Chapter Four
I was woken several hours later to a sleeping, naked Hylotl at my side and a ringing coming from my control console near by bed. Throwing the covers off and unwrapping myself from Yuzuki's grasp, I slipped myself out of bed, slightly inhaling as the cold air hit my nude form. The large window near one wall gave me a beautiful display of space as we flew aimlessly through the void. "What's up, Ai?" I mumbled in a quiet tone, looking at the panel near my bed.
"Apologize about disturbing you Captain, but you did request I wake you when the scan was finished." I nodded, rubbing my eyes.
"Mmm, yeah. Find something?"
"A few 'somethings' of note. First is a Class-8 Red Dwarf, with a pair of Erchius-rich moons orbiting an Elysium world." Ah, Elysiums. The Terrane Protectorate has classifications for nine kinds of planets, varying from Type-1 to Type-9, depending on danger. The planet types are as follows: Barren, Lush, Desert, Forest, Ocean, Savannah, Snow, and Jungle. They go up in danger levels as they go up in Types, and most astronomers speculate that's not the only types of planets exist... and they were proven correct with the introduction of the Elysium Planet. At it's core, an Elysium is a Barren world – that is there is no natural resources under the surface, and practically no life on the surface. The difference is, with Elysium planets, the surface of the planet is covered by a bed of vegetation and trees... which obviously means there's an oxygenated atmosphere; which Barren worlds do not have. Elysium worlds represent the penultimate discovery in space exploration, as they are perfect for colonization efforts.
"Mm, good. Bookmark the Elysium's system, we'll come back to it later."
"I already anticipated this, and have done so. But the second interesting discovery is a small planetoid – Type 2 – in orbit over a Gentle star. I've detected a large concentration of life-signs on the surface and just below the surface, centered around a large structure of unknown purpose."
"What kind of life signs?"
"Floran, if the low heartrate is to be any clue."
"Mmmm... think it's worth checking out?"
"Scans have indicated a fifty eight percent increase in population around the structure; as well as a distinct pattern of immigration from the fringes of the world to the structure." I blinked.
"Okay... one more time... but in English." Ai paused.
"Over the last three hours, I have detected multiple life signatures in transit to the unknown structure; likely some form of religious migration, or exodus."
"So, they're moving?"
"Towards one central point, yes." I shrugged.
"A'ight, I suppose it's worth investigating. Is Nakadi available?"
"She is apparently asleep, Captain." I nodded.
"Alright, when she gets up, ask her to look at the scans, and see if she can't figure out what's goin' on down there. In the meantime, engage FTL, and once we're in system, pull into high orbit and start scanning for a landing spot."
"Of course, Captain." Rubbing my eyes once more, I turned to go back to bed, only to find Yuzuki awake and watching me.
"Shit... sorry, did I wake you?" She shook her head.
"I... felt you get up... did Ai find something of interest, Mistress?"
"Few things, actually. We're gonna make a jump to a planet that's got some weird Floran voodoo goin' on, and she found an Elysium world with two Erchius-Rich moons in orbit so... fuel stop." She smiled gently.
"Fuel would be good... would hate to run out in the middle of nowhere." I agreed to this.
"Yeah, Ai would never let me live that down." I threw myself back into bed and put my arms behind my head, exhaling. Yuzuki cuddled up closer to me, her hand laying across my chest, lying her head over my heart. I quite enjoyed lazing in bed... something I didn't do a whole lot of before now. I guess being sent out into the middle of nowhere in a previously broken ship has it's advantages.
Yuzuki gave a happy sigh as she lay there, her eyes closed. You know... I was never a fan of Hylotl. Their whole... 'three eye' thing is... kinda creepy when they want it to be, and most just... feel like slimy fish. I don't know what made Yuzuki different – maybe it was because of her bondage, or maybe every Hylotl is different, but she felt... leathery. Like the back of a shark, not slimy like a fish. And on her, her three eyes were just... cute. Like when she was being born, they couldn't contain all her cuteness in two eyes, so they had to give her a third to balance things out.
I mentally slapped myself. Stop getting all doe-eyed over the slaves, Lysylla. Yeah, she's good for a roll in the sack, but that doesn't mean you should let your guard down. Once this is all over, you're going to turn around and sell her off – along with the rest of them – to the highest bidder. You will get a profit for this bunch'a bags of meat.
