After reading the description of this ship, Kevin was a bit stunned. He glanced at Raven 12345 in surprise. "So it's only a few hundred meters long? I thought it was at least two kilometers..."
"You think it's too small?" Raven 12345 rolled his eyes. "This is for you to use on missions. You're not using it as a colony ship. It's more than enough. And the internal space expansion system is impressive. Some sections are actually larger than their external dimensions. As for the number of kilometers... you're just dizzy. You can't judge size when you see something larger."
Kevin thought about it. This thing right in front of him was as huge as a mountain. According to the description, it seemed to be the most user-friendly model. So he shouldn't be so conceited. His doubts were mainly due to the impression he had made on the transport ship No. 883. He subconsciously compared the two ships with completely different functions and purposes. "Does the ship have self-defense firepower?" Kevin pointed to the items on the holographic projection that concerned him most. "And this cross-world navigation... how would I know anything about that? Do I have to learn gunnery and navigation then?"
"Haha, you're impressive just for getting this ship airborne on your own," Raven chuckled, stepping forward. "Your current ship-piloting skills are zero, even lower than mine. You have a lot to learn. The main driving duties will be handled by your data terminal, and you'll mainly just be watching from the sidelines with me. By the way, the ship must dock at Kuiper Station. While stationed within the solar system, it cannot leave the shielded area, and it cannot land on Earth. You should understand all this, right?"
Kevin nodded. He knew all this without being told.
After walking through the ship's corridors for a while, they entered a forked area resembling a crossroads. It was as spacious as a small hall, where four corridors converged. In the center, a round table-like object could be seen, with a floating holographic projection scrolling through complex charts and data. Kevin had noticed a similar holographic projection following him earlier. Seeing the massive object before him, he realized it wasn't a projection from the data terminal. Kevin poked at the image beside him. "What's this? Built-in to the ship? I don't understand..."
"The ship's mainframe automatically sets up a following image next to the captain to provide real-time status updates. If you don't understand, just turn it off. There's nothing to worry about. In a true emergency, the mainframe will contact you via radio and telepathic communication," Raven 12345 said, gesturing to the corridor lights and the sign floating on the wall. "Lighting, environment, gravity, markers—everything is factory-set. You can adjust it to your needs later. It usually takes several voyages to get used to it. The corridor ahead is the central fork. The left leads to the ecological and residential areas, the right to the power bay and various machine rooms and laboratories. Further ahead is the control room and intelligence center. There's a teleportation trigger beneath the central holographic projection. Standing nearby, you can use a mind command to teleport to the upper cargo area or the aircraft hangar. I'll send you the ship's schematics to your data terminal, and you'll slowly adjust to it. If you can figure this out within three years, you'll be considered a genius. For now, just head straight to the control room."
Kevin was a little confused by the chaotic zoning. Just as he was about to ask something, he heard a faint humming sound nearby. Turning his head, he was shocked to see a bizarre mechanical "creature" drifting towards him!
It was a strange, silver-gray creature with an irregular, round body and two rows of bright eyes symmetrically spaced in front. Several twisting mechanical tentacles extended from its lower back, measuring approximately two to three meters in length. Resembling a mechanical squid from a horror film, this strange and terrifying mechanical monster emitted a series of gibberish noises as it floated toward the group. Nangong Wuyue jumped up on the spot, "Where did this squid come from? Why is it floating in the sky?!"
Kevin was also startled by the creature, but he noticed Raven 12345 had no particular expression, and since it seemed to be a built-in device, he remained motionless, watching curiously as the mechanical squid nimbly floated in front of him, waving its tentacles and mumbling a series of incomprehensible words. Then, it floated to the ceiling and began testing certain equipment with its probes. "These are autonomous machines. You'll find plenty of them on every Imperial ship or large facility," Raven 12345 pointed at the mechanical squid. "They're responsible for maintaining the ship, repairing equipment, cleaning, and doing all sorts of odd jobs. They can also take care of people, though they're usually not very good at the latter. They can also serve as sentries, and their combat effectiveness... can be used to intimidate people."
"The ship's handymen?" Kevin suddenly realized. "So the ship's crew has been replaced by these autonomous machines?"
