It didn’t take them long to reach a wide, open hangar that had the entry protected by an energy shield. Three ships were parked inside and Robin easily recognized the huge walker he had found on Terulos, the Relentless Stride. The two other ships were comparable to those of the UAS. While he could make out some modifications, it wasn’t to a degree where they would raise suspicion if anyone saw them flying around.

  Observing his ship that dwarfed the others easily, Robin realized just how enormous the main ship of the Keeper must be if even its hangar can hold such a big ship. The walker seemed to be in good shape and he couldn’t make out any damages or parts where its armor was broken. It was still the same huge, dark behemoth.

  “You can enter your ship and leave with your crew.” The guide said, drawing Robin’s attention back to him, “Please don’t forget the deal that was struck. We expect you to uphold your end of the bargain as soon as possible.”

  “Bargain?” Robin scoffed, “As if there had been any kind of negotiation.”

  Ignoring the man’s affronted look, he walked closer to one of the walkers legs. Reaching out with his hands, he activated his G-Anomaly. It took him only a brief moment, before the leg’s armor retracted and opened the way into the elevator.

  “Marvelous!” The Keeper behind him said in awe, “You really don’t need a keystone.”

  With a sly smile on his face, Robin turned around before he stepped onto the platform.

  “You just learned something new.” he said, “Why don’t you share a piece of your knowledge to make it a fair trade?”

  ***

  “Alena!” Robin heard an annoyed shout when the elevator stopped and opened its door, “The damn Stonefaces are sending stuff again!”

  “Coming!” Alena replied from deeper within the ship.

  “I really hope they’ve brought some booze this time!” Happy muttered as she came around the corner.

  “Holy… Burn in Plasma! Rob? What are you doing here?” She yelped in shock when she nearly ran into him.

  Seeing the small woman jump in fright, Robin couldn’t hold back a wide grin.

  “Well, midget, I think the more interesting question is what are you doing here?” He laughed, “What kind of stupid plan resulted in you and Alena getting stuck on your own ship in the hands of the Keeper?”

  “We were trying to get your ass out of the UAS prison on Trov L!” She exclaimed, still taken by surprise.

  “That explains… nothing. But your wish came true and I brought some booze!” Robin chuckled and turned to the other woman who entered the hallway, “Hey Alena, how are you doing? Everything alright with you guys?”

  “Never been better, thanks.” She said deadpanned, then a worried expression flickered over her face, “You?”

  “All good, thanks.” Robin said and walked past her to the other elevator. In passing, he gave Alena’s arm a friendly bump, “Thanks for worrying about me. It’s good to have you two back… it’s good to be back.”

  “Hell yeah!” Happy cheered, finally coming to terms with their sudden reunion, “You have to tell us everything!”

  “Definitely!” Robin agreed and opened the elevator, “But I suggest we get some distance between us and the Keeper first.”

  “Agreed.” Alena nodded and followed him on the platform, “Do you have a destination in mind?”

  “Yes, actually I do! What do you think about relaxing at a lovely beach while we wait for Ang’Tue to catch up?”

  “You want to return to Seavis?” Happy asked with a bright face, “I’m in, let’s go Captain!”

  “Fine, I could use some fresh air and open sky, too.” Alena also agreed.

  “Great. But first - please disconnect your Interface from the net. I don’t want to leave any trails for the UAS.”

  ***

  It wouldn’t take them long to reach their destination, one of the small settlements that was as far away from the UAS’ sphere of influence as you would get in the Mereus Cluster. They hadn’t started to share their stories yet, but used the time to prepare for the next part of their trip. While Niu flew the ship, Robin made himself a home in one of the free bunks. After that, he took stock of their supplies together with Alena. His friends had stored most of the things the Keeper had sent in the storeroom at the lower deck. Now they took some of the food and water to the kitchen and community room in the middle deck to prepare the ship for long-term travel with five people.

  “I know we said we will hold onto our stories until we have a fire burning at the beach, but I’m dying to know why we have a Zulbano as a prisoner aboard.” Robin said while he stacked boxes in the elevator.

  “Well, one came to another and… in the end, it just happened somehow.” Alena said unconvincingly, “And, actually I didn’t take him as a prisoner.”

  Robin glanced at her from the side, not recognizing the woman who always wore an icy mask to hide her emotions from the rest of the world.

