Escorting the Mystery Man Star Map Draftsman I: Federation War

The main building of Sok City is a towering structure, the upper half of which is hidden in the clouds. The sun of the galaxy where Gyaly Planet is located lazily paints the building light yellow, and the clouds leave irregular shadows on it like fresh paint that has not yet dried. The bottom of the building appears to be a fully enclosed cylinder, above which a bridge curves outward, supported by unpaired piers; the bridge disappears where it connects to the buildings that go deep into the ground. And from the place where the bridge disappears, several huge rectangular pillars stuck in the soil surround Sok City in a circle. On the side of the pillars facing Sok City, a part is still unburied in the soil; it looks like a sink without a lid, or perhaps it holds energy cables. When the two walked up to a large pillar, Sandra picked up a stone and threw it inside. Nothing happened, and then she lowered her head and walked inside.

Sok City seemed to have become an empty city. He had imagined the Ashton Federation garrison and Prince Burt’s troops clashing, bullets flying and shells exploding with a whoosh, mixed with the shouts of men whose chests had been shot through, but no such scene was playing out here. Now Sok City was as quiet as if a plague had taken away all life in the stillness of the night, a slaughter-like quiet. Dawn Lucius walked behind her. He felt the pain in his chest intensify again. He had felt the pain in his skin as he walked down from the shuttle boats, and he had felt the pain in his organs behind his ribs as he walked near the closed security fence; now he couldn’t tell whether it was his skin or his internal organs that were hurting. He tried to swallow, his saliva sliding down from the base of his tongue like the rocks he had thrown into the river as a child, the rocks used to test the depth of the water. Dawn Lucius swallowed to test exactly where it hurt. He paused, but he had not noticed exactly where the saliva flowed, and so he had not found exactly where the pain was.

Dawn Lucius took a deep breath. He felt his head gradually becoming heavier, as if his neck could not hold its weight anymore. He followed Sandra with irregular steps; in the current situation, if he and Sandra got separated, then never mind returning to Earth to see Stacean Lucius, he could not even be sure of leaving this place. Dawn Lucius clenched his teeth and raised his head, staring hard at the back of Sandra’s head, kicking his steps haphazardly in the air. “Wait for me ......” As they stepped onto the bridge, Dawn Lucius was panting heavily, as if his body couldn’t keep up with his intention to move forward. Dawn Lucius tried to call out to her, but he no longer had the strength; there was a stabbing pain above his eyes, and his eyelids closed by reflex.

“Wake up.” Sandra went to him and knelt down, shaking his arm.

“Let’s ...... take a break.” Dawn Lucius let his head droop as he spoke, his arms spread out on either side of his body, the backs of his hands on the ground, his fingers slightly bent upward, like a turtle about to die on all fours.

“You’re too badly injured, plus malnourished and under-rested.” Sandra pulled Dawn Lucius’ shirt away to look, and after covering him up she added, “Why don’t you wait here for me?”

“No......” Dawn Lucius shook his head and turned his hands over to prop his palms on the ground, holding his body upward for some distance, the brief rest restoring him to some strength. “You’re going to leave me behind,” he said, looking up at Sandra.

“Nonsense. When did I ever leave you?” Sandra looked as serious as if Dawn Lucius was damaging her reputation.

“Not before, but maybe you’ll leave me behind this time?”

“What am I leaving you for?”

“Maybe you find me annoying?”

“You do seem rather annoying.” Sandra gave him a blank look as she unloaded her gun and placed it on the ground, leaning smoothly against the railing. “Why are you in a hurry to get back to Earth?”

“My son is there.” Dawn Lucius smiled as he looked sideways at Sandra, who was leaning in the same row as him.

“Do you miss him a lot?”

