"Habang naghihintay tayo ng instructions from Venus, let's have a short introduction of ourselves. Kagaya kanina, magpapakilala ako. My name is River and I've been working in AUSA for three years now," pagpapakilala ulit ni River sa sarili. "Just like you, we were trained here in Mira HQ but you are lucky dahil sa tatlong taon na nandito kami, never pa namin naexperience makasakay sa Skeld. Currently, nandito tayo sa cafeteria. Dito gagawin ang lahat ng mga meetings niyo," imporma niya na nakaturo pa sa kabuuan ng cafeteria. Tinapik ni River si Ridge para muli itong magpakilala.

Ridge cleared his throat. "I'm Ridge. Like River, I've been working here for three years. Ngayon pa lang ay winewelcome ko na kayo sa AUSA. You'll be seeing us a lot once you become official employees so I hope we can all get along," he said, flashing a smile. I can't blame Maia for having a crush on him. He looks like a freakin' Greek god! He could past for a model or an actor. Hindi mo aakalain na scientist siya.

River, on the other hand, he's handsome too pero halata mo na talagang mahilig siya mag-aral. He's wearing specs but it doesn't become a hindrance to his overall look. Nakakadagdag sa kagwapuhan niya ang salamin.

"Ang gwapo niya talaga. Nakakamotivate lalong galingan," Maia whispered, referring to Ridge.

"Mas gwapo pa ako dyan, eh," rinig kong bulong ni Tim na nasa likod namin.

Liningon ni Maia si Tim. "Parang hindi naman," sagot nito kaya natawa ako.

"Inaaway ako ng kaibigan mo, Sky. Pagsabihan mo nga!" sumbong ni Tim.

"Ang ingay niyo," suway ko sa kanilang dalawa bago muling hinarap sila River at Ridge.

"Feeling close masyado yung lalaking yun," bulong ni Maia sa akin. Hindi ko na lang siya pinansin.

"Okay, so let's start with you." River pointed at the girl sitting at the end of the table. "Please introduce yourself," he told her.

She took a deep breath before standing up and walking to where River and Ridge are standing.

"My name is Emily. I'm 24 years old and I am a Chemical Engineer. It's a pleasure meeting all of you," she introduced. I can tell that she's shy because she's trembling a bit and fidgeting with her hands while introducing herself. Maybe she is a little bit intimidated by us because most of us already have a lot of experience in our fields.

"Ang cute niya and ang bata pa. Malayo mararating. Sana all," Maia whispered.

"Why? How old are you?" I whispered back.

"Matanda na ako, sis! 28 na ako tapos wala pa rin akong jowa. May marereto ka ba dyan?" sabi niya.

Natawa ako. "I figured we're the same age. Bata pa naman tayo, ah! Marami pa tayong mararating and to answer your question, wala nga akong boyfriend. Mairereto pa kaya?"

"Walang magkakagusto sayo. Huwag ka nang umasa," bulong ni Tim kay Maia.

"Hindi kita kinakausap!" mataray na sagot ni Maia bago umirap.

"Okay. Thank you, Emily," River told Emily before she walked back to her seat.

The next person to introduce himself was Arone. He is the same age as Emily and he's a Mechanical Engineer. He looked really bored and uninterested with anything.

A girl named Lisa was the next trainee to introduce herself. She's 25 years old and just like Maia, she is also a Veterinarian.

"Isasama ko yan sa Mars mission ko," Maia whispered to me when Lisa sat back to her seat.

"Sir, please introduce yourself," River told the man sitting next to Maia. He stood up and walked to where Ridge and River are standing.

He introduced himself. His name is Ted and he is a Chemistry Professor. He didn't say his age but you can already tell that he is the oldest trainee in our batch. He's probably older or just the same age with Venus. He looked strict and has a don't-try-to-mess-with-me aura.

The next one to introduce was Maia. She stood up and walked to the front confidently. "Good day, everyone! My name is Amaia but please call me Maia. I am a 28 year-old veterinarian and I came from the Pearl of the Orient Seas, Philippines!" pagpapakilala niya sa sarili na akala mo ay nasa isa siyang pageant.

