It was already morning, and they were getting set for their mission.

  Mason zipped up his suit and stared at himself in the mirror. His black jacket and jeans were clean and ironed, and his boots were polished as well.

  Courtesy of Keisha.

  “Feels like I'm headed to the gulag,” he muttered.

  “That’s because we are,” Jett replied, already dressed sharply in his gear. “Let’s move.” He spun on his heel and marched out.

  They followed.

  “Where are we going?” Keisha asked as she caught up.

  “To the hangar.”

  “Hangar?” Mason blinked. “Like… an airplane hangar?”

  Jett didn’t bother answering.

  Mason turned his head. “This guy, am I right?”

  Vey smirked while Liv and Keisha chuckled.

  They moved through sterile corridors, the hum of electricity and distant footfalls echoing around them. When the heavy doors to the hangar slid open, a gust of cool air hit them—along with the imposing figure of the commander waiting inside.

  Behind him stood a sleek, high-tech jet that practically hummed with power.

  “Jett Kaimana,” Commander Darren began, “You’ll lead this team in battle. Olivia Robyn will serve as your vice-captain. Neutralize the hostile threat. Gather intel. Return. This is your first real engagement.”

  His eyes swept over all of them.

  “Failure is not an option.”

  Mason glanced back at the jet. “Whoa, check it out...”

  “You’ve been equipped with everything you need. Get ready, you leave soon.”

  No more words were needed.

  They approached the jet, the ramp extending with a hiss. Inside, Jett slid into the pilot seat without hesitation. The others took their positions, strapping in. The cabin lights flickered to life. Panels lit up. Systems hummed.

  Jett’s fingers flew across the controls. “Power up sequence—now.”

  Liv sat to his right; eyes sharp. “Engaging reactor core. Power flow stabilizing… holding at ninety-seven percent.”

  Keisha was behind them, working at the comms terminal. “Comm channels open. Syncing navigation grid with external guidance… we're locked on Earth Nineteen’s signal beacon.”

  “Vey,” Jett called without looking back, “engine diagnostics. Give me a green or red.”

  Vey’s eyes darted across her display. “Thrusters nominal. Plasma intake steady. We’re good to go.”

  “Alright,” Jett said, voice steady, “Mason, prep launch vector. I want the trajectory aligned in ten.”

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Mason tapped into the console with more confidence than he expected. “Sure thing, boss man. We’re locked and loaded.”

  Jett smirked. “That’s more like it.”

  The engines began to hum louder, lights turning amber across the interior. The floor trembled gently beneath them.

  “Final systems check,” Jett barked. “Liv?”

  “All green.”

  “Keisha?”

  “Comms steady.”

  “Vey?”

  “We’re good.”

  “Mason?”

  “Yup.”

  “Then let’s light it up.”

  Jett slammed the ignition control forward. The jet rumbled, and with a powerful surge, it lifted off the hangar floor.

  As they hovered in place, the commander’s voice came through the cabin speakers.

  “This is Commander Darren. Team Alphys, you're cleared for the dimensional jump. You’re not just representing Universe Twenty. You’re fighting for it.”

  “Good luck out there.”

  With a thunderous roar and a burst of energy, the jet accelerated down the launch tunnel—and vanished into the jump gate.

  They were gone.

  Mason steadied his breath as the jet warped through space. Cool… he thought as he looked through the window.

  Then the jet slowed down. He sighed and looked at Keisha. She looked worried.

  “Keisha,” he called out, “You good?”

  She turned to him. “No… I'm not. If Universe Twenty couldn't put up a fight against the scout ship… then what are we supposed to—”

  Jett interrupted, “We're not losing,” he said with vigor. “We're not Universe twenty.”

  “I know, I know,” Vey spoke up. “But it still gives me the creeps, y’know?”

  Jett nodded. “Yeah, I'm petrified,” he said sarcastically, but everyone could tell he was a bit apprehensive.

  Mason grinned. “C’mon, all we have to do is destroy the ship and jet out of there. How hard can it be?”

  There was a beeping sound and the monitor turned on. “Team Alphys…come in…”

  Keisha pressed a button “This is team Alphys, reporting in.”

  “Location?”

  “Universe twenty perimeter, approaching planet Solenthra rapidly.”

  “Good work. Now, we've got info on the scout ship. It's an E rank single ship. And as we suspected, it's from the Darchaid Empire.”

  “Darchaid Empire?” Jett asked.

  “The Darchaid Empire is led by the overlord Drax. He's a warmonger. Destroyer of universes.”

