With Ian now officially part of the crew, Safari sat in his captain's chair, staring blankly at the control panel.
Safari (muttering): "Why do I keep picking up strays...?"
Zack and Jen sat comfortably nearby, already getting along with Ian, who was enthusiastically flipping through his photos.
Ian (grinning): "Look at these! Action shots, drama, even a bit of romance—"
Safari (growling): "There is NO romance!"
Ian smirked and held up a photo of Safari and Angeleva standing together.
Ian: "Then explain this~"
Safari's face twitched as he immediately snatched the photo and shredded it.
Safari: "That. Never. Happened."
Meanwhile, outside the ship, Angeleva was soaring effortlessly through space, keeping pace with them.
She casually glanced inside the ship through the window and saw Safari looking as irritated as ever. With a small chuckle, she sped up.
Inside the spaceship, Zack and Jen were busy chatting with Ian.
Zack: "So, why exactly do you take pictures of everything?"
Ian: "Well, I want to capture history! And also... it's just fun watching Big Bro here get annoyed."
Safari gripped the spaceship controls harder.
Safari: "I. Am. Not. Your. Big Bro."
Ian: "Too late! The name's already stuck!"
Before Safari could throw him out of the airlock, an alarm blared.
Jen: "What's that?!"
Safari quickly checked the screen.
Safari: "A meteor storm! We're going straight into it!"
Zack and Jen gasped, and Ian immediately started taking pictures.
Ian: "Dramatic moment! Amazing! Keep looking intense, Big Bro!"
Safari (furious): "STOP TAKING PICTURES AND HOLD ON!"
As the ship trembled from small meteors colliding, Angeleva, still flying outside, noticed the storm ahead.
Angeleva: "Tch. They're heading straight into it..."
She sped up and maneuvered through the meteors gracefully, avoiding them with ease.
Inside the ship, Safari was desperately dodging left and right.
Safari: "Damn it! This storm is worse than I thought!"
Ian (laughing): "Big Bro can't handle a few rocks?"
Safari grabbed a random object and threw it at Ian, making him duck.
Suddenly, the biggest meteor yet appeared ahead.
Jen: "That thing's massive!"
Zack: "We won't make it in time!"
Just as Safari prepared to ram through it, Angeleva flew ahead and blasted the meteor into tiny pieces with a single fairy beam.
The ship passed through safely.
Angeleva hovered outside the ship's window, smirking.
Angeleva: "You're welcome."
Safari grumbled, reluctantly grateful.
Safari: "Tch... whatever."
Ian took another picture.
Safari (furious): "STOP TAKING PICTURES!!!"
With the meteor storm behind them, the ship continued toward the next planet—unaware of what awaited them next.
A Day Later...
Safari and his crew approached the next planet, but something felt off.
Safari (focused): "We're landing soon. Be ready."
Ian (grinning, adjusting his camera): "A new adventure! I can't wait to capture some action shots!"
The atmosphere of the mysterious planet swirled in a dark crimson hue, casting an ominous glow over the massive town below.
Heavy, oppressive clouds loomed in the sky, and an unsettling energy pulsed from the enormous dark castle that stood at the heart of the land. Even from the sky, the castle's jagged spires and twisted architecture exuded malevolence.
Safari's spaceship approached cautiously. Inside the cockpit, Safari stood with a hardened expression, his hands gripping the controls.
Despite the serene view of the town, the dark presence was undeniable even without the red signal. The seasoned warrior could feel it in his bones.
Safari (focused):
"We're landing soon. Be ready."
Behind him, Ian buzzed with excitement, fiddling with his camera and adjusting its lenses. His grin stretched ear to ear as he envisioned the potential for thrilling footage.
Ian (grinning):
"A new adventure! I can't wait to capture some action shots! Maybe even get a dramatic heroic pose of you, big bro!"
Safari shot Ian an unimpressed look.
Safari:
"You mean like the last 'heroic pose' where you fell into a swamp and called it 'immersive storytelling?'"
Ian laughed unapologetically.
Ian:
"That was cinematic!"
Perched near the control panel, Jen leaned casually against the wall, her arms crossed.
