Please join us as we celebrate the addition of a new ship to the company’s fleet, establish a new link to the civilized planets, and place a new star in the heavens.—Excerpt from the promotional holo distributed to the Interplanetary News Association (INA) on the day that the sentient vesselShewhoswimsamongthestars officially went into serviceShewhoswimsamongthestars guided the shuttle into its docking bay with the ease of a beggar pocketing a coin. Rebo, Lee, and all the rest of the passengers felt a distinct thump as the smaller vessel’s skids made contact. That was followed by the muffled whine of unseen machinery. Different people reacted in different ways. Those who had never been on a ship before, and Rebo sensed that was the majority of them, were round-eyed with fear, while the runner and a few like him focused on the next step in the process. Lee, who had only recently been allowed to exit the coffin in which he had been brought aboard, listened as the runner spoke into his ear.