“Hmm.” Dawn Lucius took a deep breath. Thinking of Stacean Lucius, he felt as if the air was full of the smell of cinnamon blossoming at the end of August. Dawn Lucius took another deep breath, and a meadow grew in his heart, where Stacean Lucius was chasing butterflies with bare feet. Seeing Stacean Lucius so happy, a smile unconsciously spread at the corners of his mouth, and the lively Stacean Lucius stepped on his heart with a pang of pain; he didn’t even notice the tears in his eyes blurring his vision.

“How tall is he?”

“This high, I guess.” Dawn Lucius raised his hand above his head; his sleeve slid down, and the device embedded in the skin of his arm slipped out.

“I’ll help you get back.” Sandra sensed the change in Dawn Lucius’ mood, and she added, pointing to the device on his arm, “It’s called a Star Source. It’s a Datheon thing. You’ve been chosen by this thing; you’re a Star Map Draftsman.”

“It doesn’t matter, I just want to see my son.” Dawn Lucius retracted his hand and shook his head after a quick glance.

“Okay then, get up.” Sandra got up and tugged Dawn Lucius’ hand to pull him up. The moment their hands clasped, Dawn Lucius felt a softness and warmth spread through his throat, and when he looked at Sandra, her eyes subconsciously looked away. When Dawn Lucius stood firm, she added, “Let’s go find a way to get back to Earth.” After saying that, she walked in the direction of the tallest building in Sok City, and Dawn Lucius followed.

The closer the bridge got to the main building, the more traces of the war began to show up. There were bloodstains on the ground from dragging wounded soldiers or corpses, and scattered shoes that looked as if they had fallen off when the heels of the corpses rubbed against the floor. Weapons were missing, as if they had been deliberately taken away, and it was not clear whether the people who did this were Strath people or Ashton people. Sandra moved closer to the bridge railing, lowered her body, and felt her way forward. Dawn Lucius bent down, but lowering his body was more difficult. His body was now like a persimmon tree that had survived the winter; if he deliberately kept it low, he might not be able to stand up again. He raised his gun a bit.

After a long and vigilant rush, the two finally arrived at the building’s main entrance. There was no information about the building’s name and no soldiers or security personnel guarding the door, which had been blown up beyond recognition, so the Strath people must have been blocked when they attacked the place and later chose to enter the building by violent means. Lucius took the lead and yelled, and even though he wasn’t strong enough to make the yell loud enough, it echoed for a long time through the halls filled with ships and shuttle boats. When he turned his face triumphantly to look at Sandra, Sandra gave him a blank stare, and she checked the weapons in her hands before walking over to Dawn Lucius. It didn’t look like an inhabited place, but rather like an exhibition hall with a collection of advanced ships and shuttle boats, or a private parking garage for some rich businessman. Except for the engine matrix, most of the ships were not equipped with gun systems.

“Do you know how to drive?” Dawn Lucius asked as he excitedly trotted over to Sandra at the sight of so many vehicles.

“No.” Sandra replied without a smile.

“You lied to me.”

“What do you mean by lying to you?”

“You can definitely fly these ships; you just didn’t want to tell me.”

“You’re stupid.” When Sandra heard Dawn Lucius’s words, she suddenly stopped in her tracks. Dawn Lucius didn’t react in time and walked straight into her body. Sandra didn’t move; she stared hard at Dawn Lucius, which in turn made Dawn Lucius a little embarrassed, and he backed up. “I mean, what’s the use of knowing how to fly these things?” Sandra finished with a long sigh.

“How is that useless?” Dawn Lucius raised his voice as well.

“If we can’t start the Star Bridge, even knowing how to fly won’t get us back to Earth.”

“But there’s a very big difference between being able to fly and not being able to fly! If you can’t fly, we know there’s no need to go inside to find a way to open the Star Bridge. If we don’t know how to fly the ship, then what are we looking for?”

“What’s the use of knowing how to fly a spaceship if we don’t find the Star Bridge?” Sandra asked in exasperation.

