PROMITOR SECTOR - In the dimly lit corridors of Habitat Module C-17, workers shuffle between their sleeping pods and workstations, their eyes glazed with the particular brand of hopelessness that comes from checking the corporate compensation rates for the eighteenth time today. The rates, unsurprisingly, remain unchanged.

One of many posters found throughout ther various habitat modules on Promitor. ¹

“One day, the right leader will come,” whispers Jenna Chen, a third-shift hydroponics technician, as she adjusts her life support readings. “Someone who understands our struggle. A CEO who remembers what it’s like to start from nothing.”

Chen isn’t alone in her optimism. Across the habitat, workers cling to stories of mythical “worker-friendly” corporations, where profit-sharing exists and bathroom breaks aren’t deducted from annual leave. These tales spread through the station’s recycled air like spores in a poorly maintained ventilation system.

Local union representative Marcus Wong knows better but doesn’t have the heart to crush their dreams. “Look, I’ve seen CEOs come and go. They all start with big promises about ‘revolutionary working conditions’ and ‘paradigm shifts in worker relations.’ But the moment they see their first quarterly profit margin, it’s back to the same old story: minimum life support, maximum extraction.”

Still, the workers dream. They whisper about rumored CEOs who started in the asteroid mines, who understand the value of a good pressure suit and the terror of a failing oxygen recycler. They share stories of mythical executives who supposedly maintain their own ships, who remember the taste of synthetic protein paste and the ache of extended shifts in low gravity.

“The right CEO is out there,” insists Chen, her voice carrying the weight of desperate conviction. “Someone who’ll revolutionize the system from within. We just have to wait.”

As she speaks, her supervisor’s chronometer beeps, signaling the end of her authorized speech period. Chen returns to her hydroponics bay, where the plants, at least, don’t care about corporate structures or profit margins. They grow regardless of who provides the COF.

Meanwhile, in the executive quarters of nearby stations, actual CEOs continue their time-honored tradition of optimizing workforce efficiency metrics and calculating the minimum required investment in worker morale. The revolution, as always, remains scheduled for next year.