Derek sat at the bar thinking of the moves ahead. His new job was risky, sure, but the payoff was very good. And it allowed him more time on the ground, to be at his old fluffy friend’s side. “It’s worth the risk to be here for her”, he muttered, smiling.
He’d moved the month before to Microtech, the frozen planet – a result of a failed terraforming – with his dog and few belongings after his last long haul and could not be happier about it.
New Babbage, Microtech’s capital and main landing zone with the biggest airport, was the biggest tech hub in the known Galaxy, a bustling city, teeming with life, youngsters with big brains and even bigger egoes. This is where all the best tech startups gathered so be born, live and die.
Taking a sip from the whisky, he finally admitted to himself this was not a one man job and had to call John, his old hauling companion. Two lone wolves by nature, working together when need dictated, which suited them just fine. Now was one of those times.
A week later John arrived at the space station – Port Tressler – with some tech supplies, a package he asked him to get for one of the many New Babbage startups, nothing important really, but good enough to get him in their delivery system roster.
This time however, there was a lot more in store for both of them, so he called him up on a secure line to fill in the details.
“Hey John, how’s in going? Heard you landed. Try that ramen place at Port Tressler while you’re there, I hear it’s the best in the system. Oh and got the package I asked you for?”
“Good to hear from you old friend, the ramen is amazing, out of this world!”, he laughed. “Yeah, I got the package, good pay for a simple job like this. Got a feeling you got something more in store for me.”
“Yeah, listen, I called you for a job, but can’t tell you everything over the phone. Meet me on New Babbage tomorrow at 0700 hours, on the rooftop landing pad of the main tech building. And bring the package. No need to pass through airport security, it’s pre-approved. I know someone there who can get you clearance and put you down as my associate. I’ll also introduce you to a few people so we can work on this job together. It may get rough, you know”, said Derek in a grave tone.
“As expected, see you there, old dog”, said John and hung up. There was something about Microtech and prototypes that always involved some kind of danger… He was well aware this would also pay handsomely as Derek would not have called for a simple social visit.
The next day brought clear skies and a beautiful sunrise. Microtech was savage on its best days and downright vicious on its worst. But for tech companies, the cold was a major advantage, all their equipment benefited from the best air-cooling solution that ever existed. A frozen planet, borderline habitable.
In a few minutes he’d meet with Derek and see what all this was about.