NOVPUBKhan hurried back toward his ship after Clifford had written down a safe aunt, and Hughie delivered the star map full of new checkpoints. Thelony's citizens were nowhere to be seen now, but Khan ignored that tense silence and set off.
Truth be told, the negotiation had left a bad taste in Khan's mouth. He wanted to meet Clifford's needs, but the middle-aged man had pushed him too much, eventually caving to his threat.
That wasn't what Khan had planned. He didn't want to force people to obey him out of fear butuldn'tmpromise, either. Still, nothinguld be done about the situation now, and Khanuld only hope it wouldn't degenerate into a proper mess. He knew he would be ready to wipe out most of thoselonies otherwise.
That mood was part of the reason behind Khan's immediate departure. Blue Moon had survived onentrolled outburst but would die in the snd, and Khan wanted to avoid that. Also, he had obtained what he hadme there for so his journeyuld resume.
Khan sent the aunt to his Uncle and set the ship on a path for Coravis before adding the new map to his data. The vehicle's software absorbed and rearranged the information at rrd speed, mixing it with what Khan had divered until now while generating simulations arding to his inputs.
Most of what Hughie had noted down, if not everything, was useless to the people living in those quadrants. Even scientists and historians would struggle to find value in millennia-old junkyards and scavenged remains.
However, Khanuld think of mystical and unrealistic theories due to his unique understanding and experiences. While questioning Hughie, a hunch had already formed, and Khan planned to test it out personally.
Coravis was quite distant from Blue Moonlony. It was deeper into that unregulated side of the universe, on paths utterly devoid of human or other species' presence.
Ordinary ships would take a month to reach the planet, but Khan's vehicleuld make the trip in two weeks. Yet, when Khan felt he had ventured deep enough into the area, he stopped his ride, activating its mana shield and opening its side doors.
'If I'm right,' Khan thought, stepping past the ship's doors while enveloping himself in the pilot's technique. 'I should be able to sense something.'
Truth be told, Khan wasn'tmpletelynfident. He trusted his perception, but his hunch pointed toward something more mystical. Khan believed he had spotted similarities with Jenna's ability in Hughie's story, and she had only explained its basic theory to him.
Khan held his breath in expectation as his body crossed the mana barrier, floating in the darkness of space. The red membrane kept him warm, but he forgot about it while focusing on his surroundings. Khan had expected something shocking to hit his senses, but nothing happened.
'Was I wrong?' Khan wondered, disappointed. 𝖓𝔬𝔳𝖕𝖚𝖇.𝖈𝔬𝔪
Khan wasn't ready to give up yet. He had many explanations for his current failure, but his theory demanded something to show up in that area. He should have already seen clues near Blue Moonlony but had chosen to get closer to Coravis to be safe.
Sadly, Khanuldn't deny what he saw, which was nothing. Space was as dead and empty as always, and even his glowing eyes and incredible perceptionsuldn't uver mysteries that didn't exist.
Maybe it was due to instincts or probably sheer stubbornness, but Khan still refused to return to his ship. He took a deep breath, feeding off the air inside the red membrane before releasing the spell.
Khan's mana dispersed, leaving him exposed to the deadly emptiness around him. His body fought against the environment and lost, expelling the remaining air in his lungs. Cold sensations crept all over him, but his flesh struggled against that fearsome enemy, keeping him alive and lucid.
Khan knew his time was short and quickly running out, but he still killed any useless thought to focus on his perception. His eyes seemed to brighten under his peakncentration, and his senses stretched farther than ever, ready to capture the faintest odd event.
Nothing peculiar popped out. Actually, nothing at all popped out while Khan'sndition kept deteriorating. Admittedly, he was faring better than expected due to his evolved body, but heuld hear the warning signals getting louder with each passing snd.
Khan was almost ready to give up and return to the ship when therner of his senses captured the faintest movement. The area didn't feature anything physical. It didn't even have anything close to air, let alone winds.
Yet, something indeed moved, and Khan pointed his eyes at it. He only saw darkness from behind his glowing gaze, but squinting it revealed a vague light source.
That glow was too faint to be a proper light source. It barely existed, but Khanuldn't possibly miss it once his eyes fell on it. That wasn't air or matter. It was energy with a pale greenlor. It was mana enduring the harshness of space to travel somewhere.
Khan was so amazed by the divery he almost forgot about his situation, but his body promptly reminded him. He hurried back inside the mana barrier and sealed the ship's doors, breathing deeply in the meantime. Hisndition rvered quickly, but his mind was already elsewhere.
'I knew it!' Khan shouted in his mind, and a grin inevitably appeared on his face. 'Coravis had to bennected to the area somehow!'
The happiness of being right was short-lived. Khan's smile slowly disappeared as he sat in thought on the ship's metal floor. As excited as he felt for having found something valuable, heuldn't deny its fearsome implications.
'The mana isn't as affected as the body from space,' Khan calculated, 'But there must be some energy dispersion. Also, the planets don't exactly stay still, so there might be intelligence behind the act.'
The more Khan thought about it, the more problems he found. His findings matched his theory, so he had to face it now, and he wasn't sure heuld handle it. Even his evolved status might fall short of the issue if he werempletelyrrect.
'The Great Old One, huh,' Khan thought. 'This thing might be stronger than me.'
