CHAPTER ONE: THE ADVENT
The crew looked nervously at the blip on their screens. It looked like a Harvester capital ship, but there were holes everywhere. Burn marks were clearly seen around the holes, together with what appeared to be scaffolding. Boss Lady sat nervously as the three Dreads and the Vanguard reconned the junk field. Beside the Harvester ship were two similarly sized vessels, also wrecked beyond repair and riddled with holes where beams had passed through. BC reckoned that these two ships had attacked the Harvester ship and managed to destroy it and themselves. The numerous spacesuits drifting around were testament to that.
"I see another ship, Nirvana. Checking it out. Sensors show a radioactive spike in the vicinity of that ship, so be careful," Meia 's voice rang out over the comm net as her Dread swooped in towards a smaller vessel.
"Roger, Leader," Hibiki, Dita and Jura replied.
The formation of four made several close flybys of the vessel, but sensors still showed the spike. From its shape, Jura deduced that the ship was a freighter meant to carry equipment and possibly weapons. Hibiki noted that the ship wasn't a Talark design, though some of the weaponry was familiar to him. All of a sudden, new schematics began appearing on their HUDs. All of them gasped.
"That's a Dread unit in there! There's no mistake about it! I can see it!" Dita yelled.
"And a Vanguard! Look! That's a biped, I'm sure of it!"
Boss Lady stood up from her command chair, as did Barnett and BC.
"That's impossible! Hibiki, are you sure that's not one of your planet's ships?"
"No way we have something like that!" Bart howled from the helm," I remember that our ships never carried those markings! "
"I say we bring the cargo component of the ship on board for the techs to examine. If there's a Dread in there, it could be useful. And that Vanguard, too. Right, Bart?" BC suggested.
"A-a-and who's gonna steer the ship?" Bart sneered. BC only smiled.
"Not asking for volunteers, Bart."
The signal was relayed to the fighters and the cargo section was easily removed, courtesy of Hibiki' s saber. Cables launched out of the Dreads and were soon dragging the new booty on board. Jura was babbling about how beautiful the new Dread would be when they finally managed to load the cube- shaped containers on board. Hibiki grunted, bemoaning the lack of combat. Naturally, Dita asked him why and Meia simply ignored everyone else, preferring to observe the new arrival. The intercom rang and Boos Lady's face appeared onscreen.
"Report, Gascgone. What exactly did our sensors find out?" the grim pirate captain asked.
"Just what is says on the monitor, Boss. A Geiger spike in the rear section and two unoccupied fighters. And yeah, one of' em's like Hibiki' s unit all right. You want us to open up this crate?"
"Wait! Wait! Don't touch that crate!" Parfait interrupted, her face appearing in split screen besides Boss Lady. "Pegasus is reacting weirdly to it!"
"What should we do then?" Meia asked.
"I guess we keep it here until Parfait can figure out a way to open it up without sending us all to deep space," said Gascgone. "She'll be down here in a minute-"
The hangar suddenly went silent as a loud thumping noise came from the inside. The pilots drew their guns and took cover while the mechanics ran to the safety of the control box as the thumping got louder and louder.
"Go to X-Ray scan! Go now!!" Gascgone yelled.
The hangar went dark as klaxons sounded and the strobe-like scanner probed the crates while infrared cameras scoured the source of the thumping. Sweat ran down Meia' s cheek as a bump began to appear in the crate, growing by the minute. Parfait came back on the monitor, yelling that the Pegasus system was linking with an unknown subject. The infrared camera display showed a singular body trying to escape the crates, slamming its leg against the metal walls.
Meia' s sweat broke when the crate gave way, a blur speeding past her and knocking her over. Jura and Hibiki gave chase while Dita scooped up her captain.
"Get that .man!" Gascgone yelled as she barked out orders to her subordinates to seal the doors and secure the interloper at all costs. Cameras show that the intruder was male, and was headed towards the core of the ship, carrying a strange glowing container.
Gasses hissed as the doors closed behind the intruder, his cargo safely tucked under his arm. Diving to narrowly avoid a closing door, he found himself faced with Barnett pointing a gun to his face. In a flash, he foot swept her and her gun was in his belt. The doors reopened with Hibiki and Jura coming in, with Jura stooping to look over the stunned Barnett.
"It's another one of those accursed MEN!!" she wailed, clearly upset at being subdued so easily.
"Are you sure, Barnett?" Hibiki asked. "I was sure that that ship wasn't Talark.maybe he's from another planet!"
