Chu Mu's request did not receive an immediate response.
The only way to join the Stellaron Hunters was through an invitation from Elio.
Kafka, Silver Wolf, Blade, and even Sam aboard the Star Destroyer had all joined the Stellaron Hunters at Elio's personal invitation.
So, to grant Chu Mu's wish, they had to bring Elio over.
That task fell to Sam.
Sam was a towering figure in armor. He seemed to be a mechanical lifeform like Svarog, though it was also possible that he was some kind of removable mech suit, perhaps with a human pilot hidden inside.
Chu Mu knew little about Sam, only that he was a veteran of the Stellaron Hunters who had joined even before Blade and Silver Wolf.
Sam would go and fetch Elio.
The Star Destroyer's Auxiliary Ship detached and departed with Sam aboard.
The main ship, meanwhile, warped toward Deep Blue Star.
Silver Wolf kept up her good habit of checking for Sampo before warping. She installed surveillance equipment in every ventilation duct and even electrified the inner walls with high-voltage current. Only after confirming that Sampo was nowhere to be found did she feel safe enough to initiate the warp.
If Belobog was Chu Mu's second home, then his true home ought to have been Deep Blue Star.
Deep Blue Star was an Incubator disguised as a planet.
Who knew where his previous incarnation had hauled such a massive Incubator from? After that incarnation's death, it had nurtured the Chu Mu of this life.
His previous incarnation had arranged everything for him, but the betrayal of his followers and the arrival of Propagation had forced Chu Mu to leave Deep Blue Star early.
Without those factors, Chu Mu probably would have slept on Deep Blue Star for twenty years, absorbing the