Chapter 3: The Dreadnought Calls

The figure stood motionless, its glowing red eyes locked onto me. Even though I knew it was just a projection, something about it felt alive, like it was watching, analyzing, judging.

I swallowed hard.

“You first,” I repeated, my voice steadier than I felt.

A long pause. Then, the figure spoke.

“I am G’Lan, artificial intelligence of this Narn vessel. This ship was damaged and abandoned during a conflict long ago. You are the first organic lifeform to enter since.”

My mind reeled. Artificial intelligence? Narn? Conflict?

“What ... exactly are you?” I asked. “I mean, you’re obviously not human.”

G’Lan tilted his head, the faint glow of his form shimmering as if considering the question.

“I am the last remnant of my crew. My function was to assist in navigation, tactics, and ship operations. Now, I exist without purpose.” His voice carried no emotion, but there was something deeply unsettling in those words.

I rubbed my hands over my face, trying to process everything. “Okay. So, let me get this straight—this ship is alien. You’re its AI. And I just happened to stumble in here, nearly breaking my damn leg in the process.”

“Correct.”

I exhaled. “Lucky me.”

G’Lan regarded me for a moment. Then, his next words sent a chill through me.

“You are not of this time.”

I blinked. “What?”

“Your biological signature, cellular composition, and genetic markers indicate an origin point of Earth during the late 20th century. However, current galactic records place this time period at least three centuries in the past.”

I stared at him.

“No. That—that’s not possible.”

“And yet, it is true.”

I felt dizzy. My hands clenched into fists as I struggled to wrap my head around it. Three hundred years? That meant ... everyone I had ever known—my family, my friends, my entire world was gone.

I took a step back, shaking my head. “No. You’re wrong. I was just hiking. A storm hit. I fell into this place—that’s it.”

G’Lan remained silent for a long moment. Then, he raised a single hand. A shimmering, holographic display appeared in the air, filled with star maps and data streams.

“This vessel’s logs confirm a prolonged state of dormancy,” he said. “The last recorded battle entry dates back over three centuries.”

I looked at the screen, seeing alien script, star charts shifting, timestamps that meant nothing to me. But somewhere deep in my gut, I knew he was telling the truth.

Somehow, I had slipped through time itself.

I staggered back and collapsed onto a metal bench, running a hand through my hair. “Jesus ... This is insane.”

Silence stretched between us. I could feel G’Lan watching me, waiting.

Finally, I spoke. “Okay. Say I believe you. What now? I can’t exactly go back home, can I?”

G’Lan’s red eyes flickered. “There is another option.”

I looked up. “ ... What do you mean?”

The holographic display shifted, zooming in on a star system far from Earth. A massive silhouette materialized in the projection a warship.

A dreadnought.

“This is an abandoned Bin’Tak-class warship,” G’Lan explained. “A Narn vessel, similar to my own, but far larger. It was lost in battle and left adrift. The ship is intact, yet unclaimed.”

I sat up straighter, my heart pounding.

“You’re saying ... I could take it?”

“Affirmative. The ship is without crew or commander. It requires only one to awaken it.”

I licked my lips, staring at the warship’s silhouette.

A dreadnought. A ship built for war, exploration, survival.

And somehow, it was waiting for me.

I clenched my fists.

Everything I had ever known was gone. The world I had left behind was nothing but history now. But here, out in the stars, I had been given a second chance.

A chance to command something powerful. A chance to chart my own course, to claim the universe as my own.

I exhaled, steadying myself. Then, I looked up at G’Lan.

“Alright,” I said. “Take me to it.”