“But if you can fly the ship, isn’t this thing halfway done? If you can fly it, you could at least have told me about it. What do you have to lose?”

“Being halfway successful and being successful are two different things, and being halfway successful is not being successful.” Sandra was even more angry.

“What the hell,” Dawn Lucius said as he clutched his gun hard under his armpit and turned his face to point at one of the ships. “Doesn’t this thing go in steps? If the first step goes well, then that step is done, and you can say, ‘We found the ship; all that’s left is to find a way to start the Star Bridge and get home!’ If you say that, won’t that be a boost to our morale? Isn’t that a good thing?”

“What’s so good about that? So according to you, if I can’t drive, there’s no morale?” Sandra glared at him.

“Not really. I mean, you’d just say that you can fly.”

“What kind of logic is that? So if I tell you I don’t know how to fly a spaceship, but we continue to look inside this building to find someone who can both fly a spaceship and turn on the Star Bridge, isn’t that a morale booster too?”

“That’s two different things. If you really said that, you’d be a liar.” Dawn Lucius hadn’t expected such a thing to be said, and gasped in exasperation.

“I can’t be bothered arguing with you.” Sandra picked up her gun again and headed for the stairs at the other end of the aisle.

“Where are you going?” Dawn Lucius shouted after her, and when Sandra didn’t respond, he looked around and chose to follow at a fast pace as well.

The building’s electrical system had been deliberately cut off, and the emergency lights flickered with the ear-splitting crackle of electricity, like soldiers dragged up in the night to stand guard, cursing endlessly in broken words. On the thirteenth floor the empty corridor ran east and west. The two stood in the stairway for a moment and, after hearing no sound of living people, continued up the stairs. At the beginning, Sandra took Dawn Lucius to do a careful search of each floor, but as they climbed higher and higher, the two would just listen for noise at the entrance of the stairs, and if there was nothing suspicious, the two would keep climbing without a word. Dawn Lucius’s question now was what exactly Sandra was looking for. If the equipment for opening the Star Bridge at the spaceport had been destroyed, what kind of equipment could be found here? Dawn Lucius’s anger at her grew another layer. He wanted to go over and tap her on the shoulder to make her talk; if he didn’t get an answer, he would not climb any further with her. He now felt like a lump of meat in a tin can, almost cooked hard.

“There’s no point in me continuing to climb with you if you don’t tell me what to look for.” Dawn Lucius said as he stared at Sandra.

“Stop it. You can’t find a way out without climbing.” Sandra’s tone didn’t sound that bad.

“We’re a team now. The goal is to be unified and transparent. If you won’t even tell me, I’m not climbing.”

“You’ll know when you find it.”

“No.” Dawn Lucius tried not to slam the gun in his hand on the ground, then angrily pressed the question. “Tell me what to look for and we’ll keep climbing.”

“Gee, I can’t tell you clearly.” Sandra should have had a flash of apology on her face at this point, and if she had tucked back the hair that had fallen across her face and gently placed it behind her ear, then Dawn Lucius would have been too embarrassed to be angry, right? “What the hell?” Sandra yelled; other than that one sentence, the preceding conversation was all in Dawn Lucius’ imagination.

“Nothing.” Dawn Lucius jumped out of his imagination and replied with a panicked gulp.

“Staring back at me in disbelief, are you trying to get me to carry you?” Sandra asked, staring hard into the air behind Dawn Lucius’ ear with both eyes.

“No,” Dawn Lucius denied. He noticed a loose strand of hair on Sandra’s face; sweat from the roots of the hair had set the strand trembling slightly. Dawn Lucius wondered what it would look like if Sandra really tucked that strand of hair back, and as he thought about it, he involuntarily smiled.

“What the hell?” Sandra was even angrier than earlier, slamming the gun she was carrying down heavily on the outside of her thigh. She was going to say something, but when she looked at Dawn Lucius holding back his laughter, she was so angry she didn’t know how to speak, and after a long sigh she turned sideways to look at the other end of the hallway.