"...yeah..." I muttered to myself, nodding to confirm my determination.
"Mistress?"
"Oh, uh... nothing." I set an arm gently around her shoulders, just to allay her suspicions. Looking over to the console, I noted it was somewhere in the vicinity of three in the morning, Earth-Standard Time... mmm, that's why I was so tired. You know... I was so far away from anything that resembled the Terrane Protectorate... they were behind me – both physically and metaphorically – so... I could hypothetically afford to settle down. I mean, hear me out? We're in the middle of butt-fuck nowhere in the lawless arm of the outer reaches of the galaxy. No TP. No Travelers to speak of... who would know? A bug hit me, causing me to get out of bed again. "...sorry..." I mused to Yuzuki. "Ai."
"Yes, Captain?" She responded curtly.
"Change of plans. Ignore the Floran Voodoo and set course for that Elysium world." A chirp preceded her doing so, the ship slowly turning to match it's new destination.
"Got the urge to settle down, Captain?"
"Yeah, you could say that." I nodded.
We spent a few moments in FTL until we arrived at our destination. From my window in my room, I could see the planet below. It had a beautiful verdant green coloration, and had nothing hostile or problematic in the atmosphere to speak of. "Ai, scan the planet. I want any signs of life or civilization." Ai's console beeped as she answered, moments passing.
"Preliminary scans indicate no life signs of any kind, Captain. No unusual heat signatures indicating life."
"Keep scanning until we're in medium orbit." 'Medium orbit' was basically the beginning stages of landing procedures, with 'low orbit' being 'I'm going down, fuck you'. I watched as the planet got closer and closer, the green of the earth mixing in with the two oceans I could see on either side of the planet. It appeared to be – for the most part – mainly land with probably twenty to thirty percent water.
"Atmospheric composition: 64% Nitrogen, 34% Oxygen, 2% Argon, less then 1% trace particulates. Assessment: Habitable. Planetary Split: 81% Land, 19% Water. Trace amounts of water in atmosphere indicate infrequent rainstorms which have the capacity to cover the entire surface of the planet. Low native vegetation, however soil is detected with high nutrient value. Assessment: Planet is rife with the hallmarks of habitation. No native species detected."
"None at all?"
"Confirmed. No life signs from either base-level creatures, or higher-function creatures. Conclusion: We appear to be the first visitors to this planet. It would also interest you to learn the 'oceans' are nothing more then oversized freshwater lakes." Fuck yeah, freshwater oceans!
"Fuck you, Travelers. This one's mine. Begin landing procedures."
"Landing procedures initiated." Ai confirmed.
"See if you can't land us pretty close to the water, yeah?" A chirp from Ai as the ship maneuvered towards the right-side ocean. I wasn't what you'd call a 'DIY' kind of girl... but then again, I did have a Matter Manipulator with me, and it was loaded with all that wood I cleared from the last planet we were on... I didn't need a fancy house... just a little one-bedroom-one-bathroom deal on a plain, near the ocean... oh yeah... and also a subterranean dungeon to offload the fuckin' layabouts from my ship. I couldn't keep them on the ship, lest someone discover them. Mmm, but I also couldn't just... toss them in a dungeon on a planet with no people. I tend to get distracted, and dead slaves are useless to me. Fuck it, maybe I'll just keep 'em aboard anyway. Don't let many people on my ship to begin with, so it shouldn't be that big of an issue.
"Landing Zone locked. Please confirm." Ai chattered, showing an image of the selected landing zone. It was on a flat plain close enough to the ocean. "Terrain deviation within selected landing zone is no greater then fifteen centimeters." Fifteen centimeter terrain deviation was about as close to flat as I cared to get. It literally did not get much flatter then that.
"Confirmed." I smiled. "Land of it dot exe." I told her aloud.
"When will you stop making up unrunnable executable files? Beginning landing procedures. Hopefully this one won't crumble below our gears."
