I focused on the sound of my own breathing, refusing to let my sense of self go. Or, rather, refusing as far as my feeble capabilities went. It was like trying to cling to a dream as daylight comes, leaving the edges of reality blurred.

Is that anxious knot in my stomach truly my own, or has it been pushed upon me by external forces?

Fear and uncertainty are powerful tools for control, and now, I couldn’t even trust my own emotions to not betray me. A fit of rage, indecisiveness, or just a flash of some traumatic memory could seemingly all be used to dictate my actions.

I needed to be in control.

Exhaling, I lowered myself towards the floor, only to find the entire tent upside down as I blinked my eyes open. Or rather, I was, and extending my arms in one last push-up, I let my feet return to the floor.

A sheen of sweat clung to my skin, but despite my barely healed injuries, I felt as light and strong as ever. Lighter, in fact. Stronger.

Agility 37

Strength 35

Glancing over those stats upon my interface, I could tell that they weren’t just shiny numbers that the System had thrown at me. My body was stronger than it had been in forever. I felt more limber, agile, and mobile even though I should have still been locked to a bed.

More worrying, however, was the fact that a pawn was only ever as strong as its willingness to follow a command, and that’s exactly how I’d been feeling lately – like a mindless pawn being strung along.

Golden chains that intercepted my memories. Uncontrollable emotions, spiking abruptly, along with too many coincidences that kept piling up. The question was just why. Why me? Why like this? And why had I been made aware of it now?

If whatever was using me was strong enough to get this far, why hadn’t it succeeded?

Glancing down at my UI, I couldn’t help but ask, “Am I the one wielding you, or are you the one wielding me?”

𐫰 𐫰 𐫰

By the time they arrived, Suno had yet to bring me any gun. It didn’t really matter, but I still felt naked standing there, being armed with nothing but my fists inside of enemy territory.

The Slobber Knuckles had now shown their fangs, and the Astral Fleet…

Well, that’s why I had called for them in such a hurry, and from the way they entered the tent, I could tell they had expected me to be in my bed. Just in case they had arrived with unsavory thoughts, however, I hid in a corner by the entrance, ready to pounce as they switched on the light.

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Not that I showed as much as Mikayes’ startled gaze turned my way.

“84 bullets, a Stinger F-7 Pistol, and a Switch TK Combat Blade” I said. “Add to that my own injuries and discomfort, and you could say that I’m due for a generous pay out — the first part of which will be re-arming me sooner rather than later. For both of our sake.”

“Good morning to you, too?” Mikayes hesitantly said.

“Are you alright?” Jenna worriedly picked up, and she seemed only a wince on my part away from pushing me back down into bed and spoon-feed me warm soup.

It was only the two of them there, and it spared me the few seconds it took to give her a feigned smile. “I’m fine,” I lied. “At least physically. What worries me more is how things are looking here and…” I hesitated, still unsure what to make of that knot in my stomach. “Say, would it be strange if I were anxious about a Stratiotis Ouranios being enroute to come here painfully soon?”

From the looks on their faces, I could tell that the restless feeling that had been haunting me since I put on my glasses wasn’t completely unwarranted.

“What?” both of them burst out with the same breath.

𐫰 𐫰 𐫰

It took me some time to explain why, exactly, I had direct access to an Astral Fleet officer’s communication network — that’s where I had caught that first glimpse of the chaos going on up here. Thinking about it, the System had probably nudged me in that direction, considering the ease with which I’d found it.

Still, it wasn’t like I could exactly avoid reacting to it either. If the world moved, I would have to move to, and for some reason, things only seemed to be speeding up around me.

Fortunately, during my deliberately vague explanations about the hows and whys of my knowledge, I also learned about the Migmians, a stone circlet, and Mr. Biggins involvement.

I didn’t need a whole lot more for the bigger pieces to start falling into place. Most of them, at least, but not all.

“And what is the Slobber Knuckles involvement in all of this, exactly…?” I tried one last time, never expecting much.

Complicated, that was the conclusion I had come to.

At first, I had been surprised by the fact that Mikayes didn’t seem half as trusting in our ‘other companions’ as I’d initially thought. More surprised, however, I was by the fact that there wasn’t even a single ‘I told you so’ from Jenna. Whenever the Slobber Knuckles were brought up, both of them merely became quiet, letting me know that, once more, I wasn’t the only one with secrets to hide.

“They’re here to help in our exploration of Migur-11, naturally…” Mikayes vaguely stated, letting the subject die there.

“Yamien,” Jenna picked up, “are you really serious about a Stratiotis Ouranios coming here? That’s nothing to joke about, you know.”

“There’s a reason why I’d rather get armed sooner rather than later.” I sighed, knowing full well that pushing them about the Slobber Knuckles would get me nowhere – an ongoing investigation, it had been left at.

Instead, I let a piece of my mind flicker across my interface, towards a connection I’d tried to keep open to a minimum. Even the old me would have been cautious crossing paths with one of the Empire’s elites, and depending on their expertise, were I careless they might notice my presence.

Now, however, such care left me completely blind to the frantic orders that were already flying around within the stillness of the night – a night that wouldn’t remain still for much longer.

With a silent curse, my eyes snapped upwards, toward the tent’s ceiling. “In fact,” I restlessly began, “I’d appreciate it a great deal if you ran to fetch me the nearest gun available. Right now!”

I had barely finished my thought as the night sky was split by burning lights, visible even through the tent’s canvas. A second later, the thundering engine of a stealth craft had made its presence known for kilometers away.

Above it all, however, a booming, artificial voice announced: “All living beings on Migur-11 are to remain on stand-by. Anyone who moves without explicit authorization is prone to extermination. This planet now falls under the supervision of Adortha Vidris XII. All sentient beings are to…”

“Actually, never mind,” I quietly mumbled, sinking back down onto my bed.

Of all people, why did it have to be that rabid madman…