Natawa kaming lahat sa kakulitan ni Maia except dun sa masungit na babae na tinanungan ni Tim ng mechanics. What's her problem?

"Makakadiscount ba kami sa condo unit kapag nakipag-friends kami sayo?" tanong ni Tim kay Maia.

"Pinagsasabi mo?" kunot-noong tanong pabalik ni Maia.

"Ikaw may-ari ng Amaia Land, di ba?" sabi ni Tim, making us laugh.

"Haha! Oo. Sa katunayan, may papagiba nga akong building eh, tas ikaw yung gagawing wrecking ball," she countered, making us throw into a fit of laughter again.

Tim didn't say anything after that. Maia walked back to her seat and told me to introduce myself next. I followed her and walked to the front.

"Hi! I'm Skyzea but you can call me Sky. I am 28 years old and I am a pilot. Pilot-engineer, actually," I introduced. "I tend to introduce myself as a pilot because other people might think that I'm boasting too much but I'm really not. I just think that my years studying Aeronautical Engineering should be acknowledged as well," I explained. "Anyways, it was nice meeting all of you."

"Pilots aren't supposed to be stupid, right?" asked by the guy I bumped into a while ago.

"Uhmm... no. We are ensuring people's safety so being stupid is never an option," I answered.

"Okay, carry on," he said. I walked back to my seat after that.

What was his problem? Was he still salty about what happened a while ago? I apologized to him already, no need to call me stupid. Tsk, asshole!

Tim stood up when I sat back down. Like Maia, he walked to the front with utmost confidence.

"I'm Timothy, Tim for short, 28 years old. I am an Electrical Engineer and–"

"Personal hobby mo in life is to annoy people," pagtatapos ni Maia sa sasabihin ni Tim. Natawa na naman kami dahil sa diskusyon nilang dalawa. "Tsaka tinawa-tawanan mo yung pangalan ko, eh mas pangit naman yung sayo, Pata Tim!" dagdag ni Maia kaya hindi na talaga kami natigil kakatawa.

Nagkatitigan ng masama ang dalawa at hindi na nagpansinan nang makabalik si Tim sa upuan niya.

Ang sumunod na nagpakilala ay yung mataray na babae. Her name is Natasha and she is a Medical Technologist. Just looking at her, alam mo na talagang sobrang sungit at taray niya. No one even bothered to ask her anything kaya alam mong intimidated talaga kami sa kanya.

The next person to introduce was a guy named Maverick. He is an Aircraft Mechanic and same with me, he graduated Aeronautical Engineering. Before he went back to his seat, I was shocked when he smiled and winked at me. I don't want to assume that I was the one he winked at but Maia noticed it too and started teasing me.

I just shrugged it off. He does look handsome, I'll give him that but he's not my type.

"And last but not the least. Please introduce yourself," River told the guy who I bumped into.

He stood up and walked to the front. "My name is Skyler. I'm 29 years old and I am a Mechanical Engineer. I just want to let y'all know that there's only one thing I hate and that is stupidity," he said before looking at me.

I scoffed. Why can't he just move on? So annoying!

Nang makabalik na yung Skyler na yun sa upuan niya, sakto namang may mga pumasok na staff at naglagay ng isang malaking box sa table na nasa harapan nila River at Ridge.

"Ito ang gagamitin niyong suits habang nagtetrain kayo. Forget about the clothes that you brought because you can't wear them sa ngayon. These suits are the identical suits you'll be wearing inside the Skeld and since training niyo 'to, you have to get comfortable with these babies," sabi ni Ridge habang hawak-hawak ang isa sa mga suits namin.

"Yung maleta ko. Paano na skincare ko nito?" bulong ni Maia sa akin kaya natawa ako.

"Buti nga yun para makita namin yung totoo mong appearance na hindi kaaya-aya," sabi ni Tim kay Maia kaya hinampas siya nito.

"Mamimili kayo ng gusto niyong color at ireregister yun dito." River pointed at the clipboard next to the box. "We are doing this for identification para makilala niyo agad ang tao dahil sa color nila," River explained.

