Chapter 235: The World Gate
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
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."
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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?"
Vivian turned her face aside to ignore the idiot, and Hao Ren had a nostalgic flashback. He still remembered the first time he saw the animated version of Battlestar Galatica during elementary school. The way he reacted was like Lily, posing comically with the crew uniform. He imagined himself as a maintenance crew or a captain, or a fighter pilot, any role that could see his name appear on the credits... That was how Lily looked like to him, all too innocent...
It did not take long before Lily quieted down as she lay sprawling on her seat, staring at the stars. But the stars themselves were already fading away. The ship had already left the star clusters, and it was preparing to make the jump into hyperspace. The scenery outside quickly turned into a blur as a hyperspace rift formed. Blue and red lights swirled about as the rift rapidly consolidated into a tubular path. After a deep hum from somewhere deep within the ship's engine room, the hyperspace rift around the ship closed and the swirling lights faded. All that was left was the darkness of space.
"The next stop will be the World Gate. Shouldn't take too long." The MDT broadcasted through the bridge's speakers.
The husky sat on her chair blankly for a moment before suddenly reaching her hand out to Hao Ren. "Mr. Landlord, is there a notebook computer here?"
"Just install the plug-in into the terminal in front of you." Hao Ren raised his eyebrows. "What do you need it for?"
"I feel inspired, and I want to write." Lily was serious. "I still owe the publisher a column as well."
Hao Ren allowed the MDT to set up for Lily as he looked at the husky, his eyebrows still raised. "Why does it feel weird when you say that you want to write?"
Lily was her usual hyperactive self since the moment she boarded the ship... Her hyperactivity aside, she was a through and through husky. How else could you describe her? She scarcely looked the part of a proper wordsmith, but Lily herself digressed. She was seated cross-legged with her oversized uniform on an even bigger chair. Her face was serious as she started penning her article. At the same time, she argued with Hao Ren. "Mr. Landlord, you are judging a book by its cover again. Do you know how much effort it takes to write a proper piece? If you think writing is like what you see on TV, you're sorely mistaken! Those are hacks that can't pen a proper piece and repackage themselves as a work of art to earn appearance fees in schools. True words can only come from pure emotions, and keeping a free heart is key to penning a touching line. I'm simply being whimsical to keep up my quality writing..."
Vivian was at her limits by then and simply could not hear one more word. Slamming the armrest, she roared, "Oh stop being so bloody pretentious! You're just writing for a pet magazine! This is for their 'How to Raise a Dog' column!"
"..."
Lily's fur also stood on end as she roared back defiantly, "Who told you that I only write for the 'How to Raise a Dog'column?! I was writing lyrical poetry and self-improvement articles during the Republican Era! I only started writing for pet magazines as it was gettting much more popular lately..."
This leg of the journey was rather short as the hyperspace lane was a direct route from Kuiper Station all the way to the World Gate. While Lily was still analysing the various new dog food and their flavours, the ship had arrived at its destination.
The World Gate, one of Xiling Empire's unique architecture. As the name implied, it was a gate used to travel across worlds. Dimensional jumps between two galaxies was different from a localised jump, and it required an almost impossible level of technology and expertise to do so. Different galaxies had differences it their most basic make-up. Some galaxies did not even have the four fundamental forces like the Milky Way did. They were sustained by a vastly different physical law. The vastness of the void was a ceiling too high for most races and species. Inter-galatic travel was most definitely out of the question. The Xiling disciples had means for inter-galatic travel, and to ease the adminstration of the Macro World as well as facilitate communication between the various civilisations under their rule, the disciples built a World Gate in almost every sphere within the Macro World.
There were two types of World Gates; a smaller one built on the surface of a planet for small-scale use, and another gigantic structure in space, capable of supporting a fleet, or a planetary body jumping into a different universe. Hao Ren had arrived at the second type of World Gate.
As the ship exited the hyperspace bubble, the scenery outside went back to normal and the shimmering sea of stars was visible once more. In front of them, lay the monumental structure.