Times have been tough for Captain Harlock and his crew. The Illumidas Empire had been constantly on the chase for the Arcadia no matter where she went, and now even pulled out a significantly upgraded Deathshadow into the equation. The Arcadia and her crew were forced into action when Illumidas threatened to blow up a planet with a newly-developed weapon even Harlock had not seen before...

The Arcadia warped into the system that the Illumidas were threatening with their new weapon.

"Action Station!", Harlock ordered from his position behind the ship's wheel.

"Mime, scan for Illumidas warships...Tochiro, ready the cannons - we have a weapon to destroy."

The Arcadia passed by the 5th planet in the system thus far, using its gravitational pull to swing the space battleship into a trajectory that would take it in an elliptical course deeper into the system. So far no sign of Illumidas patrol ships or their light cruisers but Harlock reasoned they would keep all their forces closer to the weapon.