"Not funny." I growled, remembering all too well our escape from Earth. I watched as the window glowed a brilliant red as flames overtook the ship, the telltale signs of re-entry showing me the true beauty of the universe. I trotted over to my bedside table and picked up the Matter Manipulator I had stashed there for the time being, opening up it's schematics to see what it had. A few things that would be useful in a survival situation, including several step-by-step guides to constructing shelters of varying difficulty – from standard stick-frame and leaf tents all the way to log cabins. It also had plans for indoor plumbing, bio-waste repossessers and a bunch of other things I would probably get a use out of. I bookmarked some of the blueprints on the Matter Manipulator for later use, and got a bead on how much wood I actually collected. It turned out that for all the wood I managed to snag on that other planet, it was still only shy under three quarters of enough to build the largest log cabin – tantamount to a mansion – so I settled on the smaller, more cozy prairie-style home. That would also give me plenty of spare wood for fences and the like.
From behind, I felt a pair of leathery arms wrap around me and settle just under my breasts, Yuzuki's head resting gently on my shoulder. "Hey." I spoke a bit rougher then I probably wanted to. "I thought you didn't like me... called me a 'monster'." She paused, her body rocking from side to side gently as she held me close.
"...you are a monster." She finally admitted, though I sensed their was more to that. "...that's not the part of you I like, Mistress. I still think that... under all that monstrous exterior, there's something that's kind and loving..." She sighed, taking a deep breath. "...and it's that part I love."
"Strong word there, Yuzuki." I mused, reaching up to remove her arms.
"What else can it be? You say that... our nights spent together are... rape. That you're taking me to your bed against my will. But... I long for your caress and your touch... I long for your lips and your tongue... I long for your gentle ministrations against my skin... your fingers in my hair and your breasts to mine..." I blinked at her.
"Are you a poet?"
"No..." She sighed. "Just a girl in love..."
"The term your looking for-" I took hold of her hands and removed them from around my waist. "-is 'Stockholme Syndrome'. You're not 'in love' with me. Not in the purest sense."
"I am!" She spoke firmly. There as that attitude coming out... c'mon, Yuzu, don't make me smack you again.
"See, you're getting that attitude again. Remember what happened last time that cropped up." She recoiled, realizing the sting on her cheek.
"I... I'm sorry, Mistress." She instantly went to her more demure self. Liked that version of her better, anywho. "It's just... I get passionate when I feel... certain ways."
"Just don't get yourself in trouble, kay? You remember what happened to Napkin when she spoke out of turn." I turned away from the window as the ship finally touched down, the whole vessel lurching as the engines spooled down.
"Touchdown, Captain. Shall I lower the ramp?"
"Not just yet. Gonna go pay a visit to the 'crew' first." I paused, watching Yuzuki start to collect her clothing. "Yuzuki-"
"Yes, Mistress?" She looked up giving me her full attention.
"Those rags... burn them."
"Mistress?"
"Did I stutter?" I continued, causing her to shake her head. "Good. Burn them. I hate them." She nodded gently. I stepped out of my room, bare feet gently slapping against the durasteel floor.
"Captain, did you intentionally leave your quarters naked, or did you forget you're not alone on the ship?"
"I didn't forget." I answered Ai, hands on my hips. "It's my fucking ship, they're my fucking slaves until I sell them, I can do what the fuck I want." I answered back commandingly. I heard Ai sigh. "Did you just sigh? That's a first." The elevator let me in and took me down the one deck to the main deck, where the cargo bay was. I opened the door to the cargo bay, fully expecting another riot to have broken out, or at least to hear Napkin back-sassing me when she thought I couldn't hear her. I would be pleasantly surprised to find that the hold was quiet, everyone was sitting pretty like I had left them.
"Well, I'll be damned." I smiled as this scene played out. "Not a peep. Just like I like it." Nakadi was on the fringes of consciousness, her arms crossed across her chest as her head bobbed up and down. "Nakadi?"
"Mmph!?" She sprung awake, shaking her head. "Floran ssorry... Floran very ssleepy..."
"Quite alright. Anything to report."
"Napkin cried sself to ssleep. Birdy mutters in ssleep."
"I-I do not!" The Avian chirped (heh) up. I looked to Nakadi, interested.
"Is that so? What kind of things does... uh... birdy mutter in her sleep?"
"Nothing don't listen to her!"
"Birdy sspeakss of pecking sslaver'ss eyess out while sshe ssleeps." The Avian instantly shut up, looking down.
