While José and Drall go about their business, determining the future of their cooperative murder-venture, in a medical bay elsewhere on the Bloodbearer, a trio of Kessu gather around a hospital bed to gaze at a tiger-colored Kessu with black stripes running across his orange fur.

Nyoor, Baaru, and Lele watch as the Bloodbearer's best holographic doctors finish the awakening procedures on Ruuki, their relative they rescued from Yama's Caves. Lele in particular jumps up and down excitedly as the tiger-Kessu's eyes flutter open.

"Mraww... where... am I?"

"Daddy! Daddy!" Lele exclaims. "You're awake! You're finally awake!!"

Ruuki shifts his head to the side, where he sees the Kessu Patriarch and Matriarch standing beside him, their heads and pointed ears twitching excitedly as they barely manage to peep over the top of the Terran-sized bed. At the same time, Lele's short stature makes it impossible for her to see her father, so Baaru reaches down and hefts her granddaughter up onto the bed.

"Lele?" Ruuki says, recognizing his daughter. "You're okay? What about... the Shadow Monster? Where is he? Where am I, even?"

Ruuki glances around the stunningly bright and pristine medical bay. A truly massive seven-foot-tall furless biped hovers over him, with only golden blonde hair streaming out the top of its head and flowing down its shoulders. Ruuki gets the impression the creature is female, though its oddly symmetrical face makes him feel somewhat uncomfortable.

"Welcome back to the world of the living, Ruuki, leader of your tribe. My name is Penelope. I am a Holographic Bio-Entity synthesized to assist others medically as well as to render psychological assistance. You have suffered numerous physical injuries, but thanks to my state-of-the-art technology, I was able to perfectly reform your physical capabilities. How are you feeling, currently?"

Ruuki stares at the woman for several long seconds.

Slowly, he turns to look at his father.

"Mraww. What did-?"

"Don't ask me, kiddo." Nyoor says, shrugging helplessly. "These Precursors all speak a bunch of nonsense! Meow! I can't understand half the things coming out of their furless lips!"

Lele, now sitting on her father's lap, rolls her eyes and sighs dramatically. "It's not that complicated. You got all healed up, daddy! You're as good as new!"

"Oh? Well that's good! That's great!" Ruuki meows, sitting up straight to hug his little girl. "I'm so glad to be alive! I thought... I thought that monster was going to kill me for sure..."

Baaru's eyes darken. "Ruuki... those caves... the situation is a little complicated."

Ruuki turns to listen as his mother goes into great detail over the next half-hour, explaining just what the heck happened after the Kraktol attack, how she and Nyoor led them away, and how they accidentally revived a super-powerful ancient entity known as a Precursor.

The more Ruuki hears, the more his eyes widen.

"So... so all those poor women of our tribe... they were captured by that Yama?! They're his slaves now?! NOO! MEOW! HISS! How hateful! How despicable!"

"It is truly an awful situation." Baaru says, lowering her head. "The Precursor is going to launch an attack on the shadow-monster and his minions. The Kraktol did hate us before, but we're not enemies anymore. They fear our Admiral's power, and as such, won't do anything to make him mad!"

"Hmph." Ruuki snorts. "Those Kraktol are another matter. Father, our ancient records state the Kraktol are our greatest enemies. How can we so easily forgive them their sins? That Yama may have taken our females, but it was the Kraktol who pushed us into the caves!"

"They did." Nyoor nods, appearing visibly tired. "But... things have changed. The Kraktol attacked us because of ancient grudges. In truth, the wars of our forefathers and mothers are not our wars. None of the modern Kessu or Kraktol hold any truly bad blood with each other. The Admiral thinks we can reconcile... and I feel that he is right."

Seeing his father's firm expression, Ruuki hesitates.

"Mmm... well... I can't say I disagree. But what about our fallen friends and family? What about all the Kessu who have died? We lost at least a thousand villagers to their sky gods!"

"The perpetrator of that attack has been murdered in fair combat by the Admiral." Baaru says, her voice gently lilting. "Orgon the Betrayer has had his grave spit upon and condemned by the Kraktol. Since their arrival, none have made any threatening moves toward us. Perhaps you should take some time to meet them and form your own thoughts, my son. I think you will find they are not that bad."

Seeing his mother and father's insistence on at least trying to maintain peace, Ruuki eventually relents. The four-foot-tall tiger flips his legs over the bed, drops to his parents' level, and brings Lele down too.

