A few hours before the incident. The entire crew had gathered in front of the Kaynan Trade Caravan. Our ship was docked in a fairly busy port city on the planet Ouditors. Places like this were usually paradise for merchants, information hunters, drunks, and people planning to blow their entire paychecks in a single night. The area around the ship was bustling. Several crew members already looked impatient to head into the city. Captain Kaynan stood in front of us with both hands in his coat pockets.
“Rin and I have some work to take care of.” He looked over the entire crew. “So go have fun however you want.” Several crew members immediately broke into wide grins.
“YEEEEEE!” “WOOOOOO!” “Best captain ever!” “Kaynan’s a legend!”
The crew immediately began cheering.
“But…”
Their smiles vanished at once.
“Be back by midnight.” The captain raised one finger. “We’re leaving tomorrow morning.” There was silence for several seconds. Then—
“BOOOOO! TYRANT!”
One of the crew members shouted.
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN, BE BACK BY MIDNIGHT?! You’re treating us like princesses!” Several other crew members immediately burst out laughing.
Captain Kaynan raised an eyebrow. I could only sigh from where I stood behind them.
“Oh?” His smile slowly changed. “SHUT UUUUUP!”
Silence. Everyone immediately fell quiet. The captain drew a breath.
“I don’t want anyone delaying our departure tomorrow.”
He pointed at us one by one. “You…” He raised one finger. “M.” His finger moved. “E.” Then to the next crew member. “R.” He stopped. “T.” His hand curled into a fist. “I.” I began to frown. “A.” The captain pointed at the entire crew. “K.” I whispered to the person beside me. “What’s that supposed to mean?” “No idea.” Kaynan continued with complete confidence. “A.” “N.” “!!!”
“DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!” “YES, CAPTAIN!” the entire crew answered in unison.
Rin, standing beside him, simply rubbed her temple. “Captain…”
“What?” “Don’t make unnecessary acronyms.” “The important thing is that they understood.” “That’s exactly what I’m not sure about.” I raised my hand. “I understood.” Rin turned toward me. “You understood?” I shook my head. “Nope.” Rin let out a long sigh. That was what life on our ship was like. Somehow, this ship was still functioning.
After the briefing ended, the crew began splitting up and heading into the city. Some went straight to the bars. Some went looking for food. Others wanted to buy spare parts. A few had even planned to spend their entire pay that very night. I wasn’t particularly interested in any of that. I had only two things on my mind: relaxing and food.
“Big Brother Zen!”
I turned around. Erhan ran toward me carrying a small bag. “Where are we going?” “No idea.” I slipped both hands into my pockets. “Maybe we can find some food and grill it here.” “Food again?” I looked at him. “Is there anything more important?” Erhan thought for a moment. “Money?” I fell silent. “You’ve got a point.” We left the ship with several other crew members. But before we actually entered the city, I caught sight of Captain Kaynan and Rin walking in the opposite direction.
“Big Brother.”
Erhan pointed at them. “Where are Captain Kaynan and Rin going?” “They said they had some business to handle.” “What kind of business?”
I shrugged. “How should I know?” I watched them for a while. Something felt strange. Normally, whenever Captain Kaynan had business to attend to, he would bring at least two or three crew members with him. This time, only Rin was accompanying him. And even stranger… the captain was carrying a small object wrapped in black cloth. I narrowed my eyes.
“What’s that thing?” “Big Brother?” “Nothing.” I shook my head. “Probably just some merchandise.” I promptly forgot about it.
At least… for a few hours.
On the other side of the city, Captain Kaynan and Rin walked through a narrow alley lined with old shops. Rin occasionally glanced at the object the captain was carrying. “Are you sure this is the place?”
“Sure.” “Captain, when did you learn about this place?” Kaynan smiled. “This afternoon.” Rin stopped walking.
