"Josh Taylor, the manager would like to see you in his office."

Everyone on the factory floor stopped working for just a second after the announcement, all glancing round to see the reaction on the chosen one's face. It was the same every time someone was called into the office, even for something small. There was always the chance that something big was going down, something to fuel the gossip mills for a while.

Josh Taylor was a taller than average, but not huge, strong but not grotesquely muscled, not quite blond, not quite brown haired man. Even he admitted to being as nondescript as he could be. From his blue-grey eyes to his size 10 feet, he blended well, working hard during the day, and returning home to his wife in the evenings in their single bedroom flat on the 87th floor of one of the many high rise blocks in the downtown district.

The one thing that was remarkable about him, in his opinion, was his wife. Carly Taylor had been his childhood sweetheart, he married her exactly one year after graduation in a small but spectacular ceremony with his family and hers in attendance. It was a year after they got married that they moved to the main city on Spirax 4 for Josh to get a job working with warp drive engines.

Josh unplugged his monitor and hung the cord on its hook next to the screen. He closed the flap on his worksuit, covering the implanted port in his side – a safety precaution necessary for working with potentially hazardous materials that tracked the level of radioactivity in his body tissues and organs. Personally he hated it, hating any need to visit company medical and the port needed maintenance every month. The last one, three and a half weeks ago, had ended up with him in a panic attack, leading them to knock him out. When he woke up, his wife had been called in to help calm him and take him home. The next day he had been given off work and he spent the time confused and disoriented. He'd even forgotten where the bathroom was in his own home!

At least this is a five week month. Josh nodded at his workmates as he passed them, heading for the edge of the large workshop and to the metal stair case to the main office. The workshop was a huge open plan expanse with various sections that worked on different aspects of warp drive technology. It was a private company run, meaning that the wages were minimal and the work hours were long but it kept Josh busy and paid his bills.

He knocked on the metal door, standing smartly outside till he heard a command to come in. He resented authority, but knew how he was supposed to act in front of them. Only occasionally did he react naturally, usually leading to him being reprimanded and removed from the workshop to the labour suit where he would work on the conveyor. He hated the conveyor and its monotonous repetition of building the same part over and over before it moved on to the next zombie worker to do the next one. It was a job for the brain dead, whether they were born that way or whacked out from a chemical overload or bad high at some point. It was the exact punishment to keep Josh in line. Well most of the time. It had sucked the first time he had to do it, and it sucked the last time, two weeks ago. He even got drooled on by a "co-worker".

As he entered the room he snapped his posture straight and looked ahead, feet together, hands at his sides.

"At ease man, this isn't Starfleet. God you really are a weirdo like they said you would be."

McNealis had taken over for Josh's old boss three and a half weeks ago, Josh had come back from his medical leave to find his aging boss who had been estranged from his workforce for years, replaced by a younger, eviler man. Slicked back pale blond hair, perfect skin that had barely seen solar light thanks to his biodome upbringing, and a tall frame with overly broad shoulder that didn't suit the body. Josh knew they were artificially built, no –one can build specific sections of their body too that extreme. The fact that the man had kept his slim neck was the real proof that the shoulders were an aesthetic.

And he hated Josh Taylor; for ever calling him up to the office for no reason other than to belittle him and his crew. Josh was working with a new crew for the past three and a half weeks as well but they got along really well, and Josh didn't like someone putting people down just to make themselves feel better.

"So, Mr Taylor. Report please? Why is your crew working below their estimated schedule?"

"Sir, my crew has broken their targets for the last week and a half. What schedule are you referring to?"

"My schedule, the one that says you and your crew should have finished the current project yesterday."

"The current project was started yesterday sir, with a three day target for completion. The paperwork is at my station if you would like to check it sir."

Josh risked a glance at his superior and could see the dark eyes filled with anger at his argument.

"You will work to the schedule I provide, and I say that you must finish this project today, not matter what, or you any your pathetic crew will find yourselves on conveyor for a month!"

"Yes sir, we will complete the project as your order, may I be excused sir?"

McNealis stalked over to his subordinate, looming over him slightly. "You know Taylor, accidents happen, I would hate for you to be responsible for an accident that could wipe out your entire crew, I mean it is a dangerous environment. You need to take a bit more care with the way you speak to your betters."

