Early scene for Ory and Bella

At the end of the line, Ory’s tray had a mug of jai, a bread roll, a green salad with cherry tomatoes and cucumber, and protein-rich, yeast soup. He saw Bella with her friends at a far table. She caught his eye and smiled, but then turned back to listen to their conversation. He took the hint and sat with his workmates.

Akiranar had Erimom budge over so he could sit beside Ory. Erimom turned with disapproval and started a conversation with Isaki. The two of them picked up their trays and left. Before he even sat down, Akiranar whispered, “Ory, did you hear? Kalindi’s stepping down, or moving on, or something.”

“What? No, I didn’t hear that. Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I just saw an announcement for a vote for XO.” Akiranar was grinning. “So, there’ll soon be a new Executive Officer.”

“I know how the system works, Akiranar. That’s part of our citizenship certification. Did the announcement say anything about why the position is open. I can’t see Kalindi stepping down for no reason, and I doubt that the she and the captain had a disagreement serious enough for the captain to ask her to step down.”

“There was nothing about Kalindi in the announcement. Just the vote and the eligible candidates.” Akrianar’s grin got bigger.

“Well, this is great,” said Ory. “I’ll push for Talitha. That will open her spot that I’m eligible for. I may not be a shoe-in, but I think I have a good shot. Will you vote for me for Section Head?”

Akiranar grinned even wider, if that was possible. “Oh, I’ll vote for you.”

Talitha walked up to their table. “Ory, meal’s over. I’d like to talk with you.”

“Yes, Ma’am.” Ory started to grab his tray.

“I’ll get that for you, Ory.”

“Thanks, Akiranar.” And he walked out of the dinning hall with Talitha.

As was their custom, they walked in silence to Talitha’s office. Once there, she motioned to a chair for him and sat down behind her desk.

“I presume you read about the vote.”

“That’s what Akiranar and I were just talking about.”

“I want you to know that I don’t want the promotion. I’ve already asked my friends to vote for anyone but me.”

Ory slumped in the chair. “You don’t think I’m ready.” he said glumly.

She looked at him quizzically, but he didn’t seem to notice. “You’re a bit young, but I do think you’re ready. That’s why I don’t want the promotion. I like being Section Head. I don’t need the added responsibility of XO.” She paused and then started nodding her head very slightly but insistently. “You didn’t read about the vote, did you?”

Ory shook his head. “No, Akiranar told me about it. We were wondering why Kalindi was stepping down.”

“That is a good question.” She reached for a pad, pulled up a document, and handed it to him. “Let’s start again. Congratulations!”

Ory took the pad and read his exam results. He blinked. He’d passed his captaincy certification. He looked more closely, scrolling up until he found what he was looking for. That was the time at which he was eligible for consideration for captain. But it was also the time at which he was eligible for consideration for XO. He opened the page of ship’s announcements on the pad. The announcement for the XO vote was still the most recent and, yes, there was his name along with several others. He tapped through for the current vote tally. The trend setters had already started voting: Talitha was winning but Dardános was a strong second. Ory was a distant third. He looked up at Talitha. “You could be XO, and I should be a Section Head before being seriously considered for XO.” He paused and then brighten up, handing the pad back to Talitha. “I’ll be in consideration for Section Head in Engineering once Dardános is promoted. I’d rather be Section Head here, but that will be a good placement.”

Talitha smiled. “That’s a healthy way of thinking about it. And it might work out that way. But I’ve already voted for you. I have a suspicion that Kalindi has, too. It’s probably why she stepped down when she did. I don’t know their story, but Kalindi has her reasons for thwarting Dardános.”

Ory stared at her for a second before speaking. “But given the early tally, you’re likely to win the position.”

“Yes, but I’ve told you, I don’t want it. I got my captaincy certification long ago, shortly after Sidra became captain. I even lobbied to become XO in the vote that promoted Kalindi. But now I’m comfortable where I am. Kalindi knows this, so she waited.”

“Do you know why Kalindi’s stepping down?”

“Like I said, that’s a good question. But I’m not that close with her. I’m sure we’ll find out soon enough.”