The Damn Ritual

When Gimo learned that all three of his ships had run into trouble, he nearly flipped over his delicious rice bowl topped with pork intestines.

This was his guarantee of reaching the pinnacle of life!

A large group of pirates left the cozy Spaceport and rushed back to their three pirate ships in their own protective suits. Then... they stared at the screens full of strings of gibberish.

Gimo's nearly two-meter-tall, burly frame put tremendous pressure on the pirates around him.

"Where are my technicians?" Gimo asked, trying to sound gentle.

"Boss, you mean... those two guys you tossed into space last time, turning them into ice cubes? You thought they were taking too much and not doing any real work. All they ever did was drink tea on the ship and hit on women..."

Gimo's nostrils twitched repeatedly. "The ones we just captured—no, the newly hired technicians?"

"They're over there. They said it's an automatic system update and told us not to panic."

"Fuck!"

Gimo glared and roared, "You think I can't tell the difference between a frozen screen and an automatic update? Damn it! Another freeloader! Bring him to me!"

The two mild-mannered young pirates were so scared their legs went weak.

Suddenly, all the screens began to flicker, and an old face appeared on each one.

Gimo froze for a moment, then clenched both fists.

"You little brats! Hello there!"

Kolev!

This was Kolev's doing!

"It's Captain Kolev!" one pirate cried in surprise.

"What captain?" someone immediately corrected him. "He's a greedy bloodsucker, a pirate capitalist who exploits us—Kolev!"

Kolev's voice, however, was calm, wistful, and gentle.

He gazed fondly at everyone and spoke softly:

"Surprised to see me? This little program was hidden in all your ships' systems. It was set to activate when my heart stopped beating.

"Yes, when you get old, you have to plan ahead. Especially in our line of work.

"Today is my sixty-fifth birthday. I have a feeling my body might be giving out. A few rounds of intensive treatment have aged me faster. Sigh... I really wish I could keep causing trouble across the galaxy with all of you."

Gimo frowned. "Can we turn it off? This old man's making me sick."

"Group Leader, we've been pressing the buttons, but... well, physically speaking, they aren't responding."

Just then, Kolev continued:

"Don't you dare turn off the video. This is my last will. I'm giving away half my fortune as a reward for your loyalty. The other half is for Milili.

"When my heart stops beating, these words will appear before you. I hope you won't panic or lose your heads over the blow you might suffer. If you think you can't keep traveling through space without my leadership, then take the fortune I've left you—I mean, every one of you watching this video—and find somewhere on the fringes to settle down and live in peace.

"Of course, if you want to keep traveling, I recommend Guka. This little guy has been my Second Mate for many years, and he can lead you from here on. My daughter's still too young. But I hope Guka will train her to be the next Group Leader. Guka, you can do that, right?

"Oh, making a last will is such a sad thing.

"I hope this will never have to be used.

"Go find my fortune. Have the Captains split up. Keep an eye on one another, and don't let anyone think they can take it all for themselves. It's for all of you. I've converted it into electronic keys for Federal Currency."

Several pictures flashed across the video.

"It's here, in a place you should know well, but probably never thought of."

The video froze on a ruined city in the uninhabited area on the far side of the planet Orhaifu.

"Go find the fortune I hid.

"Don't turn on one another. Remember, only by sticking together can you remain undefeated."

Whoosh!

The video disappeared from all the screens, which returned to their normal system interfaces.

A deathly silence settled over the pirate ships.

Everyone was looking at Gimo, and their eyes gradually began to gleam.

"It's a trap," Gimo said gravely. "I may not like thinking things through, but it's obvious Kolev wants to lure us into one."

A trusted subordinate beside him whispered a reminder. "But, Group Leader, we haven't received any outside signals. And according to the brothers with Guka, the same thing appeared on their ship. It's a last will. Kolev looks just like he did ten years ago."

Gimo muttered, "How did that old bastard pull this off?"

