Moon
Hermitcraft System

We tried to sneak away from the Hermits without fanfare, but, of course, they found out.

The entire group, Gem, Impulse, Scar, and Etho included, stood in front of the Unbroken when we got there, TFC in front. His arms were folded.

"Hey, guys. What's going on?" I asked, trying to play it off as casual.

"Shut up. What, did you think you could run off to some noble sacrifice and not say goodbye to your family? Unbelievable." Cleo said drily.

My resolve almost broke as the group laughed at my expression, pushing forwards and hugging me.

It was overwhelming. I loved every second of it.

I was half crying by the time they all backed up.

"I seriously love you guys." I said.

"Awwwwwwwwwww!" Etho teased, earning laughter from the Hermits. Gem punched him in the shoulder, marching up to me and pulling me into a tight hug. She buried her face into me.

"Don't go..." she muttered, shaking.

My resolve deteriorated even further.

"Gem. Hey. It's all gonna be okay. Gigacorp'll be over. You and Grian and Etho and the rest of the Hermits can go home and rebuild. Start over. And guess what?" I said gently, "You won't have to hide anymore. Go fly a spaceship! Help push to explore Andromeda!"

She backed up, tears pouring.

"I'm seriously pissed at you right now." She said, voice cracking. I managed a little smile.

"I know. I love you too."

Each of the Hermits took their time coming up and saying goodbye.

"I'll miss your face." Keralis said.

"I'll set up a moss garden! Name it after you!" Bdubs said.

Etho just pulled me into a massive hug, his fox ears sagging sadly.

"I'll take care of Gem. Make sure she stays safe." He said to me under his breath. I nodded against his chest.

"Thanks, Etho. For everything." I whispered back.

Then Scott stepped forwards awkwardly. I tensed up. He folded his arms, rubbing his biceps.

"Look, Pearl, I just wanted to say... I'm sorry. For Double Life. I shouldn't have acted like that. It's something I can never take back, but I'm sorry." He said it slowly, deliberately.

I couldn't help but smile.

"Thanks, Scott. In all fairness, I was a bit of a maniac." I admitted. He snorted.

"'Bit of?'"

I ended up hugging him anyways, and TFC was the last.

He looked me over from the landing ramp of the Unbroken, pride evident.

"My son raised you well. It's been an honor to know you, Moon. I couldn't have asked for a finer granddaughter." He said.

"Aw, Tin..." I hugged him tightly.

After he broke away, he turned to the Unbroken crew.

"And don't you think you're getting away from us, too! Ya'll took good care of our girl all these months. You're Hermits, too, and you're going to be treated like it!" TFC said.

The crew looked a bit shocked by that, but the Hermits cheered loudly and gave them the same treatment they had given me. I laughed through the tears, an absolute emotional train wreck.

The Gearheads in the hanger gave the hyperactive Hermits a wide berth.

When the crew finally got away from the Hermits, they stepped up into the ship.

"Oh, one last thing." Nafia announced.

She grabbed B by the collar and pulled him in for a fierce kiss, directly on the lips. His eyes bulged in surprise.

"Oooooooooooooooo!" The Hermits went, laughing and clapping.

"Get a room, you two!" Skizz hooted.

She broke away after almost thirty seconds, still holding his collar.

"I love you, dumbass." She declared.

B said something smart, like: "Hajabalahuh?"

I laughed until my ribs hurt.

After a while, I turned back and looked over the Hermits. I slowly pulled Xisuma's wrist cuff off, throwing it to Gem. She narrowly caught it.

"Keep these dipshits alive for me, huh?" I told her, laughing again at her expression.

She nodded solemnly, sliding it onto her own wrist.

I forced myself to look away, turning and marching into the Unbroken last.

A hand clamped on my shoulder. I quickly turned, fists raised.

It was Scar, standing an inch behind me.

He raised an eyebrow at me.

"You gonna punch me?" He said, none of his usual humor.

He had clearly changed. His entire body was tensed, always ready for a fight. He held himself with a false confidence, but his smile was completely gone. Pain beyond measure hung in his now dull green eyes. A sniper was strapped to his back.

I slowly lowered my fists.

