On board the Estrella, research is the mission. Stationed on the outskirts of the known galaxy, the task of the crew is to study the space surrounding the station and to determine what lies beyond.
However, unknown to most of the crew, there is one...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
BELLAMY paced.
Things were tense now, since Paris was... found. Thinking about what had happened to her made them feel sick, even though they hadn't liked her. No one deserved to die like that.
Their work slowed down even more, only worrying Amine further. They saw her glancing at them worriedly all the time, frowning. They knew Amine wanted to say something but never brought themself to. Bellamy didn't like that Amine was worried about them, really, but they—they couldn't help it.
They could feel themself breaking, and they hated it.
They'd retreated to their quarters after an incredibly tense dinner in which everyone gave each other distrustful looks and didn't say a word that wasn't related to the meal. Bellamy locked the door behind them and began to pace. For hours. It worked out the anxiety, the feeling inside them that everything was falling apart around them and they couldn't do anything to stop it.
It was eating them alive.
—
MIKHAIL didn't know what to think. Part of him couldn't believe that anyone on board would do such a thing, but what other option was there? It had to be one of them, of course, there was no other way for a stabbing to have happened. But it didn't make any sense to him. Why would someone do anything like that?
Sure, Paris wasn't the most likable person on board, but she was a member of the crew. She was one of them, and they were a team.
His mind kept coming back to two things: this wasn't supposed to happen, and he was terrified it would happen again.
That was the main thing. If it happened once, it could happen again, and that idea terrified Mikhail more than he would let on. He kept a calm face, pretended he wasn't freaking out and jumping at shadows. He had to.
He sighed, spinning in his chair to look around the bridge. Armie was at his station, frowning at something. Otherwise, the two of them were alone. Every now and then, Armie glanced up and looked around the room for a moment, as though wondering if he was being watched. Mikhail didn't stare, of course, he wouldn't, but he was aware of Armie. Armie was the only other person in the room, of course Mikhail was aware.
The bridge was quiet. There was the soft sound of Armie moving, and a few clicks on his keyboard, but other than that and their breathing, it was quiet. It wasn't comforting. The quiet felt like a threat, like an ax hanging over Mikhail's neck, waiting for the moment to strike. He thought Armie felt it too, with the way he kept looking around. It was heavy.
He wished it would lighten.
—
MAGDA couldn't get Dmitriy to leave his room. He'd disappeared after the captain's meeting the day before, and no one had seen him since. It was Magda who discovered he was in his room, since he would talk to her through the door. But he wouldn't let her in. And he wasn't coming out.
She leaned against the door, closing her eyes. Worry for Dmitriy echoed in her mind, and she said, "Mitya, come on. Please? No one will be alone, it's just lunch."
The crew had always eaten together, for the most part. Some people were a little early or late, or finished before everyone else. But they ate together as much as they could. Magda thought it was even more important now, when anyone could be a murderer, but...
Dmitriy wouldn't come out. And he was her best friend here.
"Please?" she asked one last time, hoping that he would come out at least to reassure her that he was okay. He was alive, she knew that, but was he okay?
He said nothing. Just locked the door. Magda sighed. "All right," she said, just loudly enough for Dmitry to hear her. "I'll come back, after. It'll be okay, I promise."
And she headed back to the mess hall. Alone.
—
LILY picked at her food. The meal, like every meal since Paris' body was discovered, was quiet and tense. She propped her head in one hand, poking at her food with a fork, but not eating much. Instead, she watched the others.
Magda sat alone. She'd come in late, looking dejected. Lily didn't know her well, though, and few of the others did. Except Dmitriy. Fen Jie and Jian sat next to each other, but Lily thought that was just to have someone there, rather than because they were close. The same with Armie, Mikhail, and the captain. Captain Malik sat where he could see everyone, the whole room, and he hardly looked down at his food. Armie, like Lily, was barely eating.
Riley and Keegan sat together, closer than anyone else. Keegan leaned against Riley, and considering they both ate with only one hand, Lily would bet they were holding hands under the table. She was sure the captain had noticed too, though work romance was supposed to be off-limits.
Though, murder was too.
If it even was murder. Lily honestly wasn't sure. Yeah, Keegan said Paris had been stabbed, but how would she know? Keegan was a biologist, not a medical examiner. For all they knew, Paris had accidentally impaled herself on her own lab equipment.
But Lily was the only one who seemed to think so. Even Amine was jumpy, sitting across from Bellamy and beside Lily, constantly looking around, eyes wide. Lily hated to see it, but talking to her wouldn't help.
The meal was almost silent. Lily wasn't sure how much longer she could take it. She put down her fork with a sigh, rubbing one eye, as a few of the others stood up, apparently done with their meals. Lily closed her eyes as they walked to the kitchen window to dispose of the utensils. Something needed to happen, or she might scream.
As it turned out, both happened.
The lights went out. They were plunged into darkness, and Lily was so startled that she yelped and jumped a little—she heard Mikhail and Keegan cry out too, and then she heard footsteps. Lily pushed away her food, breathing heavily, and scooted halfway under the table. The footsteps were coming towards the table, not away, and while Lily heard Fen Jie saying something about trying to find the lightswitch, she couldn't tell what was happening.
There was a metallic sound. A strangled cry from the other end of the table, and a squishy thud. Another. Someone gasped, Jian shouted Magda's name. A clatter on the floor, more footsteps.
The light turned on.
Lily screamed again. She wasn't the only one, everyone did, especially Jian, who'd been sitting closest to Magda. He leaped backwards, falling out of his chair in a scramble to get away from what had been Magda—what was now a bloody corpse. There was a knife on the floor, stained with her blood. Her head lay in her plate, potatoes seeping into her hair. Lily couldn't look away from that.
When she did, she saw Bellamy standing by the lightswitch, staring at Magda's body in horror. They still held their napkin from lunch, clenched in one fist like it was the only thing keeping them upright. Amine was moving for them, though she had been closer to the table; she reached out and wrapped Bellamy in a tight hug. Fen Jie and Armie were also standing, Armie still holding his tray. Fen Jie had one hand clasped over her mouth, her eyes closed.
Magda was dead. And the murderer was still in the room.
—
1277 words. Bye, Magda. We'll miss you. PLEASE let me know any theories y'all might have! Those of you in my discord can chat there as well, of course, but I won't be revealing anything. Let me know what you think! 💛Gerard
