UGT: 1st Aether 280 a.G.A. / 01:09 a.m.

  Location: Au'Shalis Prime spaceport, Au'Shalis Prime, Clinton's Beak system (red dwarf), Republic of Nox, Second Human Federation, Milky Way

  Admiral Thorrison and I arrived back at the spaceport in silence, both lost in our own thoughts. Finally, I broke it. "What's our timeline from here?"

  "We’ll stay in orbit around Au'Shalis Prime overnight," he replied. "Around 8 a.m., we’ll connect with you to finalize our plans for the next system. The Sun-Al'Rith system is our next target. It's a known Association distribution hub. I don’t expect much resistance, but there may be freighters that stand against us. We’ll requisition most of their supplies since it’s unlikely they’ve been evacuated yet. Long-term occupation forces from Point Nox, Clinton's Beak, and soon from Nox and Remur should be sufficient for the enclave. But that’s not our concern. We’re the battering ram, breaking organized military resistance." He paused, his tone thoughtful. "That should be enough for you to make initial preparations. We’ll iron out the details later."

  "Understood," I said, nodding. "I’ll head back to my Stealthfighter now. We don’t want my crew getting antsy. We’ll be ready when you are, so simply contact us," I said, waving goodbye while walking towards my ship.

  As I walked, I couldn’t shake a sense of vulnerability without a weapon on me. Only a few hundred meters separated me from my Stealthfighter, but it still felt strange. Admiral Thorrison had either not noticed or chosen to ignore the absence of my disintegrator. Lucky me.

  [ Time to get back to the ASF Aurora. And don’t think you’re off the hook. The two of us will have a long talk about responsibility and the unnecessary risks you took. I won’t let this slide just like that. ]

  …Great. Just great. I’d hoped he’d forgotten, or at least postponed the lecture. But no, once we reached the ASF Aurora, he’d make sure I faced the consequences. Tomorrow was going to be hell.

  [ Later. For now, get in the Stealthfighter and let’s head back. ]

  I exhaled, nodding slightly as I climbed aboard. There was nothing more for me on this planet. The visit to Au'Shalis Prime had been stressful, but also humbling. Seeing the remnants of the Aetherian Empire’s vast achievements had put my own efforts into perspective, making them seem almost laughable. The road ahead was far longer and more daunting than I’d imagined. But I wouldn’t let that stop me. Nothing would stop me. Nothing.

  The journey back to the ASF Aurora was thankfully uneventful, with no more unexpected incidents. Fen’s earlier anxiety about someone attempting to target me outside the ship proved overly cautious. Well, if one didn't count ancient Aetherian sites at least. As soon as I boarded, Fen reconnected to the system and immediately went into overdrive.

  [ Seven hundred and thirty-six hacking attempts?! And they thought this was “unnoticeable”?! If they even got a hint of our capabilities, I’ll shut down the entire system’s communications just to make them regret it! ]

  I couldn’t help but laugh at his obvious irritation. “Relax, Fen. Let’s not cause even more trouble. You’ve told me plenty of times that you created stable subsystems for situations like this. I doubt they got anything useful. If anything, this will just give me more of an upper hand in negotiations with Admiral Thorrison.”

  [ At first glance, I think you’re right. It seems like they didn’t get anything critical. I have to admit, though, their attempts were surprisingly creative. Improvised, yes, with their equipment and tactics being quite outdated. But they definitly got creative here. Still, the gap between their cyber security and ours was simply too wide to bridge. ]

  “Then it’s no big deal, right?” I said, making my way toward the bridge. “Give me a second and I’ll be in the Captain’s seat. I assume you want to have an after-action report?”

  [ Absolutely. Now that I’m back to full capacity, I’ll also begin analyzing what we pulled from the Aurolin Ruins. There should be something useful in all of that data. ]

  “Maybe,” I replied thoughtfully. “But the real question is whether it’s something we can integrate on the fly. If not, it won’t help us much in the immediate future.”

