'Dear red-headed friend.
Keith here.
I was finally allowed to write to you, people here are quite secretive.
I'm well, I guess. I've experienced a lot, and the most part was bad. I never knew people could be this vile, but I adapted, I guess. I still don't know if that is a good thing, I will let you decide as a 3rd party.
They treat me well. In fact, better than you, I'm living like a king here.
I'm important to them for a reason I'm not allowed to say yet, but I don't think my new 'friends' are bad, only a bit... well, there is a bit of everything.
As I said, I wasn't allowed to contact you until now, and no, I don't know the reason.
I wanted to tell you not to look for me (I truly hope you were, or I will be quite sad), as you will find someone who likes your coffee before you find me.
I will try to send you money for your debt with Herta, or at least for you to upgrade the Star Rail (I still think you need to make it able to transform into a giant robot, you never know when you will need it).
I was told we would see each other in a few years, and I don't know how many.
So be ready, because even if you don't want to, you will have to deal with me again.
I hope, some 'missions' I need to take are quite dangerous.
Do you know that I was shot in the head?
I still don't know where my soul is supposed to be, but I thanked whoever rules this universe when I didn't instantly die.
But enough about me, just be happy knowing that I'm fine.
I can't tell you a direction you can write to, I don't even know where I am.
Anyway, sorry for all the trouble I may have caused you, I will try to write as much as I can.
But you seem to be doing good, I learned you made a big hit with your recent deal with the Luofu.
I wish you the best.
Your friend in a toy's body, Keith'
Himeko put the letter on her desk, sighing in relief.
These past months she had been crazy looking for Keith and information relation related to the Stellaron Hunters.
Much to her dismay, she found out that they were a terrorist organization that was collecting Stellarons, a life-form that had a direct connection with a Path or to an Aeon. But of course, such a powerful thing was the cause of more troubles than the ones it solved.
They normally appeared on planets, and were more often than not the cause of the destruction of said celestial body, just like Pteruges V had been.
It was beyond her why would anyone start collecting those things, but she was extremely worried about Keith.
What did the Stellaron Hunters want from Keith? She found the answer very quickly, she was smart after all.
Keith had a lot of secrets even he wasn't aware of, and Himeko felt her blood turn cold when she realized that this new faction seemingly made of criminals could have discovered something about him.
So she started looking like crazy for more information, spending all her money, time and effort to help him, but when this letter arrived, she felt like a burden was taken off her shoulders.
If Keith was okay, everything was good.
The money could come later, she didn't care about that.
But with this letter, more doubts surged, mainly about Keith's apparent good relationship with this dangerous group. But she trusted Keith, even if some sentences of this short letter were quite worrying.
But again, if he was safe, the rest could come later.
"Is that letter from your missing friend?" a tall man with a cane, brown short hair and a pair of black-rimmed glasses politely asked.
"Yes" Himeko nodded with a small smile.
The man was Welt, a man she found on a stranded ship when she was going to have a meeting at the headquarters of the IPC to look for Keith and post a missing notice.
Welt seemed to recognize her, and much to her surprise, he did in a way.
Welt came from another 'bubble universe' he called it, and it seemed there was a Himeko there that seemed to be her clone based on Welt's description.
After talking a bit more, Himeko offered him a place in the Star Rail, as the man seemed to be looking for something.
Maybe a way to go back to his 'bubble universe', maybe a new goal, or maybe something to hang on in this new place he found himself in.
Wasn't that the purpose of the Star Rail to start with? To help others in their travels? To carry its occupants to their destination?
"Is your friend safe?" asked a calm Welt, sitting in front of Himeko and inwardly sweating seeing Himeko having one of her extremely bitter 'coffees'.
"I don't know" sighed Himeko, skimming through the letter again. "He seems to be, but he is doing some dangerous stuff, and probably not even legal."
"I think you should trust the person who made you worry about him in the first place" advised Welt, readjusting his glasses. "Even if he seems to be changing, a person's core won't waver that easily."
"Thank you Welt" Himeko nodded with a grateful smile. "He wrote that he would send more letters when he could."
