Well shit. This will probably be the last time I'll ever touch this site, but damn. After five years, you finally completed this. I'll be honest, I'd forgotten this existed, but I'm glad this was complete.

I... liked this. I really don't know what else to say. It's probably the best FTL story I've ever read, start to finish. It was amazing with its ups and downs, and never made the fights and difficulties feel cheap as they do in the actual game. The ending... it was sad for me. Not just because the story ended. Damn. It made me sad.

Good story.

Excellent work. Haunting and tragic, but that's the point. Great writing.

So, this story is really flipping good. Thank you for writing it!

An indescribably captivating story with an immortal message about how we should conduct our lives. This story got to the heart of a personal struggle for me: is it possible to find meaning outside of self-interested hedonism knowing that everything I do, my legacy, will be ultimately worthless to me when I'm dead. I loved the answer that the captain found for herself: that in the face of being inevitably cast into oblivion, life can only gain meaning by striving to follow a life outlined by one's core principles. I loved the characters who provided their own insights into ideas about meaning. Ensign Toh, who believed work and spirituality were sources of meaning. Captain Andrews, who found meaning in his noble duty to the Federation. Ahabzara, who believed he could find redemption in self-sacrifice for a noble cause. I was happy the Captain was able to find a middle path to meaning through all these influences. I also enjoyed the message about the acceptance of outsiders implied by the combat between the dying yet noble federation and the surging yet hypocritical, chaotic, and evil rebellion. The angel and demon on the shoulder of Captain Brant in Ensign Toh against Commander 78 and Ahab presented an interesting discussion about the merits of the Captain's decision to overlook the immorality of betraying the mutineer Engi lieutenant in favor of focusing on her ultimate mission and her own self-preservation. I loved that it provided a strong contrast between herself and Captain Andrews: Andrews who was noble and firm in his word and Captain Brant who saw the necessity of compromising morals in favor of a more pragmatic approach. I found stimulating the subversion of typical stereotypes surrounding the races: the piece displayed the mantis Katarek as an aficionado of fine art in the form of movies, the engi Commander 78 displaying sadness and anger, and the zoltan Ahab as being a charismatic yet savage and calculating pirate rather than a follower of the law. These contradictions of the race's assumed traits and the character's actual traits helped me understand their, for want of a better word, humanity. The author succeeds in writing a captivating story with compelling lessons about higher meaning, inclusivity, morality, and friendship. His principal argument, that in the face of unyielding and unavoidable annihilation we all should seek to find meaning in friendship and virtue, is a chilling yet enduring reminder that will echo beyond the death of humanity.

Perhaps nihilistic of an ending, but still those small victories do count. Tremendous saga as a whole.

Some day I hope to write something half as emotionally and narrative powerful as this story has been. There are so many moments, so rich in history and ideology. This is a story I am sure I will find myself reading again and again.

A documented act of heroic defiance surviving way past the battle or the aftermath is probably the most fitting note to end the story on. Glad to see this story finally completed. Thoroughly enjoyable read throughout.

Definitely represents the "standalone novel" quality of writing on this site.

Well, that was a downer ending. Nothing mattered, get over it. Draw satisfaction from wherever you can, even if it’s from fighting an equally short lived and irrelevant robot. Maybe I’m Misinterpreting things, but the ending honestly makes me feel like I wasted my time. It’s a shame because a lot of this story was incredibly tense, well paced developed. The stakes felt really high actually, and then for that ending to just be like, “Check my rad nihilism bro. Ain’t I deep.” And I’m like, “Man get your dumb a** down to a church and grow up. Being an adult means realising your decisions matter. Take that teenage philosophy back to high school where it belongs.”

Maybe I’m being too harsh, but I’m not satisfied. Could just be my pastor of a father talking into my ear again.

Phenomenal. You've done an excellent job with this diamond.

I did not see this ending coming.
For real, like, not at all.
Nevertheless, amazing story, done right.

Oh man, oh man. Binged this and WOW. I am adoring this.

Damn. You are a great writer! One of the best I know! Hell, if I didn't knew The Imperator 2 You, you would have been the best! Can't express how much I love this. Someday, you will recieve recognition. Maybe even appear in TVTropes or something.

This story is great! And it's updated in BURSTS! I just love it! All the twists are meaningful and everything! I have very little complaints. Gonna read next chapters.

Great couple - the Flagship has a lot of personality here. I can't wait to see how it reacts if it loses a round.

No offense to Brant, but the odds are long to manage all three.