The embers of Aegis Prime's burning skyline reflected in Kyren Axalor’s visor as he crouched behind a crumbled pillar. His earpiece buzzed with fragmented voices, the chaos of the siege mingling with a sudden and unexpected development: the Phantom Syndicate had made their move.

“Kyren, do you copy?” Vexara’s voice broke through the static, urgent yet steady.

“Barely,” Kyren muttered, peering around the edge of the pillar. The Syndicate's sleek, black ships had descended like specters, their precision strikes crippling both the Resistance and Technokratium forces. “What’s our status?”

“Not good. The Syndicate’s targeting key outposts. They're taking out both sides indiscriminately. We’re caught in the crossfire.”

A burst of energy fire erupted nearby, forcing Kyren to duck as debris rained down. He tapped his communicator. “Drayk, what the hell is your Syndicate up to? I thought you were pulling strings, not detonating them.”

A low chuckle answered him. “It’s not my Syndicate anymore,” Drayk Zenaros replied, his tone laced with bitterness. “This is Galvyn’s doing. He’s consolidating power, and it seems he wants Astralis for himself.”

Kyren clenched his jaw. Galvyn Valkor, the Phantom Syndicate’s ruthless new leader, had been a looming shadow for months, but this brazen strike signaled a shift. “So what’s the play? You’ve got intel on their plans, don’t you?”

Before Drayk could respond, a deafening explosion shattered the air, and Kyren’s cover disintegrated. He rolled to his feet, heart pounding, and sprinted toward the nearest intact structure—a half-collapsed command center.

Inside, Vexara and Thalira were huddled over a flickering holo-map. Thalira’s armor was scorched, and her expression was a mix of fury and desperation. “We’re losing ground on every front,” she snapped. “The Syndicate’s not just hitting us—they’re dismantling everything. Technokratium, Resistance, even civilian shelters.”

“Galvyn’s making a statement,” Drayk said, entering the room with his usual shadowy grace. “He wants everyone to know the Syndicate doesn’t answer to anyone—not the Technokratium, not the Resistance.”

Thalira glared at him. “And you’re just now sharing this? How convenient.”

“Enough!” Vexara’s sharp voice silenced the argument. She tapped the holo-map, highlighting a glowing node deep within Syndicate-occupied territory. “They’ve established a temporary command center here. If we can infiltrate it, we might be able to disrupt their operations—or at least buy some time.”

Kyren frowned. “That’s a suicide mission. The Syndicate’s forces are too well-coordinated. Even with Thalira’s best fighters, we’d be overwhelmed.”

“Not if we use Astralis,” Vexara countered, her eyes blazing with determination. “The fragment we recovered last week—it’s a power amplifier. If we can integrate it into our tech, we might stand a chance.”

Drayk shook his head. “That’s risky. The fragment’s unstable. If it backfires—”

Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!

“It’s a risk we have to take,” Thalira interrupted. “Unless you have a better idea, Zenaros?”

Drayk remained silent, his expression unreadable.

Hours later, the team stood at the edge of Syndicate-occupied territory, the cold wind biting against their skin. Kyren adjusted his rifle, his gaze scanning the horizon. “This better work,” he muttered.

“It will,” Vexara replied, her voice steady. She clutched the modified amplifier, its core pulsing faintly with a cyan glow. “But we’ll only have one shot.”

Thalira raised a hand, signaling her troops to move. The plan was simple: create a diversion while Kyren, Vexara, and Drayk infiltrated the command center. Simple, but not easy.

As the Resistance fighters engaged the Syndicate’s forces, Kyren and the others slipped through the chaos, navigating the ruins with practiced efficiency. The command center loomed ahead, a jagged structure shrouded in smoke and shadows.

Drayk halted suddenly, his hand shooting up. “Wait.”

“What is it?” Kyren hissed.

“Tripwire.” Drayk pointed to a barely visible thread of light stretched across the path. “Galvyn’s expecting us.”

Kyren cursed under his breath. “Can you disable it?”

Drayk smirked. “Of course.” He crouched, deftly manipulating the mechanism. The wire dissolved, and the group moved forward.

Inside the command center, the air was thick with tension. Syndicate operatives moved with robotic precision, their faces obscured by dark visors. At the center of the room, Galvyn Valkor stood, his imposing figure illuminated by the eerie glow of a captured Astralis fragment.

“So predictable,” Galvyn said, his deep voice resonating through the chamber. “I knew you couldn’t resist.”

Kyren leveled his rifle, but Galvyn raised a hand, and a wave of energy rippled outward, disarming him. “Did you really think I’d leave myself vulnerable?”

“Actually, yes,” Drayk said, stepping forward. “You’ve always underestimated me, Galvyn.”

Galvyn’s eyes narrowed. “Traitor.”

“Not quite,” Drayk replied. He glanced at Vexara. “Now.”

Vexara activated the amplifier, its glow intensifying. The captured Astralis fragment reacted violently, sending shockwaves through the room. Operatives collapsed, their systems short-circuiting. Galvyn staggered but remained standing, his expression twisted with rage.

“You think this changes anything?” he roared. “Astralis belongs to me!”

The ground shook as the fragment’s energy spiraled out of control. Alarms blared, and the building began to collapse. “We need to go—now!” Kyren shouted.

But before they could retreat, Galvyn lunged at Drayk, his hands crackling with energy. The two men grappled, their struggle illuminated by the fragment’s volatile glow.

“Leave!” Drayk yelled. “I’ll handle him!”

Kyren hesitated, but Thalira’s voice came through the comms. “The whole area’s unstable! Get out of there!”

Grabbing Vexara’s arm, Kyren pulled her toward the exit. They barely made it out before the command center erupted in a blinding explosion, the shockwave throwing them to the ground.

When the dust settled, Kyren looked back at the smoldering ruins, his heart heavy. “Did Drayk—?”

Vexara shook her head, tears glistening in her eyes. “I don’t know.”

Before they could process their loss, Thalira’s voice crackled through the comms. “We’ve got a bigger problem. The explosion... it’s activated something beneath the surface of Aegis Prime. You need to see this.”

Kyren exchanged a grim look with Vexara. “It’s never just one thing, is it?”

They hurried back to the Resistance outpost, where a massive holo-display showed seismic readings from across the planet. Aegis Prime was awakening—and whatever lay beneath the surface was unlike anything they had ever seen.

The ground beneath their feet trembled, and a deep, resonant hum filled the air. From the horizon, an enormous structure began to rise, its form shimmering with ancient energy. The Astralis was no longer a myth—it was real, and it was awakening.