Leandra slapped the screaming alarm cube and rubbed her eyes before burying her head in the pillow again. Ugh, too early…
A few minutes later she groaned and rolled out of her bunk, stretching as she padded her way into the communal area.
"Oh, morning, Lea. I just drank the last of the instant. Sorry." Her overly chipper, and well caffeinated roommate held up the empty pot apologetically.
“Nok! How could you? You knew I was pulling a double today!” The scowl she leveled at the curvy ysoki would send most others hurrying out of her way, but Nok just grinned and stretched up to kiss her on the cheek.
“I'll pick up more on the way home tonight, promise!" She rushed out the door in a swirl of activity and perfume, leaving Leandra to put the coffee pot in the sink.
Thirty minutes and a disappointingly lukewarm shower later (thanks again, Nok) Leandra stood in line at the popular coffee cart just outside Ixomander’s Throne, the Azlanti-themed casino where she was currently late for her job. She hopped from foot to foot, willing the line to move faster before Mo-var, the meticulous android running the cart, closed for their mid-morning break. Suddenly, an enormous vesk came hurtling out of nowhere and plowed into her. She was knocked onto the ground, while the vesk continued running. A willowy shirren helped her back on her feet before bolting after the vesk, shouting “Sorry!” over their shoulder.
Leandra dusted off her dark green pants and turned to see Mo-var pulling down their cart’s shudder. Damned tourists! Don’t they know how hard it is to keep this faux Azlanti crap clean? She threw her hands up in despair, yelling, “Come on! I was in line and everything before those junk jockeys pushed me over!” Mo-var ignored her, and she went to give the cart a swift kick but stopped when a glint from the ground caught her eye. A misshapen piece of metal and plastic laid on the sidewalk, most likely dropped by the fleeing vesk.
Leandra picked it up and shouted in the direction the two had ran. “Just because we live near a junkyard doesn’t mean you can litter!” She grumbled to herself about inconsiderate off-worlders and inflexible androids, absent-mindedly slipped the piece of trash into her pocket, and stepped into the casino.
Leandra stretched she trudged out of the casino, her back aching after a grueling double shift on her feet serving drinks to increasingly inebriated gamblers. Spying Mo-var’s coffee cart—now open for the evening rush—and knowing that Nok probably forgot to get more instant, she started to wander over. Her way was blocked by a pair of local gang members (True Warriors by the look of them—bunch of lowlifes) diving out of the way of the wide swing of a doshko, wielded by the same vesk from earlier in the day. This time, a lashunta woman followed, her hands glowing with magic.
“Really?” Leandra said out loud, too tired to properly process how much danger she was currently in. Mo-var, however, seemed to understand, quickly closing their cart window. Leandra was startled into action when a stray bullet from one of the True Warriors’ pistols struck the casino wall just a few feet from her. She scurried home, locked the deadbolts, and enabled the security system even though she knew it didn’t work properly. Nok had promised to get it fixed months ago.
Nok stumbled in, giggling and slightly tipsy. The security system let out a pair of weak, unconvincing beeps and gave up, but it was loud enough to startle Leandra awake from where she’d dozed off on the couch.
“Someone had a good night.”
Nok plopped onto the couch next to her. “Hot date with Rush! Oh, so much fun. You should come out with us one of these days! She even has a cute brother...” She chuckled, draping herself over Leandra.
“No time. We’re short-staffed at work. Maybe next week.” She pushed her friend off her lap with a laugh. Nok was always trying to set her up on dates—when she wasn’t on the prowl for her own that is. She’d gone on more than a few disastrous outings at the younger girl’s urging but hadn't clicked with any of her suitors. “Tell you what, I’ll make us both something to eat. You need something in your stomach.” She ruffled the hair beneath Nok’s ear on her way to the kitchenette.
