Author's Preface
The next day Rowlo, Peter, and Jaylia awoke to their doors being slammed open.
In the boys’ room, at the entrance stood Zimmer along with Vero, loudly pestering them that it was time to get up.
In Jaylia’s room, Delo along with Mindy played the same role.
Slowly but surely, with sleep still in their eyes, they all got up, clearly annoyed at the situation.
“...It’s too damn early,” Peter muttered on the way to the debrief room.
Zimmer looked over at the boys, who were practically dragging themselves through the halls.
“You’ll have time to sleep off world, but we need to get going.”
Vero nodded his head in agreement.
Eventually they all reached a room filled with countless computer screens. Videos of the civil war raged in the background as Delo walked toward the console and pressed something on it.
A 3D hologram projection of the planet Kudos appeared. One massive continent sat at its center surrounded by a vast ocean dotted with smaller islands. The planet itself was mainly yellow, with white dominating the poles.
“Sorry to wake you guys so early, but the earlier we get this done the better.” Delo glanced toward Zimmer.
“Zimmer, could you bring some cups of coffee for these guys please.”
Peter slowly and awkwardly raised his hand.
“Could I maybe get an energy drink instead...?”
Zimmer looked over at him and shook his head slightly.
“Sure, why not.”
“Okay now that that’s situated...” Delo took out a pointer and pointed toward the northeastern section of the continent.
“You guys will take the Eternia to Ziha, the capital city of Kudos. Your mission is to get Solomon into DETA custody and also hopefully gather intel on the warlord Kuso and his forces.”
Zimmer returned with the drinks and everyone slowly sipped on their beverage of choice, gradually gaining more energy.
Rowlo perked up and looked toward the hologram and Delo with more attention now.
“Wait, I thought we were just going for Solomon. Why do we gotta get involved with Kuso?”
Delo looked down with a somber expression and typed something into the console. The computer screens immediately began showing countless worlds being invaded by massive fleets. Entire cities were being leveled while children cried amongst rubble and destruction.
“Kuso and his forces have left destruction and mayhem everywhere they’ve gone...” Delo said seriously. “And he’s openly against the Kudonian-Human Treaty, so we have reason to believe he may eventually turn his attention toward our world. To protect Earth, Kuso cannot take the empire.”
“What’s even the point of this stupid treaty anyways...?” Rowlo cut in.
Delo’s expression sharpened slightly, clearly annoyed by his son’s response.
“...Rowlo, the war hasn’t affected Earth because of that treaty. Earth has remained at relative peace because of it.”
Rowlo scoffed slightly and folded his arms.
“Whatever...”
“Anyhow, you all will be allowed to take whatever weapons or devices you may need to Kudos.” Delo gestured toward the exit. “Follow me.”
Delo led them into another room filled with all kinds of devices and weapons. Blasters, guns, knives, strange gadgets, and other things they didn’t fully recognize lined the walls and tables.
Mindy quickly rushed toward one of the tables and picked up two knives with glowing orange edges along their blades.
“Nice! Anti-immortal knives!”
“Huh?!” Peter cut in with a surprised expression.
Delo gestured toward the room.
“There are weapons here specialized for combat against immortals and foosoo wielders. They’ll prove quite useful. Some can inhibit immortal regeneration while others can dampen foosoos.”
Peter glanced down toward the two blades attached at his side.
“I think I’ll just stick with my swords. That’s more than enough for me.”
“Well your swords seem to be made of sales, which naturally inhibits regeneration already.” Delo then looked over toward Rowlo. “How about you, kiddo? See anything you like?”
“Honestly I think I’ll just use my fists if anything... but hopefully I won’t have to fight.”
Vero scoffed and looked over at him.
“What a child. You should always be prepared. My foosoo is enough for me, but still... come on.”
Jaylia slowly circled around the tables, though she seemed disappointed by most of what she saw.
“...Are there any staffs?”
“A staff? Well most people wouldn’t choose something so simple...”
Suddenly Jaylia noticed a black staff in the corner of the room covered in golden markings. It looked almost identical to the one from the artifact room.
“Ah yes!”
Delo and Zimmer immediately exchanged glances, both looking visibly shocked.
“Was... that always there?” Delo muttered in confusion.
