"The House of Ishida has an unbroken lineage dating back over 400 years." "While other dynasties and corporate overlords have come and gone," "Ishida has remained." "Why do you think that is?" "Ryo!" "Yes, Sensei?" " Am I boring you?" " No, Sensei." "Then please answer the question." "You do know what the question was, don't you?" "No." "I apologize." "So... you're not interested in your family's bloodline?" "No." "I mean, yes." "Of course." "I... it's just... it's all in the past." "And what is that?" "The future?" "Yes." "It's the specs for the new research facility my father is building." "Zairon's best scientists will go there to develop weapons, shields, and engine technologies for the fleet." "There's no star system at these coordinates." "It's deep in the Lankar Nebula, where our enemies will never find it." "You know, Ryo, one day you'll be emperor, and for all our sakes," "I hope by then you understand there's more to holding an empire together than weapons and ships." "I got it." "I think I know where he took the Blink Drive." "The coordinates place the research facility in the Lankar Nebula." "Difficult to access." "And even harder to find." "I think that's the whole idea." "Depending on how long we intend to stay in the vicinity, we'll have to divert power to the shields." "Hang on a sec." "We don't even know for sure the Blink Drive is there." "That station is the most important military research facility in the entire Ishida Empire." "At least, that's the way Four remembered it." "We know that he's trying to replicate the technology for his fleet." "Anyway, it's the only lead we have." "What kind of defenses can we expect?" "Impossible to say." " Ships?" " I doubt it." "The facility's obviously designed to withstand any radiation from the nebula." "And any ships that are in the area, they would just have the same problem as us." "They wouldn't stay for long." "They're obviously relying on stealth and secrecy." "Which gives us the advantage." "We take out their defenses, board the station, grab the device, and get the hell out of there before they have a chance to call for reinforcements." "Smash and grab." "It's just my style." "And then what?" "I mean, if we get the Drive, are we really gonna go after Four?" "He killed Nyx." "And you want revenge." "Isn't that what we do?" "We did it for One." "Jace Corso wasn't a member of this crew." "He wasn't one of us." "Four was." "Aw, hell, that just makes it worse." "Going after the drive, I get." "But putting our lives on the line to settle a score?" "So what're you saying?" "We just let him get away with it?" "He already did." "Nyx is dead." "And killing Four isn't gonna bring her back." "Misaki." "Congratulations." "Growing up, you were always strong and determined." "I'm not surprised you landed well." "When I was in training for the guard," "I scored my first victory against a much bigger boy." "I celebrated with friends after the match." "But on my way home, he was waiting for me, along with two others." "They held me down and they beat me until I cried." "I told no one." "I simply resumed my training." "And even though I had improved," "I learned my lesson and never won another match." "Misaki, I..." "Years later, after graduation..." "I chose a night." "And this time, it was I who waited for them as they headed home." "Their three blades against mine." "That much bigger boy, he'd grown even bigger." "I put out one of his eyes." "And then I hamstrung the other two." "Oh, they didn't report me, of course." "Instead, they claimed they'd been set upon by a gang of thieves." "Their dreams of serving in the royal guard had ended, but at least their dignity was intact." "One Eye, he eventually did come after me." "They never found his body." "I look forward to working with you, Teku." "Nearing the Ishida station." "All right, the Marauder's prepped and ready to go." "They're returning fire." "Shields are holding." "You didn't really think it was gonna be that easy, did ya?" "Hit them again." "Target weapons only." "Targeting weapons." "At this rate here, we'll never know what hit them." "Emperor." " Forgive the intrusion." " What is it?" "An emergency signal from the Lankar research station." "They're under attack." "That's impossible." "We're receiving visual telemetry from the station." "That's it." "Their weapons are down." "Open a channel." "Go ahead." "Ishida research facility, this is the Raza." "Your weapons are down and you're at our mercy." "Open