“This afternoon?” “Yep.” “And you didn’t tell me?” “I just remembered.” Rin stared at him blankly. “Captain.” “Yes?” “We’re carrying something whose origins we don’t know.” “Yes.” “We don’t know who owns it.” “Yes.” “We also don’t know why it was found in the ruins.” “Yes.” Rin took a deep breath. “And you’re still carrying it?”
Kaynan lifted the object wrapped in black cloth. “It’d be a shame to throw it away.”
Rin stared at him in disbelief. “THAT’S NOT A REASON!” Her voice echoed through the alley. Several passersby turned to look. Kaynan merely chuckled. “Relax.”
He patted the object. “I’ve already examined it.” “And?” “No curse.” Rin stared at him. “How do you know?”
Kaynan fell silent. “A feeling.”
“Captain…”
“I have a good feeling about it.”
Rin rubbed her temple. “Your hunches have cost us three crates of merchandise before.”
“That was an accident.”
“And we nearly got arrested by the guards twice.”
“That was an accident too.”
“And when you picked up that dragon egg—”
“It was an ordinary egg.”
“It hatched!”
Kaynan cleared his throat. “The point is, I’m sure this time.”
Rin eyed the object suspiciously. The black cloth wrapped around it looked ordinary. But through a small gap between the folds, an extremely faint blue light appeared from time to time. Rin noticed it.
“Captain.” “Hmm?” “That object…”
Kaynan looked too. The blue light vanished.
“Just a reflection.”
Rin didn’t answer. For some reason, the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. At last, they stopped in front of an old building that was nearly collapsing. A wooden sign above the door read:
SECONDHAND SHOP — BUYING AND SELLING ARTIFACTS AND TECHNOLOGY
Kaynan smiled. “There we are.” Rin looked at the shop. “What are we here for?”
Kaynan lifted the object wrapped in black cloth. “To find out what this thing is.” Rin stared at him for a moment. “And what if the shopkeeper doesn’t know?”
Kaynan smiled. “Then we find the next shop.” “Captain…”
“Hmm?”
“Why do I feel like we’re about to get into trouble?”
Kaynan opened the shop door. “Because you think too much.”
A little later, at a fairly upscale restaurant in the city center… Captain Kaynan sat across from someone. A woman. That woman was Commander Veyra. Her blue crystal was nowhere to be seen this time, but her commanding presence was still palpable.
Veyra set a cup of her drink on the table. “Ed.” Kaynan picked up his glass. “Rose.”
“I didn’t call you here to eat.”
Kaynan glanced at the food on the table. “What a shame.”
Veyra sighed. “You really haven’t changed.”
“If I changed, you wouldn’t recognize me anymore.” “I wish you would change.”
Kaynan chuckled. Veyra then gave him a serious look.
“Let’s get straight to the point.” She placed both hands on the table.
“What are you really hiding?” Kaynan raised an eyebrow. “Hiding?”
“Don’t play games with me.”
“I’m not playing games.”
“Ed.”
Veyra’s gaze grew sharper.
“You took something, didn’t you?”
Kaynan fell silent. Veyra studied his face.
“I know you took it.”
Kaynan smiled faintly. “If you know, why ask?”
“Because I want to hear it directly from you.”
Kaynan picked up some food.
“Not bad.” “Ed.” “Yes?” “Don’t change the subject.” “I’m not changing the subject.”
Kaynan pointed at the food. “I’m just saying it tastes good.”
Veyra closed her eyes. “Why did you take that object?”
“Because it was interesting.” “Interesting?” “Yep.”
“In the middle of a burned-out oversight office, you found something and called it interesting?”
Kaynan nodded.
“That’s right.” “If I hadn’t taken it, someone else might have.”
Veyra stared at him. “Who?”
Kaynan shrugged. “No idea.”
“Ed.” “Rose.” “You know something.”
Kaynan smiled. “Everyone knows something.”
“What do you know about Terra Vitae?”
Kaynan fell silent. For the first time, his smile didn’t look like a joke. But only for a moment. Then he smiled again.