“That is one of the artifacts recovered during a mission outside the galaxy...” Zimmer said cautiously. “Can’t say I fully understand it.”
Jaylia picked up the staff and instantly golden-orange energy flowed through both the weapon and its markings. A faint hum echoed through the room before the staff suddenly retracted down small enough to fit comfortably in her hand.
Jaylia chuckled slightly.
“I think it’s perfect.”
“Hmmm...” Delo looked at the staff carefully before sighing. “Very well. I’ll make an exception.”
He then glanced toward Zimmer.
“Zimmer, the badges.”
Zimmer walked toward a nearby locker and removed several badges with the names Rowlo, Peter, and Jaylia printed on them beneath the DETA insignia. He handed one to each of them.
“Keep these close to you. Without them you won’t be allowed back home. So protect them with your lives.”
The three nodded and carefully placed the badges into their pockets.
Delo clasped his hands together.
“Alright then... next stop, the hangar.”
As they walked into the hangar, there it was... the Eternia.
The Eternia was a sleek red-and-black interstellar ship with glowing golden lines running across its hull. Its sharp aerodynamic design somewhat resembled a futuristic jet, while massive rear thrusters emitted a faint golden glow. Small scratches and repaired sections along the hull hinted at its countless journeys through space.
It was surrounded by a crew of people inspecting and probing different sections of the ship.
Rowlo’s face immediately hardened.
“What are they doing to it? To our ship?!”
“Nothing for you to worry about, Rowlo,” Delo reassured him. “They were just making sure it passed inspection so it could get registered properly.”
“Ah... I see...”
The group slowly walked toward the ship as Delo opened the gangway for them. He paused for a moment and looked inside before turning back around.
He reached into his coat and pulled out three cards that resembled credit cards before handing one to Rowlo, Peter, and Jaylia.
“There’s a small supply of credits on those cards, the standard currency used across most worlds. You all should be able to get by just fine. There’s around two thousand credits on each one... in other words, more than enough.”
He paused for a second. A slight tear could be seen forming in his eyes before he quickly rubbed them away and sniffled briefly.
“...No matter what, please reach back home safely, okay?” He looked directly at Rowlo. “Rowlo, kid... it’s your vessel, so you’ll be the captain. Please don’t do anything stupid. And out in the field, listen to Mindy and Vero. They’re experienced.”
Delo slowly walked past them before stopping and turning around one last time.
“There’s communications onboard too, so call us with updates please.”
Rowlo looked back toward his father with the others standing at his side and grinned confidently.
“I’ll come back, I promise!”
Delo nodded and saluted them.
The others saluted as well before finally walking into the ship.
Inside the ship Rowlo closed the gangway and looked at everyone. Everyone seemed determined and ready to go.
Mindy slowly raised her hand.
“Um... you guys know how to fly right? Cause we usually have pilots take us.”
Rowlo nodded and began walking toward the pilot seat.
“Yep, thanks to our friend.”
“Don’t you guys have those capsule thingys that can teach you stuff or something?” Peter asked with a hint of sarcasm.
Vero gasped, shocked by how casually he spoke about the capsules.
“Tch... your friend must be loaded. Knowledge capsules cost like ten million credits a pop.”
“Ah... I see. I didn’t know that.”
Jaylia looked over at Peter with slight annoyance on her face.
“...And you wasted one learning how to use chopsticks...”
Peter rubbed his head and laughed awkwardly.
“It is what it is I guess.”
“Alright it’s time we get going. Yall might wanna strap in,” Rowlo said as he buckled himself into the pilot seat.
The others slowly found their seats and buckled in as well.
Suddenly a voice came through the ship's panel.
“Eternia, you are clear for launch. You are clear for launch.”
Rowlo smiled as he ignited the ship’s engines. The sound of the vessel roared to life while the roof of the hangar slowly retracted above them.
Then the ship slowly lifted upward, pointed itself toward the sky, and blasted off.
Peter immediately put his hand against the window beside him.
“So cool!”
Eventually the blue sky slowly began turning black as they accelerated higher and higher.
Earth could be seen behind them growing smaller with each passing second.
“Alright then...” Rowlo muttered while pulling up a map of the galaxy.