your main shuttle bay so we can board." "If you don't comply, we will destroy you." "We know who you are, Raza." "And we know why you're here." "Destroy us, and you lose your prize." "Transmission terminated." "Scan for compatible airlocks." "Understood." "By now, they've probably already called for help." " We're on the clock here, boss." " We've still got time." "You don't know how far away their closest ship is." "They could be here in minutes." " Not likely." " Come on!" "Just admit it, you're winging it on this one." "It's not a criticism." "I kinda like it." "Even if we find a compatible airlock for the Marauder to dock, how do we get the inner doors open?" "Trust me, kid, that's the easy part." "Emperor." "Dr. Borsa, Dr. Hajek, report your status." "We're under attack." "Weapons are down." "External sensors are damaged." "Other than that, the station is intact." "They're after the Blink Drive, aren't they?" " Of course." " But how did they find us?" "At the moment, it's hardly relevant." "They stopped firing." "They know they can't risk it." "How many outer airlocks on a station like this one?" "Four." "I want armed teams at each one of them immediately." "Emperor, we don't have enough manpower to..." "Do it!" "Now." "Yes, Emperor." "Welcome aboard, Raza." "All right, we're docked." "Once we get through the first line of defense, they might get the bright idea to double back for the Marauder." "I'll be ready." "We're in." "One of the other airlocks has just been breached." "What about the Blink Drive?" "Is it operational?" "Well, is it?" "Theoretically, yes." "But we don't yet fully understand how to control it." "It certainly hasn't been calibrated for anything as large as this station." "Well then, I suggest you calibrate it quickly, because you don't have time to wait for reinforcements." "If you take the station back to Zairon, you won't have to." "This is a clone body." "I don't care if it gets destroyed." "I doubt you feel the same way about your own." "And make no mistake." "The people who are coming won't hesitate to kill you to get what they want." "I'm picking up some unusual energy readings emanating from the station." "Something to do with the nebula, maybe?" "I don't think so." "Wait a minute." "You don't think they would try to use the drive, do you?" "Guys, we've got a slight problem here." "What's wrong?" "I-I don't even know how to describe it." "Did we make it back to Zairon?" "Emperor, it's my duty to inform you that we have failed." "We're still in the nebula?" "No." "Then where are we?" "I don't know." "The nebula is gone." "So are the stars..." "So's everything." "It's just empty, white..." "nothing, all around us." "Has he been drinking?" "What do you mean "nothing"?" "I know it sounds crazy, but I'm staring at it right now." "Blink Drive." "They used it and screwed up." "Sounds familiar." "This isn't some alternate reality." "This is just... nowhere." "Raza, do you read?" "Raza, do you copy?" "I told you, there's nothing out there." "Not even the Raza." "The Blink Drive got us here." "My bet is, it'll get us back." "Mission stays the same." "Go for the drive." "Roger that." "Near as I can tell, we're in a pocket of null space not much larger than the station, possibly created by the drive itself as a result of insufficient power to attain our original destination coordinates." "Like a buffer zone between where we were and where we were supposed to go, only in interdimensional space." "Can the Blink Drive get us back?" "Possibly... but without spatial reference points," "I would have no idea how to set up the navigational computer." "Where do you suppose they went?" "The most likely place would be Zairon." "Then we have to go after them." "Even if we're right, it would take us six days to get there." "And there would be an overwhelming force waiting for us." "Well, we have to do something." "What?" "I'm detecting an anomalous energy signature." "It's coming from the position recently vacated by the station." "Show me." "Have you ever seen anything like this before?" "No." "Normal Blink Drive operation leaves very little in the way of residual energy." "Nothing compared to this." "Maybe it wasn't a normal jump." "Maybe they didn't go where they wanted to." "Maybe it's simply a malfunction in the system array as a result of continued exposure within the nebula." "All right, I'll go down and check the array." "In the meantime, run that data through every analytical model you have." "If it