Hello. For some reason my book is jumping a scene but still providing the choices of that scene; just not the description.
I’ve triple checked my labels and *goto stuff. Nothing is out of the ordinary there so far as I can tell. Maybe ya’ll can give a bit more insight? I’ve copied and pasted everything relevant to this from my files directly. That’ll be below in the spoiler. Never sure who’s watching so… ye.
*hide_reuse #“Breathe. I’m here to relax just like you two.”
“Of course, Captain.” Ripley responds as she lights a cigarette and lets out a puff of smoke into the air around her.
"Ripley, would you mind putting that out? I just don't want to inhale the second hand." Velholmes requests as he adjusts himself on the bench.
"I won't put it out but I'll move a little bit away from you so you don't get hit with my smoke. Fair compromise?" she says.
"Yeah, fair enough. I almost forget that the modern cigarettes we have don't have carcinogens like the ones we were warned about on the Fleet."
"Well, it doesn't matter. What matters is that we can both get what we want and be happy." she says as she flicks some of the ashes away which fade into nothingness in the park.
*set Authoritarian -1
*goto PilotChoices
*hide_reuse #"Ripley, you mind if I speak to you privately? It'll take a bit."
*if (Ripley >= 60)
*goto RipleyRomance
*if (Ripley < 60)
"Not right now, Captain. No offense but I'd like to spend some time away from superior officers while I'm on the station. It's shore leave, after all." Ripley responds.
*goto PilotChoices
#"Velholmes, I was wondering if I could steal you for a while."
*if (Velholmes >= 60)
*goto VelholmesRomance
*if (Velholmes < 60)
"I don't quite feel comfortable going someplace with you alone like that... for now. Captain." Velholmes responds as he shakes his head. You can see that Ripley is ready to jump to his aid if you push the issue. For now, you leave it alone.
*goto PilotChoices
*hide_reuse #"How's the morale on the ship, guys?"
*if (Morale >= 50)
"Morale's fine. Just keep doing what you're doing and I don't think you'll have an uprising any time soon." Ripley says as she regards you carefully.
"Yeah, you're doing great so far. There'll come times when not everyone is going to be happy no matter what you do but for now there's nothing to worry about." Velholmes reinforces as he crosses his leg over his knee and folds his hands pleasantly in his lap.
*goto PilotChoices
*if (Morale < 50)
"Morale's shit." Ripley responds bluntly as she closes her eyes and shakes her head. "If you don't shape up as a captain, you're going to have some serious issues down the line."
"I think what Ripley means to say is that you've made some... questionable decisions that people don't understand all the time. I have faith in you though, Captain. So take that with a grain of salt and don't think about it too hard." Velholmes says as he shifts uncomfortably.
*goto PilotChoices
*hide_reuse #"Ripley, where's your cat?"
"Back on the ship, Captain. Don't worry about it. I'm not dumb enough to try and smuggle it onto the station." she assures you as she adjusts her posture against the wall.
*goto PilotChoices
#"I should get going."
*goto StationChoices
*label VelholmesRomance
“Sure, if you want. I’ll catch up with you later, Ripley?” Velholmes says as he stands up from the bench and makes his way to your side.
“Yeah. I’ll be around. Don’t worry about it.” she says as she moves away to leave the two of you alone with one another.
“So, what can I do for you?” Velholmes responds as he straightens himself up then relaxes his posture.
“Let’s go do something. Just us.” you say.
“Yeah. I could use a good time. Let’s head back to the ship then? I have an idea.” he says as he gives you a ‘follow me’ gesture and starts to walk back towards the ship.
It takes a few minute and the two of you largely talk about nothing along the way there. The idle small talk is pleasant after so long in space dodging Zeri and pirates. It’s nice not to have to talk about those sorts of things or where you can get supplies again or what calamity might strike next. When you finally arrive at the ship Velholmes leads you into the shuttle bay and begins takeoff procedures. There’s no equipment in the shuttle aside from a pair of spacesuits which rest in the cockpit.
“Come sit up here?” Velholmes offers as he indicates the seat in the cockpit. You oblige him if only to see what he has planned. “Thanks, Captain.”
The takeoff goes as normal aside from Velholmes driving the shuttle away at an exceptionally slow speed due to the regulations surrounding the space around the station itself. For the most part he only barely taps the accelerator lever forward before letting it fall back into a neutral position as you drift away.
