On the first bridge, Juuzo Okita\u2019s exhausted expression forcibly tightened as he called out to the chief pilot.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no error on our course to the Salezar system?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, it is confirmed.\u201d<\/p>\n
The entire crew of Yamato<\/em> was gathered on the bridge. Their total number was just eight people. 120 personnel had boarded at the time of launch, and all the others had been scattered into nameless space dust.<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain, please be aware\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to engineering, Hikozaemon Tokugawa now held the navigation post. He glanced down at the main radar panel.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a fairly large, foreboding shadow on our course, 10 million km just in front of Yamato<\/em>\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n In a flash, tension filled the bridge. Even Okita\u2019s voice sounded constricted.<\/p>\n \u201cAnother Gamilas unit!!\u201d<\/p>\n If the Gamilas forces attacked now, Yamato<\/em> would be completely destroyed. There weren\u2019t enough people left on board to effectively operate the Wave-Motion Gun. Okita looked at the radar panel over Tokugawa\u2019s shoulder.<\/p>\n \u201cNo, it doesn\u2019t seem to be an enemy unit. It has a diameter of about 5 million km, so it might be a small gas nebula\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n It was definitely a spherical shape that clearly floated on the panel.<\/p>\n \u201cBut that radar shadow is a strange shape for a mere gas cloud\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCould it be a star or a planet?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell\u2026I don\u2019t know, it\u2019s too big.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHmm\u2026anyway, let\u2019s look closer as we approach.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRoger.\u201d<\/p>\n But a further approach was unnecessary to learn the true nature of this shadow. It soon leapt into the naked eye through the bridge windows. It was utterly black, a star that looked like soot in space. <\/p>\n Susumu, who was assisting the chief pilot, cried out.<\/p>\n \u201cA black star!\u201d<\/p>\n Because it was positioned in front of the crowded stars of the Magellanic Cloud, its outline could barely be seen. If it there been just empty space instead of that starlight, its existence would have gone unnoticed. Indeed, it was a black star.<\/p>\n Okita stood frozen with amazement.<\/p>\n \u201cUnbelievable! Such a big star, and so dark\u2026!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain, what should we do? Should be change course immediately and detour around it?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo. At this distance, if we detour around it we\u2019ll waste at least one day. We\u2019ll take as straight a course as possible and graze its gravitational field!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cUnderstood. The computer will gather data on that star at once.\u201d<\/p>\n But Yamato<\/em>\u2019s computer calculated a strange answer. The black star had no gravitational pull. In other words, it had no mass.<\/p>\n \u201cCould that star just be a collection of extremely thin gas?\u201d asked Tokugawa.<\/p>\n \u201cRegardless of the amount of gas, it\u2019s huge. It\u2019s strange that it has no mass. Our sun is a ball of gas, too, but its mass is 330,000 times that of Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnyway, keep a close watch as we close in. If it\u2019s just a ball of gas, it could be possible to pass through its center\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n When they approached within 2 million km of the black star, it happened. Yamato<\/em>\u2019s engine suddenly stopped and all the instruments went crazy at once.<\/p>\n \u201cW-what happened?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know! None of the machinery is working correctly!\u201d<\/p>\n Subsequently, like a boat being hit side-on by a wave, a sharp impact rolled the ship over and it was dragged toward the black star with furious momentum.<\/p>\n Holding onto the floor, Hikozaemon Tokugawa shouted.<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain! Apparently there was a convulsion and we\u2019re being pulled into its gravitational field!\u201d<\/p>\n Lying on his back, Okita shouted back.<\/p>\n \u201cT-that\u2019s impossible! How could gravity build up so suddenly? There\u2019s no other star nearby, and that black star doesn\u2019t have the mass!\u201d<\/p>\n Suddenly, Susumu\u2019s voice rose to a strange high pitch.<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain! Look at that\u2026! The black star, the black star is\u2026!\u201d<\/p>\n Outside the window Susumu was looking through, a tremendous drama was developing around the huge black star. What had until now seemed to be a simple gaseous substance had undergone a rapid transformation that could also be clearly seen with the naked eye. The black star was unquestionably shrinking, compressing rapidly toward its center.<\/p>\n \u201cW-wow\u2026! What an amazing sight\u2026!!\u201d<\/p>\n This intense drama was certainly enough to make them all forget about the safety of Yamato<\/em>. Soon, the black star had compressed to about 1\/100th the size of its original form. Then it seemed its center was shining in a dim red. Okita shouted crazily.<\/p>\n \u201cSee, look! It\u2019s starting to shine!!\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Yamato<\/em> was being rapidly drawn toward the star. Its light gradually strengthened, changing from red to orange, and it could already be said that this was the birth of a new star. The chief pilot shouted while manually keeping the hull in balance.