God I hate humidity. After years of tracking, he had ended up right back in the same place. The foliage in the trees appeared more lush, the wild life more abundant, and all around the planet seemed to have made a full recovery from its petrifaction in its war-ravaged past. But it is still the most humid damn planet I've ever set foot on. It was not completely surprising that the person he was looking for left here. If he weren't completely out of leads, and desperate for someone to point him in some direction, any direction, he would never of come back here either. Years of being frozen had taken away any tolerance he had for warm climates. Adding in the stifling humidity at this time of the planets lunar rotation, Mirinoi was not an ideal vacation spot for those who preferred cold.
He had only been here once, when he first heard that her latest guilt-driven crusade to save the world had landed her and her teammates here on the petrified surface of the planet. Returning her powers had saved an entire race, and resurrected a martyr, but still that hadn't been enough for her. After spending just a month on the reviving planet, her guilt encouraged her to once again head for the stars and seek out new evils to thwart. And you disappeared without a trace. None of her former teammates could tell him where she had gone, and even her brother, with whom she had often kept contact even while light years apart, stopped hearing from her.
She had dropped off the radar completely, except for a few rumors of a "witch" who was often seen in seedy bars and back alleys asking for information about various inter-galactic criminals. Normally he would have dismissed these rumors, but the sparse descriptions painted her as a younger woman whose innocent looking face had no business in such questionable locales. Once she spoke, however, she apparently sounded cold, calculating, and like someone who had more than adequate experience dealing with low-life scum. She was often wearing a large, concealing hooded-robe, and the few spooked witnesses said the witch intimidated people by lifting them up into the air, or making objects hurtle through the air at them by using her terrible magic.
A young beautiful girl who sounded like a hardened criminal? A robed "witch" who made things float by will? With so few leads, these reports were all he had to go on, and so he had followed each and every one until all trails inevitably went cold. Without any idea of how to proceed, he found himself once again on the planet where he had started his search. He didn't know what he expected to learn here which he hadn't the first time, but it seemed as a good a plan as any. So here he was, moving towards a small village in the middle of the humid jungle. With the explosion of technology, backwards engineered from many of the would-be rulers of the universe, it was not unheard of for tourists to come to this village from all around to see the sacred rock which held immense power, and to meet those who had been the first human colonists off of earth, and so, looking enough like an Earth-Human, no one took much notice of the man. As he approached the stone, he saw a few kids playing on it, each attempting to pull one of the swords out, hoping to become great warriors. An old man shooed them away, yelling at them about disrespecting sacred ground.
Seeing the young, blonde man approaching, the old man grinned and asked, "Ah, come to pay your respects and hear the legend of the legendary Quasar Sabers, offworlder? If you wish to meet those who drew the legendary swords and saved our planet, they live nearby here, and I am sure they would be more than willing to meet anyone who has made such a long journey!" The young man laughed at how excitable the old man was and politely shook his head. He knew well enough the legends, old and new, which talked about the legendary power housed inside the five swords, rooted into the sacred stone. It was said that only a chosen few warriors would be allowed to draw the sabers and use them to defeat great evil. Several years ago, four humans from earth, and one Mirinoian drew the blades, and used them to defeat great evil and save Mirinoi.
"I know all about the legend, sir, but I would like to take you up on the offer to meet those who drew the swords. Specifically, I was wondering if you could tell me where I could find Dr. Kendrix Morgan. I'm not really here for tourism, but I wanted to see Dr. Morgan so that we could discuss…an old friend."
The old man seemed a bit disheartened that he would not be able to impress someone with his retelling of the legends, but agreed to help, nonetheless. While he told some other attendants to stay on watch while he escorted the young man to Dr. Morgan's nearby office, he saw the young man walk up to the swords and place his hand on the hilt of the pink one. "No one can resist trying to become the next great hero." he said, laughing to one of the other attendants, "Although, I think that he might look a bit silly wearing pink"
Grasping the hilt of the saber, the young man had no intention of trying to draw the blade. He had done the hero thing before, and had had quite enough. As he held on, he closed his eyes. He could almost feel her presence still infused in the blade, alongside the presence of the woman he was about to go and talk to. Although four humans had drawn the blades, only three had reestablished them into the rock. This saber had been returned to the stone by a beautiful young woman, one who had spent much time as a hardened criminal, and had never forgiven herself for it. She had often disguised herself and infiltrated the underbelly of the universe searching for new ways to atone for the sins of her past. The "witch" intimidated others with her telekinesis, an inborn skill of all those born on KO-35, just like the young man now searching for her.
The young man opened his eyes, and let go of the sword's hilt. Even though he had no leads, and expected none here, he felt invigorated. Maybe it was the immense power hidden within the Quasar Saber, or maybe it was her presence which he felt still lingering in this place. Either way, as he walked back towards the old man, he could not help but feel something which had eluded him for months now: hope.
The two made their way to the outskirts of the village where large industrial looking buildings, which looked completely out of place next to the earthy, simple village, had been erected when the first humans had colonized. Here Dr. Morgan and her team of scientists were constantly researching new technologies which could aid both her people from Earth and the native Mirinoans. Walking in the front entrance, the old man walked up to the receiving counter and asked if Dr. Morgan had time to speak to the young man. "He claims they have met before, and wishes to speak with her about a mutual friend." She eyed him suspiciously, clearly thinking that the young man was a tourist trying to use a creative back story to meet the famous scientist. "Listen honey, if you want to see Dr. Morgan have a seat in the waiting room. She has a lot of work to do today, and I will see if she can make some time for you. And when I tell her such a dear, old acquaintance has come to visit, I am sure she will drop all the possibly life changing projects she is working on to come and see you. Will that suffice Mr…?"
"Just call me Zhane," he said plopping down in one of the many chairs "and I will wait as long as she needs." He got comfortable and prepared himself for a long stay. Not like I have anywhere to rush off to, he thought to himself as he began to nod off under the bright florescent lights of the waiting room.