  “I didn’t know this side of you.” He said without making it sound like an accusation, “But hey, if you decided to bring him for whatever reason, I trust you. Just tell me honestly if the wolf is a problem that I should address before we reach Seavis or if it can wait until I get a proper understanding of our situation.”

  Alena stopped stacking boxes and closed her eyes for a moment, while she tried to find the right words.

  “He is completely broken. There is little to no will to live left in him. His people must have brainwashed him pretty badly. He… he saved my life, risking his own. I couldn’t leave him behind… in the hands of the UAS.” She said quietly and rubbed the spot on her back where the soldier had nudged her with his gun. “He is in one of the bunks and still recuperating from his injuries.”

  “So not a problem to address right now. All good with me.” Robin said and awkwardly patted her shoulders, “You’ve saved your savior's life. That’s nothing to be afraid or ashamed of.”

  With a sigh, she shook her head. “The UAS will hunt him down. I’m putting you and everyone else at risk, even though I know that you have a bone to pick with his people.”

  “Yeah, but if you think about it – do you really believe the UAS would be any less interested in finding us if the Zulbano wasn’t with us?”

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  With a sigh, she shook her head.

  “Thanks…” Alena mumbled and returned to her work. Moments later the confusion and worry on her face was gone, replaced once more by her icy mask.

  ‘Ugh damn, people-problems…’ Robin cursed in his mind as he picked up another box.

  ***

  “Ohhhhh… finally!” Happy moaned as the blast shield retracted and bright sunlight flooded through the bridge’s window, “Did the Keeper give you a manual for the ship?”

  “Unfortunately not, no. I only learned how to open the shutters in exchange for some insights they gained from me. We’ll need to get Proto on the ship. I have high hopes that he’ll be able to be a great copilot for you. Also, he should be able to read the Keepers language.”

  “That would be helpful.” Alena agreed as her gaze wandered over the many buttons and switches with labels they couldn’t read.

  Robin let them enjoy the bright light for a moment longer while he watched the beautiful planet below them. After a few minutes, he broke the silence.

  “Niu, head for the dark side of the planet and get us down near one of the remote settlements. I want to use the night to land without anyone noticing us. We’re supposed to be invisible to their scanners, but if anyone spots the Relentless Stride with the naked eye, things will escalate quickly.”

  “Aye, Captain!”

  While Niu brought them down, Robin once again made sure they understood how important it was, that there was no communication at all.

  “Alena, I understand that you must be worried about your brother, but please – you can’t risk contacting him. I have news from the Keeper that I’ll share with you later, but for now just believe me, that he is doing just fine.”

  “You have news about my brother?” Alena perked up.

  “Yeah, but it’s complicated. Just take my word for now that Sevastian is safe."

  “Of course, thanks. This means a lot to me.”

  “You’re welcome.” Robin said, and went through the plan again, “After the landing, head for the settlement. It’s only about five kilometers away and you should be able to reach it within an hour. Look for public access to the net to send Ang’Tue a message and leave a note for Proto. You can do some shopping afterwards, but I assume that most of our needs will be covered by the old man already. It would be great however, if you could keep an eye open for the things on this list.”

  He gave her a handwritten note that he got from ROMAS before its power ran out. It contained the things he needed to prepare the Star Atlas for Proto.

  “Will be done!” Alena nodded and left the bridge immediately after Niu brought the ship down in the dark forest of Seavis.

  Robin left the bridge to Happy and took the elevator to the middle deck. He needed a moment to orientate himself and then knocked at the door to one of the bunks. When there wasn’t any response even after half a minute, he pressed the button at the side and the door opened.

  “I’m Robin Tulward, Captain of this ship.” He said as he entered but didn’t get an answer.

  The room looked identical to the one he had claimed for himself, but the air in here was heavy with a medical scent. On the bed lay the Zulbano who had been saved by Alena. His eyes were closed, but the heavy breathing gave away that he wasn’t asleep.

  To his surprise, Robin recognized the clothes he wore.

  “Oh? So the UAS caught you after we left Seavis and brought you to the prison on Trov L, too?” He asked and the young wolf opened his eyes to look at him.

  There was nothing in that weary stare, just two dull eyes without any luster. Even Robin could see that the Zulbano had no will left. None of the fire a ferocious fighter would have was left.

