The Man Who Received a Spaceship: It Turned Out to Be a Star!? - chapter 3
Chapter 3: Becoming a Spaceship Captain (Part 2)
Agiracana led me to the elevator hall of my apartment building and, surprisingly, pressed the up button.
“???”
We both entered the arriving elevator, and she pressed the button for the top floor, the roof.
The roof of this apartment building is usually inaccessible, with an electronic lock on the door from the elevator hall. However, Agiracana said, “Please wait a moment,” placed her hand on the door, moved the handle a few times, and the door seemed to open on its own. She stepped out onto the roof, and I had no choice but to follow.
A short distance beyond where Agiracana stopped, the air shimmered like a heat haze. Suddenly, a disc appeared, about 10 meters in diameter and 3 meters thick at its bulging center, dully reflecting light with a silver sheen.
What is this? A flying saucer? A UFO? It’s hovering above the narrow roof of the apartment building. On closer inspection, it’s slightly elevated, so maybe “landing” isn’t the right word?
If an actual heavy object had landed on the roof, my apartment building might have been in trouble.
Agiracana approached the disc.
“A-Agiracana-san? It’s a disc, a flying saucer, a UFO!”
A silver UFO on the roof of a low-rise apartment building facing a busy street. How has no one noticed? What’s going on? Is it not a UFO because it’s not flying? Or is it a UFO because it’s floating? What do you call a UFO when it lands? As I was lost in these trivial thoughts, trying to escape reality,
“You’re probably the only human on Earth who can accurately perceive it in this state, Mr. Yamada. There’s no danger, so please follow me.”
Saying this, she moved closer to the disc. And then, Agiracana vanished before my eyes.
Is the extraordinary less surprising when it’s so close at hand?
Steeling myself, I also approached the disc. Suddenly, my vision blurred, and I found myself in a silver room.
Huh? Am I inside that UFO from earlier?
The room was quite bright, with light emanating from the floor rather than the ceiling.
I was in a circular room about 5 meters in diameter, with a ceiling height of about 3 meters. There were several similar-looking spots around the perimeter of the room. Six high-backed seats, reminiscent of barber chairs, were arranged in two vertical rows of three.
“Please take any seat. We’ll depart shortly. After takeoff, we’ll switch to full transparency mode so you can enjoy the view.”
As instructed, I sat in one of the seats. It turned out to be a reclining seat, with the backrest automatically tilting back, putting me in a slightly upward position. It fit my back surprisingly well and felt comfortable.
The room darkened for a moment, then brightened again. Suddenly, the walls, floor, and ceiling of the room disappeared. I found myself lying on a reclining seat floating in the vast sky, with Agiracana reclining in the seat next to me.
“We’ll first exit the atmosphere, orbit the Earth, and then return to our departure point.”
As she explained this, the disc continued to ascend. The white clouds were far below us.
The blue sky above turned navy. Turning my body to look down, I could see Tokyo Bay, the Kanto region, the curvature of the horizon, and eventually the entire Japanese archipelago in one view. Looking up again, the pitch-black space was filled with stars. Occasional glimmers were probably satellites.
As we gained even more altitude, we passed over eastern Eurasia, India, the Arabian Peninsula, Africa, then the Atlantic Ocean, North and South America, crossed the Pacific Ocean, and before I knew it, we were back at our starting point. Checking my watch, it had only been about ten minutes. The backrest returned to its original position.
“How was it?”
Agiracana turned her seat towards me, asking for my impression.
“I was surprised, but maybe not as much as I thought I’d be. So, basically, you’re an… alien? And I’ve been abducted by aliens in this disc?”
Even as I said it, “alien person” sounded strange, but that’s what came out.
“The answer to your first question is YES. I might be a bit different from what you call an alien, but your current understanding is fine. As for your second question, this isn’t an abduction. We won’t do anything without your consent, Mr. Yamada.
This disc is what we use to communicate with the mothership currently working near Jupiter.”
“Oh, there’s a mothership too. What’s the mothership?”
“Yes. The mothership is a fairly large spaceship, specialized in construction and manufacturing. It’s a construction ship, so to speak. It’s currently engaged in a construction project.”
