Chapter 2 part 1
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP7tasi9Htv
Kebab to the Stars: A Boar-ing Victory
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyN5uKqBirY
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNv5wuNk61X
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9uPCpA9kQ7
There’s a cantina I frequent—a place I’d almost call my sanctuary. Sure, the Mercenary Guild mess hall on the station is convenient, but it’s overpriced, the synthesized menu is uninspired, and the atmosphere is too sterile, too professional. It’s designed for brief encounters, mission discussions, and occasional deals over sub-par ration packs. They probably keep the credit rates high to prevent the hall from becoming a hangout spot for freeloaders.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVKDT0quR4D
So, when I need something real—something with flavor—I head to a smaller establishment nearby. A modest restaurant pod with private booths, no grandiose bar or holo-luxury nonsense. Its name? **"Gift of the Nebula."**
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb0LnICUFud
Today, the pod is busier than I’ve ever seen it. The usual hum of conversation has grown into a symphony of voices, clinking utensils, and sizzling grills.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIWGKag9KHa
"Venusian boar kebabs, fresh off the grill!" The call rings out from the kitchen, and I don’t waste a second.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4YnB89LQ4X
"Mm, mmff mmm!"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHPYtjVOPP6
Ten kebabs are set in front of me, their aroma wafting through the air, and I dive in without hesitation. The meat—juicy, tender, and seasoned with just the right balance of spices—melts in my mouth, the natural oils dripping onto the plate beneath.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIs5SvnBDfJ
**Half price today.** What kind of cosmic alignment is this?
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOc36IB862j
The holoboard outside the pod had caught my eye before the station even switched to its artificial night cycle. I’d read the words “Venusian boar—half-off” and practically slid through the doors. Turns out, a guild crew returning from the satellites of gas giants had brought back a haul of the beasts, enough to overflow their cargo holds. The owner of this place, unable to let such a bounty go to waste, had doubled the portions for the same price. **A deal worthy of the stars themselves.** Could I live here?
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWIE5BNaroA
"Galaxia Narwhal, huh? You’re really going at it."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyb4ZfA9bc7
"Mmga?" I pause mid-bite, turning to see who’s addressed me.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqXeBMa85PM
"Swallow first!"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUVP9MWk3vK
I gulp down the mouthful of boar and blink. "Aioi? Oh, hey. Good work out there. These kebabs are half-price today! What a glorious age we live in!"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF4HdBZZ0bA
"Yeah, I know," she replies with a raised brow, sliding into the seat beside me.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6pZNKNP3aQ
Aioi: a junior guild member, plasma bow specialist, and a rising star among our ranks. She’s part of the Diana crew now, working alongside a tech wizard and gaining a reputation for her prodigious long-range combat skills.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXbxbAIUUaP
Her suit, though? Utterly plain. No custom decals, no flair—nothing that matches her growing reputation. Still, she’s a decent kid. Polite enough to treat me as a mister, even if she occasionally sasses me.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8NB5SlGzoL
"That boar meat you’re scarfing down? My crew brought it in," she says, a hint of pride in her voice. "The satellite clusters were crawling with those things. Took forever to hunt them all. My stabilizer joints are practically creaking."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡssAsznZnUl
"You’re telling me this meat’s from Diana?"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcRkN5gsLby
"Yup! Heheh. We had so much extra, we wholesaled it to half the station. I’m planning to drink until the next cycle to celebrate."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvxtqirBfB0
"Aioi... you’ve really grown up. Makes me proud."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYTUi5qOIXC
Her expression deadpans. "Galaxia Narwhal, that was the flattest praise I’ve ever heard. You don’t even sound remotely happy."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv2IiXHFrk6
"C’mon, I’m being sincere!" I protest. "Look a little happier, will you?"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX8DQVXg6DY
"No way. Oh, excuse me! One Martian ale, please!"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiiFTYxCTmL
"Mm. Make that two!"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVmYRX20yj2
"Coming right up!"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmVXTplaqe8
The drinks arrive quickly, and I raise my glass, alternating between swigs of ale and bites of boar. The spices and the smooth, bitter tang of the drink are a match made in the void. "This," I declare, "is living."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDxsd3065pz