It takes a few minutes to get to your destination which is out in the middle of nowhere. For many kilometers the only thing between you and relative safety, aside from the shuttle, is a void of nothingness.
*page_break
Velholmes taps the accelerator lever a few times until the ship is motionless in its orbit around the star of this solar system. The sunlight gleams against one side of the shuttle while the other is in complete darkness. He stands up and begins to put on the spacesuit dedicated for the pilots of the aircraft.
“Suit up, Captain.” He says as he opens the cockpit door and finishes putting on the suit. You put on yours and he depresses the button to close the cockpit, then another to depressurize the passenger area once you’re in your suit safely.
Each of you attach a tether to the side of the hull after Velholmes opens the door and steps out. The tethers are not long but they do not need to be. You’re not going far, after all.
“Any reason we’re so far out…?” you ask him as you follow him to the front of the shuttle and the two of you ‘sit’ on the nose.
“Just a quiet place. I know the station has quiet places but it’s still got some noise. I mean if there’s not people talking you can hear the hum of the electricity, engines, reactors… some of those apply to our ship of course but it’s the same on the station.” Velholmes explains. “Plus, I figured you may want to just chat.”
*label VelholmesTalk
*choice
#“How’re you holding up, Velholmes?”
“I’m doing okay. Being out here just… helps me think and get perspective, y’know?” he responds as he shifts against the nose of the shuttle.
*goto VelholmesTalk
#“It is pretty quiet out here. Peaceful.” you admit as you look between the planet and the nearly imperceptible station.
Velholmes nods though he says nothing.
*hide_reuse #I sit with Velholmes in silence for a while.
You sit with Velholmes as ships pass by silently in the nothingness that surrounds you. Some of them come so close to your little shuttle that their thrusters register on your visor as a heat warning. None of them hit the shuttle, however, and none of them come close enough to deal any actual damage. The only sounds you can hear are that of your own breathing and the occasional crackle of the radio when either of you accidentally turns it on. Velholmes gestures to a ship every now and again when they pass by just to catch your attention. He says nothing when he does; only pointing them out to you as they pass.
*goto VelholmesTalk
*selectable_if (AttractionValue != 2) #“I like you, Velholmes. That is to say I’m interested in you. Romantically…”
*if ((GenderValue = 1) and (Velholmes = 60))
“I like you too… Captain. Romantically.” he responds as he shifts a little bit closer and places his gloved hand atop yours. The gesture is small, especially with such thick suits covering the both of you. You feel no warmth in his hand but you feel the pressure his glove puts onto yours. The two of you return to sitting quietly on the nose of the shuttle though Velholmes does loop his arm around your shoulders while you sit.
*goto VelholmesTalk
*if (GenderValue != 1)
“I’m afraid I don’t see you that way, Captain. No offense. You just aren’t quite my type.” he responds as he shifts a little uncomfortably on the nose of the shuttle. The silence that befalls you is a little more awkward than the silence that you two had been sharing before.
*goto VelholmesTalk
#“Let’s head back. We’ve been here long enough.”
“Of course, Captain. It’ll be my pleasure to fly you home.” he responds as he gets back into the shuttle alongside you. The ride is spent silently; something you are beginning to think Velholmes enjoys.
*goto StationChoices
*label RipleyRomance
“Of course, Captain.” Ripley responds as she looks over to Velholmes. “I don’t know when I’ll be back so feel free to leave without me.”
“You got it, Ripley.” Velholmes says as he stands up and starts making his way around the park.
“What can I do for you, Captain?” she asks now that you’re alone.
“I was hoping you’d like to go someplace. Just the two of us.”
“Alright. Sure. I can think of something. Normally when I have off time I just play with the cat I have but… doing something else might be nice for a change.” she says as she looks over at a map in the park that details how to get around the station. “Let’s head back to the ship first. I should change. But I have an idea of where we can go.”
Ripley walks with you to the ship as the two of you make idle talk about nothing particularly important. Along the way she points out ships she’s familiar with or comments on how gorgeous the scenery is inside the station. She’s definitely impressed and it shows that Ripley likes the generally ‘natural’ look of the station.
Eventually the two of you arrive and part ways temporarily to change. When you reunite she has changed out her flight suit in favor of a pair of brown slacks, a button down shirt that she’s tucked into her waistband and a pair of comfortable running shoes. Regardless of your orientation, you have to admit that she looks nice and that the clothing suits her well.