  [ Our nanites are capable of adapting and integrating almost anything, given enough time. Regardlessof all that, I’ll continue monitoring the SHF actions just to be safe. Now, to the after-action report... ]

  Fen’s tone shifted to professional, signaling the beginning of his methodical recap.

  [ Our primary objective was to acquire advanced Aetherian technology, particularly combat systems we could integrate on the fly to enhance the ASF Aurora’s combat capabilities. A secondary objective was to prevent the Second Human Federation from accessing the Aurolin Ruins’ technology. While the primary objective appears successful, the secondary one remains unresolved. The outcome depends heavily on how events on Au'Shalis Prime develop in the coming days. We anticipate an update when ASO-17309 reconnects, as Naori is likely to pass through the system after the current upheaval settles. ]

  The mention of success snapped my attention to focus. “Wait, you’re saying we did get something useful!?”

  [ Yes. But let me finish the report before we discuss it further. Upon reaching the Aurolin Ruins, we conducted a discreet exploration of the civilian area, carefully avoiding patrols and SHF operatives. Following my recommendation, we circled toward the restricted zones, using stealth and distraction to minimize detection. This strategy proved effective, allowing us to bypass checkpoints and automated surveillance. Once inside the restricted zone, we navigated abandoned civilian structures that transitioned into subterranean tunnels, eventually leading to the Aetherian-controlled sectors. Here, the threat level escalated significantly, with rudimentary SHF defenses giving way to Aetherian security measures. ]

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  Fen paused briefly, as if reconsidering the next part.

  [ The first serious challenge arose when we encountered an SHF synthetic guardian. Its advanced targeting systems and agility posed a significant threat. Despite sustaining minor injuries, you neutralized it, successfully reaching the sealed door. Crossing that threshold cut off the guardian’s connection, rendering it inoperative. However, it also trapped us within the active Aetherian site, leaving no clear way back. ]

  “We could have gone back through the door,” I added, “but the SHF would’ve swarmed us immediately. Staying inside was the lesser of two evils.”

  [ Correct. The decision to press onward was logical given the circumstances. Inside the Aetherian site, the atmosphere changed drastically. The ruins felt alive, with glowing glyphs and energy signatures reacting to our presence. The systems, designed with lethal precision, shifted our focus from evading the SHF to navigating the labyrinthine defenses. It was clear these ruins were not abandoned as we had previously thought. They were only dormant, waiting for intruders like us. ]

  “Dormant? More like watching us the whole time,” I muttered.

  [ Likely true. The defenses we encountered escalated, from pulse traps to pressure-sensitive panels, requiring dexterity and technical expertise to bypass. Despite the increasing difficulty, we reached a secondary control terminal. While not linked to the primary systems, it provided valuable insights into the facility’s layout and schematics for more advanced versions of our offensive weapon systems. ]

  “You’re joking!” I cried out, leaning forward. “I thought we didn’t make it far enough to get something that significant!”

  [ It surprised me as well. The data includes viable upgrades for nearly all our offensive systems. Unfortunately, we found no improvements for defensive systems. ]

  “That’s fine,” I replied, my excitement growing. “The ASF Aurora is an Albacea-class Destroyer. It’s all about overwhelming firepower and crippling enemies before they can counterattack. These upgrades fit perfectly into our strategy.”

  [ Agreed. I’ll begin analyzing the data for integration once the report is complete. However, this success doesn’t excuse the reckless decisions you made during the mission. ]

  I groaned inwardly. Fen’s lectures were inevitable, but for now, the knowledge that the ASF Aurora would soon be even stronger was enough to lift my spirits. We had survived the ruins, and despite the risks, we had come away with something invaluable. Fen continued, his tone sharpening like a parent about to lecture a wayward child.

  [ You pushed too far without adequate backup, exposing yourself to both SHF forces and Aetherian defenses. The fact that we succeeded doesn’t justify that massively risky gamble. ]

  I leaned back in the Captain’s chair, already feeling the weight of Fen’s impending scolding. “Fen, we both know we didn’t have many choices. We’re operating on the edges of Federation space with limited resources, knowing we'll soon be back in a warzone, while being massively outnumbered and outgunned. This was a calculated risk I took.”