"Is that so..." I mused, looking over. I could already tell the Avian was a Firebrand, her lack of respect when speaking to me being a dead giveaway. I could tell by her breathing she was gathering her courage.
"You... you're a monster! What you did to poor Ilathi! To Jessi! What you keep doing to Yuzuki! You take and take and take and take and take and take and take! When will it end!? When you will stop taking from us!? Monsters like you have no right living in Kluex's grace! You're no better then the cursed Grounded!" She spat in my general direction, still unable to see me through the blindfold. The loogie fell short, splattering on the porous stone floor. I watched, bemused. "Kluex damn you! May he cast you to the ground with the rest of the filth."
"Mm." I grunted once she had finished. Matter Manipulator still in hand, I began thumbing through the blueprints, see what kind of fun things it had stored in it's databank. One thing that caught my interest was a particularly nasty Floran torture device I recognized from my constant study into the Floran (they fascinated me as a people). It looked like an old triangular horse like you might find in a medieval dungeon, except this one was made out of barbed wood – like a thorned rose. Thankfully, it was made out of organic material, so I could dedicate some of my wood to it. "Fascinating." I mused, turning the Matter Manipulator to an empty spot near the wall, watching as the little blue beam danced about the area, small portions of the triangular horse appearing.
"If I ever find myself out of these chains, I'll personally claw your eyes out and peck out your entrails! I'll bathe in your blood and offer your broken carcass to Kluex as tribute!" She rattled the chains.
"Fascinating." I repeated.
"Uh... Floran would sstop talking if Floran were birdy..." Nakadi mentioned.
"No no, Naka. She's going to learn the hard way."
"Floran know, but that maybe bit too cruel?"
"Two things in the world – Naka – that there's never too much of. Pixels... and cruelty in shutting up big-beaked slaves who don't know when to keep their seed-peckers closed."
"Oh, bird puns, real big! Why don't you go bat a ball of yarn around, you undersized pussy!"
"Keeeeep talkin' bird-brain. You can't see what you're punishment is."
"Oh, what are you gonna do? Break my legs?!"
"Ha." I gave a dry, sarcastic laugh. "When I'm done with you, you'll wish I just broke your damn drumsticks." The Horse had finished building, causing me to walk around to the side and shove it into place. I know I could have just picked it up with the Matter Manipulator, but there was something... satisfying about that ominous sound of heavy wood sliding across stone floor that just made my girlie parts all kinds of wet.
"What... what's that? Are you... moving something."
"Yeeeep." I strained, finally getting it right beside her. "Hey, Naka, wanna give me a hand here?"
"Floran help." Nakadi jumped up and trotted over. "What you want Floran do?"
"Can you pick up Wingless and Brainless here?"
"Wha – pick up? L-let go of me!?" Nakadi lifted her up as I deftly unchained her legs, holding them still. Whistling, I started to move her over the horse.
"Hold her there." I mused, chaining one leg to the horse, then the other. Ripping the weak rags around her waist, I pulled them off to expose her lower section.
"S-stop! What are you doing?"
"Drop her."
"Like... actual drop?"
"Like drop drop." Nakadi let go of her, the Avian's body mass causing her to fall swiftly onto the sanded, barbed edge of the horse.
"Hiyeeeeeeaauuuuughhhhh...! N-nnnnughhh!" She let out a long shriek followed by a weak, pained grunt. "Wh-wh-what is thi-i-i-s!?" Her voice trembled as she spoke, her brain unable to separate the pleasure from the pain as the edged horse dug into her womanhood.
"That-" I punctuated the sentence by kicking the horse.
"Aa-aaaauuuuuugggghhhhhhhh...! N-nuhstop...!" Her wail returned.
"-my dear Avian friend. Is a triangular horse. You are chained to it, and the wall. Fascinating device, the triangular horse. See, it uses your own body weight to lower you onto the very sharp edge of the horse. Couple that with the fact it's biting into your vagina... and this one has some beautiful barbs on it, might I add... it creates a beautifully perfect fusion of pleasure and pain. Couple that with a few good swift kicks-" I kicked the horse again, causing it to rock back and forth.
"Nnnnyyyyuuuugggghhh! Haaah~ haaah~ haaah~ Stuh-stop kuh-kicking it..."