can tell us anything about what happened or where they went, I want to know." "Understood." "All right, Das, how's it coming with that coil, huh?" "You called me Das." "You said you didn't want me to call you Emily." "You got something else in mind?" "I know this place." "Yeah, well, you've been working here part-time for the past three weeks." "I certainly hope so." "Hey, look, uh..." "I know this stuff is complicated, but, uh... you got a good head on your shoulders." "Not like those other kids you hang out with." "This is one of my memories." "You want me to teach you?" "I'm happy to do it." "Hell, I suppose I'd do it just for the company." "But, uh, if you're not willing to put the work in, you really are just wasting your time." "So, uh, what do you say we get back to it, huh?" "Sit down, sit down." "Look at this." "Watch this." "C-squad, report." "C-squad, what's your status?" "What's happening?" "Nothing you need to concern yourself with." "They've gotten past our defenses, haven't they?" "I told you we weren't equipped for this." "I told you the Blink Drive wasn't ready!" "Watch your tone, Doctor." "This may be a clone body, but when I transfer back, the real emperor will remember everything that happened here." "What can we do?" "They're going to kill us." "You're afraid." "As you should be." "But don't let it sway you from the task at hand." "I'll buy you as much time as I can." "You don't even have a weapon." "It wouldn't make a difference." "Emperor, I'm afraid we have another problem." "You remember how I told you that this null space bubble that we're in was not much larger than the station?" " Yes." " Well, I know that because I've been sending out radar signals to help to find the outer edges of the bubble." "So?" "So it now appears that it's shrinking..." "Collapsing in on itself." "My God." "When we first arrived here, it was over three kilometers in diameter." "It's now less than two and half." "How much longer until it breaches the outer edges of the station?" "If the current rate of collapse continues, less than 30 minutes." "Are you sure?" "I've double-checked the reading." "Whatever that white wall out there is, it's coming towards us." "Well, we've got to move." "Get the Blink Drive and get the hell out of here before it hits." "Son of a bitch." "Two, Three." "Welcome." "Okay, uh, try it now." "All right, watch." "Ha!" "Like I told you, kid." "Antigravitational fields and inertial dampeners..." "The key to modern space travel." "What about FTL?" "Well, that too." "But it's a little above my pay grade." "You know, uh, there's only so much I can teach you here." "You want to learn for real, get certified." "You need to go to a good tech college." "I can't afford that." "Yeah, well, I, uh..." "I was thinking, uh... maybe I could help out with the tuition." "If you're interested." "Really?" "Yeah." "You could pay me back by..." "By helping out around here." "Hell, I don't know." "Maybe even take over one day." "I never... never had kids of my own, so, you know..." "I-I don't know what to say." "It ain't glamorous, but it's an honest living." "Not like what your friends are doing out there on the street." "They're not so bad." "Hey, I-I'm not judging." "But sooner or later, the system's gonna catch up with them and chew them up." "But you... you got something special." "You... you got a spark." "And I, uh..." "I hate to see that go to waste." "Five, what's the status of the sensor array?" "Five, do you read me?" "Five, come in." "Five, please respond." "Hey, yeah, yeah, I'm here." " Sorry." " Is everything all right?" "Uh, everything's fine." "What about the array?" "Um, still working on it." "Just give me a few minutes." "We're here for the Blink Drive." "Where is it?" "It's in a lab, in the central hub of the station." "But I'm afraid this is as close as you're going to get to it." "If we have to move through you, don't think we'll hesitate." "Of course not." "But shooting me would hardly make a difference." "I've initiated a full lockdown of the station, magnetically sealing all bulkheads." "We already blew through your airlock." "We can blow through those doors too." "Maybe." "But there are three more sets just like this one between here and the lab." "How much explosives did you bring?" "Shit." "Now, do you have any idea where we are?" "What's happened to us?" "You used the Blink Drive with unexpected results." "It got us here, and it can get us back." "So stand down and let my scientists