The Everlasting Army Star Map Draftsman II: Fate of the Galaxy

Dawn Lucius lay half-reclined in his chair as the Sane ship sped toward Visadio Planet. Even though the Star Bridges were already very fast, Dawn Lucius still felt that time was passing slowly. He tangled his feet together and propped them high on the desk, both hands patting lightly on his belly. A jumbled old song ran all over the place in his head. He tried to follow the road the lyrics mentioned, but he had long since lost his homeland. He gave up and sat up, rubbing his face back and forth with his left hand. Compared with the warmth of his face, his ears were colder. Ever since he had set foot on the Dawn ship, he hadn’t stopped to rest even once, and it had left him exhausted in body and mind. Several times, passing through star regions where civilizations with very low levels of development lived, a thought would suddenly pop into his head. He would think: find a time in the dead of night to land on one of those planets, hide the Sane ship in the woods, get to a place with towns before dawn, and find a café playing jazz. Better still if they also served handcrafted fruit wine—then he could order a few glasses, a strawberry cake, and an iced black Americano, and just while away a whole day like that. But Dawn Lucius’s damned sense of responsibility pulled him back again and again. He understood it now: as long as there were people like Jonathan, the whole universe would never know peace. Dawn Lucius had never thought of ending anyone’s life, but if this time it truly came down to having no other choice, he would try his best to end all of it—Jonathan included.

The Sane ship soon arrived near Visadio Planet. Those huge artificial structures were now veiled in a pale green fog. In the faint light, part of the mechanical belt running around the equator could just barely be seen. It looked as if the rumors were true: Visadio Planet’s rotation hadn’t slowed down. The data on the gauges showed the rotation speed was far faster than before. Surely, if this enormous planet hadn’t been transformed, its atmosphere would long ago have been flung into space by its spin. When Dawn Lucius flew a little closer, he could see the artificial structures linking Visadio Planet’s two poles flickering with light. Its former prosperity had long since become a footnote in the history of the Ashton Federation. The civilization it had carried on for countless years was like a bonfire after a social gathering breaks up—about to burn out, with only a few sparks still struggling to breathe. When Dawn Lucius reached the planet’s outermost defensive shield, he sent a landing request over the comm channel and quickly received a reply. The message guided him toward the equator, Visadio Planet’s only entrance and exit. Even as he piloted the Sane ship up close to Madam Winifred’s palace, he didn’t run into any troops or security personnel. Small attack ships and shuttle boats hovered in orderly rows in midair, and the two rows of giant humanoid statues on the square in front of the palace had long ago had their majesty buried by dust.

Dawn Lucius parked the Sane ship on an open lot beside Madam Winifred’s palace. The Ashton Federation’s current sorry state had more or less something to do with him, and besides, Madam Winifred had once saved him. The least he could show was basic respect. There was no way Dawn Lucius could fly the Sane ship right up in front of Madam Winifred. “That would be far too rude,” he said to himself as he fiddled with a low-altitude craft. When he reached the palace gate, someone was already waiting there. When the man saw Dawn Lucius approaching, he began waving toward him from far off, and didn’t lower his hands until Dawn Lucius had flown right up to him. After Dawn Lucius climbed down from the low-altitude craft, the man hurried forward and bowed slightly in greeting, and Dawn Lucius bowed back. He was a man with a warrior’s build but dressed in the style of a strategist. His loose, soft clothing couldn’t hide his solid arms. Years of gripping weapons had left thick calluses in the webs between his thumbs and forefingers, and the scars of all shapes on his forearms seemed to tell the story of his military service. His overly neat hairstyle had been done with an unpracticed hand, as if he had learned how for the first time that day. His dark face was all smiles. Other than guiding Dawn Lucius where to go, he didn’t exchange a single word with him.

After a long time—to Dawn Lucius the whole way felt far too long—they reached Madam Winifred. Madam Winifred wasn’t as imposing as before. At least, what Dawn Lucius saw was only an old woman with delicate features. She sat lazily on her throne, one hand propping up her head, the other waving at the two of them. Seeing this, the man leading Dawn Lucius gave him an apologetic look, and the two of them walked all the way up to Madam Winifred before they stopped.

