Later that evening, Robin was sitting at a long table in a meeting room in Farlight. Next to him Niu was reading about the Eltaran’s history of space travel and their ships. She had gotten the notepad at the school when she went to pick up Gaya’Beo before.

  Robin observed her with a gentle smile while also feeling a little lost. He was still struggling to keep up with the rapid development of their relationship.

  ‘A relationship? Is it?’ he wondered. He had never been in a situation like this and, to be honest, he wasn’t great at handling people-stuff. However, when his thoughts wandered to the last days and the time he spent with Niu, his smile widened.

  ‘I have no idea what this is - yet. But whatever it is, it feels good. It feels right. I hope she feels the same…’

  “What?” Niu interrupted his thoughts when she noticed him looking at her, “Are you good?”

  Robin grinned and shook his head, “Yeah, just enjoying the view.”

  Niu raised an eyebrow and clicked her tongue, “Smooth!”

  Just then, Alena and Krez arrived and sat down next to Happy.

  Robin had found some time earlier to have a chat with the Zulbano. The wolf-kin had told him about his fight and how he managed to edge out a win at the end. Krez had, as far as Robin understood, still not completely found his path or knew what he wanted to do next, but at least it seemed that Alena actually managed to help him to get back on his feet. After some hesitation he even revealed that he had decided to accept the name she had given him. Getting a name from the clan was a great honor for every Zulbano and it served also as a descriptor for one’s most outstanding features or achievements.

  Considering that, Krez going by Nameless Warrior was truly fitting his duality. Not only was it a statement to his prowess, being named and even having ‘warrior’ included, but, at the same time, it was also telling anyone that he was obviously not part of the clan any longer.

  He had fought with honor and earned a name but not the clan’s recognition.

  “So you two are finally dating?” Alena interrupted Robin’s thoughts after she had taken a seat.

  While Robin only shrugged non-committally, Niu happily nodded. “Yup!”

  “Was about time! But seriously, can’t you two dial it down a bit?”

  “What do you mean? That’s none of your business, right?” Niu chuckled.

  “Yeah, it shouldn’t be.” Alena complained, “But each time you two are having ‘quality time’ together, half of the city experiences major instabilities in the power grid. It is a bit improper to announce yourself like that, don’t you think?”

  Hearing that, Niu’s ears instantly turned red and she looked like she wanted to hide under the table.

  Fortunately, Robin found a reason to shift away from this awkward topic as his senses noticed a few people approaching.

  “Yeah, that’s not something to discuss right now… if ever.” He interjected and pointed towards the door, “The Eltaran are coming.”

  Just then, the door opened and Mul’Jin led a group of six Eltaran into the room, Ang’Tue among them. Robin nodded to himself when he noticed that Ang’Tue walked over to his friends while Farlight’s Eltaran took their seats on the other side of the long table. It was a clear statement about where his loyalty was and Robin really appreciated the gesture.

  After exchanging friendly greetings and a quick round of introductions, a screen at the head of the table turned on. It showed a slowly rotating black cube that glowed in a gentle light. Robin immediately recognized the Star Atlas, Proto’s new home.

  “I greet the councilwoman Mul’Jin and her fellow city administrators!” Proto spoke and the cube on the screen pulsed in tact to his voice.

  “We’re honored to have you as our guest.” Mul’Jin said and slightly bowed to Proto’s image, the other Eltaran following her example.

  “Thanks. Today we want to talk about the plans of Robin and his crew, which includes me. And, as you may have guessed since we invited you here, these plans also concern the future of Farlight, the Eltaran and, to be frank, the whole universe.”

  While Robin and the others didn’t have a strong reaction to the AI’s bold statement, that couldn’t be said for the Eltaran who were gaping wide eyed at the screen. Before they could voice any questions, Proto continued his speech.

  “Because of the far-reaching implications I’ve also invited the Augur to this meeting.”

  The screen split and a second image appeared. Robin instantly recognized the Keeper’s spokesperson he had met on their ship.

  “Greetings.” The man said and gave a curt nod.

  “We greet the Keeper’s Augur!”

  Robin saw the Eltraran getting even more nervous. ‘Mul’Jin should have told them about the meeting in the laboratory before coming here, right? Why are they still so on the edge?’

  He had a hard time understanding them. Sure, they should know by now that their city was at risk somehow, but he got the feeling that it was the appearance of the Keeper that reality troubled them. The question was ‘Why?’ since, at the end of the day, they were still the Eltaran. A race that was inhabiting this universe longer than most others.