Their current location appeared on the holographic display. After entering something into the console another hologram appeared showing the planet Kudos alongside the distance to the Kudonian system.
726 light years.
Rowlo quickly pressed confirm and a system voice echoed throughout the ship.
“Negative mass inducer online. Activating...”
The golden lines running throughout the Eternia suddenly began glowing brighter and brighter as energy surged across the ship’s hull. The thrusters behind them roared violently as the stars outside began stretching unnaturally across space itself.
Then suddenly
The ship blasted forward as reality itself seemed to bend around the vessel.
Golden energy engulfed the Eternia while space distorted into what almost looked like a massive glowing corridor stretching endlessly ahead of them. The stars themselves twisted into streaks of light while faint distortions rippled throughout the corridor around the ship.
Inside the vessel everything somehow felt lighter.
Even the air itself almost seemed thinner for brief moments as faint vibrations traveled through the walls of the ship.
Jaylia quietly stared out the window with a slightly sad expression.
“I guess our normal life is really...”
“Completely over,” Peter finished for her.
“...We’re really going to another planet. Like seriously.”
Mindy quickly unbuckled herself and ran over to sit beside them.
“It’s super cool every time I swear,” she said excitedly while pressing her hand against the glass.
Rowlo couldn’t help but smile slightly.
“...Wow. An alien world. Just wow...” he muttered to himself.
“Now arriving in the Kudonian system. Please prepare for arrival.”
Suddenly the ship violently burst back into open space.
Now Kudos itself stood directly before them.
The massive yellow planet dwarfed Earth in size, its appearance both intimidating and awe inspiring all at once.
“Alright then... on to Ziha.”
Rowlo began directing the ship toward the planet as they approached the yellow atmosphere.
Then suddenly
Bang!
“Shields damaged. Weapon systems activated.”
Rowlo swallowed hard and looked toward the radar attached to the panel.
Two ships were directly behind them firing continuously at the Eternia.
“Damn it! What the hell?!”
Rowlo immediately began trying to evade the attackers by flying unpredictably, but the ship continued getting hit over and over again.
Vero instantly unbuckled himself and stood up.
“Damn it we’re under attack!”
He immediately began running toward the entrance.
“Rowlo keep flying straight toward Ziha no matter what!” he shouted.
“Huh?! Vero what are you doing?!”
Vero opened the gangway and instantly the air pressure began violently pulling air out of the ship.
Then he jumped out.
A massive string remained tethered to the ship as Vero slingshotted himself onto the top of the Eternia. While still tethered to the vessel he wrapped several strings around his body to anchor himself firmly against the surface.
“Alright... I see you now...”
The enemy ships continued blasting at them with laser fire from behind.
Vero sprinted toward the edge of the ship before creating spring-like structures made entirely of strings beneath his feet. He launched himself upward while still tethered to the Eternia and fired countless strings outward.
The strings wrapped around one of the enemy ships before violently pulling inward shredding the vessel apart instantly.
Then he did the same thing to the second ship.
“Tch... too easy.”
Peter ran toward the open entrance while gripping tightly onto the sides of the ship, his hair blowing wildly from the rushing wind.
“Vero! There’s more... a lot more!” he yelled.
Suddenly over twenty more ships appeared and immediately began firing toward them.
Vero looked upward and clenched his jaw.
“Damn it... how...”
Vero quickly dropped flat against the surface of the ship and wrapped himself inside a cocoon made entirely of strings.
Peter quickly shut the entrance as the Eternia was overwhelmed by attacks from every direction.
“Hull integrity failing. Activating emergency landing protocol.”
“How did anyone know we were here?! Damn it!” Mindy shouted.
Rowlo stared at the controls as sweat rolled down his face.
“I’m locked out! We’re going down!”
Jaylia curled herself into a ball while bracing for impact.
“Aw geez...” she muttered nervously.
The ship rapidly began hurtling toward the planet’s surface as the attacking ships disappeared into the distance.
Down it went.
Then
Crash!
The Eternia smashed violently into the sand sending massive clouds of dust and debris flying into the sky.
Inside the ship damage was everywhere.
Rowlo slowly began to stir before painfully unbuckling himself.
“Damn it...” He looked around the ruined interior.
“So this is Kudos.”