Those Lakures

Aiken began to wake up slowly, feeling a huge headache. He didn't know what happened, nor how long he was gone for. Due to the side effects of the injection, he was still feeling rather dizzy, finding it difficult to focus his mind. There were some voices echoing in the distance, though.

"...Why was it here? That's not supposed to happen on this planet!"

"Shut up! It is still experimental. Besides, our mission is just to recover the body. Everything else is not of our concern."

"Not of our concern?! We are at huge risk by simply being in this galaxy! What if..."

"Wait, don't say anything anymore, look."

The two figures talking in the distance then looked at Aiken, who was trying to sit on the bed. "Seems like the target has awakened."

Aiken didn't know how many hours had passed. Yet, he felt like it had been forever. Of course, he kept a wary expression, looking at the two guys ahead. At first, his vision was somewhat blurred due to the hit on his head earlier, but it stabilized little by little. Finally, he could see the faces... or better, he couldn't. Both the beings ahead had their faces covered with helmets. 

Yet, looking at their bodies, Aiken was certain about one thing. They were definitely not humans. Although their bodies looked pretty much human-like, they had a few blueish scales that seemed to merge perfectly with their skin. Their skin, however, was very similar to humans. It gave quite an esoteric feeling, not that Aiken cared about that at the moment.

With the development of the Stellar Spatial Engine by the Frutnibe Race of the Erstral Galaxy, all races in the Universe soon acquired the means to do interstellar travel. Covering the entire distance of the milk way now didn't take more than a few minutes. 

It goes without saying that interactions with new forms of life have become quite ordinary in the past twenty thousand years. They were especially common between races that had similar living environments. For example, races that used similar levels of oxygen and temperature to live could visit Earth and vice-versa. 

The two in front of Aiken, however, didn't seem to come from such a planet. Aiken recognized the helmet they were using. They were quite standard for races that had different living environments and breathed different elements, or the oxygen levels they used were different from the normal environment on Earth. It's just that Aiken only saw these helmets through the Stellar Network. In the place where he lived, it was very, very rare for anyone other than humans to be seen. Even if they did, they were usually races that could live in the same environment, so they didn't have helmets.

Aiken couldn't help but get tense. Yet, what really scared him was when he looked at the screen ahead of those two beings. It showed a live video of the outside environment of the place they were at the moment. Stars... All Aiken could see were Stars... Aiken... Somehow had left Earth...

Aiken was only fourteen, and he wasn't rich by any means. He was truly quite normal, with a normal family who received average payment. That said, Aiken had never had the chance to travel out of the country, let alone out of the planet. He dreamed of being able to join the Stellar Army from Earth and travel the space. He was what you called a Stellar Nerd. He knew everything about Stellar Manipulators, Stellar Ships, and everything involved with them, all for the sake of the day he would become a Stellar Manipulator himself. But... this wasn't exactly how he expected to realize one of his dreams.

"W-Who are you? Where are my parents?!" Finally, Aiken mustered the courage to speak. It was obvious he had been put to sleep now. "Where are you taking me?!" Aiken then tried to get up.

*Thud!*

Yet, it was at that moment he hit some kind of invisible barrier. The bed he was using had an energy field that prevented anything inside from coming out. 

"Relax, kid," said one of the guys ahead. "We have quite a long way ahead, so just lie down and wait. It will take a few weeks of nonstop Interstellar Travel until we reach our destination. Don't worry about your parents. They should be sleeping comfortably in your house at the moment. They won't wake up until tomorrow, though. I made sure of it."

"What?!" Aiken was taken aback.

*Zuuuuuuuu...*

Suddenly, Aiken heard the sound of something charging up. 

"Finally!" The guy on the right seat commented. "This shit takes too long!"

"What didn't you expect?" The one on the left shrugged his shoulders. "This is one of the most basic models, as cheap as you can get. Just the fact we can hear the Stellar Spatial Engine charging up is proof of how bad this shit Stellar Ship is. Anyway, we can finally enter Interstellar Spatial Speeds. Let's get out of this shit galaxy."

The Stars on the screen suddenly seemed to approach in a fraction of a second. Next, there were no stars anymore; countless lines of white lights passing at huge speeds were the only thing possible to be seen. Aiken hadn't traveled space before, but as someone aiming to become a Stellar Manipulator, he would eventually do that, so he read all about it, seeing many videos. There was no doubt he was leaving Earth far behind.

