RNP Chapter 20 Return to Port
Chapter 20 Return to Port
Liu En stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows of the port center corridor—the corridor's arched ceiling was inlaid with dark red warning light strips, one every five meters, casting intermittent patches of light on the metal floor. Through the armored glass, the outline of the Black Pearl could be seen in the direction of Dock-12, its lights clearly visible from space. He took out his communicator and sent a message to Vitellius.
"We're back. A shipment, accumulated over a year. The ship's in Dock-12. Want to come take a look?"
The reply came quickly. Just two words: "Coming right away."
Vitellius arrived even faster than Liu En had anticipated.
Less than an hour later, a figure in a deep red robe appeared at the entrance to Dock-12. His half-body power armor's terracotta shoulder armor gleamed a dark gray under the lights, and a mechanical prosthetic arm extended from his right arm, tool interfaces faintly visible at the fingertips. His left eye—his biological eye—constricted slightly the instant it saw the outline of the Black Pearl; his right eye's mechanical lens emitted a barely audible buzz, rapidly zooming in and out, as if confirming a discrepancy between visual data and perception.
Vitellius looked much the same as a year ago—his wrinkles were a bit deeper, but his mechanical eye was clearly a new model, with a thinner and brighter blue halo than the old one.
He stood at the edge of the berth, looked up, and saw the Black Pearl.
Then he stopped.
Liu En stood to the side, watching Vitellius's changing expressions. First, he frowned—a professional habit, as he sized up a ship he'd never seen before. The five-kilometer-long Gothic-class cruiser looked somewhat cramped in the medium-sized berth. Although it appeared slightly weathered, it was undeniably a massive vessel in every respect.
Vitellius's mouth opened a crack, the focus of his right mechanical eye rapidly shifted a few times, and the pupil of his left biological eye shrank to the size of a pinhead. Several seconds passed before he regained his voice.
"This ship..." His voice was a little dry. Seeing such a colossal vessel belonging to one person, he had to admit that even after so many years in Lucis, he couldn't help but feel a little overwhelmed. It would be a lie to say he wasn't envious.
Liu En did not respond.
Vitellius remained silent for a long time. His most valuable asset in his life was the large Thinker mainframe in his workshop, which had been in service for two hundred years; it was not the same as this cruiser. And the third-tier novice priest in front of him, Cohen Severus, who had been taking odd repair jobs in his workshop just a few years ago, now owned a cruiser.
A multitude of thoughts raced through his mind. Background, connections, powerful backers—these words multiplied in his head. To acquire a ship like this wasn't just about having connections; it meant having a truly influential figure behind it. Vitellius didn't even dare to think further.
But he didn't press the matter. Having spent so many years in Lucifer, he had met many people with secrets and knew that asking certain questions would not benefit either party.
"Your patron is indeed generous," Vitellius said in the end, his tone carrying a complex meaning. The pupil of his left eye slowly dilated back to its normal size, while the focus of his right mechanical eye fixed at mid-range.
He changed the subject. "Where's the goods? Let's see what your harvest has been like this year."
Liu En led him through the hangar and into the interior of the Black Pearl. The corridor from the hangar to the living quarters was about fifty meters long, with round, cool-toned bunk lights embedded at intervals on both sides, casting even light on the gray, non-slip metal floor. The seams of the bulkheads were coated with red sealant, and pipes were neatly arranged along the ceiling. Vitellius looked around as he walked.
"The interior is well-maintained," he remarked casually. With the distinctive scrutiny of a mechanical brethren, his right mechanical eye zoomed in, sweeping over the welding marks and pipe connections on the bulkhead.
"It's been refurbished," Liu En said.
Vitellius did not continue the conversation. But his mechanical eye quickly refocused, storing those details into its memory core.
When the cargo hatches in the warehouse area opened, one hundred and twenty-four crates of goods were neatly stacked, piled up to waist height from the ground. High-precision gears, high-precision bearings, valves, pipe fittings, cable reels, energy regulators, fuel pump assemblies, data crystals—each item bore the distinctive marks of space ruins, and each was relatively high-value cargo. The truly high-value, recyclable items had already been recovered.
Vitellius casually opened a box, picked up a piece of adamantite gear, and twirled it in his hand. There were fine wear marks on the teeth and micro-craters from a meteorite impact on the edges, but the overall precision was clearly high, indicating it could still be used. Due to its exceptionally high melting point, adamantite is generally not recycled due to the exorbitant cost. However, complete parts are a different story.