“An old planet.” “One that disappeared long ago.” “Correct.” “A planet that, according to public history, is regarded as nothing more than a dead world.” “Correct again.”
Veyra narrowed her eyes.
“Then the object you picked up must be connected to it, right? And it’s what caused the terrorists to attack the oversight office!”
Kaynan picked up his drink.
“Maybe they just wanted to pay a visit!”
Veyra gave him a flat stare.
“Seriously?”
“Who knows?”
“And why did the elders order me to find something they themselves refuse to explain?”
Kaynan smiled. “Maybe the elders were bored.”
Veyra let out a long sigh.
“Ed…” “What?” “Stop dancing around the subject.”
Kaynan laughed. “If I stop, we’ll run out of things to talk about.”
Veyra glared at him. “You know Terra Vitae is more than just a planet’s name.”
Kaynan didn’t answer. “You also know that object is connected to something the Alliance’s predecessors hid.”
Kaynan remained silent.
“And you know more than you’re saying.”
Kaynan leaned back in his chair. “I know a lot of things.”
“Such as?” “The odds of rain tomorrow.”
Veyra stared at him.
“Ed.” “Yes?” “I’m being serious.” “So am I.” “You…”
Veyra was on the verge of losing her patience. Kaynan simply chuckled.
“If I do know something…” He picked up his glass. “…that doesn’t mean I’ll tell you.”
Veyra’s expression changed. “Why?”
Kaynan looked out the window. The city of Ozgur was visible from where they sat. “Because sometimes…” His voice grew quieter. “…knowing something only makes your life more complicated.”
Veyra fell silent. “Are you still investigating the cause of Filona’s death?”
Kaynan stopped smiling. He looked back at Veyra.
“I’ve chosen to follow the resolve she left behind!”
Veyra remained silent for a long time. Then she sighed. “So you really aren’t going to give me an answer?”
Kaynan shrugged. “What answer?”
Veyra slammed her fist on the table. “I could arrest you and take whatever you picked up!”
Kaynan laughed. “Hahaha.” Veyra rubbed her face. “You bastard.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.” “Don’t get too cocky. If it weren’t for Filona and Mary, I would’ve arrested you long ago!” They fell silent for a moment. Then Veyra spoke quietly.
“Ed.” “Hmm?” “If that object is dangerous…” Veyra’s gaze grew serious. “Don’t let your crew get involved.” Kaynan fell silent and smiled faintly. “I’ll handle it.” “Promise me. You know you’re dealing with something dangerous, right?”
Kaynan looked at Veyra. “I always keep my promises.”
Veyra nodded. But deep down, she knew one thing. Kaynan was lying. Not because he wanted to hide something for his own sake, but because he was trying to protect someone. The question was… who was he protecting?
The restaurant door opened. A brown-haired woman entered with Rin, who had chosen from the beginning to sit outside rather than sit with the captain and Commander Veyra.
“Commander.”
Veyra turned around. “Mary?” Mary smiled. “Dad.”
Kaynan froze. For a moment… all expression vanished from his face.
Mary walked closer. “It’s been a long time.”
Kaynan finally smiled. “Mary.”
He stood and hugged Mary, his only daughter. “What are you doing here?” “I should be asking you that.” Mary beamed. “Do you still like disappearing without a word, Dad?”
Kaynan scratched his head. “Work.”
“Work or trouble?” “Not much difference.”
Mary laughed. Veyra watched them from the side. Standing behind Mary, Rin was touched by the father-daughter reunion. It looked simple, but the strong bond between them was obvious. Mary then hugged her father back. Kaynan was silent for a moment before finally patting his daughter on the head.
“You’ve gotten big.” Mary smiled. “You’ve gotten older too, Dad.”
Kaynan immediately let go of her. “Hey.”
Veyra laughed. “She’s right.” “Stay out of this.”
Mary chuckled. “How’s Zen?”
