Paperwork is, objectively, the worst part of my job. I despise it. On any given day, it comprises approximately two hours of my shift. Today, however, I expect it to be all I do.

It is not that there is nothing else for me to do. I have inspections I should be doing and maintenance to monitor. But here I sit, pen scratching out report after report. All because of a general review scheduled for tomorrow that I will not even be present for. Granted, I am quite glad I do not need to be present, and that is not the root of my irritation. It is simply that Merrick is breathing down my neck for these reports. And I cannot even turn any of them into paper airplanes.

Bah. Bureaucracy.

A sigh reaches my ears, and I glance at the young man sharing my dimly lit office inside Station One with me. Kellen has books and papers strewn across the floor where he sits amongst them. He has his head tilted back to lean against the wall, staring up at the ceiling, an open book draped across his lap. 

"This sucks," he mutters, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I hate homework."

I feel my eyes narrow as I flick my pen at him, bouncing it off his chest. "I am fairly certain Merrick is punishing me as much as you," I grouse at him as he flinches from the impact. "You are finishing school. Work or not, you are only 14 after all. But to have him decide that I have to monitor your study during work hours when there are no pressing repairs is less than ideal."

Kellen looks away from me, and I see emotions whirl up in him. "It's not my fault I'm now on homeschooling because of the work schedule," he grumbles. Guilt and sullen stubbornness color the words. It seems he senses the glare I level at him, as he adds a half-sincere, "Sorry."

"Sorry, what?" I keep my voice soft, but I cannot keep the crisp irritation from the words.

"Sorry, Darkwalker." It does not make the apology any more genuine, but at least he is getting a lesson in manners and seems a bit cowed.

It is my turn to sigh and pinch the bridge of my nose beneath the nose piece of my goggles. "Actually, this is your fault and you know it." Though I keep my tone mild, I see him flinch anyway. "So it is no use getting snippy with me. Now. What are you studying?"

"History." Kellen gestures to the book on his lap. "I have to read this treatise on why the moon landings were a pivotal factor in the 'Denzai assaults' and pretend it's not a load of crap."

I lift an eyebrow at him, mildly surprised at the level of vitriol in his voice. "You think they are unrelated?"

"Oh please, Darkwalker. We both know it's absolute garbage. You probably more than most. The moon landings had nothing to do with the accident! My gramma always said the only thing they have in common is that the flag on the moon was how the Denzai knew there might be life on this planet in the first place. They didn't want to make contact with us and they sure as hell didn't want to screw up Earth. And I met Ranger Zar once and he told me some stories, too. Now I have to pretend I believe this crap just to pass my class? Ugh!"

I find myself quirking a smile. "Welcome to my life," I reply sardonically. 

Kellen pauses in his rant, and I can watch as realization blossoms. "Oh...oh crap...I'm sorry, Darkwalker!" He actually means it this time. 

"Yes. It does suck, as you so pedantically put it." I methodically set aside my paperwork. "Tell me, then. How would you approach this clear obfuscation of truth?"

Kellen actually pauses to collect his thoughts. I watch him work through the logical paths, running down ideas. "I don't know," he admits at length. "I think...it would take a lot of people to stop lying to themselves. And for people to stop allowing the lies to spread. Like these books. And maybe even to listen to people who actually know what they're talking about instead of hearing only what they want to hear."

I raise an eyebrow again. "And how do we stop fear?" I ask quietly. "How do we stop xenophobia? There will always be people that cannot see past their own self. People who, for whatever reason, simply do not want to know the truth. They only want to live their own comfortable life of ignorance, because it makes them feel safe in an uncertain world."

Kellen chews his lip thoughtfully for a moment. "But...the Denzai don't want to hurt us, right? If people could just meet more of the Denzai…"

"It is not that easy," I interrupt. "Think for a moment of the first time you met me. Of what you felt. Even knowing what you did, hearing the stories from your sire, you were still afraid. I see that every time someone looks at me, that fear of the strange other. I am only one quarter Denzai, and I get it in full measure. It is even worse when a defensive incident occurs. Do you think the Denzai would wish to subject themselves to this?"

"Oh. Yeah, I guess I didn't think that one through." He is contrite, and moves to take up his books once more. "Still, it sucks that folks think of you guys as monsters. You're a little strange, sure. But not monsters. That's just rude."

I feel a sardonic grin tug at one corner of my mouth. Oh, if only you knew, Kellen. Instead, I pause to consider for a long moment. An idea is lurking in the back of my mind. 

"Maybe a field trip is in order," I comment idly. From the corner of my eye, I see a wild flare of interest in Kellen. He does his best to pretend he has not heard me. But he cannot mask the unruly piques of excitement he does not know he produces.

There is a knock on my office door, then. It annoys me mildly, and I see that Kellen is startled. That gives me some small bit of vindication.

"Enter!"

The door swings open with a faint click of the latch as it disengages to reveal Jakara. She is Kellen's immediate supervisor as the head of Team One, and I see him bend his head back to his homework as she enters. "Excuse my interruption, sir." Jakara moves to stand at a parade rest before my desk. I have never required it of her, yet she has always taken this approach when she enters my office. Perhaps it was something my sire required and she has merely continued such practice. But she will not speak until I indicate that she has permission, instead merely standing patiently with her hands behind her back and her eyes fixed to a point upon the wall over my head as I sit. The only thing about her that is not perfect regulation standard is, in fact, her hair. She chooses to wear it somewhat longer than is generally accepted and today she has it braided back into a severe tail that falls to the middle of her back. It is still the same wispy corn silk blonde as the vast majority of the populace, but Jakara takes care to pull it back and not let it float about her face like a wind blown waif the way every other resident seems to. 

"Today, I welcome the interruption," I reply with a vague gesture to the paperwork. "Proceed."

"Sir. We have received a report of decreased output from the primary air system at Station Two. Recirculation levels have dropped 17% over the past two weeks. I took the liberty of cross checking purification levels and found an increase of 4% in CO2."

I groan. "I presume diagnostics have shown all systems in working order? Otherwise you would not have brought this to my attention."

"Correct, sir."

"Great. Just great." I press the heels of my hands into the bottom of my cheek bones, carefully avoiding pressure on my goggles. "And the intake/output comparisons?" 

"Intake monitoring systems have been unreliable for six months."

I turn an irritated gaze unfairly upon Jakara, but she continues to gaze impassively at the wall above my head. "Of course they are. Because that has been put off by every single other emergency that has come up for six months straight." I sigh heavily and drop my head into my hands. "Merrick is going to throw a fit, and he can just jump into the Waiting Dark. All right. The system may or may not need repairs, but we will not know unless we have accurate data. It is long past time to replace that intake sensor. Jakara, get Kellen geared for subterranean fieldwork. Respirator, red light headlamp, safety harness, field vest. Get my medium tool kit ready and have a new sensor sent to site. Send a runner to Merrick and tell him I am keeping Kellen for overtime. And tell him to get Kellen some extra credit from his school for this."

"Sir!" She turns to Kellen. "Come on, newbie. Boss says jump."

Kellen scrambles to his feet. "How high?" He is smiling as he follows Jakara out to the equipment room. I can only gaze ruefully at the scattered homework he leaves behind on my office floor. Thankfully for him, his new independent study program means he has until the end of the week to complete all his assignments. I can only give my own paperwork a rueful scowl as I tidy up my desk.