“I’m sorry to disturb your rest, Madam,” Dawn Lucius said, bowing slightly.

“Hmm, Star Map Draftsman.” Madam Winifred adjusted the way she was sitting, gripping the arms of the throne with both hands to straighten herself. Looking at Dawn Lucius, she went on: “You’ve been making quite a stir. Instead of carrying out your mission, you’re meddling in the business of the Great Migration.”

“Please forgive me, Madam. I only want to do what I can to protect more people.” Dawn Lucius bowed again.

“Hmph.” Madam Winifred gave a cold laugh, then immediately pulled a long face. “Can you fully control your ability now?” She pointed at Dawn Lucius’s right arm.

Dawn Lucius shook his head.

“It takes the right moment.” Madam Winifred nodded.

“Jonathan’s mother told me the same thing,” Dawn Lucius added.

“You went to see her?” Madam Winifred was a little surprised and shifted forward.

“Yes!” Dawn Lucius nodded.

“Never mind.” Madam Winifred waved her hand. “You’ve come all this way to the Ashton Federation—what for?”

“To tell the truth, I don’t know either. Jonathan has now occupied Kukra City, and he’s stirred up a lot of people to go back and bring their armies. I can’t figure out who he means to go after. Right now every Level One and Level Two civilization in the universe is preparing to migrate, I suppose—no one is anyone’s enemy. And Kukra City has the only super Star Bridge that can reach the DeFi Passage. If he occupies it and doesn’t let anyone else through—and chances are, he would do something like that…” As Dawn Lucius went on talking, he began to feel like a child who had done something wrong. Suddenly he felt he was being rude, so he stopped and gave Madam Winifred an apologetic smile.

“So, Star Map Draftsman, you’ve come here to make me your audience?” Madam Winifred said, looking at Dawn Lucius coldly.

“That’s not it. I want to know more about the Great Migration.” Dawn Lucius shook his head.

“How can you be sure I know more?”

“Madam, you are the wisest person in the whole Orion Arm, and someone who lived through the culture of the first generation of the Datheon. You must know more than us ordinary people.”

“You’re hardly an ordinary person,” Madam Winifred said mockingly.

“Madam, I’m nothing more than a perfectly ordinary father who had the luck to be chosen. And I have none of a Star Map Draftsman’s abilities at all—I have to admit that.” Dawn Lucius glanced at the man beside him, who was still smiling. He pointed at him with both hands and, turning back to Madam Winifred, went on: “I’m quite sure even he would be better suited to be a Star Map Draftsman than me. But that’s how things are now. None of us has a choice.”

“Well, you’re honest.” Madam Winifred laughed coldly.

“I’m sorry if I’ve offended you, Madam,” Dawn Lucius said, softening his tone.

“Fine. Tell me why you’ve come.”

“I still want to know more about the Great Migration.”

“Fine. More specifically?”

“Lord Winifred—where did you send him? Has he already reached the DeFi Passage?” As Dawn Lucius asked this, he gave Madam Winifred a probing look.

“No.”

“No?”

Madam Winifred said nothing more. She simply stared at Dawn Lucius in silence.

Dawn Lucius looked a little embarrassed. It wasn’t that questioning Madam Winifred would seem rude; it was that he simply didn’t have the right. If Madam Winifred didn’t want to tell him, there was nothing he could do. “Besides Kukra City, is there any other super Star Bridge that can reach the DeFi Passage?”

“No!” Madam Winifred still answered coldly.

