✨ CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE — PHASE THREE: CORE DETONATION PROTOCOL ✨
The rooftop trembled.
The coordinator enforcer stood alone now—
but its presence felt heavier than all three combined.
Panels on its chest slid open, revealing a pulsing sphere of blinding white light.
Maya's breath hitched.
"Aiden… that's a Celestial Core.
If it goes full detonation—this whole district will turn into a crater."
Dara pointed wildly, panicking:
"THAT THING HAS A MINI-SUN IN ITS CHEST.
BRO WE CAN'T FIGHT A MINI-SUN—WE DON'T EVEN HAVE SUNSCREEN!"
Aiden didn't blink.
"Then we end it before it charges."
But the enforcer's voice cut through the rising energy like a cold blade:
"PHASE THREE ACTIVATED.
SECTOR CLEARANCE PRIORITY: TERMINATE VESSEL AND ASCENT HOST."
The core expanded—glowing like a newborn star.
All debris began lifting from the ground, pulled in by gravitational force.
Aiden felt the air grow sharp, thin.
Time was running out.
---
Maya stepped forward.
Her hands trembled, silver circuits glowing along her skin.
"I can suppress its charge for a few seconds… but only if you're close.
You need to strike the core directly."
Aiden nodded, fists tightening.
"I'll get close."
Dara blinked.
"HOW?! It's literally turning into a black hole! Bro, your bones will evaporate before you even say 'ouch'—!"
Aiden smirked despite the situation.
"That's why you're covering me."
Dara froze.
"I—WAIT—WHAT AM I COVERING YOU FROM?! YOU SEE ANY EXTRA WEAPONS ON ME?!"
Aiden tapped his forehead.
"Your brain. Your unpredictability. Even the AI can't calculate you."
Dara stood straight, proud.
"…So basically I'm stupid enough to throw them off."
Aiden nodded.
"Exactly."
Dara grinned like he'd won an award.
"LET ME COOK."
---
THE FINAL RUSH
The coordinator's core hit 70% charge.
"Detonation sequence accelerating."
Aiden launched himself forward—gold and blue aura erupting like a comet.
The gravitational pull wrenched his body down, trying to drag him into the core.
His bones screamed.
His muscles tore.
But he kept moving.
Dara sprinted beside him—zig-zagging unpredictably, throwing debris, kicking loose pipes, even cartwheeling at one point.
The enforcer's sensors flickered.
"Error. Error. Movement pattern—nonsensical."
Dara yelled triumphantly:
"YEAH BABY, I'M BUILT LIKE GLITCHED DLC!"
Maya raised her arms.
"Starlight Compression—NOW!!"
A burst of silver light wrapped Aiden's body—neutralizing some of the gravity.
He surged forward, tearing through the air, aura reaching a blinding white.
He roared—
"GET AWAY FROM MY FAMILY!!!"
Aiden struck—
But the enforcer moved.
Its arm shot forward, faster than any prior phase—
Grabbing Aiden by the throat mid-punch.
The core hit 85% charge.
The enforcer lifted him.
"Target neutralized."
Aiden gagged—vision blurring—
The gravity crushing him from all sides.
Dara screamed in horror:
"NO NO NO—BRO, PUNCH BACK OR SOMETHING!"
Aiden's hands shook, unable to reach the core.
The enforcer pulled him closer—
Ready to vaporize him at point-blank range.
---
MAYA BROKE.
Her eyes turned completely silver.
Her hair lifted in weightless strands.
She stepped forward, voice layered with the First Star's echo.
"RELEASE HIM."
She raised her hand—
And reality bent.
The enforcer's systems glitched violently.
Its grip loosened.
Aiden's vision cleared just enough—
Maya shouted:
"NOW, AIDEN—FINISH IT!!!"
---
Aiden inhaled once.
Every muscle screamed.
Every bone was cracking.
But he saw Maya—
Dara—
Everything he needed to protect.
And he struck.
A burning fist of fused gold + silver + starfire slammed into the Celestial Core.
KA—THUUUUUUUUM!!!
Light erupted.
The entire rooftop ignited in a blinding shockwave.
The enforcer's body cracked—
Its core destabilizing—
Its systems fracturing—
"Critical error.
Self-preservation impossible.
Initiating final—"
Aiden roared:
"SHUT—DOWN—!!"
He delivered the final blow—
BOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM!!!!!!
The core imploded.
The enforcer disintegrated into a burst of celestial sparks—
The explosion blooming upward into the sky like a dying star.
He landed hard, skidding across the broken rooftop.
Breathing ragged.
Body shaking.
But alive.
---
The rooftop fell silent.
Dara slowly peeked from behind a shattered AC unit.
"…Did we win?"
Aiden lay on his back, staring at the sky.
"Yeah," he exhaled.
"Phase Three… done."
Maya limped over, collapsing beside him—resting her head on his shoulder.
"Aiden… the Dominion won't stop. That was just a scouting unit."
Aiden smiled faintly, exhaustion heavy in his eyes.
"Then let them send more."
He looked up at the sky—
Where cracks of celestial light began to widen again.
"I'm not done."
The real war was only beginning.