The hum of the engines filled the ship as Kal, Dex, and Lian launched from Corvessa Prime. Stars streaked by in blurs of blue and white as they traveled at high speeds, skirting past various planets and asteroid belts on their journey home. Dex leaned into the cockpit, wide-eyed with wonder, taking in the star maps and ship controls, his excitement barely contained.
After what seemed like hours of blinding speeds, they finally entered the orbit of their home planet. As they docked, Dex immediately started exploring the ship, talking to himself and admiring the tech around him. "What a ship," he muttered, examining the sleek lines and functional design. He roamed the corridors, studying the maintenance droids hard at work. A mischievous grin crossed his face as he pulled a small circuit chip from his pocket, sidling up to one of the older droids, ignoring Kal's disapproving look.
"Just a small upgrade," Dex said, winking as he swapped out the droid's circuit. Instantly, the droid's movements quickened, its arms and sensors working in hyper-efficient motions. Dex chuckled, stepping back proudly. "See, I'm useful!"
At that moment, the shaft doors slid open, and Sara stepped in, her gaze landing on Kal. She raised an eyebrow, smirking at his disheveled appearance. "You need to clean up after yourself, you know," she teased. Her eyes shifted to Dex, who was practically vibrating with energy and excitement.
"And who's this?" Sara asked, her eyes moving from Dex to Kal.
Dex immediately darted forward, seizing Sara's hand in an enthusiastic shake. "I'm Dex!" he announced, his voice bouncing with eagerness. "Mechanic, tech expert, whatever you need!" Kal, exasperated, sighed and muttered, "Just give him work," before walking away.
Sara watched as Kal departed, then crouched down to Lian's level, her face softening. She brushed a hand through Lian's tangled hair. "Let's get you cleaned up too, shall we?" she said gently, leading Lian toward the ship's quarters.
Dex, left alone for a moment, caught up with Kal again, chattering as he trailed him down the corridor. "So… where's my room?" Kal pointed to a storage room at the end of the hall, cluttered with old parts and tools. "It's yours if you clean it up. Good luck," Kal replied with a smirk, leaving Dex to tackle the mess.
---
Meanwhile, in a distant sector of the galaxy, on a desolate and storm-ravaged planet, the assassin who had nearly ended Kal and Lian stood before his master in a sprawling underground laboratory. The lab was dark, with rows of flickering lights casting eerie shadows across towering machinery and walls lined with strange tubes and monitors. In the center of the room was a series of capsules, each filled with murky fluid and shadowy forms that shifted within—dozens of figures, all motionless but alive.
The man knelt on the cold metallic floor as his master addressed him. Dressed in a dark, high-collared robe, the master leaned forward, eyes like steel, his voice low and calculating. "Another failure, I see," he sneered, his eyes narrowing.
"Apologies, Master…" the man began, his tone reverent. "But obstacles continue to appear. They are more resourceful than anticipated."
The master scoffed. "Enough excuses." His voice was icy as he gestured towards the capsules. "I can always return you to where you came from… place you back into one of these capsules and awaken someone far more competent."
Fear flickered across the assassin's face. He quickly knelt lower. "No, Master. It won't happen again. I'll end them all. The girl won't escape next time."
His master's eyes glinted, a dark satisfaction evident. "See that it doesn't."
As the assassin rose, his gaze drifted over the capsules lining the lab walls. Each was marked with a unique code of three letters and a single digit—a grim reminder that he, too, was just another one of these clones. He swallowed, feeling a chill as he considered what might await him if he failed once more.
---
Back on Kal's ship, hours had passed. Kal had taken the time to clean up and collect himself. He stood alone in his computer room, eyes focused intently on a holographic star map that displayed every known planet in the galaxy. His fingers traced a path to a planet near the outer rim, his eyes lingering on it. This dead planet had been haunting him for days.
The familiar clip from the scientist's lab on Telorinan replayed on the screen. Shadows moved across sterile white floors, and indistinct figures blurred behind frosted glass doors. Kal watched, searching for any detail that might reveal a clue. The lab was filled with cryptic symbols and unknown devices, blinking monitors with indecipherable data flashing across them. A fragment of a conversation could be faintly heard—a voice warning of something powerful hidden on the distant planet he'd been eyeing.
Dex wandered in, his clothes still dusty from cleaning his new room. "What's that?" he asked, noticing Kal's intense focus on the screen.
Kal quickly closed the display. "Nothing. Just a dead planet," he said, shrugging it off. But the thought of what he'd seen lingered. Something important was out there—something worth risking it all to find.