Sync mode was only available when a pilot was ready to sacrifice their very life force to ignite it. In the ancient documentation of the god-orbitons, it was described not as a technique but as a death pact—a state only three pilots in all recorded history had ever activated, and none survived long after. The cost was simply too high. Sync mode demanded everything: body, mind, spirit, even years of lifespan burned away in a single moment of unleashed divinity.
But Youri was different.
Because of his unique body and altered DNA, sync mode did not drain life from him—it unlocked him. For him, sync mode became a weapon, a sharpened edge he only drew when the situation reached absolute catastrophe.
As the Altopereh hurtled downward, the earth rising fast toward the cockpit glass, Youri closed his eyes and triggered the sequence. Every panel shut down in an instant—lights flickering out one by one until the cockpit went black.
Then he heard the voice.
A sardonic whisper echoing inside his skull:
"Hey moron. This is gonna cost you."
Youri exhaled once, long and steady, and gave a faint smile.
"Yeah, yeah… I know."
The cockpit ignited blood-red.
And Altopereh crash.
The instant it struck the ground, it rebounded upward like a launched projectile, ripping into the sky at speeds no Terrian machine could even measure. A crimson trail snapped behind its ascent. Up above the clouds, Altopereh stopped abruptly and looked down, scanning the battlefield. Dozens of Terrian ships and orbitons drifted below like scattered toys across a metal floor.
Perciosa and Sirius noticed the glowing silhouette immediately—but before either could react, Altopereh vanished in a ripple of distorted space.
In the next instant, it reappeared in front of one of the Terrian cruisers, blade drawn.
The ship split cleanly in half.Three escort orbitons detonated seconds later—silent flashes swallowed by sync mode's aftershock.
Perciosa launched forward instantly, Anemone shouting:
"Eat THAT, you fossil!"
A concentrated plasma slash tore through the air, a scorching arc bright enough to stain the clouds purple. But Altopereh didn't dodge.
It simply caught the attack—its massive hand snapping shut around the energy. The plasma trembled violently, hissing, but Altopereh crushed it like brittle glass. Before the broken fragments could disperse, the god-orbiton blasted forward, nearly ramming Perciosa head-on.
Anemone barely threw her wings up in time.
The impact launched her backward, slamming Perciosa into a jagged ridge of black rock. The formation shattered on impact, exploding into shards around her cockpit.
Sirius capitalized instantly.
Maximilian raised his arm, firing a burst of missiles that streaked across the sky like burning comets. As they closed in, Sirius' secondary ability activated—inertia manipulation—pulling two colossal meteor fragments from orbit. They dropped at terminal velocity, the atmosphere screaming around them as they crashed down, cratering the ground and smashing into Altopereh.
Dust erupted high enough to blot out the sky.
Maximilian grinned.
"Let's see you crawl out of THAT."
But he didn't wait long.
The meteors shattered—violently—from the inside.
Chunks of molten rock erupted outward, revealing Altopereh untouched, glowing with sync mode's impossible radiance.
Its wing thrusters ignited, blasting it even higher before firing a volley of micro-singularity rounds—tiny pockets of collapsed space flung like bullets. They swirled erratically, warping the air, dragging light itself as they streaked toward Sirius.
Maximilian raised his shield instinctively.
"Damn—these things HIT HARD!"
Each collision trembled through his cockpit, shaking his bones. As he held back the barrage, Altopereh dove toward the surface again.
By the time he landed, eight more orbitons were already falling in burning chunks behind him. Panic rippled through the Terrian forces.
Mikhail saw it.
Emilia saw it.
Everyone did.
This wasn't a battle anymore—this was extermination.
"Brother," Emilia breathed, pale, "we have to retreat to orbit. If that monster isn't subdued, we won't have a fleet left."
Mikhail clenched his jaw but nodded.
"God damn it… ALL SHIPS, RETREAT TO ORBIT! Regroup and await further orders!"