  “So, what's his deal with universe twenty?”

  “He's searching…”

  “For what?”

  There was an eerie silence that followed.

  “If you want us to complete our mission,” Jett spoke up “We need the details.”

  “He's searching for a host for the L cube.”

  L cube? Mason wondered. “What's the L cube?”

  “It's classified information which you're not privileged to hear.”

  “Ouch…” Vey said.

  “Destroy the ship and leave. Universe twenty's Order has declared Solenthra, expendable.”

  “Expendable?” Mason asked.

  “It means the planet can be destroyed if need be…” Liv offered.

  “That bad, huh?” Keisha asked.

  “Precisely.”

  “Approaching now.”

  “Good luck team. Jett, these four lives are in your hands.” The comms switched off.

  “Switch on landing gear.”

  “Landing gear activated.”

  “I've got a heat sensor on a foreign intruder.”

  “The scout ship…” Jett frowned “We'll land in the far East. Take them by surprise.”

  “Roger!”

  Jett landed the jet and they walked out of it.

  “Check this place out!” Mason looked around. It was an orange colored planet, covered with dust. It looked like a desert but there were water molecules floating in the air.

  “Vey, get us a visual.” Jett said as they snuck up to a mountain top.

  Vey took out her sniper and took aim. She scanned the area. “Found it…”

  “How we looking?” Jett asked.

  “They're around the ship. Two heat signatures…”

  “Only two?” Jett murmured. How the hell did universe twenty’s team lose then?

  “What's the plan?” Liv asked.

  Jett looked at Vey “Get a clear shot and fire at their ship's engine.” he ordered. “We'll

  destroy their escape route.”

  “Roger.” Vey loaded a bullet.

  “What bullet?”

  “An EMP…” she replied, “Ready for deployment.”

  “Fire.”

  Vey pulled the trigger. It shot through the air and pierced the engine.

  “Bull’s eye.” She blew the muzzle of her rifle.

  “What the?!” They heard a loud roar.

  “Shit,” Mason said. “What now?”

  “Over there!” They saw one of them fire a weapon at them.

  “Watch out!” Keisha yelled.

  Mason rushed ahead of them and raised his hand.

  “Nice catch,” Jett muttered.

  “Thanks. Hey, you dropped this!” Mason yelled as he flung it back at them.

  “We've been found out,” Liv said.

  “Then let's go meet them,” Vey said and sheathed her sniper.

  They jumped down and advanced towards the scout ship.

  “Well, what do we have here?” the bigger one said.

  “Looks like they sent more fodder for us,” the other said.

  Jett walked up to them. “Leave before it gets ugly.”

  They laughed loudly. “What's a weakling like you going to do to us?”

  Jett took a step back, eyes locked on the two approaching threats. He tilted his head slightly. “Liv, you, Keisha, and Vey—take the one with the axe.”

  “Okay,” Liv nodded, already narrowing her eyes.

  Jett rolled his shoulders. “Mason and I will take the big guy.”

  The larger figure cracked his neck. “Big guy?” he rumbled. “Name’s Rax.”

  The axe-wielder beside him grinned wide. “And I'm Jenny!”

  Mason let out a snort. “Jenny? Isn't that a girl's—”

  “SILENCE!” Jenny roared and swung his massive axe down with a roar. Jett and Mason leapt apart just as the ground split beneath the blow, shards of metal and dust flying.

  Jett landed in a crouch and shot Mason a look. “Nice job, genius.”

  Mason shrugged, grinning. “Can you blame me though? Jenny.” He pointed at the still-grinning brute.

  Jett sighed. “Guess he's ours now.” With a flick of his wrists, his twin blades snapped to life.

  Mason cracked his knuckles as kinetic pulses surged through his gloves.

  Jenny bared his teeth. “Ha! Good. I was hoping for a warm-up. Come on, then. Let’s dance.”

  Meanwhile,

  Rax calmly drew an enormous sword from his back—a broad, jagged weapon that hummed with dark energy. “Well then,” he said with a slow, almost courteous nod, “Let’s proceed.”

  A dao dao… Liv activated her ability. Energy flared to life around her, shaping itself into a radiant katana. Keisha stepped forward, steady and focused, her stance low and fluid.

  Vey leapt back, intent on increasing the distance between herself and Rax. “I'll cover you guys,” she said. From a safe and far distance, she thought.

  “Let’s go!” Liv called out—and they charged as one, blades and fists clashing into the chaos.