Suddenly, a voice came through from a corner.

"What? You're telling me it's true? The bank?"

Gimo frowned and looked over.

"G-Group Leader, Kolev is dead... Half an hour ago, that young man who called you an idiot held him hostage and faced off with the Orhaifu police. The police shot and killed Kolev, who was their hostage..."

"Group Leader! I got the news too. It came from an information broker!"

"Oh, there are videos and pictures here!"

"That young man wanted the Group Leader's fortune too. The Group Leader's been building it up for decades. Most of Black Dragon's assets..."

"The old Group Leader was right. It belongs to us! To every member of Black Dragon!"

"Damn Kolev. He went and made the decision on his own, leaving half to that idiot Milili!"

Noise.

Commotion.

The pirates were itching to move.

Gimo's eyes narrowed slightly. Then he suddenly burst out laughing. His ferocious expression made the pirates all around him stop talking.

"What are you all standing around for? We need to buy new ships and weapons! Hahaha!"

"Guka's already set off, Group Leader!"

"Damn Guka. Let him try touching my money!"

Gimo's eyes were full of fury.

"Get there before them! Move it, you idiots who've stuffed yourselves with pig slop!"

"Kolev's fortune?"

Lina rubbed her brow as she stared at the ship shown on the radar.

The propulsion system on that Light Frigate was beyond anything she'd expected. The battleship had nearly been left behind several times.

Lina knew her crew had already done everything they could.

Because of its size, the light battleship needed much stricter gravitational conditions in order to jump. And no one wanted to risk being held responsible if an emergency jump went wrong.

But the ship ahead didn't care. It kept making all kinds of dangerous maneuvers.

Lina just wanted to bring this to an end as soon as possible.

She had already asked several times if they could fire. The answer was either that they hadn't had enough time to lock on, or that something was blocking their line of fire.

Now, though, the Black Dragon Pirate Group member she'd bribed had brought her new information.

The last-will system Kolev had left on those pirate ships had been in place for over ten years. It had activated when he died. The great pirate Kolev had left treasure in an abandoned city on Orhaifu, and five pirate ships were racing toward the planet.

Lina quickly pieced the information together.

She'd been wondering why Hanton had taken Kolev hostage and headed for Orhaifu.

The answer was now obvious—Hanton had somehow found out that Kolev had hidden his fortune on Orhaifu and wanted to get his hands on it. Kolev, however, had been clever, hoping to use the gun hidden in the safe to kill Hanton instead.

But why was Hanton in such a hurry to get money?

Lina thought it over carefully, watching the icon on the radar blink faintly as the other ship made another hurried jump.

Such a reckless maneuver was typical of Hanton.

He probably wants to take the money and disappear. Kolev's an easy mark.

Yes, all Hanton wants now is to go into hiding, but he needs to live. He needs money to buy Gene Stabilizer.

But why would Hanton...

Lina's thoughts grew a little muddled.

"Ma'am!"

A young intelligence officer hurried over and spoke quietly. "The Black Dragon Pirate Group has gathered around Orhaifu. They've sent more than a dozen landing craft, charging toward those ruins like mad. All five ships are skimming close to the surface. They've split into two groups and are facing off."

Lina said coldly, "Even if those pirates beat each other's brains out, it has nothing to do with us!"

"Ma'am!"

A warning came from the console on the left. "We've tracked the other ship's jump point... The vessel carrying Target Number One has appeared near Orhaifu!"

Lina froze.

Several thoughts quickly crossed her mind. "Hanton wants Kolev's fortune? That doesn't make much sense."

"Ma'am," the young intelligence officer asked quietly, "you've probably lived on Prime Star since you were a child, right?"

"Yes. Why?"

"For a lot of people, money is everything," the officer pointed out. "Target Number One is out of options, and the pirates' fortune is hidden. It could secure Target Number One's future."

"Whatever the reason, we're going after him," Lina ordered at once. "Jump immediately!"