  ‘Maybe I’m still underestimating the Keeper…’

  “Now, first of all I want to get everyone up to date. Then we can discuss our next steps.” Proto continued after everyone’s attention was back on him, “As you already know, the Second - a mighty artificial lifeform created by the Starborn - has awakened. Over the last few years it has waged war against the Drel. Though, calling it a war is quite a stretch as they had no chance to fight back whatsoever. The Drel lost dozens of outposts, moons and planets. Millions have died.”

  A murmur went through the room, Robin and his friends included. Those numbers… were frightening!

  “There is good news for the Drel, however.” Proto said, “The Second has finally stopped his attacks and left their territory. Though, as the saying goes, one man’s joy is another man’s sorrow. The Second is following his original purpose again and to reach his goals he needs the First, me. That being said, the Second is on the hunt. He is hunting me and I’m fairly certain he already knows that I’ve joined the Captain and his crew.”

  Another murmur went through the room but as the legend of the First and Second was an open secret, no one was overly surprised.

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  “That’s bad, not only for you but also for us, right?” Mul’Jin voiced her concerns, “I’m quite proud of our city’s ability to remain hidden. However, seeing how you and the Keeper come and go as you wish, I assume our level of stealth won’t be enough to keep the Second in the dark. The entity must know by now that Mr. Tulward is here, correct?”

  “Actually, I’m not sure if he has really found us yet.” Proto said, “But you are correct, it’s only a matter of time.”

  “So, shouldn’t you leave then?” One of the city administrators said, “You’re endangering all of us. There are thousands of Eltaran living here, calling Farlight their home.”

  “It doesn’t matter.” The Augur spoke up, “After the attack on Bloom I it won’t take long for others to find you here. The Second will probably be the first, but definitely not the last. You only remained hidden for so long because no one knew where to look.”

  “This is outrageous!” Another Eltaran yelled, “You doomed all of us by coming here!”

  Mul’Jin quickly raised a hand to shut him up.

  “Haven’t you listened? While Mr. Tulward may have accelerated things, the result would be the same anyway. That does raise a much more pressing question however.” She said and looked forth and back between Ang’Tue and Robin with glowing eyes, “You saved many Eltaran with your intervention in the battle and we are thankful for it. Though, you shouldn’t have known about the battle before arriving here, right? And since you couldn’t have predicted that our location was already compromised, I would very much like to know why you still dared to come here, knowing that the Second is following your trail.”

  “We had decided to visit you long before we knew that the Second was hunting us.” Robin said and briefly considered his next words before looking at Ang’Tue, “By the time we understood the risk, it was already too late to back down.”

  “Robin speaks the truth,” the old man confirmed, “At some point I had to make a decision. A decision which concerns all of our people. There was no time to reconcile with the council and as such I struck a deal with the Keeper. I agreed to bring Robin here, no matter the costs.”

  “That is treason!” One of the Farlight’s Eltaran yelled but the councilwoman stopped her people once more when her skill told her that they were speaking the truth.

  “After the incident in the laboratory I have a good idea why the Augur wanted you to bring him here.” She said and glanced at the man’s image on the screen, “But you talked about a deal. Now that the Elder has fulfilled his part, what will he get in return?”

  “We agreed to support the Eltaran’s research for a cure to their gene instabilities. The Keeper will help your people to avoid extinction, giving you another chance to rise in the universe.” The Augur explained, leaving the Eltaran slackjawed.

  “That… impossible! You… you can do that?” Mul’Jin stammered, not daring to grasp the spark of hope that was ignited.

  “We can’t promise success, but we are confident that with our knowledge and your expertise a solution can be found.”

  “T… thank you!” She said and stood up to deeply bow, her colleagues doing the same. Then she turned to Ang’Tue, “You’ve made the right call, Elder. The citizens of Farlight will be proud to give their lives for the good of the Eltaran.”

  “Wow!” Krez whistled and threw Alena a look, “Did you hear that? Never again call out the Zulbano for being brainwashed idiots!”

  “Them being fanatics doesn’t make your society any better…” Alena grumbled, clearly annoyed to have lost ground in their continued squabble.

  “That brings us to the next topic,” Proto led them back to the topic, “what is planned from here on out. Robin, if you would be so kind.”

