Kai finished reading the article about the Black Swan. The idea of a Ship Head magazine writer residing in the Cosmic Maelstrom Shipyard had completely slipped his mind.

He silently cursed himself—he could have been part of the interview if he’d known about it. What a wasted opportunity to be featured in his favorite magazine.

Standing up, Kai stretched and headed back to his room. It was getting late, and he needed to catch some rest too.

His upgraded room aboard the Black Swan was larger than the one he’d had before. Located on the second level of the ship, it was just across from Eliana’s. Spacious yet simple, it was also more personalized now. Kai had spent some time arranging his few belongings in a way that reminded him of his old room on Velmorra.

As he stepped inside, the lights flicked on automatically. His gaze landed on the sword Commander Yang had given him, hanging on the far wall. Kai had been obsessed with swordsmanship ever since his duel with Baiyan. He regularly trained with the man in the ship’s training room. To most, swordplay was an outdated skill, but Kai saw it differently. It sharpened his reflexes, enhanced his focus, and improved his ability to “slow down time.”

He stripped off his uniform and neatly folded it, placing it on the nightstand beside a photo of himself and Eliana. In the picture, they stood together in front of the four-seater craft they had taken for flight. Kai smiled softly. He had only known Eliana for less than a month, but they had hit it off quite quickly. Now she was his girlfriend.

Yet, to Kai, she was so much more than that. If Kai was the Federation, then Eliana will be the Kamotsu Hauler—she was his backbone, his unwavering support, and his motivation to keep moving forward.

Lying down on his bed, Kai glanced out the window and checked the time.

11:55 PM.

Five more minutes until curfew began.

Kai’s thoughts wandered to the crew of the Black Swan. They had taught him so much and made him stronger than he’d ever been before. Sure, the strange liquid—the advanced nanomachines, he suspected—had helped, but it wasn’t the liquid that gave him his confidence. It was the knowledge, the skills, and the bonds he’d formed with the crew. Without them, he doubted he would have had the courage to embark on this expedition.

Then there was the matter of what lay ahead. After gathering information on Aurelia Prime, they would be heading deep into uncharted space, far from any human worlds. They would be entirely on their own.

A soft hum outside caught Kai’s attention. It grew louder. Raising his head, he looked out the window. On the horizon, a faint red light was approaching.

00:00 AM.

He leaned closer to the window, trying to make out what it was. At first, it looked like multiple ships, but then Kai realized it was one massive vessel.

“The Watcher,” he murmured.

The ship’s design was bizarre, almost surreal. Kai couldn’t tell if its width far exceeded its length or if it was simply flying sideways. Green and red strobe lights blinked along its underside, serving as a warning to other vessels. The red light emanated from the bottom of the ship, casting an eerie glow across the ground below, marking everything it touched with crimson.

As Kai’s eyes adjusted, he noticed more Watchers in the distance, evenly spaced every few kilometers, stretching as far as he could see. He remembered his father once telling him about these ships—machines that never landed, constantly patrolling the darkness.

The red glow grew brighter as the Watcher neared. The light illuminated everything outside—the landing pads, the other ships, and... a man.

Kai froze.

A figure stood on the edge of the landing pad, dressed in dark clothes and wearing sunglasses. Kai’s heart skipped a beat as their eyes met, even through the dark lenses.

The man grinned, a sinister curve on his lips.

For a moment, the red light from the Watcher focused entirely on the man, bathing him in a menacing glow. Then, chaos erupted outside. The hum of engines and the faint sound of sirens filled the air as security ships descended on the area.

A spotlight from one of the ships swept across Kai’s window, momentarily blinding him. When it moved away, Kai looked back to where the man had been.

He was gone.

The Watcher above continued its endless patrol, its red light fading from view. The security ships circled the Black Swan a few more times before departing as well.

Kai sat there, his thoughts racing. Whoever that man was, Kai didn’t like the way he had looked at him. There had been something predatory in his gaze, a silent challenge that made Kai uneasy.

Blinking a few times to clear his vision, Kai laid back down and turned off the lights.

The man had vanished, and local security hadn’t caught anyone. Kai was certain he had seen the man—there was no mistaking that sinister grin.

Outside, rain began to fall, a steady rhythm tapping against the window. Thunder flashed across the sky, illuminating the room for a brief moment.

He was wide awake now. This wasn’t how he had pictured his visit to Aurelia Prime starting. Getting harassed by the locals was the last thing on his mind.

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Three faint knocks echoed from the door, pulling him from his thoughts.

“Who’s there?” Kai asked, his voice cautious.

“It’s me,” came Eliana’s soft, faint voice from the other side.

Kai visibly relaxed, his shoulders dropping as the tension left his body.

“Come in,” he said.

He quickly hid his worry, letting a smile replace the concern on his face. He didn’t want his paranoia affecting Eliana.

And how could he stay worried? The girl standing before him was simply too adorable for that. Eliana still looked half-asleep, her face slightly flushed, likely from the remnants of her hangover. Her hair was a messy tangle, clearly untouched since she’d rolled out of bed.

Eliana’s eyes fluttered, unable to decide whether to stay open or closed. She didn’t say a word as she walked over to him, arms already outstretched.

Kai opened his arms and pulled her in.

