#ref: aether core

01: High Alert: At Dri-Lar-404, Feathers Star, the Captain and Deputy of a ship have to move through several checkpoints to bring gifts for the Overlord's birthday, due to the sighting of one Qin Che, the "most wanted criminal in Philos's history. The only (person) to ever escape the space-time prison." The Deputy notes they're not at Philos, so he won't be a big deal. He is immediately proven wrong as Qin Che removes their guns with his Evol and proceeds to 'encourage' them through the next set of checkpoints, though the Deputy has no sense and tells Qin Che he's walking into a trap. Qin Che points out "that depends on whether or not his trap can handle the weight of a spaceship." He proceeds to puppet the two men--who die in the process--into forcing the ship to fall through the atmosphere.

.

02: Absolute Suppression: In the armory, hidden in the depths of the Overlord's fortress, the Overlord attempts to calm himself by reminding himself of past victories, even as chaos erupts outside the door. A black-red mist wraps around and drags the overlord towards the door, and it opens with his confirmed biometric data. Qin Che walks in like he owns the place, and the Overlord immediately begins to attempt bargaining. When asked what he wants, Qin Che's right eye glows, and he says, "What I want is the whole planet. Is that okay?" The Overlord says yes.*1

.

03: Mysterious Visitor: A change in the Overlord's behavior has been noted by people, but they don't question it, given his well known greed. There are rumors he's "tied up with a mystery guest." Which he is. He plays chess with Qin Che, held to his throne by Qin Che's Evol. He offers some kind of animal (located in the artificial garden just outside) to Qin Che, who tells him "A cage is no place for beasts."*2 At the banquet, Qin Che pulls a 'Masque of the Red Death,' closing all the doors and windows, locking the attendees inside. He proceeds to terrorize the Overlord and his guests: he's blown up the armory with a candle, 'happy birthday,' and "The Overlord's life is a storage's worth of treasures from 100 ships. Anyone who brings less might not taste the birthday cake today."

.

04: Out of Reach: Smash cut to Myer, an Enforcer whose dream is to arrest Qin Che. His boss told him, "it's good to dream." At the capital of Philos, Qin Che moved through traps and Enforcers like he owned the place. The crimes he commits across the galaxies "somehow never affect the space citizens' lives. Many have become legends, in fact." There's word of Qin Che being spotted near Feathers Star, but no one is keen on pursuing the issue. So Myer goes by himself. All ships in the port are declared to be under martial law by the Overlord's say.

.

05: Judgement of Fate: Starwipe back to Qin Che, who has been using a lot of power for a long time, though "an invisible tether within him holds him back from tapping into more power," and no one seems to notice. At Qin Che's suggestion, one of the High Lords offers information on another, and a whole lot of betraying happens, none of which Qin Che really cares about. He fiddles with a brooch until someone mentions the Aether Core. The Overlord has the "Eye of Aether" stashed away in a vault elsewhere.

"He relishes those absurd yet enthralling twists of fate, just like now, when the elusive echo in the cosmic void he's relentlessly pursued unveils itself unexpectedly... Whenever the stars align perfectly, Qin Che finds himself entertaining thoughts of destiny."

Qin Che shoots out the glass between the banquet hall and the artificial garden. He lets the beasts have their way with the Overlord and High Lords, and leaves. The night of carnage at Feathers Star is called the 'Night of Blood' by the Enforcers, when all the tyrants were murdered by the beasts, and several hundred ships disappeared into the horizon. Myers announces that Qin Che did it, using the holographically reproduced brooch as evidence, though the other Enforcers point out the metal used to make the brooch is centuries old and been use in countless artifacts. They are also skeptical that a single person could loot an entire planet.

.

06: Journey Begins: In a spaceship. Qin Che listens to classical music and drinks coffee. He also gets a communication that all the treasures he took from Feathers Star were reclassified and returned to their rightful owners. After confirming the other party got paid, Qin Che warns him that he'd best quit while he's ahead, because he's not going to be sharing whatever it is. On a huge map of the interstellar galaxies, the little orb he's been watching breaks apart, then comes back together in a different location. The map zooms into a location, and Qin Che directs the ship's AI to find a suitable place (presumably to land.) The AI finds a place: "The area is currently experiencing substantial protofield disturbances, creating a massive vortex of magnetic fields. This twists and refracts light, rendering direct entry impossible. It is forever shrouded in darkness." The ship switches to autopilot, and off they go.

A man attempts to mug Qin Che; it's the thirteenth time, so clearly he's "not blending in." He obtains the information he needs about "fashion" from a local. The section ends with, "The N109 Zone is about to meet its new ruler."

.

.

*1, The indication here is that Qin Che is using his Evol to force/coerce this behavior, and the rest of the anecdote confirms that. *2, It's amazing how often Qin Che says things like this, actually. It's more than I thought.