"It's been dismantled for a year?" he asked. His left biological eye stared at Liu En's face, while his right mechanical eye was focused on the surface of the gears, as if analyzing the true age of those wear marks.
"It took a year to demolish," Liu En said.
Vitellius didn't ask any further questions about the origin of the goods. In fact, it was just his characteristic style; Liu En's aging process was at an atomic level, indistinguishable even to a great sage. He took out a communicator from his robe, dialed a number, and said a few words briefly. After hanging up, he turned to look at Liu En.
"I called the procurement department of the Temple of Forging to give an estimate. The Temple will take the lion's share, and I'll help you get the rest through black market channels, at a price that's 50% higher than usual."
"Can."
While waiting, the two stood by the porthole on the bridge, gazing at the starry sky outside the harbor. After a long silence, Vitellius spoke.
"What are the next plans? We have the ship, the cargo has been shipped, and we should have some spare cash."
"Vitley, I'm going to the border of the Empire to build an industrial world," Liu En said.
Vitellius turned his head and glanced at him. The biological pupil in his left eye dilated slightly—not out of surprise, but out of shock. The focus of his right mechanical eye rapidly zoomed in and then zoomed out, as if reassessing the person before him.
"The industrial world?" he repeated, his tone carrying a hint of "Are you kidding me?"
"Yes." Liu En's tone was calm. "At that time, we will apply to develop a desolate world as the Black Pearl—an auxiliary ship of the Lucis Forging World's field fleet. The star system will be called Garros, with the main star sharing the same name."
He pulled out a data tablet from inside his robe, retrieved a file, and handed it to Vitellius.
Vitellius took it and glanced at it. It was an ancient exploration record, formatted in the style common to the Mechanicus 3,700 years ago, with age-related noise at the edges. The star system coordinates were located on the Imperial border, far from major shipping routes. The host planet, Garros, was a rocky planet with a breathable atmosphere and slightly below-standard gravity. Mineral reserves were abundant, but of low grade, making extraction costly. The exploration team's final assessment was summed up in two words: inferior.
"An exploration from 3,700 years ago?" Vitellius looked up. "Where did you find that?"
"Do you remember me telling you about the abandoned Mechanicus outpost I found at the Amegidodon Nest?" Liu En said. "It's recorded in one of the documents there. I later checked with the Temple Archives, and the development status of Garros is still 'suspended.' Three thousand seven hundred years ago, the Imperial Administration approved the development plan, building facilities and mining camps. Later, the mines became unprofitable, so the project stopped. The Empire considers this a 'development suspension,' with no tithe class and no one taking over."
Vitellius didn't respond immediately. His mechanical eye slowly zoomed in, from the data panel screen to Liu En's face, then back again. The pupil of his biological eye contracted slightly—he was rapidly calculating the pros and cons.
"So you plan to..." Vitellius said slowly, "to apply for the development of an abandoned world recognized by the Empire, using the identity of a field ship?"
"It complies with the procedures," Liu En said. "Article 3, Section 7 of the 'Lucis Casting World Field Fleet Auxiliary Ship Commissioning Agreement' states that field ships have the right to establish temporary bases on undeveloped planets for resupply, repair, and rest during missions. If a planet is deemed 'unclaimed' or 'development suspended' by the Imperial Administration, the owner of the field ship can apply for a long-term development authorization."
He paused, then added:
"The Foundry World belongs to the Mechanical Order, ruled by the Foundry Grand Master, who swears allegiance to Mars and the Emperor. But the Industrial World belongs to the Empire, and only needs to pay tithes to the Imperial Administration. The Empire doesn't care who governs it or how it's governed. To put it bluntly, the Industrial World is just a cog in the machine of the Empire. As long as it can consistently pay taxes, nobody will give it a second glance."
Vitellius was silent for a few seconds, then handed the data panel back to him.
"So you went to Garros, ostensibly to build an industrial world, but actually..."
"It's essentially about building an industrial world," Liu En said. "Maybe it can even be upgraded to a foundry world."
The words were so blunt that Vitellius was momentarily at a loss for words. He opened his mouth, then closed it again. The blue halo around his right mechanical eye shrank slightly.
"What about the procedures on the Empire's side?" he finally asked, ignoring the term "forging world."
"The development permit for Gallos from 3,700 years ago is still in the administrative archives. Development has been halted, but the permit hasn't been cancelled. All we need to do is submit a 'Restart Application' along with a letter of recommendation from Lucis forging the world." Liu En looked at Vitellius. "Once I sign the incorporation agreement with the Temple, we can submit the application."
