The escape pod rattled like a tin can in a hurricane. I gritted my teeth and held on to the armrests, hoping I wasn’t about to get pancaked against the nearest space rock.

  After what felt like an eternity—probably less than a minute—the violent shaking stopped, and the pod's emergency thrusters kicked in, slowing me down. I took a deep breath, heart still hammering, and looked out the tiny window.

  Stars. A lot of stars. And no Earth in sight.

  I let out a long sigh. Well, that’s just perfect.

  A crackling sound came from somewhere in the pod, followed by a high-pitched voice. “Human! Respond!”

  I blinked. “Uh, who’s asking?”

  More crackling. Then, a deep, gravelly voice that sounded way less friendly: “You have caused severe damages to a legally registered academic vessel. By Galactic Code 473.2, you are now financially responsible for all repairs.”

  I stared at the speaker. “...Excuse me?”

  A new voice, frantic and all too familiar, cut in. “Don’t let him escape! I still need to study him!”

  Oh, great. The scientist.

  I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Look, guys, I don’t know what kind of space law you’re talking about, but I was kidnapped first. I don’t owe you anything.”

  Silence. Then some hurried whispering I couldn’t make out.

  The first voice—gravelly guy—spoke again. “By escaping unlawfully, you have caused the following damages: one (1) breached containment unit, one (1) destroyed security door, one (1) unauthorized launch of emergency equipment, and—”

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  “And he powered down the ship!” the scientist wailed.

  I groaned. “That was an accident.”

  “Regardless, you now owe a debt equivalent to...” More whispering. Some frantic button-pressing. “...Approximately 86,000 Galactic Credits.”

  I had no idea what that meant. It could’ve been the price of a cheeseburger or an entire planet. But considering their tone, I was guessing closer to the planet.

  “Yeah, I’m not paying that,” I said.

  More silence. Then gravelly guy sighed, like this was the last thing he wanted to deal with today. “Then you will work to repay it.”

  I blinked. “I—what?”

  The scientist’s voice came back, way too enthusiastic. “Yes! He can assist with ship repairs! Maybe even… additional testing!”

  I scowled. “Nope. Not doing that. You’re not poking and prodding me like some kind of alien science project.”

  “Then do manual labor. Or find another way to pay. But you are not getting a ride home until your debt is repaid.”

  I opened my mouth to argue, but—yeah, I had nothing. My brilliant escape had landed me in even more trouble. Fantastic.

  “Fine,” I muttered. “What exactly do I have to do?”

  The whispering started up again. Then the scientist cleared his throat. “First, return to the ship. I have so many questions!”

  I rolled my eyes. Yeah, not happening.

  The pod beeped, and suddenly, the ship’s lights flickered through the window. They’d locked onto me.

  I sighed, slumping back in the seat. “Great. Kidnapped again.”

  The scientist chirped, “Welcome back!”

  I was really starting to hate that guy.