They let Emily choose hers first because she was the first to introduce herself a while ago. Pinili niya ang color yellow na suit.

Si Arone ang sumunod and he chose green.

Next up was Lisa and she chose purple.

Sir Ted was next and he chose brown.

Si Maia ang kasunod niya at pinili nito ang pink. Tuwang-tuwa pa siyang bumalik sa upuan at sinabi na medyo malungkot pa siya dahil baka walang pink pero meron pala.

I, then stood up and walked over to the table. Tinignan ko ang box at nakita ang remaining colors na black, white, lime, red, blue, orange, and cyan. Nakuha ng cyan yung attention ko kaya yun ang pinili ko. Kinuha ko ang limang suit na cyan and sinulat ang pangalan ko sa clipboard next to the color I chose.

Ang piniling color ni Tim ay white. Natasha chose red, Maverick chose black, and last but not the least, Skyler the jerk chose blue.

After choosing our suits , Ridge and River told us to change and so we did. We then got our tasks right after changing. I was assigned to the admin, office, and greenhouse. Venus announced through our earpieces that our tasks will multiply once people are starting to get eliminated.

River and Ridge toured us around before leaving us to do our respective tasks.

Hindi naman mahirap ang pinapagawa sa aming dalawa ni Maverick. We have the same task kasi pareho kaming graduate ng aeronautical engineering. Sa Skeld daw, ang magiging trabaho namin is inside the navigation.

Maia, Lisa, and Natasha are assigned in the medbay, Sir Ted and Emily are assigned in the laboratory, Arone and Skyler are assigned in the reactor, and Tim is assigned everywhere since he'll be the one to fix the wires and stuff concerning electricity.

"Sky, tara lunch," aya sa akin ni Maia nang daanan niya ako sa admin.

Tinigil ko muna yung ginagawa ko at sumunod sa kanya papuntang cafeteria.

Pagkarating namin sa cafeteria ay dumiretso na agad kami sa food chest na nakalagay doon. Mayroong dalawang food chests doon. One for the pouched food containing soup or preserved meat and one for the dehydrated food na kailangan namin i-rehydrate through the machine.

The drinks are found in the vending machine. Dehydrated din yun pero marerehydrate na siya ng vending machine bago ibigay sayo. Ganito ang pagkain namin dito kasi kapag nasa Skeld na kami, hindi ganun kalakas ang gravity and we have to get used to these kind of foods.

Binuksan ko na yung dehydrated food chest. Maraming ulam ang nandoon. May adobo, afritada, curry, at marami pang iba na nakaseal sa pouch. Lahat yun ay may rice na.

"Ano bang masarap kainin?" Maia asked while scanning the chest.

"Mukhang masarap 'to," sabi ko na kinuha ang curry rice.

"Ito na lang sakin," sabi ni Maia at kinuha ang beef steak with rice.

Dumiretso na rin kami sa rehydrate machine na nasa gilid ng chests.

"Woah! Sinigang in a pouch? Is this true stone?" Tim asked. Napatingin kami ni Maia sa kanya. Hindi namin namalayan na nandoon na pala siya.

"Anong 'is this true stone'?" takang tanong ni Maia.

"Totoo ba 'to?" Tim answered. Natawa ako habang napairap si Maia sa kacornyhan ni Tim. "May lugaw at champorado din! Breakfast ko kayo bukas," pagkausap niya sa pouched champorado at lugaw.

"Ang takaw talaga nitong Pata Tim na 'to. Isa lang daw pwede mo kunin per meal! Magtipid ka naman," sita ni Maia.

"Ang sungit talaga nitong kaibigan mo," bulong ni Tim sa akin. "Nasaan ba yung kanin dito?" tanong ni Tim.

Maia opened the dehydrated food chest and handed him the dehydrated rice.

"Bakit ganito? May space rice cooker ba dito?" tanong ni Tim nang makita niya yung inabot na rice ni Maia.

"Irerehydrate mo yan, tanga!" Binatukan ni Maia si Tim.