“Let’s keep climbing.” Dawn Lucius held back a smile and opened his mouth.

“What are you laughing at?”

“When did I do that?”

“You were just staring at my back and laughing. What exactly were you laughing at?”

“I ...... it was like this: it occurred to me that if we didn’t find the device you mentioned, then we would be trapped right here, for that matter.” Dawn Lucius finished, feeling a little embarrassed; what he said had nothing directly to do with his laughing, and Sandra could see it too.

Sandra didn’t say anything; she stared hard at Dawn Lucius.

“Okay.” Dawn Lucius pointed to the hair on Sandra’s face and scratched his nose again as he continued. “I was just thinking about the way you’d tuck your hair back.”

Hearing Dawn Lucius finish, Sandra froze for a moment, then gave him a blank look and said, “Boring.” After saying that, she quickly climbed upstairs.

This time Dawn Lucius didn’t look at her back; he chose to look at the back of Sandra’s head. After climbing a few more floors, they still hadn’t seen any living thing, and the two stopped on one floor to discuss it. Prince Burt had clearly brought so many people here to fight, yet until now they hadn’t seen anyone. Strath people would not disappear into thin air; since they had descended to the ground, the Strath soldiers must still be somewhere on Gyaly Planet, if not busy killing, then busy plundering. The two of them agreed that searching layer by layer the way they were now would not only consume their strength and time, but they might still not find anything. Why not take the initiative and make some noise to draw people out? Anyway, if they really came face to face with the Strath people in a fight, the two of them would not have any chance of winning.

“So what’s your method?” Sandra asked after the two agreed to use the method of luring the snake out of the hole.

“Blow this up.” Dawn Lucius continued, pointing to the window. “The explosion can be heard inside and outside the building without affecting the stability of the building while making it easy for us to be spotted.”

“Yes.” Sandra unhooked the explosive from her body and handed it to Dawn Lucius, tipped her chin in his direction, and said, “You do it.”

“I’ll do it?”

“Yeah.”

“Then why aren’t you the one to do it? You’re most familiar with this stuff, right?”

“I’ll cover you.”

“Well, I can cover you, too.” Dawn Lucius didn’t take what Sandra was holding.

“Hurry up.” Sandra tossed a string of explosives at Dawn Lucius, and after he reflexively caught it, he had to dutifully go to the window and set it up. When it was ready, he returned to Sandra and patted her on the shoulder, and when Sandra turned her face to look at him, he spoke. “I don’t know what this will lead to, but thank you for thinking of helping me get back to Earth.”

Hearing Dawn Lucius say that, Sandra didn’t know what to answer for a moment. She squeezed the butt of her gun before speaking. “No need to thank me. You are my mission.”

“Before I press the detonator, I wish you well in your mission.” Dawn Lucius smiled.

“What does this mean?”

“What?”

“What do you mean by ‘blessed’?”

“You mean this, oh.” Dawn Lucius then understood Sandra’s question. He pursed his lips and continued, “In our culture, friends wish each other well; that is, they wish in their hearts that their friends will get their wishes. That’s probably what it means.”

“Oh.” After hearing Dawn Lucius finish, Sandra gave Dawn Lucius a look and, after a quick roll of her eyes, continued, “I also wish you the best of luck in returning to Earth.”

Dawn Lucius pressed the detonator, and the sound of the explosion and the blast of air reached both of them almost simultaneously. His eardrums felt as if a family of bees had just moved in, with children banging pots and pans and jostling. Dawn Lucius felt that he was pressing down on Sandra’s body. He braced himself on the ground with both hands to lift his upper body some distance away from Sandra, but his feet were too numb to help. Dawn Lucius pushed Sandra’s shoulder to his side, asking if she was hurt. He saw Sandra’s lips move a few times but heard nothing; the buzzing in his eardrums had not abated. Sandra sat up from the ground, her head buried between her knees, her arms tightening around her legs, her backpack heaving. She was in much better shape than Dawn Lucius, who crawled over to the side wall, and after a short rest at the base of the wall, he pushed himself up with his shoulders against the wall, then landed on his buttocks and fell back hard.