“So, where did you come from, Agiracana-san?”
“I myself came from the planetary spaceship Agiracana.”
“Planetary spaceship?”
“Yes. It’s a spaceship with a size comparable to a planet. In fact, it’s larger than Earth, which has a diameter of 12,000 kilometers.”
I don’t really understand, but I guess it’s fine. I remember there was once a “Spaceship Earth” concept.
“So, what does it mean for me to be the top of the organization?”
“It means you’ll assume the position of captain of the planetary spaceship Agiracana.”
“? Captain of a spaceship larger than Earth? Ship captain?”
“Since Agiracana is a space warship, the term is ‘captain’.”
“Space warship?”
“We call machines capable of interstellar travel ‘spaceships’. Among these, armed spaceships with military registration are called ‘space warships’, and particularly large ones are termed ‘space battleships’.”
“What do you mean by military registration?”
“The planetary spaceship Agiracana is a warship belonging to the Arsen Space Navy of the Interstellar Federation Kingdom.”
“Why can a civilian like me become the captain of a warship?”
“Unfortunately, the Federation Kingdom was completely defeated and annihilated in a war against space creatures called Xeno. The Arsen people are presumed to be extinct. Only the planetary spaceship Agiracana remains. There’s a possibility that some of the Federation Kingdom survived somewhere in the universe, but none have been confirmed except on Earth.
That’s why I’m not a flesh-and-blood Arsen, but a pseudo-life form created to resemble them, called a bio-droid or bionoid.
Currently, Agiracana is operated by an management AI and us bionoids, but we’re not allowed to take active combat actions against hostile forces without clear instructions from an Arsen. This is due to the Federation’s higher protocols, which we can’t change.
We’re inviting you, Mr. Yamada, as a descendant of the Arsen people, to become the captain, change these higher protocols, and give us clear instructions.”
A bio-robot! This surprised me. This person looks completely human to anyone.
“If it hasn’t been confirmed anywhere but Earth, does that mean Earth is related to these Arsen people?”
“The genetic information of Earth’s humans undoubtedly incorporates Arsen genetic information. It’s believed that there was interbreeding at some point in the past. We’ve managed to find the person with the most Arsen genetic information among Earth’s humans, and we’re trying to welcome that person as the legitimate successor of the Arsen people, a being capable of changing the higher protocols, to be the captain of Agiracana.”
“And that’s me?”
“Yes. You, Mr. Yamada, are the Earth human with the most Arsen genetic information among over seven billion people on Earth.
To find individuals with Arsen genetic information, we dispersed nanobots on Earth about ten days ago.
These nanobots were incorporated into all Earth humans on this planet. If the host has a certain amount of Arsen genetic information, the nanobots activate within the host’s body. If below that threshold, nothing happens, and they self-destruct and are excreted from the body.
Nanobots that weren’t incorporated into Earth humans also self-destructed within twelve hours after dispersal.
When nanobots activate, they multiply to a certain extent within the host’s body and work to normalize any pathological changes in the host. They also influence the host’s brain substance secretion organs to increase mental stability.
Furthermore, if the genetic information exceeds the level recognized as an Arsen descendant, the next step is to form a special biological organ within the host’s body, allowing us to pinpoint its location with our specialized detection equipment. From the host’s perspective, this biological organ enhances motor functions and other abilities.”
Thanks for the explanation.
Since she referred to me as an Earth human with Arsen genetic information, I suppose there are others like me. Maybe they weren’t as qualified or declined the captain position.
Anyway, that’s why this person came to me.
My eyesight has improved recently, and my overall health is excellent. I don’t know what kind of special organ it is, but it’s probably not dangerous.
Besides, I’m currently unemployed. I have some assets, but I’m not particularly attached to my current lifestyle.
This sounds like an incredibly good opportunity for me, doesn’t it?
“I understand. I accept your offer.”
“Thank you. I thought you might say that.”
Hey, this person’s smile is quite cute.
Wait a minute, wasn’t there something that bothered me earlier in the conversation?
“Military?” “Hostile forces?” “Combat actions?” Hold on a second!…