Zhao Chen stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, a cup of some hot drink in his hand.
He looked at the dock before him, a full hundred kilometers in length!
Standing at this point, Zhao Chen looked to either side, and had the feeling that he could not see to the end of it at a glance; he could see only the mechanical structural frames upon the two sides.
"Report, the special-grade dock is built. All building tasks of Galaxy Base No. 1 are ended," a technician reported to Chief Engineer Nana at Zhao Chen's side.
"Good. Let the Hades-class Interstellar Dreadnought enter port," Nana said.
"Yes! This is Galaxy Base No. 1; Hades, follow our guide ship, and enter the special-grade dock." The technician began to make the arrangements.
"You have had a hard time of it," Zhao Chen said, looking at Nana beside him with the black rings under her eyes.
For this plan of the Hades' upgrade and refit, Nana had spent a full three days in the arranging; through those three days Zhao Chen had been at her side assisting, and Nana had slept, first and last, less than five hours.
Had Zhao Chen not pressed her to go and rest, she could likely have gone on burning her liver.
For after all, an interstellar warship a hundred kilometers long returning to port suddenly for upgrade and refit was no small matter.
The hundred-kilometer Hades!
Had it not been for the T5 Galaxy-class Large Interstellar Industrial Base, likely no other dock whatever could have held this vast thing.
For this, Nana had moved all of Galaxy Base No. 1's present building tasks over to No. 2.
And at the same time changed the block structure within Galaxy Base No. 1.
This was a great point of the Galaxy-class Large Interstellar Industrial Base as well: to answer every building plan, the inside of a Galaxy-class Large Interstellar Industrial Base could be moved and arranged at will, like building bricks.
And so there was now this special-grade dock, a full hundred kilometers in length,
made expressly for the Hades.
The single step of the Hades' entering port took a long five hours.
Because the space within was narrow, it was not possible to let the Hades use her own engines; for a moment's carelessness would have smashed Galaxy Base No. 1.
So it was wholly by several hundred unmanned tugs, before and behind, that she entered this special-grade dock little by little.
Zhao Chen looked at the Hades' vast hull outside the floor-to-ceiling window; when one was aboard the Hades, there was no particular feeling of it.
But when one looked at the Hades from outside, one felt truly and solidly the vastness of the Hades' hull.
A terrible presence.
When the Hades had wholly entered the special-grade dock, vast gates came down upon both sides, cutting the inner environment off utterly from the space outside.
At the same time, mechanical arms without number stretched forth, and laid themselves against the surface of the Hades' hull.
From this point, the Hades' starship engines could be shut down wholly and altogether.
This was the first rest since the Hades had been built and come off the line.
The ship's company aboard the Hades came in for a long leave, rare with them.
They would next go for leave and physical examination, or go to the academy for further study.
And some could go to other starships to take up posts.
For after all this course of refit needed several months, and these ship's company must be arranged for as well; it was not possible for them all to wait idle here.
"This Hades of mine, then, I hand over to you," Zhao Chen said, clapping Nana upon the shoulder.
Nana's eyes gave out light, and she said with the firmest assurance, "Let the Commander set his mind at rest. We shall surely let a Hades new as new appear before you, in a stronger posture still!"
Zhao Chen nodded, satisfied.
Thereafter he made ready to leave for the next place.
Zhao Chen's flagship changed as well, from the Hades to a T5 interstellar warship.
"Little Bug!"
"Sister Annie……"
"Little Bug! When Sister Annie is not at your side, you must take good care of yourself. You must remember to eat, and you must remember to watch the videos Sister Annie made ready for you! In the bag are the snacks your sister made ready for you."
"Sister Annie."
"Little Bug, you must be happy, you must be glad. Little Bug… Sister Annie cannot bear to part with you… boo-hoo-hoo."
Annie squatted upon the ground, looking at the shuttle already flying further and further off outside the transparent viewport, her face all traced with tears; she looked at her own hand, where the feel of Little Bug's grip still remained.
Nana beside her, watching this piece of her elder sister's about parting in life and death, stepped up and took her outright by the collar, without ceremony.
"These few days you have eaten what you should eat and played what you should play; Now you may get back to work for me." Nana dragged Annie off toward the office.
Annie wept loudly. "Little Bug! Take me away with you; bear to part with you I cannot!"
……
Aboard the shuttle.
Zhao Chen looked at Hive Princess, who but a moment since had been weeping and clinging to Annie as though at a parting in life and death.
In the moment the hatch came down, the look upon Hive Princess's face had gone back to what it was.
"How now? You and Annie have been these few days only, and are upon such terms already?" Zhao Chen looked at Hive Princess in doubt.
He looked at the great rucksack beside Hive Princess, a full three times her own height, and all of it the good things Annie had made ready for her.
"I do not know. In the films Sister Annie let me see. It seems that when friends part, it must be like this." Hive Princess sat down calmly at Zhao Chen's side, and drew a packet of snacks out of the rucksack beside her, holding it out to Zhao Chen.
"Will you have some?"
"Thank you."
Zhao Chen took it without ceremony.
"Have you ever tried holding speech with the interstellar hive-race that Order controls?" Zhao Chen asked.
"I have not tried…… before, Mama and Granny Bug both protected me. Though I knew there was such a thing, yet I have had no contact with them," Hive Princess said, shaking her head.
Zhao Chen set out what was next arranged. "Did I not tell you before that there are some interstellar hive-race under Order's control who launch invasions upon our universe from time to time. This is why our feeling toward you was not very good when we first met. In the fighting of the past, we captured no few of them, for study. Presently I shall take you to a laboratory given expressly to the study of the interstellar hive-race, and let you first try holding speech with the interstellar hive-race under our control. If it goes smoothly. There are two permanent cosmic bug-nests; when the time comes I shall take you to those two places, and let you try making contact with the interstellar hive-race there, in the environment of space. The latter may hold some danger, but I will protect you."
Hive Princess nodded.
"You agree to it, then?" Zhao Chen looked at Hive Princess in some surprise.
Hive Princess showed a trace of a smile. "My instinct tells me that you mean me no ill. And what you propose interests me very much besides. If I can control the interstellar hive-race you speak of, then this may perhaps be a chance for me to take vengeance upon Order, and a chance to win back my homeland and to seek my mama. I mean to make myself stronger!"
One could see that this stretch of time had worked no small change in this Hive Princess who had woken.
"A pleasant partnership." Zhao Chen put out his hand before Hive Princess.
Hive Princess looked at Zhao Chen, and put out her own hand as well.
"A pleasant partnership."