Captain Lübeck stood at the top of the bridge console, watching the stopwatch in his hand under the faint moonlight. Mooring at this remote pier, there were no other ships passing by, and the night was unusually quiet, with no sea breeze or clouds.
Reports from the crew members below the control console continued to come in:
“34 evacuees have boarded the ship,”
“The mooring line on the port side of the bow has been released, and the forward main deck hatch is closed,”
“The mooring line on the port side of the stern has been released, and the aft main deck hatch is closed,”
“...”
Lübeck estimated the time, and with the crew nearly ready, he issued the order to set sail. In the quiet night, he took a few more breaths of the cool sea breeze. Below, the occasional loud commands and conversations echoed through the confined, enclosed ship's cabin, filling every corner and lingering long after the sounds faded.
As the vessel neared departure from the coast, Lübecke returned to the command tower and sealed the hatch. Returning to his captain's cabin from the control tower, he locked the door, retrieved the encrypted navigation coordinates delivered via the communication system by the radio operator, decoded them using his code book, and set the navigation coordinates. He then issued the order to the first mate to activate the anti-gravity engines and proceed into outer space.
Lübeck sat in his captain's cabin as part of the routine procedure, observing the display instruments showing the operational parameters of the anti-gravity engine. However, today seemed to be going smoothly. The first mate attempted to start the engine twice but failed both times. As the captain, he was also puzzled, checking the various technical parameter displays and contemplating the possible causes of the failure.
After instructing the first mate to pause, he recalled the parameters before and after the engine failure. It seemed like an overload, but that wasn't the case—it was just the standard crew complement. After a moment of hesitation, Lübeck couldn't help but wonder if there was a VIP passenger on board today?
After instructing the crew to prepare for an inspection, Lübeck arrived at the crew quarters with two sailors. In the narrow space, on both sides of the cabin walls, over thirty people were either sitting in seats or lying on bunks.
After scanning them all, Lü Beck walked up to each person, pulled out a playing card from his pocket, handed it to them, told them to remember the card, and instructed them to keep it in their pocket or chest, then smiled and said, “This is your ticket. Make sure to keep it safe.” It seemed like he was joking with them. Then, standing aside with the sailors who had come with him, he picked up the phone and issued a command to the control console:
“Anti-gravity engine frequency test, program 1036.”
After speaking, he held the phone to his ear and scanned everyone in the crew compartment with his gaze. The passengers, in turn, looked over curiously, or glanced at the people beside them, unsure of what was happening.
As the test proceeded at different frequencies, producing either a humming sound or a piercing screech, Lübeck noticed a playing card had fallen to the ground. He immediately ordered the test to stop, hung up the phone, and walked over to pick up the card.
“Ace of Spades. Is this your ticket?” Lübeck said to a man lying on his side on the bunk, who seemed to still be confused.
He glanced at the card, wanting to say yes, but didn't speak. He remembered clearly putting it in his pocket, so he hurriedly reached into his pocket. His hand went in, but it wasn't there. He reached in again, but it was truly gone. The young man's face showed a look of surprise.
“What's your name?” Lübeck asked.
“John,”
“John,” Lübeck repeated, studying the young man. He had fair skin but was thin, with dark eyes and black hair,
“John what? What’s your last name?”
“John Hider,”
Lübeck listened as he spoke, staring intently at him, making the young man feel a bit nervous. After a moment, Lübeck patted his shoulder and said,
“I can’t take you with me. You must stay here, marry, and have children. Staying here is your contribution to the empire and the nation.”
“Oh,” the young man agreed, but clearly didn’t understand the meaning behind the words.
The two sailors traveling with the captain also didn’t understand. They looked at the young man, then at the captain, but dared not ask. After all, they both admired and trusted their captain; whatever he said was right.
“Holger, Paul, you two take the lifeboat and send him back to shore,” he said, handing them some silver coins and instructing,
“You can have a drink, but don’t get into trouble. I’ll come back for you next time.”
“Yes, Captain,” they replied with a salute before helping the young man prepare to leave.
As they passed by, Lübeck stopped the young man, gave him some silver coins, patted his shoulder, and said,
“Don’t forget to marry and have children when you return.”
“Yes, thank you, Captain,” the young man finally smiled.
After they had passed, Lübeck turned back to face the others,
“Alright, you should return the playing cards to me now. Boarding is complete.”
Lübeck returned to his captain’s cabin, checked the equipment readings, and issued the order to set sail. This time it went smoothly, as usual. They used antigravity to hover in place, then adjusted the spatial field to jump into outer space, followed the standard procedure to calibrate parameters, and performed the long-distance spatial jump.
The ship’s cabin was fully enclosed with no windows to see the outside scenery, not even for the captain. All he could do was monitor the ship’s equipment operations and wait to reach the next spatial jump node.
Although the system he served was akin to a military organization, where everything was done in accordance with orders, and he didn't even know who his superiors were, he followed the fixed procedures and superior's instructions each time. However, Captain Lübeck also had his own desire to explore. Within the scope of his capabilities, he added errors to the navigation coordinates he provided and explored the gravitational field conditions along the way, attempting to understand the spatial characteristics of the space his transport ship was traversing.
After several spatial jumps, Captain Lübeck led his ship and crew back to their new home, which they all referred to as the Sanctuary. For ordinary people, the purpose of coming here was simple: to live in peace. For Captain Lübeck's mission, however, he must lead the people here to reproduce and preserve the flame of the nation. Therefore, he must repeatedly bring new members here while also managing the social production and stability of the community. He is both the captain and the benevolent dictator of this place. Since the population is small, dictatorial rule is efficient. Additionally, because there are few people, everyone is familiar with one another, so interpersonal relationships are generally good, making the dictatorship a gentle one.
When the spaceship docks at the land-based pier, secures the ropes, some sailors first deliver the newly arrived members to the local community, while others shut down the spaceship systems in preparation for the next voyage. Most sailors without specialized roles have already left the pier to return home. Captain Lübeck and other senior crew members inspect the spaceship before parting ways at the pier, each returning to their respective homes.
The space dock is guarded by militiamen wearing simple, coarse-woven uniforms and armed with black powder flintlock muskets. All resources are produced by traditional workshops from a pre-industrial society, forming a self-sufficient social ecosystem. For various reasons, although Captain Lübeck is aware of the technological advancements on Earth, he does not wish to develop technology here.
The captain's mode of transportation home was also a product of the same technological foundation: a horse-drawn carriage. As the carriage departed the dock and set off down the road, Captain Lübeck turned to look back at his ship, the U-2513, with its elegant lines, tethered by ropes at both ends, quietly moored on the dock.
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