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Overview

Pinkwater Security is the player character's employer in The Expanse: Osiris Reborn. The player begins the game as a Pinkwater Security mercenary on shore leave at Eros Station when the protomolecule outbreak triggers a deadly lockdown. After escaping Eros, the player returns to Pinkwater Station to report what happened and is drawn deeper into the conspiracy. Pinkwater Security and its station serve as the player's home base and anchor point through the early portions of the campaign.

In The Expanse Universe

Pinkwater Security is a private security firm that operates throughout the Sol system. In the broader Expanse lore, they hold security contracts on multiple stations and moons, including Ganymede, Earth, and Callisto. Their role is comparable to other private security contractors like Star Helix Security (which handles policing on Ceres Station). On Ganymede, one of the most valuable agricultural moons in the system, Pinkwater protects the farms and research operations that supply food to much of the outer planets.

The company's name appears to reference real-world private military contractors. "Pinkwater" sounds like a blend of Blackwater (the American PMC that became controversial during the Iraq War) and Pinkerton (the private security and detective agency that has operated since the 1850s). This naming convention fits The Expanse's pattern of extrapolating present-day institutions into a spacefaring future.

Known Employees (Lore)

In The Expanse books and TV series, several named Pinkwater employees operate on Ganymede. These characters appear in the Ganymede arc during the events of Caliban's War, which overlaps with the game's timeline.

Wendell is the most prominent of these characters in the lore. He is a ranking officer assigned to Pinkwater's criminal division on Ganymede, responsible for the rough work of keeping order. At some point during the events on Ganymede, Wendell and his team were terminated from Pinkwater. Without employer-provided access to off-world transportation, they resorted to running a protection racket to sustain themselves.

Pinkwater Station (Pinkwater 4)

In the game, the player's home base is Pinkwater Station, also referred to as Pinkwater 4. The official game account described it as "a spin station that wasn't featured in The Expanse show or books, but we wanted you to learn more about this company, and explore one of its bases." Pinkwater 4 is an original location created specifically for the game, allowing the developers to build out Pinkwater Security's culture and operations without being constrained by existing lore.

Press previews from Gamescom 2025 described Pinkwater Station as packed with environmental detail. The materials and texture work give the station a genuine, lived-in feel. NPCs on the station gossip about the news, and the atmosphere conveys an operational military facility where people actually live and work. The station features meals prepared from orbital-grown ingredients, with crew members discussing food and (possibly contraband) spices, a detail the developers added after consulting with former NASA astronaut Leroy Chiao about how astronauts relate to food in space.

The Station Under Attack

The first major gameplay sequence shown to press was the second mission of the game, set on Pinkwater Station during a Protogen assault. The player has returned from Eros and is reporting to their chief when Protogen forces attack the station. This mission forces the player to make an early, impactful choice: persuade the civilian population to surrender to the attackers or encourage them to resist.

If the player asks civilians to stand down, the population survives and the station's armory remains stocked with supplies. If the player encourages resistance, groups of civilians are killed in the fighting and their bodies are visible throughout the station. The armory may be depleted. This decision changes the physical state of the station, the resources available to the player, and their relationship with the station's inhabitants.

The mission climaxes with a pitched escape from the station. The player fights through industrial corridors to the ship dock and eventually onto the exterior hull of Pinkwater Station. A zero-gravity battle takes place on the station's hull with Jupiter visible above, magnetic boots engaged, and Protogen forces descending. The station is spinning on its axis throughout the fight, and audio is muffled with sounds translated through vibrations of hull contact.

The Station Administrator

Pinkwater Station has a station administrator referred to as the "Chief" in press coverage. During the Protogen attack, the player can persuade the Chief to help defend the station or handle the situation independently. The Chief's cooperation (or lack thereof) affects available resources and how the defense plays out. This NPC represents the Pinkwater Security chain of command that the player answers to as a mercenary employee.

Role in the Game

Pinkwater Station serves as an early-game hub and tutorial area. It is where the player reports back after the Eros escape, receives their initial briefing on what happened, and faces the first major combat sequence against Protogen forces. The station's shops and NPCs provide early opportunities to acquire equipment and learn about the broader conflict before the player takes command of the Gemini and begins exploring the solar system.

After the Protogen attack, the player's relationship with Pinkwater Security evolves. The commandeered Protogen ship (which becomes the Gemini) draws attention, and the player's role shifts from rank-and-file mercenary to independent captain as the conspiracy widens beyond what Pinkwater's command structure can handle.

Key Facts