Josh took the following silence to be a dismissal and he about turned and swiftly left the office. Closing, not slamming, no matter how good it would feel, the door after him, Josh stopped to take a deep breath for a second. He could feel the eyes of the nearby workers burning into him, all desperate for information. Another reason McNealis hated him, the rest of the workers like him. Even some of the ones he'd only know for a couple of weeks. It's amazing that you can work on the same workshop floor for two years and still have to introduce yourself to people.

He trotted down the stairs and headed over to his section. He spotted the red hair of his youngest crew mate first, the lad always on lookout then Josh was called to the office. "Hey Callum, can you grab the guys please, I need to speak to you all." The young red head nodded and darted off in search of the other four.

Josh had taken a leadership role in his crew, not officially, McNealis would never let that happen, but he led the jobs and looked out for them all.

They filtered round the central desk, eyes on their workmate perched on its edge. Natalie, the systems analyst came close first, and checked him over by sight. It wouldn't have been the first time that the boss had got heavy handed with an employee and she was worried Josh had received similar treatment. Not seeing any evidence, she backed off and joined the others in a rough semi-circle round the table. The workshop was filled with random sparks and noises, not exactly conclusive to a private chat but the noise would at lease cover anything they said.

Josh cast his eyes over the ones on front of him, Natalie, with her curly dark hair and terse scowl stood next to Josh's best friend Scott Matthews. They'd been friends for ever to the point that Carly, his wife, had moments of irrational jealousy with the amount of time they spent together, like it was a competition for his affection. Josh had got him a job on the workshop floor after Scott's wife left him, and the planet. Harry and Leon, two older, more experienced grafters finished his group and rounded the younger enthusiasm out with cool heads and years of hands on knowledge.

"What did mini dick want today? Did you braid his hair or paint his nails?" Scott stood with his arms crossed and a large smirk on his face.

"His royal penis head has decided to move up the deadline for the project to today, and was put out when I questioned him. Look, if we don't get it done, we're all for the belt." Threat of the conveyor belt work wonders for all workshop staff. Josh knew that the belt was an ancient Terran punishment used on naughty school children to correct their behaviour. He'd take lashes with a leather belt to the modern incarnation, pain is tolerable.

The group disbanded, heading to their own part of the process to double their efforts. Natalie had grabbed her PADD and was uploading the latest sequence of code into the main dock while Callum dangled over the top, bolting down a few more panels. Josh grabbed his monitor cable and plugged himself in, watching as his vital stats were displayed over the screen. Heart rate elevated, blood pressure elevated, no shit. He squeezed past the vibrating coils to work his way into the glowing bank of drive core. He had three conduits to align, and feedback to compensate for and he had a third of the time to do it in. He pulled his goggles up to his eyes, the bright blue of the coils surrounding him already going for his retinas. He liked the colour of the coils, reminded him of a bright cloudless sky, and of enthusiasm and laughter. There was an image of a man, in the depth of his memories, pushing its way through blackness, a man with bright blue eyes, not blond but not brown hair and a smile on his face. His face was familiar, and very like Josh's own, so much so that it had to be a long lost relation that he'd seen an image of as a youth, eyes standing out so much that the bright coils could dredge it up. The thoughts were making Josh's head hurt, or it could be the radiation surrounding him and the bright lights, even through the thermal goggles. Josh pushed all distractions away, thrusting the image away from him. His family were round him right now, working hard to keep themselves away from the belt. He could do no less.

iiiiiiiiiiii

Josh stood on the transport, barely able to remain upright. He clung to the black pole at his side, using it to balance out the forces trying to draw him down as the tube shuttled between stops. At this time there were even seats available but Josh knew he would succumb to unconsciousness to easily and this particular tube terminated in a place he did not want to go. The tubes no longer had drivers, or staff of any kind which meant you were on your own if you got into trouble. He could see himself waking up on the streets of the slums, naked with all his credits gone. Or possibly not waking up at all.

He heard the chiming sound of an approaching station and attempted to wake up a bit more, knowing he still had a walk ahead of him. An hour more at work and it wouldn't have been any point in going home. As it was he'd only get two hours sleep but he wanted to hold his wife, to smell her hair and feel her warm body pressed against him.