  “Yeah, sure.” Robin nodded and stood up, “While I’m happy that you’re agreeing with Ang’Tue’s deal and our decision to come here, I’m as surprised as Krez. Why the hell are you talking about giving your life and sacrificing the city? Shouldn’t you instead think about ways to evacuate? I can hardly imagine that there aren’t some emergency protocols for situations like this, in which Farlight is about to be detected or even attacked.”

  “There are, yes.” An Eltaran answered, “But most of our fleet was destroyed in the attack. We simply do not have enough ships to evacuate everyone. Maybe the children, if we’re lucky. All other hidden communities are far away and it would take them months to reach us. I don’t think we have that much time left, right?”

  “No, my calculations suggest that we have about eight to ten weeks before the Second arrives, less than three months.” Proto said.

  “That’s what I feared. But it is at least enough time to prepare and evacuate the young ones.” Mul’Jin sighed and looked at Robin, “What are your plans? Will you confront the Second?”

  “Yes, but not alone. We are planning to team up with the Keeper to attack the Second the moment he enters the system. If we manage to completely destroy him, this hunt will finally come to an end and Proto will regain some more freedom. If we get lucky, it will even end without messing up the planets as collateral.”

  “Is that likely?” An administrator asked.

  “No, quite the contrary.” The Agur answered, “I’m confident in our victory but not without paying a steep price.”

  There was a long silence in the room before Happy finally spoke.

  “So that’s it? That is how the hunt of the Second will end? After driving off the Starborn and laying waste to the known universe, we will be able to end all that in one final battle?”

  “That’s the plan…” Robin sighed but then a sudden idea struck him and he turned to the Eltaran again, “Say, if the city is doomed anyway, are you open for a little gamble?”

  “You want to gamble with the lives of our citizens?” A man cursed loudly.

  “Well, you have given up on them either way, don’t you?” Alena scoffed.

  “What do you have in mind?” Mul’Jin asked, ignoring the squabble.

  “There is someone with enough ships and close enough to reach you in time...” Robin hinted.

  “You want to ask the UAS? You want to tell them our location?”

  “Yeah.” He shrugged, “What do you have to lose?”

  Mul’Jin and her colleagues quickly talked among each other in hushed voices.

  “While your words are holding some truth and this may be a way to save more of our people, a decision like that has far-reaching consequences.” She said, “We need to discuss this with the council first.”

  “Sure, just tell me when you’ve come to a decision and I’ll give them a call.” Robin nodded.

  “But you should hurry up,” Proto said, “even if the UAS is willing to help, they too need time to prepare and travel.”

  “Then let us finish this meeting for today.” Mul’Jin stood up, “I thank you for your support. Even if we cannot save the city, be sure to know that the Eltaran are eternally grateful for the chance you’ve secured for us. A chance not only for a better future but for a lasting one!”

  ***

  “So, do you really think this will work just like that?” Happy asked again after the Eltaran had left and only Proto and the Augur remained with them.

  Before the Augur could answer, Robin raised a hand to keep them quiet. Then he tapped into his mutation and quickly searched the room. A moment later he found all devices that may allow others to eavesdrop on them and activated his newest skill. Concentrating on the signatures he had sensed, he willed the power running through them to act out. His first attempt only made the lights in the room flicker a bit but on his second try the sound of sizzling electronics could be heard.

  “All good now.” He said and gestured at the screen, “Please.”

  “Thank you. To answer the young lady’s question: No, we don’t think this will work just like that. Not at all.” The Augur said without sugarcoating his words, “The Keeper do not have the means to destroy the Second, no matter if you help us or not.”

  When he saw the confusion on his friends’ faces, Robin took over and explained.

  “I’ve talked about this with Proto and the Augur before. The Keeper will engage the Second in battle, but the best outcome we can hope for is the destruction of his ship. As you know, ?ther is especially effective against biomaterials and won’t work as well against the Second in his android-body. It will at best delay him for some time. Hopefully long enough for them to blow up his ship.”

  “You say ‘them’ as if we’re not part of that attack. What will we do?” Alena asked.

  “We will leave the system long before the arrival of the Second and search for a weapon that works against the android itself.”

  “And where would we find something like that?” She wondered out loud, getting somewhat excited for the upcoming showdown.

  “Burried deep within the old network from my creators.” Proto said proudly and made a dramatic pause before he continued, “I’ll bring you to one of the few hidden relic sites of the Starborn. That is where we will make our last stand!”