"...Alright! I'd like to get a look at these stupid scale-faces and see what sorts of people they are. As for that Admiral's plan... I want in!"

Baaru flinches, visibly taken aback. "You...?"

"I'm going to join that team! I'm gonna help kill that filthy shadow bastard!" Ruuki exclaims, growing angrier by the second. "He... he dragged our girls away while they screamed. I tried to stop him, but I could hear their meows grow fainter and fainter, all while his shadow-monsters surrounded and beat me back. I'll never forget how weak and useless I felt. As a tribe leader, I've failed my people. I must redeem myself!"

Ruuki presses his paw against his chest. "I won't be useless anymore. I will have your Admiral train me to be a stronger fighter so I can take revenge with my own paws. Only that way will I feel satisfied!"

"Meow! Daddy's so cool!" Lele exclaims, smiling cutely. "No wonder mommy fell for you!"

"Mrow... yeah..." Ruuki says, his excitement cooling off. "Your mother was... tsk. I still think about her."

Ruuki exchanges more words with his mother and father. Eventually, he leaves the medical bay along with Lele, the two of them chatting with each other and bonding over all the memories they've missed sharing.

"I don't understand." Ruuki says, as they pitter-patter down the hallway softly, their paws making hardly any sound. "How could you be almost seven star-cycles old? Didn't you say it's only been a month since I entered the caves?"

"It's called Inverted Space, daddy." Lele meows, rolling her eyes again. "It's not that complicated. Time flowed faster for me, so I got older quicker. More importantly, what are you going to get me for my birthday?"

Ruuki awkwardly flicks his ears. "Um. I'll, uh... I'll definitely get you something good, sweety-pea! Daddy never treats his precious girl badly!"

The two of them follow Umi's guidance as she leads them to Admiral Rodriguez's current position. Soon, they arrive at the primary Holodeck, where they step inside to find a jungle of trees and undergrowth currently being simulated. Inside this virtual forest, hundreds of Kraktol swarm around the bushes, roaring as they fight frightening-sounded monsters in the underbrush.

"W-what the heck?!" Ruuki meows. "Why are there trees here? Weren't we... on a space-thingy? A metal sky-creature?"

"It's just a bunch of holograms, daddy." Lele says, rolling her eyes even harder a third time. "It's not that hard to understand."

Hearing his daughter's chiding words, Ruuki's fur flattens as he feels slightly ashamed. "O-oh. Right... hollow... grambs... sorry, sweetie. Daddy's not very smart about this... stuff..."

"Sigh!"

Lele huffs to herself, but otherwise doesn't fault her father too much. Unlike Lele, who visited her technologically advanced aunt on several occasions, Ruuki and the other Kessu have always been embarrassingly aloof to the wonders of technology. They were quite content to stay in their village and live primitive lives, at least until the Kraktol attacked.

Of course, things have changed since joining the Terran's crew. Now, many Kessu from across Tarus II have regained their interest in technology. They work tirelessly to repair the Bloodbearer's assault craft and interceptors, returning it to its former glory as a launching platform for interstellar warfare.

Ruuki and Lele carefully step into the holodeck. As they enter a terrifying ROAR erupts from within, nearly causing both of them to wet themselves.

"Mraww!" Ruuki exclaims. "What was that?! It sounded like a monster!"

"It probably was..." Lele says. She crawls out of her father's arms and pads back to the doorway. "Um... good luck, daddy... I don't wanna go in right now. You're brave! You can handle yourself..."

Just as Lele is about to leave, a male Kessu walks up behind her and grabs her shoulders. "Boo!"

"Meow!" Lele shrieks, spinning to look at her unexpected attacker. She discovers his identity is Rags, the same fellow who fought valiantly to protect her and her unconscious father in the caves.

"R-Rags!" Lele huffs cutely. "Don't sneak up on me like thaaat!~"

Rags pats her head and smiles. "I'm just kidding around. More importantly, what are you doing here, Lele? Are you going to join in with the Precursor Training?"

"No way." Lele grouches. "That's boy-stuff. I brought my daddy here to meet the Kraktol. Now I'm leaving."

Rags glances at Ruuki. He gasps in excitement. "Mister Ruuki! Meow, meow! You're awake! Are you feeling all better?"

