The cave was freezing cold and completely dark. Billy the hacker sat alone in a small, dusty corner. He hugged his knees tightly against his chest. He pulled his dirty, torn jacket around his shoulders, but it did not stop his shivering. Across the cavern, the rest of the squad was quiet. Commander Oliver stood near the entrance like a black metal statue. He was ignoring the desperate, human radio message they had just heard. He was calculating his next cold, emotionless move. Billy looked down at his cracked computer tablet. The screen was dark. The young boy felt a massive, crushing weight pressing down on his chest. It was not a magical gravity wave. It was absolute, pure grief. He was breaking. The long, bloody war had finally pushed his human mind to the breaking point. He closed his tired, red eyes. He just wanted to rest. He leaned his head against the hard stone wall. Sleep came quickly, but it did not bring peace. It brought absolute terror. Billy fell into a deep, viv

The dark cave was loud with the sound of running soldiers. Sergeant Miller and General Vega moved heavy crates to block the entrance. Captain Iris stood near the back, holding her broken arm, her face pale with fear. Commander Oliver stood in the dusty corner. He looked down at the broken pieces of Billy’s computer tablet on the stone floor. The screen was cracked into a spider web of sharp glass. A tiny green light blinked softly in the dark. Oliver raised his black metal right arm. He placed his dark fingers over the broken glass. He did not feel sad that his oldest friend had run away. He did not feel angry that the boy had given their location to the Overlord. Anger was an emotion. Oliver had deleted his emotions. Oliver pushed a tiny spark of purple magic into the broken machine. His supercomputer brain connected to the cracked tablet. He read the data flowing out of the machine. The boy had sent the coordinates. But the green blinking light showed something much worse. Billy

Two bright blue lasers shot from Iris’s pistol. She aimed slightly to the left, missing the monsters on purpose. The lasers burned harmlessly into the dirt. The Phase-Hunters moved with terrifying, glitching speed. One second they were twenty feet away. The next millisecond, the lead monster teleported through the air and stood directly in front of her. The monster swung its heavy purple sword. The flat side of the blade hit Iris’s right wrist. The pain was sharp and sudden. She gasped and dropped her pistol. The gun clattered into the gray ash. Before she could step back, the second monster grabbed her from behind. Its smoky hands were as cold as solid ice. The monster grabbed her broken left arm. Iris screamed. It was a real, agonizing scream. The freezing hands squeezed her cast, sending a terrible shock of pain into her bones. The third Phase-Hunter glided forward. It did not stab her. It pulled a thick, glowing chain of dark magic from its chest. The monster wrapped the he

"Die!" Iris yelled. She pulled the trigger. Two bright blue lasers shot from her pistol. She aimed slightly to the left, missing the monsters on purpose. The lasers burned harmlessly into the dirt. The Phase-Hunters moved with terrifying, glitching speed. One second they were twenty feet away. The next millisecond, the lead monster teleported through the air and stood directly in front of her. The monster swung its heavy purple sword. The flat side of the blade hit Iris’s right wrist. The pain was sharp and sudden. She gasped and dropped her pistol. The gun clattered into the gray ash. Before she could step back, the second monster grabbed her from behind. Its smoky hands were as cold as solid ice. The monster grabbed her broken left arm. Iris screamed. It was a real, agonizing scream. The freezing hands squeezed her cast, sending a terrible shock of pain into her bones. The third Phase-Hunter glided forward. It did not stab her. It pulled a thick, glowing chain of dark magic

The thick purple tractor beam blasted down from the belly of the giant warship. It hit the gray dirt of the ruined outpost. Ten elite Wraithborn warriors floated down through the light. They wore heavy silver armor. They carried long spears that cracked with dark, violent lightning. They landed on the ground in a perfect, deadly circle. Commander Oliver watched them land. His cold gray eye and his burning red eye did not blink. He processed the threat instantly. The giant warship above them was the absolute priority. He needed that ship to reach the hollow moon. He turned his head and looked at Billy the hacker. Billy was crying. His hands shook violently as he held his cracked tablet. The boy was terrified of the silver monsters. Oliver analyzed the young hacker. A crying, shaking boy was a massive liability. If Billy went onto the warship, his panic would cause a fatal mistake. Billy could not survive an orbital assault. "Your execution is paused," Oliver stated cleanly. His m