“This way, Captain. I think you’ll enjoy what I have in mind.” she says as she leads you through the station. The two of you once more talk about nothing in particular as you approach your destination.
When you finally arrive, you are far from the ${ShipName} and near the other side of the station. The room she leads you into is a small café with an actual glass window that overlooks the planet below as well as some of the surrounding space and moon of the planet. A waiter takes you to an empty table and the two of you settle in as they find a menu that contains food humans would actually be capable of consuming. Lacking one, given the rarity of your species, they instead settle on charging you only for the preparation of the meal and instead take a very small portion of supplies from your vessel so that they can ensure they won’t accidentally poison you and Ripley.
She positions herself so that the window is in constant view though she also sits close so that she can easily turn her head and talk to you.
*label RipleyOuting
*choice
*hide_reuse #“It’s peaceful… or at least it looks like it from up here.” I say, gesturing towards the planet below.
“Yeah. I’ve always found habited worlds beautiful too, actually.” Ripley replies as she leans her elbows onto the table and props her chin onto one of her hands. “I wonder if their lives are just like ours on the Fleet, honestly. Always worrying about some new catastrophe that might or might not happen or wondering if their kids are going to grow up well.”
“You have kids?” you ask her.
“No. Not yet at least. I’d like to someday if I find the right man though.” she responds as she stares out at the planet. “You ever wonder if we’ve found Earth before and just passed it over as a useless rock?” she asks.
“Sometimes. I mean the Fleet has been wandering the galaxy for almost three or four thousand years. Someone has to have visited Earth before and just never recognized it.” you respond as you turn your gaze to her.
“I was thinking the same thing. Maybe Earth exists or maybe it’s just a ball of rock now but… I hope we find it. I’d like to step foot on humanity’s cradle at some point. I know it might seem silly but it gives me hope that all of this insanity can stop.” Ripley replies as she sits up in her chair.
“Insanity?”
“Don’t worry too much about it. I’m not planning a mutiny or anything just… I wish things could’ve been different. We could’ve chosen who we are and what we would become if Earth was still out there. At least, I like to think so anyways. I’d probably still be a pilot. I love flying and I love visiting new places but… sometimes I wonder if I might have done something else.” she assures you as she turns her gaze towards you for a moment before she goes back to looking out the window.
*goto RipleyOuting
*hide_reuse #"I don't think I've ever seen a star quite like that one over there."
Her gaze moves to the star that you indicate in the distance. It shines brightly though its color pulses back and forth as it gets brighter and dimmer over and over again. She watches it for a moment longer. The star expands shortly after and becomes much more visible than it was before.
“That’s the light of a dying star billions upon billions of kilometers away.” Ripley responds as she turns her attention back to you. “A lot of the Fleet’s astronomers think that dying stars shed elements into nebula which are moved around by stellar wind and eventually settle onto planets. I think that regardless, they have their own sort of beauty when they die.”
You wait for her to continue for a moment as you admire the star.
“Imagine for a moment that you are a star instead of a human. When you die, instead of just stopping your heart and ceasing breathing you expand until you shed your exterior which gives other things not only the chance to survive but the chance for things to be created; like us. If you were a star instead of a person your death would not be the end of something, of someone. It could potentially be the beginning of billions of something out there… and that’s a legacy I’d be proud to leave behind.” she finishes as she lets you to your thoughts on what she said.
*goto RipleyOuting
*hide_reuse #"The moon of this world is beautiful."
“It is.” she responds as she shifts her gaze over to look at the moon herself. Its surface is red and banded with darker brown spots. It is merely the size of your hand from this distance and yet you can see it so clearly and in such great detail. While there are, undoubtedly, thousands upon billions of other moons out there it is something about this moon in particular that grabs your attention.
As the two of you watch the moon dozens of ships go to and from it at lazy speeds from your perspective. You, of course, know they’re moving fast enough that they’re likely breaking the sound barrier at sea level on most planets but for now, as far as your merely human eyes can tell, these giants simply lazily drift through the ether.
For a moment, nothing else matters but the sight of that glorious moon. Your mind slips away from the wars the Fleet wages, the struggles of daily survival, the looming threat of a population culling and pirate attacks. Perhaps this is what peace is like in its simplest forms…
*goto RipleyOuting
*hide_reuse #"I really love the way the clouds move down there. I wish we could go down."
