It took Happy a good while longer until she finally got the hang of it. After the chaotic movements of the Keeper ship subsided, Robin and the others waited for Happy to align the ship behind the Hubble. That was their sign for ‘ready to go’ in lack of any other way to communicate. It would have been so much easier if ROMAS would have been able to transfer into the Star Atlas and to take over the Keeper ship, like they intended to do with Proto. Unfortunately it wasn’t that easy. Not only was ROMAS specially created to work with Robin’s Neuro Chip, but the Star Atlas was running on ?ther. He needed to do some serious crafting, before anything could be transferred into that thing.

  “Timothy must be sweating buckets right now!” Landom chuckled and Robin had to agree.

  “I’m kind of glad that the comm isn’t working.” He laughed, “Seems like they are ready. Alena, please plot the route to Rucasur and cut it off when we reach the asteroid field.”

  “Aye. Route is set, system is calculating the exit point.” She reported and Robin saw the information popping up on his screen. The asteroid cluster was really big and since one can’t just fly through in superluminal travel, most ships that wanted to pass this region had to fly a detour. It would take about two days of extra time however and as such, it was a reasonable cover story for them to ask permission to cross the belt.

  “Initiating QVT!” Robin announced when the calculation was finished and the Hubble began to speed up.

  “We’ll need about five hours before we reach our next stop. You are free to leave the bridge until t-30.” Robin freed the others from their duties and left the bridge.

  He made his way to the bunks and looked for one specific door. He hesitated a bit before knocking. After a few moments, the door slit open.

  “Ah, Captain! I was expecting you.” Ang’Tue said with a friendly smile on his face.

  “You were?” Robin raised an eyebrow, but quickly changed to a weary smile, “Well, it should have been easy to guess I think. May I come in?”

  The Eltaran stepped aside and waved him in.

  “Please, be my guest.”

  Robin walked into the small room that looked like all the other privat bunks. A simple bed on one side, a desk to the other and very little space to store personal belongings. Robin noticed that Ang’Tue, unlike the others, hadn’t decorated his room with pictures or other personal things. He spotted only a small device on the nightstand that looked like a tablet but had a golden metal sheet instead of a normal display.

  “We had little time to speak since the events on Terulos.” Robin said and leaned against the desk, “How are you doing?”

  “Actually, pretty good right now. Never felt so calm since our expedition into the Mystic Sea.”

  “How come? Don’t get me wrong, you really do look better as far as I can tell, but…”

  “You wanna know what happened to my inner demon? If or why am I stable?” Ang’Tue asked, not offended by the personal question.

  “Sorry.” Robin smiled apologetically, “I’ve seen how far on the other side you’ve been and while I’m happy that you managed to come back each time, I’m still a bit concerned. Everything has a price and I’m sure that saying applies to you too.”

  The Eltaran sighed and sat down on the bed.

  “It does. I can assure you that I have managed to stabilize my condition and am no threat to you or the others for the time being, even if I would use my G-Anomaly here and now.” He explained and reached for the golden tablet, “I… We have come to an agreement.”

  “We?” Robin repeated with wide eyes, “Mate, that is just a voice in your head. Talking about it like it is a sentient entity sounds everything but stable!”

  “For a long time I thought the same. However, now that I had to interact with it so frequently in a short time, I have second guesses. Whatever it may be… I’m good right now, even if I’m not sure how it will work out in the long term.”

  The golden sheet on the tablet began to glow and after a few moments a hologram of a young girl appeared. She had long hair and a cheeky grin on her face. The third eye in the middle of her forehead gave her away as an Eltaran child.

  “Your granddaughter?” Robin asked.

  “Yes, that is Gaya’Beo…”

  “You’ve already done your part, Ang’Tue.” Robin said, “The data you salvaged from the laboratory on Seavis may hold the key for her survival.”

  “I dearly hope you are right.” The old man nodded.

  “Have you heard anything from your people since we returned from the Goya System?”

  “Nothing yet but communication always is a challenge.”

  They both sat there in silence, each following their own thoughts, until Ang’Tue finally spoke up again.

  “Why are you here, Captain?”

