Inside the hover car, the air was thick with exhaustion. Sira turned sharply in her seat, her hands already reaching toward Threi. “Threi! Are you hurt?” Her voice carried more panic than she intended. She began checking Threi’s arms, her shoulders, even her side, searching for burns or wounds. Threi swatted her hands away lightly. “Yeah yeah, I’m fine.” She leaned back against the seat, breathing heavy but steady. There were scorch marks on her sleeve and a thin cut along her temple, but nothing fatal. Her eyes were still sharp. Only then did she turn her head to the back seat. Aēllion sat on one side, Lougard beside him. Across from them sat the stranger quiet, watching. Threi narrowed her eyes. “Who the heck is this guy?” Before Sira could answer, Aēllion leaned forward slightly. “This is Trexxam. He was one of the prisoners trapped inside one of the boxes like me and Lougard.” Threi studied the stranger in silence. “And why is he here?” she asked. Aēllion scratc

Lougard frowned deeply. “Why do I suddenly feel scared?”Sira folded her arms. “That usually means the plan is terrible.”“Hey,” Threi replied defensively from the couch, “my plan is not terrible.”Aēllion raised an eyebrow at her. “You literally just said it was a really crazy idea.”“It does mean it’s going to be terrible,” Threi admitted with a shrug.Despite everything, Lougard let out a tired laugh.It lasted only a second before the reality of Fionna’s kidnapping settled over the room again.Threi’s expression slowly changed. The sarcasm faded from her face.“This plan is risky,” she admitted seriously. “Very risky.”Aēllion sighed and leaned against the wall. “Can you at least tell us what the plan is first?”Threi looked toward the holo-cube blinking softly on the table.Then a slow smile appeared on her face.Not a comforting smile.The kind that usually led