Ship after ship began pulling back toward the upper atmosphere.
Cowards, Maximilian thought, unable to stop himself as he watched them flee.
"Running for their lives…"
He turned back—
And froze.
Altopereh stood directly in front of Sirius, hand wrapped around Sirius' head.
Particles of condensed energy spiraled in Altopereh's fist, gathering for a point-blank plasma shot.
Maximilian's breath hitched.
But Perciosa moved faster.
Anemone erupted from the debris, wings fully extended, screaming:
"MOTHERFUCKER—YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT!"
Her claws struck Altopereh's wrist, throwing his aim off just as the plasma discharged. The shot tore past Sirius' head, missing by meters but carving a glowing scar across the ground.
Now the three god-orbitons faced each other in a rough triangle—Perciosa right, Sirius left, Altopereh dead center.
Through comms Maximilian growled:
"Ane—this guy's in sync mode! I'm sure of it!"
"Does he have a DEATH WISH!?" Anemone spat.
Far in the distance, the Tartarusios tried to escape—only to have dozens of enemy ships descend from orbit. The thirty earlier vessels had been bait. The real blockade was now descending like a cage.
"Shit!" Oscar slammed the panel. "We're trapped now!"
They had no choice but to fight. Titans deployed. Engines roared. The ground trembled as they marched toward the battlefield.
Back above, the god-orbitons clashed.
Perciosa unleashed its gamma feathers—energy feathers turning into homing missiles as they launched in waves. They spiraled around Youri, tracking every dodge with fluid precision.
Altopereh danced between them, sync mode amplifying every twitch, every pivot. The feathers spun into spirals trying to corner him.
Maximilian's voice crackled:
"Ane! Hold him off—I'm going to charge the blast beam from orbit!"
"Good! PULVERIZE the fucker!" she yelled.
Sirius dove into the clouds, faking a retreat as Altopereh blasted him with more singularity rounds. The impacts launched Sirius downward, giving him a perfect excuse to slip free and break atmosphere.
Perciosa remained.
The melee that followed shook the sky.
Altopereh's plasma blade collided against Perciosa's wing-edge again and again, each impact scattering shards of condensed light. Shockwaves rolled across the clouds. The clangor sounded like metal bells being shattered.
Anemone was laughing.
"THIS IS FUN! Come on old man—SHOW ME WHAT YOU'VE GOT!"
Youri didn't respond.
Instead Altopereh suddenly shot backward—lifting its hands and clapping them together.
A long, humming plasma lance materialized—crackling with purple fire.
Youri's voice finally echoed over comms:
"I'll show you what I got."
"Oh? FINALLY talking!" Anemone grinned. "Get ready to die!"
She lunged, claws extended, wings spreading with gamma feathers ready to fire. The claws clashed with the lance, sparks exploding in every direction as she boxed Altopereh in between her attacks.
"I GOT YOU NOW!" she roared.
Gamma feathers detonated in a massive explosion engulfing the sky in blinding light.
When Perciosa shot out of the smoke, Anemone dusted her shoulder.
"That should at least shake him."
The smoke cleared.
Altopereh was gone.
Up in orbit, Sirius was moments from completing its blast beam charge when Maximilian's radar began screaming.
"Ane—Ane, where did he GO!? I can't locate him!"
Before he finished the sentence, Altopereh materialized behind Sirius—silent, like a ghost.
The blow came instantly.
Altopereh's fists locked together, and with a brutal upward swing, it smashed Sirius downward like a meteor. Maximilian felt his lungs crush against his ribs as alarms blared and inertia warnings flashed red. He screamed, pulling every ounce of strength to activate inertia dampening—just enough to slow before impact.
Sirius crashed, carving a trench miles long across the surface.
Altopereh descended slowly, overshadowing both of them—Perciosa on one side, Sirius trying to recover on the other.
Youri's voice echoed through the comms.
Calm. Cold. Final.
"Alright, kids."
"Play time is over."