Episode 4: Farewell, ‘Amur Adonis’
“So, you’re saying we need to transport the Graviton Flare to this position?”
“Yes, otherwise there’s a high probability this ship will overlap with the dimensional rift that occurs during the Spacetime Quake.”
I quickly told Dr. Won, who has a peculiar way of speaking, to rest, and asked Rouge, who developed the simulation with him, for an explanation. According to Rouge, the positional relationship between this ship and the Graviton Flare is crucial.
“This is all predicated on the simulation being accurate, though.”
“Don’t say scary things. We have nothing else to rely on.”
“There aren’t many observed cases of Spacetime Quakes, and even fewer that were observable from the start, so it can’t be helped.”
“That’s true.”
It’s fortunate that the data was stored in the ship’s library. What’s more important is the placement of the Graviton Flare. Space is a frictionless void where front, back, up, down, and left, right are all ambiguous. Telling a single missile to stop in such a place is impossible.
“Well, we can solve that part.”
“How do you intend to do that?”
The Graviton Flare is stored in the special equipment warehouse. To place it accurately in the planned position, we can’t just launch it and snipe it.
“I’ll use the Androids those guys left behind.”
Among the people who escaped in the escape pods were many Androids. There were Androids piloting the escape pods, Androids who came along as caretakers, and Androids who happened to be nearby when the escape pods launched.
They are ship’s equipment, but they look human. If we can save them, I’d like to, out of human kindness.
But drifting in space in a small escape pod is a different story. Cargo space is prioritized for their food and air, and lighter weight is better.
As a result, most of the Androids who escaped with us in the escape pods were left behind on this ship.
“…I’m going to have to give an unpleasant order.”
But unlike humans, Androids don’t have fear and are obedient to orders. Only they can do this job. Load the Graviton Flare onto a launch, have an Android pilot the launch, and have that launch wait at the planned energy emission point for the Spatial Jump.
“That means we’ll lose a launch too.”
“We have plenty of those, so it’s not a problem.”
A souvenir from that Vice Admiral. But aren’t we a single-pilot ship?
“Then I’ll synchronize one Android to this terminal. What name would you like to use?”
“They’re about to go die, aren’t they? …Call them by their original name.”
“Understood.”
“Just in case, we’ll use an unused launch bay. The only thing more idiotic than this situation is an idiot causing trouble.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Exactly. It’s a pain to have to tow it later, so I’ll transport the Graviton Flare with my Spatial Storage. All procedures are omitted. That’s an order.”
“Understood.”
If I don’t say this, I’ll have to look through various documents, and in the first place, using the Graviton Flare requires permission from headquarters. There’s no time to get that.
“But regarding the use of the Graviton Flare…”
“I’m just moving it. I’m not firing it.”
“That’s a sophistry. Understood.”
“Hahaha!”
Using the Graviton Flare requires permission from Unified Space Force headquarters. But moving it doesn’t require permission from headquarters; it can be moved under the responsibility of the administrator.
I’m just placing it at the planned point of Magic Drive energy emission for the Spatial Jump.
The most difficult task is being done by the Android. I just need to follow the Spatial Jump procedure as usual, without moving the ship.
Anyone could do something this easy.
“Captain?”
“…Ah, sorry. I seem more nervous than I thought.”
“That’s rare. Please pull yourself together.”
“…I could cry at your kindness.”
That’s what’s troubling about Androids.
After that, I skipped various formal procedures and completed the preparations.
I was nervous, but there was no interference from squid, dolphins, or Kujira, and there was no issue with timing or time, so I easily emitted the energy for the Spatial Jump.
And then the Spacetime Quake activated.
I saw the universe cracking for the first time.
The rifts between spaces opened silently, and then they spread everywhere.
Is the Kujira screaming? No, it must be an auditory hallucination. Sound doesn’t travel in space.
However, it seems like cracks are overlapping the body of the Kujira, which appeared to be moving silently. It seems we were able to strike a blow. I don’t know if we can defeat it, though.
“－－－－－－－――”
I feel like someone is saying something, but I can’t hear anything in this blurred world. Am I enveloped in light, or covered in darkness?
The indescribable world that I couldn’t even judge filled my vision, and the next moment, we succeeded in teleporting the ship.
“Damn it! It came to this! Main engine, maximum output! Escape from the gravitational sphere into space!”
The Amur Adonis is falling, pulled by gravity. We must have teleported into the gravitational sphere of some planet. What are the odds of pulling such a thin probability!
“The main engine output is not increasing. The Magic Drive Engine output is also insufficient. Escape from the gravitational sphere is impossible.”
While having such a conversation, the Amur Adonis is gradually being drawn to the planet. A crash landing is inevitable.
