September 1st

“I hope this is all the wealth,” Malgorth said as we dragged in the last chest from a barren planet. Once the airlock was closed and everyone was safe to take off their spacesuit, we opened the chests. Fortunately for us, Malgorth’s “money-sense” proved true. Valuable gems and minerals filled them to the brim. If we lived in a cartoon, all of us would have dollar signs in our eyes. A great portion was going straight to him, but we were allowed to keep a fraction for our own purposes.

As the ship took off again, I sat down on a couch and started playing a new video game. I pressed Start to begin playing. The first cutscene showed perhaps the most gorgeous video game character created. She was a lean woman with ivory skin and jet-black hair. Her hair flowed down to her waist as she took it away from her eyes. She was of East Asian descent, which wasn’t surprising since it was a Japanese game. “Hello there, champion,” she said to the screen.

“Man, she’s beautiful,” I told myself as I continued the game. After a brief character creation, she explained how the game was played with her flirtatious voice. It was mesmerizing. I’ve seen pretty women in person before, but she was another level. I knew she was completely fictional, but who said that a little fictional crush was a bad thing?

“Oh my, aren’t you a handsome man? I can’t wait to see you again soon. Until then, you should go meet your crew,” she said before walking away. As she walked, her hips swayed side to side as she walked very femininely. It was at that moment when I noticed that someone was watching me.

“You have a crush on a collection of pixels,” Scarlet deadpanned as she sat down on the couch next to me. “That seems rather unhealthy.”

“I know,” I sighed. There’s also the fact that the two women on this ship are off-limits. Gruma is Harry’s girlfriend. Besides, she isn’t my type. Scarlet is an interesting case. She’s pretty, but not exactly one that’s socially acceptable to admit to. I will wait until we cure her to let myself get attracted to her.

“Thank you for acknowledging it,” she said before pausing for a while. “Is there an option to get a hot man in the introduction?” I snorted as she practically admitted she wasn’t above it all.

“Just select your preferences as male,” I said as I leaned back and continued playing the game. She ran to another couch, undoubtably playing the same game.

After a few hours of playing the game, the ship’s alarms blared. I paused the game and ran straight to the cockpit. I sat down in the captain’s seat and asked, “What’s the emergency?”

“I have detected a lifeform on an abandoned space station. Would you like to make a small detour?” the ship replied.

“Absolutely! There could be someone that needs help there!” I shouted back as it seemed like a stupid question. The ship changed directions and flew to the space station in minutes. It parked in a dilapidated parking spot. I put my spacesuit on and slung my rifle along my back as I disembarked onto the station. Everyone else was confused, but I could explain later.

I walked into the dark station, shining the flashlight from my gun. The gravity was a bit wonky, alternating between normal and almost nonexistent on a whim. It was disorienting as I navigated the dark and twisting corridors. I shouted every so often to see if anyone was there, but I realized that it was stupid to do it in here. Since there was no air, there was no way for sound to travel. So instead, I would knock on the walls. If anyone was next to them, they would feel the vibration.

After a few minutes of following my SAD’s lifeform tracker, I came across the last room in a block. I knocked on it before opening the door. Something seemd to probe my mind for a second, but it disappeared as soon as it arrived. I shined my flashlight into it and saw something indescribably weird. A gorgeous woman similar to the one from the video game stood there in the light. She was even wearing a similar dress. And when I said similar, I meant it. She even looked completely human. While there was something in me that told me not to trust her, a strange feeling in my mind told be to ignore it. I picked her up in a bridal carry and carried her through the halls.

I soon reached the ship and closed ourselves in the airlock. I took off my helmet and looked straight into her brown eyes. She was gorgeous, almost supernaturally so. “What’s your name?” I asked.

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“Oh my, aren’t you a handsome man?” she asked as she stroked my cheek. It was exactly the same thing that the woman in the game said. And it was more alluring hearing it from someone in front of me. She puckered up for a kiss as she looked up at me. I was going to comply when the living room door opened to reveal Scarlet.

“Quentin, who is she?” she asked, breaking up the scene. She looked at the new woman and scowled.

“I don’t know,” I admitted as I walked away. I scratched the back of my head as everything got embarrassing. That’s strange. I don’t typically act like that to pretty women. Is this true love? I don’t know, but it didn’t feel like something I would do.

