Chev sat upright at the bar beside a brute of a man who hunched over an empty glass. Few patrons remained at this late hour, and the android bartender cleared a table in the corner.

 

The man spoke to Chev without looking up from his glass. “And that’s when it… just kind of happened.”

 

Chev heard the familiar whirring in his head as he pretended to wipe sweat from his eyebrow. An almost imperceptible glow lit his right iris.

 

The man continued. “I hit him and he crumpled to the floor. I didn’t know what else to do, so I just left him and ran.”

 

He shook his head as if only now aware of his surroundings. “I have to go,” he said and rushed out.

 

Chev wiped his eyebrow again, and the whirring stopped. “Be free, friend,” he said to himself as he watched the man stumble away. Then he followed him into the night.

 

* * *

 

Chev walked out of the arched entrance of the Maltris City Precinct, bounty reward in hand. It was his fifth so far. He was pushing his luck staying in one place for so long. Yet he sensed the city had one more confession to give him — maybe two. After that, he would slip out of orbit and start fresh.

 

He loved a clean slate. Both for himself and for those he freed. A mind unburdened by guilt was, in his view, the greatest freedom one could find. And the pay wasn’t bad either. This was Chev’s calling, his ministry. And he never took days off.

 

* * *

 

Back at the docks, Chev walked to the door of his orbital cruiser which slid open with a dull thunk. Before he could make it inside, he heard a raspy voice call out from behind, “You’re lookin’ like you could use some help with all that money! Hire me for whatever it is you’re doin’ and I’ll make it worth your while!”

 

Chev turned to look at the scrawny man. “What’s your name?”

 

“Paun.”

 

“Paun, you won’t like this job. It’s hard, lonely work.”

 

“Lonely, I can do! Teach me the hard part.”

 

Chev looked him up and down as he considered the offer, and a new plan formed. “Let’s start at the high dock casinos,” he said.

 

A smile grew across Paun’s face, and they marched off side by side.

 

* * *

 

Hours later, Chev and Paun returned from the casino dragging a small, greasy man who screamed and railed against them. He pounded on the glass cell after they locked him inside, and a green gas wafted onto him from above.

 

“How’d you know he did it?” Paun marveled.

 

“I didn’t,” Chev said.

 

“As in, you weren’t sure?” Paun asked.

 

“As in, I didn’t know about the crime at all. I knew he needed to confess something. So I listened.” Chev replied.

 

They watched as the gas filled the cell and the prisoner collapsed to the ground.

 

“So you let ‘em jabber on until they confess to somethin’! Genius!” Paun exclaimed. “How do you prove it in court?”

 

“The Maltris court?” Chev scoffed. “They just need someone to take the fall.”

 

“Okay, but how do you get paid? There’s no bounty on him,” Paun pressed.

 

Chev smiled. “You’ll see in the morning.”

 

* * *

 

Chev, once again, walked out of the precinct, this time with Paun in tow.

 

“Now what? All you did was report a tip!” Paun said.

 

“I’ll get paid once it leads to an arrest.” Chev asserted.

 

“But how will they find the guy if you already have him?” Paun asked.

 

“Keep your voice down,” Chev hissed. “I planted clues that will lead to him. They’ll post the bounty. I’ll wait a week. Then bring him in.”

 

Paun’s eyes widened with understanding and desire. “That is diabolical.”

 

* * *

 

“You ever think of throwin’ in the towel? I could run the business for ya. You’d get a cut, of course," Paun said to Chev a couple of weeks later. They sat at the ship’s dining table, sipping on dark liquor and taking in the view of the sparkling skyline of Maltris. A cool breeze sifted through the open doors of the cruiser. “I’m sure you don’t even need the money at this point.”

 

Chev only chuckled. Paun continued. “I’ve tried lots of hustles but nothing as clever as this,” he said as he took a long swill from his glass. “I’ve tried rigging dog fights at the low docks. ‘Currency exchange assistance’ at the high docks.”

 

His stare glazed over, trance-like, as he reflected. “The only good money I ever made was transporting a Beclid kid to some rich snobs uptown through the black market. And they didn’t even tip us.” He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand leaving a glossy smear across his cheek. “The kid's parents sold him so cheap, I figure he was a terror, ya know? Maybe this would teach him a lesson. Hard labor always makes their kind more sensible.”

 

Paun’s gaze returned to the spaceship. He looked over at Chev who was leaning in and watching him intensely, his right eye glowing slightly.

 

Realization dawned on Paun.

 

Chev flipped the switch on the console beside him, closing the exit. The dull thump of the doors echoed in Paun’s ears like a gavel.

 

“Wait! It wasn’t like that! You…” the words stuck in his throat as he looked down at the empty glass in his hand. “You tricked me! No one else even knew! I’m SORRY! I’LL NEVER DO IT AG—”

 

His words were lost as Chev released a magnetic sheet from the ceiling. It clanged metalically on the ground and stuck in place, pinning Paun to the floor.

 

“You said you wanted to learn the hard part, friend,” Chev replied. He wiped his eyebrow, and a video appeared on the console screen with Paun’s face at the center. His confession played on repeat over the loudspeaker. “I hope you’re taking notes.”