“Eject the transmission pod! Make sure we can send out a distress call! Is the only option for the ship to enter the planet as is? How about flying within the gravitational sphere?”
“Measuring… The main engine is already dead. Considering the remaining energy of the Magic Drive Engine, it’s about thirty minutes at most. It would last longer if we could replace the Magic Core, though.”
“We can’t do the replacement work if the main engine isn’t working. We have no choice, let’s look for a place to descend. And what about the Space Sea Beasts?”
“There are some remnants on the sensors, but no surviving individuals have been confirmed. They are falling into the gravitational sphere together.”
“Okay, we’ve escaped that crisis.”
It’s fortunate that we didn’t end up fighting enemies while being pulled into the planet.
The Amur Adonis is a space battleship, but it’s also a versatile ship capable of operating within a gravitational sphere. However, since it’s still a space battleship, it’s long and heavy. Long-term flight is not recommended because it consumes a lot of energy.
“Understood, scanning the ground. Possible landing points are the sea surface and the lake surface. We haven’t been able to investigate the water quality, so we recommend the lake surface.”
“What about space force facilities or private launch sites…?”
“Facilities of that level of civilization have not been confirmed.”
“I thought so. Well, that’s to be expected. What’s the gravity?”
“It’s 1.02G.”
“I see, then we don’t need to control the gravity inside the ship. What about the air?”
Humanity has ventured into space and advanced to various stars, but even so, it’s less than 1% of the entire universe. Naturally, there are unexplored and undiscovered planets.
“An atmosphere has been confirmed. We have already started analyzing it, but the possibility of it being a habitable planet is very high.”
“Well, that depends on future investigations. The problem is that we can’t get out of this star.”
They said the main engine needs to be replaced. Of course, we don’t have a spare main engine. If it’s the Magic Drive Engine, which is assisting the main engine, we have a spare one because it’s small, and we also have Magic Core stock.
But the Magic Drive Engine doesn’t have enough output, so it’s impossible to escape from a gravitational sphere of 0.8G or more. We have no choice but to send a distress signal and wait for rescue.
“Where are we now…?”
“Unknown. We cannot confirm the same planet in the data of this ship.”
“It’s inevitable that it’s an unknown planet, but I hope it’s not an unknown star system.”
Rouge shakes her head at my words. Well, that’s right.
“For the time being, we need to grasp the current situation, but let’s give our comrades permission to dock and rest.”
“Is that okay?”
“Not really, but it can’t be helped.”
It’s a single-pilot ship, but there are plenty of rooms. Everyone must want to rest in bed after being tense all the time.
“There are 22 people left, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then assign an Android to each person who wants one. Have all the remaining Androids join the maintenance team and farm team, and have them repair all the parts that can be fixed other than the main engine.”
“We can’t fix the bottom exterior of the ship because we’re landing on the lake surface.”
“Ah, that’s right. Well, please do what you can.”
“Understood.”
Red, who was listening to the conversation between me and Rouge, is making an announcement to the rescue boat, and Red is giving instructions to the Androids.
“Send Blue and Blue to greet them. Leave the room assignments to them. Instruct Blue to guide Brigadier General Sakata here.”
“Understood.”
“Grasping the condition of the ship and the situation outside is the top priority. The ship… isn’t damaged except for the engine, right?”
“Our electromagnetic and magic barriers performed admirably. I’d like to launch various observation drones to confirm information outside the ship.”
“Permission granted. Pay close attention to the water quality.”
“Roger that.”
On an undeveloped planet, it’s rare to find flat land suitable for a three-kilometer-class ship to land on. There are bound to be undulations. That’s why we land on water surfaces like seas or lakes, but the water itself can be problematic.
There’s even the possibility of landing on what you think is the sea, only for it to be a giant slime. Well, that’s a pretty rare case, though.
For a while, I’ll be reviewing the information sent by the drones. There’s an atmosphere and air, which means something is producing it.
Planets vary, so it’s not necessarily plants that produce air, but they’re the most common.
And if there are many plants, there’s a possibility of insects, animals, or even humans and monsters.
Various data began to surface, and problems, including the situation inside the ship, became apparent one after another. One problem, in particular, clouded my expression.
It’s just one worst-case scenario after another. Damn it. I’ll curse you, God.
While I was doing that, Blue brought Vice Admiral Sakata to me.
“Major Brooklyn, you’ve done well.”
“No, it’s thanks to Vice Admiral Sakata’s encouragement. We’ve escaped the immediate life-threatening danger, but the situation is still precarious. Please, have a seat.”
After a brief handshake, I apologetically offered him the seat in the co-captain’s chair. Once I confirmed the Vice Admiral was seated, I displayed the footage taken when we fell from space and the current environmental data on the main monitor.
