Day 68 Location: En route to Ocean World -- Star System XG-32
"Red Queen, begin log."
Her voice emerged from the console, smooth and slightly amused. "Recording. For yourself, for posterity, or for the fanbase you imagine you'll have?"
I leaned back in the captain's chair, watching as the stars streaked past the viewscreen. The ship's newly repaired engines hummed with a satisfaction I could feel in my bones.
"...All of the above."
📋 Status Log: Captain kai Zarathius
Species: Devilukean Age: 16 Role: Starship Captain, Otaku Adventurer, Wish System User Condition: Alive. Trained. Slightly lonely. Impossibly stubborn.
My fingers drummed against the armrest, a nervous habit I'd picked up during the long weeks of solitude. The countdown to planetary arrival flashed in the corner of my eye: 22:17:46 and ticking down.
🧰🧰 Upgrade Achievements (Chronological)
Crash Survival Arc (Days 1--30):
Power Core Stabilization
Basic Combat Training
Gadget Capsule + Mag Boots
Emergency Teleport System
Training Regimen (Red Queen Holo Combat Sims)
I remember the day I got the Emergency Teleport working---sweat-soaked and trembling after twelve straight hours of coding. When the system finally powered on, bathing the room in cool blue light, I'd slumped against the wall and laughed until my ribs hurt. Not just from relief, but from genuine pride. The device now sits on my belt, a slim silver disk that could snatch me from death's jaws if needed.
Flight Prep Arc (Days 31--60):
Nano-Forge Installed
Universal Translator
Stealth Module (Ship)
Red Queen Full AI Expansion
Energy Shield (Personal)
Personal Reflex and Recovery Upgrades
Interior Expansion -- Living Quarters, Training Room
Cloak-Enabled Travel
Full Sensor System Overhaul
The day I completed Red Queen's expansion---giving her not just increased processing power but emotional depth, personality subroutines, and a holographic form---I felt like Viktor Frankenstein without the regrets. When her avatar first materialized, silver hair shimmering and eyes blinking as she tested her new visual expressions, I'd felt a surge of connection I hadn't experienced since... well, perhaps ever.
🚀 Current Ship Systems
Name: Star Raven AI: Red Queen Drive: Warp Core (Stable) Defensive: Energy Shield + Cloak + Emergency Teleport Facilities: Training Room, Nano-Forge Bay, Synth Kitchen, Pilot Quarters Navigation: Long-Range Scanner + Universal Translator Condition: Combat-capable. Solo-flight ready.
The Star Raven had become more than a ship---it was an extension of myself. Every panel, every circuit, every bulkhead bore my fingerprints, my sweat, my occasional blood when repairs got tricky. I'd transformed it from a standard Explorer-class vessel into something unique---a hybrid of Devilukean technology and my own improvised innovations. The warp core now pulsed with a distinctive azure glow rather than the standard white---a modification that increased efficiency by 23% at the cost of slightly higher radiation that my enhanced physiology could handle.
🌌 Captain's Personal Reflection
It's been a full week in this strange, silent galaxy. Seven days of nothing but black sky, blinking lights, and the hum of systems I've memorized too well.
But now... this ocean planet feels different.
Maybe I'm projecting. Maybe I want so badly to meet someone---anyone---that I'm building hope out of sea mist and data scans.
But hope is good.
It's fuel.
I gaze at the projection of our destination---a blue jewel against the black. My reflection in the viewport shows a face I sometimes still don't recognize---sharper, more focused than the soft Earth teenager I once was, or the frightened Devilukean orphan I became. The red gleam of my hair catches the console lights, and my tail curls and uncurls with anticipation.
"Red Queen, ETA?"
Her avatar materializes beside me, elegant in her uniform. "43 hours and counting. Would you like a countdown every hour?"
I smirk. "Only if you sing it in MoéNova vocals."
She crosses her arms, expression shifting to dignified offense. "...I refuse. Even I have dignity."
This might be another empty world.
But it might not.
And I'm ready.
Twenty hours later, I'm still at the console, reviewing every scrap of data we've collected on the approaching planet. Sleep feels impossible---like trying to nap on Christmas Eve. My eyes burn from staring at screens, but the excitement buzzing through my veins won't let me rest.
Ocean temperature gradients. Atmospheric composition. Gravitational pull---1.1 G, slightly higher than Earth but lower than Deviluke Prime.
Something about this planet tugs at my memory---a half-forgotten dream from my first life, perhaps.
"Captain," Red Queen's voice is gentle but firm. "You've been awake for 36 hours. Sleep deprivation will impair judgment during approach."
I rub my eyes. "Can't sleep. Too wired."
"Then perhaps meditation? Your vital signs indicate elevated stress levels."
She's right, of course. I activate the auto-pilot sequence and retreat to my quarters. The meditation chamber---a small alcove I carved out of a storage compartment---glows with soft amber light. Synthetic incense releases calming pheromones specific to Devilukean physiology.
I sit cross-legged on the cushioned floor, tail curled neatly behind me. Close my eyes. Focus on my breathing.
In. Out. In. Out.
My mind, however, refuses to quiet. Images flash behind my eyelids---flickers of memories from Earth, fragments of anime plots, Devilukean training exercises, the faces of orphanage caretakers who never quite looked at me with warmth.
And something else...
Something about oceans. Islands. A straw hat.
Wait.
My eyes snap open, heart suddenly racing.
It couldn't be.
Could it?
"Red Queen," I call out, voice strangely hoarse. "End meditation. Return to bridge."
Back at the console, I pull up the most detailed scan of the approaching planet. Study the landmass formations more carefully. The ocean currents. The peculiar weather patterns.
"Red Queen, are you detecting any... unusual geological formations? Anything that doesn't match standard planetary development models?"
She pauses, processing. "Scanning. There are several anomalies that warrant further investigation upon approach."
"Such as?"
"Thermal readings suggest volcanic activity arranged in unusually linear patterns. Several landmasses appear to defy standard continental drift theory. And there's a peculiar gravitational variance around the equatorial region."
My pulse quickens. It might be nothing. It's probably nothing.
But if it's not nothing...
"End log. Encrypt under 'Status: Before Contact.'"
Red Queen's voice softens. "Log saved. Good luck, Captain."
Her avatar gives me a small, encouraging smile before adding: "Now go brush your hair. You're about to meet aliens and you look like you lost a fight with the air vent."
I run a hand through my tangled red locks and can't help but laugh. "...Fair."