“How are you doing?” Sandra asked as she leaned her head on her knees and turned her face to look at Dawn Lucius.

“It’s okay, my legs are numb.” Dawn Lucius shouted hard but could barely hear himself, and then he asked, “How about you?”

Sandra didn’t answer; she blinked, and Dawn Lucius guessed that she should be fine. Sandra buried her face back into her knees, took a few deep breaths, and then crawled toward Dawn Lucius. Her left hand still seemed to be bleeding. Dawn Lucius lifted his left hand and shook it, indicating that she should not move. Sandra looked at his hand and then at his eyes before nodding and lifting her right hand, ready to continue crawling forward. At that moment, a pair of Strath soldiers hurried out of the elevator carrying guns and alertly searched the entire floor again, and then, without a word, helped Sandra and Dawn Lucius into the elevator and took them to the top floor.

After Sandra and Dawn Lucius were left at the entrance, the soldiers who had helped them up ran behind Prince Burt and briefly said something. Burt didn’t look back; he was staring at a sealed door in front of him. A few Strath soldiers were making a final check of the explosives laid on the door frame and lock, and when they were ready, they retreated behind another group of soldiers who had already set up shields. Burt still had his hands behind his back, looking at his toes, both feet alternately tapping the ground like keeping the beat of a lively childhood song. As the song entered the chorus, the tapping got faster and faster, until his calf muscles were too sore to keep up with the rhythm. He suddenly stopped, his footsteps halting abruptly, and the tension in the room was like the thick darkness of the night, making people feel as if they were being swallowed by something.

“One last question.” Burt walked toward the door and continued after stopping about three steps from it. “Open the door and you’ll stay alive, although with little dignity. If you don’t open the door, then you won’t live.” After saying that, Burt stood briefly in the doorway, and when there was no response from behind the door, he walked toward the soldiers who had set up the shields, stopped in front of the shields, and pressed the detonator. Only one explosion went off, near the door lock; the gunpowder left a black halo on the clean white metal door, and the pungent smell spread with the shockwave. Dawn Lucius subconsciously shielded Sandra behind him. Seeing that the door did not open, Burt took a step toward the shields, and the soldiers immediately made a passage for him. After Burt stood firmly behind the shields, another row of soldiers with shields quickly moved forward to reinforce them, so that Burt was shielded behind two solid walls. When Dawn Lucius saw this, he crawled in front of Sandra and used his left hand to hold her down behind him.

The soldiers squeezed the handles of their shields. Dawn Lucius’ whole body tensed up and he closed his eyes; even his eardrums, which had not yet recovered, seemed to puff up. Just as everyone outside was bracing for a more violent explosion, the door opened inward, and before Dawn Lucius had time to see what it was like inside, the front row of shield-wielding soldiers rushed through. Sandra was able to stand up, and as she bent down to try to pull Dawn Lucius up, a Strath soldier turned his gun on the two of them and put it away after a wary glance. As the two stood up, Prince Burt came out from behind the door with a big smile on his face.

“It’s you two again. I can’t get rid of you.” Burt stared at Dawn Lucius and Sandra with a complicated expression on his face, and as he walked up to the two, Sandra held Dawn Lucius behind herself.

“Prince Burt, we’re just trying to find a way out.” Sandra’s voice trembled as she spoke.

“Where to?” Prince Burt asked.

“Moreth Federation.”

“Oh, aren’t you Ashton people? Why are you going to the Moreth Federation, which is ......” Burt looked at Dawn Lucius and smiled, then looked at Sandra and continued. “Is there something important to do?”