"-it makes for an equally effective torture device, as pleasure device." I crossed my arms. "You're going to stay on that horse until three things happen. The first thing... is you apologize for all those terrible things you said to me. And I'm not talking about an 'I'm sorry', I mean a full apology, stating out exactly what you did, why it was wrong, and giving me your undying promise you'll never do it again. The second thing, is you'll stay up there until I get bored of hearing your tortured shrieks of pleasure. Because I'm not gonna lie, the first one really got me wet. And the third..." I kicked the horse again.
"NnnnuuuuggggyyyyyyaaaahhhhHHHHH!" Her fourth scream hit a crescendo that sent a shiver down my spine. "Haaaaaah... haaaaaah... haaaaah..." She heaved, her arms pulled back towards the wall as her body fought both the horse and the wall.
"The third thing you'll do is renounce Kluex. Cast him aside like a broken egg. Curse his name and spit upon his image. When all three of those happen... I'll let you down."
"N-no! No, please! I... I can't just... throw Him away!"
"Then get comfortable, Polly." I kicked the horse again.
"Gyaaaaauuuuugghhhhhh! Stuuuuuh... sthoooooooop!"
"Nope. I love your scream too much. Nakadi. Job."
"Floran will do." Nakadi nodded.
"You're to kick this thing whenever the bug hits you. If she says anything bad about me, kick it. If she starts praying, kick it. If she breathes in a fashion you don't like... kick it." Nakadi nodded.
"Floran will do thiss deed."
"Good girl, Nakadi." I patted her head a little, her hair feeling like fresh grass.
"Kuh... Kuh... Kluex... suh-save me..." Nakadi gave the horse a much stronger kick then I did, causing it to tilt on two legs for a moment. "Guh-hiiii-yaaaaaahhhh-haaaaaa-haaaaaaaa!" Oooooh sweet, sweet Jesus that was a good one. On my way out, I spied Napkin, sititng on the ground like a quiet little kitten. I dropped down to a crouch a few feet away, causing her to look up at me scared. For giggles, I held my hand out again, the now almost completely broken Felin simply licked my hand again. Smiling, I patted her head softly.
"Good girl... see? I'm not such a bad person when you're a good girl." I moved a little closer to pet her head and chin, a little purr leaving her throat. "Awww, someone's being an affectionate little kitty today..." She kept her eyes shut for the most part, but she opened them just quickly enough for me to get a look inside. That's when I saw what I love seeing.
I watched the fire in her eyes go out.
"Muh... Mistress..." It was – of all of them – the Apex who spoke next, the ape-featured girl squirming in her bonds. "May I... may I ask a favor?"
"You can ask." I finally spoke, standing to see what she wanted after giving Napkin one last pat.
"I... I gotta... I gotta pee real bad..."
"Mmm, yeah, I suppose it's been a while." I know Yuzuki and Nakadi have been going when I don't have a use for them... but the rest of them have been chained up the whole time, so they've not left this room in almost five days. I walked over to the corner where I kept a few wooden buckets (they were treated with a waterproof paint that was also treated with a powerful deodorizer) and sat one down on the floor in front of her, then took the blindfold off. "There you go." She looked down at the bucket, then up to me. "What? Were you expecting a toilet with a full bidet?" I chuckled to this. "I'm sorry if this isn't to your liking madam, but you've got two choices here... you can either piss in the bucket... or you can just go where you are now... and kneel in your own piss. Take your pick."
"N-no! No, Mistress I'll... I'll use the bucket." I kicked it under her as she managed to lift herself up just a bit. As she did her business, I turned to the rest of the slaves, watching Nakadi give the horse another swift kick. Man, she was probably as big a sadist as I was. Liked her more and more. I was never a fan of the Apex but... eh... a slave was a slave. Some people had a thing for... slightly hairier women.
"You may or may not have felt it, but we just landed on a planet. I plan on building a nice little house on this planet – Elysium world, you don't see them every day. So! I'm going to offer some lucky bitch the chance to get out of this ship... and actually see the sun. I was gonna ask Nakadi if she wanted to, but she looks like she's havin' a ball over there. You havin' fun, Naka?"
"Floran findss thiss..." A kick. "...amussing..."
