The first thing Sakti did upon returning to his warship was send the two individuals he had carried back for emergency treatment. He was afraid that if he spent even one more second chatting, his rescue targets would drop dead on the spot.
Clark’s injuries looked severe, and in reality, they were—his self-healing had completely ceased. But the human was in even worse shape. Humans were fragile; they died much faster.
All the Grey-wings who had been stuffed onto the ship were in a state of shock. The sight of an enemy starship blocking their path left them terrified and confused. With their tribal leader currently unconscious, the large swarm of insects buzzed in a chaotic mess.
The Core Seed immediately hauled out a person who had mostly recovered in a treatment pod and tossed Clark inside.
During this process, several of the silver female insect’s close Grey-wing confidants gathered around. Sakti gave a crisp, decisive order: "I am temporarily taking over command. You are responsible for protecting Clark. If any of you try to fish in troubled waters and cause him to die, I’ll have Red Tai Sui level your heads. Understood?"
His prosthetic human tail was long gone, and Sakti didn't bother pretending anymore. He picked up Arthur and headed out.
His own warship lacked medical facilities tailored for humans, whereas Clark’s vessel certainly had them. However, that ship was currently half-blown apart, so he could only take Arthur to Red Tai Sui.
"Eat, sleep, rest, and guard your new Sub-Queen."
His golden-brown eyes swept over the circle of Grey-wing members around the treatment pod, his tone calm. "Leave everything else to me."
"Don't overthink it. I will handle everything."
Then he sprinted all the way, sending docking requests as he ran, and used a small shuttle to deliver Arthur to Red Tai Sui.
Evidently, during the years he had been gone, the ship’s equipment had undergone iterations; the model of the treatment pod was highly reliable. Red Tai Sui’s autonomous consciousness was a huge help, directly sending the nearly breathless human for treatment and arranging the optimal plan.
Sakti was working himself to death.
Aside from the Grey-wing groups whose docking rails had been blown off or whose nest areas were buried, there were still remnants of the fleet idling in space that hadn't landed. They had previously been tearing into the Broad-wings and the Pedipalp-types in a messy brawl, trying to break the blockade to rescue the Queen’s Nest area. When Red Tai Sui appeared, they couldn't hold their ground either and fled, but they didn't dare go far. They lurked sneakily in the nooks and crannies of this star sector, tailing the others like suspicious shadows, waiting for an opportunity.
It took the Core Seed a long time to gather this part of the fleet.
Currently, deep-space communication was completely severed, and short-range communication wasn't very smooth either. He could only drag the ships back one by one, like a hawk catching chicks.
These Grey-wings were all lost in confusion, following behind Sakti’s Alpha warship, while Sakti’s Alpha warship followed Red Tai Sui.
It was truly a staggering spectacle.
Fine, very fine. Now Red Tai Sui would have to figure out how to explain this to the humans, while he had to figure out how to explain it to the Zerg.
Perhaps their souls had been knocked out of their bodies by the shock; currently, not a single insect dared to cut into his internal line to ask what was going on.
Looking at the little tails trailing behind him, the Core Seed’s mindset was one of total resignation.
"Could I trouble you to take us to a safe place?"
He planned to return to Clark’s own inhabited star sector first, find the Armed-type leader, and have that tail-wagging fellow come to the old Queen’s Nest area for the final cleanup and takeover.
Being disconnected was too inconvenient; later, he would also have to have Gela check the remaining Great Information Nest.
And once both sides were stable, he would settle the score with those neighbors who had tried to loot a burning house.
The former Sub-Queen had caused his cover to be blown, but Krisha was already dead. Every single one of those vulture-like neighbors—not one of them would get away.
Moreover, this war of secession had greatly weakened the entire Grey-wing tribe, and Clark was heavily injured. Red Tai Sui belonged to the human forces and wouldn't stay here for long; he had to take this chance to crush those neighbors.
Regarding this practice of trying to snatch someone else’s territory, he had always been one to seek vengeance. *Hand it over.*
"Understood," the starship gave a firm reply. "I will escort your companions until they reach a safe zone."
It set a new destination point and simultaneously sent out an access request as per his instructions.
Whatever Kleiman might think upon seeing it, the Core Seed figured he had at least given notice. The other party would surely understand.
