Chapter 235 (1/2)

By the guiding light of Kuiper Station, the Petrachelys left the star port without a hitch. It departed from the civilian-use port area at high speeds. Hao Ren left the controls after setting it on auto-pilot. He then moved to another control station and activated the multi-dimensional display, swiping aside various information panels from the local and nearby space stations. A screen showing the view outside the spacecraft appeared. There was nothing but darkness around him. The faint glow of distant stars shimmered beyond. Beneath the screen was a fast-moving space station construct. The ship was finalising the calibrations for its destination.

Lily was restless as ever. One moment she was spinning in her chair, the next she was fiddling with some of the controls. A moment later, she was sitting on the chair, and the next, circling around the bridge, howling towards the stars. She was thoroughly enjoying herself by the looks of it. Well, the ship’s mainframe computer had already intelligently locked all control panels. Aside from the captain, no one could operate anything. Thus, Hao Ren simply let the furball run free. Vivian was in awe as she looked at the stars before her. “I really, really wanted to reach the stars before… I think I told you that before, I almost hung myself on the Apollo to catch a glimpse of the stars in space… I never thought… that dream would come true today.”

Hao Ren raised an eyebrow at Vivian. “You sure are a weird one. Do most vampires want to go to space like you?”

“They are a bunch of pompous, short-sighted inbreds.” Vivian did not even bother hiding her disdain for her own kind. “They are too drunk in their search for power, with their endless banquets and rituals. They have never, ever thought about the bigger picture. The world is such a vast place after all. I don’t know why I was always fascinated by the stars, like how you humans keep exploring the boundaries of space travel… Maybe, it’s because my wings are larger than normal?”

Hilda was seated quietly by Vivian’s side. The topic of stars had made her feel rather gloomy, but no one actually noticed.

After a short while on the bridge, Lily was bored out of her mind. After hearing that there were some places within the ships that she could go to, she quickly asked Hao Ren for a map and sped off for an adventure, looking at the high-tech gizmos on the ship. Y’zaks threw Hao Ren a concerned look as he watched Lily speed away. “Is it really alright to let her run around? This is no place for a child to play…”

“It’s fine.” Hao Ren had already experienced first hand the mind-numbing nature of the high-tech equipment. He had full faith in the ship’s mainframe and the MDT’s AI capabilities. He also believed that the ship could give her occupants sufficient space for their activities. “Well, all of the important controls are under lock, and the ship has those squid-like droids patroling about. If Lily’s just running about, it should be fine.”

Y’zaks simply shrugged. “You dote on her too much sometimes.”

“Nonsense, dote or not, that dumb husky has always been like that.”

At that time, the gate of the bridge hissed softly as it opened. Lily seemed to have finished her lap and decided to return. She even had a new garb on. No one knew where she got it from. It was a pair of white overalls with blue seams and light, greyish stylised linings over the it. The uniform, a male one at that, was obviously a size too big for the husky. Her hands were inside the sleeves and the bottom parts of the pants were dragging on the floor as she walked. She looked awfully silly and adorable at the same time. She called out happily to Hao Ren, “Mr. Landlord, Mr. Landlord! Look! Look! Do I look the part of a captain…”

Hao Ren was confused. “Where did you get that getup?”

“I don’t know!” Lily said as she dragged herself towards Hao Ren in an awkward jog. “I met this robot squid at one of the crossroads and asked if there are any cool looking space suits. Then it gave me this…”

The MDT was enjoying its time controlling the ship through its command terminal. It finally decided to explain the matter to Hao Ren in the laziest fashion ever. “That’s your captain’s uniform. There are around 200 of them in the storeroom. It’s not something really important, anyone with a guest access can get one.”

Hao Ren nodded absently before he finally realised something. “Two hundred?! Why is that necessary?”

The MDT was rather succint in its reply. “It may very well be your funeral dress.”

Lily was still jumping about happily while showing off her new getup to Vivian. “Cool ain’t it? Look, it’s cool ain’t it?”