Dawn Lucius thought it over. Maybe old Mr. Sakya was right—Madam Winifred had turned Visadio Planet into her tomb. If he kept asking, he wouldn’t get any useful information. It would only annoy her and leave him a bit more discouraged. With that thought, Dawn Lucius stopped asking. He bowed to Madam Winifred and offered her a few words of good wishes, intending to go back to the Solar System. While he was at it, he rambled on a little, saying he wanted to be with his son before the destruction. He also told her his plan: if the timing was right, he intended to go to Kukra City with the people of the Solar System and fight for a chance to live—a chance for a few people to live. With that, Dawn Lucius turned and walked toward the exit.

“Wait.” Dawn Lucius had taken only a few steps out when Madam Winifred called him back.

“Madam?” Dawn Lucius turned, smiled, and bowed.

“If you intend to migrate, you’d better hurry. If Jonathan gets his own army through and then blows up Kukra City, none of you will have a chance.”

“Madam, is this information accurate?”

“You ought to know Jonathan’s nature. The Ashton Federation is where it is today partly because of our own mistakes, but the whole game was set up and driven by Jonathan. The Ashton Federation is as good as gone.” Madam Winifred shook her head. She stepped down from the throne and, walking toward Dawn Lucius, said: “Think about it. He has no chance of achieving his goal of unifying some galaxy in the new universe bubble—that doesn’t need explaining, does it? The second stage of the DeFi Passage is his end point. So, with Jonathan’s ruthlessness and stubbornness, how do you think he would go about achieving his goal?”

“Madam, your guess is that Jonathan will conquer all the civilizations that haven’t yet entered the DeFi Passage, and then rule them?”

“No. Think further.” Madam Winifred shook her head.

“Surely he wouldn’t go so far as to stop the Great Migration and then set up his rule in this universe bubble?” Dawn Lucius said, half believing it.

Madam Winifred nodded and took a deep breath.

“But, Madam, does Jonathan have that much nerve? The Shepherds and the Datheon are still around.”

“Star Map Draftsman, you underestimate Jonathan’s nerve. He was able to put himself in danger to wear a Star Source, and then, single-handedly, he provoked the Strath Federation into starting a war. Don’t you think all of that is enough to prove his nerve? So if he really does stop the Great Migration, do you think he’ll still be afraid of the Shepherds?”

Dawn Lucius didn’t answer. He was lost in thought. Thinking back over everything that had happened on this journey, what was impossible anymore? “What, do you have some other idea?” Madam Winifred asked.

“No. I think what you said makes a lot of sense, Madam.”

The three of them simply stood there, Madam Winifred and Dawn Lucius exchanging views back and forth. Rather than an exchange, it was more like Madam Winifred teaching Dawn Lucius to think things over again. Dawn Lucius felt that even if the universe truly was boundless, the human heart was just that small—so small it could only hold motives that wanted something. Even Madam Winifred, having talked with Dawn Lucius for so long, was after something too. Dawn Lucius asked her why she didn’t simply send in the Everlasting Army to stop Jonathan. “That’s not what I’m good at.” Those were Madam Winifred’s exact words. The Ashton Federation was advanced, but all along they had been more like craftsmen. They could build a new era on the ruins after chaos ended, but if you asked craftsmen to build in a chaotic era, it couldn’t be done. No one had ever seen a stonemason create an exquisite sculpture in times of chaos, and no fashion designer could sew exquisite clothes in times of chaos. That was the principle. Sakya was wrong: Madam Winifred had no intention of turning Visadio Planet into her tomb. She was treating it as her cocoon before she became a butterfly. Madam Winifred said frankly that if Jonathan’s plan to stop the Great Migration succeeded, all the powers in the whole universe bubble would be reshuffled. Before the civilizations that had set out early could even get their bearings, their original territory and power would be taken over by the civilizations that stayed behind. By then there would certainly be war everywhere, and the Orion Arm wouldn’t escape that fate either. What Madam Winifred wanted to do was step forward when the sides had worn each other down, and establish order anew. Dawn Lucius understood all this. What he was curious about was why Madam Winifred would share it with him without holding anything back.

When Dawn Lucius questioned Madam Winifred, she told him her intention outright. “I want you to lead my Everlasting Army and bring it into whatever you do next.”

