NOVEL NEXT Chapter 17: Mysterious Space
After linking Percy to Eva's ship's AI, Eva took control of it remotely, moving her frigate a short distance away. She positioned it with its thrusters facing toward the black hole, the Jump Gate affixed on the ship's underbelly, with the gate's "front" pointed directly at the glowing wormhole.
Her frigate's power generator could barely provide enough energy to hold its position against the black hole's pull while also powering the Jump Gate. For a moment, I worried it wouldn't be up to the task. That is until I double-checked the stats through the program I made earlier:
[---
Ship Name: Hunter
Ship Class: Frigate
Ship Rarity: B
Cruise Speed: 700 m/s
Top Speed: 1,000 km/s
Top Acceleration: 10G
Energy Capacity: 100 GJ
Energy Charge Rate: 3 GJ/s
Rated Maximum Energy Consumption: 25 GJ/s
Radar Range: 0.1 AU
Transceiver Range: 10 AU
Shield Integrity: 100% (100%, 100%, 100%, 100%, 100%, 100%)
Broadside Ports: 0/0
Turret Ports: 2/2 (100%)
Missile Launcher Ports: 1/1 (30/30)
Cargo Hold Size: 177/700 m³
Hangar Capacity: 0/0 ships
---]
The numbers didn't lie. With her thrusters consuming 1.5 GJ/s to counteract the gravitational pull of the black hole and the Jump Gate requiring another 1.0 GJ/s, the frigate still had 500 MJ/s left for the other systems.
"With this, it should hold until it runs out of fuel," I muttered, nodding approvingly.
Her fusion generator used compressed hydrogen as fuel, and her ship's cargo hold was loaded with hydrogen tanks linked in series. This setup ensured the Hunter wouldn't run out of juice anytime soon. At worst, it had enough fuel to last 100 hours—or roughly two galactic days. That gave us a strict time limit of 50 hours for a one-way trip.
'If we don't make it back by the halfway mark, we'll have no choice but to retreat and try again later.'
But this wasn't just about finding treasures; this was also a rescue mission. Mercy's father and his crew were still alive—at least technically. Our mission included locating them, securing the "treasure" I was after, and gathering enough "materials" to offset the cost of the Jump Gate—all within 50 hours. It was a tight schedule, but manageable—especially since I already knew how to get their approximate location.
"Are you done setting up the autopilot?" I asked Eva, who nodded firmly in reply.
"Good. Then let's not waste time." I grinned, gripping the controls. "To the unknown!"
I stepped on the pedals, twisting the Range Falcon into position, and aimed it directly at the gigantic, glowing tear in space.
As we entered the wormhole, the entire ship began to shake violently. It felt like being caught in a magnitude-9 earthquake—but inside a starship. My hands gripped the controls tighter, my heart pounding. The Range Falcon was sturdy, no doubt about that, but the violent turbulence made me question just how much of a punishment it could take.
"S-Successfully entered the wormhole," Eva announced shakily.
Her hands danced across the controls as she checked the radar and star map. "Signal to the Star Map is lost! Current location is unknown! I think… I think we're outside the explored universe."
Her voice wavered with genuine fear, and I couldn't blame her. Being so far removed from civilization would rattle anyone. If we end up stuck in this place, then there's no way someone could just pass by and help us.
"Don't worry," I reassured her, trying to sound as confident as possible. "I know this place like the back of my hand. First, check the radar for any landmarks."
The space inside the wormhole was so barren you might lose your sense of direction. There was no up or down, no clear sense of movement. The only visible reference point was the glowing entry point behind us, which thankfully kept us from getting completely lost.
After a tense moment, Eva's voice broke the silence. "I found something! A cluster of… massive space rocks. About 400 kilometers portside!"
I glanced at the radar and saw the faint signature she was referring to. Judging by the shadows it cast, the smallest rock had to be at least 100 meters across. But I quickly shook my head.
"No, that's not it. Keep scanning."
The radar, hindered by the emptiness of this strange space, took longer than usual to complete a scan. Seconds passed, each one dragging on like an eternity, before another reading popped up.
"T-This is…!" Eva's voice trembled with shock. "There's a shipwreck to the starboard side. Approximately 1,800 kilometers away!"
"Bingo!" I exclaimed, slamming the throttle forward. "That's our first waypoint. Percy, activate shields to full power. Better safe than sorry. Turning starboard—full speed ahead!"
[Command received. Activating shields at 100% output.]
