(Y/N)
I head back to the Cockpit, though this time as the Captain and not the Vice Captain. I stand in front of the massive screen that displays to us the same five ships that put Micah in a coma.
The same five ships that probably have their weapons on standby to obliterate us if we don't comply.
I purse my lips and turn to Iman. "Iman, create a channel with the ship that sent us the message. Make it Audio only, no Visuals." I say.
He nods curtly and gets to work. A few seconds later one of the larger monitors on the wall opposite the screen comes to life. I don a microphone and a headset to ensure the Engineers don't hear what they have to say. We can't afford anymore panic for now.
A gruff, scratchy voice sounds from the other end of the line. "Finally come to the realization you don't have a choice, Captain?" It mocks.
"Oh we have a choice, Earthling," I drawl on purpose, "The lollets haven't been all that honest with you, have they? You have the weapons we disposed of exactly 500 years ago." I inform.
The silence at the other end of the line confirmed my suspicions and Dorothy's theory. While it was a leap of faith mentioning the Lollets, I really needed to know what exactly it is we are fighting.
"You-"
The voice starts. A bit angry, offended even. I roll my eyes.
"As much as I'd absolutely love to continue this scintillating conversation and make use of this information, we do agree to land on your planet. However, I do have a few conditions." I interrupt.
The voice sighs. "What are the conditions?" It asks.
"That's for your leader, not for a poor excuse of a captain of some ancient ship. Connect me to them." I order.
"How dare you insult me-" It grits.
"Just as you dared to threaten us blindly. Now, chop chop." I say in a sickly-sweet, condescending tone. I don't usually speak like this, but these Earthlings are starting to get on my nerves.
The voice sighs, exasperated. "I cannot connect you to the Supreme, but I can connect you to the Mothership. The Captain is the son of the Supreme, second in authority only to the Supreme themselves." It says in an exasperated voice.
"Do it then." I say.
A couple seconds go by when suddenly a deep voice sounds from the end of the line. "Greetings, Captain...?" It trails off.
"(Y/N)" I offer.
"Right. Captain (Y/N). This is Earth's superior Head of space travel and the Mothership's Captain, Caspian." He introduces.
Finally, someone with manners.
"Greetings to you too, Captain," I start, "You seem so respectful yet the grand welcome we received from the people of your planet was.....disrespectful, to say the least." I say.
"Apologies. We've been having issues from outer space, so all of our patrols have been asked to get any foreign ships on the ground first and ask questions later." He explains in a low voice.
Sounds like an excuse to me. Though, I'll give him the benefit of doubt for now.
"So, Captain. What brings you to Earth?" He speaks up.
"Well, we've been hoping to meet your leaders and also find a ship of ours that was last seen around here." I inform.
There's a beat of silence before he speaks again. "The Leader is currently unavailable. Though, as apology for the welcome you received, I can get you to meet their children. You know who I am, yes?" He says.
"Indeed. That works just fine. How many kids are there, though?" I ask.
For Caspian to just be a Captain despite being a son of Earth's Supreme, there must be some competition.
"Six, including me. Five sons and a daughter." He replies casually.
It's a lot, but it's expected.
The Correction mentioned that women were oppressed during the colonial era for a long while. I wonder what the daughter does in this strange version of colonialism.
"When and where are we meeting, Captain?" I ask.
"I've sent you the coordinates through this channel. You can either land your ship on Earth or you can teleport down. I'll get the servants to tend to your crew, if you'd like. We'll help you restock for your journey back." He offers.
Strange. This is too much just for just an apology.
There's something going on here.
It's a bit unsettling. We do need to restock some bandages since most were used on Micah, but I think we'll make it just fine without. We still need our modifications though.
Weighing my options, I tell him my decision.
"We've no need for your servants, but we are interested in seeing Earth. I'll land my ship in 24 hours. I expect there are no surprise attacks on ground?" I inquire.
"And if there are?" He says.
"Then let's just say your ancient weapons will stand no chance against my wrath." I say calmly before closing the channel.
I switch on the intercom. "All crew to Medbay except Iman. Supervisors are expected to handle their respective departments for the next 24 hours." I say before switching it off.
Let's get our modification for real this time.
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