Rags runs over and hugs Ruuki, who hugs him back. "Good to see you, Rags. Yeah, I feel great! Those ugly shadow-monsters couldn't keep me down for long! I hear you had quite the kick-butt moment in those tunnels. You really saved my fur, and Lele's too."

The cunning tiger shoots a mischievous grin at his little girl, then shoves Rags toward her.

"Say, why don't you two let this old Kessu have a look around, eh? You two should go and play some games. I don't want some strong young predator stealing my thunder!"

"But... Mister Ruuki!" Rags protests.

"No protests!" Ruuki exclaims. "Go! Go! Don't forget I'm the leader of our tribe! I call the shots, kid."

"Well. Alright." Rags says, not noticing the greater intentions of Lele's father. He turns to leave and stops beside Lele. "So, uh, wanna get some food in the mess hall?"

Lele's ears twitch. "Alright! That sounds like fun! Bye daddy, we'll see you later! Take care!"

"Haha. I'll be just fine!" Ruuki says, turning around to head deeper into the jungle foliage.

As the two kittens head back and the entrance to the holodeck closes, Ruuki settles down a bit and continues moving deeper into the synthesized jungle. It doesn't take long before the roars of that monster from before grow louder, along with the guttural cries of the Kraktol attacking it.

"Hold it down! Wrap chains around its mouth!"

"Impale its feet to the ground! Pin it in place!"

Ruuki jumps through the foliage, only to suddenly arrive in a clearing where three Kraktol hold onto chains wrapped around a massive, bipedal monster with a single eye on its forehead. This creature, a Cyclops, is a physically stronger version of a Troll, albeit with a weaker regenerative factor and four arms on its body.

The pale-skinned Cyclops roars in rage. It grabs onto one of the chains and yanks with all its strength, but the blue-scaled Kraktol at the other end digs her feet into the dirt and wraps her tail around a tree, crying out in pain as her vertebrae become stressed.

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"G-Grundle! I can't... hold on... much longer! Kyargh!"

Just as it feels as if her back is going to break, a short grey-scaled Kraktol with a relatively toned and muscled body charges out of the underbrush, a wooden spear held at the ready. Its stone-tip appears crude, but also sharpened to a frightening edge!

"GRAUGH! I will land this killing blow!" Roars Grundle, formerly the weakest of the Dragon's Breath crew. He races toward the Cyclops, plants his feet against the ground, and leaps twenty feet upward, using his tail to give himself an extra boost.

"Aaaah!"

Grundle's aim flies true. He impales the weapon directly into the Cyclops' eye, making its roar of rage and pain cut off abruptly as its brain becomes filled with the cold, sharpened edge of a stone spear-tip.

The Cyclops falls silent as it loses its balance, staggers backward, and collapses into its shadow. The other Kraktol roar with excitement!

The blue-scaled Kraktol, none other than Sapphire, runs over and claps Grundle on the back. "Way to go, Grundle! That was an incredible takedown! You've really been practicing your aim!"

"Excellent work, little brother!" Shouts another of the Kraktol. "Bahaha! I can't believe you've been languishing as a mechanic this whole time. You're a true warrior!"

The Kraktol celebrate their kill while Umi announces their combat rating.

"Kraktol Team: Sapphire. You have scored a combat rating of C-. This is a 12% increase in performance over your previous result. Excellent work."

Sapphire, as the leader of the team, pumps her fists excitedly. "Kyargh! It's all because Grundle did such good work! My Darling is going to be so proud of us!"

As the Kraktol cheer, Grundle turns to the side and happens to spot Ruuki standing in the foliage. "Graugh? Who are you, Kessu? Your smell is not familiar to me."

The other Kraktol pause their cheering to look at the newcomer, slightly perplexed.

"He's new to me, too." Sapphire says.

"So you are the Kraktol who attacked my village..." Ruuki says, not backing down even when such tall, dangerous-looking predators stand a mere stone's throw from him. He maintains his alertness, ready to flee if they make any sudden moves, but doesn't let his worry show on his face. "You are the ones who killed my friends and family. I am Ruuki, son of Patriarch Nyoor. What do you say in your defense?"

The atmosphere, previously one of celebration, turns slightly awkward.

"Cough! Um... well, that wasn't actually us." Sapphire says. "None of the Kraktol involved in that attack, except for Soren, Megla, and Gorlax, are here. We come from a different place."