<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain! Yamato<\/em> is currently rushing straight toward that star! Distance is approximately 1 million km\u2026since Yamato<\/em> is running full speed at 1,000 km per second, we\u2019ll crash in 15 or 16 minutes!<\/p>\n \u201cThe engine still isn\u2019t moving! Something is blocking its motion!!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s useless! The engine\u2019s a machine, it won\u2019t work in a strong magnetic storm!\u201d<\/p>\n The star\u2019s light was getting even stronger now, already changing from orange to yellow. The chief pilots\u2019 voice sounded heartbroken.<\/p>\n \u201cDistance to the star, 700,000 km\u2026!\u201d<\/p>\n The temperature of the ship was rising rapidly, and large drops of sweat appeared on Okita\u2019s face.<\/p>\n \u201cNo use! Yamato<\/em> will melt in this before we crash into that star!\u201d<\/p>\n The bridge was full of hopelessness. Susumu groaned, slamming his fist on the floor.<\/p>\n \u201cTo work so hard to reach the Magellanic Cloud just to be destroyed by something like this\u2026!\u201d<\/p>\n Yuki Mori\u2019s soft hand gripped Susumu\u2019s shoulder.<\/p>\n \u201cSusumu\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYuki\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPlease\u2026hold my hand until the end\u2026!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOf course, Yuki. Hold my hand until it\u2019s over!\u201d<\/p>\n The form of the star was rapidly filling the bridge windows and its light was gradually changing from yellow to a yellowish-green and then a bluish-white. Its surface temperate should have reached at least 12,000 degrees.<\/p>\n The ship was becoming a scorching hell. The Earthlings whose strength had given out now lay limp on the floor, and some had already passed out.<\/p>\n \u201cGod\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n Just after that word floated out of Yuki Mori\u2019s mouth, the change happened. It felt as if all the extreme tension suddenly vanished. The space around Yamato<\/em> went dark and the burning dropped to a pleasantly cool temperature, like an ice box.<\/p>\n Moreover, darkness suddenly absorbed all the light, and its stifling weight squeezed Susumu\u2019s body. What had happened to the glowing star? Unbelievably, it had vanished before their eyes. Susumu\u2019s voice sounded in the darkness.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat in the world happened\u2026?\u201d<\/p>\n Tokugawa\u2019s voice was heard clearly.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know\u2026I don\u2019t know, but we seem to have been saved\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain\u2026! Is the Captain safe?\u201d<\/p>\n Okita\u2019s voice responded to Susumu\u2019s cry.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m all right\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain. What happened? I thought we were done for.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHmm\u2026I don\u2019t know, but perhaps that black star is abnormal, like an intermittent star.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIntermittent star?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes. In other words, it absorbs micro-matter over a certain amount of time and condenses it into the shape of a star, then expells it. It repeats a stellar cycle of birth and destruction with the rhythm of a human breath, so to speak. Surely it will repeat in a short amount of time.\u201d<\/p>\n “That’s amazing… Then, you’re saying that, right now, we’re in the middle of that collapsed micro-matter? Even so, shouldn’t it have been destroyed by the energy from when it collapsed?”<\/p>\n “Yes. I think that, unlike the nature of an ordinary nova, where the energy of the collapse is released outward, this star may be completely unlike that. In any case, we need to escape this darkness before it begins to condense again. Chief pilot! Can you start the engine?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, I\u2019ll try!\u201d<\/p>\n Before long, the faint noise of the engine could be heard in the darkness.<\/p>\n \u201cThe engine has started!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAll right! Advance at the speed of light!\u201d<\/p>\n Five minutes\u2026ten minutes\u2026Yamato<\/em> dashed through the darkness at full speed. Then, suddenly, it passed through.<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain! T-that’s\u2026!\u201d<\/p>\n As Yamato<\/em> emerged from the darkness, the sea of stars spread out as far as the eye could see. A star system ahead of them glowed with exceptionally strong light.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s\u2026the Salezar system! We finally made it\u2026!!\u201d<\/p>\n Susumu\u2019s voice shook with joy, and a quiet excitement rose on the bridge.<\/p>\n The figure of a binary planet loomed in front of Yamato<\/em>. One of them was supposed to be Iscandar, which held the fate of Earth. Its counterpart was the planet of hate: Gamilas.<\/p>\n \u201cPlanet Gamilas may have already noticed our presence. We have to land on Iscandar before we\u2019re attacked!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut, Captain, which one of them is Iscandar\u2026?\u201d<\/p>\n Yamato<\/em> was now literally forced to make the final decision. This was surely their objective, but the wrong choice could plunge them into the midst of the enemy. Two planets with contrasting appearances hung before the Earthlings. One was wrapped in fresh green while the other was devastated in a deathly ochre.<\/p>\n Susumu\u2019s feelings summed up those of everyone on the bridge.<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain. I feel as if Iscandar must be a rich, peaceful planet. So, do you think the green planet is Iscandar\u2026?