In the desolate void of interstellar space, death was always present.
Gamma-ray flares, black holes, asteroid fields, ruthless space pirates — the list was unending. The biggest threat for all who traveled the stars was deadly vacuum outside their ships, though. Humanity had still not learned to survive without air, after all.
People needed air to live. It was an immutable law for humanity, at least for the time being. They could not defy their own biology just yet...
And that was why Aetna had chosen to target the life support systems of the Silver Talon, the frigate he was currently assigned to as a cadet.
Alarms echoed throughout the halls of the military frigate as a detached voice kept repeating the same warning. It was the warship's Slave AI, a neutered artificial intelligence, broadcasting that the frigate's onboard atmospherics had just gone offline.
Aetna scoffed at the thought of a Slave AI besting his incursion malware as he snuck through an unused maintenance shaft. The Slave AI could not learn and adapt as a Master AI could, but he knew it would be a couple of minutes before it rebooted the atmospherics systems.
His window of time was running out; it wouldn't be long before he'd lose his chance at escaping. Unfortunately for him, though, he had already been caught the moment he stepped out of his quarters.
When he heard the sound of a bell chime inside his ear, Aetna knew that he had lost his opportunity at escaping.
It was his "alfet," a personal communications system in the form of an earring.
One was able to speak with anyone and access information, which made it a hands-free tool for various purposes, for both civilians and the military.
His aflet relayed only a single message to Aetna: "Come to my office now, young man."
Larfuc Telam, the Senior Commander of 1st Imperial Fleet, raised a porcelain teapot and said, "A hiccup in the life support systems... For it to have transpired exactly when the 1st Fleet was due to arrive at the Paieta Shipyard. What an odd accident. Wouldn't you agree, Count Erandeusi?"
"It's not that strange. This ship's cursed, or so I've heard," said Aetna, shrugging his shoulders. "I'd also like to remind you that I have not officially inherited my father's title as of yet."
Aetna hated being called Count Erandeusi. He knew that Larfuc was just teasing him, but even so, he still did not want to let him get away with it.
He feared that doing so would set a precedent that'd come to bite him in the ass later down in the road if he did, so he always denied the title whenever it was brought up.
"Come now, there's no need to be so glum," said Telam. "You'll find that being a noble will open many doors for you in the future — granting you opportunities and... privileges that you cannot even begin to fathom."
"Don't care. Keep the benefits. I have no interest in whatever you're trying to sell."
Telam raised an eyebrow and said, "Not even the rights to a personal starship? Or a personal Master AI? How about the stupid amount of cash from taxes you'd earn?"
'This sly old fox just won't give up...' thought Aetna as he savored the tea he'd been offered.
Although he hated the idea of becoming the Count of Kolinto, he wouldn't deny that the privileges of accepting the title were certainly... enticing.
But it wasn't enough for him. At his core, Aetna preferred to be free of the burdensome duty of protecting the Kolinto Domain and, by extension, the Solastora Empire in periods of war.
Aetna couldn't understand why Commander Telam wanted him to accept the position so badly. What did he stand to gain from it? He didn't get it, though he suspected that it probably had something to with his father, whom the Commander apparently knew in the past.
But that was to be expected, thought Aetna, considering Commander Larfuc was a Duke and lord to an enormous Domain, one that was far bigger than his family's measly Domain...
"Was that all it took to win your family over, Commander Larfuc? Did your family trade sell itself out for a couple of shiny toys and some money?" said Aetna in a seemingly innocent and curious tone, befitting that of a child.
Larfuc chuckled when he heard that and said, "I'm glad that you inherited your great-grandfather's sharp tongue. It'll serve you well in the years to come, haha…"
Contrary to what Aetna had expected, Larfuc had taken the jab in stride. His response had also befuddled him — he had spoken about his great-grandfather, who long since turned died more than a century ago as if he knew him.
"...Just how old are you claiming to be, Commander?" said Aetna, smirking. "You make it sound like you knew my great-grandfather, but he's been dead—"
"One hundred and fifty-eight years, yes. He was... a good friend. Though he often caused me a lot of grief. I spent a lifetime picking up after the messes he created and then some. But that's what friends are for, right?" said Telam with a wistful expression.
'Is this some sort of belated, dark joke?' thought Aetna. He couldn't tell if he was kidding about his age or if the years had finally gotten to him.
Aetna could definitely picture him and his grandfather being part of the same generation, but his great-grandfather? That was a bit excessive. It'd make the old man in front of him well over two hundred and fifty years old, which would be... impossible.
"Commander, you're not THAT old. Don't be so melodramatic; you don't look a day over fifty, to be honest," said Aetna, trying to be nice for once.
And that wasn't flattery in the slightest. With the advances in genetic therapy, humanity no longer suffered the difficulties of aging. Although immortality was still out of reach, the humans of the Farspace Era no longer withered into husks of their former themselves at the ends of their lives.
With the improved standards of living and advancements in the field of medical nanotech genetic therapy, the average life expectancy had dramatically risen since the Sublight Era.
The average lifespan of a person was around a hundred and eighty years, but even once they reached that age, they'd only physically appear like they were in their fifties. If they received cutting-edge treatment, they might retain an even more youthful appearance.
Commander Telam was living proof of that change. Even though he was old enough to be Aetna's grandfather, he appeared no older than his own father. If anything, Telam had the figure of someone two or three decades younger than his father.