"We still hold some of the blame." Grundle says, piping up to counter his sister's words. "Graugh! We once held a lot of prejudice toward the Kessu. If we were on Orgon the Betrayer's ship, we would have joined in on his foul acts for sure. But now that we have seen the Kessu for ourselves, we must admit the little furballs aren't so bad!"

Another Kraktol female snorts. "Perhaps not. But they are still tiny, weak little creatures. Not like us Kraktol, who are superior in every way."

Ruuki bristles visibly. "What was that?! Mraww! I am the mightiest warrior of my village! I dare you to say that again! I'll rip your scales off any day of the week!"

Grundle glances at the tiger-colored Kessu. He blinks, sizing Ruuki up. "You are? Graugh! You certainly have a lot of fight in you. But how strong can a tiny little ball of fur truly be? Why don't you and I have a little competition to see if the Kessu are decent at the art of combat, hmm? It would not be fair for you to duel against the best Rodaks in my squad."

"You want to compete against me?" Ruuki snorts. "Meow! Fine! This Kessu has some kick! What manner of combat shall we try? I trust you won't stoop to your cheating ways!"

"I would never cheat!" Grundle shouts, inflamed by Ruuki's words. "Synthmind! Help me devise a fair competition with this Kessu furball!"

Umi beeps above. "A fair competition. Affirmative. Due to the physiological differences between your two species, the Kessu and Kraktol would at first glance appear to be unevenly matched. However, the Kessu are quick and nimble. Crewmember Ruuki's claws are deadly enough to tear out flesh, and therefore, his threat level stands at only a small margin lower than your own, Visitor Grundle. I will ask Admiral Rodriguez for permission to create a holographic program appropriate for a competition between your species."

The synthmind beeps three times, then falls silent. She communicates remotely with Admiral Rodriguez, who casually gives his consent for the Kraktol and Kessu to settle their differences in a balanced competition.

"Admiral Rodriguez has laid out the basic arrangement for your competition." Umi says after a minute or two. "You will engage in a virtual hunting competition of prey both large and small. You will attempt to kill or capture as many prey as possible. Small prey will count for fewer points, while large prey will count for more. Additionally, I will allow you to form teams with your fellow Kraktol and Kessu, so long as both sides agree to this arrangement."

"Hmm. Should we do team-based matchups, or a solo competition?" Ruuki wonders. "Mraaw! I can take you on by myself, Kraktol!"

"Let's make this fair." Sapphire says. "For every two Kessu, there will be one Kraktol. Then the playing field will be completely level."

"Are you saying it takes two Kessu to match up to one Kraktol?!" Ruuki protests. "Nuh-uh! I won't accept that! Let's just keep this a 1v1! Me against you, Grundle! You talked smack, so I'll claw you back!"

"Just you two? Well... alright!" Sapphire says, shrugging nonchalantly. She gestures at the other Kraktol in her group, all of them female, and they take a step back to let Ruuki and Grundle hash out their differences.

"Very well." Umi says, her tone sounding very slightly annoyed. "It will be a solo competition then. I will reconfigure the parameters to meet your needs."

Ruuki and Grundle swap a few more barbs toward each other, but the Kessu noticeably softens his anger, perhaps due to seeing the genuine empathy in the Kraktol's eyes. After all, Grundle doesn't appear to hold any hostile thoughts toward him, so the Kessu can't help but feel maybe his father was right.

Twenty minutes later, Umi completes her preparations, and the hunt begins!

The lean crocodile and tiny tiger race into the jungle, using nothing but their claws and teeth to hunt down animals and monsters large and small. Not only does Umi place orcs and goblins inside the simulation, but plenty of creatures native to Tarus II, in an effort to give Ruuki a fairer matchup. As one of his village's best hunters, the tiger-Kessu is no slouch when it comes to combat, but his diminutive body does come up a little 'short' in terms of strength.

Ruuki rips out the throats of several demonic-type monsters. He pounces through the treetops catching birds and flinging them to the ground, all while the distant sounds of Grundle's roars make his ears twitch.

The tiger's thoughts race. I can't let that Rodak get the best of me! I have to win for the glory of my people!

He increases his speed, pouncing on creatures large and small, taking them down with ease. However, on occasion he will encounter truly huge and scary predators, such as a single roaming Cyclops, to which he keeps his distance and slinks away, realizing he can't take down such an immense beast.

Three hours later, Ruuki collapses onto the simulated dirt after Umi announces the competition's conclusion.

