It was a beautiful and sunny spot where they buried him, under a thick oak tree that shadowed the stream.

They stood silently above the grave for a moment. Kaine to the right, Val to the left, with the child between them.

He glanced at Ondine, wondering for the millionth time who she might be and why anyone would want to imprison her in a cube.

She hadn’t said a word since he’d found her. Had she always been mute, or had the time she’d spent in the Kinzuki Cage traumatized her?

And how long had she been in there?

He preferred not to think about it. It was too depressing.

His gaze went to the woman who had rescued him on Rimzana. The woman he had now rescued from a similar fate. The irony was not lost on him.

Did this mean they were even now?

She looked up from the grave and stared into the distance.

“I don’t even know where we are,” she muttered.

“Aj’uhl said Assarah...”

She wrinkled her nose and shook her head.

“That’s not a real thing. Assarah is a legend. A place of beauty where people live in peace and harmony. It’s a valley filled with golden flowers, where was built the most grandiose and mysterious city ever built.” She waved around at the scenery. “There is none of that here. Aj’uhl must have been delirious.” She sighed as her gaze met his. “That doesn’t matter anymore. But we need to get out of here. Can you take us back?”

He frowned. “The house must be crawling with Impies now...”

“Not there! I meant back to Starrider.”

“Oh.” He paused, pondering, as he looked back at the grave. “I don’t know. I have no idea how the transpin works and Aj’uhl is no longer here to explain it.”

“Well, how did you bring us out here? Heck, how did you even get out of the house?”

“I didn’t use the transpin at the house. The girl and I just slipped out the back door. We saw a box of fireworks on the way out and used those to create a diversion. As for here, well, I don’t know. I just pressed the button, hoping we’d land in a peaceful place.”

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Val took a few steps back from the grave and looked around the valley.

“It seems peaceful enough,” she said thoughtfully. “Perhaps the transpin is somehow connected to your brain.”

“How would that work if it’s just hooked up to my wristpad?”

He felt a little hand tugging at his sleeve. When he looked down, he saw the girl pointing at his wristpad, then at his arm, his shoulder, and his head.

“Are you trying to tell me something?” he asked.

Ondine nodded and repeated the gesture.

“I think she’s trying to tell us our wristpads are connected to our bodies,” said Val. “Which makes sense. It can monitor our health, after all. Through the wristpad, the transpin can access your thoughts. Well, maybe not your thoughts per se, but...” She paused and frowned, trying to find an explanation. Finally, she shrugged. “I don’t know. But there’s a connection, that seems pretty obvious.”

Kaine stared at the girl.

“How can you know this?” he asked.

The child looked away, quiet as ever.

“It doesn’t matter,” said Val softly. “Let’s focus on what we can control. If that link exists, then it’d be easy to take us back to the ship. We’ll hold your arms while you focus on Starrider and the next thing we know, we’ll be back on board.”

Could it really be that simple? Kaine had his doubts.

“Alright then, hang on tight.”

He waited for them to grab him, then pressed the button to activate the transpin.

The next instant, they stood in the ship’s hall.

He blinked.

“Well, that worked.”

Val let go of his arm and looked around, a frown on her face.

“What’s wrong?”

She remained quiet for a moment, took a few steps, stared at the ceiling, then turned to look at him.

“Something’s off.”

“What?”

He felt the girl’s grip tighten on his arm and looked down at her. She seemed frightened.

“It’s too dark in here. It shouldn’t be this dark. And... why is it so quiet?”

Now that she mentioned it, he realized he couldn’t hear the usual buzzing sounds. It reminded him of when the ship had been powered down for repair on Alterica... And how they had struggled to bring Nim back online—he still wondered if the fake AI had fully recovered from the ordeal.

Could this new development be related in some way?

The same thought must have crossed Val’s mind, because she spun to face a wall and called out his name.

“Nim!”

The ship remained quiet.

She turned a worried gaze toward him.

“Do you think the ship has powered off again?”

“It couldn’t have powered off on its own.”

“No, I suppose not. But then, what happened?”

“Let’s go to the control room. Maybe we’ll find some answers there.”

They walked in silence, their footsteps echoing against the metal walls.

Kaine thought he heard a sound—a distant clicking. It seemed to come from straight ahead. But it was so brief he thought he might have imagined it.

When they finally reached the control room, they found a surprise waiting for them.

One man sat in a chair, pointing a phaser at them. He was dark-skinned, with short hair and a scar under his left eye.

Another stood near the entrance, his arms crossed. That one was a hefty fellow who looked bored.

“Perfect timing!” said the man in the chair. “We can’t seem to get your AI to cooperate. Would you be so kind as to ask him to take off?”