Napailing-iling na lang ako bago kinuha ang cyan tray ko na katabi ng rehydrate machine at naglakad papuntang table.

Each person has a colored tray like mine. It contains the utensils we need for eating. May scissors din para mabuksan namin yung pouches. May magnet yung tray kaya nagsistick yung utensils doon.

Ginupit ko na sa gitna yung pouch bago sinimulang kainin. Napatango-tango ako habang kumakain. It's not bad. Hindi siya sobrang sarap pero it's tolerable.

Naupo na si Tim at Maia sa tabi ko. Dala-dala na rin nila yung trays nila. Maia instantly opened hers and started eating. Si Tim naman ay nakatitig lang sa tray niya.

"Huy! Hindi ka mabubusog kapag nakatitig ka lang," sabi ni Maia kay Tim.

"Inaanalyze ko kasi kung paano siyang bubuksan," sagot ni Tim.

"Jusko ka!" inis na saad ni Maia bago kinuha ang tray ni Tim at binuksan para sa kanya yung pouches.

Napailing-iling ako. "So you really didn't read the handbook," sabi ko kay Tim.

"Nandun ba yun?" tanong niya sa akin.

"Oo! May mga video links pa nga doon!" Maia answered him before giving his tray back. "Kapag bubuksan mo yung mga rehydrated na pagkain, gugupitin mo ng pa-x yung gitna. Sa pouch naman, gugupitin mo sa gilid. Hindi mo pwede sabawan yung kanin kasi kung sa space yan, lulutang yung sabaw bago mo pa malipat sa kanin," Maia explained.

"Bakit ba kasi walang orientation?" Tim whispered to himself before eating.

"They want us to learn all of these by ourselves. They gave the booklet and video links for us to get a grasp of what we're about to do because they won't be here to teach us how to do things," I answered him.

"Bakit ba kasi hindi mo binasa? Loko-loko ka talaga," sita ni Maia.

"Eww! What the fuck is this?! I am not eating that shit! Kadiri!" rinig naming sigaw. Pare-pareho kaming napalingon at nakita namin si Natasha na diring-diring nakatingin sa mga pagkain sa chests.

"Ang arte talaga nitong red princess na 'to. Kanina pa yan! Bwisit kasama," sabi ni Maia habang umiiling-iling pa.

"Eh, may mga video cameras ba dito? Televised ba 'to?" tanong ni Tim sa akin, completely ignoring Natasha's screams.

"Nope." I shook my head. "Wala rin daw security cameras dahil kailangan natin maging observant sa mga taong gumagawa talaga ng tasks nila," sagot ko.

"Sayang naman! Akala ko televised dahil may media sa labas." He sighed.

"Ano bang ipinunta mo talaga dito? Gusto mo ba talaga maging astronaut o gusto mo mag-artista? I-eeliminate talaga kita," sabi ni Maia.

"Gusto ko maging astronaut, syempre pero kapag maaga ako na-eliminate, may backup plan pa ako ng pag-aartista. Sa pogi kong 'to, pag-aagawan ako ng mga networks," pagyayabang ni Tim.

Natawa na lang ako. "Ang hangin mong ambisyoso ka!" sigaw ni Maia.

"Crush mo ako, condo unit. Aminin mo na kasing nagagwapuhan ka sakin," kontra ni Tim.

"Yuck! Mahiya ka nga sa sarili mo, Pata Tim. Hindi ko ipagpapalit si Ridge miloves, 'no!" Maia fired back.

"Kanina mo lang nakilala, mahal mo na agad?"

"Oo! May problema ka?"

"Kung matapang ka, sabihin mo nga kay Venus na mahal mo si Ridge," panghahamon ni Tim.

"Sige ba," Maia said before pressing her on-mic button.

"Maia, don't do it! What the hell!" I exclaimed, trying to turn the button off.

"Venus, mahal na mahal ko si Ridge," sabi niya habang nakatingin kay Tim at nakahawak sa dalawang kamay ko.

Natawa si Tim. "Bakit?" tanong ni Maia.

