The gate opened smoothly, revealing a large domed chamber beyond.
The entrance was a wide, four-meter square ledge paved with polished black marble. As the four companions walked forward, their footsteps echoing, they looked out onto what looked like an immense void-ship’s command bridge. Railings of what could be gleaming brass guarded the left and right edges, while two spiral stairs of the same metal were built at either end of the forward edge, both leading down to a void-ship’s dimly-lit crew pit. On the far side, the wide curving blackness of the walls rose towards the ceiling, the whole edifice reminiscent of a gigantic viewing-screen. Extending out from the center of the ledge itself was a walkway, about two meters wide, that led to a raised circular dais that looked over the concentric rows of command and control stations.
In the middle of the dais was an impressive captain’s chair, currently facing away to the left, upholstered in black with gold trim. In front of the command throne was a crystal and metal stele with a single blinking red light and an empty circular slot.
The wisp appeared beside the command stele, coalescing from a swirl of motes and pixels.
It beckoned Eric nearer.
As Eric walked across the walkway, the scale of the room became more apparent: The ceiling was nearly twenty meters above the crew pit floor, with the command island at half that height. Softly glowing lights on the ceiling gave the illusion of a starlit sky, while providing dim illumination to the entire space. Looking over the crew pit, Eric estimated there were about thirty control stations, though he had no idea what type of specialists would man each of them.
As he neared, the wisp extended its arm towards the bracelet on Eric’s left arm, pointing and shaking its arm several times for emphasis.
“It wants something from your ring, Sir.”
“Thank you, Pig,” Eric whispered with a wry smile. “I think I got that part.”
Seeing that Eric had raised his arm and showed his storage bracelet, the wisp became very still for a moment, then a wide screen appeared in the air above them, showing an image of a tall alien, extremely pale-skinned with four, black almond-shaped eyes arranged in two rows in the center of its face dressed in a dark blue uniform with a decidedly military cut. In his many-jointed hands the man held an elegantly plain fluted rod that looked to be made of alternating bands of black iron and silver.
Eric’s other three companions came to stand beside him, all of them looking up at the projection.
“Pig, is there anything like that in my spatial device?”
The familiar pale violet window with deep black borders appeared. On it was shown only one item labeled Obsidian Key.
“Is this what you wanted, friend?” Eric asked the wisp cautiously, pulling out the rod from his bracelet. It was so heavy that he had to hold the artifact with two hands. In his hands the rod suddenly began to vibrate with suppressed energy, and a single stud on one end glowed softly.
At the sight of the rod the wisp became agitated, closing the image it had projected before drifting over to hover above the command stele, both of its “arms” pointing at a slight depression surrounded by several looping glyphs. The thing’s intention was clear, but Eric still wasn’t sure he should do what the wisp obviously wanted him to do.
“You think this is a good idea, Pig?”
“I do not know, sir.” Was Pig’s unhelpful reply. The other three people with Eric watched silentyly, all looking at the wisp, the stele, and the device in Eric’s hand.
“Any idea what this may be Osar?” Eric asked, turning slightly towards the Urgan.
“My guess it’s a key of some sort Jad-Os, one of the more ancient security technologies the Elder Races often incorporated into their voidship designs.” The Urgan’s tone was matter-of-fact as he curiously studied the rod cradled in Eric’s hands. He extended a hand to tentatively touch the black metal, before giving Eric a tooth-filled smile. “Claim it with your blood Jad Eric, and let us see what happens.”
Eric frowned at Osar’s impulsive advice, but then decided to do what the Urgan suggested.
Taking out a small sharp knife, Eric sliced a finger and let a few drops of his blood fall on the rod. There was a sudden shimmer in the air, and Eric’s hair stood out from their roots as aether swirled around and through him. Pig helpfully activated his Dragon Sight and Eric was treated to the sight of hundreds of aether strands moving into his body and out through the rod he held. Then the still air shivered and the gathered aether shifted, completely draining Eric’s Prime Core as all the strands rushed into the device.
Eric staggered, and then clutched his head as a pounding headache immediately took residence between his eyes. He suddenly felt weak and drained, cold sweat breaking out over his body.