"Attention, competitors Ruuki and Grundle. The time limit has been reached. The simulation will now end."

A moment later, the holographic forest vanishes, leaving Ruuki on the clean white floor. He glances around himself, only to spot a small group of a few dozen Kessu and Kraktol, all of them having come to witness the results of his competition with Grundle. Ruuki's daughter, Lele, stands off to the side along with Rags, her tail twitching back and forth.

"We saw everything, daddy!" Lele exclaims. "You did great!"

"Nice work, Mister Ruuki!" Rags chimes in. "You kicked serious tail out there!"

Ruuki's eyes flicker to Grundle, who also lays in a heap on the floor, exhausted and at his body's limits. The Kraktol shakily climbs to his feet, and Ruuki mirrors him, neither of them wanting to look weak in front of the other.

"Haha!" Ruuki laughs, between pain-filled breaths. "We'll soon find out who won, Rodak! I hope you're prepared to receive the humiliation of a lifetime!"

Grundle swallows several gulps of air. "Heh... if I lost, it will not be a shame, but an honor. It means I still have room to grow. And if I win, that is only natural too. These are the words of wisdom imparted to me by my Admiral!"

Slightly taken aback, Ruuki's bravado falters. He ponders Grundle's little speech and reralizes those words of wisdom make more sense than he wants to acknowledge.

"...It seems I am wrong about you Kraktol." Ruuki says, as he walks over to clap his paw into Grundle's grasp. "You aren't just a bunch of big, dumb scalies! You've taught me a lesson I won't forget!"

"My knowledge is shallow, and my vision limited!" Grundle exclaims. "What wisdom I possess comes not from me, but from the great Terran! Admiral Rodriguez is my idol, and I will follow his every command!"

Umi beeps overhead. "I have finished tallying the results. Starting with Kessu Crewmember Ruuki, he has successfully hunted fifteen Pelip-Birds, twelve Filiris, ninteen Goblins..."

Umi continues speaking for almost a minute, tallying off Ruuki's impressive list of kills. The other Kraktol and Kessu near the entrance to the holodeck gasp in amazement.

"So many in only three hours?" Rags asks, amazed. "Mister Ruuki is amazing! I still have a long ways to go!"

"That's my daddy!" Lele meows.

When Umi reaches the conclusion, she finishes with a final numeric value for Ruuki's hunt value.

"Crewmember Ruuki has accumulated 14,705 points. Next, I will tally Visiting Delegate Grundle's kills..."

Without delay, Umi begins firing off the number of creatures Grundle killed, causing Ruuki's elation to vanish.

"Twenty-seven goblins? That's much more than me. And eighteen Orcs? How did he even...?"

The Kessu at the entrance fall silent, while the Kraktol whoop and cheer.

"Amazing! I was worried that furball would beat our boy, but there's no chance now! Grundle truly trounced his tail!"

"It wasn't a fair battle." Sapphire explains. "Didn't you hear? Ruuki only just woke up today. He has not received any of my darling's personal training. If he were to compete against the Grundle of a month ago, I'll bet he would have won handily."

"Good point." Says another Kraktol. "We have been blessed with the Admiral's tutelage. And nobody works harder than Grundle! I hear he only gets two hours of sleep a night. He even entered this competition right after hunting that Cyclops! He is even more brutal to himself than he is to his enemies!"

"We truly did Grundle a disservice by leaving him to rot as a mechanic all these years! He's a trueblooded Kraktol, through and through!"

Umi finishes her tallying. "In the end, Visiting Delegate Grundle managed to accumulate 20,088 points. This represents a difference in value of roughly forty percent. Next, I will tally Crewmember Ruuki's species handicap, as approved by Admiral Rodriguez. After accounting for Crewmember Ruuki's size, strength, and other physical characteristics, his adjusted point value will be..."

Umi pauses, causing everyone to tense up. Despite being a synthmind, she still seemingly knows the value of building anticipation.

"...20,214 points. Therefore, according to the rules laid down at the start of this competition, I have judged Ruuki to be the winner of this competition."

Umi's declaration, while loud and final, does not draw any cheers or jeers from either side. Instead, both the Kraktol and Kessu fall awkwardly silent, while the competitors themselves glance at one another, unsure of what to say.

"...I won?" Ruuki asks, befuddled. "But. It doesn't feel like a win. I hunted many fewer creatures than you!"

"You have beaten me according to the agreed-upon rules." Grundle says, quietly closing his eyes. "Well done. I am in awe of your combat prowess."