"Pretty much. After all, I can't assign you hundreds of workers to do nothing but polish and wax your ship every day, can I? Furthermore, these autonomous machines usually reside in the upper hangar. They repair and maintain each other, and they'll produce new autonomous machines as needed. You don't have to intervene at all. Just think of them as part of the ship's internal ecosystem."
As he spoke, the autonomous machine, resembling a mechanical squid, had completed its inspection of the corridor and gradually drifted away, waving its tentacles. Nangong Wuyue finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Huh?" There's a lot of interesting stuff in this place."
The group finally arrived at the spaceship's control room, a spacious circular chamber divided into two levels, the upper level slightly converging, giving the entire control room the appearance of a truncated hemispherical hall. Entering through the lower entrance, they were greeted by a holographic projection device floating in the center of the room, displaying an image of the spaceship itself.
"Why isn't there even a place to sit?" Nangong Wuyue curiously circled the room, finding no chairs to be seen. "If you need a seat, just 'think' about it," Raven 12345 said. Bright silver-white lines appeared in the air behind her, instantly solidifying into seats of the perfect size. "The entire ship supports full mind control. As long as you register your identity upon boarding, you can use common devices that don't require authorization, including the seats. Okay, that's all for the tour. Kevin, insert the key into the main port on the command console—that glowing area with a circle of arrows around it."
Kevin saw pale blue arrows appear in the air. Guiding him on his next move, he approached the device known as the "command console" and found a socket on the sloping, crystal-like surface that was perfectly sized for the crystal key.
As the starter key was inserted into the socket, two clear "beeps" echoed, followed by a deep rumble from deep within the ship: the power core began to increase its output. Kevin broke out in a cold sweat. "Why does that beeping sound sound familiar to me?"
"I had the customization department add it for you." Raven 12345 pointed at the console with a smile. "How is it? Sounds familiar, doesn't it?"
Kevin: "...Isn't that the sound of a motorcycle anti-theft lock? You're using a motorcycle anti-theft lock sound effect for such an advanced device?!"
Raven 12345 thought about it and agreed. "Oh yeah, that seems a bit low-end... Maybe I'll get a car anti-theft lock next time."
Kevin was about to nod when he suddenly realized, "They make the same sound!"
"Alright, don't worry about the details," Raven 12345 said with a wave of his hand, dismissing his own smugness. He then pointed to the components near the console. "The console itself is a variable crystal panel. Is it lit up now? Depending on the ship's status, available control commands and buttons appear here. There's a small recess next to the console. Insert your data terminal into it and it will take over the ship's navigation." "No need for someone to plug it in, this one does it all!" Without waiting for Kevin to make a move, the data terminal floated out, slamming into its own slot and popping out with a clang. "Why won't this one go in?"
"Look at the arrow! The front is to the left!" Kevin pointed at the indicator on the slot, then suddenly became curious. "By the way, I've known you for two months. Which side is your front?"
"You've been treating this unit like a brick all day long. You don't study it properly, and now you don't even know where the front is," the data terminal grumbled. Then, suddenly, it became confused itself. "Oh, by the way, which side is the front? No one told me it had a front and back when it left the factory..."
Raven 12345 grasped the data terminal and studied it for a moment, finally confirming: "The side with the serial number is the front."
After a long struggle, the data terminal finally connected to the spacecraft's main engine, and the sounds of various devices starting up filled the air from all directions. Holographic images and indicator lights lit up everywhere in the control room, a dazzling display. Raven 12345 took the opportunity to tell Kevin something: "By the way, I've already picked a name for your ship..."
Kevin's excitement faded in a split second, as he suddenly remembered the last time this psychopathic woman had named something. That's right, the Space-Time Administration's Wangba Tuozi office...
Other women's words always brightened Kevin's eyes, but Raven 12345's words always made Kevin's vision darken. He couldn't believe what random name she had given her ship: "...If you dare call it Wangba Tuozi, I'll fight you to the death!"
Raven 12345 laughed and waved his hand. "How could I come up with such a lame name? Don't worry, I picked something really impressive. Giant Turtle Platform. It means solid as a rock, perfectly suiting the ship's high defense."
Kevin finally felt relieved. While the name was a bit confusing, it still sounded impressive. However, his anxiety only lasted a few seconds, as Nangong Wuyue, standing next to him, realized: "Doesn't that translate to 'Turtle Bastard'?"
Kevin: "..."