Location: Engineering Deck, Vesper Halo
Time: 0200 Ship Standard
The hum of machinery was meditative here—low, constant, honest.
Rin preferred this part of the ship. The guts. The core. It didn't lie to you. It just broke, or it didn't. And if it broke, she could fix it.
Tonight, though, she wasn't alone.
Selene stood across from her, half-lit by the pulsing core lights, datapad in hand. Not saying anything. Just… being there.
Rin finally broke the silence. "You gonna stand there judging my coolant flow, or are you here for something?"
Selene smiled faintly without looking up. "Just watching. You're competent."
"That's dangerously close to a compliment," Rin muttered.
"It was," Selene replied.
The Space Between
Rin leaned back, wiping coolant residue from her gloves. "You never sleep, do you?"
"Sleep is inefficient when there's data to untangle."
"You're lying. You don't sleep because if you do, you'll dream."
Selene froze.
The silence was heavier this time.
"Dreams remind me of the girl I used to be," she finally said. "And of the things I broke to become useful."
Rin blinked. "You think you're only useful?"
Selene looked up, sharply.
"I've killed people with code. Rewritten lives. Brought Aika back in a body she never asked for. What else should I call myself?"
Rin walked toward her slowly. Not aggressive. Just close.
"You're more than your guilt."
Selene scoffed. "You sound like Aika."
"I'm not Aika," Rin said. "I won't save you. But I see you."
And for once, Selene didn't pull away.
Tethering Points
Rin nodded to the neural uplink chair.
"Sit."
Selene raised an eyebrow. "You want to run diagnostics?"
"No. I want to show you something."
She strapped Selene into the chair gently—surprising them both.
Then Rin connected her own neural jack and initiated a low-bandwidth sync. Nothing invasive. No memories. Just shared awareness.
Pulse matched.
Breath aligned.
Anchor protocol initiated
In the shared dark, they floated—two minds tethered.
Not touching thoughts.
Just... feeling each other's presence.
Selene whispered, "Why are you doing this?"
Rin's voice came soft across the link.
"Because for once, I want to connect with someone who's never pretended to be fine."
After the Sync
When they came back, there were tears in Selene's eyes.
Not grief.
Not fear.
Relief.
She wiped them before Rin could speak—but Rin caught her hand.
"I'll see you on the mission," Rin said.
Selene looked at her—really looked.
And nodded.
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