"Just chase him, stupid!" Pai yelled, following up on Barnett.
Hibiki met up with Meia and together they chased the clunking footsteps of the intruder down the engineering shafts. Whoever this guy was, he was very agile and knew his way around a starship. He also seemed to know where to hide, as cameras turned up blank all around the lower decks. The only way of tracking him was with the radioactive spike he was carrying. Gascgone' s efforts managed to pin him down in Section C, where the intercept was to be made. The intruder looked left and right for an air vent, but to no avail. When the intercept crew arrived to apprehend him, they were greeted with shots from Barnett' s pistol and were forced to take cover.
"That's my gun, you accursed ape!" Barnett yelled. Meia was simply counting down from fifty.
"What the hell are you doing, leader?" Jura howled.
"Forty-nine, fifty! He's out of energy, get him!" she called out as she sprang out. The others followed her cue and charged towards him, weapons up.
Jura got a spin kick to the face while Barnett endured an elbow to the ribs, screaming in pain as she slumped to her knees. Jura recovered and attempted to punch the intruder, but she was caught napping by a judo flip, landing on an onrushing Hibiki and an already downed Barnett. The Dread squadron was now a messy heap on the floor after only one minute.
"Freeze. I suggest it." Meia warned, aiming at the intruder with her pistol well out of range of any hand to hand weapons. He put both hands up but held the glowing container by its handle. Meia walked slowly towards him as Jura dragged Barnett behind the Leader and Hibiki crawled behind him, still dizzy.
"Hand over that container, now!" she barked. He complied, throwing the container at her arm, making the resulting shot off balance. A quick roll recovered the container and the following lunge narrowly missed Meia' s chin. A headbutt from Meia sent him reeling, making him hit his head on the pipes behind him. Jura and Hibiki aimed their guns at him, blood streaming from Jura' s lip and anger burning from her eyes.
"What do we do with this guy? He'll attack us again if he wakes up!" Hibiki whispered.
"Nothing. We shove him in the brig while you take Jura and Barnett into the infirmary.ow!" Meia gripped her shoulder, which was throbbing with pain.
"I think you should go too, Meia. I think we all should, after the beating this guy gave us."
NEXT DAY
"How is our first prisoner in weeks?" Duerro asked through the energy bars.
"Edward Van Dyke. Captain. And I'm just fine, Doctor."
"How did you know?" Duerro arced an eyebrow. "It's that underpaid and unappreciated look." Ed snarled.
"Ah. So where are you from, sir?"
"Who's asking? And where is my cargo? If you so as touch it."
"Your cargo is alright. By the way, the four crewmembers you injured are calling out for your blood. It's safer you stay in here.unless the power goes out and three women suddenly rip you to shreds."
"Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, Doc. Say, aren't you Talark? I can see your status badge. What's a Talark doing on a ship with women on it?"
Duerro said nothing and left the cell area, leaving a small meal together with a tiny spoon and cup of water. Ed shook his head at the meal, which was tasteless and oily. He fiddled with the spoon, drawing sparks from the electro-bars with his spit wads. Leaning on the wall, he sighed and pulled back his blue-streaked raven hair, closing his eyes. It was gonna be a long, long day. The security camera on the cell corner simply blinked.
"You mean he's not even human?" Jura gasped.
"Well, in part at least. My examinations show that some of his body parts have been replaced with what appears to be cybernetic mechanisms. Though those parts could have been easily switched off, I don't know how his organic parts survived the cold of space this long," Parfait reported to the bridge and hangar.
"Maybe it was the radioactive thing he had?" Pyoro chipped in.
"That's just it! This container is reacting to the Pegasus core with a unique wave pattern! It's like the two are talking, judging by the ping times."
"Whatever it is, I think we should find out more from our guest. We certainly can't have any complications onboard at this time," BC noted.
"How about the hardware he brought?" Boss turned to Meia.
"I've never seen a Dread like this. Some parts of it resemble ours, but I've never seen a black Dread before, and Hibiki swears he's never seen a black Vanguard unit before. He's fawning over it with Dita now."
"With Dita?" Pai protested, but she was pushed back down by Duerro.
"None of us can pilot this Dread yet, since the controls are alien in nature and the manuals are in an old language only our grandmas used to use," Jura added, handing a leaflet to Boss, whose eyes went wide open.
"My mother used to tell me about this.this is old German. And the serial numbers look like our own numerals, which means our new 'friend' knows that we're not from his planet."