“That’s not it. I’m just going to report some minor things to Jonathan Moreth Steader so I can get back to Ashton Federation.” Sandra gulped as she said this.

“Since it’s a small thing, there’s no need to go, right? How about this.” Burt raised his right hand and waved his finger, and four soldiers came up; two put their guns on Sandra’s shoulders, and the other two dragged Dawn Lucius behind Burt.

“What do you want?” Dawn Lucius asked in a lowered voice, and Burt ignored him as if he had never existed.

“How about I send you straight back to Ashton Federation?” Burt asked, looking at Sandra.

“Prince, going straight back to Ashton Federation won’t do me any good. Madam Winifred will blame me for not getting Jonathan Moreth Steader’s position, and Jonathan Moreth Steader will think I’m not doing my job. Then I might as well just stay on Gyaly Planet for good.”

“Then I won’t force you. After all, you have your mission. As for our group, next we’re going to take a stroll in Ashton Federation’s star field. I thought you wanted to return to Ashton Federation, in which case you could just come along. The ship still has room for one or two people; if you and your friend want to go, I can take you with me.” Burt pointed backhandedly at Dawn Lucius as he said it.

“What are you guys doing in Ashton Federation?” Hearing Burt say that, Sandra gasped, knowing that Burt’s purpose was to attack the Ashton Federation, not to go for a stroll as he claimed.

“It’s just as I said: a stroll.”

“Ashton Federation is so big, where does Prince Burt want to stroll?”

“I haven’t thought about it. I heard that your brother is a very good general; I’m going to ask him for advice on leading troops into battle. Maybe we’ll go to Cavnos Planet first. Your brother and your family are there, right?”

“Prince Burt, your going to Cavnos Planet would mean aggression. All the guns and ships of Ashton Federation will come down on you. I suggest you go back to Strath Federation to be safe.”

“Safe?” Prince Burt started laughing, and he spoke after pointing in Sandra’s direction. “I took Gyaly Planet down easily, and Moreth Federation didn’t come out to obstruct me. Whatever planet of Ashton Federation I, Burt, want to go to, no one can stop me. As for you, first think about your own safety.”

“Ashton Federation ......” Sandra had just opened her mouth when Prince Burt yelled and interrupted her.

“Well, you’re in no position to discuss politics with me.” Prince Burt’s expression changed, just as it had when he warned the people inside the door before pressing the detonator. He stared at Sandra and continued, “You can go to Moreth Federation if you want. Your friend is on a mission from Jonathan, right? All that, I’m not interested in.” Burt gave his final offer after pointing at Dawn Lucius. “My big brother is near Kunek Planet. Help me bring this person to my big brother; first, you can return to Moreth Federation, and second, it solves my problem.”

“Who is this man?” Sandra remembered what Dawn Lucius had said: Gyaly Planet was rumored to be the palace of Madam Winifred. If Prince Burt had come to attack Gyaly Planet and had really captured Madam Winifred, and with Carlson already at Kunek Planet, which was the planet where Jonathan Moreth Steader lived and the Moreth Federation’s administrative center, then if they dared to go there, they must have been prepared. But who was the person Prince Burt was telling her to bring? Was it another conspiracy? Sandra looked at the tightly wrapped person and asked.

“That’s my business, just like I never ask this friend of yours who he is. Let’s be professional, shall we?”

“Did you capture Madam Winifred?” Sandra asked warily.

“Madam Winifred?” said Burt, frowning at Sandra’s question, then laughing openly. “I’m not interested in your Madam Winifred. Besides, the target of my mission is a man.” When Burt finished, he walked over to the tightly wrapped man, took the man by the arm, and walked him to Sandra. Judging from the size and gait, the hooded man was male, which made Sandra feel slightly more at ease.

“How about it, do you want to go back?”

“Then you have to tell me who he is.”