“Still lazing around.” “Erhan?” “Still eats more than Zen.” Mary and Rin laughed.
“So everything’s still the same.” Kaynan smiled. “Yep.”
For a while, Kaynan looked completely relaxed. There were no excessive jokes or sly smiles. He was simply a father talking with his daughter after a long separation. But the moment didn’t last. The gadget on Kaynan’s wrist beeped. BEEP! Kaynan looked at the screen. His expression immediately changed. A message had arrived.
“Captain!” Rin shouted in response to the emergency message.
[EMERGENCY WARNING]
[The Kaynan Caravan is under attack.]
Veyra immediately looked at the screen. “Under attack?” Kaynan stood. His chair scraped loudly against the floor. “Is anyone on the ship right now?” Rin checked the message Erhan had sent. “Erhan messaged me for help. He and Zen are under attack in the parking area for our ship.”
Kaynan read the next messages.
[Defensive shields active.] [Assistance request received.] [Contact with crew lost.]
Kaynan’s expression turned serious. There was no smile left. No more jokes.
“Zen… Erhan…”
He immediately turned around.
Veyra stood. “I’m coming.”
Kaynan looked at her. “This is my caravan’s business.”
“Exactly because of that.” Veyra took out her blue crystal.
“I’m also looking for the people who attacked the oversight office.”
She looked at Kaynan. “If they attacked your ship, there’s a good chance it’s connected to the object you took.”
Kaynan didn’t answer. Veyra stared at him.
“Ed.”
Kaynan grabbed his coat. “I don’t have time to argue.” He walked out of the restaurant. Veyra followed. Mary followed them outside.
“Dad!”
Kaynan stopped and turned around. Mary looked worried.
“I’ve already requested assistance from the Alliance’s 5th Army, so let’s go together.”
Kaynan hesitated, worried that his daughter might be put in danger. But when he saw the determination in her eyes, he changed his mind. Then he left. Veyra followed behind him. Before exiting, however, Veyra glanced back at Mary. “Stay behind me.” She smiled faintly. Mary nodded. The restaurant door closed.
Outside, several members of the Supreme Authority’s forces were already waiting. Veyra immediately began issuing orders. “Prepare the vehicles.” “Prepare the support unit.” “And send the coordinates of the Kaynan Caravan.” “Yes, Commander!”
Kaynan was already inside the vehicle. He gripped the object he had picked up that afternoon. Blue light appeared again through a gap in the cloth. For the first time… a trace of worry appeared on Kaynan’s face. Veyra noticed.
“Ed.”
Kaynan didn’t answer. “What exactly is that thing?”
Kaynan stared at the blue light. Then he slipped the object into his pocket.
“If I knew…” He drew a breath. “…I’d want to know too.”
Veyra frowned. “What kind of answer is that?”
Kaynan smiled faintly. “The most honest answer I can give you.”
The vehicle’s engine started. WHOOOOM! The vehicle sped away from the city. Veyra stared straight ahead.
“I hope we’re not too late.” Kaynan clenched his fist. “Don’t you dare touch my crew.” His gaze turned cold. This time… Captain Kaynan was not joking.
Meanwhile… near the Kaynan Caravan. Zen had just gotten to his feet. Erhan had already made it inside the ship. The defensive shields began activating. Black shadows slowly emerged from the darkness. Someone raised a hand. A magic circle began to form. Zen clenched his fists.
“Damn…” “Why now?”
Then a man walked toward me. He wore a dark robe that seemed to blend into the night. Most of his face was hidden in shadow.
“Hmm…” “Good idea, sending that brat away!”
Ugh… why did they have to attack us on such a peaceful night? High in the night sky over Ozgur, Kaynan’s vehicle and Veyra’s forces raced toward the ship as fast as they could. They didn’t yet know what was waiting for them. They didn’t know who was really attacking. And they didn’t know… that this night would mark the beginning of the greatest secret, hidden for thousands of years by all the races.
Terra Vitae.