“What?” Dawn Lucius was afraid he had heard wrong.

“I have a good-for-nothing son, and he’s probably already caught up in Jonathan’s plan. Chances are you’ll go and try to keep Jonathan from causing destruction, and you could use an army too. Take them with you and see whether you can save him.”

“Madam, you’re letting me take such a large army just to save Lord Winifred?”

“Yes.” Madam Winifred nodded.

“But, Madam…”

“Are you questioning my motives?” Madam Winifred interrupted Dawn Lucius.

“Madam, you misunderstand. Lord Winifred stabbed you in the great battle, and you were still able to forgive him and give him a new chance, so if you now say you want to save him, I certainly don’t believe it. What I want to say, Madam, is that my own selfish motive is plain: to protect the people I care about. Everything I do is for that one purpose. Stopping Jonathan will mean war, and war needs an army. My situation right now is very unfavorable. The people of the Solar System are very weak in combat. Facing the armies of Level One and Level Two civilizations, their soldiers are no different from ordinary people—there’s no way I could use their army. Originally, I wanted to persuade the two princes of the Strath Federation to lead their armies to stop Jonathan, but they seem to have lost their nerve and pulled back to the Strath Federation’s star region. I wanted to borrow the army of Duncan’s clan, but they have their own mission. I have no troops to borrow. And I still haven’t gained the full abilities of a Star Map Draftsman. These are all my fatal weaknesses right now. So, Madam,” Dawn Lucius paused, swallowed, and continued, “if you lend me the Everlasting Army, I will ask them to throw themselves into stopping Jonathan’s mad plan. They may never come back in the end, and all of that will make me feel guilty. Madam, knowing this, do you still intend to lend me the Everlasting Army?”

When Dawn Lucius finished, he even felt as if he couldn’t breathe. The hope of an army he urgently needed ran wild across his heart, trailing a thick red woolen yarn, while a sense of self-reproach, regretting what he had just said, crept along slowly, pulling a thin green thread. In the end they knitted a net in his heart that could catch confidence, and he lost his faith in himself. Dawn Lucius urgently needed the Datheon emissary to appear and complete the power he needed to stand against Jonathan, but these were things completely beyond his control. He shook his head in frustration and turned his back to Madam Winifred, letting his unfocused gaze drift over the sky above Visadio Planet.

“I’ll lend it!” Madam Winifred answered firmly.

Madam Winifred gave Dawn Lucius a rundown of the whole situation. The man who had led him to her palace was SuSili, the new commander of the Everlasting Army. After the great battle of Visadio Planet, the Everlasting Army had gone through many changes. Although Madam Winifred didn’t say it outright, Dawn Lucius could guess that when Madam Winifred sealed off Visadio Planet, some in the Everlasting Army had defected—perhaps the original commander had even run off with his men, which was why there was now a new commander. The present Everlasting Army was a brand-new fighting force, stationed entirely at an old base of the Ashton Federation. SuSili showed Dawn Lucius the star map: this old base was a planet called Taranto, whose sun had already begun to age. Building up an army here really wouldn’t arouse anyone’s suspicion. Even as Dawn Lucius felt lucky to have a force at his side, he was also worried about how deep Madam Winifred’s schemes went, and about her ambition, which was bigger than this universe bubble. He even felt that from this visit, what he had gained wasn’t an army; he had simply become a chess piece in Madam Winifred’s game.

After Madam Winifred had explained everything, she went ahead and told Dawn Lucius that she was all the more certain Jonathan would wreck the plan for the Great Migration, and that this universe bubble would carry on just fine. She reminded Dawn Lucius to pay attention to Visadio Planet’s gravity. Even though the rotation speed of this enormous planet had already exceeded its limit—and in theory its weight should have exceeded its limit too—why couldn’t Dawn Lucius feel an enormous pull of gravity? Because Madam Winifred had long known how to use antimatter, thanks also to the Ashton Federation’s scientific accumulation over so many years. Never mind how the palace looked from the outside—it was actually a balancing device. Hearing this, Dawn Lucius felt that Madam Winifred was truly frightening, and that she was surely still hiding a great many more things. But at this point, Dawn Lucius had no choice at all. According to the plan, he didn’t need to go back anywhere else. SuSili would take him to Taranto, and they would bring the Everlasting Army straight to Kukra City. The key was to find Lord Winifred; the rest would be up to Dawn Lucius’s judgment. The Everlasting Army would obey him completely.