"...But Mister," Aioi interrupts, "I heard about your little scuffle at the guild yesterday. What’s that about?"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3HxeIJhckU
"Huh? Oh, that? Just some punk newcomers. They tried to rush me with thrust-packs like amateurs. I coolly evaded and took them down with unmatched elegance."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡma0Daxottv
"That is *not* what I heard," she retorts, smirking. "The story is that it was a chaotic brawl."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu3e1jNdlHN
"You heard, huh? Tch."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeC7OxyCDhU
"But still, taking on four opponents in suits? That’s impressive."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwfjlr5uovX
"Right? Well, they were half-competent small fry. Got lucky with the match-up."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5kOwhLMbWk
Fights like that aren’t uncommon. Stations like this attract all sorts—ex-military types, drifters from the outer systems—most trying to establish themselves by picking fights with the wrong people. Yesterday, I was the unlucky target. They must’ve thought I was easy prey, sitting alone with a protein shake. Too bad for them—I’m a special ability enhanced mercenary.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe8HynMJcYQ
**A boring win, but a win nonetheless.**
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb80sPIc0A8
If I’d fought seriously, I could’ve wiped the floor with them faster. Not that I’d ever openly reveal just how many abilities I’m packing.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMAJW3ZjUK3
...No, really. I’ve got plenty of tricks I haven’t shown anyone! Really!
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwgNpKsBSoE
"You should join a crew, mister," Aioi says suddenly. "mister Burger’s invited you more than once, hasn’t he?"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDhCSflt1mj
"Nah," I reply, shaking my head. "Not my style. I can’t stand the sound of other people’s suit fans or life support systems. Too distracting."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpilk4GrNTq
"Not like you’re some Starborn elite..."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3cBtvakUku
There’s more to it than that. I don’t like relying on others in an emergency. If some unexpected threat appeared, allies would only slow me down. For now, soloing suits me just fine.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjNivzfY2xM
"What about you, Aioi? Diana treating you well?"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlziYkHXPgg
"Yup! They’re great—no hazing or anything. They’ve taught me a ton about targeting techniques, and they split credits fairly too."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUUIKOhuczj
"Good. Glad you found a decent crew."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzesMrYemBW
"Yes!"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrN5VvOqO1L
When Aioi first left her colony, she’d stuck with childhood friends from her habitat. That crew fell apart after a few months, and her next attempts at finding a team didn’t go much better. But now, with Diana, she seems to have found her place.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrCnYOGhqPB
Work environment matters. In space, it’s everything.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXbXdLeBNoI
"Here you go!"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwV4p1ju05m
"Ooh, sho delishush!" Aioi mumbles through a mouthful of kebab.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgJQTogJDjz
"Hm? What’s that seasoning?"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPK7cUxbjy2
"You don’t know?" she asks, swallowing. "They’re using Europan crystal enzyme on the seared surface. Fancy stuff. Sheena from my crew says it’s all the rage with Starborn Elites."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLYYbYJfmFS
"Oh, right. That stuff."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfNWtfFhm0Q
"...Whassat face for?"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPwxBZ5dyr7
"I’ve got no idea what that is. Salt’s the foundation of flavor, Aioi. Let the ingredients speak for themselves."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbRZTwQ79DM
"Mr Narwhal, you’re such a rim dweller. No wonder you’ll never blend in with the Starborn."
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKhztnuaN2P
"Shaddup! I’ve got the most refined palate in the entire Lunatran Empire!"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ33qm59neAH
"Pfft! Pfft!"
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKATQbVLBQL
And so, while celebrating my junior’s growth (even if she’s getting sassier by the year), I spent the rest of the cycle gorging on kebabs, drinking Martian ale, and basking in the simple pleasures of station life.
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJucfclBZWL
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsqtiayJIE6
169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbCsnLahR8P
Author's note : wanna read future chapters earlier? visit :169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDIVTj69lxn
galaxianarwhal.blogspot.com169Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjufc8mIjoH
and then Add to home screen.