“Why me?”

Those were the first words out of my mouth after I learned that I would be the co-leader of a team supposed to launch a strike against the spaceships hovering in the air. I didn’t think there was anyone else in this room who was as ill-prepared to lead a team of Untethered as me.

I was inexperienced and my relationship with the Council was frayed, to say the least. I couldn’t fathom why the Council would entrust me with such responsibility.

Nova was quick to reply, “Because you’re a native of this planet. Eirini might have more experience with leadership but I don’t think he will be able to connect with the Untethered of this planet in quite the same way as you will be able to.”

“That’s all fine but again, why me? There’s literally thousands of Untethered more capable than me.”

“That might be so but your powers over time might come in very handy in dire situations. We are facing the unknown here and don’t know what to expect. Your powers allow us a greater chance of success in that. With Eirini’s experience in leadership back in his home planet and your support, I am sure the mission will be a success.”

I couldn’t argue with his point. Anyway, it sounded like the Council expected me to be Eirini’s sidekick and I was totally okay with that. He seemed the man most equipped to handle the responsibility for such an important mission, one which had possibly great ramifications for the fate of the planet.

Shadow began addressing the room regarding the plan for the covert operation in the night. “The plan is simple: destroy the radiating panels. If someone can devise a way to get inside the spaceship itself, that would be great. But I can’t stress this enough. The top priority is destroying the panels. Only after the panels have been destroyed will the leader decide whether entering the spaceship itself is a feasible option. Is that clear?”

Everyone voiced their assent immediately.

Eirini took over the meeting at that point, which was surprising to me since he wasn’t really a member of the Council. He took out a roll of paper and laid it across the table around which the Council sat.

“This is all the information I could gather about the spaceship after flying around without getting too close.”, he said, pointing towards what seemed like a structural diagram of the spaceship.

A vague thought passed my mind whether these spaceships also contained some sort of small ‘thread-the-needle’ type of vulnerability, ala the Death Star. I shook that thought off my mind and began listening to Eirini’s description.

“Okay, I couldn’t find any traditional entrance to the spaceship which suggests that this actually is an unmanned flight.”

One of the other leaders piped up, “Like a drone, then.”

Nova was quick to answer, “Exactly.”

Everyone nodded while Eirini looked somewhat confused, probably unfamiliar with the term ‘drone’. Nevertheless, he carried on.

“From what I could gather, the entire spaceship is made of the finest quality asteroid alloy, making it impervious to most, if not all Untethered abilities of mass destruction. Meaning, you can’t phase into the ship directly, even if your ability normally allows you to do so.”

I asked him, “Why don’t we use the abilities of mass destruction on this thing and blow it out of the sky? For example, Shadow can just crush a spaceship with large shadow claws or something.”

Eirini said, “Asteroid alloy is also practically indestructible. We won't be able to even dent this ship from the outside. Our only chance at these spaceships’ complete obliteration is from the inside.”

Someone from the room asked, “What is this asteroid alloy?”

Nova was the one to answer. “It’s a composition of metals that are only found in the asteroid of the asteroid separating Mars and Jupiter. There’s a small quantity of it present in the possession of the Council, although it is only enough for academic purposes.”

“If this substance is bulletproof, how are we supposed to move inside this thing? And what about our top priority? The panels we are supposed to be dismantling at all costs? Is it made of the same substance too?”

“No, it’s made of some sort of radiating material. We don’t know exactly what’s it made of but we do think it will be easier to break with our abilities.” Eirini sounded a little uncertain as he said that. I wondered if anyone else had caught it. If anyone had, no one said anything.

Everyone filtered out of the room slowly, engaging in conversations regarding the plan and what changes to expect. No one expected it to be smooth sailing obviously but I felt there was a general consensus that we had enough manpower to take down the radiating panels.

I caught up to Eirini and we began discussing the possible team members for the important mission. I was aware that my input would be crucial in the formation of the team because I was the one more familiar with the Untethered in our territory.

