "You fot? I'm not here?"

  "But Simon, I mean, you hacked all the logs, and ..."

  She shook her head. "No, but no worries, I'll expin ter. Please ask Simon."

  "Simon, I would like you to interface with my pad."

  "Marik, I try. Put it in search mode."

  He went into his arieved his pad. "Simon, search mode is on."

  "Marik, give me the ID numbers you see."

  "Simon, 42442756."

  "Marik, thank you. It seems your pad uses octal notation. I interface."

  "Simon, do you have a live feed?"

  "Marik, yes, there is a live feed from the system. Quite busy. May I suggest you view it in the 3D simution chamber? There are trollers. But if you request it, I also route it to your pad."

  They had a 3D sim chamber? "Simon, where is the 3D sim?"

  "Marik, o the galley."

  They both quickly sailed down through the galley and there was indeed a small door leading into a dark room, little more than a walk-in cupboard. He was happy, now the route plotting would be so much easier. But before he went in, he had to go to another chamber to relieve himself after the jump.

  Jerka had the 3D started already when he finally entered. He could barely see her ich-b.

  "e in and close the hatch." She pulled him beside her and whech closed there was absolute darkness. Until a star lit up in the distahe view ged. "Here is the only p, a gas giant." She must be right behind him, her breath moved the hairs on his neck which raised and caused goosebumps. He had trouble trating. But then the view ged. "Jasper is the eleventh moon of this very rge gas p." The view zoomed in on a p, a gas giant with colourful cirg cloud bands and a debris ring. And then the view ged to a pce far outside of the ring, to a small moon. "There, Jasper, 1.1 standard size." Well, not so small then. A line circled around the gas giant, indig the orbit. "It has a highly ined orbit, far beyond the debris field of the ring. Hence, almost no seasons, only a two-week eclipse every 34 years that causes global freezing. Otherwise, mild at all times, and spectaight skies with the gas giant." She zoomed in on the blue p. "Deep o everywhere, except for a few scattered volids. And that line is the space lift, a tower-like structure reag out into space."

  Then she zoomed out far again and ged the view mode. The empty space was now filled with red clouds. "This is the shipping activity. Each red dot is a ship with its keep-off radius, acc to its propulsion system and speed."

  He was in awe. Fallerian was always busy, but here were more ships than he had ever seen in any system. " you show me a native?"

  The view ged. A furry creature appeared in front of them. "Here is a Tug." The Tug reached to his shoulders, but otherwise, their build was not so different, some kind of arms below a head and legs, no visible tail. "They had made lungs for themselves when they went into space. They all still have gills. They are closer in in to what humans would cssify as fish, no hard bones, scales that end in hairs, no stable body temperature."

  The expnation did nothing for him, her familiar with fish nor bones or any of the other things mentioned.

  " you show me our route through the system?"

  The view rotated again, zooming to an ion. There were only three other red dots following a dotted ta and a fourth, their ship, was fshing e. However, many more ships were heading inwards from the jump windows.

  "And that jump window over there?"

  The view zoomed in ohickest red strand and expanded. Dotted cubes appeared, marking the borders of the jump zones. A steady stream of ships flickered in and out. This single jump window saw ten times more traffi a day than Cobasian saw in a year. "Wow. How they avoid collisions?” His stomach growled.

  The 3D view disappeared and the light returned, revealing the small bck-paiilitarian room. "Sorry, yes, you o eat, we're going to jump again soon. I'm afraid we'll need some of your food this time."

  Ba the galley, he opehe first drawer and took out a box. "What about Krataz?"

  "The chy is? Well, I doubt you have gotten the real thing. Give me the box!" Indeed, she pointed: "Here, 'better than the real thing', I told you."

  “I had no time and no money”, he defended himself. Well, how could he know? It was all in Cobasian iform.

  “Don’t worry, Cobasian Krataz is not too bad. Just very different from what you know, I guess. Let’s find a matg side dish.”

  They quickly sorted through the food. Jerka reehe toast, which was more like a cake. And some Gimlich sauce. He would not have bihem without her suggestion, but it was tasty and filling. However, the g of the fried is made versation impossible while they ate.

  Jerka finished first again and began to up and prepare a Kwas tea, using her own spices. To her dismay, she had to use dried Kranta pain, 'better than the real thing'. Which it was clearly not. She put up a show, probably iently. She stood on one leg, holding the kettle in her leg hand, and the spoon and Kranta powder in her arm hands.

  He swallowed the st of the is. "Jerka, uh, do you think it would be possible to get a mod like your foot hands?"

