The three days with Mr. Erin started strong in the anguish department.

Sasha slid against the ground, staff digging into the floor in an attempt to slow herself. The training sector was small and cramped, but that didn’t stop Mr. Erin from bouncing her around like a soccer ball.

“Thirty seconds remain,” GT said.

“Would it kill you to gimme some good news?”

The staff was quiet for a moment.

“You have remarkable form, Ms. Sasha.”

She groaned at the obvious sarcasm. Mr. Erin held up his wand, the black field surrounding him glowing strong.

“For the record, I’ve still got three minutes of energy, Ms. Panther."

She squeezed GT, darting in once more. Her staff froze midstrike.

“Dangit!”

Sasha pushed with all her might, digging in her feet. Nothing changed. She felt that familiar sensation. Her body pulled back. She tried to fight against it, but it was useless. The staff flung back, her with it. She bounced off the ceiling, sliding across the floor before landing against the wall. Her feet stuck to the surface.

“Can’t you loosen it up a bit?”

She kicked off swinging GT to the same result, the staff freezing long before it could reach Mr. Erin.

“If I did that, it wouldn’t be a challenge, would it?”

Her body went soaring once again. In the game of gravity against gravity, GT didn’t stand a chance. If she focused, she could make it work. She could make herself heavy or light. She could stop her momentum on a dime. But that did little to help. She managed to catch herself on the ceiling, turning just fast enough to shift her momentum, the gravity field pushing her upward.

“Energy reserves depleted, Ms. Sasha.”

The weighted sensation faded, her foothold with it. She fell flat on her backside. Mr. Erin still made her continue the exercise until his field powered down. The first day ended with her collapsing in a heap.

She stared up at her opponent on the eve of day two.

“Your objective is simple,” Mr. Erin said. “Survive, the panda.”

Mr. Xan yawned, his war hammer resting on his shoulders. He’d been reluctant to join their session, but Mr. Erin had managed to convince him with a few choice words whispered between them.

“S-survive?” Sasha asked.

“Yes. And I would advise you not to take your eyes off your opponent.”

“I jus- Oh c-!”

The world went dark.

***

She woke up on day three to Mr. Erin injecting her with his healing serum.

“Ugh. What happened?”

The squirrel handed over her shirt.

“You got knocked flat in three seconds. I’d say that’s a new record.”

She fell back onto the medical bench.

Mr. Erin was gracious enough to leave the rest of day three for recovery. Not that it mattered. Some seventy-two hours later and the only thing she’d learned was how to take a beating. On the eve of the promised day four, she sat tending a sore head in the observation deck.

“When does the time magic come in?” she asked.

“Not until you can make stronger fields, I’m afraid.”

Mr. Erin handed her a meal kit. She popped it open, finding a burrito and a muffin. Not the best combination, but she tore through the former anyhow.

“If it makes you feel any better, you’re doing better than the last grad we had.”

Sasha grumbled a response.

“I for one took years of study to master displacement,” he went on. “But you have a God Tool. That’s gonna streamline the process a bit.”

She swallowed a mouthful of beans.

What did any of that matter? GT was supposed to be super strong, and yet it was still useless in a real fight. It could make her float and speed her up. That was it. Meanwhile, Mr. Erin had a whole magic wand at his disposal, which she knew for a fact had to be magic, and Mr. Xan could take her out in one hit. And it wasn’t just them either. A slightly stronger legionnaire. A somewhat bulky swarm. Some guy who fell from the sky. How many times had she been corned or pushed aside? How many times had her so-called God Tool failed to live up to that name?

It wasn’t fair. She had something as strong as a star but was still the weakest person on the ship. Maybe in the whole cosmos. She looked down at GT, the weapon eerily silent. Why did I even get this thing? Not like there weren’t plenty of other weapons out there I could've got. She bit into her food, the taste quickly growing sour.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“Give it some time.”

“Hmm?” Her head lifted to see Mr. Erin reaching out, a sympathetic smile offered.

“Give it some time, Sasha,” he said. “You can’t rush these things.”

She could only respond with a small nod, swallowing her meal. It felt like they kept saying that. She’d be strong one day. She had all this potential. One day she’d surpass them. One day…

“How long until this Captain is supposed to show?” she asked.

Mr. Xan’s voice came moments later.

“Yo, crew! Captain is on deck! I repeat! Captain is on deck!”

She and Mr. Erin exchanged glances.

“Looks like now,” he said. “Shall we?”

Sasha reluctantly stood, the rest of her kit tossed into the trash.

They hadn’t told her much about Captain Mercury besides the superficial.

He was a decorated hero having served the AIC for some twenty or so years. Apparently, he’d been responsible for taking out three full-scale galactic threats in one fell swoop. He’d been only eighteen at the time. Moving past the ship’s corridors and working robots, they eventually found their way to the designated meeting room. Why they couldn’t just meet the man anywhere else on the ship was a mystery for the ages. All the same, when the door opened, Sasha was slightly taken aback by the person she saw sitting with Mr. Xan.

