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Chapter: Chapter 9: Outside, Inside

  • Walking past the edge of the sound wall, Talita sees the source of the noise. Far across the dome, near the apartments, a group of centaurs walk on the circular road. There appear to be five adults, four smaller and one larger, as well as four children half their height. All of them have half-lidded eyes and implacable expressions. The four smaller adults are dressed in loose belted leather overpants on their rear four legs, with fabric undershirts that are neatly tucked into their waistbands to leave their upper torsos bare. They wear decorative fabric collars and necklaces adorned with dangling beads, strings, tufts of feathers, and pleating. In their manes they have tucked ornamental combs made from metal, bone, feathers, and beads. Three of them appear to be light in color with thin dark stripes and dark irises, and one is darker with broad stripes and light irises. All have a bar piercing through the upper portion of their trunks, and the oldest of the lighter individuals has two bars. They speak amongst themselves. The four children wear identical dark capelets with tassels that appear to be furred tails. Three are light in color, one is darker. They look around with wider eyes, and one curls their trunk up. They stand close to the small adults, who put reassuring hands on them. The largest adult stands in front of the group, speaking to an enthusiastically smiling Mel and politely smiling Tod. They are finely dressed in a tasseled skirt that covers their lower body and overpants, with a collared cape featuring long hanging panels with embroidery and a tasseled scallop pattern, with a brooch of a carved animal's head at their throat. A chatelaine with a six-legged turtle-like creature hangs from their belt. They are white with black stripes and dark facial markings that extend to the tip of their trunk, which has two bar piercings. The right side of their face is an eyeless crater of scar tissue, with bone missing from the crown of their head to nearly their nostril, an injury that on a human would have been instantly fatal. The large centaur turns their single dark eye and makes eye contact across the distance with Talita, who stares back in dumbfounded horror.

    Runaway to the Stars: Page 245 and 246

    Today

  • Talita: I’ll stop distracting you. Idrisah: Seeya later… Talita waves goodbye to Idrisah and exits the recycling plant, looking absentmindedly at her tablet while walking through the personal exit into the Shikaviil Port dome. An odd echo to her footsteps makes her look up in confusion. She glances around, trying to parse the sound.

    Runaway to the Stars: Page 244

    Feb 26, 2026

  • Idrisah: Well… In my opinion, you should… She glances back at Cheevwut. Idrisah: (ASL) Also quit. Especially after that shit with Mel. Talita: (ASL) Maybe… Not now, soon after you, Gillie, AND Cal. Management is angry, I think. Ohwitiil walks past the cubicle. Ohwitiil: IDRISAH! Keep packing, I’ve got someone moving into your desk space tomorrow! Maybe this one will bother to STICK AROUND! Talita and Idrisah exchange a look of knowing exhaustion.

    Runaway to the Stars: Page 243

    Feb 24, 2026

  • Idrisah: (ASL) Can you start packing your computer desk while I'm out? Gillie frowns. Gillie: (ASL) We don’t leave till next week! Idrisah: (ASL) It’s only five days! Gillie: (ASL) I refuse to live out of boxes until I have to. Idrisah: (ASL) You’ll regret that this weekend. Gillie: (ASL) I will pack more NON-ESSENTIALS. In the Ixion admin wing, Idrisah packs up her cubicle space with help from Cheevwut. Talita leans on the edge of the cubicle wall, looking glum. Talita: Need any help over here? Idrisah: Thanks Talita, I think we’re good. Talita: I’m gonna miss coming to admin to bug you.

    Runaway to the Stars: Page 242

    Feb 21, 2026

  • Gillie stomps to get her wife's attention across the hallway. Gillie: (ASL) Did you already pack my tweezers? Idrisah looks up from where she is looking at her phone and squatting on the floor of their bedroom while organizing earrings. She is surrounded by stacks of reusable shipping boxes full of packed items. Idrisah: (ASL) Those should be with the first aid stuff. Gillie walks in and opens a box next to Idrisah. Idrisah shows her the phone screen. Idrisah: (ASL) But look! Talita sent photos of the Runaway! Gillie: (ASL) Wow. Spacious. Idrisah: (ASL) I didn’t know Bip was such a fancy vessel. Gillie: (ASL) Pirates live in style, I suppose. She looks at Idrisah, who is wearing belted pants, a loose top over arm warmers, a hijab, and jewelry. Gillie: (ASL) Heading out? You're all dressed. Idrisah: (ASL) Yeah, I’ve got to pack up my work desk.

    Runaway to the Stars: Page 241

    Feb 19, 2026

  • Chapter 9: Outside, Inside Talita is shown repainting the centaur text on the outside of the Runaway where the hull patch has covered up the message. She and two electrician worms stand on a hanging crane lift with foam brushes, with the worms leaning perilously outside the railing to reach parts of the text. Inside the Runaway, Talita takes a photo of the cleaned up interior living space. Bip's avatar coils into the frame on the walls, winking and sticking out a tongue while throwing up a V-hand sign that is obviously a photo graphic of a human hand pasted over their vector arm. Talita smiles, standing in her socks on the exterior wall of the sideways room. Gillie is shown redying her hair "Ember Orange," with a dye brush in her gloved hand. She is in a stained white tank top with her wet hair brushed into a mound on top of her head, away from her ears, forehead and neck. Her eyebrows are also wet with color. Finishing application, she notices with sneering annoyance that her mystacial whiskers are growing back in. She opens the rather barren medicine cabinet looking for a tool to deal with them, but the only thing on the shelf is an open medicine box for her prescription of Estradiol—Dissolving Subcutaneous Implants, 0.125 mg/day, "for human use only."

    Runaway to the Stars: Page 239 and 240

    Feb 17, 2026

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