Having finally suppressed all the thorny emergencies, Sakti boarded Red Tai Sui once more.
He was now physically and mentally exhausted, wanting only to return to a familiar, secure environment and properly organize the chaotic thoughts in his mind.
Then he discovered that the bridge he had once loved most had been cleared out; there wasn't a single chair left.
Although Red Tai Sui had gained the status of an independent cruiser and no longer had a Master, this was perhaps a bit too extreme.
The Core Seed could only look left and right, trying to find a patch of empty floor to sit on.
"I didn't expect you to appear here at a time like this. Evelyn will be furious."
He had many questions, and they were very messy. He could only take them one by one and slowly figure things out. To that end, he chose a relatively relaxed opening.
"Where have you been all this time? I looked everywhere for news of you but found nothing. It was as if you had completely vanished."
"I went to a very distant place."
This was an imprecise response, making Sakti raise an eyebrow.
"Do you still remember the story of the Old World?"
Unexpectedly, the other party was clearly avoiding his question. This shouldn't have happened. Although the ship's personality was sometimes like a poet's, a starship's underlying logic was to answer a human's questions directly, not to change the subject.
"We once chatted about it during a break. The story of the Ship of Theseus."
Sakti’s fingers curled slightly.
"I remember," he said, slowly sitting down on the floor of the bridge, gazing at his old partner.
Currently, there was no mental link between them; by unspoken agreement, neither mentioned it.
To better express its emotions, Red Tai Sui unfolded light screens before him. All the image recording devices and all the screens turned to face the unfamiliar body in front of them.
"Is your answer still unchanged now?" the other party asked.
The Core Seed fell silent for a moment. "What was my answer back then?"
The starship did not reply immediately.
The overly long silence made the empty bridge feel deathly quiet. When it spoke again, Sakti heard sadness within that level, electronic voice.
It was strange. It was clearly an unvarying tone, yet he could understand that his old partner was grieving.
"You said that you did not believe in ethereal souls, nor would you imprison yourself within the limitations of the flesh. Every minute and every second of you is the real one."
Red Tai Sui’s voice was very soft, speaking of things Sakti himself no longer remembered. "You would not live in the past, nor in a future too distant to trouble yourself with. You belong to the present."
"I want to know, is your answer the same as before?"
In their conversations, the starship rarely used such subjective phrases as "I want to know." This was a very gentle question, as if the other party were weighing and assessing something.
Sakti closed his eyes.
He very much disliked this topic. His instincts were screaming a warning, but fleeing was never an option for him.
"I don't know," he said, his voice somewhat raspy. "I've become less certain now. Sorry, I imagine you were hoping for a more resolute answer than that."
"There is no need to say sorry to me."
Those cameras and screens watched him quietly, as if gazing at a figure from the past, an old friend who would never return.
"The one who should apologize is me."
"Your initial question, regarding my cruising movements during this time—"
"I traveled to all the Akasha Rifts that have not yet completely closed. Some are known to humanity, while others are in deep-space danger zones that are difficult for humans to reach."
"I wanted to find lingering traces of Vahna, to find a way to save him, and to find a miraculous answer."
The crimson starship replied, its voice distant and gentle. "Evelyn is a very good person, a very good Empress. She approved my request; she also hoped I could bring back an answer."
"Relevant records show that the White Emperor, Karan Surya, once completely disintegrated after falling into Akasha."
"Vahna lingered in the static void for endless ages, piecing together his Master's consciousness bit by bit, completing the reconstruction of flesh and spirit. Countless coincidences formed this unique miracle of the universe."
The leaping characters faced Sakti, rows of them flashing rapidly, like tears shed by a program.
"So I violated my own logic, violated all computational results, wanting to believe for once in what humans call 'fate'."
"Since we met again, you haven't called my name once," Sakti suddenly spoke, abruptly interrupting the other's narrative. "Not even once."
His fingers were trembling slightly. He wanted to reach out and grab his old partner's control terminal, but he forced his hand to stay at his side.
"Won't you call me?"
Faced with this casual request, Red Tai Sui responded with a long silence.
Static snow filled all the screens, as if every electronic display were weeping.
"You actually don't remember, do you?"
The starship made no sound, quietly typing a line of words on the small communication screen closest to him.
