The restaurant sat tucked into a corner of Old San Juan, its walls painted in warm yellows and terracotta that reminded Luca of places his grandmother had taken him back in Naples as a kid. Wrought-iron balconies overlooked the cobblestone street outside, and somewhere inside, a speaker played soft guitar music.

  Their first real recruitment meeting. Luca's pulse picked up as they approached the entrance. This was it. The beginning of building something bigger than seven friends on a ship.

  Emily had briefed them on the walk over, reading from Sabine's notes on her tablet. Carlos Mendez, level sixty, led a five-person team based out of San Juan. Strong combat record.

  What Sabine hadn't told Carlos, apparently, was who he'd be meeting tonight. The IFC had set up the dinner as a "recruitment opportunity discussion" without specifying which crew was doing the recruiting.

  Luca spotted them as soon as they walked in. Five people at a large table near the back, dressed sharply in guayaberas and pressed slacks. Older, but that was expected. They wouldn't all be their age range. Sabine had made that clear. These weren't scrappy adventurers fighting their way up from nothing. These were people who had money and influence.

  Carlos stood as they approached, a polite smile on his face that froze the moment he got a clear look at them.

  The recognition hit him visibly. His eyes went wide, darting from Luca to Emily to the rest of the crew, then back to Luca. His team noticed the shift and turned, and suddenly all five of them were staring with expressions that ranged from shock to barely-contained excitement.

  "You're..." Carlos started, then stopped. He cleared his throat, regaining his composure with visible effort. "You're the Triumph crew."

  Luca extended his hand, trying not to let his surprise show. He'd gotten used to being recognized in Washington, but something about Carlos's reaction felt different. More intense. "Luca Rossi. Thanks for meeting with us."

  Carlos shook his hand, his grip firm but his eyes still slightly too wide. "We thought... IFC said this was a recruitment discussion. We assumed it would be some regional coordinator." He let out a short laugh. "Not the people who flew to Alpha Centauri."

  "Surprise," Ryan said from behind Luca, and Emily elbowed him in the ribs.

  The introductions went around the table with a different energy than Luca had expected. Isabel, their tactical specialist, kept looking at him like she was checking to make sure he was real. Marco, their engineer, peppered Ryan with questions about the Triumph's drive systems before they'd even sat down. Sofia and David, both scientists, seemed more composed, but Luca caught them exchanging looks.

  All of them level sixty. Capped, like everyone else on Earth who'd pushed hard enough. Exactly what the Triumph needed.

  "Before we sit," Carlos said, pulling out his phone, "would you mind? A quick photo? It would mean a lot to our supporters."

  There it was. "We're keeping a low profile during the tour. No photos, sorry." Luca said.

  Carlos's smile flickered, just for a second, before he recovered. "Of course, of course. I understand completely." He pocketed the phone, but something in his eyes had shifted.

  As they settled into their seats, Luca noticed something else. The initial excitement was fading, replaced by a guardedness creeping back into their expressions. A politeness that felt more like a wall than a welcome.

  These people were impressed. But impressed wasn't the same as interested.

  Menus appeared. Luca barely glanced at his before ordering the mofongo, because that's what you ordered in Puerto Rico, or so Chris, their sudden expert in all things culture, had claimed.

  "So," Carlos said, folding his hands on the table. "You're looking for crew members. For the Triumph."

  "That's right." Luca leaned forward, feeling the familiar spark of excitement that came with talking about the mission. "We're expanding the crew significantly. Looking for skilled teams who want to be part of something historic. Survey work and exploration, pushing the boundaries of where humanity can go. It's the opportunity of a lifetime."

  "And the destination?" Carlos asked. "Back to Alpha Centauri?"

  "We're not revealing the destination at this time." Luca kept his voice even, matter-of-fact. Not evasive, just clear. "What we can tell you is that you'd be part of the crew, advancing your professional skills, and yes, breaking the level cap."

  Carlos nodded slowly. "And you've chosen to start your recruitment here. In Puerto Rico."

  "Your team came highly recommended," Emily said. "All level sixty with diverse skill sets and a strong combat record. You cleared three portal overflows in the last year alone. That kind of experience is exactly what we need."

  "We're flattered." Isabel's tone was neutral. "Truly. But I have to ask, what makes you think we'd want to leave?"

  The question hung in the air. Luca caught Zoe's eye, and she raised an eyebrow almost imperceptibly.

  "Well," Ryan jumped in, "for starters, there's the level cap. You're all stuck at sixty, right? We've found ways around that. Our whole crew is seventy-four now."

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  Marco's expression flickered with something that might have been interest. "Seventy-four? How?"

  "Higher level portals." Danny leaned forward. "The System rewards those who push themselves. Out there, we found challenges that don't exist on Earth. Tougher enemies, higher stakes. We gained fourteen levels in five months."

  Luca watched Carlos's face as his crew made their pitch. The man was listening, nodding in all the right places, but something wasn't connecting. His expression remained pleasant but distant, like someone being shown vacation photos from a place they had no intention of visiting.

  The food arrived. Luca's mofongo was perfect, crispy and garlicky, but he barely tasted it. He was too focused on the conversation, on trying to understand what they were missing.

  "Those are impressive benefits," Carlos said finally, setting down his fork. "But I think you need to understand our situation here."

  He gestured broadly, encompassing not just the restaurant but the city beyond its walls. "Puerto Rico is rebuilding. The portal overflows hit us hard, yes, but they also created opportunities. We're working with the local government on infrastructure projects. Lobbying for increased autonomy within the UER structure. Building something that could last for generations."

  "We've invested everything in this island," Isabel added. Her voice was calm and matter-of-fact. "Our credits, our time, our reputation. Walking away now would mean abandoning all of that."