finish recalibrating the drive." "When we return to Zairon, you'll be released." "You have my word." "Like that's worth anything." " Emperor, can you hear me?" " Go ahead." "The edge of the null space bubble has reached the outer limbs of the station." "What effect is it having?" "It's annihilating everything in its path." "What about decompression?" "It's not a vacuum." "It's just... a wall of nothingness." "Guys, we've got a new problem here." "Let me guess:" "The outer edges of the station are being eaten away." "If it keeps coming, pretty soon" "I'm gonna have a big problem." "If we lose the Marauder, there's no way off this station, even if we get back to normal space." "Emperor, what about the other scientists?" "What about them?" "They're all in a hab pod on the outer limb of the station." "They don't have much time." "You have to release the lockdown so they can move out and into the inner hub." "I'm sorry, Dr. Borsa." "I can't do that." "If I did that, there'd be nothing to stop these intruders from making their way to the lab, shooting you both, and taking the Blink Drive for themselves." "Four." "Ryo." "It doesn't have to be like this." "Drop the lockdown, let Six take the Marauder into the central hub docking bay." "We will get your people off." "No." "We've calibrated the drive to the Marauder's engines before." "We can make this work." "It's our best chance to get everyone out of here." "Then you would have the drive, and I can't allow that." "They're your own people." "And their sacrifices will be remembered." "You are one cold bastard, you know that?" "There's nothing we can do or say to make you change your mind?" "No, I'm afraid not." "Then you're no good to us, are you?" " Shit." " It was a clone." "Emperor, are you all right?" "I'm afraid we had to dispose of your emperor's clone." "You're the one who attacked the station." "Yes." "But I think we're a little beyond that right now." "If we're gonna make it out of here alive, we need to work together." "Don't listen to her." "You heard what I said about our shuttle." "It's the truth." "We've adapted the Blink Drive to its engines before, and we can do it again." "It's our best chance at getting everyone off this station, but we need your help." "We're running out of time, Doctor." "What's it gonna be?" "You can't trust them." "It's a trick." "I need an answer." "Even if I wanted to help you," "I can't terminate the lockdown." "The Emperor used his personal command code." "There's got to be something you can do, some way to work around it." "I'm guessing you know this station better than anyone." "How do I know I can trust you?" "How about this:" "Do we have a clear path from here to the habitation pod?" "I believe so." "We've got explosives." "We'll head back, blow the bulkhead door, and get your colleagues out of there." "In the meantime, you find a way to end the lockdown so we can get the shuttle to the central hub." "We'll get everyone off the station that way." "The Emperor initiated the lockdown." "It can only be terminated on his command." "The Emperor isn't here." "This could be our best chance." "You sure about this?" "Four's right, we don't have enough explosives to blow through three sets of doors." "Assuming that wasn't a bluff." "What if the lab is right behind those doors?" "I don't think we have enough time to do this by force." "We have to get them to trust us." "Do we have a deal?" "All right." "I'll try to give you the most direct path to the hab." "You can't do this!" "I'm not gonna let those people die." "It is their duty and ours." "We're not soldiers." "You're a traitor." "And you're a fool." "The array checked out." "Everything's fine." "Whatever the anomaly is, it's for real." "The most peculiar thing is that it persists, without any apparent source." "At least not in our space-time." "Wait a minute." "What if when they went through, they created a kind of rip or tear between here and wherever they went?" "That's what the anomaly is, just one end of the tear." "An interesting theory." "If it's true, then as long as the tear persists, we may be able to use it to trace where they went." "Exactly." "I'm on my way back up." "Five, come in." "Shit." "Not again." "Five?" "We're receiving an incoming subspace transmission." "Five, come in." "Android, it's good to see you again." "Four." "Or should I call you Emperor Ryo Ishida?" "Just Ryo would be fine." "What do you want?" "Straight to the point." "Excellent." "I know you attacked