Hellfire!
Seeing Eric in distress, Serra moved forward, only to be blocked by Osar’s bulk.
“It is just aether depletion sickness, eisana” Osar told her soothingly, handing Eric a restorative vial as he held him steady. “Drink this all.”
Eric did so, surprised that the thick liquid tasted airy and sweet.
“I think whatever you did had an effect, Captain.” Cid said, pointing at the rod that Eric still held. It had changed, becoming a beautifully ornate scepter, made of obsidian and shining silver. Eric felt a connection to the artifact now, and somehow knew that wherever that rod was, he would still be able to sense his way towards it.
“Don’t any of you think this is dangerous?”
“Of course, it is dangerous!” Osar exclaimed as he let go of Eric’s arm to stand beside Serra. “But I think it should be safe since you have claimed the key. However, in case I am wrong, I shall stand a bit farther from you Jad-Os… After all, I am a youngling still.”
Eric arched an eyebrow at the Urgan’s unexpected attempt at humor, before giving their two other companions a questioning look.
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Serra sported her characteristic scowl on her face, though instead of speaking she just gave an uncertain shrug. Cid, standing beside her, was nodding his head vigorously, his eyes wide with eagerness.
Sighing, Eric turned back to the console and the clearly impatient wisp. He pressed the glowing stud on the humming rod. A snapping sound echoed through the room as a small extension of various sharp crystal spikes appeared at the bottom half of the key.
The wisp nodded several times, before indicating the slot at the top of the crystal stele again.
“Ok.” Eric mumbled to himself. “Here it goes.”
Carefully, Eric guided the transfigured key, placing the crystal end firmly into the indicated depression before stepping back. His vision flickered, and he recognized Pig shunting aside notification windows. Then, they waited.
Nothing happened for a moment.
Then the wisp made a sighing sound before breaking apart into thousands of drifting motes that drifted upward to the shadowed ceiling. Everyone tensed, hands going to their weapons, as lines of bright silver and glowing black light appeared over the embedded Key, quickly forming a moving, interlocked mandala of glyphs and symbols. The sorcerous mandala blazed brightly and then disappeared. Moments later a shimmering disembodied face appeared in the air above the console.
The face, similar to that of the man in the screen the wisp had shown but somehow appearing more soft and delicate, opened its mouth and spoke, but its words, although lyrical and pleasant to the ear, was in a language none of the Terrans could comprehend. Osar gave a huff of surprise, before turning to Eric.
“This speech I have heard before,” The big man said, his voice carrying a mixture of awe and fear. “It is the speech of the First Ones, the World Builders!”
Seeing that no one present understood the words it had been saying, the disembodied face glitched for a moment, and the next time it opened its mouth, the meaning of its words was clear to all.
[Greetings Commander, to the Ark Voidship, the Obsidian Moon.] The disembodied face paused, a slight ripple of interference passing through it, before it continued. [I am the Vessel Interface of the Obsidian Moon, at hand to serve the Bearer of the Key.]
“So this is what the dragon was after!” Osar exclaimed hoarsely, turning to survey the entire room. “It wanted to gain control of a Builder Ark!”
“Are you saying this huge facility we’re in is an actual mobile space ship?” Cid interjected as he moved to the front of the projection.
[Yes, crewman,] The Interface answered coolly. [Although aether reserves are at critical levels at the moment, and thus the Moon is currently incapable of sustained void-flight.]
“Aether?” Eric asked, cutting off the stream of questions that Cid was undoubtedly ready to unleash. “How do we give this ship more aether?”
[In the absence of a
“I think the machine means some sort of dungeon or beast core.” Osar said, still slack-jawed with surprise.
“I concur sir.” Pig said, though the AI seemed a little bit suppressed by the Interface’s presence.
Nodding, Eric considered for a moment before bringing out a Dungeon core and a Beast core, raising it up to be within the Interface’s line of sight. “Will any of these do?”
The virtual face looked at the larger orb that was labeled as a Grand Dungeon Core while inside Vashanka’s ring, appearing to his Dragon Sight mode as an overly dense mass of shining, twisting silvery-black threads.
