Chaos' Heir

A long, rectangular ship hovered in the clear sky. A sea of clouds stood under it, stretching as far as eyes could see and slowly brightening due to the morning light that invaded it.

A figure pierced the sea of clouds, creating spinning whispers of white gas that followed it during its ascension. Its arrival brought a sense of tension to the area, disturbing its peace and filling the air with electric feelings.

Khan's face carried no emotions as he approached the hovering ship, but his eyes shone with deadly light. His mood wasn't great. He didn't like what he had done, but suppressing his urges wasn't possible.

Khan had left everything behind and to others. Lieutenant Dyester handled his army, and Prince Thomas led his organization. His other allies also dealt with everything else. The crown on Khan's head didn't imply actual subjects, but his mindset never changed.

Once a leader, always a leader, and that demanded a level of respect. Khan had never truly accepted that title, but he was a king, and Chuwei's lifeforms had taken his mercy lightly, earning themselves a suitable punishment.

The ship opened its doors at Khan's arrival and sealed them right after he stepped inside. His bleeding hands and forearms tainted the smooth and clean floor with red spots, but he ignored the injuries to enter the bridge.

"Status," Khan ordered, sitting on the pilot's seat and ignoring the stains his bleeding arms left on the armchairs.

The ship's menus responded, summoning a series of holographic screens that listed various details. The vehicle hadn't been in danger for long, but every minor aspect was worth checking in the middle of a long trip with unknown length and destination.

Small things could pile on, turning into huge problems, leading to unstoppable and unfixable chain reactions. The slightest oversight could become a deadly mistake when it came to space, and even Khan was powerless against that cold and desolate environment. Stay connected via My Virtual Library Empire

Luckily, the menus didn't show anything significant. Khan had done everything correctly without botching the mainframe's transfer. Even the console brought to the underground graveyard was intact, and the ship had already backed up its data.

The ship's hull could benefit from some maintenance, and the tanks weren't full, but Khan could theoretically continue traveling through the universe, chasing after his new leads. Even the menus gave the all-clear, but bigger problems did exist elsewhere.

"Inventory," Khan ordered, running a hand over his face to pull back his hair. His many wounds had stopped bleeding but still itched.

The menus were far less pleasant to read now. Khan had saved the mainframe and console but left the rest of the makeshift lab underground. Those scanners and other expensive tools were now gone, requiring replacements.

The ship had spares, but Khan had four routers to explore. Each could be as dangerous as Chuwei or worse, pushing him to make additional sacrifices. He might be fine for a planet or two, but the third would definitely force him to restock.

Chuwei was already at the regulated universe's edge while the four paths stretched outside it. Once Khan started that part of the trip, he would be entirely on his own and with no nearby allied structures, and turning back would take quite some time.

The dangers of venturing for a potentially long trip through space unprepared were also countless, so Khan had to make an annoying decision. He studied the universe map, limiting the search to the nearby quadrants before activating the communication array.

"The trip to Chuwei was quite productive," Khan announced. "I must restock fuel, supplies, and equipment before setting off to chase the new clues. Teleport all the items on the list to Nott Station."

The autopilot listened to the message and prepared a list, which Khan sent to his Uncle. As for Nott Station, the star map had highlighted it as the closest available hangar.

Khan notified Nott Station before commanding the ship to leave Chuwei's atmosphere. The vehicle quickly escaped its orbit and accelerated through space, following the already-planned route for that temporary checkpoint.

The ship reached its top speed, so Khan left everything to the autopilot. Notifications reached his phone, but he ignored them as he closed most screens and stood up, heading toward the cargo area. He would restock soon, so he didn't need to ration food and drinks anymore.

That side of the universe was still within the Global Army's influence but was also too distant to have any form of meaningful government. Moreover, humankind didn't expand like the Thilku Empire. It rarely colonized planets, limiting their presence to space stations and occasional embassies.

So, Nott Station merely existed as an overseer, acting under the guise of policing those quadrants' activities. It obviously didn't engage in any of such activities and mainly functioned as a necessary resting point on that side of the universe.

Rumors were that Nott Station cooperated with the illegal activities that afflicted those quadrants, but no one had ever bothered to check. After all, everyone engaged with their fair share of shady stuff, and everything would be fine as long as it didn't affect the Global Army's bottom line and real authorities.

Khan didn't bother about that, either, but the need to restock gave him the chance to pursue another matter.

Pieces of information about that side of the universe were hard to obtain, especially accurate and updated ones. Nott Station itself only benefited from others turning a blind eye to its activities, but Khan needed everything he could get his hands on now.

Space pirates and other small-time criminals couldn't worry Khan. He had dealt with far more dangerous illegal organizations, and one even wanted to recruit him.

Yet, Khan was about to follow obscure routes retrieved from millennia-old ships, and doing that blindly didn't sound wise. He didn't believe Nott Station had much, especially since the Empire didn't, but it was worth a try.

If anything, Khan's hopes about Nott Station had to do with the human inclination to indulge in personal greed. The Global Army had appointed a Captain to the structure, and the man had occupied it for ten years, long enough for corruption to overcome any sense of duty and loyalty.