A not-so-happy Welcome

There was a huge silence on the bridge, with everyone's eyes fixed on Kryzius. The only sound was the faint hum of the ship floating through the sky.

Kryzius's tail wagged slowly behind him as he felt the awkwardness of the situation. It seemed like a huge outburst was about to happen.

Aeti cleared her throat, trying to break the silence. "Like I said before… our chief is back."

Sara's mouth opened to say something, but no words came out.

"This is… surprising," Yamaha said, his voice calm but clearly shocked.

"Well… that's…" Rina adjusted her glasses, at a loss for words.

…

…

Alex suddenly shouted, "OUR CAPTAIN IS BACK!!!"

Everyone screamed in happiness, the soldiers erupting into cheers. The bridge filled with pure contentment. Kryzius looked at the scene in surprise, overwhelmed by how much they had missed him.

Aeti raised a hand, calling for attention. "However… he has forgotten everything."

The silence returned, even more profound than before.

…

…

"WHAT?!"

—

After Aeti explained the situation, a heavy silence filled the room.

Rina broke the silence. "So... our captain was reincarnated?"

Aeti nodded. "Unfortunately, yes. The problem is understanding how or why this happened. We know that Master is already aware, but..."

"T-this is impossible... I mean..." Sara shook her head. "Why didn't you tell us earlier that the captain died?!"

Alex chimed in, his voice filled with frustration. "I agree... if our captain was dying, this should have been our concern too."

Kryzius observed Alex and Sara. Their loyalty to their captain was evident and surprisingly strong.

Aeti closed her eyes and sighed. "I apologize. As much as I wanted to tell you all the truth, I didn't want to add another burden to the team."

Kryzius furrowed his brow. "Another burden...?"

Alex interjected angrily, "Don't you dare say his name!"

Aeti sighed deeply. "Yes, my apology..."

Sara stepped forward, her voice filled with a mix of hurt and understanding. "I know you wanted to protect us from the truth, but... you could have trusted us. We deserve to know, especially when it concerns our captain."

Aeti nodded silently, accepting defeat in the face of her team's disappointment.

Sara looked up at Kryzius, uncertainty written on her face. "I don't know if we can trust you or believe that all this is happening, but... if you actually managed to reincarnate inside our captain, then there must be something he saw in you."

Kryzius nodded earnestly. "I... I will try my best to remember everything."

Sara sighed sadly. "Yeah... I hope so as well." She slowly walked back to her station. "Alright, everyone, get back to work."

With a heavy heart, the team dispersed, each lost in their own thoughts and concerns. The weight of their captain's absence and the mysteries surrounding Kryzius's reincarnation hung heavily in the air.