The "attic" of the sailboat—the air thick with the scent of ozone and the constant creak of wood. Ari wakes up tied to a metal chair bolted to the floor. He lifts his head, trying to react quickly upon seeing his opponents. He attempts to move his arms, but they are squeezed tight against each other by the bindings, making any movement impossible.
Michael stood fixed in front of Ari. Beside him was Kutro, lurking deeper in the shadows, his cyan eyes like blue flames in an infinite void, while B34 stood guard.
— WHAT? Have I been kidnapped!? — Ari murmured, his voice nearly failing him.
— Exactly. And you are going to answer our questions, Councilor. — Michael crossed his arms behind his back and took a step forward, the light revealing more of his face. — About the C.E.M.: what are its goals, and how do they know so much about us?
— The C.E.M. is a government agency that specializes in special missions—specifically those dealing with Yaolian cases. Everything involving that.
— An agency created for Yaol? — Michael asked curtly.
— C.E.M. also has the mission to cover up and hide all of this from humanity. Originally created to study extraterrestrial life, it turned into something much more.
Michael placed a hand on his chin, analyzing the information.
— I suggest the use of dirty methods to confirm the legitimacy of these facts — B34 said.
— Not yet; he’s speaking more than expected. — Michael raised a hand to interrupt the robot's plans. — We want to know... about Hax and Kutro. About their origin. In a way, isn't "housing" paranormal beings in your facilities quite risky?
— Our organization extracts data from such creatures. I don’t have much information; only high-ranking officials who specialize in studying these beings know more.
Michael leaned in until his forehead nearly touched Ari's. Ari felt a cold sweat of fear break out.
— You are going to tell us everything you know about this organization. One way or another. We can rip the information out of you whenever we want, using whatever methods we choose.
Ari huffed, looking down as a tear nearly rolled off his nose.
— I only heard mention of them twice in my career. The first was when I enlisted; I walked through almost every hallway with officers introducing me to the foundation. I heard talk of a minotaur created in some lab that was estimated to be three hundred years old, and of a wolf skeleton. The second time was when I finally reached a rank where I could see classified files. The minotaur named "Hax" had received a lethal dose of Golden Rabbit Lily, but his body had mutated unexpectedly to adapt to the flower.
The three looked at each other as if having a silent discussion. A chill ran through Michael’s body, and his fingertips trembled slightly. Kutro looked at Michael, then at B34; it seemed impossible for all that information to be real.
"He must be setting us up," Kutro thought.
He took a timid step forward, lifting the hat that covered part of his face, and addressed Ari.
— What is the Golden Rabbit Lily...?
— This lily... known as the "Unlucky Die," is a flower with rabbit-like characteristics that strangely contains a massive amount of energy. It is a unique flower that appears in extremely high, isolated regions where no other vegetation grows. When consumed, this flower can bring about massive positive or negative effects in a totally unpredictable way. Once reports of this plant spread through the media like a plague, many people started hunting for it.
— But wasn't the C.E.M. supposed to cover up that information?
— The news had already spread too far. They couldn't just "erase" it as if it never existed. They leaked misinformation instead—claiming it had extreme side effects or was a poison. They created many fake books about it.
— And why are you giving us this information so freely? Are you actually telling the truth, or just stalling us?
Ari took a deep breath, weighing his words.
— Listen, I am not your enemy. I want to help you. We aren't on opposite sides of the board; we’re on the same side. For a long time, I thought the C.E.M. were my allies, maybe even friends. But that agency is using us all like a ventriloquist's puppets, using us for its own ends.
B34 signaled for Kutro and Michael to leave the room. Before the three exited, Michael said:
— We’ll think about it.
With that, he sealed the iron door, shutting out the only source of light in that spacious yet empty room.
On the deck, Vierius was adjusting his green elastic belt. His greenish skin glowed under the sun. As soon as the communication arrived, he knew Michael had already done his part by taking Lilith, and now it was his turn to work. B34 climbed the white wooden stairs, his head lowered as if deep in thought.
— B34, current coordinates — Vierius ordered.
— We are in the waters of Málaga, heading southwest, 225 degrees — the robot replied. — There has been an error. We are currently in unknown waters of the Atlantic.
Suddenly, the entire ocean began to warp, looking as though it were tilting upward, yet gravity remained unchanged. The moon in the sky was consumed by a solar flare; the dark blue waters of Spain began to turn green, and the sun rose on the horizon as if the night had never existed, bathing the waters in a shimmering glow. Vierius stared at the blue horizon in shock; the nearby beach vanished in an instant. He looked in every direction, seeing nothing but an infinity of water.
— What!?... We were near Málaga, it was night, and suddenly the environment and the time change... — His face froze in surprise, turning pale. He looked around and stood still. The anxiety of being in an unknown environment where anything could happen began to surge; his heart rate spiked.
— Attention. It appears there is a gravitational shift. My radar has detected a gravity distortion covering 80% of the Atlantic Ocean. The time and location have changed unexpectedly. I will be temporarily powering down for internal system verification.
— B34! Rescind task! I need you urgently!
The donut Vierius had pulled from his pocket fell, but before hitting the deck, it stopped in mid-air and began to spin counter-clockwise at an increasing speed.
— ...!?!?!? — The words died in Vierius's throat. He was deathly pale with fear.
The sun teleported to the middle of the sky. Gravity seemed to have vanished entirely, no longer pulling anything down; anything that fell toward the floor stopped instantly in the air. The water began to recede to a level so low it seemed the sailboat was flying. The water eventually dissipated entirely, but there was no ground beneath them. The sailboat was floating in a sky without sea or land, where nothing behaved as it should.