“So, I am thinking of forming a strike team of five people at most, including us. Small but effective. I think the best approach would be approaching this like a surgical knife, not a battering ram.” I liked the general idea of the formation of the team.

I remarked, “That leaves us with the responsibility to choose three members. I think we should decide the type of members we want, rather than the members themselves. I don’t think there is any Untethered in our territory who is so powerful that he can surpass the need of specialists. That’s why I think we should choose members that fit the requirements.”

Samuel nodded at that. We followed everyone out of the Council headquarters out of the same mystic door. I was astonished when I saw that the entrance was empty when we came out at the other end. I looked around, expecting to see everyone who had followed us out of the door.

Eirini laughed at my puzzled expression. He addressed me, clearly amused, “You didn’t think everyone would come out at the same exit, did you? I don’t how but that door takes you to which exit you want to go.”

To say I was flabbergasted would be a huge understatement. A door that responded to your wishes? The mysteries of the mystical door were getting more and more numerous each time I saw it. We left the entrance hall, with me still looking back once or twice to see if someone had followed us at all, by mistake or otherwise.

Eirini spoke up, interrupting my wait for someone to arrive out of the door, saying, “I think Samuel should be in our team. I have thought it through and think that while a need for specialists is required, we would also require familiarity with our team members and teamwork. Samuel can fulfill that role, in my opinion. He has been your former teammate after all.”

I agreed with him and said, “That’s true. Also, he has been an Untethered for much longer than me. He is also much more familiar with the other Untethered in our territory. He can act as a sort of glue for the whole team.”

Samuel remarked, “We can put him in charge of the communications then. I don’t think the whole team together for much of the time of the mission. We will need someone to clarify the plans from our side to the whole team. Also, he will be our liaison to the Council if things go south and we need reinforcements.”

“What about the other team members though? All the Untethered I know relatively well are either dead, self-exiled or imprisoned. So, I don’t think I would have too much valuable input in this.”

“Hmm, I will think about it. I think I will ask Samuel to bring all the available and suitable Untethered at a common meeting point as soon as possible. What are you going to do?”

“I think I am going to go home and prepare. Also, I need to handle the situation with my parents.”

Eirini nodded at that and said, “Okay, I will come and fetch you once the team has been formed. Be ready though. We will start in about a couple of hours.”

I made my way home, only to find out that my parents were still holed up in their room. I knocked on the door and my father opened the door. He got out of the room after seeing that it was me.

“Hey, son. Your mom is sleeping. You want to talk?”

“Is mom okay?” I was still concerned about mom’s condition, my last time seeing her was the sight of her crying.

“Yeah, she is okay. It will take some time to sink in, you know. Your superpowers, I mean.”

I could only nod at that, not knowing what to say. In the end, I decided to just inform him about my plans for the night.

“Hey, dad. I will be out tonight to do some of the Untethered stuff. It’s very important in the upcoming war efforts.” I hesitantly told him, not really sure how he would react to the news.

“Is it dangerous?”. My father’s tone didn’t give his feelings away.

“I won't lie and say that it isn’t. It is dangerous. Very dangerous, in fact. We are trying to destroy the spaceship stationed above the city. And we don’t know what awaits us. But I have gotta do it. It’s too important.”

My father just nodded at that, his face still stoic. Just then, a voice interrupted our conversation.

“Hey, David. You ready?” I turned around to see Samuel standing on the window ledge. I nodded at him before telling my father. “I have got to go. Wish me luck.”

Just as I was about to leave, my father’s voice stopped me. “Take care, son.”

I just nodded at that without looking at my father and followed Samuel out of the window.

I followed Samuel to the meeting point, with the spaceship hovering over us menacingly. I couldn’t help but wonder whether the mission would be as straightforward as the Council seemed to believe.

Sol Syntrivon had always been five steps ahead of us. If the past was any indication, I thought that we were in for some unpleasant surprises.