“Ah, there you are,” he said.

She stared him up and down.

He was a furless. No. What did Mr. Erin call them? Humans. He was a male human, his hair hung back in a ponytail. Her eyes fell on the many badges lining his pointed red and brown suit.

“You’re Captain Mercury?” Sasha asked.

He smiled. “Last I checked, yes. And you would be Sasha, correct?”

She looked to Mr. Erin, who was already taking a seat. The table was wide enough to fit at least ten people, though only she, the Captain, and her two liaisons were present. Mr. Xan had traded in his usual hoodie for a uniform. Sasha felt slightly underdressed, but then she didn’t have that large a wardrobe to begin with. Other than Tuptree, she hadn’t had much time to shop for new purchases.

“Y’know, you’re a bit smaller than I thought you’d be,” said Captain Mercury. “Figured anyone that would antagonize the rocks had to be a juggernaut like Xan.”

“The rocks?” She winced. So the higher–ups knew about Argos. And probably the rest of the AIC, by extension. “Sorry about that.”

“Eh, I wouldn’t worry. I say good riddance. Not like anyone’s really gonna miss ‘em. Speaking of which, long time no see, Erin. You look taller.”

The squirred dipped his head. “Hello again, Captain.”

“You’ve always got an ear to the ground. Tell me. How’s our new graduate faring so far? Outside of that incident, I mean.”

“She’s still learning, sir. But she’s an exemplary student.”

She instantly turned to the squirrel, but he betrayed no reaction, focus locked on Captain Mercury, who let out a throaty laugh. The man was certainly…unusual. Putting aside the fact he was the only human on board, he seemed too casual. Too unrestrained. She looked over his shoulder, eyeing the thin sword he had sheathed behind his back. Maybe it was paranoia, but something about the man felt off.

“I hope that’s the case, my friend,” Captain Mercury said. “But I digress. I’m sure you’re all wondering why I decided to drop in all of a sudden.”

“You didn’t come here to meet Sasha?” Mr. Xan asked.

“I did. But I also came with some pretty big news.”

He fished through his coat pocket, coming out with a small rounded device. When he placed it on the table, a holographic projection appeared above them. A large emerald-green planet surrounded by three moons.

“What’s this?” Mr. Erin asked.

“Torpha,” said Captain Mercury. “It’s a Class-F world inhabited mostly by primitive tribes and foliage.”

“What’s so important about it, then?” Sasha asked.

“Nothing, really. But it’s the next big target for an invasion. Perhaps even on the scale of…say…Shiny.”

Sasha blinked. As did Mr. Erin, Mr. Xan instantly sitting up. Captain Mercury grinned, leaning forward against the table.

“Shiny?” Sasha asked.

“That’s impossible, sir,” said Mr. Erin. “Shiny was an ambush. An outlier.”

“It was. But that was up until a few days ago when new evidence was discovered.”

He flicked a lever of the device, the screen switching over to showcase three planets. Sasha felt a cold chill when she looked at them. They had all turned a murky purple color.

“Eliron, Jujon, Sydney,” Captain Mercury explained. “They were all hit around the same time frame as Shiny. It got the lion’s share - no offense, Sasha - but the others didn’t come out unscathed. Our teams think that’s not a coincidence.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Sasha demanded.

“Exactly what it sounds like. We don’t know much. Not yet. So we plan to send a team in to be ready in case things do turn dicey. That team being the three of you.”

“Just sounds like leaving us to get swarmed by monsters.”

“It is. But it’s for a great cause.”

The Captain smiled, a response that only made her more angry. It wasn’t just paranoia. The way the man was so casual about the danger. About worlds getting taken over. How both Mr. Erin and Mr. Xan seemed reluctant to voice the concerns she could see running across their faces. But she held back her opinions. The last thing she needed was for both the Elders and the AIC to hate her.

“There’s a reason I’ve come to you three for this mission,” the Captain went on. "You’re the closest group nearby. And you’ve made an impression thanks to Argos. That makes you perfect to escort me to Torpha so I can uncover the secrets behind these invasions. And if it is more than we can handle, we'll just back out. Simple enough, right?”

Noone responded. Sasha continued to resist the urge to give the man a good swipe across the face. Mr. Erin shifted in his chair but kept his mouth shut whatever he was thinking. And Mr. Xan was staring intently at the worlds in the hologram. Seeing all of them, the Captain sat back, legs crossed and teeth flashing with glee.

“Then it’s settled,” he said. “Let’s all go catch us some monsters.”

Sasha quietly growled, claws sheathing and unsheathing. I swear if this turns south, Mercury. You're getting it first.

She held back the rage.

Nothing about Torpha screamed concern. But then, she was sure the same would have been said about Shiny. Even if she hated the idea of being with the Captain, she would do her duty and keep her mouth shut. For now.