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I had just gotten up and was walking down the long hallway to the Starlancer trade fair with a can of coffee in my hand. My bare feet made a slight slapping sound on the metal floor. Still half asleep, I walked through the door to the trade fair. Brubacker, Friedrich, and Hermieoth looked at me with confusion. It quickly became clear that they weren’t staring at me because I was wearing only underwear and a T-shirt. They were staring at me because of the T-shirt, or more precisely, because of the lettering on it.

“‘Future Navy Pilot’!? You wear something like that? Are you crazy, Zero?” Brubacker asked in a slightly horrified tone.

“Says the guy wearing a UEE space suit,” I replied.

“But you reject the UEE.”

“I got it after training at flight school during Invictus Launch Week. It’s pretty good as pajamas.”

“You got what?”

Bru’s incomprehension seemed to grow. The others also shook their heads in confusion.

“It’s good to know how security operates on patrol. I don’t want security suddenly appearing out of nowhere like a Valakkar during a smuggling operation.”

Friedrich ended the discussion and explained the plan for the day to us. He had scouted locations on the moon where we wanted to continue our search for materials that could help solve the rain crisis. After the first day of our expedition had not gone well, I was a little worried and asked.

“Did you hear voices last night? A prophecy or something? According to legend, the prophet of Pyro predicted the end of mining companies. Not that we’re in any danger of that.”

“Nonsense. Now put on some proper clothes,” Bru brushed aside my concerns.

After I changed, we flew to the first spot Friedrich had scouted out. It was a cave.

I stood at the edge of the deep hole in the middle of the sandy desert. Brubacker approached from behind in an ATLS Geo with a metallic thud. Hermieoth and Friedrich had already climbed down. Bru activated the Geo’s jetpack to jump down as well. However, he missed the hole and landed on the other side. I watched his efforts with a grin. For my own safety, I decided to wait until Bru was down. Then I climbed into the hole.

A branched stone cave awaited us below. As we passed through a narrow passage that was too narrow for the Geo, the cave opened up into a large hall. Mushrooms glowed a faint blue all over the walls and ceiling. It was an impressive sight, as if we were surrounded by a starry sky. Fascinated, I looked down into the dark hall from above. In the faint light of the mushrooms, I could make out narrow stone bridges, ledges, and galleries. Every now and then, I heard the rumbling of a falling stone, which triggered a reverberating echo.

I carefully climbed down a ledge and followed the narrow path. To my right was the wall, to my left was a deep abyss. After a few meters, I found a passage to a side arm. I went inside. Suddenly, with every step I took, there was a “splash, splash, splash” sound. A liquid was running down my helmet visor.

“Guys, it’s wet here,” I informed the others over the radio.

I searched the side passage and found a stone with minerals. I started working on the stone with the multitool. The yellow mining laser penetrated the stone until it began to glow. Suddenly there was a loud bang. A strong shock wave threw me to the ground. Groaning, I tried to move, but in vain. The groans on the radio from the others were the last thing I heard before everything went black.

A sharp pain and burning sensation brought me back to consciousness. I slowly opened my eyes and saw Hermieoth leaning over me. He had rammed a medpen into my chest.

“I was thrown against the wall and briefly lost consciousness,” I heard his voice, still somewhat distant. “Bru and Friedrich are lying over there on the narrow bridge. Friedrich is about to fall. Do you have a tractor beam? We have to secure him.”

With great effort, I got up and exchanged the mining attachment of the multitool for the tractor beam. After securing Friedrich, we treated him and Bru with the medgun.

“What was that?” asked Brubacker.

“Probably a deflagration. Could be hydrogen. Maybe the mushrooms produce it,” Friedrich speculated.

“In the future, someone should stay in the spaceship to help in an emergency,” Hermieoth stated.

“This cave is cursed. The whole moon is cursed. The prophet’s prophecy is coming true. We have to get out of here,” I shouted, leaving the cave without waiting for the others.

In the spaceship, I opened a can of Rust to recover from the shock. By the time the others returned, I had already downed two cans of the strong alcohol.

Suddenly, an alarm sounded. I couldn’t believe it. What was going on now?

“A solar flare,” Friedrich said.

