Reborn as a Spaceship

PoV : Lynn

Honestly, I didn't expect the others to be this upset. "He's overreacting," I said, leaning against the lounge wall, trying to sound more composed than I felt. "Lazarus just needs time. We handled the station staffing while he was busy. Darren brought in top-tier specialists on short notice. Honestly, we did him a favor."

Kel shot me a sharp look from where he was pacing by the viewport. "You don't get it, Lynn. Of course he's upset. We went around him on something that matters more than you realise. This station. It's going to be his power,it's his reputation, his name on every hatch and airlock. His projection of strenght is only as good as these empire we are building and you handed over control to a list of strangers without so much as a conversation."

I waved it off. "We all knew we needed people eventually. I just moved it forward. It let him focus on the diplomacy with T'lish and the whole Kall-e situation. He's got more important things to worry about than HR. You all agreed to this anyway"

"You aren't listening. We didn't all agree," Stewie snapped suddenly, louder than I'd ever heard him. His cheeks were red, hands clenched at his sides. "You showed up with a full crew list and a smile like it was already done. You didn't leave room for argument. And now Laz is pissed, and I don't blame him! He might even kick us off the ship!"

Now, Stewie was overreacting. It wasn't that big of deal, how do I make them see that.

Mira touched Stewie's arm, voice soft. "Stew, breathe." Then she looked at me, steady and serious. "They won't kick us off. But Lynn… this might come back on you. Hard."

I was more affected by that than I'd like to say. My chest tightened. Were they really all turning on me for this?

Before I could defend myself again, Laia appeared with her usual soft blue replaced by a matte, featureless black that seemed to drink in the light. Something was wrong. Very wrong.

She didn't waste time. "Lynn," she said, her voice stripped of all warmth, "your interpretation of Lazarus's reaction is inaccurate. Framing the staffing decision as a surprise, a kind of gift, was misleading."

My eyes narrowed. "We were just trying to help—"

"Lazarus has severed our link," she interrupted. "Mine. Wayfarer's. We've been cut from primary systems and the shared consciousness." She tilted her head, eyes like obsidian. "The color change reflects system-level psychological stress. Depression." She said as if reading my mind.

I swallowed. "He cut you out? Really?" I would have never expected him to go that far, she was his most loyal follower.

"He is angry," Laia said. "And hurt. You removed his agency, Lynn. You denied him the right to choose who represents his station. He acknowledges the idea had merit, but the way it was done with the secrecy, it broke trust." Her voice dropped further. "He believes Darren may be a plant from NeuroGenesis or some other agency"

"No," I said sharply. "That's insane. Darren is not a spy. He wouldn't—"

"How much does he know about The Arbiter?" Laia asked. "About Lazarus? About our unique capabilities?"

"Nothing critical!" I snapped, too fast. "He knows… logistics, operations. The same stuff we would tell any partner. Nothing sensitive." They were making more of this than they needed too.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

Kel's voice cut in, low. "Did you tell him where the station would be?"

I hesitated. "Not directly. I might've mentioned the system was… unusual. A neutron star, rich in resources. With three planets"

"So yes," Stewie said, throwing up his hands. "You told him. Lynn, how could you?"

"He's not a spy!" I shouted. "You don't know him! He's not—" I didn't know how to make them see, I knew him, the man wasn't a spy, a bit dense from time to time but he didn't have a malice bone in his body.

The air shimmered beside me. A man faded into view, seated casually like he'd always been there. Practical clothes. A lazy grin. And eyes that missed nothing.

"She's right," the man said casually, nodding toward me. "Darren's not a spy. Just a useful idiot."

Laia moved first, her black form lancing forward with terrifying speed, arm forming into a spear. But the man was faster. He flicked a small device and pulsed something invisible across the room. Laia's form disintegrated in mid-air, nanites falling like ash.

He smiled, pocketing the device. "Nanite disruptor. Handy little thing." He swung his boots onto the lounge table and looked around. "So. This is the Arbiter I've heard so much about?"

He didn't bother with names. He didn't have to.

"How did you even get in here?" Kel asked, stepping protectively between him and Mira.

The intruder chuckled. "Lazarus let his security slip. I was surprised at how sloppy he got when he's brooding. And Darren? Well. He talks. A lot. Impressive, really. The secrecy the strategic hires he made they were suggestions from me."

"Why now?" Kel demanded. "Why reveal yourself?"

"Simple," the man said, gesturing toward the bridge. "I'm interviewing."

That made no sense but maybe only to me, as three figures materialised near the lounge entrance. Lazarus, Laia reforming herself in calm, glowing blue, and Wayfarer looming behind them like a planetary shadow.

The man raised his disruptor again and clicked it at Laia. Nothing happened.

Lazarus's voice was cool. "That won't work anymore. We've upgraded."

Laia stepped forward, calm and focused. "His affiliation traces to a shell network linked to MouseHouse, but that's likely a misdirection. Military black-ops more probable. He's been inside the system for thirty-eight hours."

The man looked at Lazarus, grinning wider. "So what now, Judge?"

"You tell me," Lazarus said, eyes hard. "Do you want the job?"

I blinked. The job?

The man laughed, actually laughed. "You're serious? You brought me in?"

Wayfarer's voice rolled like tectonic plates. "Not initially. But we saw your intent once you breached the secondary layers. So we waited."

"And if I'd turned hostile?" the man asked.

"You wouldn't have lasted," Lazarus replied. "We scanned you the second you came inside. No lethal intent. Just curiosity and bravado. But if we'd detected anything more?" His voice flattened. "You'd have been vented. No hesitation."

That wasn't bluster. He meant it. Cold and absolute.

I'd noticed his deliberate avoidance of eye contact; not once did he look at me or any of the crew, making me uneasy. This wasn't some act. He was angry. And I understood, finally, how deeply we'd cut him. This station, this ship, this mission. He'd trusted us to help build it. And I'd made choices without him. Without even telling him.

I hadn't just stepped over a line. I'd broken something. And I wasn't sure it could be put back.

The man let out a long, low whistle, eyeing Lazarus with a mixture of amusement and something darker. "You're starting to sound like the other Todds," he said. "Cold. Calculating. Little bit scary. Not at all what I had expected" He tilted his head. "What happens if I say I want the job?"

Lazarus chuckled, but there was no humor in it. "Then I'd call you a fool. What kind of idiot breaks onto a person ship, admits to being a spy, and expects to get hired as spymaster? It doesn't seem particularly wise."

The man's grin widened, impossibly so. "Good," he said. "Was worried I'd land the position without even needing to use my insurance policy."

I narrowed my eyes, still near the edge of the lounge. "Insurance?"

The man raised his hands in a mock-surrender gesture. "Relax. I didn't come empty-handed. I brought information and someone who can vouch for me. Proof of loyalty, if you like."

Lazarus's expression didn't change. "Information means nothing. People lie. Files can be faked. What I care about is motivation. Why you're here. Why you want this job. That's the only thing that matters."

For the first time, the intruder's confidence wavered. Just for a heartbeat, something uncertain passed behind his eyes.

He shifted his stance. "Maybe we could take this somewhere a little more private?"