  She did not turn around, handling the Kranta powder and stirring at low g's was challenging enough. "Yes, of course. But it is not so easy at the moment. Fifty years ago, the purebred human movement started to gain tra on most human worlds. Mods are now banned almost everywhere in human space by one or aneic purity cuse."

  "Fifty years?"

  She carefully pced the kettle oable until the mags held, stowed the powder away and sat down. "e, have some tea with me. I'll expin."

  She waited until his low g lidded mug was safely filled. "You see, I was not born human. My whole body is a mod. But I like humans. Very tough, stand a wide range of temperatures, agile and smart enough, mostly."

  "So you are not a human?"

  "No, you misuood. This body is human. Mostly. But that does not matter, does it?"

  "No, sorry, it doesn't." Had he offended her?

  "Ha," she smiled, "you are far too easy. Don't worry, I know you have your heart in the right pce. I told you this body had some mods. How old am I, what do you think?"

  He blushed. "Maybe 20 or 25."

  She blushed too. "Thanks, nice. But it rather shows that you have not lived much among humans. Anyway, I am much older. Well, after the jump, there will be a two-day break in real space for the vector ge, there will be plenty of time for more stories." She emptied her tea. "Now you should take a shower, lie down for a bit and the ready for the jump."

  "Simon, when is the jump?"

  "Marik, 2241."

  "Simon, thank you." He yawned, suddenly tired again. "You woke me up very quickly."

  "Here, drink your Kwas tea, it helps with detoxification."

  It was a good Kwas tea despite using the ‘better than real’ Kranta powder. Eye-wateringly spicy, but mild ihroat. "Jerka, thank you, this is great."

  "I'm not a puter that needs a o know when to listen," she reminded him but smiled heless.

  "Sorry." He yawned agaie the tea. "I'd rather sleep and then shower. But you e and snuggle if you're cold." He emptied the cup and then floated to his .

  She smiled and followed.

  * * *

  Jerka woke him by blowing in his ear and whispering: "0214 to go. Another frozen dessert is waiting for you after the shower."

  He could get used to waking up like this. "Jerka, hmm, you really spoil me."

  "You have no idea", she grinned, "Ok, I will wait in my and you take your shower." And off she sailed.

  He took a little loo wake up, got a ge of clothes ao the shower. Which was not much fun in low g as he had to wear the breathing mask. He hurried, not least because he was looking forward to the sweets.

  "Jerka, I am ready!" he called out, his wet hair still stuck to his head.

  She left her in a somersault and took two more iced cups from their small galley freezer. He wondered for a moment where she had kept them if she had brought them with her own freezer. But theaste was all that mattered, fruity and sour, with a ft breadstid a warm fruity sauce.

  "Great, what is this?"

  "It is called 'Hot Love' the berries only grow in a small area on a p far from here. Berries are small fruits", she added, "Have you actually been on a p’s surface?"

  He froze for a moment and sighed. She seemed to know all the areas where he cked experience. "Five times on Fallerian. On a world called Xat'ten. But ground trips are expensive."

  She nodded.

  "But I would like to see some of those berries."

  Her smile turned into a grin. "Well, let’s see what time brings."

  "Marik, 0150 to jump."

  "Simon, I will go up at 0100."

  Another spoonful was slowly dissolving in his mouth. He felt so happy right now. He was flying, and not just with an AI, but with a super nice, generous, wise, almost human panion. He blushed as he thought of more adjectives. He was eating the best food of his life. And on a nice ship, passing through one of the oldest civilisations in this sector, if not the gaxy. He would never have expected this when he exited the shabby offi Cobasian.

  He carefully scraped the cup as as he could, not wanting to waste anything.

  "That was really delicious. ime I'll pay you to cook."

  She waved her hand. "You do all the work around here. I am just a bored passenger." Her smile did not look very bored though.

  He quickly washed his cup, put it in the 0 g dryer, "Thank you again," and fled to the cockpit.

  "Take it slow," she called after him.

  He sat down and waited a few moments. He was not sure what he felt. But he had to put it aside, a long jump was ing up, 88 pc, almost their limit. He went through the whole checklist, nothing important was outside the margins, except for one coil that was reag 40 %, the low safety margin. There was nothing he could do for that coil and they still had a total of 232 %. He had jumped with lower margins, way lower even. And the overheating main engine power distributor. But so far, it had not been much of a problem. And this time they would cycle through the main engines which would also reduce the load on the distributor. Everything was as good as it could be. O visit to the toilet and he was ready too.

  "Marik, greetings from Jasper trol. They wish us a good jump. We are scheduled to leave at 0010." The jump warning came on at the same time.

  "Simon, thank you, give me the patch."

  He had the patch ready and waited for the space to fold at the end of the jump warning. The space folded, although it was a bit rough. His hand with the patch missed.