In the blink of an eye, the boat was slammed back against the water as if it had fallen from space at the speed of a jet. The sailboat rocked violently, water splashing everywhere, nearly swallowing it. Once the rocking stopped, Vierius's donut fell to the floor and stopped spinning. The alien was still processing what happened.
— B34... what happened?
— It appears we passed through a minor space-time distortion. Attempted crossing caused: spatial rupture. Action: structure relocated to a different location.
— Vierius, how are you?
— Very scared... — He caught his breath, remembering something. — B34, I need you to take me to Pyramid's ship. It’s urgent. Miguel is missing and might be there. — He lied.
— First, validation from the other group members will be required.
— B34, we have to leave now! We don't have time for this!
The robot authorized Vierius's request. The thrusters on its back opened and activated. Vierius mounted the robot, and both flew through the sky, trailing fire.
In the inner natural division of Albany, where the largest buildings and attractions were separated by highways and massive trails, the escape pod carrying Galactor and Pyramid was falling. It scarred the industrial streets of Albany before hitting the ground in a spray of sparks. Galactor, the dark-green scaled lizard, emerged snarling at the crowd that hadn't yet fled. Pyramid lay unconscious inside the crater.
Then, a blue blur in the sky descended beside the crater. Vierius and B34 landed.
— Galactor... — Vierius raised his arms to show he was unarmed. His dark blue suit covered him from his legs to his torso, with sleeves ending right at his hands; a purple elastic-like detail sat between his torso and legs. — I’m not here to attack you. I want to call a truce.
— Hybrid, you again! Don't try to fool me with your cheap tricks!
In a burst of impatience, Galactor slammed his fist against the pod’s emergency panel. The machine, programmed with leader-preservation protocols, sealed shut and blasted off toward the stratosphere, carrying the wounded leader away and leaving Galactor behind.
— Ah, piece of junk machine...
Galactor looked at B34 and then at Vierius. He was unarmed and injured; he couldn't fight or threaten them.
"3... 6... 9... I have about two minutes to escape before those agents arrive. There's only one way out of this!"
Galactor bolted toward the New York State Capitol, weaving through crowded streets. He ran down the middle of the road past yellow storefronts, narrowly dodging a high-speed car, running with a clumsy gait. Vierius opened a portal in front of Galactor that led directly back to him. As soon as the lizard stepped through, he threw a punch in mid-air that nearly knocked Vierius over, then threw himself onto a market stall tent to cushion his fall.
Galactor pushed through the people in front of him with fear and hatred—the same people who were now hiding or running and screaming. Several drivers abandoned their vehicles amidst the chaos, diving out as if they were about to explode, causing a massive pile-up. Galactor dodged an abandoned motorcycle at high speed, shoving it toward another approaching vehicle. In the middle of the chaos, Vierius took every precaution to keep people alive, saving pedestrians and teleporting vehicles to prevent collisions.
B34 flew off at high speed, leaving Vierius behind. The blue fire from his thrusters intensified, leaving a trail of black smoke in the sky. He slammed into the alien prince, shoving him through the window of a bus. Glass shards flew everywhere as horrified passengers dove out of the way. Upon exiting through the rear window, the robot slammed the alien into the ground, pinning him against the asphalt and cracking it.
— B34, that was not my command! Cease combat!
— Command denied. Threat must be neutralized.
— Enough!
Vierius grabbed the robot's arms, squeezing with force to stop him from acting.
— If there's a threat here, it's you! YOU TIN CAN! — Galactor shouted, out of breath. His armor had taken the brunt of the impacts and was now useless.
— Galactor, I came for a truce. We’ve been enemies for a while, but it was never my intention to destroy you. We are half-brothers, Galactor. Same blood, same mother: Kieria.
— You think I was born yesterday!? I know that! Kieria is our mother. Kieria had four children. I’m running because I won’t work with you! My life in royalty was good; I loved it. But it was the humans' fault! They killed her! They should be eradicated! I would a thousand times rather die for the cult than be with you!
Vierius was struck by Galactor's words. He paused for a moment, nearly letting go of B34. The empty streets seemed to have a moment of peace after the conflict, with the sound of the wind being the only company left.
The sound of rhythmic boots revealed black uniforms with white lettering: C.E.M. The agents surrounded the area with their weapons and armored suits.
— Permission to fire...
— Proceed.
The shots from the blue weapons hit Galactor instantly. He jumped up, unaffected. Vierius opened a portal to return fire, but it had no effect on anyone. A guard from behind struck him in the neck with a melee weapon, giving Vierius a small shock. B34 took several ultrasonic shots that immobilized his legs, but before he could be disabled, he activated his fire thrusters against the ground, pushing everyone around him back.
Galactor screamed, dropping into a fighting stance as he stood.
— Show me you're a man! Fight like one!
The provocation worked on a guard, who dropped his weapons and cracked his neck. Both in combat stances, the guard threw the first punch at Galactor's face, making him spit. Galactor immediately retaliated with a punch to the guard’s face. The fight ended the moment they both knocked each other out with a simultaneous punch. On B34’s face-screen, the word "Draw" appeared. Then, a guard shut him down with several blows from a melee weapon.
Once the trio was on the ground, one of the guards removed their helmet, revealing beautiful red hair and brown eyes with groomed eyebrows.
— Major Rource. Confirming success in the mission to capture the targets. — Agent Vargas said into her earpiece.
— Understood. Bring the Yaol users to the foundation. Leave no traces.
Vargas turned off her comms after confirming the delivery of the targets to the foundation.
— Tsk. Looks like three more for the extraterrestrial collection...