"He knows Hibiki and I are Talark," Duerro started, "He saw my status badge, which I should have removed earlier. In my opinion, we should follow BC's suggestion and interrogate him. If he's a Talark officer, the conflict between our two planets might have escalated. I'm sure I've seen his outfit somewhere before.when I was working on a space station."
Pai snorted at her superior's words, but nodded in agreement. Jura and Barnett agreed, the former grimacing with the pain Ed had dealt her earlier. Meia was about to add something when Bart's voice came hollering over the intercom. The screen showed his panicked face in the helm room with a spoon stuffed in his mouth. Beside him stood Edward Van Dyke, a large smile on his face.
"How did you." Boss snarled.
"Naughty, naughty Mejale women. Keeping a naked man in a chamber? Are you trying to feminize this sap?" he chuckled, flicking Bart's ear. "Looks like you're doing a good job, though I do warn you, you're tampering with nature. Pretty impressive nature, at that!" Bart howled as he flicked his privates. "For the record, I like women though. Also, who cooks your prison food? Ugh!"
"He's sealed the helm room, Boss. This guy's a maniac!" Barnett screamed.
"How did he get in that area? Only Bart could survive the Pegasus field in there.unless." Parfait wondered.
"Hold it, lady. All I want to know is where I am, when I am and where the hell my cargo is!"
"Like we'd tell you anything!" Jura barked.
"Look at the camera." Dita pointed to the screen. The electro bars had been short-circuited by a strategically thrown chicken bone, and the alarm was prevented from ringing by a lunch tray having knocked out the alert wiring. A broken panel with wires hanging out of it completed the crime scene.
"Look.. I don't want to frighten anyone. I'm sorry for the fight earlier, but you guys spooked me and I ran without thinking. That cargo is precious, a rare prototype from the old colonial days. Can we talk under better circumstances? This guy next to me is beginning to pee.." he looked at the panicking Bart, forming a sea of yellow on the floor.
Ed was soon in the meeting room with the Nirvana crewmembers and was debriefed on his situation. Standing up and clearing his throat, he proceeded to fill in the gaps in the story. Dressed in a dark black suit with a high-collared leather shirt adorned with chains and high black boots, he looked more like a space biker than a freighter pilot. Silver earrings hung from both of his ears, which jiggled as he spoke.
"I'll start from the top. My name is Commander Edward van Dyke of the 21st Lunar Industrial Colony group, though I'd rather be called Ed. The last thing I remember was that this weird ship attacked my escort and me as we were headed for a waypoint for dropping off cargo. Next thing I know, I wake up in a box which I was examining for the buyers."
"Buyers? Who are you selling our hardware to?" Hibiki and Meia asked, puzzled.
"Your hardware, kid? We built and designed those things ourselves. You can see our markings on the equipment. The manuals are in German, a language only we speak fluently and the controls are dual throttle joystick. Am I correct? Anyway, my other cargo is a precious energy our scouts found in the residue of a supernova nebula. Since it exploded in the Pegasus constellation, we called it.Pegasus."
Everyone's eyes went wide with amazement at these revelations, more so that he was sounding like he was from before their time. Everything he noted happened at least 30 years ago, which only the Boss remembered. Ed went on, saying how the Pegasus called out to him, probably keeping him alive in space for 30 years. He displayed some tokens which all bore the same date.
"That's from 30 years ago, son. A lot has happened since then. I think you'd better sit down."
"30 years.that means everyone I know, or rather knew is probably dead or really old.." Ed clenched a fist, touching his forehead on the window. "Everyone.I'm the only survivor, aren't I?" a forlorn look crossed his face.
"Well." Dita stuttered, "I'm afraid so.I'm sorry.we couldn't find anyone else after bringing you in."
"Luck of the Devil.. plus I don't remember anything before the ship attacked. And if it's 30 years, the Lunar Colonies will be light years away from here.. I'm stuck here for now." he sighed.
"I can explain that," Parfait got up, "your cyborg systems were partly frozen by space, though your organic parts are alright, thanks to Pegasus. I don't know how to fix it, but not all your system is damaged. I guess they might thaw out on their own. I wouldn't bet on anything."
"I have this feeling they weren't good memories, anyway. Thanks, um."
"Parfait."
"Thanks, Parfait," he turned to Boss Lady, " now what are you going to do about me, Captain? I'm willing to help you so long as I'm here. Can someone explain the naked dude to me? That is the one part I don't get about this ship."
BC chuckled. "I will. He's our helmsman."
Ed dropped to the floor in laughter. "He has one heck of a compass."