"I'm coming with you." He said, raising a hand to cut my protest off, "Don't argue. I don't have anything to lose, Pearl." He said calmly. But there was clear danger behind it.

"What about Cub? I feel like I saw—"

"Cubs dead. I know because I killed him myself." He said flatly.

That shocked me into silence. He reached past me, pressing the button to close the door. I had almost backed up right into it without noticing.

I breathed a little shaky sigh of relief when he walked away.

I had been raised by Xisuma. One of my best friends was literally a polar bear who was drunk half the time. I was always fighting and killing people who wanted to hurt me, kill me, or worse. I thought I had gotten used to fear, almost numb to it. And yet, something about this new Scar scared me half to death.

Straightening my jacket, I went up and joined my crew for one last fight.

. . .

The Unbroken glided like a shark through the Gigacorp fleet, completely hidden from any kind of detector. We were completely silent as B slowly guided us through.

"Will they be able to detect us?" Zara whispered.

B shot her a dry look.

"Yes, there is no such thing as a signal dampener." He drawled.

"Shhhh!" She hissed. He cocked a brow.

"Why? Sound doesn't travel in space, babe. Relax. Uncle B is gonna get us through, nice and safe." B said, rolling his eyes.

I smacked him in the head.

"Ow!" He complained. Zara snorted.

Then we broke free of the Andromeda fleet, and we all shut up.

The Prometheus was glittering in Titan's fading red light, standing like a fallen monument to everything the Galaxy had lost in the past week and a half.

"Nice and slowly..." B muttered to himself, guiding us carefully forwards.

The airlock was wide open, sealed by an energy barrier. No guards in sight as the shift switched.

B quietly set us down, and we were aboard.

None of us moved for a few minutes. We were here. No turning back now.

I turned to Mowgli.

"You have a plan to get us to Barnes?" I demanded. He gave me a cocky grin.

"I do. We walk straight to him and avoid patrols. He's in the main biosphere, taking a walk in the gardens." He said. I frowned.

"How do you even know that?" I asked.

"I've been planning this for years, girl. I know how he thinks. Every individual schedule and habit." He said.

"Stalker..." Karn muttered to Zara behind him. I stifled a giggle.

"Tactical studies." Mowgli corrected.

Scar suddenly stood, slinging his rifle and walking away. He stopped at the doorway, looking back at us.

"Are you coming or are you gonna keep chatting?" He demanded.

Then he was gone.

I quickly stood, following him. The crew followed behind shortly.

We rushed from the loading ramp behind Mowgli, following him through winding hallways and occasionally ducking out of sight.

Then we ended up in the main Biosphere, and my heart froze. My eyes went wide and my jaw went slack.

The place was... beautiful.

The entire thing was curved around the shape of the cylinder, being pulled down by a natural, spinning-induced gravity. The area was divided into seven levels, with intricate stone architecture that I immediately appreciated. Plants had crawled their way up every pillar, stair step, and overhang, but it didn't feel abandoned. Workers were strapped in and trimming the vines high above. Every conceivable tree, from Yuccas to Redwoods, grew sporadically in different controlled environments. Streams ran every which way, gurgling along merrily. Birds were chirping, people laughing and having picnics along dirt trails throughout. The entire humid area smelled of honey, eucalyptus, water, and just the general smells of nature.

"Alright, focus, everyone. Barnes is with his family on Level Two." Mowgli said, snapping me out of my daze.

"He has a family?" I asked.

"Yes. Don't hurt them. They're good people. Understand? We're here for Barnes." Scar suddenly snapped.

I didn't question it.

We took our time wandering up to the second level, earning strange and fearful looks from the civilians in the area.

"Look mommy! A tiger! And the people from the news!" One little girl squealed, gripping her mothers hand and pointing at us excitedly.

The mothers eyes widened when she looked over at us.

I waved awkwardly as we walked by, mounting the stairs. The little girl kept babbling behind us, some random facts she learned about tigers in school.

"I don't gorge! I am a vegetarian!" Mowgli said indignantly.

I couldn't help but laugh. Something about the place was making me feel light on my feet, almost dizzy. Happy.

I saw a cherry blossom tree off to my right, then remembered why we were here.

And he was standing just at the top of the stairs, back turned.

Grand Admiral Barnes of Gigacorp.