Despite the tension, she remained light-hearted. Beside her, Zack clutched his seat tightly, visibly anxious.
Zack:
"As long as we don't crash this time..."
But the boy's words seemed to jinx the moment.
Suddenly, the spaceship's control panel sparked violently. Red lights flashed, and the vessel jolted as a loud mechanical whine echoed through the cockpit.
Jen (panicking):
"What now?!"
Safari frantically scanned the malfunctioning controls, but the system refused to respond. The ship's engines sputtered, sending the vessel into an uncontrollable spiral.
Safari (gritting his teeth):
"System failure... Hold on tight!"
The force of the rapid descent pinned the crew to their seats. The town below grew closer and closer, the buildings rushing up to meet them. Despite the alarms blaring in his ears, Ian, in his usual reckless manner, attempted to capture the descent on his camera.
Ian (laughing nervously):
"I can't wait to see how this footage turns out!"
Safari (angry):
"Ian, put that thing down!"
The ground loomed beneath them as the ship hurtled towards the outskirts of the town. Safari barely managed to tilt the controls, adjusting the ship's angle to avoid a complete nose-dive.
With a thunderous crash, the spaceship slammed into the sand so hard that dirt and debris erupted in all directions, sending tremors through the area. The impact was devastating.
But amidst the chaos, one figure was notably airborne.
Ian, who had completely forgotten to strap himself in, was launched through the cockpit's shattered viewport. His panicked screams echoed as he tumbled uncontrollably into the sky.
Ian (screaming mid-air):
"AHHH—WAIT, THIS IS NOT HOW I WANTED TO FLY!!"
His camera, miraculously still intact, recorded the bizarre turn of events as he disappeared into the crimson sky like a ragdoll.
While the shipwreck unfolded, Angeleva had already reached the planet on her own. Unlike the crashing spaceship, she had descended gracefully from above, her wings shimmering with a radiant glow.
As she landed near the town, the air grew heavier. The dark energy emanating from the castle sent a clear signal — something was deeply wrong.
The people of the town, dressed in ragged clothes, ran through the dirt streets in fear. The sight of terrified civilians and their panicked cries confirmed Angeleva's suspicions.
Angeleva (narrowing her eyes):
"This place has suffered long enough. Time to end it."
Her gaze locked onto the castle. Towering spires twisted like monstrous claws, and its walls pulsed with dark energy. The fortress seemed more like a living entity than mere stone.
Without hesitation, Angeleva launched herself toward the castle, her presence like a streak of light cutting through the crimson sky.
The people of the town watched in awe, murmuring prayers of hope. Little did they know that the battle for their salvation had already begun.
Back at the Crash Site
In the outskirts of that town, the ship landed hard.
Safari (grumbling):
"That landing was awful... I swear, I'm fixing this ship myself next time."
From the ship, Jen coughed sand as she crawled out, her hair disheveled but otherwise unharmed. Zack followed soon after, rubbing a sore spot on his forehead.
Zack (groaning):
"Did Ian just... fly away?"
They all turned their gaze skyward, half-expecting Ian's silhouette to come tumbling back down. But the sky was empty.
Jen:
"Yeah... should we be worried?"
Safari sighed deeply, his frustration evident.
Safari:
"He's probably fine. He's like a cockroach — impossible to get rid of."
Zack, though still concerned, couldn't help but snicker at the remark.
Zack:
"But what now? Angeleva's probably already fighting."
Safari's expression hardened. He then stared at the spaceship to find it intact even after the crash. He half expected that and realized they actually landed on a softer part of the planet luckily enough.
Safari noticed the ship needed some minor fixing. He did it immediately with a bit of help from Zack and Jen. He then lifted the ship up and kept it as if the crash never happened.
Safari:
"Luckily our ship looks fine. One less worry."
After that Jen said. "Angeleva must be ahead so we must hurry."
Safari nodded with hesitation. "We may even reunite with that annoying cameraman."
The trio set off, leaving behind the spaceship as the ominous castle loomed ever closer.
Unbeknownst to them, Ian's adventure had already taken an unexpected turn — and the chaos was only just beginning.