Chương 65: Book 1 Epilogue: Exploration

Mahya had a good seven years. After deciding to stop traveling through the Gates, she relinquished all the skills and spells she could afford and purchased engineering skills relevant to her current world. She conjured all the needed documentation and spent 500 mana to be added to the world's database as an engineer. Since this world had zero mana, she had to visit the closest Gate a few times to regenerate discreetly. She cast her net wide, applying for every space exploration opportunity she could find.

Each rejection email had piled onto the last until she nearly stopped checking. Then one morning, her com-link blinked with a message header she had nearly given up hoping to see:"Exploration Corps: Acceptance Notification." Her hands trembled so badly she had to steady herself before she could read the rest. A laugh burst out of her, and she jumped to her feet, whooping and bouncing in place until she was breathless.

The offer was a position as a maintenance engineer on an FTL ship, and she accepted it without a moment's hesitation or even looking too closely at the mission details. Despite technological advancements, the world she was in faced severe problems. Pollution levels were so high that smog partially blotted out the sun, and plastics filled the air and water. Land degradation drove up food prices, leading to an extensive stratum of poverty where people could barely afford synthetic rations.

Overpopulation had been a pressing issue for centuries, as cities expanded outward and eventually swallowed the last remaining farmland. Wealth and privilege decided who had access to clean water, working implants, or even reliable medical care, while most people scraped by in overcrowded districts. Their mission, therefore, was twofold: Explore neighboring star systems for uninhabited planets that can be exploited for resources. Search for a planet with optimal conditions for colonization.

They set out on their mission and spent five years in space. Mahya loved every moment of the journey, even more than traveling through Gates to new worlds. Whenever she could, she stood at the hatch with her forehead pressed to the glass. Pinpricks of light smeared across the black void, each flicker reminding her why she had traded Gates for engines. Space felt endless, yet alive with a beauty that called to her, filling her soul with awe. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval.

Report sightings. After two and a half years, they completed their first mission objective and sent an uncrewed spacecraft back with the information. A year and a half ago, they found a suitable planet for their second objective. For the first year after discovering the planet, the biological and medical teams visited it frequently to collect samples. They worked around the clock to develop vaccinations against viruses and bacteria.

Finally, the day arrived for them to descend to the surface and begin the second stage. As her boots connected with the untouched soil, she opened the Map. Nothing but a sea of gray stretched across the projection. For the first time in her life, she faced a place untouched by any Traveler's footsteps. Since that day, Mahya had been stuck in a compound, knee-deep in crates and schematics, assembling the power plant piece by piece.

More than once, she wished she had read the mission details instead of leaping at the offer. Space had thrilled her; this empty world smothered her. The work was dull, and she hated every moment of it. She belonged among the stars, not trapped in a compound, wrestling with screws. One morning, Mahya woke and felt something familiar. She froze as a shiver crawled up her spine. She wrapped her arms around herself and whispered that it was only her imagination. But the lie did not hold.

She felt it as clearly as the cold in the air and the floor beneath her feet. It was here. After a moment, her expression brightened—maybe this was her way out of the trap. After her shift, she asked her supervisor for permission to leave the compound for a short walk and, once granted, headed in that direction. She arrived at an entrance to a ravine guarded by two cliffs. Those cliffs were the anchors. She touched one cliff.

Travelers Gate #1463517667 Destination: Nami Status: Integrated Mana level: 95 Threat level: Lethal