For Luck

As the crew of The Hope drew closer to Eden Twelve, they grew busier than they’d even been. Crews worked at shoring down trees in the arboretum, packing up glassware, deciding how best to sedate the larger animals, how to stabilize the smaller ones, and basically nailing down anything that moved. Reentry was going to be a bumpy ride.
Ofelia kept Jack organized. Though he told her what needed to be done, she made sure someone did it. That’s where Tyler came in handy. If anyone balked, he was sent in. After all, it was much more difficult to refuse a direct order from the second in command.
Better scans of their prospected landing site came in, and they decided to move the settlement twenty five miles to the east. They drew up maps and made diagrams of where each of the compartments would go.
The Hope was built to be taken apart. Once on the ground it didn’t have the necessary force to escape the planet’s gravity. Inside the hull were all the machines necessary to start farming and raising their own resources. The colonists wouldn’t have to worry about building houses or constructing their buildings. Each compartment could be laid out, or stacked individually according to whatever layout they chose for the town. Eventually, they were expected to build proper homes, and even set up space for The Crosby when it arrived in ten years.
The day they actually went into orbit around the planet seemed more like a surreal dream, but every time she looked out the porthole, Ofelia stared in amazement at the planet below. She wondered how she would adjust to not having a ceiling over her head for the first time since she was five.
On her way to the Rec Deck, Ofelia heard a familiar voice and ducked into a nearby maintenance closet. It seemed like she spent most of her time avoiding the unholy quartet, as she’d begun to call them in her mind: Doc Martin and his wife, Tyler Crosby, and Rex No Last Name.
Every time she left her quarters, she popped her head out to make sure the coast was clear. Ofelia had even done some research on Mr. No Last Name and found out he was a man of secrets. He’d originally been Reginald Eliot, the sixteen year old orphaned nephew of one Mr. Derek Eliot, but once they were past The Point of No Return, Mr. Derek Eliot had confessed that Rex was no relation, and had only stowed him aboard as a nephew for the promised payment to his sister of four live dairy cows and junked 1995 red Dodge Neon. The Neon was especially rare, as most other gasoline driven cars had been melted down during the Great War when they became obsolete.
Since it was prior to the Decompression, and the rules regarding minors living alone were nonexistent, Captain Clovelly granted the stowaway a pardon, and quarters of his own. She knew what desperation the War Years had caused. Two years later, Rex had acquired a restaurant on Q deck, and converted it into a bar and later a casino. How he managed to supply it was still a mystery. As was his last name. He confided in no one and minded his own business very well. He also showed no penchant for doing his colonial duty and multiplying.
It took a few moments for Ofelia’s flight instinct to fade and her brain to take over. Of course she heard Doc Martin’s voice. He was in charge of checking everyone in. The Rec Dec had been refitted for landing. Instead of a small football field, the second largest deck had rows and rows of safety harnesses attached to what used to be the sideline bleachers. The only people not on the Rec Dec were Viola and three botanists strapped down in the arboretum, Juliet and three vets in The Zoo, Captain Clovelly and Tyler on the bridge and Ofelia herself with Jack in engineering. Everyone else was supposed to strap themselves in on the Rec Dec and hope that the twenty year old mechanisms functioned as well as they were first assured they would.
“We’re all going to die. We’re going to crash and burn and even if we don’t there’s going to be some strange disease that will kill us all within days.” The countdown was at forty three minutes and twenty seven seconds and Valentine Sweet was going into a complete meltdown. Other crew members passed her with wary eyes and three little boys began to cry.
“And it’s all your fault in the first place!” Val was pointing and angry finger at Doc Martin. “You are the one that convinced me to go on this crazy ship, and then it turns out you were married. You made me think we were going to get married!”
That turned a few heads. Doc Martin began to back up, but Val followed him, eyes full of fire.
“You were already married to that tramp, Donna. And stupid me would have followed you anywhere. I would have…” For a moment Ofelia thought that Larissa had just accidentally bumped into Val, but when a glassy look and a giggle replaced the irate grimace, Ofelia suspected something different.
“I love you,” Valentine said, holding tightly on to Larissa’s arm.
“Come on this way. We’ll get you all nice and strapped in and don’t you feel tired. Wouldn’t a nap be wonderful?”
Larissa walked a dazed Val over to the nearest bank of seats and strapped her in.
“Juliet gave me a few of these, just in case,” Larissa said, pocketing an injectol.
“Please tell me you didn’t just pump her full of animal tranquilizers.”
“Juliet modified them for humans. Besides, Doc Martin wasn’t doing anything, and she was scaring the children.” Larissa motioned over to the three little boys whose moms were strapping in, despite their wails.
“My name is Doctor Edwards. I am not a shoe brand… and give me those. You are not authorized to dispense medication.” Looking rather red in the face, the doctor held out his hand for the injectols.
“She only gave me three, and I already used them all.”
“You, young lady are going to be in trouble when the landing is over.”
Larissa shrugged and Doc Martin went back to checking the last of the crew. Larissa stood next to Ofelia and watched the organized chaos. “Are you sure you don’t need any more help in engineering?” she asked hopefully.
“No, and we only have two chairs set up there. You seemed to be making yourself useful in here.”
Larissa smiled and slyly pulled four more injectols out of her pocket.
“Ready for anything. Take care. I don’t want to have to find a new roomie.” Ofelia gave Larissa a hug.
“See you when it’s over.”
On the way back to the lift, Ofelia spotted Rex, coming right toward her. She kept her head down, praying that he would just walk right on past without noticing her. Instead, he moved directly into her path.
“Excuse me,” she said trying to step around him, but he didn’t cooperate.
“You’ve been avoiding me.”
“No I haven’t.”
“We live right next door to each other and I haven’t seen you once since that day in the lift.”
“What a shame. Are you asking for a dinner invitation, because I’m kinda busy right now… what with putting this hunk of metal on the ground and all.”
“Just thought I’d say thank you.”
“For what?”
“For the peach. I’ve been thinking about it a lot.”
Crud. He’d manage to push the very image she’d wanted to forget to the forefront of her mind. Peppermint, peach, and Rex all in one flash of desire. She wasn’t going to rise to the bait this time.
“You’re welcome. Now if you don’t mind…”
“Of course. Just one more thing.”
The kiss was quick and hot and devastating. Her resolve to resist it disappeared the moment his head bent towards hers.
“For luck,” Rex said smoothly. “You can go now.”
“Right.” He swiveled her around towards the lift and gave her a little swat on the backside.