"Unfortunately, Napkin's out of commission on account of broken leg times deuce... so! Who wants it?" Everything fell quiet for a moment. "No one, eh? Just wanna keep kneelin' in here, and listenin' to Chicken Little's screams, huh? Don't blame you they are pleasurable to the ear-holes..."
"Ah-" A little voice spoke up. "Ah'll help ya, sugah... erm... Mistress..." Oh now this was just precious! It was the Novakid of all people who spoke up. Oh, and I could tell just by lookin' at this one, she was some kinda special... Most Novakid were what most other races call 'gas bag people', and for good damn reason. Most Novakid are a collection of interstellar gas that collects and pressurizes around their core – or Brand. There are, however, a subspecies of Novakid that few have ever met, and for good reason. The White Dwarf Novakid are a subspecies of Novakid that have considerably more stable Brands, and sometimes even fully developed features – eyes, a mouth, and even... other features sometimes. This particular one was a White Dwarf herself... she kind of blended into the crowd, I hadn't even realized she was one until she spoke up. Behind her deep pink eyes – a shade or two lighter then her corona (what most would call their skin) was a heart-shaped Brand floating in her head, just about where a normal person's brain would be. She was dressed in a torn, ragged dress that had all the trappings of being – at one point – very expensive.
"Okay, usually I'd get mad... but honey, you are more then allowed to call me sugar." I saw a weak smile tug at her lips.
"Thanks, darlin'... look, ah know yer prolly in no mood'a trust me none but... I know a thing'er two 'bout some things.. if'n it's buildin' help ya need... then ah'm yer girl."
"Okay, I'm curious." She looked at me questioningly. "Is the whole... 'southern belle' thing intentional, or natural."
"Natural, darlin'... wouldn't lie 'bout tha'." I gave a little squee.
"Aaaha, you're too cute. Lemme help you out."
"Belle! Belle!" Came the Avian's panting voice. "Belle, c'mon, get me off this thing!" Wumph wumph wumph. Wow... three kicks in a row? "Nyaaaauuuugghgh-haaaaaa-haaaaaa... Ggg-ggaaaaaahhhhhh... Haaaaaaaah... haaaaaaaa... haaaaaaah... Muh-mercy..." She should know the Floran have never been known for their mercy... I watched Belle as I unchained her, the shackles coming off her wrists first, then once I was certain she wouldn't attack, her ankles. She rubbed her wrists and gave me a little smile.
"Thanks, sugah... d'ya mind if ah get outta this torn dress?"
"Won't hear me complain." I walked to the gate that barred the exit and stood by it as she slipped out of the torn, stained dress. Who knows what she was before all this. A land owner? Maybe even a mistress of the night, who knew. Who they were never bothered me, and I never really thought too much about it... wasn't important. All that was is who they are now. "Don't... like... kill her or anything, Naka. She still might be useful." I answered to another wumph from the Avian's general direction.
"Floran promise nothing." Came her grinned response. Correction, she might be more of a sadist then me... I motioned the Novakid – Belle, if the Avian's cry for help was actually her name – to go first, to which she bowed and obeyed. I had closed the door behind me just about the time Yuzuki had come down the elevator.
"Yuzuki! C'mon, let's build a thing." I motioned her over as the Hylotl gave a vein attempt to cover her breasts and groin. "Ah, c'mon Yuzuki. We're all girls here. Let's have a naked construction party."
"I... I don't think that's a thing, Mistress..." She muttered, causing me to laugh.
"Fuck, it is now." I lead the other two slaves out the door and down the ramp. I wish I could say that the view from my room did it justice. It did nothing of the sort. By the time Yuzu, Belle and I were out of the ship, the sun was just cresting the horizon, bathing the thick green grass in a beautiful cerulean glow.
"It's so pretty~!" I heard Yuzuki gasp. "It looks like all those beautiful paintings they had in the library~!"
"Yeah, it's pretty alright. But I want to make one thing explicitly clear here. This is my house. Do good, and I might let you live here as well. But until such time as you prove yourself – and the bug hits me to let you stay – it's my house and my house alone, got it?"
"Yes, Mistress." Came Yuzuki with a bow.