As they say, safety first. While this space shouldn't have any danger present, staying on guard was non-negotiable. After all, if "that" thing activated without warning, we'd end up as permanent company for Major Terrence and his ill-fated crew in this desolate void.
The Range Falcon continued on at cruise speed. Even at this leisurely pace, the 1,800 kilometers to our destination was covered in exactly an hour, on the dot. As soon as we arrived at the place, my eyes widened with recognition.
"This is it!" I exclaimed, leaning forward enthusiastically. "This is definitely one of the ships from Major Terrence's fleet!"
Eva immediately raised a skeptical brow, crossing her arms lightly. "Oh, really? And how can you tell that just by looking at it?"
Of course, I did not let her skepticism bother me. I pointed towards the central part of the hull—or what was left of it. There were the remains of a barely visible insignia left there.
"That yellow rose insignia," I said, gesturing to the faint design etched into the battered metal. "It's the symbol of Major Terrence's fleet—part of General Tarima's Yellow Rose Squadron from the Calumet Star System. With a clue that obvious, it'd be harder not to recognize it. Don't tell me you missed that?"
Eva averted her gaze, her cheeks coloring slightly as she pouted. "O-Of course, I recognized it! I was just… testing you!"
I chuckled, amused by her sudden defensiveness. "I see. Did I pass your little test, then?"
"Shut up," she mumbled, clearly irritated.
"Well, regardless, we've got work to do," I continued, ignoring her scowl. "Get ready to disembark. We need to scavenge the inside of that ship for clues."
Her head snapped toward me like a rusty servo motor. Her wide eyes and incredulous tone said it all.
"Are you fucking serious right now? You're telling me to go inside that rotting death trap? It could collapse any second!"
Her concern was valid, but I waved it off confidently.
"This ship is an S-Class Heavy Cruiser—the Vernal Torrent. These ships are built with hull integrity as their top priority. Even if abandoned for a decade, they wouldn't degrade much. And it's only been three months since they disappeared. Trust me, it's not going to fall apart."
Eva frowned, her gaze flickering between me and the derelict ship ahead. "Still… what if there's something dangerous inside?"
I smirked. "What, like ghosts?"
Her face flushed instantly, her voice shooting up an octave. "W-Who said anything about ghosts?! I'm talking about real dangers—like alien swarms or something!"
I couldn't help but laugh, her reaction was too priceless to ignore.
"Hey! What's so funny, you bastard?!" she snapped, stomping her boot in frustration. "If you think I'm scared of ghosts, wait until I turn you into one—"
"Alright, alright!" I interrupted, still chuckling. "If you're so scared, feel free to stay here. I'll handle the scavenging and bring back the loot myself."
Eva's face turned an even deeper shade of red, and she stomped again. "I told you, I'm not scared!"
"Sure, sure," I said with a grin, ignoring her protest while heading toward the armory.
The spacesuits we are wearing were designed for use inside ships or stations. They were made for mobility, not protection. They could take brief exposure to the vacuum of space in emergencies—enough to survive until rescued—but they were not suited for extended excursions.
Inside the armory, the lights turned on automatically as I entered, revealing Gerard's impressive collection of powered suits. Sleek and high-tech, each suit was lined up neatly, glowing faintly in standby mode. I took a moment to marvel at them—these were advanced pieces of equipment I had used during the early stages of the game. But these models were from so long ago that I'd already forgotten which was which, let alone remember their stats.
"Percy," I called out, turning to the AI. "Which one of these is the best performer?"
[Analyzing... Displaying rankings of powered suits based on overall performance scores.]
A series of holographic numbers appeared above each suit. My gaze swept across the room until it landed on the one labeled #1—a sleek, crimson suit named "Model 2065-S Truman Suit" that hugged the form of a human body.
"... Who would've thought I'd end up cosplaying as Ir*n M*n in a parallel universe," I muttered, stepping toward the suit.
The moment I securely positioned myself, the suit automatically moved to cover my body. The mechanism was slick as the interior self-adjusted to fit the user's body shape.
Not much later, Eva stormed into the armory, still grumbling to herself. She scanned the various suits and then picked the one labeled #2—Model 2064-A Truman Suit—which had a design nearly identical to mine but green and black in color. But although it was the same model, seeing the suit snugly display her contours, the sight didn't exactly seem suitable for an all-ages show, to say the least.
"You ready?" I asked as I completed the final checks on the suit's life support systems.
"Obviously," Eva huffed, still trying to mask her nervousness.
With our suits powered up and all its systems online, the two of us stepped out of the Range Falcon together, jumping toward the cold, vast emptiness of space.
Finally, it was time to pick up some loot!