SuSili didn’t choose to ride with Dawn Lucius in the Sane ship. Instead, he piloted a large ship bearing the royal emblem of the Ashton Federation, the kind that was close to warship standard. After the two of them checked their coordinates, they entered the Star Bridge one after the other. Dawn Lucius used the time to tell Sandra and Stacean Lucius about the current situation. He told Sandra that next time they would just meet in Kukra City; most likely he wouldn’t need to go back to Planet Gorov. Stacean Lucius told Dawn Lucius to go do what he had to do with his mind at ease—he would lead the people of the Solar System and have them ready. Whether it was the Great Migration or war, they would be well prepared. The three of them went back and forth like this, making guesses and reassuring one another. At the end, Sandra reminded Dawn Lucius that he must be on his guard against Madam Winifred. She certainly knew more than anyone, and maybe this whole business of saving Lord Winifred was only a front. Dawn Lucius believed that much. What he couldn’t be sure of now was what the army in his hands should do if Jonathan really did try to stop the Great Migration: stop Jonathan, or let it all happen? What was Dawn Lucius’s duty? And what did he care about? Actually, he knew very well himself: to survive. Besides, he felt more and more that his body was warning him that dark matter was being lost faster and faster. Perhaps, at some threshold, even if dark matter stopped being lost, this universe bubble would still return to total darkness. If Jonathan stopped the Great Migration, the dark matter wouldn’t come back either. That was a terrifying fact.

Before long, the Sane ship reached the designated Star Bridge exit. SuSili’s ship was ahead of Dawn Lucius, and over the radio band he told Dawn Lucius that Planet Taranto was just ahead. The two of them entered the atmosphere one after the other. The whole planet was like a forgotten hometown. They first flew over the entrance to an underground city. The circular entrance was firmly anchored to the ground by mechanical structures, and in the middle was a bottomless way in and out. Here and there, empty reception windows could be made out, and their number seemed to tell of how busy the place had once been. The mechanical structures carried anti-aircraft and ground-control artillery; this place must have been raided by pirates often, and the messy, battered old ships and shuttle vehicles around the outskirts said it all. Dawn Lucius kept following SuSili onward. They passed over a surface city, where a huge artificial dome covered everything. The transparent protective shield spared the people living here from sandstorms and lack of oxygen, while still letting them enjoy the sunlight. Several large passages extended out from the protective shield and connected to three irregular domed buildings. These looked like places for storing dangerous goods, yet goods that the people living in the city needed. Or else, was it a zoo? Dawn Lucius had no time to think more about it before SuSili told him they were nearly at their destination. As the Sane ship descended, Dawn Lucius got a clear look at the structure in front of him. It was a gigantic cylinder embedded in a mountain, with several layers of stacked, disk-shaped things showing at the bottom. It looked like someone with terrible acting skills playing hide-and-seek.

