The Space Spoon novel Chapter 30

The hacked security droid dragged Hanga to an almost derelict ship. Covering his nostrils in an attempt to protect his extra-sensitive smell receptors from the mold reeking inside the vessel, the Valerian got into a room with multiple tables and chairs. It looked like an empty mess hall. Almost empty, since a young man sat at one of the tables, the same man who was Tejeda now.

“Come. Sit here.” The Nubilae tapped the edge of the table with his fingers while his palm sat flat.

Hanga moved in closer, his feet hesitantly approaching the table, and he took a seat in front of Tejeda. The latter picked up the case from the floor and tossed it onto the table, the same case Hanga had left at the bar. In a flash, the Valerian grabbed the case and examined its contents.

When Hanga saw his baby, his eyes widened. He sighed as he drew it out slowly. He flipped over the metallic construct. Scorch marks plagued its bottom, which bent in a twist of perforated metal. The hole was about the size of his fist.

“What have you done to it?” Hanga sobbed between each word.

Tejeda shrugged, unconcerned. "Some security droids followed us as well, most likely looking for your 'baby.' I might or might have not used the case as a shield. One would expect that an engineer would build a laser-resistant container for his self-sufficient repair droid. Isn't that what it is? You've finally done it."

"It used to be a self-sufficient repair droid before a laser burned through its cortical insertion," Hanga said, his neck and forehead veins bursting. "Because of you, it is now useless garbage. This was the last thing I had. And you've ruined it."

“Thank you so much for yelling and blaming me for your problems. It makes me even more eager to assist you in fixing your issues. Oh, I already did that by rescuing you from the droids, shit head!”

"I'm sorry," Hanga said, puzzled. "I guess I can repair this. Only when I was hungry, back on Valeria, I lashed out like this. Is your air feeding system working?"

“Oh, no, we deactivated it.” Tejeda winked. “Nothing compares with actual food. Well, after the girls have their breakthrough into the mysteries of cooking. Let me get you their latest experiment.”

The Nubilae went to the counter near the bar and brought a spoon and a plate with something mushy. "Vegetable puree. Don’t worry. This is actually edible. Take a bite!" He paused and chuckled. "Better said, take a sip since you don’t have anything to bite."

Hanga looked at the spoon, his gaze sinking into the utensil's silver depths.

"That's a regular spoon. Carmen's hiding in here," Tejeda stated while stroking the chain around his neck. The shirt covered the spoon.

The Valerian ate his fill. He was again able to feel an old familiar warmth, despite the stomachache, as food passed through his belly.

“If your tummy hurts, you can go lay down in your room,” Tejeda said, resting on the chair’s backrest. “This happens after you ingest food after a long time. It will pass.”

“My room?" Hanga raised an eyebrow. "Do you want me to stay on this ship?”

“Sure. That’s why I came after you on Erchpri. We need an engineer to get this ship to normal standards and further modifications after that.”