Chapter 304: Arriving in Person
The cavern fell into dead silence.
The members of Maine's squad, despite coming from a much colder world where human life was treated like dirt, could feel the profound grief radiating from Admiral Kirk over the loss of his best friend.
Valerie maintained a respectful silence, and Jackie put away his usual cynical expression.
They might not fully understand this deep bond, but respecting the genuine emotions revealed by a strong individual was a common principle that crossed the boundaries of worlds.
Saavik, as a fellow Vulcan, although suppressing her emotions with powerful logic, had her pointed ears twitch almost imperceptibly. She slightly lowered her head, expressing silent mourning for the passing of an outstanding colleague in the Vulcan way.
Carol stepped forward and gently grasped Kirk's arm, silently offering comfort.
She knew that at this moment, any words were pale and powerless.
Kirk shook off his brief trance and raised his head again. His gaze regained some of its firmness as a commander. He looked at Maine and Valerie: "It seems your portal hasn't opened yet?"
Valerie nodded: "Yes, Admiral. We are still waiting for the 'Magos's' instructions and coordinate calibration."
Kirk pondered for a moment, seemingly making a decision.
He glanced at this vibrant cavern, then at the group of visitors from another dimension before him.
"In that case, before I pick up Dr. Marcus and Lieutenant Saavik, this place will temporarily be for your shared use. But I need your guarantee that you will not cause any damage to the facility, nor attempt to enter the core restricted areas." His tone carried an unquestionable bottom line, but it also revealed that after this incident, he had gained a subtle trust in these "otherworldly visitors" based on their shared experience.
A crisis spanning dimensions was temporarily resolved, but new reflections on life, sacrifice, and the subtle relationships between different civilizations quietly planted seeds in everyone's hearts.
Carrying the heaviness of losing his best friend and the relief of completing his mission, Kirk prepared to leave with his companions; meanwhile, Maine's squad continued their wait, awaiting the signal to return in this bizarre world that had just witnessed a miracle of life and the fall of a hero.
After several days of waiting, the silent dimensional portal finally showed signs of activity again.
Ghostly blue light slowly lit up in the Genesis Cavern. The energy flow gradually stabilized from its chaotic state, forming a swirling vortex of light.
"The portal is activated!" Pilar, who had been responsible for monitoring the equipment, immediately issued a warning.
The members of Maine's squad, Valerie, and Jackie quickly assembled in front of the portal. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief—the path of return had finally opened.
Following established protocols, Valerie immediately sent the prepared briefing information across the dimension via an encrypted data link. It summarized the unexpected contact, the current environmental assessment, and the existence of the United Federation of Planets, concluding with a request: "...The mission squad has completed preliminary reconnaissance and contact. The current environment is relatively stable. Requesting instructions: Shall we return immediately?"
The message sent, the ghostly blue vortex continued to swirl steadily. The group held their breath, awaiting instructions from the "Magos."
However, the expected permission to return or further instructions did not arrive.
Under everyone's confused gazes, the light of the recently stabilized portal actually began to decay rapidly. The swirling vortex of light suddenly extinguished like a power cut. The massive ring structure returned to dead silence, as if everything just now had been a hallucination.
"What's going on? Is the energy unstable?" Jackie couldn't help but cry out, his face written with astonishment.
Maine furrowed his brows tightly, and Valerie also looked puzzled. She quickly checked the local monitoring equipment, confirming that the signal had just been sent successfully and that the portal hadn't closed due to energy overload or a malfunction. It looked more like... the other side had actively severed the connection.
Just as a feeling of unease and doubt began to spread, with an interval of less than ten minutes, the dimensional portal activated again without any warning!
Ghostly blue light flared instantly, and the energy flow surged violently. Its intensity far exceeded before, even making the entire cavern tremble slightly.
Immediately after, under everyone's astonished gazes, the silhouette of a massive, dark red mechanical figure rapidly turned from illusory to solid in the center of the light vortex—Ryo had actually crossed over in person!
His intensely oppressive metallic body fully solidified, his metal lower limbs stepping onto the floor of the Genesis Cavern with a heavy thud.
His crimson optical lenses swept over the entire scene, taking in Maine's squad, Valerie, Jackie, as well as Saavik, who was standing by in full readiness, and Carol and her son, whose faces were full of amazement.
"Lord Magos!" Valerie and Maine spoke almost simultaneously, their tones filled with surprise.
Ryo did not immediately respond to their surprise.
His data processing core was operating at maximum speed. The keywords extracted from the briefing just sent back by Maine's squad—"United Federation of Planets," "Enterprise," "James T. Kirk"—were instantly activated, compared, and confirmed in his massive database.
As a transmigrator, how could he not know the meaning these names represented?
That Golden Age legend depicting humanity's exploration of the sea of stars, contact with countless alien civilizations, and full of idealistic colors!
He clearly remembered that although the United Federation of Planets in this world possessed technologies like warp drive, matter transporters, and holodecks that far exceeded his current level of understanding, its main theme was exploration and peace, not war and conquest.
The Enterprise, in particular, was a starship with scientific exploration as its primary mission.
Such a universe, containing near-limitless technological treasures and possessing an overall atmosphere relatively peaceful for humanity, held a fatal attraction for an Explorator Magos.
The moment he received the information and confirmed the stability of the coordinates, a long-lost, almost "impulsive" emotional current crashed through his usually absolutely rational mental barriers.
To personally set foot in this world that only existed in "stories," to witness with his own eyes, and even acquire those legendary technologies...
This intense desire for knowledge and possession made him forcibly interrupt the sustained energy output maintaining the portal without almost any hesitation. On the other side, he rapidly adjusted and infused a massive amount of energy sufficient to support a one-way crossing for his main body, seizing the window before the coordinates dissipated to descend here in person.
"I have received the briefing." Ryo's synthesized voice finally sounded, seemingly carrying a trace of an imperceptible fluctuation called "excitement" compared to usual.
His optical lenses passed over his subordinates, locking directly onto Saavik and Carol, especially the still-operating tricorder in Saavik's hands, and the aura of a top-tier scientist radiating from Carol.
"This world... the United Federation of Planets..." Ryo's mechanical head turned slightly, as if "breathing" the air of this unfamiliar dimension, sensing the technological atmosphere within it that was vastly different from the Warhammer universe and the Cyberpunk world. "...It contains a highly valuable knowledge system."
His massive body turned toward Maine and Valerie, issuing a new directive: "Exploration mission altered. Priority elevated to maximum. I will personally lead the preliminary contact and technological assessment of this dimension."
He knew clearly that dealing with a civilization that revered rational exploration was far "safer" and carried greater potential returns than wrestling with the Chaos or the Imperium of the Warhammer universe.
He absolutely could not miss this opportunity.
The instincts of an Explorator Magos overpowered all cautious considerations, prompting him to make this seemingly impulsive decision, which was actually the result of an instantaneous weighing of pros and cons—to brave the danger personally, solely to seize those technological treasures shining with golden light.
(End of Chapter)