“My name is…” the mysterious woman started before her voice faded. After half a minute, she said, “Seraphina Starluster.”

“Exotic,” I said as it seemed like a gorgeous yet exotic name. It was ironic that her name was more exotic than Scarlet’s when the latter wasn’t human anymore.

“More like fake,” the fox-woman grumbled as she stormed to her room. What’s her problem? Can’t handle someone more beautiful than her? …Why am I becoming so rude to her?

“Don’t listen to her. She’s just mad that I’m more of a woman than she can ever be,” Seraphina said as she slid up to me and rubbed herself against me. It was odd, but I liked it. Not that I could explain it. She tried to kiss me again, but this time Harry interrupted us.

“Quentin, get in here or we’re… who’s that?” Harry said as his anger morphed into confusion.

“Someone more beautiful than any other woman you’ve ever met,” Seraphina said as she slid up to him and snuggled against him. I don’t know why, but I was filled with anger. She flirted with me, but Harry stole her from me. I was about to beat him up when he asked an odd question.

“Quentin, how did she survive without a spacesuit? There was no oxygen in that station, so how was she able to survive more than five minutes?” he asked, knocking me out of my stupor. I facepalmed as I felt stupid. How did I forget to question that? That seems like something I would’ve thought of earlier.

“Advanced breathing techniques,” she said as she barged into the living room, ignoring attempts to get her to explain. She walked straight through the room and to the kitchen. As she opened the door, I couldn’t help but stare. I was snapped out of it by Harry slapping me.

“World to captain! Wake up!” he shouted as he started dragging me to the cockpit. Once I was seated in the chair, I felt the haze over my mind lift. It was strange since I now noticed it was there ever since I met Seraphina. She’s so beautiful that she’s enchanting me. I can’t think clearly when I’m near her. Is that a problem?

“What is it, Harry? I want to go back to her,” I asked as I felt a longing for that woman despite barely being separated for a few seconds.

“That’s the problem. Quentin, you’re not acting like yourself. I’m willing to accept you going out of your way to save someone. However, not questioning her survival and falling madly in love with her is concerning. She’s physically beautiful, but there’s something inhuman about her. I’d keep my distance,” Harry explained. I felt some urge from my brain that filled me with rage. It wasn’t something I felt before, but I was too overwhelmed to care.

“You’re just mad you can’t have her! Unlike you, I’m not in love with a freak! Not Gruma, and definitely not Scarlet! Stop trying to steal Seraphina from me!” I shouted as my vision turned red. My hands clenched into fists as I got ready to fight the cyborg. “Speak to me, you oversized toaster!” I lunged at him, but he stopped me with a simple slap. I flew into a wall and fell to the ground.

“Quentin, I’m serious. There’s something wrong with you. This isn’t how normal people act when they’re attracted to someone. People don’t go straight from first meeting to first kiss. I know you. You’ve never acted like this before you met that strange woman,” Harry said as threw my tired body over his shoulder and walked to my room. He placed me on my bed before leaving.

Once I felt less sore, I stumbled over to the door. I tried to open it, but it seemed that it was barricaded. I frantically tried harder to open it. “Let me out! Harry, let me out! I’ll kill you if you don’t!” I screamed as I struggled against the barricades.

As I struggled, I could hear Scarlet screaming from her room as she tried to open her door. Unlike me, she couldn’t even form words anymore. Fitting for an animal that’s trying to keep me away from my love! She should be put down like the dog that she is! Just like Harry needs to be disassembled like the machine he is! Gruma and Malgorth can die for all I care! Seraphina is the only one that matters to me!

Seraphina. What a beautiful name. Like the name of a goddess. A gorgeous goddess that has descended upon us to enlighten us with her presence. Her beauty shines upon us all, giving me the reason to carry on. Her beauty is comparable to… I can’t think of anything. I’m trying to think about celebrities back on Earth, but nothing comes to mind. All I see is Seraphina. I can’t even remember my family. It’s as if nothing outside of today is worth remembering. And perhaps nothing other than her is.

Seraphina. Seraphina. Seraphina. Seraphina. Seraphina. I can’t stop thinking about her. I literally can’t stop thinking about her. Help! I’m starting to forget my name! I… I need her! I need her! Seraphina! Seraphina! I’m coming for you! Seraphina! Seraphina!