  Carlos leaned forward, and Luca noted the shift in his posture. "But perhaps there's another way we could work together. You have connections with Director Stevens, with the IFC. Puerto Rico could use that kind of advocacy. Infrastructure funding, portal defense prioritization, maybe even a public endorsement of our autonomy initiative." He spread his hands, reasonable, persuasive. "A partnership that benefits everyone."

  Luca's stomach tightened. So that's what this was. Not a recruitment meeting. A networking opportunity. Carlos had probably agreed to this dinner hoping to shake hands with some IFC bureaucrat he could leverage, and instead he'd gotten the Triumph crew. A bigger prize, if he could figure out how to use it.

  "We're not here to make political deals," Emily said, her voice cool. "We're looking for crew members."

  "Of course." Carlos's smile didn't waver. "I'm just saying, there are many ways to collaborate."

  Luca felt something sink in his chest. He recognized that tone. It was the sound of people who'd already made up their minds.

  "But the level cap," Zoe tried, frustration slipping through despite her effort to hide it. "You're all going to watch the rest of the world pass you by?"

  Carlos smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "With respect, there's more to life than levels. We're making a difference here. Real, tangible change that we can see every day. That matters to us more than chasing higher skills."

  Luca thought about New Dawn, about the Varnathi vault, about the mission waiting for them four light-years away. All of it seemed so obvious to him. So clearly important. But sitting here, listening to Carlos talk about building a future for his island, Luca realized something uncomfortable.

  They didn't see it. Luca couldn't even say they were wrong.

  The conversation continued through dessert, through coffee... Chris tried to bridge the gap with talk of adventure and discovery. Ryan pushed the technical benefits. Danny explained the scientific opportunities in terms that made even Luca's eyes glaze over slightly.

  None of it landed.

  Carlos stood and extended his hand. "Thank you for the meal, Captain Rossi. And for considering us. What you're doing out there is remarkable. Truly. But our path lies here."

  Luca shook his hand, forcing a smile that felt hollow. "We understand. And we wish you the best with everything you're building."

  They filed out of the restaurant into the warm night air. The cobblestones gleamed under streetlights, and somewhere down the block, music spilled from an open doorway. Old San Juan was beautiful, Luca could admit that much.

  "Well," Zoe said once they were out of earshot. "That was a waste of time."

  "They were never going to say yes." Emily's voice was quiet. "You could see it in their faces from the start."

  Ryan kicked at a loose stone. "I don't get it. We offered them everything. Level cap breakthrough, TL9 equipment, the chance to make history. And they'd rather stay here and play politics?"

  "It's not that simple," Danny said. He was walking with his hands in his pockets, his expression pensive. "They have roots here. Family and community, a sense of purpose. You can't just ask people to abandon all of that."

  "We did," Chris pointed out.

  "Did we?" Joey shook his head slowly. "Think about it. Danny and I lost our dad. Luca lost his mom. Emily's father walked out years ago. Zoe lost Darron." He glanced at Ryan and Chris. "Even you two, your families supported this. Encouraged it. We didn't have to choose between them and the stars. Carlos does."

  Luca kept walking, processing. Joey was right. The Triumph crew had left Earth because Earth didn't have anything holding them. Their families supported the mission. Their hometown had changed radically in the past four years. They'd been free to choose the stars because nothing was chaining them to the ground.

  Carlos and his team didn't have that freedom. Or maybe they did, and they'd chosen differently.

  Either way, the result was the same.

  Danny's room became the unofficial war room for the evening.

  Someone had found a deck of cards. Someone else had raided the minibar. By the time Luca arrived with Emily, the poker game was already in progress, chips scattered across the small table while the Puerto Rican humidity pressed against the windows.

  "Buy in's a thousand credits," Ryan announced, shuffling the deck. "No IOUs, no crying when I take your money."

  Luca grabbed a chair and pulled it up to the table. "Deal me in."

  Several hands later, Joey tossed his cards down. "So what do we do differently? The Arecibo team tomorrow, then Texas and Chicago."

  "Stop leading with the benefits," Emily said slowly, like she was working through the idea as she spoke. "Start with questions. Find out what they actually want. What they're looking for. Then see if we can offer that."

  Luca turned that over in his mind. It made sense. They'd been so focused on what they could offer that they hadn't stopped to ask what people actually needed.

  "We need people who are looking for something," he said finally. "Not people who've already found it."

  Ryan snorted. "Great. So we're looking for restless souls and malcontents. That should make for a fun crew."

  "Not malcontents." Luca shook his head. "Just people who haven't figured out where they belong yet. People who look at the sky and see possibility instead of distance."

  "Dreamers," Zoe said. Her voice dropped, and Luca thought she was remembering her brother. Darron had been a dreamer too, once.

  "Yeah." Luca met her eyes across the table. "Dreamers."

  Eventually, the chips migrated toward Ryan's side of the table because he somehow managed to cheat. Danny bowed out first, claiming exhaustion. Then Chris and Joey, muttering about Ryan's suspicious luck. Zoe lasted longer than most, but even she eventually folded her final hand and retreated to her room.

  "One more hand?" Ryan asked, grinning. "Winner takes all?"

  "I'm out." Luca stood, stretching muscles that had stiffened from sitting too long. "You've already cleaned us out."

  "Your loss." Ryan began gathering the cards, his movements casual. "Hey, Luca?"

  "Yeah?"

  "Tomorrow's going to be better." Ryan's grin faded into something more genuine. "The Arecibo people, they'll be different. Scientists, engineers, the kind of nerds who'd sell their firstborn for a chance to study alien tech. They'll actually listen."

  Luca nodded slowly. "Hope so."