“You’re really unprofessional.” Burt walked over to Dawn Lucius, pulled Dawn Lucius’ sleeve up, and pointed at the device. “This thing on his arm, you know what it is, don’t you? I haven’t held this against you, right? For the last time: if you want to go back, don’t ask. If you don’t want to go back, then neither of you goes back. As for him ......” Jonathan looked at Dawn Lucius, shook his head, and said, “He’s important to some people, that’s for sure.”

“Even if I agree to your terms, how do we get back?” Sandra asked.

“Get back how?” Burt looked at Sandra in confusion.

“You destroyed the Star Bridge starter. How can we start the Star Bridge if we can’t fix it in the short term?”

“Hahahaha, it seems that you still don’t know enough about the Moreth Federation.” Burt laughed and took a sphere, smaller than an adult’s fist, out of his coat. He walked up to Sandra, handed it to her, and continued, “This can open the Star Bridge at will. The disadvantage is that it can only be used a limited number of times. Now you only have one chance to use it. Take my man and deliver him to my big brother, and he will naturally let you two go.”

“Aren’t you afraid I’ll run straight to Kunek Planet?” Sandra asked tentatively.

“Of course I’m afraid, but I think Ashton Federation’s diplomats still keep their word. Besides, don’t you want to know the situation of my big brother’s army? He is planning to attack Kunek Planet. If you see the situation of his army clearly, it will benefit Moreth Federation; then you will have made a contribution to Moreth Federation on behalf of Ashton Federation, and your family will be considered to have earned credit in front of Madam Winifred. Right now Ashton Federation needs a friend like Moreth Federation, doesn’t it?”

“That makes sense, but why do I get the feeling that since meeting your army, everything has proceeded as if you had arranged it?” Sandra continued after a pause. “It’s as if you set me up for another conspiracy and I’m just an unwitting accomplice?”

“Hey.” Burt sighed as he patted the hooded man and continued. “This man is my big brother’s good friend. When Strath Federation intended to attack Ashton Federation, he defected and ran here to warn Ashton Federation in advance, which made my father disappointed in my big brother and disgraced him in front of my father. He told us he would personally finish off this friend, so I’m giving him a gift, so to speak. You know, my big brother and I are rivals, so my big brother will owe me a favor, and maybe it will be useful later. Giving him his friend is just a small effort for me.”

“Okay then, deal,” Sandra said after hearing Burt’s words. In fact, she and Dawn Lucius both knew in their hearts that what Burt said was not at all credible. Carlson did not like killing; he would not go to great lengths for a so-called friend who had betrayed him. But the situation was also very obvious: Burt was sending this person for his own purposes in Strath, and if Sandra and Dawn Lucius wanted to leave, they not only had to deliver this person to Carlson but also had to figure out how to save their lives from Carlson. Sandra agreed so readily because she really wanted to leave; if they kept digging into the root of the matter, maybe Burt would flip out. Maybe Burt would flip out, and she and Dawn Lucius wouldn’t survive.

Since an agreement had been reached, they could leave. On the way out of the tallest building in Sok City, Burt instructed Sandra not to untie the mystery man’s mask; it could not be untied, and he could not talk. The Strath people had also sealed up the mystery man’s ears, so the mystery man could neither see the outside nor hear what people were saying, and it was hard to tell whether that was good or bad. After boarding the shuttle boats, a small number of soldiers accompanied Burt and Sandra’s group to set off first. After ascending some distance, Dawn Lucius saw the situation in the wide area behind Sok City, where the bodies were piled up. He thought these must be Ashton Federation’s garrison on Gyaly Planet, and it was clear that if Burt attacked Ashton Federation, Orion Arm would have one more star field with a lot of dead bodies.

“Prince, it has been arranged.” In the observation room of the spaceport, a soldier came to report the situation of the ship to Prince Burt.

“All right.” Burt waved his hand at the soldier, and the soldier slipped away like smoke and went back to the work of arranging the ship outside. Burt turned to Sandra and continued, “Your ship is already set up; no human operation is needed. When it gets to the designated location, press the sphere again, and the sphere will open the Star Bridge. The other end of the Star Bridge is near my big brother’s ship.”

