Exter ran toward the side of the hangar, pointing at the line of sleek, wide-winged mini aircrafts parked like hawks ready to take flight.
"There are four mini jets here!" he shouted.
Peterson checked his weapon and said firmly, "Alright. Riven, Elior, and Veyra—you're coming with me. The four of us will go up and bring back Taren and Lirael."
Veyra gave a sharp nod, her eyes burning. "It's time to end this."
Riven rolled his shoulders and smirked. "Finally, an air strike."
Elior—pale but focused—gripped his navigation tablet tightly. "I've locked onto the signal of their mother ship. We've got a short window before it fully enters orbital phase."
Peterson turned to the others. "Uncle Tyson, you lead from the ground. Exter, Nyssa, Saria, Serin—hold this place. Help anyone left behind and be ready to fight back if needed."
Uncle Tyson nodded with calm determination. "Bring our kids back. We'll hold the line here."
Serin looked at Veyra briefly, then placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't die up there."
Veyra grinned. "Not me. I'm not the one who's going down tonight."
They split up toward the aircrafts. Under the dark sky, lit by the red glow of the burning compound, the four mini jets powered up one by one.
Peterson climbed into the lead jet. "Everyone ready?"
Riven took the gunner seat. Elior sat at the nav console. Veyra hopped into the next jet, handling comms and surveillance.
"Ready!" they all responded.
The jets lifted off the ground, slicing through the air—rising into the clouds—heading straight for the massive Zytherion mothership looming at the edge of Earth's atmosphere.
Time was short. But their will to save Taren and Lirael burned even brighter.
This wasn't just a mission anymore.
This was family.
As the four mini aircrafts soared toward the mothership in orbit, down below, tension at the base was mounting.
Exter stood atop the ruined hangar, his eyes scanning the glowing red sky. He turned to Uncle Tyson.
"Sir… wasn't the pull that's bringing the Zytherion planet here coming from some kind of device planted on Earth? Like a gravitational anchor or dimensional tether?"
Uncle Tyson frowned. "Yes… that's the old theory. If they're trying to drag their planet close to ours, there must be a central device stabilizing the gravitational pull."
Saria stepped forward, her face tense. "So… they're not just coming. They're forcing Earth to pull their planet closer?"
Nyssa added quickly, "If that's true, and the device is fully active… in a few days, Earth's rotation could collapse. We could lose day and night… or worse, be torn apart."
Exter clenched his fist. "Then we need to find that device. And blow it up."
Tyson looked toward a dark ridge on the western horizon. "You remember the strange signal we picked up last week? The one that scrambled all communications and messed with the compasses?"
Serin quickly tapped into her wrist tablet, scanning the data. "There's a high probability the source is coming from there. Maybe buried underground… in an old bunker or some kind of Zytherion core station."
Tyson nodded. "If that's true, that's our target."
Exter turned to the group. "We'll split into two teams. One stays here and guards the base. The other team comes with me to that ridge."
Nyssa raised her weapon. "I'm in."
Saria stepped forward. "Count me in too."
Serin nodded. "If that's the core pulling Zytherion toward Earth—we shut it down. Permanently."
Uncle Tyson placed a hand on Exter's shoulder. "Be careful, kid. If the device is active, it'll be guarded. Possibly with automated defenses."
Exter stared toward the dark ridge, his eyes sharp.
"If that's the only way to save Earth… we don't have a choice."
That night, two fronts of the resistance launched—one rising into the stars to rescue Taren and Lirael… and the other descending into the Earth to destroy the heart of a planetary invasion.
Back in the underground chamber of the base, Lirael and Taren stood before their father—the source of all the chaos.
Taren growled with frustration, "What's all this for, Father? I've always been against meeting you."
Suddenly, one by one, the soldiers guarding them behind started falling unconscious, causing confusion among the remaining troops.
Their father quickly ordered over the comms, "Send reinforcements to the main corridor. Don't let them escape!"
At that moment, Peterson appeared with Riven, Elior, and Veyra, walking in despite their battle wounds.
Taren said coldly, "I knew you'd come."
Lirael smiled slightly, taking advantage of the moment. "Now it's our turn."
Swiftly, Lirael and Taren exchanged signals and took down the distracted guards, then freed themselves from their cuffs.
Suddenly, Peterson's father vanished without a trace, leaving behind chaos and confusion.
Peterson, summoning his remaining strength, sprinted off alone to find his father.
Meanwhile, Exter, Nyssa, Serin, and Uncle Tyson were still at the foot of the hill, trying to approach the gravity core to find and destroy the device pulling the Zytherion planet closer.
At the base of the hill near the gravitational core, Exter, Nyssa, Serin, Saria, and Uncle Tyson approached the mysterious facility—rumored to house the massive device pulling the Zytherion planet toward Earth.
Suddenly—
"FREEZE!!" a soldier shouted from behind a large rock.
From all directions, red laser sights flared to life, locking onto them. Dozens of armed military forces emerged from the trees and rocks, surrounding them. The tension in the air grew thick.
Exter muttered under his breath, "We walked right into it."
Nyssa reached for her weapon, but Uncle Tyson raised a hand to stop her.
"Not yet. Let's hear what they want."
A high-ranking officer in full armor stepped forward. His eyes were sharp and cold.
"You're getting too close to the core. Turn back, or we open fire."
Serin answered flatly, "If we turn back, you'll destroy Earth anyway. So what's the point?"
The officer narrowed his gaze and motioned to his troops.
Several soldiers advanced, cuffs in hand.
Saria whispered to Exter, "Now or never."
Exter nodded. In one swift motion, he kicked a rock toward a spotlight—
CRASH! The light shattered, plunging part of the field into darkness.
BANG! Nyssa opened fire, taking down the lead officer.
Chaos erupted.
Serin dove behind a tree, taking out two soldiers with precise shots. Tyson tossed a smoke grenade, cloaking them in thick gray haze. Saria sprinted around the hill's right flank, trying to find a way to the gravity device.
Nyssa turned quickly, shouting, "Saria! Don't go too far!"
But Saria was already gone, disappearing into the smoke and explosions.
The team was in a full-blown battle—and their only chance now was to survive and destroy the core.