The Edge Of Space

Chapter 11 - A day off and discovery.

They had been in orbit around Sábrosk for several days, talking about their journey so far.

"I cannot find any persons in the database you have provided Vontaine" Malketa beeped after several days.

Vontaine was upside down in his seat playing with a fidget toy and Merca was listening to music.

"Uhh really? I gotta upgrade your scanner then" he huffed.

"Or perhaps put in an expanded search reference?" She suggested.

"Well I've put in all the info we have... what could be missing?" He thought.

"What location range did you set?" Merca piped in after taking out her headphones.

"The entire planet!" He exclaimed quickly as he typed away on the console.

"Try... the galaxy?" Merca suggested.

"Actually my scanner is not powerful enough to reach the entire system..." Malketa informed.

"...fuck... guess we have to visit Sábrosk again..." Vontaine mumbled.

"Not Sábrosk though, can you scan for planet bodies?" Merca asked.

"Yes," Malketa said, and after some minutes.
"There are five planetary bodies in this solar system, the first we know is named Sábrosk, the other closest does not have a name and houses Greylans base and this planet has an uninhabitable moon.

The next planet is charted by the central system, its name is Varsalome and its moon is named the hub, I don't know what that means" she informed astutely.

After some time to think and converse, they decided to venture to Varsalome. As they got closer they scanned the planet revealing they had made a good decision. The economy was credit based instead of units, and was a thriving metropolis. The orbiting moon, elegantly named "The Hub" was an understatement of its purpose.

The Hub served as a frequently used base of trading from the centre part of the universe, through to the first two rings. Thousands of trading routes passed through it daily, thus making it an invaluable area in space. So evidently the planet it orbited was extremely wealthy.

As they passed the Hub, they noticed thousands of docking bays, storing and stacking stations and various faze portals for giant haulier class vessels.

Vontaine was of course enamoured and wanted to go look but Merca kept him focused.

As they entered the atmosphere of Varsalome the only thing they could see were giant skyscrapers that reached up to kiss the clouds. Flight ships were speeding between buildings and apartment complexes further below.

They sped down to a landing zone and were greeted by in-air landing drones that connected with Malketa, assisting her in landing perfectly.

"Unregistered ship detected, identification required" an automated voice beeped from one of the drones.

"Malketa, do your thing," Vontaine said allowing her malware to run free.

The drones instantly deactivated, retreating to their charging bays and shutting down.

"Awesome!" He said with a dumb grin as the screen lifted and they climbed out saying goodbye to Malketa.

"Come here Zen," Vontaine said pointing to his shoulder. He quickly ran up and jumped on his back latching his arms and legs around his arms like a backpack with a tail.

"Good boy!" He commended in a baby voice.
Zen gave him an unimpressed look.

"Sorry" he laughed.

"How many credits do we have at the moment?" Vontaine asked.