The crew looked nervously at the blip on their screens. It looked like a Harvester capital ship, but there were holes everywhere. Burn marks were clearly seen around the holes, together with what appeared to be scaffolding. Boss Lady sat nervously as the three Dreads and the Vanguard reconned the junk field. Beside the Harvester ship were two similarly sized vessels, also wrecked beyond repair and riddled with holes where beams had passed through. BC reckoned that these two ships had attacked the Harvester ship and managed to destroy it and themselves. The numerous spacesuits drifting around were testament to that.
"I see another ship, Nirvana. Checking it out. Sensors show a radioactive spike in the vicinity of that ship, so be careful," Meia 's voice rang out over the comm net as her Dread swooped in towards a smaller vessel.
"Roger, Leader," Hibiki, Dita and Jura replied.
The formation of four made several close flybys of the vessel, but sensors still showed the spike. From its shape, Jura deduced that the ship was a freighter meant to carry equipment and possibly weapons. Hibiki noted that the ship wasn't a Talark design, though some of the weaponry was familiar to him. All of a sudden, new schematics began appearing on their HUDs. All of them gasped.
"That's a Dread unit in there! There's no mistake about it! I can see it!" Dita yelled.
"And a Vanguard! Look! That's a biped, I'm sure of it!"
Boss Lady stood up from her command chair, as did Barnett and BC.
"That's impossible! Hibiki, are you sure that's not one of your planet's ships?"
"No way we have something like that!" Bart howled from the helm," I remember that our ships never carried those markings! "
"I say we bring the cargo component of the ship on board for the techs to examine. If there's a Dread in there, it could be useful. And that Vanguard, too. Right, Bart?" BC suggested.
"A-a-and who's gonna steer the ship?" Bart sneered. BC only smiled.
"Not asking for volunteers, Bart."
The signal was relayed to the fighters and the cargo section was easily removed, courtesy of Hibiki' s saber. Cables launched out of the Dreads and were soon dragging the new booty on board. Jura was babbling about how beautiful the new Dread would be when they finally managed to load the cube- shaped containers on board. Hibiki grunted, bemoaning the lack of combat. Naturally, Dita asked him why and Meia simply ignored everyone else, preferring to observe the new arrival. The intercom rang and Boos Lady's face appeared onscreen.
"Report, Gascgone. What exactly did our sensors find out?" the grim pirate captain asked.
"Just what is says on the monitor, Boss. A Geiger spike in the rear section and two unoccupied fighters. And yeah, one of' em's like Hibiki' s unit all right. You want us to open up this crate?"
"Wait! Wait! Don't touch that crate!" Parfait interrupted, her face appearing in split screen besides Boss Lady. "Pegasus is reacting weirdly to it!"
"What should we do then?" Meia asked.
"I guess we keep it here until Parfait can figure out a way to open it up without sending us all to deep space," said Gascgone. "She'll be down here in a minute-"
The hangar suddenly went silent as a loud thumping noise came from the inside. The pilots drew their guns and took cover while the mechanics ran to the safety of the control box as the thumping got louder and louder.
"Go to X-Ray scan! Go now!!" Gascgone yelled.
The hangar went dark as klaxons sounded and the strobe-like scanner probed the crates while infrared cameras scoured the source of the thumping. Sweat ran down Meia' s cheek as a bump began to appear in the crate, growing by the minute. Parfait came back on the monitor, yelling that the Pegasus system was linking with an unknown subject. The infrared camera display showed a singular body trying to escape the crates, slamming its leg against the metal walls.
Meia' s sweat broke when the crate gave way, a blur speeding past her and knocking her over. Jura and Hibiki gave chase while Dita scooped up her captain.
"Get that .man!" Gascgone yelled as she barked out orders to her subordinates to seal the doors and secure the interloper at all costs. Cameras show that the intruder was male, and was headed towards the core of the ship, carrying a strange glowing container.
Gasses hissed as the doors closed behind the intruder, his cargo safely tucked under his arm. Diving to narrowly avoid a closing door, he found himself faced with Barnett pointing a gun to his face. In a flash, he foot swept her and her gun was in his belt. The doors reopened with Hibiki and Jura coming in, with Jura stooping to look over the stunned Barnett.
"It's another one of those accursed MEN!!" she wailed, clearly upset at being subdued so easily.
"Are you sure, Barnett?" Hibiki asked. "I was sure that that ship wasn't Talark.maybe he's from another planet!"