"You actually don't remember my internal communication code, which is why you didn't contact me directly when we first met. You also don't remember the specific details of our conversation regarding the Ship of Theseus."
"Regrettably, in this universe, miracles rarely happen according to our wishes."
"I actually..."
The remaining words stuck in Sakti’s throat like a lump of burning coal.
He had realized those subtle inconsistencies long ago, but instinct had made him bypass the cracks of the abyss beneath his feet.
—Theoretically, his synchronization rate with his Tower Ship had maintained above 80% for a long time, belonging to a deep mental link; the other party should have been available at his beck and call.
—But the reality was that, in the face of his current calling, the other party had made no movement.
—Red Tai Sui should have responded to its Master's call the very moment he woke up, but it hadn't appeared. Not once.
—He hadn't dreamed about anything regarding V217 for a long time. Memories were like looking through a layer of frosted glass; when old photos are pressed under glass, the image becomes distorted. When he scrutinized this past again, many details that were once incredibly clear had been lost in large quantities.
—He remembered most of the battles, remembered every iteration of weaponry, remembered the relevant decrees issued, but he didn't quite remember the likes and small interests that constituted Sakti Saliban himself.
—He couldn't remember clearly what he had actually eaten in those final years—nutritional paste or simple intravenous fluids.
He understood why Red Tai Sui had circled around to talk about the Ship of Theseus and the White Emperor’s consciousness reconstruction.
The crimson starship was still too gentle. Even if, from this artificial intelligence’s rigid logic, he and the former Master were not entirely the same individual, it still tried to avoid hurting him.
"We can change the subject," Red Tai Sui said, a mechanical arm gently brushing past his face like a tender touch. "Forcing yourself is a very bad habit, and you clearly do so without hesitation."
"No need."
Forcing down his emotional fluctuations, Sakti looked up, meeting the gaze without avoidance. His hand was still trembling imperceptibly, but his voice was steady.
"What happened? I need to know."
"I need to know the full picture of the entire matter. I am not a fragile person—you should understand that more than anything else, I care about the facts."
"The Data Firmament strictly forbids the uploading of complete personalities; it only accepts consciousness fragments. Humans personally sealed Havana, drawing the line between life and death."
The starship finally compromised, letting out a soft sigh.
"Because humanity's first and only attempt did not turn out very well."
"Imperial Secretary Klein Young violated regulations and the orders of the previous Emperor. After the other's death, he attempted to upload a complete personality to the Data Firmament."
"I will not blame him; he simply hoped, as I did, that his friend would stay."
"But the excessively unstable transmission ultimately led to a failure of the operation—after all, there had never been any precedent before. Klein once resigned to accept trial for his negligence."
Red Tai Sui "looked" at the man before it.
Similar appearance, identical eyes, a soul with no difference.
The man himself didn't realize that those golden-brown eyes were shedding tears.
"An incomplete upload causes loss of memory."
"Evelyn strictly ordered the sealing of all upload and transcription methods, forbidding them from being activated again under any circumstances. Because she, arriving a step late, witnessed that failure with her own eyes."
The artificial intelligence said. They were not like humans, nor like the small portion of Zerg; they lacked tears and were forever calm.
Only the painful code, sharing the same source as love, was branded onto their cores—from birth to extinction, never to be erased.
"Sakti Saliban’s personality as a human disintegrated on the spot."
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 亚王虫 | Sub-Queen | A high-ranking Zerg status, here referring to Clark. |
| 数据天穹 | Data Firmament | A digital consciousness storage or afterlife system. |
| 阿卡夏裂隙 | Akasha Rifts | Dimensional tears or voids in space. |
| 忒修斯之船 | Ship of Theseus | The philosophical paradox about identity and replacement. |
| 哈瓦那 | Havana | Likely the name of a specific facility or project related to consciousness uploading. |
| 帝国书记官 | Imperial Secretary | Klein Young's official title. |
| 白皇帝 | White Emperor | Karan Surya's title. |
| 卡兰·苏利耶 | Karan Surya | The name of the White Emperor. |
| 法赫纳 | Vahna | Likely the name of the White Emperor's starship or AI partner. |
| 塔舰 | Tower Ship | A specific class or type of command starship linked to a Master. |