'No, wait...' Aiken then noticed a crucial point. 'Did he say a few weeks of nonstop Interstellar Travel?' As mentioned before, at Interstellar Spatial Speeds, crossing the entire Milkway didn't take more than a few minutes. If you had a real Cream of the Crop Stellar Ship, a few seconds was more than enough. Yet, Aiken heard that while traveling at such speeds, they wouldn't reach their destination until a few WEEKS had gone by? 'Just how fucking far are we going?!' He thought.

The two beings on the seats finally seemed to relax, laying their backs on their seats. "As long as we don't leave Interstellar Spatial Speeds, we shouldn't be in any danger," said the right guy.

The left one nodded. "Although it is not impossible, you would truly need some top equipment to catch us. No one should even know about our presence here, so we should be fine."

Then, the guy on the right touched some button on the back of his helmet, which soon opened. A long, light blue hair flowed down, revealing a female feature with just a single light blue scale on her forehead. At the end of the day, it wasn't a guy... Because of the helmet, Aiken couldn't tell if their voices were male or female, but now it became pretty obvious.

The guy on the left did the same. This time, he was truly a man. He also had the same single light blue scale on his forehead, showing the two were indeed from the same race. 'Seems like they weren't using that helmet because of the different air on Earth. Instead, they were only concealing their faces with them,' Aiken thought. 

Aiken tried to think about all the races he knew about. Unfortunately, the Universe was just too big. From what Aiken found in the Stellar Network from Earth, there were already tens of thousands of different races registered, and everyone believed it was only the tip of the Iceberg. Aiken remembered the races of pretty much all nearby galaxies. He was certain none of them looked like those two ahead.

The woman then got up and stretched her back, feeling the stress of the job leaving her body. "I say... they could find a better way to predict when this shit happens, no? How are they going to cover it up?"

The man also got up and shook his head. "If it was that simple, they wouldn't need people like us. Would you like that?"

"I would like if we didn't have to enter enemy territory," the woman replied, trying to avoid the subject.

The man smiled and then turned in Aiken's direction. He approached him, sitting on a chair in front of Aiken's bed. "Hello, Aiken. Or should I call you Starless? Everyone back on Earth seemed to catch up with this nickname quite fast."

Aiken wasn't in the mood for jokes. "What do you want with me? I'm exactly as you said, Starless. I have absolutely no control over Stellar Energy whatsoever! Wait, are you from those entertainment companies? I know that someone like me is bound to become some attraction for others to see."

The man shook his head. "Why would we bring you away from Earth if we were with them? Anyway, just relax. We will not harm you. Who knows? One day, you might even be able to return to your planet."

Aiken then sat at the border of the bed, this time taking care to not hit the energy field that was locking him there. "I still haven't heard about you. Care to explain?"

The woman on the back snorted. "Hmph! Are you in a position to demand anything? Just be happy we are not keeping you asleep during the entire travel. Not that we don't want to, but that it might affect your body instead."

"Well, well, let's not be this harsh, shall we?" The man tried to ease the mood as he smiled. "Aiken, it is only normal that you have questions. Unfortunately, we are not allowed to speak about your condition. Once we arrive, you will understand."

The man then changed the subject. "Oh, by the way, you can call me Liam. That gentle woman on the back is Felina. Nice to meet you."

"Don't go around telling our names, idiot." Felina didn't seem that happy with Liam's comments.

Liam shrugged his shoulders. "Trust me, deep, deep, deep, reaaaaaaaaally deep down, she has a kind heart."

*Tch!* Felina clicked her tongue and then went back to her seat at the front of the Stellar Ship, bringing something with her to drink.

"Can you at least tell me which race you are from? This is the first time I have seen your type," Aiken asked back, at least knowing he wasn't in immediate danger here.

"Oh, that much isn't a problem. We are Lakures, members of the Lakure Race," Liam answered.

Aiken thought about it but couldn't remember that name. "Lakures?"

Felina snorted from the front seat. "What's the point in telling our race's name? We are in the Dark Forest, so he obviously doesn't know."

"Dark Forest?!" Aiken immediately understood her words.