The Swimmer Part 3 (Draft)

     Repairs on The Indigo Virgo were coming along smoothly. With the ship berthed, the crew could work on exterior damage without need for bulky EVA suits. Anton stood on the floor of the docking bay, supervising. He concentrated on the work schedule on his clipboard, but couldn’t help looking around the bay. It was massive to hold their merchant vessel and it was only a part of a much larger ship. They had negotiated terms via written messages. Their host did not ask for any repayment and even offered additional supplies and assistance. His father had turned down their host’s offer, he seemed keen on having the crew keep to itself during their stay. He wanted to repair the ship and leave ASAP. But even without the extra help, The Indigo Virgo was on time to be operational before the pirate vessel was likely to return. The radio clasped on Anton’s hip hissed to life.

     “Anton my boy, you there?” It was the chief engineer.

     “Go ahead chief,” he replied.

     “I need an extra set of engine parts down here, can you grab them for me in the machine shop?”

     “On my way.” Anton pushed off from the ground and floated up in the direction of one of The Indigo Virgo’s hatches. He entered the ship and made his way down to the machine shop. Anton was gathering tools into a crate when his raid hissed with a burst of static. “Chief, is that you? I’m at the machine shop.”

     “No it’s not. Hi there.” It was a feminine sounding voice Anton didn’t recognize.

     “Hello, who’s this?”

     “I’m the pilot of the ship you’re docked in.”

     Anton raised an eyebrow, this had to be a joke. “Okay, really. Who is this?”

     “I’m serious Anton. I’ve tuned in to your radio frequency.”

     “Why would you do something like that?”

     “I wanted someone to talk to. It’s so rare for me to get the chance to. But the others on your ship, they’re all suspicious of me. You’re the only one that seems to have my… curiosity.”

     “You’re serious?” Anton looked down at the radio in his hand. “Listen, I’d like to talk to you too, but I can’t right now.”

     “I know. Go finish up your work shift.”

     “I have about two hours left to go on my shift. How can I contact you to tell you I’m done?”

     “Don’t worry, I’ll contact you.”