"Just chase him, stupid!" Pai yelled, following up on Barnett.
Hibiki met up with Meia and together they chased the clunking footsteps of the intruder down the engineering shafts. Whoever this guy was, he was very agile and knew his way around a starship. He also seemed to know where to hide, as cameras turned up blank all around the lower decks. The only way of tracking him was with the radioactive spike he was carrying. Gascgone' s efforts managed to pin him down in Section C, where the intercept was to be made. The intruder looked left and right for an air vent, but to no avail. When the intercept crew arrived to apprehend him, they were greeted with shots from Barnett' s pistol and were forced to take cover.
"That's my gun, you accursed ape!" Barnett yelled. Meia was simply counting down from fifty.
"What the hell are you doing, leader?" Jura howled.
"Forty-nine, fifty! He's out of energy, get him!" she called out as she sprang out. The others followed her cue and charged towards him, weapons up.
Jura got a spin kick to the face while Barnett endured an elbow to the ribs, screaming in pain as she slumped to her knees. Jura recovered and attempted to punch the intruder, but she was caught napping by a judo flip, landing on an onrushing Hibiki and an already downed Barnett. The Dread squadron was now a messy heap on the floor after only one minute.
"Freeze. I suggest it." Meia warned, aiming at the intruder with her pistol well out of range of any hand to hand weapons. He put both hands up but held the glowing container by its handle. Meia walked slowly towards him as Jura dragged Barnett behind the Leader and Hibiki crawled behind him, still dizzy.
"Hand over that container, now!" she barked. He complied, throwing the container at her arm, making the resulting shot off balance. A quick roll recovered the container and the following lunge narrowly missed Meia' s chin. A headbutt from Meia sent him reeling, making him hit his head on the pipes behind him. Jura and Hibiki aimed their guns at him, blood streaming from Jura' s lip and anger burning from her eyes.
"What do we do with this guy? He'll attack us again if he wakes up!" Hibiki whispered.
"Nothing. We shove him in the brig while you take Jura and Barnett into the infirmary.ow!" Meia gripped her shoulder, which was throbbing with pain.
"I think you should go too, Meia. I think we all should, after the beating this guy gave us."
NEXT DAY
"How is our first prisoner in weeks?" Duerro asked through the energy bars.
"Edward Van Dyke. Captain. And I'm just fine, Doctor."
"How did you know?" Duerro arced an eyebrow. "It's that underpaid and unappreciated look." Ed snarled.
"Ah. So where are you from, sir?"
"Who's asking? And where is my cargo? If you so as touch it."
"Your cargo is alright. By the way, the four crewmembers you injured are calling out for your blood. It's safer you stay in here.unless the power goes out and three women suddenly rip you to shreds."
"Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, Doc. Say, aren't you Talark? I can see your status badge. What's a Talark doing on a ship with women on it?"
Duerro said nothing and left the cell area, leaving a small meal together with a tiny spoon and cup of water. Ed shook his head at the meal, which was tasteless and oily. He fiddled with the spoon, drawing sparks from the electro-bars with his spit wads. Leaning on the wall, he sighed and pulled back his blue-streaked raven hair, closing his eyes. It was gonna be a long, long day. The security camera on the cell corner simply blinked.
"You mean he's not even human?" Jura gasped.
"Well, in part at least. My examinations show that some of his body parts have been replaced with what appears to be cybernetic mechanisms. Though those parts could have been easily switched off, I don't know how his organic parts survived the cold of space this long," Parfait reported to the bridge and hangar.
"Maybe it was the radioactive thing he had?" Pyoro chipped in.
"That's just it! This container is reacting to the Pegasus core with a unique wave pattern! It's like the two are talking, judging by the ping times."
"Whatever it is, I think we should find out more from our guest. We certainly can't have any complications onboard at this time," BC noted.
"How about the hardware he brought?" Boss turned to Meia.
"I've never seen a Dread like this. Some parts of it resemble ours, but I've never seen a black Dread before, and Hibiki swears he's never seen a black Vanguard unit before. He's fawning over it with Dita now."
"With Dita?" Pai protested, but she was pushed back down by Duerro.
"None of us can pilot this Dread yet, since the controls are alien in nature and the manuals are in an old language only our grandmas used to use," Jura added, handing a leaflet to Boss, whose eyes went wide open.
"My mother used to tell me about this.this is old German. And the serial numbers look like our own numerals, which means our new 'friend' knows that we're not from his planet."
