LUNAR BASE – OFF-WORLD SERVICE HUB
The evening cycle on Lunar Base cast a soft artificial glow across the metal corridors, where crowds of engineers, scientists, and technicians moved with the lazy coordination of the overworked. Beneath their boots, the floor plates hummed with energy rebalancing pulses—evidence that Anthenaia, the new central system, was now fully online.
Among the stream of orange-jumpsuited IT service personnel heading toward the orbital departure gates, a small group walked together, laughing, arguing, exhausted. At their center was Lee, quiet and distracted.
"So that's it?" Jacko scoffed, swinging his pack over his shoulder. "Just like that, Anthenaia says, 'Congratulations, the Lunar dream is alive!' and we all pretend the lights didn't go out twice last week?"
"The lights didn't go off, you blacked out from vodka,"
Mira replied, raising a brow. "Anthenaia is perfect, we have seen her work, She is incredible, anyway that's all corporate cares about. Results. Metrics. Pretty charts."
"I'll give you a chart," Jacko grumbled. "One that shows my paycheck versus the cost of living in one of those new 'Lunar Executive Pods.'"
"Ha," Boris added, deadpan. "We can't afford a hallway in one of those pods even if we worked back-to-back rotations till we're dust."
The group chuckled—except Lee.
He didn't laugh.
His eyes flicked again to his comm-tab, thumb swiping instinctively to redial. No response. Five calls. Four hours. Zero answer. He didn't like it.
"You alright, man?" Mira asked, noticing.
Lee hesitated, voice low. "My wife… Ann. She hasn't called. I've been trying for hours."
"Could be comm-lag," Boris offered. "Some Moon-side networks are glitchy since the last ion sweep."
"Yeah," Jacko smirked, "or maybe she's binge-watching that reality show where billionaires fight each other for real estate."
Lee forced a thin smile, more to end the moment than to join it.
They reached the ID checkpoint, where passengers were queued into lanes for scanning. Overhead, a sterile voice echoed:
"Moon Bus Transport: Boarding for Earth-Base and Outbound Return. Please present clearance."
Jacko went first, humming something tuneless. Then Mira. Then Boris.
Lee stepped forward. The scanner lit up green. Clearance accepted.
Just as he was about to step through, his comm-tab vibrated.
INCOMING CALL: ANN
Signal Status: Unknown
Audio: Intermittent… Distorted
He froze.
"Ann?" he whispered, holding the device closer.
Static swallowed the rest.
His heart stopped. His breath caught in his throat - nobody noticed. Just a sea of tired backs and scanning lights.
And then, without a word, he turned away from the boarding gate.
"Sir, your pass—" the security bot called after him.
He didn't answer.
He walked.
Slow at first.
Then faster.
Gone.
Back in the line, Mira frowned.
"Where'd Lee go?"
"Probably forgot his flask again," Jacko shrugged. "Guy's always zoning out."
"He didn't even say anything," Mira said, eyes narrowing. "That's not like him."
"Relax, you know Lee, poor guy should have had a romance bot or pet cat or something like every other normal human being long ago, save himself some heart ache, he decided to get a wife, " Jora said. "He'll catch the next transport."
They stepped through the scanner, unaware that Lee had just walked off the grid.