<\/p>\n Wracked with excessive fatigue, Okita made the difficult decision.<\/p>\n \u201cRight, we\u2019ll land on that planet.\u201d<\/p>\n Before long, Yamato<\/em> aimed itself at the atmosphere of the green planet and advanced. Hikozaemon Tokugawa put his face to the radar panel and muttered.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Gamilas side still hasn\u2019t seemed to notice us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHmm\u2026perhaps they don\u2019t think that we would approach this close. But we must be very careful after we enter the atmosphere\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n The voice of the chief pilot was tense.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll break into the atmosphere soon!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cInput the entry angle into the computer!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRoger!\u201d<\/p>\n The green planet was drawing closer, its vivid beauty unfolding before Yamato<\/em>. Then, suddenly, the communication speaker resounded on the bridge.<\/p>\n \u201cStop, Yamato<\/em>! You must stop and turn back! This is Captain Harlock of the spaceship Phantom<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n Okita and Susumu glanced at each other reflexively.<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain Harlock…!\u201d<\/p>\n It was the mysterious man who had often saved Yamato<\/em> from crisis and caught the Gamilas alien who had attacked Okita on Planet Bolzon\u2026then just disappeared. Recalling the affair at Bolzon, Okita responded.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy? Why turn back, Captain Harlock?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSimple. The planet you\u2019re headed for is not Iscandar.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cW-what? Then that green planet is\u2026?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cExactly. It\u2019s your hated enemy, Gamilas.\u201d<\/p>\n Okita and Susumu stood in dumb surprise. The aggressive, invasive Planet Gamilas was covered in lush, green beauty where Iscandar, filled with compassion, showed a face of cruel death. What in the world could it mean?<\/p>\n \u201cChange course! Get us back out of the atmosphere!\u201d<\/p>\n At Okita\u2019s urgent order, Yamato<\/em> turned its big bow.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to talk, Captain Harlock. I want to understand why you\u2019ve appeared again to lend us your power. And we want to land on Iscandar as soon as possible to find out how Earth can be saved.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYamato<\/em>\u2026of course, I came to this dangerous airspace in order to aid you. There was also a request from the Bolzon King to see you safely back to Earth somehow.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThank you, Captain Harlock.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAs for landing on Iscandar, flying into the atmosphere with the huge Yamato<\/em> is too reckless. It\u2019s far too conspicuous, and you would be at a disadvantage fighting in a narrow airspace. Therefore, use my Phantom<\/em> to land on Iscandar. Phantom<\/em> has the capability to fight and is small enough for covert action.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI see, and I\u2019m very grateful. I\u2019ll begin preparations to transfer over at once!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cUnderstood. I\u2019ll anchor alongside Yamato<\/em> immediately.\u201d<\/p>\n Captain Harlock\u2019s voice ceased. Okita stood up as if burdened by heavy feet.<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n Susumu stood before Okita.<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain, please send me to Planet Iscandar!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat, you\u2026?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes. Please, by all means. You\u2019re exhausted, and if you go to Iscandar we don\u2019t know what kind of danger awaits.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cKodai, It\u2019s the same even if I stay on Yamato<\/em>. I appreciate your feelings, but I will go to Iscandar, too. Hurry up and prepare.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut, Captain! What will everyone do if something happens to you? How will we get back to Earth?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cKodai\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPlease, Captain! Please let me be the one to go! And if I\u2019m of no use, think of another way!\u201d<\/p>\n Okita stared at the single-minded Kodai for a moment, then his gaze turned benevolent.<\/p>\n \u201cKodai\u2026I understand your feeling. Then I will ask you to go. Do it well.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes! Understood!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut just one isn\u2019t enough. Take someone else along.\u201d<\/p>\n Yuki Mori stood before them both.<\/p>\n \u201cCaptain, I\u2019ll go.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMs. Mori\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPlease, Captain! By all means, I\u2019d like\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n Okita glanced between the eyes of Susumu and Yuki and discovered the desperate love between the two of them.<\/p>\n \u201cKodai and Ms. Mori. I\u2019ll leave it to you two. Do your best.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes! We\u2019re going!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHmm\u2026wear ring microphones so we can stay in contact with you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, setting ring microphones.\u201d<\/p>\n They both placed thin metal rings around their necks and soon left the bridge.<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/jul16\/111a01.JPG\")
<\/span><\/p>\nRush to Planet Iscandar<\/h3>\n