[That one will suffice Commander.]
A slight whirring noise heralded the appearance of a receptacle just below the top of the command stele. Nodding, Eric placed the Dungeon Core in the offered opening, where it promptly disappeared into the darkness as the aperture closed.
Then the deck rumbled beneath their feet, and a loud hum echoed throughout the chamber, feeling for all the world as if a mighty beast had awoken. Varicolored lights blinked to life across the various stations and screens, and the virtual face became more defined. It's two rows of eyes glittered, and a slight smile graced its thin lips.
[Report: Aether reserves have reached two percent, Command Level basic functions are operational and select integumental aether accumulation fields have been activated. The Command Level may remain in operation for one standard month before the Dungeon Core will need to be replaced. In the meantime, emergency protocols will remain in effect.]
“One month?” Osar almost squealed in dismay.
“Is that low?” Eric asked curiously, surprised by the Urgan’s reaction.
“A Reaver-class voidship capable of carrying a battalion of Urgan battleborn uses a single Grand Dungeon Core as its fuel source… and it lasts roughly two years before it needs to be replaced!”
“Captain, if I may…” Cid began but Eric raised a hand to stop him before the scientist could begin asking questions. Eric bowed his head in thought for a moment.
“Ship… Do you have a name I can address you with?”
[Negative Commander, all previous designations and settings were reset when the previous Commander deactivated the Key.]
“I shall call you Luna then.”
[Unit Designation Accepted: This Vessel Interface will now respond to the designation Luna.]
“Okay, Luna.” Eric continued, giving Cid a warning look as the man looked to be ready to burst with all the questions he was no doubt holding in. “What do you need to become fully operational?”
[Full operational capacity may be achieved once all Levels are activated. That would require at least forty-two Grand Dungeon Cores, or fourteen Ancient or higher Dungeon Cores.]
“That’s… that’s…” Osar sputtered beside Eric, rendered incoherent by the exorbitant amount that Luna listed.
Dungeon cores were precious resources throughout the Galaxy, with entire planetary power grids supplied by a single Grand Core for months on end. This was the reason why Dungeon Worlds, where dungeons would appear with more frequency compared to other types of planets, were often the flashpoints of local sector conflicts: Everyone, from the least miner in a nondescript asteroid mine to the Scaled Empress herself depended on the conveniently-stored aether found within a properly-harvested dungeon core.
But more than that, the Obsidian Moon required Grand and even Ancient Dungeon Cores, rare objects which could only be harvested from Grand or Ancient Dungeons, ones that had remained active for hundreds of years. And if even these rare and powerful cores needed to be replaced every month… the operational cost was staggeringly, unrealistically high.
“You need that many every month?” Apparently, Serra herself had caught on to the same problem logistical problem Osar had seen.
[Negative. The amounts quoted were to activate all levels of the Moon. For purely operational power, once the Command Center aether reserves reach fifty percent, the entire passive aether accumulation system may be fully activated, reducing drain to the installed cores to less than ten percent per month. Under normal operating conditions that would mean the cores would last for roughly a standard year.]
The relaxation from everyone was palpable, and smiles of relief bloomed on everyone’s face. But it seemed Luna was not yet finished.
[If all the Obsidian Moon’s aether consumption mitigation measures are engaged and active, installed cores may remain active indefinitely.]
Cid barked out a disbelieving laugh, his round, bearded face shining with wonder and curiosity. Was this AI talking about infinite power provided by an inexhaustible consumption-regeneration cycle? In the Universe he and his companions had come from this was largely considered an unattainable dream, a wild goose chase, the holy grail of high-level scientific research.
Eric, as usual, had gone straight to trying to find the solution to the current problem.
“That core you were given upped your reserves by only two percent,” He said, rubbing his chin as he thought his way through the problem. “At that rate, how many cores would you need to get the Command Center to fifty percent?”
[The initial amount required for activation was substantial since the Moon has been inoperative for so long. That immediate and necessary drain was why the reserves did not rise as high. In its current state, five more Grand Dungeon Cores should increase reserves above the fifty percent threshold.]
Hearing this, Eric couldn’t help but smile.