Page 34 of A Mate for Vasek
Roxy started leading her down one corridor, and Cami followed them. They were soon stepping into a lush tropical jungle, right there on the ship. Everything smelled fresh and green. The captain’s mate was already inside, reaching for a wayward vine with a pair of pruning shears in hand.
“Welcome to my little piece of paradise,” she said. “I’m the greenroom tech.”
It was only now that Dawn realized that the ship’s name and logo were on the woman’s coveralls as well. It had been covered by her hair during the introductions.
Dawn wondered if Lana had gotten the job first, then had an onboard romance with the older captain, or if she’d gotten the job because they were mates.
“This place is beautiful,” Dawn said honestly. “I used to collect houseplants, and always wanted an indoor jungle like this, but I was never this good at it.”
“These plants are specially selected for use on the ship. They all work together synergistically. I barely have to do anything except keep the growth under control.”
“Whatever,” Roxy said with an eye roll. “Don’t listen to Delaney. She’s a miracle worker with these plants. We all tried to save this place and failed before she came around.”
“You guys were killing it with love!”
Then, before Dawn could figure out what felt a bit off about this interaction, because something was, Cami asked, “Can I bring these over for the tepins?” She was standing next to the basket of discarded vines and plants.
“Give me one moment, I’ve got a few more.”
Lana quickly clipped a few more vines and tossed them into the basket. Then Dawn was following Roxy out of the greenroom. They didn’t go far, just across the hall. Cami went in first with the discarded vines.
“This is our food production lab,” Cami said. “Here’s the herbs I’ve been growing.”
Dawn frowned at the very familiar plant, then found herself walking toward it. “It is… oh my god, it is! It’s basil!”
Cami joined her, pinching off the top of one of the growth points and handing it to her. “Sure is! This stuff grows like weeds hydroponically, and we’ve gotten the Talleans on board liking it too.”
“This isyourjob then?” Dawn asked.
“Yep! Well, technically, running thisandcooking is a two-person job, but I only cook proper meals every few days. The other days are fend-for-yourself days. Plus, Berus helps with the tepins,” she gestured over to the enclosures stacked one on top of another on the other side of the room, “since he doesn’t do much on the ship.”
“Well, considering he eats most of the tepins, he better help,” Roxy said.
“If we’re going to split hairs, Nibbles eats more than Berus does now.”
Nibbles? That was a strange name for a human or a Tallean. It must be a nickname. “Who’s that?”
“Nibbles is just the most adorable little cutie patootie on this side of the galaxy,” Roxy replied, dissolving into baby talk.
That was not very helpful. That description could be anything, and Dawn still had no idea what Nibbles was.
Cami went to the other side of the room and opened one of the clear enclosure doors and started stuffing handfuls of the discarded greenery into it. Almost immediately, several chubby birds came to fight over the scraps.
Dawn had prepared and eaten tepins before, but she’d never seen the meat in bird form. Heck, she didn’t even know they were birds. The meat had come prepackaged in strips, ready for cooking.
“So those are tepins! I had no idea they were so cute.”
“Yep,” Cami replied. “Their biggest downfall is that they’re so tasty.”
“I’d call it a rise to fame and not a downfall,” Dawn said. “Their tastiness means they will never go extinct.”
“I agree!” Roxy said, nodding. Then, seeing that Dawn had started helping Cami feed the chubby little birds, she said, “I’m going to go get Nibbles from my room. Why don’t I meet you two in the hall in a few minutes?”
“Sure! We’ll see you there.”
Chapter 18
Vasek