  He also noticed bloody stains on the bedsheet and inspected the many bandages that were wrapped around the furry chest. They were clean, obviously changed just recently.

  “Do you have a name?” Robin asked but was met with silence.

  “Okay, mate. You do you.” He said with a shrug and turned back to the door, “Thank you for helping my friends and saving their lives. You are a guest on my ship for now. However, when you are better, I’m expecting a proper conversation. We have to clear some things up before we can move on.”

  Stopping in the door, he turned back once more.

  “Alena puts her head on the line for you. Don’t squander her goodwill. You have about three days before we are ready to depart. Get your head straight until then – you aren’t dead, so make the best out of that!”

  ***

  Alena came back the same night after having contacted Ang’Tue and Proto. She also found all the things on Robin’s list and even brought some booze.

  It was long past midnight when Robin, Alena and Happy sat around a small campfire in the soft sand. Sounds of wild animals came from the nearby forest and the crashing waves of the ocean played a soothing song.

  Robin had just finished the tale about his time in prison and most of his talk with the Augur. He left out the part about the upcoming mission and that the Keeper were paying the crew as well. That had to wait until later.

  “The Keeper stood against the UAS? To get you or was that about Proto?” Alena asked while she massaged her temples.

  “I think it’s a bit of both and something else that they aren’t telling us. Something has changed that caused the Keeper to leave the shadows.” Robin said.

  “Maybe it’s the other AI, Proto’s evil twin.” Niu suggested, “If it is responsible for the Starborn’s fall, then it’s probably dangerous, right? Maybe the Keeper are afraid?”

  “Maybe…” Robin sighed, “There is too much we don’t know.”

  They fell silent for a long while, each lost in their own thoughts.

  Remembering something, Robin rummaged through his belongings until he found a thin, long bottle that was filled to the half with sweet liquor.

  “Right, that’s for you. A compensation for confining you, the Augur said.” He explained and gave Niu the bottle, “I’m no expert, but as far as I can tell that is really good stuff!”

  “Huh… at least they have some basic decency!” Niu scoffed, took the stopper off and sniffed on the sweet liquor.

  Immediately her eyes went wide, “Woah. That’s the real deal… Mmhmm.”

  Seeing that the other gave her strange looks, she quickly put the stopper back on and stored the bottle. Then it was her turn to explain how they ended up in the Keeper’s hands after trying to break Robin out of the jail.

  ***

  “You broke into a UAS prison?” Robin asked incredulously. He had thought about many possibilities that would explain how his friends may have ended up in the Keeper ship together with the Zulbano, but a jailbreak? That definitely hadn’t come to his mind.

  “After we entered without meeting a single soul, we gained some confidence. At that time we thought Proto had lured away the guards, but it seems more plausible now that it was the arrival of the Keeper that cleared the way for us.” Alena said, “They caught the Relentless Stride after we escaped the prison with the Zulbano in tow and left the moon. The Keeper somehow took partial control of the walker and we could only watch as it was swallowed up by their huge ship. After that they locked us down and the only contact we had were the regular supply-deliveries.

  Happy sadly shook her head.

  “We’ve killed five men and women in that facility…”

  “You didn’t have a choice. If you want to blame anyone, blame me. It was my plan for the operation on Fulan Point that got me stuck in prison.” Robin said.

  “My damn family… Everything they touch breaks apart. Now they even have tried to kill my friends and forced us to burn all bridges to the UAS.”

  “To be honest,” Alena sighed and put her cup down, “we poked the UAS in so many spots, there is no chance this relationship would have ended in any other way. But yeah, your family really sucks!”

  “I agree with Alena.” Robin said, “Ever since returning from Terulos we knew how this would end. And while I never wanted it to come this far, I’m not willing to just dance on their palm.”

  The other nodded in silence.

  “How did you know where you would find me?”

  “Uh, that came to a surprise actually.” Happy laughed, “Just as Proto reached out to us and offered his help, Alena got a call from Timothy who heard what had happened and leaked your location. He even went so far as to organize the cheap ship that we used to travel back and fetch the Relentless Stride without being immediately tracked by the UAS.”

  “Wow…” Robin gaped, “I didn’t expect him to knock heads with the UAS so directly!”

  “He’s your friend.” Alena stated, “That’s what friends do, right?”

  “Yeah, you’re completely right.” Robin smiled, “And I’m really sorry that I ever had any doubts.”