At the edge of the Milky Way's left spiral arm.
Designated System 44.
Wasteland World One, settlement.
Little Lant's snot had smeared across his protective helmet's visor. He could not see the road clearly, but fortunately, his right hand was tightly held in his mother's.
Lant walked woodenly, dangling an amulet by its chain from his left hand. The amulet depicted a man holding a chainsword and a scepter.
Lant was still sniffling.
The wasteland world's environment was too harsh. He had contracted this illness when he was young, and this world, this system, this sector had all been abandoned. The Invincible Fleet's blockade prevented even a single dose of medicine from being shipped in, so his illness had dragged on.
After his mother pulled him along for several meters, Lant nearly tripped over a rock because the snot-covered visor made it impossible to make out the obstacles beneath his feet.
His mother jumped in fright. Only then did she notice that her child's helmet visor had been smeared over with snot, and she hurriedly picked Lant up.
Lant's mother was not usually this careless.
But today was different.
Like his mother, many adults were panicking, running through the settlement and shouting. Lant could not understand what they were saying, but he could sense that something terribly urgent had happened.
His mother carried Lant to the settlement square, where countless people had gathered.
The crowd remained noisy for a while. Only after everyone had arrived did the holographic device surrounded by the crowd begin functioning properly under an old man's adjustments.
An image of a man appeared before everyone.
"Good evening, my fellow humans, and every citizen of the Galactic Federation. I am Galactic Federation Council Chairman Qiao Wei, and I offer you my sincerest evening greetings."
The man spoke.