Inside his aircraft, Kaelar watched his comm screen flicker, then die completely. He tried reestablishing contact with the Vega, but the system stayed silent.
"Not good," he muttered.
He switched to the locator system. Vega's last ping appeared on the map, dropping fast—too fast.
He opened a channel to Zephyr and Kirana. "Listen up. Vega's going down. Total power loss. Get to their coordinates now."
Out in the fields, Zephyr and Kirana stopped dead.
"Aelina..." Kirana's voice cracked.
Zephyr activated the jetpack built into his armor. "No time. Move."
Kirana launched her own jetpack, blue light streaking behind her as she and Zephyr shot into the sky, following Kaelar's path.
***
Inside the Vega ship, everything was falling apart. The hull screamed under the pressure of their descent. Vega was still pounding on the controls, desperately trying to override the dead systems.
"Come on. Come on!" she shouted.
Aelina sat rigid, hands trembling, eyes squeezed shut. "I have to help... there has to be something I can do..."
Lyra placed a hand on her shoulder. "Stay with us. Vega will get us out."
But before the reboot could complete, the ship hit the ground.
The impact drowned out every thought.
Silence followed.
***
Inside his cockpit, Kaelar watched the scanner sweep the crash zone. Kirana sat behind him, barely breathing. Zephyr stood near the hatch, gripping his weapon so tightly his knuckles whitened.
"I've got something," Kaelar said suddenly. A red dot blinked on the screen. "Life signs. Not many, but they're there."
Kirana leaned forward, hope and fear tangled in her voice. "Is it them? Is Aelina there?"
"I can't tell. But it's the only reading we have."
Zephyr stepped in. "Then we head there. Now."
Kaelar angled the ship toward the coordinates. "Brace yourselves. We're landing."
The ship descended through a cloud of smoke and dust. Broken trees and scorched earth stretched below—evidence of the Vega's crash. As soon as the ramp lowered, Kirana sprinted out, Zephyr and Kaelar right behind her.
Thick smoke curled from the wreck. The front half of the Vega ship was crushed. Debris littered the ground.
"There!" Zephyr pointed.
Lyra, Draven, Velaria, and Vega lay scattered near the ruined hull. All of them injured.
Kirana slid to her knees beside Lyra. "Lyra! Stay with me!"
Lyra forced her eyes open. Her voice was weak. "Kirana... I'm sorry... we couldn't stop them..."
Draven leaned against a fallen tree, bleeding and breathless. He lifted a hand. "Kirana..."
She rushed to him. "Where is she? Where's Aelina?"
Draven swallowed hard. "After the crash... Edenan soldiers came. They took her. We tried, but..."
Kirana froze. Her breath hitched. The world shrank to a single point.
Zephyr stepped closer, ready to steady her.
But Kirana's voice erupted, raw and furious.
"They took my daughter! They took Aelina! Those Edenans never stop. They take everything!"
Zephyr grabbed her arm gently. "Kirana. Listen. We will get her back. But you need to stay with us. Focus."
Kaelar approached, standing solid beside them. "He's right. Rage won't help us. Strategy will."
Kirana's eyes filled with tears of fury. "Then tell me what to do. They're always ahead. Always stronger."
Kaelar placed a firm hand on her shoulder. "First, we get the wounded stable. Then we track them. This isn't over."
Zephyr lifted Vega carefully. "I've got her. Kirana, help with Lyra."
Kirana nodded and helped Lyra up, her hands trembling but steady. "We're not done, Lyra. We'll get Aelina back."
Kaelar hauled Draven up despite his protests. "Save your strength," Kaelar said. "Argue later."
He lifted Velaria next, carrying her toward the ship.
Once inside, Kaelar activated the med-bay. Automated systems whirred to life, scanning and treating the wounded.
Zephyr sat beside Lyra. "She's going to be okay, right?"
Kaelar checked the console. "They all will. But they need time."
Kirana stood beside the window, silent, fists clenched. Zephyr approached her.
"Kirana..."
"I wasn't there," she whispered. "I should've protected her."
"No," Zephyr said firmly. "Aelina is strong because of you. And she's waiting for us. We'll get her back."
Kaelar joined them. "Zephyr's right. We move as one. Edena won't stop, but neither will we. For now, we head home. We regroup. Then we strike."