"A'course, sugah." Belle answered. Yuzuki glared daggers at her, almost like her calling me 'sugar' was an insult. I paid no attention to either – the simple fact was they understood what I was saying. I looked at the beautiful scene before me, trying to visualize what my house would look like when it's done. Have a nice little bit of farm land over on the west side... maybe a pasture and some animals on the south... You know... I never imagined myself a 'settle down' kind of girl but... the thought of being able to live my life how I want on a planet that was only mine... that... I often imagined. Raising the Matter Manipulator again, I flipped back to the prairie-style log cabin and clicked the little button to select it. A Processing... Please Stand By loading icon appeared on the screen as it collected the materials and loaded up the program. Process Complete. Please Place Blueprint. I held it out as a light blue outline of the house appeared in the space before me.
"Oh, now tha's jus' cool..." Belle muttered. Place Foundation. It told me. With a click of the trigger, the wooden foundation slowly materialized, creating a pretty solid I'd say forty by thirty foot rectangular footprint to start with. Now... I could have easily built this whole thing with just the Matter Manipulator, built it from the ground up with no effort on anyone's part and probably in no time flat but... where was the fun in that? Please Place Framework. Yeah, not doing that. I scrolled over to the 'cancel blueprint mode' button and moved on to manual construction. Manual Construction Mode: Active. Processing Material Requirements... The little circle began to spin as it thought, collecting all the materials it would need.
"Captain..." Ai finally spoke up after a moment.
"Whassup?" I continued, watching the Matter Manipulator.
"I feel it necessary to inform you that... A planet just vanished off my scanners." I paused.
"What?"
"I have been running progressive scans for some time, and one of the planets I had been looking into – a vacuum that possessed large deposits of Solarium and Violium – has vanished off my scanners... leaving an asteroid field in it's wake."
"Whole planets don't just vanish, Ai." I told her, going back to my Matter Manipulator.
"Earth did." She reminds me. I pause for a moment. "Shortly before it vanished, I detected apocalyptic levels of seismic activity, followed tectonic fracturing, suggesting the planet broke apart." I waited for a second.
"Could it be coincidence?"
"Unlikely. I would suggest you earnestly begin your search for the artifacts Esther informed you about."
"I already told you, Ai. We're not doing that. Couple'a more planets might get destroyed – sure – but she'll find some other sucker to do her dirty work. Figure a couple more days, and she'll realize I fucked off."
"Captain, you know as a fact I respect you greatly, and usually I would defer to your judgment... but I am forced to play 'devil's advocate' for this situation. The only people who would willingly throw themselves at a creature of such immense power as the Ruin would be a fleet of Protectorate ships. Which, need I remind you, no longer exist. I believe it would be in the best interest of everyone – chief amongst them yourself – to find a way to destroy the beast before it regains too much of it's power."
"You make a very good argument, Ai." I nodded to her. "And I have to say that it would in fact be within my best interest. But you're failing to take one very valuable factor into consideration."
"And that would be?" I smiled a little.
"I don't care about the rest of the galaxy. Esther will find someone else."
"I do not believe that will be possible. Statistically speaking, the odds of another finding the Outpost and the Ark are quite slim. I estimate that if this chain of destruction continues – with a gradual increase to account for the Ruin's growing power... I estimate that the entire universe will be destroyed in two years."
"Two years, huh? Man, think how far I got in a three hour FTL flight... how far can I get in two years?"
"Captain... do excuse the outburst but... please remove your head from your colon and realize I'm saying the entire universe will be destroyed. There will be no 'distance' that you can get to be safe. Nothing and no one will ever be safe."
"Okay fine!" I finally belted out. "I'll go look for the damn thingie, are you happy?!"
"It's not about happy or not, Captain. It's about me fulfilling my primary directive: Keeping you safe. I could care less about the rest of the Galaxy but – as you have said that I am the most important woman in your life – I would like to state that you are the only woman in mine." Wow that... was really deep coming from Ai.
"...Ai..." I muttered, then chuckled. "Damn, you really know how to take my breath away." I turned to Yuzuki and Belle. "Change of plans. Looks like we're going to that other planet."
"If'n ya don' mind none... I could stay heah, an' do some buildin' fer ya, sugah." I looked to the Novakid as she spoke, a witty retort halfway out my mouth before I stopped to reassess.
"You know... that sounds like a pretty damn good idea, if I do say myself." The Mater Manipulator had finished processing at this point, allowing me to pile all the resources needed into several neat little piles. "Now... needless to say I'm trusting you with this. If I find out you fucked up, I might switch you onto the horse."