  “Ah come one, you know that. The question is if you have found an answer already.” Robin scoffed.

  “‘tsk. Young people, no respect for old-timers like me!” Ang’Tue laughed but then looked at the hologram once more.

  “I would like to continue the journey with you.” He said slowly, “Despite the danger, I had more fun these days than for the longest part of my life.”

  “...but?” Robin asked, knowing it wasn’t that simple.

  “I think I have to find a safe way back to the Eltaran. I was gone for so long, I want to see those that are left of my family, I want to know if the data will aid us in repairing our genes and I think I should have a long talk with our Elders about my… mental situation.”

  “I can totally understand that.” Robin nodded, “So, how do you wanna do that?”

  “I have not found a solution just yet. I have pulled my people into the light already, I’ll not act rashly again and risk revealing our hiding place.”

  “Yeah, that wouldn’t go well.”

  Robin looked at the old man who was still staring at the hologram. With his arms crossed he waited… and waited… and waited.

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  “Ah damn, stubborn geezer!” He finally cursed, “Wouldn’t it be great if you knew someone with a ship that no one is able to track? Perfect at hiding and going places unnoticed? Burn in Plasma! It just happens to be that there is such a ship following us! If that isn’t a lucky coincidence!”

  “Drop the act!” Ang’Tue growled, “I can’t ask that of you. You have your own dreams to follow.”

  “Yeah, right, and do you know what is number one on my list? Exploring the hidden secrets of the universe. I would say visiting the world of the Eltaran fits that more than perfectly!”

  Ang’Tue looked up and gave Robin a long, scrutinizing look who only shook his head.

  “When we finally switch to the Keeper ship, I expect you to personalize your room a bit more. This isn’t a hotel but - at least for the time being - our home. Welcome aboard, old man!” Robin grinned and immediately left the room. Just before the door slid down behind him, he heard Ang’Tue croak with a broken voice.

  “Thank you, Robin.”

  ***

  When the Hubble dropped out of superluminal travel and vision returned, Robin saw the asteroid field in the distance. Since the Keeper ship was a bit faster and should have arrived here first, he piloted the Hubble closer to the floating rocks.

  He used the short search for the others to get better used to the clunky steering of the wrecked ship and after they found each other and Happy took her position behind the Hubble, both ships slowly entered the asteroid belt.

  They passed one asteroid after another. Rocks, as big as a house drifted by, and small ones, not bigger than a fist, zipped past. Despite Robin’s skillful piloting, the Hubble’s shields flashed every now and then. Landom kept an eye on the shield’s capacity but didn’t voice any concerns.

  After more than an hour, Alena finally spotted a good location.

  “There!” She shouted, “A172, at 29°.”

  Robin called up the information on his screen and quickly saw what she meant. The asteroid was not only enormous in size, it was also riddled with holes.

  “Are those caves?” Landom asked while marveling at the deep shafts that led far into the rock.

  “I think so. That should do it, right?” Alena asked.

  “Yeah, I’ll get us closer.” Robin agreed and carefully piloted the Hubble through the maze of floating rocks.

  When they were close enough, Alena made some scans which confirmed that the holes were wide and deep enough to hide the Keeper ship.

  Robin closed in on the entry Alena had selected and hovered nearby. It didn’t take long for the Keeper ship to pass them. It flew past the hole and did a smooth looping which ended exactly over the entry. After this display of skill and elegance, it quickly dove into the darkness.

  “Niu really knows what she’s doing. How did she become so experienced in controlling the alien ship this fast?” Landom wondered.

  “Flying really is her thing.” Alena stated matter-of-factly and Robin could only agree.

  It took fifteen minutes before Alena caught the signals of Happy and Timothy from within the asteroid and a quick space-walk later, they both had safely boarded the Hubble and rejoined the rest of the crew.

  “You are sure that you marked the correct location?” Robin asked once more.

  “Yes, Robin, I am sure we will be able to find this asteroid again.” Alena replied in a suffering tone.

  “Sorry!” Robin raised his hands defensively, “I’m just saying it would really suck if we came so far only to lose the ship due to bad cartographing.”

