[Verse 1] Spook sat down at the comm board And accessed the long range From the way Stingray reacted He had guessed he’d hit something strange Reefer was a relative or something Someone gone, somebody dead Hunter said he’d been military You could see it in the stare he bred [Verse 2] Even through the drunk he carried That thousand‑meter glare The kind all infantrymen acquire From too much time out there For the first time since he’d signed on With the ship called Seven Wishes Spook would tap the agency’s heart Go fishing through its files and glitches [Chorus] Backdoors in the system Ghosts in every line Looking for a name that History left behind Who is Mister Stingray? What’s he trying to hide? Answers in the databanks And losses at his side [Verse 3] If his backdoors had been stripped out Closed and swept away He’d have to find another route To learn who Stingray was that day “Busy?” came a voice behind him Floating in the air Spook turned and saw that Jesse Was leaning in the doorway there [Verse 4] “Not really,” Spook replied and Sent the quiet request Then turned back again to Jesse With a shrug across his chest “Just some research on our new man On the crewmate we just scored.” “Who is he?” she asked, half‑absent, “Looked like a millworker to me aboard.” [Verse 5] On the settlement Jesse hailed from Millworkers pulled the least pay The lowest rung of all the labor Or so Spook heard her say So “millworker” had turned to slang For any back‑alley lowlife Though the real ones on New Spain Wore it proud, a badge from strife [Verse 6] Spook just smiled at how she used it At the weight behind the word “We won’t know for sure for a while,” he said, “’Til the system’s finished, undisturbed.” “But he was once a kind of soldier And if I’m reading him right He’s seen more than just a skirmish He’s an old hand at the fight.” [Verse 7] “Looked like an experienced Bottle veteran.” Jesse shot back dry “That sometimes happens to people,” he said, “When they’ve watched friends bleed and die.” Spook’s voice dropped low and quiet As he pushed back from his seat He let the terminal keep humming And rose up to his feet [Chorus] Backdoors in the system Ghosts in every line Looking for a name that History left behind Who is Mister Stingray? What’s he trying to hide? Answers in the databanks And losses at his side [Verse 8] “That’s what war can make you When the killing never ends,” He let the final words fall soft, The way they do for fallen friends Then, shaking off the silence, He changed the subject wholly, “Anything that’s still edible Waiting in the galley?”
