He had spent most the day in the bar and not because he wanted to kick back and do nothing. No, Oliver, or Ollie as he likes to be called, had to do some intel gathering. He had been trapped on his hellhole for too long and had found little to no means of leaving. Growing despite, he decided it was time to start listening to the gibberish spewed by drunken fools. Even if it was all lies, somewhere there had to be a grain of truth. And, with any luck, he could begin to weave together the stories, bit by bit, to find what he sought.

A new face came into the bar and instantly started getting chatty with one of the local jerks. With a casual eye roll, Ollie thought about interjecting that it was futile to argue with the old coot, but the guy seemed to be fairing well. His inward thinking told him there was no point in getting involved in business that didn't pertain to him. Besides, it was easier to collect facts when you weren't getting spit on or threats tossed your way.

The man with the dark green eyes firmly believed that this "Utopia" place was real. It caused Ollie to cock a brow and lean in just a bit more. He wanted to ask questions but, again, he knew it was unwise. The folk here were always on edge and, thus far, they hadn't been too mean to him. Then away, who would willingly pick a fight with a man who's missing two fingers and has a body littered with scars. Okay, okay so maybe the military gear weapons strapped to his back were good enough reason to not fuck with the guy. Either way, Ollie avoided pissing them off so they avoided getting a bullet to the brain.

Noting the the beer was nearly polished off, Ollie rose and dropped a pretty quarter on the bar. "Thanks, Max." With a head nod, he moved toward the door but was interrupted by a pair of large almond eyes.

"Mister, mister!" The kid's snotty hands reached for his hand. "Mama says if da raiders come ta'night, you'll protect us. Right?"

"Raiders?" Ollie did a 180 to stare down Max.

"Yeah, on the nights of the full moon, the thugs from Rockethell come over and try to rough the place up. They tend to steal our women. His ma is a damn fine woman. Would be a real shame to lose the only beauty in town."

Another woman, overhearing the conversation, let out a grumble. "Yeah, there are other women, ya know."

Ollie shook his head and returned his attention to the kid. "Sure. If the raiders come, I'll send them running." Tapping the sniper rifle slung around his back, he smirked before rustling the kid's hair. "Now why don't you run home. A bar's no place for a kid."

Not wanting to draw any more attention to himself, Ollie ducked out the door and made a bee-line for one of the posts near the B&B. It was a piss-poor attempt at a bed and breakfast. They served week old eggs, stale bread, and piss-flavored coffee. And the beds? Ha, a rock would be softer than those literal sheets of steel!

Having a hunch that the new guy, Phil, would come this way for a bite to eat and place to rest, Ollie just waited. Eyes fixed on the glowing full moon that illuminated the entire area, the space marine let his mind dream about returning home. Oh what he would give to be back in space. Earth, it was a complete waste. It was time they cut their losses and continue expanding across the galaxy. Neither Mars nor the moon would be enough to house all of humanity. They needed more and Ollie was raring to get back into that action of space exploration.