"But, Ma'am..."

The Captain's voice rang out. "We've been drawn to the edge of a complex binary-star Gravity Field. We'll need to get clear of its influence before we can jump."

Lina's expression stiffened.

"He planned this, Ma'am Lina," the Captain said quietly. "Perhaps we should take another look at our opponent. He doesn't seem like an ordinary Imperial officer. He's been leading us around by the nose. Besides, my ship isn't suited to this kind of pursuit. We could send two smaller, more agile Light Frigates instead."

"I'll report this to my superiors as soon as I can," Lina said. "But for now, get out of the gravitational interference zone as quickly as possible and return to Orhaifu. If Target Number One decides to land on Orhaifu, that'll be our only chance to catch him!"

The Captain shrugged and turned to issue orders.

Lina was anxious. She folded her arms, forcing herself to stay calm as she considered all the strange things that had happened.

She had a feeling something wasn't right.

Lina didn't notice the young man in the corner by the console on the left side of the bridge slipping a metal spider, two millimeters in diameter, into the gap between the buttons.

Magnified, the spider would have revealed... the glittering emblem of Emperor Star on its body.

Using the planet Orhaifu itself to block them from view, Feinan entered low orbit and hid below the horizon, out of sight of the five pirate ships.

In the Tail Compartment, the two Scissor Doors of the Stealth Boat in the launch position slowly opened.

Yang Ming, dressed in a light gray combat suit, was stuffing a bionic decoy robot that looked exactly like him into the Stealth Boat's "trunk."

After fastening the robot's seat belt, Yang Ming quickly climbed into the pilot's seat. He was about to press the button to close the hatch when an old hand appeared on the opposite armrest.

Kolev clambered aboard, panting, and plopped down in the copilot's seat.

Several question marks appeared over Yang Ming's head.

"First Mate, what are you doing here?"

"Helping you fly this Small Boat," Kolev replied with a grin. "Molly Two can take care of Feinan. You'll need my help piloting this boat while you're using the decoy."

Yang Ming frowned slightly. "No, Kolev. According to our plan, you should be on the ship, ready to shake Lina off if she catches up with us early."

"Relax. Molly Two can handle it. She's already recorded and learned our operating patterns, and we have plenty of time." Kolev buckled his seat belt. "Let me come with you. I promise I won't get off this Stealth Boat."

"Why?" Yang Ming asked, his gaze sharp.

Kolev fell silent for a moment, then spoke softly.

"Some terrible ideas are growing in my head. If I stay on Feinan, I could use technical means to change Molly Two's primary loyalty target. I could also... wait until you've taken out Gimo, then go through with it and blow your real body to pieces. I could do it, Hanton. Then I'd be the last one standing.

"But I don't want to do that.

"If I were ten years younger, I'd definitely do it. Then I could take Feinan back outright.

"Let me come with you, Hanton. Let me handle the pickup. We're partners... the best partners I've had in decades... But I'm just a despicable pirate. I'm afraid I won't be able to control my greed and desires..."

Yang Ming stared at Kolev's wrinkled old face.

That old face was full of grievance.

Yang Ming held out his fist and raised an eyebrow at Kolev.

"Hey! That's for kids!" Kolev said with some disdain.

"Come on, First Mate."

"Oh, this damn ritual!"

Kolev clenched his fist and bumped it against Yang Ming's, looking rather feeble.

Yang Ming grinned triumphantly and quickly pressed a series of buttons. The Stealth Boat's hatch slid shut.

The Tail Compartment depressurized.

The simulated Gravity Field shut down.

Feinan's hatch slowly opened. Pale blue rings of light appeared around the Stealth Boat's main and auxiliary engines.

Yang Ming pushed the mechanical control stick, and the boat swiftly glided into the sky above Orhaifu. Its weak shield activated as it raced through the thin atmosphere.

They headed for the deserted city.