The object was almost as large as the Rock. BoyChild had seen something in the shape that didn’t seem normal. It wasn’t until they were five hours out that his suspicion was justified. “That’s a ship, under all that.” GirlChild announced.

“I thought it was another Rock, an abandoned habitat, maybe.” BoyChild crowded into the monitor. She pushed him away a distance. Recent intimacy was no reason to hog her space. “I’m going to tell JonPaul.”

“I’m on open circuit. I can hear you. Tell me more.”

“It’s like a big…. thing.” A dark look from GirlChild shut BoyChild up.

“It’s about twenty measures shorter than the Rock. There’s asteroid accretion on the surface but you can see a metal skin below it. We haven’t managed to get any indications if it’s hollow or where there might be locks or entrances.”

“Have you tried messaging?”

“Well, erm, no.”

“Try it. I’ve heard of long dead hulks lighting up at a simple ‘hello’.”

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