Kirana turned, tears drying, replaced by fire.
"Then let's go. Aelina needs us."
Kaelar nodded and raised the ship. As they lifted off, the broken crash site fell away beneath them.
The silence inside the ship was heavy—but not hopeless.
They weren't defeated.
They were preparing.
Aelina was out there. And they were coming for her.
***
The sun had just begun to rise over the village of Ravara. On a small wooden table, a holographic star map flickered softly, displaying the orbit of Planet Kaelion in the Draetheus system. Everyone gathered around it, tension hanging thick in the air.
"Time is not on our side," Kaelar said, tapping a marked red zone. "If Aelina was taken off-world, Kaelion is the most likely destination. It's Edena's primary hub for their cloning research."
Kirana sat rigid, her fists clenched so tightly her knuckles whitened. "If they brought her there, they're not just trying to control her. They want to use her for something worse."
Velaria nodded grimly. "The second-generation cloning program. If Aelina becomes part of that project, she won't be a prisoner. She'll be a weapon."
Zephyr leaned back, spear resting against his leg. "So what's the approach? We storm the place without knowing anything?"
Kaelar exhaled, calm but sharp. "No. We gather intel first. We need confirmation on her exact location before we make any move."
Before anyone could respond, Lyra's voice rang from the adjacent room. "I found her!"
They rushed in. Lyra stood before a star chart with a blinking red signal pulsing in steady intervals.
"What is it?" Kirana asked, barely holding back her panic.
Lyra pointed at the highlighted sector. "I traced Aelina's neural frequency. She's on Kaelion, inside a facility called Erevos. One of their biggest research sites."
Velaria's face tightened. "Then it fits. Erevos is where they keep their most dangerous experiments. But breaking in… that place is practically a fortress."
Zephyr scoffed. "Fortress or not, we're not leaving her there."
Kaelar slammed a hand onto the table. "If we know where she is, then we move. We go to Kaelion, and we bring her back."
Outside, Vega and Draven immediately began loading supplies onto the ship. Weapons, power cells, medkits—every piece of gear was double-checked. Vega, still recovering, worked the control panel with determination.
"We need this ship operational and combat-ready," she said without looking up.
Draven lifted a crate of ammunition. "Sure you're well enough to fly?"
Vega smirked faintly. "If I wasn't, I wouldn't be standing."
Lyra approached with a small device. "This is the tracker. Even if Edena blocks the signal, we'll still get a ping on Aelina's neural pattern."
When preparations were complete, the group assembled at the loading ramp. Kaelar scanned their faces.
"This won't be a normal operation," he warned. "Kaelion is their territory. If anyone wants to stay behind, speak now."
No one moved.
Kirana stepped forward. "We're all here for one reason. We bring Aelina home. Whatever it takes."
Kaelar nodded. "Then let's go."
They boarded. Vega took the pilot's seat, Kaelar co-pilot. The others strapped in.
"Coordinates locked," Vega said. "Warp will put us there in hours."
Kaelar pressed the ignition. "Engaging warp."
The ship roared upward, piercing the atmosphere. At peak velocity, the warp engine flared to life, tearing space into a tunnel of shifting light. In a blink, they vanished into hyperspace.
Silence fell. Everyone sank into their thoughts, the weight of the mission pressing against them.
Zephyr nudged Kirana. "You ready for this?"
She nodded without hesitation. "I'll be ready for anything. For Aelina, I have to be."
Velaria checked her weapon again. "Erevos isn't just secure. It's a labyrinth. One mistake could get us killed."
Lyra stared at the swirling lights beyond the glass. "If they tamper with Aelina's mind… if they turn her into part of the project… our world is done."
Draven tightened the strap on his gear. "Then failure isn't an option."
Hours passed. Vega's voice finally broke the tense quiet. "Warp disengaging in two minutes. Prepare for arrival."
Everyone strapped in. Weapons secured. Eyes forward.
Kaelar glanced back at them. "This is it. Kaelion won't give us a second chance. Stay sharp."
The warp corridor collapsed into normal space. Before them, Planet Kaelion appeared—lush oceans and forests surrounded by sprawling, metallic complexes that scarred the terrain.
"Welcome to Kaelion," Kaelar said quietly. "Let the fight begin."