“Why have we stopped?” Phovos asked as she peered through the window. Outside was a very small planetoid, covered in pink grass, which the ship was currently anchored to. Aside from the grass though, there was little else to see, just the odd patch of dirt, and a couple of puddles. Amazingly, there was also a small atmosphere around the planetoid. Just enough nitrogen and oxygen for the grass.
“I feel like we need a break…” Tenuk shrugged. He pressed several buttons and the ship came to a halt, anchoring on the island.
“What sort of break though?” Phovos was still a bit confused. “Are we not going to head back to the oasis?”
“That place doesn’t feel like a break. Everyone just asks us what we’ve been doing and we can’t get some nice, quiet time. I saw this place and thought we could do something nice.”
Tenuk got up from his seat, satisfied that the ship was anchored, then made his way out of the cockpit and down the main hallway, towards the kitchen. His path however was blocked by Retvik.
“We are not moving.”
“Yeah.”
“Why are we not moving?”
Tenuk squeezed past Retvik and skipped into the kitchen. “We need a break. Just the four of us. Doing a little thing together, in a small, peaceful place.”
“Can we not do that while we travel?” Retvik grunted. “We were heading back to Kinigi already.”
“Apparently Tenuk doesn’t think it’s a break,” Phovos interrupted. “We do kinda get hassled a lot while we try to relax.”
“He’s right!” Elksi burst in, carrying a pile of wooden skewers. “That’s why we’re gonna go outside! A picnic on a planet!”
“Not just a picnic, a little campfire too!” Tenuk smiled. “Have you ever had a s’more before, mister Flamebearer?”
Retvik blinked, looking rather blank. “A s’more?”
“Yes, a s’more.”
“Uh, I do not believe I have had a… a s’more before… Is it some sort of food item?”
“Yep. Melt a marshmallow over a fire then stick it between two biscuits. Preferably biscuits that have chocolate on one side. They’re amaaaaazing.”
“That does sound nice…” Retvik shrugged. “But do you not-”
“We need a break from the ship too, Retvik!” Tenuk tutted. “Let’s just go outside, on that little grassy rock, have ourselves a campfire and melt candy over it, while we all have a nice mug of hot chocolate. That’s what I want to do. If you want to stay in here and burn stuff, that’s up to you. But Elksi and I are going to have a picnic and there’s nothing you can do to stop us.”
The hulking Rethan shrugged some more. “Very well. May Phovos and I join you at your campfire?”
Tenuk smiled. “Of course.”
“Do you want me to set up the campfire?”
“That would be splendid! Head outside, pick a nice space, then fire away!” Tenuk beamed, then turned his attention to Phovos. “Do you want to help Elksi grab some picnic stuff? Maybe some little sausages or something?”
“I… I guess. Is there anything in particular you want?”
“Whatever tickles your fancy.”
Alright then!” Phovos let loose a small smile, then disappeared into the kitchen, where Elksi was already making a mess.
With everyone on board, Tenuk couldn’t help but smile. “This picnic is going to be a blast!”