"He knows Hibiki and I are Talark," Duerro started, "He saw my status badge, which I should have removed earlier. In my opinion, we should follow BC's suggestion and interrogate him. If he's a Talark officer, the conflict between our two planets might have escalated. I'm sure I've seen his outfit somewhere before.when I was working on a space station."
Pai snorted at her superior's words, but nodded in agreement. Jura and Barnett agreed, the former grimacing with the pain Ed had dealt her earlier. Meia was about to add something when Bart's voice came hollering over the intercom. The screen showed his panicked face in the helm room with a spoon stuffed in his mouth. Beside him stood Edward Van Dyke, a large smile on his face.
"How did you." Boss snarled.
"Naughty, naughty Mejale women. Keeping a naked man in a chamber? Are you trying to feminize this sap?" he chuckled, flicking Bart's ear. "Looks like you're doing a good job, though I do warn you, you're tampering with nature. Pretty impressive nature, at that!" Bart howled as he flicked his privates. "For the record, I like women though. Also, who cooks your prison food? Ugh!"
"He's sealed the helm room, Boss. This guy's a maniac!" Barnett screamed.
"How did he get in that area? Only Bart could survive the Pegasus field in there.unless." Parfait wondered.
"Hold it, lady. All I want to know is where I am, when I am and where the hell my cargo is!"
"Like we'd tell you anything!" Jura barked.
"Look at the camera." Dita pointed to the screen. The electro bars had been short-circuited by a strategically thrown chicken bone, and the alarm was prevented from ringing by a lunch tray having knocked out the alert wiring. A broken panel with wires hanging out of it completed the crime scene.
"Look.. I don't want to frighten anyone. I'm sorry for the fight earlier, but you guys spooked me and I ran without thinking. That cargo is precious, a rare prototype from the old colonial days. Can we talk under better circumstances? This guy next to me is beginning to pee.." he looked at the panicking Bart, forming a sea of yellow on the floor.
Ed was soon in the meeting room with the Nirvana crewmembers and was debriefed on his situation. Standing up and clearing his throat, he proceeded to fill in the gaps in the story. Dressed in a dark black suit with a high-collared leather shirt adorned with chains and high black boots, he looked more like a space biker than a freighter pilot. Silver earrings hung from both of his ears, which jiggled as he spoke.
"I'll start from the top. My name is Commander Edward van Dyke of the 21st Lunar Industrial Colony group, though I'd rather be called Ed. The last thing I remember was that this weird ship attacked my escort and me as we were headed for a waypoint for dropping off cargo. Next thing I know, I wake up in a box which I was examining for the buyers."
"Buyers? Who are you selling our hardware to?" Hibiki and Meia asked, puzzled.
"Your hardware, kid? We built and designed those things ourselves. You can see our markings on the equipment. The manuals are in German, a language only we speak fluently and the controls are dual throttle joystick. Am I correct? Anyway, my other cargo is a precious energy our scouts found in the residue of a supernova nebula. Since it exploded in the Pegasus constellation, we called it.Pegasus."
Everyone's eyes went wide with amazement at these revelations, more so that he was sounding like he was from before their time. Everything he noted happened at least 30 years ago, which only the Boss remembered. Ed went on, saying how the Pegasus called out to him, probably keeping him alive in space for 30 years. He displayed some tokens which all bore the same date.
"That's from 30 years ago, son. A lot has happened since then. I think you'd better sit down."
"30 years.that means everyone I know, or rather knew is probably dead or really old.." Ed clenched a fist, touching his forehead on the window. "Everyone.I'm the only survivor, aren't I?" a forlorn look crossed his face.
"Well." Dita stuttered, "I'm afraid so.I'm sorry.we couldn't find anyone else after bringing you in."
"Luck of the Devil.. plus I don't remember anything before the ship attacked. And if it's 30 years, the Lunar Colonies will be light years away from here.. I'm stuck here for now." he sighed.
"I can explain that," Parfait got up, "your cyborg systems were partly frozen by space, though your organic parts are alright, thanks to Pegasus. I don't know how to fix it, but not all your system is damaged. I guess they might thaw out on their own. I wouldn't bet on anything."
"I have this feeling they weren't good memories, anyway. Thanks, um."
"Parfait."
"Thanks, Parfait," he turned to Boss Lady, " now what are you going to do about me, Captain? I'm willing to help you so long as I'm here. Can someone explain the naked dude to me? That is the one part I don't get about this ship."
BC chuckled. "I will. He's our helmsman."
Ed dropped to the floor in laughter. "He has one heck of a compass."