Malparadiso Station Season 3.15
Episode 36: Soiree
As Yroi moved among the flashy, overdressed guests, most of them kreefed out, she realized they did not see her at all, just her tray of glasses of kreef-wine. It was not so different from her steward job on the transport, except that nobody asked for anything, but just grabbed. So far, they hadn’t grabbed her. Kreef-wine was not a known aphrodisiac. All they wanted was more kreef.
If these were the movers and shakers of the Stone, it was no wonder things were always on the edge of rotten. Was kreef the source for all the creds for all this stuff, for the air dome and the waterfalls? She put her mind back on her job, serving, observing and listening.
She tried to make sense of the things they said, who was doing who, or who wasn’t. Some people speculated on whether The Man would come, what conflict with the Mistress he might have, and what drama might ensue during dinner. No particular opinion was more popular than another, but all of them were silenced when The Man himself came in with a beautiful plus-one, a woman with a mechanical arm.
Yroi hid her surprise that she had seen this man in the Full Bowl many times, talking with Granny Claws. She would find a way to talk to him.
The couple cut a path between the intoxicated throng. Without acknowledging anyone along the way, The Man made his way to the Mistress. She lounged on her couch, leaning on one elbow, a drink in her other hand. One of her legs lolled from the slit in her gown, covered with jewels in her stockings. Her face was expressionless, high on kreef.
Yroi could not get close enough to hear what they said to each other, as every ear was turned in that direction. The Man gave Mistress a gift, a small package, the same size as the packages she had brought to Iabbeshank. It was presented in a brilliant box that she opened without anticipation, merely setting her glass down. When she lifted the top of the box, a dozen tiny butterflies flew up, swirling in iridescent spirals around her. She stared at them, her head following the swirls until she got dizzy and waved them away.
The butterflies dispersed among the guests, swirling around but never letting anyone grab one. The guests clapped and laughed. One of the butterflies flew up to Yroi, hovering above her face for a moment. She thought it might be a camera so she smiled. It was no secret that she worked for Mistress.
Yroi approached The Man with her tray. Staring away from him, she said, “The Guard has Granny Claws. Can you help her?”
“Thank you,” he said, taking a glass without looking at her. “It’s already been handled.” He turned away from her as if they had not spoken at all.
After what seemed like a week, the bell for dinner rang. She wasn’t needed for the dinner service, and several of the other servers brought in bus tubs and gloves for cleaning. As the guests filed out, Yroi began picking up the detritus—glassware, china, napkins, food scraps, regurgitation. Some of them nibbled at leftovers, not that any of the reef wine remained.
Yroi was careful to keep her skin away from anything reef-related, using gloves and even napkins to wipe up any spilled food. She hadn’t been trained to clean the furniture’s fine fabrics, so she did her best to collect reusable items, separating them from broken ones.
Once the tub was full, she carried it to the sanitation window. As she walked back to retrieve another tub, a green, scaly arm pulled her to a small alcove.
“Get your go-bag,” the Beanatha whispered. “Change into off-world clothes, and report to Iabbeshank.”
“But Myril...”
The snake woman glared at her, showing just the tips of her fangs.
Yroi went to the dressing room for servants. In her locker was a dress suit and walking shoes, as well as a hat, a purse, and a new ID. She stuffed her server uniform in the recycler, and headed to see Iabbeshank. She had to trust that he had the plan and that it would work.