  [ Calculated!? You ventured into an Aetherian ruin underequipped, with outdated intelligence and no reliable extraction plan! That’s not a calculation, that’s a death wish! Not even desperation would justify that and we're not that far gone yet anyways! ]

  I sighed, rubbing my temples. “Whatever you may call it, it worked. We have the schematics and the ASF Aurora is about to become one of the most dangerous ships in this entire war. Therefore the results are speaking for themselves and you cannot argue them away. Let’s rather focus on what we can do with this advantage, instead of dwelling on what could’ve gone wrong. Because clearly, it didn't.” Fen paused for a moment, his silence carrying an air of disapproval.

  [ Very well. We’ll revisit this discussion another time, though I definitly don't agree with most of the points you just made. ]

  [ For now, let’s turn our attention to the schematics. The offensive upgrades include every single one of our offensive weapons systems, except the ECM-Beam and the Siphoners. Integration will take time, but it’s within the capacity of the ASF Aurora’s nanite-based engineering systems, as mentioned earlier. ]

  “Sounds promising,” I replied, my earlier frustration fading. “How long are we talking?”

  [ Initial integration for the offensive systems could be completed within two weeks. Complete integration and updating, however, will require additional calibration to ensure compatibility with the Albacea-class power grid. That would proably take more like a month or two. During the initial integration our weapon systems would be useless, therefore I would recommend to only upgrade half of our weaponry at a time. We don't expect to big resistance in the next month, after all. Half of our weaponry should suffice. During the complete integration the weapons will be usable except for a short one-day period at the very end. Overall, the upgrades will take probably around three months for us. ]

  I nodded thoughtfully, running through the implications in my mind. The upgrades wouldn’t just enhance our combat effectiveness. They would solidify our ability to act as a rogue force, capable of outmaneuvering and outgunning both the SHF and the RRA if needed. Right now we were working with the SHF, yes, but that wouldn't remain that way forever. And our farewell was highly likely to be with our weapons pointed at each other. “Good. Start the integration immediately. We’ll keep our current orbit around Au'Shalis Prime until tomorrow, as agreed upon with Admiral Thorrison. We should be mostly done with the first half of the initial integration until we reach the Sun-Al'Rith anyways.”

  [ Understood. I’ll immediately start working on it. ]

  As Fen began running simulations and routing the schematics to the Aurora’s engineering subsystems, I allowed myself a rare moment of reflection. The journey to the Aurolin Ruins had been a gamble. A reckless one, perhaps but it had paid off in the end. Now, armed with even more advanced Aetherian technology, if just by a few hundred years more, the ASF Aurora was poised to strike harder and faster than ever before. Still, a nagging thought lingered in the back of my mind: the ruins had reacted to me in ways even Fen hadn’t anticipated. The Inheritor-Protocols clearly had sparked something within the system and made it react different than everything else that had come in contact with the Inheritor-Protocol before. “Fen, do you think the ruins’ systems had specific orders to react to the Inheritor-Protocols the way they did?” I finally asked.

  [ It’s likely. The Aetherian Empire designed their systems to respond to specific triggers.One of them as we already knew are the Inheritor-Protocols. However I cannot say if they were the reason for how the Aetherian site acted, or if it truly was just the fact that we'd tried to steal some technology. I'm not even close to the capacity I'd need to decode the Inheritor-Protocols, as you know. ]

  “That’s what worries me,” I muttered. “If the Aurolin Ruins reacted to me different than they should have, there’s no telling what else out there might. The Aetherians left many things behind, after all.”

  [ A valid concern. But for now, we focus on the immediate. Rest, Captain. Tomorrow brings new challenges, and we’ll need you at your best. ]

  I exhaled slowly, allowing myself to relax in the chair. The ASF Aurora hummed softly around me, its systems alive with activity as Fen worked to integrate the upgrades. Whatever lay ahead, I would be ready. As I'd already said, nothing would stop us. Not now. Not ever.