Ripley says nothing though you follow her gaze and know she is, in fact, watching the same clouds that you happen to be watching. She does give a thoughtful hum at your words and nods; lost in thought someplace while she rests her hand on the table.
“That one looks kind of like a cat.” she says as she gestures to a cloud near the southern pole of the planet.
It does, in fact, look almost exactly like a cat. You can see its slightly twisted ears and the long, crooked tail of the animal. It has three distinct paws made of fluffy whites while the third is crooked back towards its own mouth as if it is cleaning itself.
“What about that one?” you say as you gesture to another cloud near the equator. “I think that one looks like a duck.”
“You’ve seen a duck before?” Ripley responds as she looks your direction and raises an eyebrow.
“In books and sometimes movies. Never in person though. But c’mon… looks like a duck, right?” you respond to her as you give a slight shrug of your shoulders.
“I suppose it does.” she responds as she turns her head back to the window and looks over the clouds again.
*goto RipleyOuting
*hide_reuse #"I wonder why they keep that asteroid over there in orbit around the planet."
“I’d think it’s for mining but there’s only so much mining you can do on an asteroid. Surely they’ve stripped it of anything useful by now?” Ripley suggests as she lights a cigarette a takes a very long drag that burns a good quarter of its length. She is mindful to blow the smoke directly into a vent next to her head where it is whisked away before it can ever become a problem.
“Maybe they aren’t mining it? It could be a tourist attraction but I don’t know why anyone would want to visit an asteroid. We do that in the Fleet all the time.” you respond as you lean against your chair.
“Well… there’s a lot of ships here. Maybe they started using it as a space station when they first achieved space flight and just never moved it away when they didn’t need it anymore?” she suggests before taking another long drag on her cigarette and flicking the ashes into the vent for them to be sucked away elsewhere into the station and purged.
“What if they never really used the asteroid for anything and it’s just there?” you suggest in turn. “As in maybe it just got caught in the planet’s orbit and decided to hang out there.”
“I guess if you think a rock can make that decision, sure.” Ripley teases in response with a smirk on her features. “But yeah, I get what you mean. And it’s entirely plausible. I don’t know why they would keep it there if nothing other than that. Then again, it could also hold some sort of religious significance for them too.” she says as she finishes her cigarette and flicks the remainder of the ashes into the vent before tossing the butt into a nearby trash can.
*goto RipleyOuting
*hide_reuse #I make small talk with Ripley as our outing concludes.
*if ((Ripley >= 60) and (GenderValue = 1))
*goto RipleyKiss
*if ((Ripley < 60) or (GenderValue != 1))
Ripley gives your shoulder an affectionate but not romantic squeeze as she stands up. “It’s been nice, Captain. I should get going though. We have a limited time on the station so… I’ll be making the most of it. I wouldn’t mind doing this again sometime though.” she says before making her way away from you.
*goto StationChoices
*label RipleyKiss
As the two of you finish the meal that was brought for you, Ripley sets down her fork and shuts her eyes for a moment. When she opens them she is looking at your eyes and occasionally your lips. Her hand glides over the table and eventually her fingers brush against yours. Despite her nature to assert herself, you know that she is waiting for your permission to continue.
*choice
#I take Ripley’s hand… knowing that she wants more than just to hold my hand.
You take her hand and Ripley leans against your side as she closes her eyes. Her head rests upon your shoulder comfortably as she scoots her chair closer and wraps her arm around your waist as you wrap yours around her shoulders. For a moment the two of you remain motionless as if this moment could surpass time and space itself.
When she does inevitably move from you she reaches up and puts her hand against your cheek. Without warning, her lips crash against yours; a tidal wave of emotion that tastes faintly of cigarettes and her recent meal. One of her hands rests against your thigh and Ripley sighs contentedly as she breaks the kiss though she returns to leaning against your shoulder.
“Thank you, Captain. This was… nice.” she whispers against your collarbone as she quietly inhales your scent; trying to memorize the exact details about you in this instance.
“Thank you… Ripley.” you respond as you return to holding her in your arms. The two of you spend the rest of your time like this until finally it is time to leave. Both of you do so with a little hesitancy.
*goto StationChoices
#I move my hand away. I'm not into her like that.
You know she'll handle it well. Ripley does move her hand away from yours as you move yours from hers and passes the motion off as if she was reaching for her drink. Thankfully, she makes no mention of it though she knows your interests for her do not lie there.
*goto StationChoices