  “Do you want to suggest I’m bad at my job?” She asked, her face a stoney mask.

  “Uhm, no! Of course not. You’re doing great and I’m just nervous.” Robin quickly changed the topic, “Happy, get us out of here!”

  “Finally! I thought you would never stop whining.” Niu laughed.

  “Just… go!”

  “Hold tight, people. Next stop: UAS Flight Academy, Mereus Cluster, Outpost 9!”

  While Happy brought them to their next destination, Robin prepared for what was about to come.

  “With each move I’m diverting more and more from a path the UAS would approve of.” he muttered, “It is not up to them to decide what I want to do with my life and yet I sit here making plans to delay the inevitable collision with them… that is proof enough that it is time to go.”

  *Ding* - Ship’s comm opened

  “Hey folks!

  We are on the last meters of our journey with the Hubble and about to reach a UAS outpost to change ships. As discussed earlier, we will go to Seavis afterwards before heading to our final destination: Rucasur. Most of you still have to decide how you want to continue from there. While I’ll be happy to talk that through with you, please wait until we are on Seavis. The loaner ship will have eyes and ears and there are more than enough topics we don’t want to share with the UAS, yet. Keep that in mind after boarding.

  Last but not least: while we haven’t reached a breaking point yet, there still is a small chance that the UAS is trying something while we are docked at the outpost. I don’t think it’ll come to that, but if anything happens, please leave without me first. I’ll find you afterwards.

  Thanks, Robin out.”

  *Ding* - Ship’s comm closed

  “Most of you?” Landom asked, leaving in the doorway.

  “Yeah, Ang’Tue has already decided what he wants to do and I’m pretty sure that you and I also don’t need to talk about your future.” Robin shrugged.

  “No, we don’t.” Landom agreed, “But you know, I would really love to stick with you a little longer.”

  “It doesn’t match with your life right now. You have a family to take care of.” Robin stated, not the least disapproving. Landom had already risked his life more than once and they had a great time together. Robin couldn’t and wouldn’t ask for more.

  “My brother will also leave on Rucasur to begin his rehab training with the specialists from the UAS.” Alena said to Robin’s surprise. Not only had he assumed she would stay out of this talk, he also wondered about her wording.

  “Your brother? Just him?” He asked, “Do you want to stay? That would be great!”

  “I always thought you only came in pairs!” Happy couldn’t help but giggle.

  “I…” Alena began but stopped when she couldn’t find the right words.

  “Hey, no worries. Take your time and think this through.” Robin said, “Just know, there always is a place for you on the ship!”

  “Thanks.”

  After that they remained quiet, each lost in their own thoughts. However, Robin did not miss the fact that Happy had not spoken about her own plans. He really hoped she would stay, but had decided to not ask or pressure her again. He still felt that he had talked her into this when they met on Gaunus and she was not only risking her career. There was so much bad blood with her family already and it would only get worse if she continued this path.

  ***

  He had played it down during his short speech, but if he had to be honest, Robin was nervous as hell when they started approaching the outpost. His head was throbbing with a constant pain that wouldn’t want to go away.

  It was Robin’s first space station to see but unfortunately he couldn’t appreciate its unique beauty. While CBXX-5, the outpost they had dropped off Keran Bex, technically also was a space station, this one really was a station floating in the middle of the void. Robin had learned that this was a small, unimportant station and that there were much bigger ones out there, however it still was a gigantic facility. Its central part was a silvery, tube-shaped construction that was probably bigger than any skyscraper you could find in Seka. Surrounding it were three wide rings that were slowly rotating in opposing directions.

  Robin could make out a few ships that were docked to these rings. From this distance, it nearly seemed like they had become a part of the complex.

  “40 m/s, 750m”

  The Hubble was on its way to their assigned dock and Happy, for once, concentrated only on her task of bringing them safely in. As always, Alena provided her with additional data about speed and distance.

  “30 m/s, 500m”

  When they were just a few hundred meters away and Robin’s nervousness had reached its peak, Alena suddenly hesitated.

  “25 m/s, …”

  “20 m/s, about 300m?” She said, more a question than a statement.