my research station." "Yes." "I sent in a transit clone to assess the situation but lost contact." "In fact, we lost all contact with the station." "I'm not surprised." "Of course, this could be due to any number of reasons, but the most obvious is, you killed everyone on board." "That would be one possibility." "And yet somehow I doubt it." "Care to enlighten me?" "Why should I?" "Maybe it would be best if I talked to a human crew member." "Let me speak with Two." "She's not available." "How about Nyx?" "You want to speak to Nyx?" "I know we didn't end on the best of terms, but..." "You killed her." "What are you talking about?" "I found her body, Ryo." "After you came on board and stole the Blink Drive." "That's it." "Hab pod is on the other side." "Might want to step back for this." "Wait." "Wait a minute." "We're too late." "Protein bar?" "Shooting people really works up an appetite." "This is not something I want to mess with." "Oh, what now?" "No." "No, this is good." "This is just what we need." "Six, come in." "Guys, I don't know how much longer I can stay here." "That wall of whatever it is..." "It's only a few meters away from the Marauder." "Main power just went out in the station." "The force field blocking the shuttle bay should be down too." "Roger that." "I'm on my way." "Meet you on the inside." " Is he gone?" " Who?" "Who do you think?" "The old man." "He has a name, you know." "Whatever." "Okay, come, sit." "What do you want, Lyra?" "I came here to tell you we're heading out..." "All of us." "What are you talking about?" "Remember that friend I mentioned, T.J.?" "The one on the station in the Mirzam system?" " Yeah." " He's got a sweet setup there, and he's got room for more." "The place is full of fat, rich tourists." "Easy marks." "He gives a percentage to the maintenance staff, and they let him bunk out in the air vents." "Sounds amazing." "Anything's better than this place." "We're leaving tomorrow." "Tomorrow?" "Yeah, we bribed a couple of crewmen on a long-range freighter." "It's nine days in the hold, but it'll get us there." "Well, I-I can't just leave." "Why not?" "Because of the old guy?" "His name is Baines." "Okay, look..." "I know you think he's your friend 'cause he's teaching you how to fix all this junk, but you can't trust him." "Why not?" "I saw him yesterday." "Out by the market." "He was looking a little sketchy, so I decided to follow him." " Lyra..." " He went straight to the G.A. detachment." "He was talking to the Sergeant." "Are you sure?" "I saw it with my own eyes." "Now what's a guy like that doing talking to the G.A.?" "He's gonna rat us out." "No, you don't know that." "Yeah, well, we're not gonna stick around and take the chance." "The shuttle leaves at dawn." "Are you coming or not?" "I'm sorry." "I had to give you a stimulant." "How did I get in here?" "I found you passed out." "You were unresponsive." "I was in one of my memories." "Although it was more like a dream." "Has this ever happened before?" "I think maybe earlier today." " We should run a scan." " No, there's no time for that." "What about the anomaly?" "We need to find the others." " I'm working on it." " What do you mean?" "I've been sending a modulated beam of tachyons into the rift." "If it really is a connection between here and wherever they went, they should be able to detect it." "I'm monitoring for a response." "That's it?" "For now, it's all we can do." "Puncture wounds to the neck." "He bled out." "So where's the killer?" "That's not the only thing that's missing." "The Blink Drive's gone." "Accessible parts of the station are shrinking fast." "Whoever took the drive couldn't have gone far." "Wait." "What the hell is that?" "Hey!" "That's far enough." "Come any closer, and I'll throw it in." "You don't want to destroy it any more than we do." "I think the Emperor would rather see it destroyed than fall back into your hands." "You willing to die for that?" "An honorable death is better than a dishonorable life." "Okay." "All right, let's get that thing back to the Marauder." "So?" "You appear to be suffering from cascading synaptic failure... in several areas of your brain associated with the processing of long-term memory." "What's causing it?" "Unknown." "But if I had to guess..." "The mind probe." "We may have used it one too many times." "I have persistently warned everyone of the dangers involved." "I know." "It's not your fault." "It's gonna get worse, isn't it?" "The fugue states you've