Once the two of them had their ships hovering in place, each took a shuttle boat to approach the cylindrical structure. SuSili led Dawn Lucius through a gap in the cylinder, and the empty interior lay open before them at a glance. On the cylinder’s walls were neatly divided living quarters and service areas. According to SuSili, the new Everlasting Army was divided into three ranks: Legion Commander, sergeants, and regulars, and SuSili was the Legion Commander of this army. Madam Winifred had always had a backup plan. She had taken in large numbers of nameless wanderers from the Sothatki Star River, given them identities and food, and only after several generations of training had this army come into being. Listening to SuSili’s introduction, which held nothing back, Dawn Lucius found Madam Winifred all the more frightening. He now felt even more strongly that he had simply been drawn into Madam Winifred’s plan, rather than having truly gained an army. While SuSili was assembling the army, Dawn Lucius also told Duncan what he was thinking, especially the part about Jonathan intending to stop the Great Migration. Dawn Lucius’s goal was very clear: to make sure the Great Migration went ahead normally. He assured Sandra that he could already feel the dark matter nearing its critical point, and when that time came, the present universe bubble would surely perish. “Dawn, I believe you. I can feel it too.” Sandra interrupted Dawn Lucius’s explanation, looking at Duncan as she spoke. After the group talked it over, Stacean Lucius and Duncan would bring everyone and fly toward Kukra City, while Dawn Lucius would take the Everlasting Army to Kukra City ahead of them and use force to make sure they could get through the super Star Bridge.

Once the great army had finished assembling, SuSili called Dawn Lucius over. He shouted to the troops below the platform—the gist was that the Star Map Draftsman would now serve as their strategic guide, that the Everlasting Army would no longer be a hidden army, and that they would leave their own footprints on the historical course of the Great Migration. But SuSili didn’t say a single word about the purpose of this mission. By rights, he should have explained Madam Winifred’s goal to the army clearly: to save Lord Winifred. Just as Dawn Lucius was about to ask something, SuSili shouted, “Move out!” and the army began marching out of the cylinder in perfect unison. By the time Dawn Lucius followed them out, shuttle boats and large warships filling the whole sky had already arrived above Planet Taranto.

“Legion Commander.” Dawn Lucius hurried after SuSili and called to him from behind. “What is your goal?”

SuSili looked at Dawn Lucius. The smile on his face and his answer seemed set in advance: “My goal is Madam Winifred’s goal.” With that, he kept walking.

Dawn Lucius hurried until he was walking side by side with SuSili, and raised his voice. “Anything more specific?”

“What do you want to ask?” SuSili still kept smiling, which made Dawn Lucius a little angry.

“Are we going to stop Jonathan from wrecking the Great Migration, or to help Jonathan keep the Great Migration from happening, so that Madam Winifred can go on ruling the Orion Arm?”

“Star Map Draftsman.” SuSili stopped suddenly, the smile gone from his face. He stepped closer to Dawn Lucius, looked him in the eye, and said, “What is your goal?”

That stumped Dawn Lucius. If he really had to name some great goal, he truly didn’t know.

“You hesitate?” SuSili pressed.

Dawn Lucius hesitated for a moment. There seemed to be no need to tell SuSili his whole basket of worries. Theirs was only a brief cooperation, and it was enough to keep the relationship clean. Dawn Lucius looked at SuSili and said, “Let’s go.”

Once the army was in position, SuSili gave the order to set out. His ship entered the Star Bridge first, with Dawn Lucius close behind, and behind them a long string of ships waited in line. When all the ships had assembled at Kukra City, SuSili told everyone to get ready for battle. Dawn Lucius didn’t understand. Weren’t they here to keep Lord Winifred safe? Why were they about to start fighting? When he tried to find out over the comm band, SuSili blocked him—or rather, SuSili simply had no intention of taking his call. Dawn Lucius reasoned that Madam Winifred’s story didn’t hold water. Her goal was obvious: she wanted to seize this one and only super Star Bridge, so that the civilizations of the Orion Arm would once again have no choice but to submit to Madam Winifred. But the one thing Dawn Lucius couldn’t figure out was: even if Madam Winifred could now rule the whole Orion Arm, so what? This universe bubble was doomed to be annihilated. Whatever happened, the two sides must not be allowed to fight; otherwise the people of the Solar System and Duncan’s clan would only be buried along with Madam Winifred’s ambition in this dark universe bubble. Dawn Lucius summoned dark matter and drove the Sane ship ahead until it was right in front of SuSili’s ship. Even with him blocking the way, SuSili was unmoved. The great mass of warships behind him began to gather, raising their shields and charging their heavy cannons.