Eliana was always a different person at night. Around the crew, she was playful and mischievous, often spending just as much time with them as she did with Kai. She was the kind of person who could light up a room with her presence.

But when the day wound down, and it was just the two of them, her softer, more vulnerable side came through. She craved closeness in these moments—whether it was curling up in his lap, reading an issue of Ship Head together, or watching a movie.

Kai had a feeling it was because she felt truly comfortable with him, able to let her guard down. And he felt the same way about her. Just having her in his room now was enough to make him forget about the bizarre encounter with the man in sunglasses.

He held her close, her warmth a quiet reassurance that, for the moment, everything was okay.

Kai woke up the next morning as the first rays of sunlight pierced through the window, warming his eyelids.

He tried to stretch his arms but found he couldn’t move them. Eliana was curled up against him, still sound asleep in his embrace.

Kai’s face reddened. Their relationship hadn’t progressed beyond hugs and kisses yet, so waking up to find her beside him was an unexpected, but pleasant, surprise.

He gently brushed her hair back, uncovering her delicate features, and couldn’t help but smile. Leaning in, he kissed her forehead softly.

Kai hated what he was about to do next. Part of him wanted to stay like this, savoring the quiet moment with Eliana, but they had a packed day ahead. Their time on Aurelia Prime was limited, and every minute counted.

Kai gently slid his arm out from under Eliana. She mumbled something unintelligible, reluctantly shifting in her sleep, but didn’t resist.

Standing in his room, Kai stretched, feeling refreshed from the rest. He shook off the lingering image of the creepy man in sunglasses as he pulled on his uniform. Time to get moving.

Kai had always loved the rain, especially after living on the dry, arid plains of Drakmoor. As the underbelly elevator descended to the landing pad, the cool, crisp morning air greeted him.

The rain from the night before had cleansed the atmosphere, leaving it fresh and invigorating. The landing pad was empty except for him; it seemed he’d beaten the others who were preparing to head into New Oliver City.

To save time and get the expedition underway, Commander Grayson had divided the tasks among the Black Swan’s crew:

Ivan, Teresa, and Robert were tasked with ship maintenance, ensuring the vessel was fully prepared for the long voyage into the Dead Zone.

Eliana and Lily were in charge of inventory, double-checking their supplies to ensure they had enough to last at least a year.

Ray and Baiyan were responsible for acquiring weapons and ammunition from the local markets.

Finally, Isaac and Kai were assigned to take the shuttle into the city. Their mission was to visit the museum and download its entire archive of historical data.

Kai stepped off the elevator and took his first step onto the planet. It was a strange sensation—setting foot on ground that was entirely artificial. Beneath him, at least for the most part, lay layer upon layer of man-made structures - a planet built from the ground up.

"Did you know the ground is so massive that the engineers had to account for the curve of the planet when they built it?" Isaac's voice broke the silence.

Kai turned to see Isaac approaching, dressed in his uniform and holding a suitcase in one hand.

"You been here often?" Kai asked.

"Aurelia Prime is where all the knowledge is stored, so yeah, I’m here a lot," Isaac replied with a proud smile. "And it’s the perfect place for it—no one would dare attack a planet like this. It's too valuable for everyone."

"You really think we’ll find information in the archive here?" Kai asked, skepticism evident in his tone.

Isaac nodded confidently. "It might take a little digging, but I’m sure we’ll find something. And with this bad boy," he patted his suitcase, "we can extract any information we want. Top-of-the-line decoder, Kai. There’s nothing it can’t crack."

Kai turned his gaze toward New Oliver City in the distance. Its skyline shimmered in the first rays of sunlight, surreal and almost dreamlike. Yet, Kai reminded himself, everything his eyes could see was artificial—every building, every inch of the ground, all of it built by human hands.

"Here, I almost forgot," Isaac said, fumbling in his pocket before pulling out a small object and handing it to Kai.

It was a pin, delicately designed in the shape of a bird. A swan, to be exact. Though simplified, the long neck was unmistakable.

"Cool," Kai said as he inspected it. "You really made it into a pin."

"Not just a pin," Isaac said, pride swelling in his voice. "This is a radio, a compass, a flashlight, a multitool, a GPS locator, and—"

"Alright, alright, I got it," Kai interrupted, shaking his head. Just how many functions could Isaac cram into something so small?

Their shuttle arrived moments later, flying smoothly and landing softly in front of them. It had no pilot—a common feature on Aurelia Prime.

"Since everything is artificial and built from scratch, automation is easy here. They just install sensors along every building and road, and then—"

Kai tuned out Isaac’s explanation as he climbed into the shuttle. He glanced back at the Black Swan one last time. In the distance, he caught sight of Eliana watching him from her window.

She mouthed the words, I-love-you.

Kai smiled and mouthed back, I-love-you too.

The shuttle flew low over the perfectly flat ground. Beyond the landing area, the terrain transitioned into man-made metal beams that exposed the things below, giving Kai a glimpse of the lower level. He stared at the intricate network below, wondering what life was like for those living down there.

Once the shuttle reached the city, it wove its way between towering buildings and dodged other crafts with precise movements before gently touching down in a bustling commercial district.

Kai glanced at Isaac, who gave him a nod and motioned for him to disembark.

He was going to find the archive, extract some data, and come back to the ship.

Simple enough, Kai thought.