He had a tall, imposing physique unbefitting of a person his real age. Aetna found that unnerving, though he'd never admit it out loud.
It was more than a little humiliating that a man who should've retired decades ago still had enough strength to physically wrangle (and likely win) against a young man like Aetna.
"It's no joke, son. I grew up with your great-grandfather and rose through the ranks with him until we both became nobles," said Telam. He stood up from his seat and walked over to a safe embedded in a wall, and pulled out something from it.
Aetna skeptically shrugged his shoulders and said, "We might have to schedule a doctor's appointment for you when we reach the shipyard, Commander. Don't worry; I'll take command of the ship, so feel free to get whatever help you need, okay?"
It was a sorry sight to behold when the safe opened — the poor safe had been crammed full with all manner of papers, pictures, and exotic souvenirs, but that wasn't what Larfuc was interested in.
What he desired — and finally acquired with great difficulty — was a small binder that looked like it'd been through the wringer.
"Ah, this brings back memories," said Larfuc with a smile as he opened the leather binder. "It feels as if all of this only happened yesterday…"
He flipped through the leather binder a while until he found what he wanted to show Aetna and then said, "Here you go. Take a look and tell me what you see."
Aetna had a look of pity on his face as he took the binder from Larfuc and said, "What could you possibly have buried in this little... leather..."
His words slowly trailed off into a faint murmur as he mutely stared at an old printed photograph. Two figures stood together in a brotherly embrace as they smiled for the camera behind an enormous crowd of celebrating military officers.
Although it had faded and deteriorated around the edges, the center of the photograph had not yet decayed beyond identification...
The glum officer beside the youthful Larfuc Telam in the photo was, without a doubt... his own great-grandfather, Jespin Erandeusi.
The founder of House Erandeusi, who had built Aetna's family up with the merits he had earned throughout his service in the Imperial Forces more than three hundred years ago.
That single photo alone had ripped Aetna's soul out of his body, but as his eyes traced the old-school photo album, another photo had caught his attention.
It was one of a young child, no more than ten years of age, with a gap-toothed smile. He appeared to be having the time of his life as he straddled the shoulders of a slightly older Larfuc Telam.
"T-This can't be right...! H-How could you have possibly even—"
Larfuc peered over Aetna's shoulder and examined the photobook with a confused expression, unsure of what he had found so distressing.
"That's your grandfather, Dulvan when he was a beansprout. If I remember correctly, this photo was taken on his eleventh birthday by your great-grandmother, Beatrice."
To Aetna, it felt as if something had broken inside him. Logic faded into surreality as he tried his damnedest to process the insane declaration that Commander Telam had stated so... nonchalantly.
His great-grandfather, great-grandmother, and grandfather's eleventh birthday. He had met them all and still lived to tell stories about them to their great-grandson.
Larfuc noticed that Aetna only needed one push for him to crack, so he turned the photo album to a page near the end.
"Look at that cute bundle of joy right there, near the bottom right. Can you recognize who that little angel is?"
Aetna had only needed a fraction of a second to recognize who the individuals in the photo were. His eyes moistened in denial as he stared a hole through the photograph, unable to accept the reality of the situation.
It was... his own mother. Exhausted and delighted as she held an adorable, blubbering infant in her arms who appeared to have only entered the world moments ago.
His beloved father, bless his heart, had a faint smile on his face that beamed with a reserved kind of pride and affection.
"...Why do you have all of these pictures? What sort of connection do you possess with my family?" said Aetna, at a loss for words. His mind had finally given up trying to struggle.
Telam took the photo album from Aetna and said, "I'm a very old friend of your family, as you might've already guessed. That's my connection. And I've had to wait for more than three centuries to fulfill a promise I rashly made to your great-grandpa when I was young."
"A promise?" said Aetna, still trying to process what Larfuc had just casually said.
"Yes. A centuries-long promise that has now been fulfilled... with your birth. It's the reason why you've been made the inheritor of your father's title and why you've been brought here to me. With you, I'll finally be able to fulfill your great-grandfather's wish..."
'A wish that my great-grandfather wanted to see fulfilled? What the hell could have he have possibly asked for? And more importantly, what kind of wish takes three centuries to complete?'
"What did he ask for?" asked Aetna. His curiosity had gotten the better of him in the heat of the moment.
"To become a Seraphim — something he was regrettably unable to do. Hence, his wish had been to have a descendant do what he had been unable to do. An onerous job he left me with, the sly bastard," said Larfuc with a defeated expression.
"...Seraphim?"
The word did not ring a bell. It was probably an archaic, depreciated term that had gone out of style in a bygone age.
"Aye, they who reside in the highest sphere of Heaven. They were holy celestials that transcended mortal understanding... or so people believed them to have been once upon a time. That's what I am — a Seraphim — and what you will be too, once you are qualified to inherit your father's title."
"You will become a Seraphim and join something beyond your imagination. And then you will join the Great Hunt, too. Seeking that propelled us out into the stars. A search to find something that will likely change the course of human history forever..."
Aetna suddenly felt as if he had stumbled onto something seriously out of his league.
A door stood in front of him... and once he passed through it, there would no going back.
Even so, the temptation had proven too much for him to resist.
"What are you looking for?"
A mistake he would later come to regret dearly.
Larfuc's eyes lit up like eerie golden lanterns as if to beckon the foolish moth to the flame and said, "Isn't it obvious, my boy? ...The Holy Grail, of course."