Getting a look past the doors, even Rocky seemed surprised. Or at least, that’s what Sage imagined. Rocky was completely covered in a bulky robe and barely ever spoke so there was no telling what he was thinking. Past the doors was what Sage would call a combination of a Hanger Bay and a Warehouse. Hanging from the ceiling in rows were huge fish like objects that he could only imagine were some sort of vessel, while the ground had carefully partitioned blocks of stacked boxes. He didn’t actually know they were boxes, but they were rectangular in shape and stacked up in zones that were marked with colored lines on the floor. Each of the ‘boxes’ were made of some sort of stone or metal substance just like most of the other surfaces in the ship they got a close look at. It was reflective like metal, but felt somewhat porous like stone, even tapping the material with other metals or objects made an unusual sound.

The boxes had no labels, symbols, or distinguishing marks on them. Strangely though, when they approached within a few feet the boxes actually seemed to change colors, getting dimmer. Like someone had turned down the lights, muting the bright primary colors of the boxes a few shades. Each stack of boxes was of a singular color, with different zones having all the boxes in matching colors and spread out to different areas. Obviously, the colors helped differentiate the sorts of goods they contained, but with no points of reference it was hard to tell what.

Nothing happened when they placed their hands on the boxes so they took one off a stack and started messing around with it. Sage tried many methods, using piercing force, blunt force, heat, cold, and even spirit power. Each test started out light and then ramped up. Unfortunately, the results were disastrous. The box would either end up without a scratch or it gave off a loud ear piercing noise and self destructed in a bright light and sizzling sound. The only thing left behind was a pile of ash. After they destroyed a half dozen boxes they gave up. Sage had felt like there was a very slight response from his use of Spirit Power, reaching out with his consciousness, but he felt a sort of rejection from the box and his mind was pushed away.

Given that there was basically a hanger full of these boxes and his Storage Ring was already quite full, Sage held back on collecting them. Despite his reservations, he was already thinking of this place as a hanger bay and these boxes were probably all supplies for the ships hanging over their heads. He hadn’t expected to run into a scene out of a science fiction novel, but given that he’d already been reincarnated into a world of magically powered martial artists… no sense in being close minded.

After their tests led nowhere, the small group continued across the big hanger bay. Sage had the Lance Beetle follow along over their heads. The Beetle normally carried itself about four feet off the ground, so it was easy enough for it to walk with a crouch to shield them or a bit stretched out to give them a good view. They made it to the outer walls of the room and saw doors at the end of each path. None of the doors opened on their own this time. Continuing their journey, the door directly across from the path they entered the room in ended up opening up for them on its own when they approached. Definitely seems like someone is in here leading us somewhere.

They walked into the doorway, this one smaller than the last at about ten feet tall and twenty feet wide. The Beetle actually had to crouch down a bit and obstructed their view in the hallway at which point Sage stored it away inside his body. Rocky and Sage continued down the hallway and around a few corners, with every new room or hallway they entered only one door would open while the rest stayed dim and unresponsive. After a few halls worth, Rocky finally picked out a door that had a gold trim around it and went up to it. He held out a hand and placed it on the door. When he did the door slightly ripped like it was a piece of cloth. Rocky grumbled. Just a sound and not actually speaking, but that’s progress!

A few seconds later, the ripple came again, this time larger than the last. Rocky seemed to be trying to shove his hand through the door, but it only pushed in slightly before stopping. After the second time a loud sound rang out at them and a beam of light shot out from a spot on the ceiling and landed on Rocky. Rocky tried to leap out of the way, but he wasn’t fast enough. Rocky suddenly seemed to be trapped in place and smoke began to rise from his heavy cloak. A few seconds later a pained groan came from within the cloak as it disintegrated into ashes.

Rocky sounded like he was in extreme pain and his cloak had already been burned off him. Sage jumped over and looked up towards the light, pleading for his ‘friend’. He held up his hands and kneeled down on the ground with both knees, “Please stop! My friend is just curious, don’t hurt him!”

Sage was pretty sure they might use a different language, but they might recognize his gestures and give in. Luckily, he was right. After about thirty seconds the light went out and Rocky fell to the ground beside Sage. Sage thanked the area around him with clasped hands and a dozen bows of his head before he finally looked over to Rocky.

Blinking in amazement, he was taken aback by Rocky’s appearance. Rocky was a girl! Thick black hair fell to the middle of her back, matching with her dark brown eyes. She had a better than average face and in smaller villages might be considered a beauty. Definitely not a supermodel, but easily a homecoming queen. Do they have homecoming queen’s in asia?

After a quick inspection he saw that her throat had a set of four huge scars across it like some beast had slashed her with its claws. That explains the rough voice. Rocky carried herself with such masculine confidence and zero grace, combined with the rough voice he had mistaken her this whole time. Sage had always thought those movies were ridiculous in the past, how could anyone mistake a girl for being a boy, yet here he was having fallen for it himself. At least this girl was utterly covered up every time I saw her.

After the initial surprise he didn’t give the matter any further thought, he’d always had a somewhat cordial relationship with the fairer sex both in this life and the last. He always felt he was too busy to chase after them, or at least that’s what he told himself. As for now, all he could do was offer to help Rocky up.

A few minutes later, Rocky had put on another heavy cloak and didn’t even bother to explain herself with any words. Just ignoring the big reveal along with the obvious pain she must have suffered from that light. They continued following the open doors, having learned their lesson about the locked ones. The way behind them stayed open and Sage took it as a gesture of peace, or at least the appearance of one. They still might be walking right into a trap, but their curiosity overtook them. The stories of chance encounters that turned ordinary cultivators into overlords were too numerous to count and only outnumbered by the stories of those who lost their lives chasing chance encounters.

One of the doors led into a small chamber which Sage recognized as an elevator when the doors closed behind them and he felt motion. Rocky looked around somewhat worried, but said nothing. Sage took a cheerful tone to volunteer information, “It should be moving us around within this vessel.”

A few moments later the motion stopped and the doors behind them opened up again, just as Sage figured they would. Travelling down another pair of hallways a set of doors with an unusual shape was in front of them. The other were shaped like tall ovals with flat bottoms on the floor. They each had splits down the middle and Sage assumed they were all double sliding doors like that of a standard elevator. The door that now stood in front of them was a large iris with a circle in the center. On the circle was a symbol of some sort, some sort of insignia was his guess. As they got closer the iris swiveled open, one of the ‘petals’ was connected to the central symbol which then swung up into the ceiling.

In front of them was a single walkway with a set of stairs to the left and right. The stairs led to another walkway, this one lined with what looked like seats or chairs. When Sage and Rocky stepped into the door a row of running lights lit up along the edges of the central walkway and led them forward. The walkway was about fifty feet long and seemed to extend out into darkness. It was only when they reached the end of the walkway that something changed.

A figure suddenly appeared in front of them.