“Why can this ...... thing,” Sandra asked, gently shaking the sphere in her hand, “open the Star Bridge?”

“Since I’m seeing you off, I’m not as stingy as Jonathan; I’ll share. This thing is the navigator in the Star Bridge. Only a few high officials of Moreth Federation know about its existence, and only they can take this thing to travel across Orion Arm at will, you know? The bridge technology actually isn’t that remarkable. What is brilliant about Moreth Federation is that they can measure the gravitational depression points in stable galaxies. As long as they can find them accurately, different galaxies can use the gravitational depression points to traverse, greatly shortening interstellar navigation visible to the naked eye.”

“Is that the principle behind Star Bridge?” Dawn Lucius couldn’t help but ask after hearing this statement.

“Yeah.” Burt answered him for the first time. “She should know best.” Burt pointed to Sandra and continued, “The entrances and exits of Star Bridges are in specific places. To summarize, the entrances and exits must be in galaxies with stars. Some galaxies have multiple gravitational depressions and some galaxies have only one, in which case there can only be one entrance and exit, and Gyaly Planet has only one. But there is another key element that Moreth people didn’t tell you, and that is stability, which is something Moreth people should be proud of, the proud brutes.”

“And how do you know how this works?” Sandra pursued.

“I’m not like you guys. I’m a prince with a lot of wealth and a lot of followers; I know a lot more than you guys think.” Burt replied with a big smile.

“Is Prince Carlson going to kill us?” Dawn Lucius asked.

“All right, it’s time for you guys to go.” Burt’s soldiers pushed the three into the ship, and after everything was ready, the ship moved away from Gyaly Planet at a slow speed.

The two sat opposite each other in the pilot’s chairs. Dawn Lucius followed Sandra’s example and fastened his full seat belt, took a long breath, and lay back. The brief sleepiness was like the feeling of coming back from a day of shopping and always looking for a place to lie down. He rested the back of his head on the hard chair, and joy blossomed in his heart. Looking back on the journey, the joy was like that of a passenger waiting to return home, who waits for hours in a rumbling waiting room and then hands himself over from the dense crowd to a seat on the green train about to depart. Even though this leg of Dawn Lucius’s journey was not back to Earth, he felt happy.

“Hi.” Sandra touched Dawn Lucius’ knee, and she continued when Dawn Lucius looked up at her. “Thank you for shielding me before Prince Burt set off the explosion.”

“Me?” Dawn Lucius couldn’t remember when or how he had shielded her at all.

“Yes, wasn’t that you?”

“You’re welcome.” Dawn Lucius continued after a moment’s hesitation. “It’s not that I don’t remember, I mean, it’s a small thing. You don’t have to be polite.”

“In fact, in our civilization, in a dangerous situation, our first consideration is to protect ourselves, not to protect others as you have done.”

“Then we’re not quite the same. We give priority to protecting those we care about, but it’s also said that Earthlings are genetically predisposed to self-destruction, probably because of this ......” Dawn Lucius didn’t continue, he waved his hand and continued to lie back in his chair.

“You know.” Sandra paused as she patted Dawn Lucius on the knee and continued. “You’re Star Map Draftsman, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, weren’t you the one who said I was a Star Map Draftsman? Because of this.” Dawn Lucius held up his hand and shook it.

“Jonathan Moreth Steader wants to ally with you, while Madam Winifred does not. She ......” Sandra was about to say what Madam Winifred wanted her to do when the ship’s radio prompted the start of the Star Bridge, accompanied by an ear-splitting countdown. Dawn Lucius hurried to sit up straight, his hands tugging on the seat belt, and Sandra had to give up. She pressed the button on the sphere, and the two embarked on a journey to escort the mystery man to Carlson.