CRATER

CRATER*
(* the name given to the galactic class freighter and recycling space ship, it being a reference to the crates that they hauled between planets that make up the bulk of these ships’ payload.)

Chapter One


‘Will you LET ME IN, I’m freezing my ass off out here!..’ Harvey presses his head to the small porthole camera and on the screen in the central communications hub his face looms large, distorted through the space helmet’s thick curve of gold particle shielding.
‘Are you gonna stop drinking?’ Noona presses the intercom back on… ‘because unless you promise to get back on that wagon, this ship is off limits to you.’
‘Let… ME… IN!’ each word is punctuated by Harvey headbutting the camera lens.
‘Fine, see you back at space port.’ Noona flicks the switch off on the intercom and sighs. Sometimes Harvey stretched her patience to the very limit.

‘Urghh..’ Harvey stops banging his head against the docking bay door, it was starting to make him feel nauseous. He turns his head to one side, leaning up against the smooth hull of the ship and he can see letters, painted along the hull running away from him before the curved metal disappears into the deep embrace of nothing. GYBE. He spells it out in his mind. The Gybe. The newest of the craters. A flagship for the company. His baby. The magnets on his suit pull him tight to the side of the ship, Noona may well not be prepared to open the door but she wasn’t going to let him go either. Harvey sighed, his tongue felt like sandpaper and his eyes throbbed. Whatever Dougal brewed his moonshine from, it left a dog-rough taste in your mouth the next day. Was it the next day? To be honest and brutal honesty was something Harvey was all too familiar with, he could have been drinking for several days and not know it. Still looking on the bright side, it had been 157 days since last time.

Noona looks up as Irvin arrives for his shift. She stretches and points to the intercom. ‘Only let him in when he promises to stop drinking.’
‘OKEY DOKEY, Captn!’ Irv slides into the seat Noona vacates and flicks the intercom back on. ‘Rise and err..no moonshine today ladies and gentleman. This your in-flight DJ talking, lie back and enjoy the ride!’
Harvey groans as he recognises Irv’s voice, must be shift change.
‘Now, let’s see, Harvey, I’m sure I can find a song just for you here…’ Harvey winces as his intercom is switched to the ship’s music catalogue. ‘Ooh, The Screaming Hangover’s 24 hour party mix! Enjoy!’ Irv settles back in his chair as the communications hub fills with the sound of loud, loud music. He was confident that Harvey would be promising not to drink again in no time at all.