"Don'choo worry, sugah. Ah'm no strangah'a 'is sorta thing."
"Alright. Takin' a big risk." I reinforced. "Do good, and I'll reward you."
"Hope'fly with more time in th' sun." I looked to Yuzuki.
"You stayin', or comin'?" She looked to Belle, then to me. Finally, a wave from Belle silently told her to go with me. She trotted over and clambered up the boarding ramp with me right behind. I slipped into the ship and grabbed a few of the EmRats from the box in storage and looked them over before tossing them out the ramp to Belle. "Just in case we're gone for a bit. Those are the only two you're getting so... you know. Don't eat them right after I leave." She nodded as I closed up the ship.
"Captain, is it really smart to leave her like that?" Ai questioned.
"No. But I'm already doing one stupid thing, what's another, eh?" She went silent as my answer processed, the ship lumbering and starting to take off. "Alright, so what's the deal with this planet we're going to?"
"Unknown." Ai began. "It simply has Floran occupants, so I believed it would be a good start for finding clues to the whereabouts of the Floran Artifact." I rolled my eyes.
"Well, I suppose your logic isn't flawed..." I headed back towards the cargo bay, where I found the Avian – still mounted to the horse, of course – hunched over as far as she could, sobbing, a thin trail of blood tracing the thighs of the horse. "Nakadi." I spoke simply, snagging the Floran's attention, causing her to look up.
"Yess?" She asked simply.
"Got something I want you to look at. Give KFC here a chance to breathe, and take a look at this." She nodded firmly before leaving the Avian to her fate.
"Puh... please... at least... let me down..." She moaned pathetically. I looked to Nakadi.
"Has she done those two things I asked?"
"Not yet, Misstresss." I looked over back to the bird and shook my head.
"That's a no, then." Nakadi and I retreated back to the bridge, where I wasted no time in showing Nakadi the scans Ai took of the planet. She looked over them for a few moments before her onyx eyes turned to me, her lips in a smile.
"Iss fesstival." She gave me my answer.
"A festival? What kind?"
"Besst kind!" Came her answer's first part. "Iss fesstival of hunt! Great hunterss arrive from ssysstemss around, prove they besst hunter."
"How?"
"Methodss vary. Judging by crowd and participantss of thiss one... Floran ssay it Great Hunt, many hunterss, one prey."
"What kind of prey would require that many hunters?" I asked, causing Nakadi's mouth to water.
"Besst kind. Kind that can kill many hunterss!"
"Ooooh great. Sounds like fun." Came my next sarcastic sentence.
"Don't worry. You not Floran. Only Floran participate. Maybe you take chance? Look around?"
"It's a solid idea... and you're... certain that not being a Floran would mean they wouldn't force me to participate, right?"
"Completely. Againsst ruless of hunt. Only Floran can be besst hunter."
"Well, that makes me feel better. Maybe this time I won't get shot at." I turned to Ai's panel. "Ai, start scanning for a place to land.
"Unable to comply." Came her unexpected answer. "Tree coverage is too thick within a twenty-mile radius of the site. Landing is impossible, however an aerial insertion may be possible."
"Oh yeah, great idea, Ai. I'll just... jump out of the ship from three hundred feet up! Totally not going to break my legs on impact!" I barked sarcastically. "How – pray tell – do you expect me to do an aerial insertion without breaking my legs?"
"You still have that grappling assembly from the Erchius facility." I pause as this information set it. Yeah, I took it off, but I had stored it aboard the ship.
"...okay I feel dumb now..." I muttered, going to the locker where I had stored it. "Not. A. Word. Ai." Ai answered by giving a digital chuckle.
"I shall get as low as I can without my engines catching the trees on fire, and open the side hatch. From there, you can repel down and mingle with the crowd for this 'festival'." A pause. "Regardless of what Nakadi said, I would highly recommend going down armed."
"Oh, psh, fuck yes I'm going down there armed. I draw the line at doing only two dumb things a day." I began to struggle to get the rappelling harness on my body, the thin assembly of cords and straps seeming to get twisted more then my mind during it's stay in the locker. "Alright, set course for this planet, and begin atmospheric entry."