Julian held the device almost too firmly as he walked upwards, his demeanor brave-looking. They needed to get to planet Seisymy very quickly, and the device had said it had no way of getting them out of Zyros. Well, Julian knew a way, and that was what he was going to execute now.
Zyros, not being heavily focused on battles, had only one spaceship, and even that had taken years to build. It had been long since Julian saw it, if he was being honest, but he could still remember how it looked: a small, stylish spaceship that he had always wanted to enter as a kid. Well, he was going to do so now.
The question you would be asking was: why wasn't it destroyed when the Imperium of Archos attacked? Well, that was because it was hidden, kept underground. Back then, when it had just been created and Julian was still a child, he didn't actually know why it was so. He had always wondered, 'Why was it kept underground?' But now, with a grim face and a sodden heart, he realized why. The reason was gritty to think about, but it had already happened, so what could be worse?
Then, he had asked the Zyrosain who created it why it was hidden, and the reply was:
'You never know who might survive.' Thinking about it now gave him the creeps. It was ironic, really, because that small kid back then was now the:
'You never know who might survive.'
Julian knew where the spaceship was hidden. All he had to do was get to the spot, step on it, and click some very small and almost insignificant buttons to activate it.
The walk was a silent one. Silent because he wouldn't consider the alien device an actual being worth speaking to. The device didn't speak either, and so, while he walked, he could only look around, and what he saw made him crave revenge even more.
He recognized a tall building, now in shambles. It was where the people of the planet gave birth. His gaze tightened as he stared at it, like he was squinting, but he wasn't. His heart damp and grief-shaken. If he hadn't awakened the alien device's powers, he might've been shedding tears. But he just couldn't. He just couldn't cry anymore. He couldn't be soft anymore.
And when he thought about it, he realized it wasn't just because he'd gained galactic power, but because he was now so shaken, so broken, he had become emotionless. Not in the sense that he couldn't feel happiness or sadness anymore, but in a way that didn't let him show it. Even if he was hurting, his face stayed grim. The lowest expression he'd show now was a sigh.
He walked for long, so long that he suddenly felt very tired. He turned to look at the device and asked, "Is there any way I can move faster?"
The device flickered a fluorescent light before saying, "I thought you'd never ask."
Julian made a face, though no one could see it behind his mask. "So there's a way. You should have told me earlier."
The device flickered again. "I only act when told to."
Julian sighed and crouched on the ground, looking around. The walk had been a long and dilapidated one. No memorable places or things , the planet now looked more like a wasteland. A desert would've been better. At least deserts had tumbleweeds and cactuses. This? This had nothing but fallen buildings, dead Zyrosain bodies, and grief.
Grief!
Dead corpses!
Sorrow!
Death!
Destruction!
Sadness!
This was a place that could break a man. The atmosphere was gloomy, the ambience dry with despair.
"You can glide," the alien device suddenly said. "Just like the Imperium of Archos commander that came to kill you all , you can glide. Not really glide, but something like glide-walking."
Julian was impressed. He nodded repeatedly, three times in fact. He wasn't going to lie, the vicious, skull-busting commander gliding through the air had been one of the coolest things he'd ever seen.
Without hesitation, he stood up and asked, "How do I do it?"
The device hesitated for a brief moment, as if processing the information, then with a tiny, almost silent beep: "Just want to do it, and you will."
Julian slightly grinned in his helmet. He'd expected the device to tell him to click a button and… Whoosh! He'd be there. But this? This was something else.
Closing his eyes and holding the device tight, he imagined himself gliding in the air, and—
Thooom!
A surge of wind blasted from nowhere and hit him, staggering his balance. He cracked one eye open, and suddenly, he was gliding briskly through the air.
It felt awesome. Up in the air, flying. It felt like he was living his childhood dream of soaring through the sky.
But he didn't care anymore. He didn't care if he was happy or sad. All that mattered was getting to Seisymy and meeting the horny empress for help.
And well, doing that would make him indulge… just a little.
He moved fast in the air, and soon, he reached the edge of the planet , where the spaceship was hidden.
Thooom!
He landed, now gazing into space. The end of the planet was scenic, like a portal , a swirling mix of orange and black. Zyros's sky was naturally orange, but at its edge, the colors melded in a hypnotic way. Beautiful, alluring, but also terrifying. He wouldn't dare go through it. Who knew what lay beyond? He might fall and float endlessly into nothingness.
He crouched, hands scanning the ground, searching for the buttons. It took ten seconds.
There were three: one shaped like a square, another oval, and one cylindrical. He clicked them,. still holding the alien device, and stepped back a bit.
It happened almost immediately.
The ground split open, and Whooosh! A stylish spaceship rose into view. It looked like a standard model, except sleeker — with an ophidian design, like the child of a real spaceship.
Julian stared in awe. Its sleekness stunned him.
Then the doors opened, and without a second thought, Julian stepped inside and settled into a very comfortable seat.
The interior was simple but clean.
He dropped the alien device on the seat beside him, grabbed the controller, leaned back, and asked;
"We head to the horny empress's planet?"
"[Yes. I have a sketchy map that'll get you there," the device said. "But be prepared, the empress likes to fuck as hell!]"
Julian didn't reply. He just smiled. Then his helmet slid off his face with a loud Thrachkkk!
Julian was impressed. He liked the perks of being a Galactic Knight.
The spaceship lifted into the skies. Julian looked down through the screen in front of him, taking one last gaze at the planet.
[On board the Zyrosain spaceship]
Host.
Julian was shocked.
[Don't worry. You are not driving the spaceship. It's driving itself. All you have to do is input your destination.]
Julian exchanged glances with basically no one , stunned.
A self-riding spaceship? Impressive.
"[This will be easy,]" the alien device said. "[Just put in the name of the planet.]"
Julian nodded. As he was just about to input the name of the horny empress's planet…
He saw it.
A dead body.
It struck him like lightning. It felt like is heart flew out of his chest.
He knew the body well.
It was the reason -
…the damn reason he was doing this.