"Pinatay ni Sky yung mic mo," Tim answered.

"Sky! Ba't mo ginawa yun?" inis na tanong ni Maia bago binitawan ang mga kamay ko.

"Don't do things you'll regret later on," I told her before I continued eating my lunch.

Itinuloy na rin nila ang pagkain matapos nun. Nang pare-pareho kaming matapos, pinunasan na namin yung utensils namin bago ibalik sa tray at tinapon na rin namin yung food pouches. Kumuha rin kami ng drink sa vending machine at ininom. Nag-away na naman si Maia at Tim dahil hindi alam ni Tim yung right use nung straw.

The straws we use for drinking are different than normal straws. We have to clump it after taking a sip. Leaving it open will cause the liquid to float because of the lack of gravity in space.

Napadaan si Skyler sa harapan namin. Naalala ko na medyo may alitan kami kaya nilapitan ko siya para makipag-ayos. I don't want to have enemies as much as possible.

"Hey, Skyler. I'm really sorry for what happened earlier. I hope we can put all of this behind us," I said before extending my hand for him to shake and call it quits.

I scoffed when he just ignored me and walked away. "Ako na nga 'tong nag-sosorry, eh! He should be the one saying sorry to me because he called me stupid lots of times! Asshole!"

"Woah! Easy there, Cap! Hayaan mo na yan si Skyler. Mainit ulo niyan kasi hindi gumagawa ng tasks si Arone," someone said from behind. I turned around and saw Maverick.

"From the tone of your voice, it seems like you have known Skyler for a long time now," puna ko.

Napailing-iling siya habang nakangiti. "Skyler Valencia. The loner nerd nung high school. He doesn't have friends before dahil natataasan kami sa kanya at hindi rin naman siya nakikipag-interact gaano. Napakatalino niyan. Nakakagulat ngang hindi pa lumulobo yung ulo niya dahil sa daming laman ng utak niya," kwento ni Maverick.

"Alam mo ba kung paano makikipagbati sa kanya?"

"No pero try giving him apple juice as a peace offering. Palagi niyang iniinom nung high school yun so I assume it's his favorite," sagot niya.

"Okay."

"Ano bang nangyari?" tanong niya.

Mahina akong natawa. "It's nothing serious. It's actually so stupid but anyways, we won't talk about that," I told him before walking back to our station.

"Huy, Skyzea! Dali na! Kwento mo na!" pamimilit niya na hinabol ako.

"I can't tell you because it's really shallow, sorry," sabi ko kaya napasimangot siya. Tinawanan ko na lang siya bago ginawa ang natitira ko pang task.

★・★・★

"Uh, here." I handed Skyler the rehydrated apple juice from the vending machine.

Kakatapos lang naming lahat magdinner and anytime, sasabihin ni Venus na magdiscuss kami kung sino ang tatanggalin sa first elimination night.

"Thanks," Skyler said, grabbing it.

"So are we good?" I asked, a bit of hesitation evident in my tone.

He thought for a while before nodding and walking away. I smiled to myself. Thanks, Maverick!

"Ba't mo binigyan si Mr. Sungit ng juice?" Maia asked when I sat beside her on the meeting table.

"Peace offering," I answered. "Dapat nga siya mag-sorry sa akin for calling me stupid pero nevermind. Ayoko lang talaga ng kaaway," I added.

"Gusto ko rin ng juice, Sky. Kuha mo ako," utos sa akin ni Tim.

Tinignan ko siya ng masama. "You get your own juice. Ano ako? Katulong?"

"Sungit naman," bulong niya bago tumayo at naglakad papunta sa vending machine.

"Good evening, Trainees!" bati ni Venus mula sa earpieces namin. "Welcome to the first elimination night. I hope all of you did accomplished your tasks and observed your crewmates well. I'll be giving you five minutes to discuss who to eliminate then after that, tap on the color of his/her suit in the tablet," she explained and all of us were amazed when tablets popped out of the meeting table.

"Your five minutes starts now," she announced.

"Sino i-eeliminate?" tanong ni Tim na kakabalik lang.

"Ako," Arone proudly answered.