The next day, Leandra had another double. Midway through, her feet and back were already aching and her ears were sweltering in her fake helmet, but she kept a smile firmly plastered on her face as she bustled between tables and the bar. Needing a break from fending off the advances of the junk jockeys who had hit a prize and enduring the glowering looks from the locals determined to lose all their cash, she gestured to her manager that she was going to briefly step outside.
She ordered a cup of her usual from Mo-var to boost her flagging energy and had barely taken a sip when her arm was jostled from behind, sending the drink flying.
“Oh. Come. On!” She was nearly in tears as she turned to see the shirren from the previous day. A ysoki stood next to them, looking sheepish, and the vesk and lashunta were over by the casino entrance.
“YOU!” Leandra gasped. “You owe me at least 3 cups of coffee!” She poked the shirren in the chest, whose antennae twitched in confusion. “First, you knocked me out of line, then you started that brawl in the street, and now you made me spill this one because you can’t bother to watch where you’re going!”
The big vesk lumbered up to them. “Is there a problem?” she rumbled.
“Yeah! You and your buddies keep making me lose my coffee and I’m getting sick of it!” Leandra’s shouting was beginning to draw a few gawkers, but she didn't care. “And another thing! You can’t just leave trash wherever you want!” She retrieved the piece of metal and plastic from her pocket and flung it at the vesk’s chest. The vesk fumbled with it for a moment but didn’t drop it. Her eyes widened as she took a better look at the scrap.
“Quig,” the vesk said, turning to the ysoki. “This is the other half of the keycard.”
“You dropped it?!” the ysoki asked incredulously.
“Uh, I guess so.” The vesk looked uncomfortable. She looked back at Leandra. “Hey, sorry about all this. Let me make it up to you. After all, I think you just saved us a lot of trouble.” She ordered an extra-large from Mo-var, handing over enough credits to cover the price a few times over. The android filled up a sizable travel mug with a secured lid and placed it in the cart’s window. Leandra scooped up the coffee and chugged half of it as if she were afraid it would get away.
“Thank you,” Leandra said. “I have to get back to work now.” She turned on her heel to re-enter the casino, hearing the other four begin to chatter excitedly with each other.
Later, she had quite the story to tell her roommate. Nok suspected the four were treasure hunters looking for a big score out in the junk, and they must have crossed the True Warriors in the process. Both of them speculated wildly as to what their “keycard” unlocked well into the night.
The following evening, the four approached Leandra on the casino floor. “There she is!” the vesk bellowed with a grin on her face. “My favorite Aeon Guard! We’ve got something for you!” She dropped a credstick onto Leandra’s tray.
A little wary, Leandra picked up the credstick, peeked at the display, and nearly fainted at the amount printed there. She wrapped her arm around the vesk’s waist in gratitude.
“Should be enough to keep you in coffee for a while,” the ysoki smirked. “And when you’re done squeezing Obo to death, we’ll have a round of your most expensive booze. In fact, make ‘em doubles. We’re celebrating another successful mission!”
The group cheered.
Illustration by Rustan Curman from Junker's Delight
About The Author
Misha Bushyager is a longtime gamer and designer working on making sure the next generation of geeks sees themselves represented. She's one of the founders of New Agenda Publishing and a founding curator for More Seats at the Table, a newsletter highlighting gender marginalized designers. She worked on Orun, #Feminism, Fate of Cthulhu, Lovecraftesque, Misspent Youth: Sell Out With Me, Masks: Unbound, and the as-yet-unpublished LARP Nightingales. She's a panelist, writer, editor, and sensitivity editor for tabletop RPGs and LARPs. You can find her on Twitter as @BGGameworks or on her website, blackgirlgameworks.com.
About Tales From The Drift
The Tales from the Drift series of web-based flash fiction provides an exciting glimpse into the setting of the Starfinder Roleplaying Game. Written by members of the Starfinder development team and some of the most celebrated authors in tie-in gaming fiction, the Tales from the Drift series promises to explore the worlds, alien cultures, deities, history, and organizations of the Starfinder setting with engaging stories to inspire Game Masters and players alike.