been experiencing will most likely increase in duration and frequency until they become permanent." "Is there anything we can do?" "That's it." "Okay." "System's online." "Let's get the hell out of here." " Only one problem." " What?" "I've got no coordinates to feed into the nav system." "What difference does it make?" "Just put in anything." " Are you serious?" " Yeah." "Wait, hold on." "What is that?" "Some sort of radioactive pulse." "Probably just a side effect of the collapsing bubble." "The modulation is irregular but repeating." "You're right." "It's not a natural phenomenon." "So what, some kind of signal?" "It's a way out." "Target the point of origin." "And if we're wrong, we end up in a pulsar." "In about 30 seconds, it's not gonna matter." "All right, here we go." "It worked." "We're back." "Marauder, this is the Raza." "Do you read?" "We read you loud and clear." "It's great to hear your voice." "I assume we have you to thank for that signal?" "A modulated tachyon pulse used as an inter-dimensional lifeline." "That's pretty brilliant." "Well, I am an android." "Anyway, I suggest we postpone the celebration, as there are several Ishida cruisers rapidly approaching our position." "Roger that." "Coming to you." "She collapsed for a third time just before the Marauder reappeared." "I believe the best course of action would be to attempt to recreate the conditions that caused the initial mind wipe, with some modifications." "You gotta be kidding." "The memories are effectively superseding her conscious mind." "They need to be isolated..." "Walled off as yours have been." "What about her new memories?" "The ones that she made after we came out of stasis?" "I'll do my best to protect and insulate all new memories." "But I can't guarantee success." "There is a significant chance that she may lose some if not all of them." "And without a clean neural imprint to work from, they'll be inaccessible for the rest of her life." " Did you explain this to her?" " I did." "Before she lost consciousness." "She said if it was the only way, we had to take the chance." "Going somewhere?" "My friends are getting on a shuttle." "I'm going with them." "Where to?" "Off this rock." "Aw, Das..." "Das..." "Emily, look, I understand you don't see a future for yourself here..." "I know you went to the G.A." "What were you trying to do, get my friends arrested so they would stop being a bad influence on me?" "No, that's not it at all." "I..." "It doesn't matter." "None of this is real anyway." "It's a dream." "Based on a memory." "See what I mean?" "The Android's going through with the procedure." "You were obviously kind to me." "I'm sorry if I hurt you." "But I can't change anything now." "Maybe not." "But you at least deserve to know the truth." "What are you talking about?" "I wasn't trying to rat your friends out." "I was trying to get information on your family." "I know what happened." "My parents were killed in an accident." "No, they didn't tell you everything." "They didn't tell you that you have a sister." " What?" " She was adopted when you were still a baby." "A wealthy family." "Influential." " She got lucky." " What's her name?" "How can I find her?" "No, no, not yet!" "Wait!" "I'm so sorry." "If we'd known..." "You couldn't have done anything different." "It had to be done." "It's just frustrating." "I was finally about to learn something useful from my past." "You did learn something." "You know she's out there." "And, you know, one day you're gonna find her." "What about the Blink Drive?" "Well... the Android thinks the Ishida scientist tampered with it while trying to figure it out." "We got lucky with the Marauder." "But until we know for sure it's functioning properly, there's no way I'm hooking it up to the ship." "Well, at least Four doesn't have it anymore." "So that's a good thing, right?" "Misaki!" "Heika, we have news from the front." "The enemy has launched a surprise attack..." "You killed Nyx." "Yes." "After I ordered you to use non-lethal force." "Why?" "Because she was a distraction." "Your feelings for her were a weakness." "The people on that ship were your friends, your family even, for a time." "I understand that." "But none of them can possibly grasp what you must do now to save the House of Ishida." "Not like I do." "Take my life if you will." "I offer it gladly, knowing that what I did was for the good of the Empire." "But know this." "One day, sooner or later, you will have to deal with them."