"That alone shows he is not willing to sever his ties with you, which means that he will stay true to the person you befriended" Welt went further, but was distracted when Pom pom entered the cabin.
"I got another letter!" the small creature said with a smile, handing another letter in a red envelope to Himeko.
"Thank you" HImeko said with a grateful nod, and opened it.
'Well, you know, I said I would write when I could, and I have some free time.
I'm stranded on a deserted planet with only a somewhat psychopathic girl as company after our spacecraft was shot down by some space pirates.
I still don't know how are these mail robots arriving here, but no rescue will come.
Honestly, forming part of this faction of nutcases is not a good thing, it only has cons.
Anyway, I will describe to you what I am seeing.
Sand, a turtle, a car, for some reason a giant doughnut floating in the sky...'
The list went on and on under Himeko's deadpan expression.
After 10 minutes of reading stupid things, she finally put the letter on the desk with a tired expression.
"Is it from your friend again?" asked Welt, confused about Himeko's change of expression.
"Yes" Himeko said in resignation. "I forgot how annoying he can be."
"I have another letter!" Pom Pom entered the room again, with yet another letter.
"..." Himeko wished for Keith to get into dangerous missions so he couldn't write anymore.
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"This is amazing" mused Keith, seeing how the little mail robot left the planet, leaving him a stack of papers he ordered. "Even if we can't ask for help as we would get detained, I won't lack paper to write. And as I don't get tired, Himeko will be buried in my letters. Ah, what a good friend I am."
"I pity that woman" said Kafka, who was beside him with a dead expression.
"Come on little girl" said an energetic Keith with a smirk. "You only went a week without food, it can't be that bad."
"Says the one who doesn't need to eat" muttered Kafka, without the energy to reply to Keith's mockery.
"Well, Elio will send someone soon" shrugged Keith, but kept an eye on Kafka, as he was quite worried.
All this problem started when a space pirate with a keen eye identified Keith's body as something quite valuable, so they opted to shoot down the vehicle he and Kafka were in to salvage his body.
It was made by Herta, the Emanator of Erudition, which means that she can channel a small portion of the Aeon of Erudition directly from Nous himself.
There was no way Keith's body wasn't valuable, and a lucky pirate realized it.
Keith and Kafka took an emergency capsule and landed on this desert planet, with the pirates arriving soon after on a one-way trip, hoping that their companions could follow them soon after.
And yet, a single phrase from Kafka was enough to make them kill each other.
Her ability to hypnotise others using her voice was lethal if you weren't warned about it, so the pirates didn't have a chance.
But after these months together, Keith and Kafka started to understand Keith's 'randomness', which means that they knew that help probably wasn't coming soon.
Just like every trouble that started because of Keith, Elio couldn't see it.
Keith had already sent a letter, and some guy from their faction should have been smart enough to read the direction of the sender, but no rescue was in sight.
"Hey Kafka" Keith spoke, his hand stopping for a moment. "I know we are in a desert and all, but do you want me to look for something to eat?"
"No" Kafka's quiet voice made Keith wince, as it seemed quite lifeless. "You probably don't have much energy yourself."
"That's true" admitted Keith, as it had been a whole month since the last time he recharged his body.
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"Hey Kafka" Keith spoke, but he only got a non-committal hum from the girl. "Help has arrived."
Kafka opened a single eye, seeing a space shuttle descend near them and the cloaked person they were used to see now.
"You took your time" commented Keith, putting his arm under Kafka's armpits to carry her to the place where the cloaked person was waiting for them.
"There were a lot of patrols nearby" was the reply from the person in the cockpit once Keith and Kafka entered. "And Elio was blind for a while regarding your position."
"Everything you get involved in...is a mess" muttered Kafka before falling asleep.
"She is right this time" added the person piloting, making Keith look at him. "You were supposed to arrive in time to steal an important artefact, and we had to send the newest recruit to steal it in your place."
"I wasn't having fun here, you know?" sighed Keith, looking at Kafka looking for some water for the thirsty girl. "Well, maybe I did. I wrote probably more than a hundred letters to Himeko. She will probably enjoy them too."