Dawn Lucius had no choice but to act on his own. He sped up the Sane ship and charged into Kukra City. Maybe he meant to urge Jonathan to show restraint; maybe he meant to stand on Jonathan’s side. But the main thing was to keep Kukra City intact, and that was all. As the ship went deeper, there wasn’t a soul to be seen in the vast Kukra City. He even suspected he had come to the wrong place, until he reached that gate and saw that the super Star Bridge was still running steadily. Only then did it dawn on him: Jonathan had already made his move. What was he up to? Taking a great army into the new universe bubble to fulfill his dream of rule?

While Dawn Lucius was puzzling over this, SuSili arrived beside him with a band of his trusted troops. Staring at the passage leading to the unknown, he said briefly, “We’re too late.”

“Too late for what?” Dawn Lucius asked coldly.

“Most likely, I can’t accomplish Madam Winifred’s goal. From the look of it, Lord Winifred has already set out with Jonathan.”

“Can you be clearer? There are too many isolated islands of information in all this,” Dawn Lucius said impatiently.

“Jonathan is going to blow up the DeFi Passage so no one can migrate. That way he can keep finding a way to set up his rule in the present universe bubble. Lord Winifred is his human bomb. Madam sent me here to stop Lord Winifred.”

Hearing such definite information, Dawn Lucius found he didn’t need to think it over. Jonathan was capable of doing this, and Lord Winifred, being with him, was capable of it too. “Then what else does Madam Winifred plan to do?” Dawn Lucius asked.

SuSili shook his head.

“Surely we’re not just going back to Taranto, to wait on that planet for darkness to come? Such an excellent army, just waiting like that?”

“The only thing Madam Winifred told us to do was intercept Lord Winifred and bring him back.”

“Madam Winifred also said she was letting me command this army—have you forgotten?” Dawn Lucius demanded.

“You need to get one fact straight, Star Map Draftsman.” SuSili turned and looked at Dawn Lucius. “The Everlasting Army has always had only goals—no other options.”

“If this whole universe bubble is gone, what meaning will the goals you’ve always had still have?” Dawn Lucius demanded irritably.

“That’s not something we have to think about.” SuSili’s tone turned impatient.

“As one of the most powerful armies in the Orion Arm, what you should do isn’t just follow certain orders, but think about how to fulfill your duty as soldiers and protect the people who still hold out hope in you.”

“Well said.” Before SuSili could answer, someone behind them spoke up loudly.

“Why have you come back?” Dawn Lucius looked in surprise at the people hurrying over. Burt waved cheerfully at the group and quickly walked up to Dawn Lucius, with Carlson close behind. Carlson signaled his men to put their weapons away—there was no need for a standoff with the Everlasting Army.

“If we didn’t come, I’m afraid there’d be no way out for anyone,” Burt said, looking at SuSili in a slightly mocking tone.

“What do you mean, saying that while looking at me?” SuSili asked, narrowing his eyes at Burt.

“Nothing.” Burt put away the smile he had just been wearing.

“We may not be the old Everlasting Army, and I wasn’t there when you attacked Bourlo City, but the Everlasting Army is the Everlasting Army, and you are the Everlasting Army’s eternal enemies.” SuSili gripped the weapon in his hand hard.

“Yes, you’d better always remember that we are your enemies,” Burt sneered.

“I say,” Dawn Lucius raised his voice. “If you’re here to quarrel, I have no interest in keeping you company. I’m going in to see what I can still do before Jonathan does something insane. You asked me what my goal is.” Dawn Lucius turned to look at SuSili. “It’s for the people I care about to survive. This universe bubble is about to cool down—I promise you that as a Star Map Draftsman. I can feel it. So I can’t let Jonathan blow up the DeFi Passage. If I go now, I may need people to help me deal with Jonathan’s army. If you still consider yourselves soldiers, then follow behind me. If you don’t, then forget I said anything.”

When he had finished, Dawn Lucius left the crowd, then piloted the Sane ship and plunged headlong into the super Star Bridge.