He slumped off the train and moved with the small crowd towards the exit. Once on the street, the artificial lighting was still set at night, the dome over the city blocking out any natural light from the surrounding stars. Only the small towns on the planet allowed the solar light to touch them, drawing energy in smaller ways to power their needs. The dome not only protected the inhabitants but it collected the energy from the rays meaning the city could live more prosperously.

Josh finally hit his block, rounding to his building as the air above him started to lighten signifying false dawn. He walked up the three steps to the front door, stumbling slightly before pressing his thumb to the panel at the side. The doors slid open and he made it to the lift without effort. The ride only took seconds and he was soon pressing his thumb to the panel outside his own door.

The room was in darkness as he entered, cooking smells still evident in the air. Josh walked past the kitchenette at the side of the living area, and could see a full plate covered with vaccu-cling sitting at the side. He could reheat it quickly before he left but sleep was more important right now.

He carefully opened the door to the sleeping quarters and smiled at the sight on the bed. His nightlight was on, casting a warm glow over the bed and the wall behind it. Sprawled out in the centre of the bed, his wife still clutched her book, a vain attempt to stay awake for him. Pillows that had clearly been piled up behind her were spread around as she's searched for comfort once she'd fallen asleep. Josh toed off his protective boots and slung his tool belt and work suit over the metal chair in the corner. He'd been told off for leaving the dirty things on the carpet that they'd eventually got a easy to clean stand for them in the shape of an old café chair. He stepped into the refresher and gave himself a quick clean, hands, arms, face and neck before crawling into bed to coil around the woman there. He pulled her against his bare chest, circling her with his long arms. She aligned their bodies, pressing her hips into his groin and they breathed a deep sigh together. His next day off was in eight days, and they planned on leaving the city for a while, to see the bare sky for a while. Josh didn't like to leave the city, and hated getting a flying transport anywhere.

That was the reason he had gone to work for the company in the first place. He could have worked for Starfleet, he was good enough to be stationed on a starship of base, more than good enough but the company didn't really tax his skills anyway. But he was terrified of flying. The thought of leaving the atmosphere made him tremble. He couldn't remember the exact minute that the fear came into his life, he just knew it had always been there. Something telling him to never leave the planet. That he was safe here, with his wife and his job.

Safe maybe, fulfilled, definitely not.

The dream began as usual. Bright white lights streaming round the room. He was in the centre, on a white and black chair that was surprisingly comfortable. Sitting with his legs crossed and a smirk on his face he spoke to the people around him. Just like always, Josh couldn't make out what he was saying, like the sound was turned off. Two men in front of him were laughing at what he'd said and there was an older man, with a familiar face that made him smile, shaking his head as he stood of to the side. Two other figures were just behind him, a tall dark haired man and a dark skinned woman with long hair. The woman was the most beautiful he'd ever seen; that thought occurred to him every night and jarred with the voice telling him he was safe, and his wife was the most beautiful.

In the dream, the scene changed to a planet surface, and there was phaser fire landing all around. The dark haired man bled green blood, protecting the woman from the shots. She was firing her own, with deadly accuracy, while pressing one hand to the bleeding side of her companion. The older man with the kind smile was across from Josh, worry on his face as he looked at the injured man, just out of his reach. Josh said something, again unheard to the dreaming Josh, before standing up in his knees to provide enough covering fire to let his friend reach the pair. Josh felt a sting on his shoulder, and another on his side. Glancing to the left, he saw they'd been outflanked and were being sidelined by others, enemy soldier in green suits. Josh felt another sting to his neck, as another stunning shot hit him, and he gracelessly flopped to the ground. His eyes remained working after his body gave up and he saw the kind man struggling with the other pair to break free and run to his aid. He put his hand up to signify no, stay, before he was dragged off, eyes sliding shut.

Josh sat up in his bed, snapping awake as usual at the same point in the dream. Always ending as he got dragged off, leaving the nameless people screaming for him. Carly stirred, used to her husband's wake patterns so much that they didn't give her a fright anymore. After his panic attack, she had difficulty sleeping through them but she assured him that she was just worried for his health and things would go back to normal again.

Normal, Josh wasn't sure what that was anymore. His eyes had been so blue in the dream, as blue as the man in the image in his head earlier, as blue as the coils in the reactor.