“Bru, shut down the ship’s systems. Everyone to the engine room, that’s where we’ll be best protected,” Hermieoth ordered.

Everyone ran around like headless chickens. I sat at the table and watched the commotion with my Rust in my hand.

“Zero go! We have 30 seconds left,” Hermieoth shouted.

I slowly got up and went to the engine room.

“Zero, 10 seconds left!”

No sooner had the engine room door closed behind me than the lights went out and the red emergency lighting began to flash. Several fuses had blown due to the effects of the solar flare. This expedition was really not going well. I was slowly beginning to believe in the prophet’s doomsday prophecy.

After replacing the fuses, we decided to fly to the second point Friedrich had scouted out, despite all the obstacles.

I steered the Starlancer through the night and scanned for energy signatures. At some point, the sensors showed a signature I hadn’t expected. I immediately landed the ship. The signature was right in front of us. I turned on the lights.

“What is that?” asked Brubacker.

“Young Valakkare,” I replied enthusiastically and ran to the elevator.

In the glow of the headlights, two sandworms poked their heads out of the sand. Despite the others’ concerns, I left the spaceship. But curiosity seemed to prevail among them as well, and they followed me.

We watched the Valakkare dance for a while, then I followed the tradition of the desert peoples. I approached the animal and faced the fight. This time not in an armored vehicle, but honorably, face to face. The Valakkar spat at me. Its spit hit my armor painfully. I suppressed the pain and moved toward it in a zigzag pattern. Despite the danger, I had to approach it from the front, because that’s where its vulnerable spots were. The sandworm opened its large three-part mouth and threatened me with its terrifying teeth. Then the laser beam from my Ripper SMG hit it. The worm seemed unimpressed, continuing to spit and threaten. Another blast of matter from the worm pelted my armor. I tried to dodge it while keeping the laser aimed at him. It was a dance of life and death.

After several seconds of dancing, the Valakkar collapsed. With a pain-contorted face, I treated my wounds with the medgun. Then I went to the dead animal and removed its fangs. I tried to ignore my friends’ annoyance. They didn’t understand the tradition I was following.

But then something unexpected happened. Brubacker approached the second worm. When he stood directly in front of the Valakkar, the sandworm stopped its attack. As if hypnotized, the worm stood almost motionless directly in front of Brubacker. Perplexed and fascinated, I watched the scene unfold.

“Brubacker summoned the Valakkar,” I said reverently.

Hermieoth and Friedrich joined us. They posed next to the worm and took photos. I didn’t understand what was happening. Then Brubacker turned his back on the Valakkar and walked away. Immediately, the worm spat at Brubacker. My index finger curled and the laser beam from my Ripper SMG pierced the sandworm. After several seconds, the Valakkar collapsed, dead.

Brubacker, Hermieoth, and Friedrich began to angrily berate me. They reproached me for killing the animals.

“That wasn’t necessary!”

“I’m following tradition,” I tried to explain.

“Zero, that’s nonsense…”

“The desert takes. The desert gives,” I said quietly and walked over to the Valakkar.

I took a handful of sand and sprinkled it over the Valakkar’s head. As I did so, I whispered.

“The mighty ruler returns to the desert and becomes part of it.”

Meanwhile, I heard my friends’ insults. They met my desert tradition with complete incomprehension. They couldn’t understand that the desert peoples had been fighting the sandworm for generations for territory and survival. The sandworm was part of their culture; it hunted humans, and humans hunted it. Both wanted to inhabit and rule the desert. Yet the desert peoples did not harbor hostility toward the sandworm, but rather awe and respect. The sandworm was the most powerful creature in the desert, and not everyone survived an encounter with it.

As I performed the ritual, I struggled to maintain my inner balance. I wavered between anger at my friends and understanding for their ignorance. They couldn’t comprehend what I was doing and showed no tolerance for my culture. This put my tolerance to the test. My tolerance ended where it met intolerance.

The mood was subdued as we flew on. On the way to base camp, we stopped at an abandoned settlement. We found nothing but food and Xenothreat armor. I took a few pieces with me, which lifted my spirits and restored my inner balance. What made friendship? Understanding, tolerance, and respect, especially when you had different views. I hoped that my friends saw it that way too and that their resentment towards me would subside.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)