“Hmm, an unidentified planet… is it?”
“It seems so. In this area, at least, the atmosphere is stable. It should be manageable with supplements.”
“I heard the main engine is beyond repair.”
“Yes. After all, each manufacturer has made it a black box. The Androids can handle superficial repairs and maintenance, but the fundamental aspects are not disclosed.”
“What was the name of that scientist again?”
“Dr. Won? He said the engine wasn’t his specialty either.”
I confirmed it, but he said it was impossible. Even if he knew, he might not say he could do it.
“So, escaping the planet is difficult?”
“We were able to launch escape pods before crashing, so the signal should eventually reach a nearby base.”
“Well, we don’t know when that will be. What’s the food situation?”
“We have the Farm Area, so it’s adequate. But since it’s a single-crew ship, we can only operate the farm…”
The Farm Area is literally a farm, located in the widest part of the ship’s central section. It’s designed to accommodate fields and ranches, serving the dual purpose of circulating air within the ship and producing food for the crew. Creating this area inside the ship is mandatory, which is why spacefaring ships in the ‘space battleship’ category are so huge.
“Hmm, so… we may need to venture outside the ship.”
“Yes, but it seems we’ll need more than that.”
“Hmm?”
“Please take a look at this data.”
What was displayed was data on the Magic Core used in the Magic Drive Engine.
“Is this a Magic Core?”
“Yes, the Magic Core we were using today was running low on magical power, so I replaced it with a new one. And when I set it in the Magic Charger inside the ship, it barely recovered any magical power.”
“What!? Could it be that this planet is!”
“Yes, it seems to be a planet with extremely low magical power density.”
“What a thing… is it a planet before spirits are born?”
“It seems so.”
As a planet with an atmosphere, it’s quite rare. The planet itself hasn’t been around for very long, and it’s a planet with thin magical power, which is seen in young planets with little life activity.
It’s easy to develop and colonize, but from our current situation, it’s quite bad.
“How long will the Magic Cores on this ship last?”
“If it’s just for the crew’s living and ship maintenance, about a year. If we need to move the ship, it depends on the distance, but we might use up one Magic Core, so we’ll need to recalculate.”
“If rescue doesn’t come in that time?”
“Yes, survival life is inevitable.”
And probably, rescue won’t come that quickly.
“I have a duty to protect the ship.”
“Yes. I understand. I was also the vice-captain of a base ship, one of the many figureheads.”
“Tomorrow, I’ll explain it to everyone. Then, we’ll abandon the ship and start preparing to live outside.”
“Yes. Fortunately, if we have nearly a year, we can build a temporary base. Don’t skimp on the materials, okay?”
“Of course. It’ll be my home too.”
The captain must maintain and preserve the ship as much as possible. This is a mission imposed on all captains of ships navigating between space regions.
It’s their role to convey what happened on that ship, what kind of voyage it had, what kind of unknown existence it encountered, and how it was annihilated to posterity.
It’s a mission heavier than the lives of the crew and even their own lives.
Inside the ship, there are materials and equipment left by Vice Admiral Falm that you wouldn’t expect from a single-crew ship, and there’s also a lot left in my Spatial Storage. If we use these, we can live for quite a long time.
We can secure a large amount of Farm Area crops and seeds, and the Androids will accompany us for the time being.
Many dangerous carnivorous creatures that attack other living things were discovered near the lake, so we built a base on the plains along the river leading from the lake. Gradually, the foundation of our lives was moved there.
About nine months have passed since we arrived on this unnamed planet. We have successfully cultivated farmland and can make a living by hunting.
And at the same time, the last of the Amur Adonis’s Magic Cores began to wane.
“By order of current Captain Takeo Brooklyn, we will begin the transition to a complete dormant state.”
“Understood. Commencing transition to complete dormant state.”
To conserve magical power, the Androids are already in a dormant state. Therefore, only Red from the operations team and Dark from the maintenance team are currently working.
“Once in a complete dormant state, activation will be impossible except for semi-awakenings every six months. The rest, you understand?”
“Yes, Captain. We will contact the base as soon as rescue is confirmed.”
“Ah, I’m counting on you.”
“…Captain, see you again.”
“…Ah, Red. I’m counting on you to protect the ship.”
All the lights disappeared from the giant space battleship floating on the water, the gravity control that had been operating to keep it afloat was cut off, and it gradually sank into the lake.
It had only been about three years since I took office, but my battleship had given me a dense and fulfilling life. It was my workplace, my home, and my pride.
My vision blurred with tears.
Supported by my comrades, I set out on the road back to my new home.
Ah, I feel frustrated. I’m going hunting. I have weapons and magic. If I don’t blow them up, I can eat them, so it’s fine, right?