Taka namin siyang tinignan. "Sigurado kang gusto mong matanggal?" Sir Ted asked him.

"Hindi ko naman kasi ginusto makasali sa stupid program na 'to. My dad just forced me to do this and I want out. I'm happy being a Mechanical Engineer kaya I don't know why he pushed me to apply here and become an astronaut." He shook his head. "Vote for me, please. I'll be voting for myself as well," he begged.

All of us nodded before looking at our tablets. May konting time pa na natitira bago magbukas ang voting at nang magbukas yun ay pinindot namin ang green color with Arone's name on it.

"All of you voted for Arone. Are you sure about this decision?" Venus asked and one by one we opened our microphones to answer yes.

"Arone, please proceed to the launch pad, " Venus instructed.

Arone proudly stood up and thanked all of us before running to the launch pad. The tablets that we used for voting was kept inside the meeting table.

"Sayang naman yung slot niya. Sana binigay niya na lang sa iba kung ayaw rin naman niya," Maia whispered and I agreed.

"Trainees, you can proceed to your quarters now. Get some rest and wake up early to get your new set of tasks," Venus told us.

Nagsitayuan na ang lahat at nagpunta sa kanya-kanyang sleeping quarters. There are two sleeping quarters here. One for the men and one for the women. May kaniya-kaniya na rin yun na bathroom stalls where we can use the toilet or shower.

While walking to our quarters, we saw Emily struggling to walk. Mukha siyang nahihilo at anytime parang babagsak na siya.

"Are you okay?" I asked, holding her hand.

"Yes. Masama lang ang pakiramdam ko, but I'll be okay." She coughed.

"Gurl, namumutla ka na. Sumama ka muna sa akin sa medbay para mabigyan ka ng gamot," Maia said.

"No, I'll be fine, I swear. Thank you," she said before getting out of my grasp and walking in the female quarters.

"Kapag masama pa rin pakiramdam niya kinabukasan, ipa-eliminate natin siya," Maia told me.

"Huwag! Maybe she really wants to be retained na kahit magkasakit siya ay wala na siyang pakialam," I told her.

"Ah, basta! Dapat matuto siyang alagaan sarili niya," sabi ni Maia bago nangunang maglakad papasok ng quarters.

Napailing-iling na lang ako bago sumunod at pumasok na rin doon.

★・★・★

"Oh, my God! Emily!" I heard someone yell, awakening me from my sleep.

Kinusot ko ang mata ko bago naupo ng maayos.

"What's going on?" I asked but no one answered. Binuksan ko nang maayos ang mata ko at nagising ang diwa ko nang makitang inaalog-alog ni Lisa si Emily na putlang-putla na ngayon.

Agad akong napatayo at napalapit sa kanila.

"Anong nangyari?" tanong ko.

"Hindi ko alam. Nagising na lang ako nung narinig ko siyang umuubo galing sa CR," Lisa answered.

"We should call Venus. It's full of blood here. Disgusting," Natasha said. Tinignan namin siya ng masama.

Siya pa talaga ang nandiri! Coming from a Licensed Medtech. Tsk!

"Oh, my God!" I exclaimed when Maia rolled up Emily's sleeve, exposing her arm. Ang nakakagulat doon ay naging color black yung veins niya. It is very evident because of her now pale skin.

"Shit! Anong nangyari?" Maia said before checking her pulse. "Wala akong maramdaman."

Lumuhod ako at kinapa ang pulso niya sa may leeg at sa wrist.

"Ano?" tanong ni Maia. I shook my head as a response.

Maia then gave her CPR. She's been doing that for a while and then feeling her pulse kung may response pero wala.

"This can't be!" Lisa said, tearing up. Napaupo ako at natulala. Maia took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"Venus," Natasha said, making the three of us look at her. "There has been an incident," she said, biting her nails.

"It's about Emily. She's uhmm..." Her hands were trembling while looking at Emily.

She took a deep breath before saying, "Emily is... dead."

A/N: Ito yung itsura nung food tray nila if y'all are wondering

Ito naman yung drinks