Vitellius nodded, not pressing for further details about the process. In the vast bureaucratic machine of the Empire, in a forgotten, abandoned world, a set of standard application documents, and a few not-so-high-level signatures—this could indeed be done. Not because he had particularly unconventional connections, but because nobody cared.
"So the stock you've accumulated this year isn't just for making money," Vitellius said, "it's for filling out that letter of recommendation."
"Some of them are," Liu En did not deny.
Vitellius snorted and shook his head. He looked again at the Black Pearl outside the porthole, five kilometers of steel floating silently under the dock lights.
"Gallos," he repeated the name, as if weighing its weight in his mouth. "The Imperial border. Not close to here."
"So we need a boat," Liu En said.
Vitellius said nothing more. He took a cigarette from his robe, tapped it on the metal frame of the porthole, lit it, and took a drag. The smoke was quickly drawn away through the bridge's circulation system.
"One layer, just one layer," he said suddenly, his tone returning to its usual mercenary manner. "If Garros really takes off, my share of the profits can't be less than this."
He extended two mechanical fingers.
Liu En glanced at him. "One and a half percent."
Vitellius stared at him for two seconds, then smiled. There was an indescribable meaning in that smile—neither happiness nor disappointment, but more like a knowing "I knew you weren't so simple, kid."
"One and a half percent, deal," he said, stubbing out his cigarette on the porthole frame, leaving a small scorch mark on the metal surface.
Liu En didn't reply. He waited until Vitellius had completely stubbed out his cigarette before speaking.
"Vitley, you know, I have a friend."
Vitellius paused for a moment. He didn't look up, but the biological pupil of his left eye contracted slightly, and the focus of his right mechanical eye narrowed by one stop.
"That friend?" he asked.
"Yes," Liu En said. "He will develop Garros with me. He has enough strength—stronger than you and me combined."
Vitellius slowly straightened up and turned to look at Liu En. His expression didn't change much, but his mechanical fingers unconsciously tapped twice on the porthole frame.
"So your ship, those goods, that exploration record from 3,700 years ago..." He didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear—the shadow of that person was behind all of this.
Liu En neither denied nor explained. He simply continued speaking.
"Gallos is not my final destination. Once we get there, once the industrial world has taken shape, I can bring you over. It's better than waiting for a promotion in Lucis."
Vitellius remained silent for a few seconds.
"Gaining seniority in Lucis"—this touched a raw nerve. He'd held the title of Third-Order Apprentice Technical Priest for nearly twenty years. Apprentices who arrived after him were already Third-Order. There were millions of Third-Order priests in Lucis, but only a few thousand Fourth-Order; the two were on completely different levels. Promotion lacked "contribution." The Temple's assessment only considered two things: how much lost technology you recovered, and how many resources you brought to the Forging World. In Lucis, the potential for a Third-Order Priest was extremely limited.
And Garros… that's an industrial world built from scratch. Building a planet from the ground up means endless technological demands and countless “contributions.” More importantly, behind it stands that “friend” who can send cruisers.
Vitellius's mechanical eye zoomed in and out twice, as if processing a complex set of data. Finally, the blue aperture stabilized at mid-range.
"When do you want me to come over?" he asked calmly.
Liu En understood that it was "when" rather than "whether or not"—Vitellius had already made his decision.
"Once the infrastructure in Garros is built up and ready to receive people," he said, "it might take a few years. You need to coordinate things with the temple for me first—the incorporation agreement, the development application for Garros, and the subsequent allocation of resources. Without you overseeing things in Lucius, I won't get very far."
Vitellius nodded. He took out a cigarette from his robe again, lit it, and took a big drag.
"I'll expedite the entry agreement. You prepare the development application materials, and I'll submit them to the administrative office. I know the people there."
He flicked his cigarette ash, and the corner of his mouth curled up slightly—a smile that was somewhere between self-deprecation and sincerity.
"To be honest, after all these years in Lucis, I've long since given up on anything. What you're saying makes me feel..." He paused, unable to find the right words, and simply stopped searching. "Anyway, your problems are my problems. I'll help you coordinate everything here in Lucis."
Liu En looked at him but didn't say thank you. Some things don't need to be said.
While the two were still talking, the appraisers arrived. Two technical priests in grey robes, one with a scanner and the other with a data tablet, worked in the cargo hold for nearly an hour. Every box was opened, and every item was scanned, registered, and appraised. The whole process was quiet, with only the beeping of the scanners and occasional hushed conversations.
Finally, the older priest walked up to Liu En and handed him the data board.
"Total estimated value: 247,000 Throne Coins. Temple purchase price: 200,000."