"Oh, that's a load of spit!" Ruuki huffs. "What's all this about a handicap? I don't need a handicap! I lost, you won! You're the better hunter compared to me!"

"As we agreed from the beginning," Grundle says, opening his eyes, "you are smaller than me and only recently woke up from your coma. It is fair that you have been granted bonus points. I, on the other hand, was not able to break past the limits placed upon me. I still have much training to do."

Across the Holodeck, the other Kessu and Kraktol start walking toward the competitors. Lele's ears flatten as she frowns.

"My daddy won, but he's not happy."

"That's because he doesn't think he won fairly." Rags explains. "It's a guy thing. He wanted to beat the Kraktol fellow on equal footing."

"Yeah, but a win's a win!" Lele protests.

Perhaps hearing his daughter's words, Ruuki puffs out his chest.

"Hmph! I only won because of the handicap. I'm still pretty rusty after waking up, so what do you say you and me have another competition in a few weeks, eh, Grundle? Do you dare to take me on once I've recovered my full strength?"

Grundle's own passion ignites upon hearing Ruuki's words. "Hah! I only lost because I have not advanced far enough! You think you can beat me a second time? When next we fight, I will only increase my point lead!"

"We'll see about that!" Ruuki meows, though his delighted expression reveals he isn't all that annoyed about winning or losing anymore. "At the very least, you will make for a decent whetstone for my future ascension!"

"Me, your whetstone? You will be my whetstone!" Grundle laughs, clapping the tiger's back. "But enough chit-chatting! I've worked up one heck of an appetite."

"Me too!" Ruuki laughs.

The two men turn to face their friends, and soon after, roars of laughter and appreciation ring out in the holodeck.

As the large group leaves to head to the food court, they pass by Admiral Rodriguez and Lord Drall, both of whom pause to congratulate the winners.

"Excellent work, Sir Ruuki!" Lord Drall exclaims, dropping to his knees. "You are a worthy leader for your people! I am the second-highest in command of the Kraktol Empire, and the one who was partially responsible for the attack on your village. I beg your forgiveness, as I have decided to change my ways and become a friend to the Kessu people!"

José rolls his eyes, having heard this shtick from Drall so many times over the past two weeks that it's become an ear-sore. However, he says nothing, allowing Drall to go about his theatrics as he pleases.

Upon hearing Drall's confession, Ruuki pauses mid-stride. The others around him also halt in place, glancing at the Kessu village leader with thoughtful expressions, and even looks of regret.

Ruuki frowns. "You are... the one who ordered the attack?"

Drall's snout bops against the deckplates. "Graugh! I am he! I was a foolish Rodak, and I will spend the rest of my life atoning for my sins if that is what it takes!"

Hearing such heartfelt words from Drall's mouth, Ruuki appears uncertain of what to do. He mulls over Drall's words for a few moments before slowly nodding.

"...Alright. Whenever we go to deal with these shadow-creature-things, I will expect you to personally bow at the foot of my Koogali tree and apologize to the Kessu ancestors for your sins. That will clear up our debt. And you will not hurt the Kessu ever again!"

"Of course!" Drall shouts, beating his chest with grief. "It will be as you say, leader of your village. I will do so a thousand times if it helps to clear the pain from your heart."

Ruuki nods. "No need for that. I can hear the sincerity in your words. For the sake of a better future... I will forgive you your sins."

Ruuki glances up from Drall's kneeling form, as if finally noticing the towering figure of the Precursor behind him.

"Hm? You look like that golden-haired creature." Ruuki says.

"Hi, Ruuki." José says. "You don't know me, but... well, I led Baaru and Lele into the mountain to rescue you. I'm glad to see Nyoor's boy is up and at 'em again."

"You were the one who helped rescue me?" Ruuki asks. "Thank you! You must be that Precursor I've heard so much about! You saved my people and brought about peace with our blood-enemies. You have truly done us a great service! I will follow you to the ends of the Void in order to pay you back!"

José waves his hand. "No need for that. I just want to make sure Lele has a daddy, moving forward."

Drall rises to his feet, and he and José take their leave while waving goodbye to the group of Kraktol and Kessu quickly forming bonds.

After the two leaders depart, Ruuki smiles.

"Such a good-looking creature! For some reason, I really want him to pat my head!"

Lele laughs. "You and grandpa both!"