Liam stood frozen.
Everything the hours of planning, the perfect timing, the carefully orchestrated movements shattered in an instant.
His gloved hands trembled at his sides as the full weight of reality pressed down on him.
"…What the fuck…" he muttered under his breath, eyes wide with disbelief.
Ruya stepped up beside him, his breath shallow, his expression clouded in confusion and frustration.
"What are we going to do now?" he asked, barely able to contain the tremor in his voice.
Silence hung thick.
Hano appeared moments later, her steps measured, eyes narrowing as she scanned the distance. She said nothing only stared at the wreckage ahead, her thoughts clearly racing behind her calm exterior.
Liam finally broke the stillness.
"With Rhyver's arrival…" he said, voice quiet, almost numb, "…our plan is in ruins."
He clenched his fists, trying to hold onto the cold clarity of strategy—but even that was slipping.
"It's only a matter of time before the enemy rallies every available soldier here."
His voice wavered slightly. The pressure was unbearable.
Ruya grit his teeth, fists shaking. "This isn't fair… everything was going perfectly!"
His words echoed the shared frustration between them, the bitterness of watching everything fall apart.
Then
A roar split the sky.
A deafening explosion followed.
All three jerked their heads upward.
From the sky a blur.
A body.
Rhyver.
Launched through the air like a cannonball, tearing past rooftops before finally crashing several blocks away, the impact shaking the district.
Silence.
Stunned disbelief.
"…Is that—?" Ruya breathed, unable to finish his sentence.
Hano took a step forward, her eyes wide, lips parted in shock.
Liam's breath caught in his throat.
"…That's Rhyver," he said, the words almost too heavy to accept.
Ruya stared at the crater in the distance. "What in the world is going on?!"
Before anyone could process it further, Liam flinched his eyes sharpening. Two fingers pressed to his right ear as a familiar voice crackled to life through his comm device.
"Liam," came the voice calm, controlled.
"Klara," he answered, his own tone shifting into focus. "I hear you."
Ruya and Hano leaned in, listening closely.
"Is everything okay down there?" Liam asked.
"Yes. Everything's fine. I'm with Kajin we found the girl. We managed to get her out," she said, her voice steady.
A weight lifted slightly from Liam's chest.
"At least… something's going right," he exhaled. "Is anyone injured? Any complications?"
"She has some wounds, but none life-threatening. As for complications…" Klara's voice dropped slightly, the weight of the situation settling in her tone. "You might already be aware of it."
Liam closed his eyes briefly, jaw tightening.
"…Yeah. We know. He flew right past us right now."
He opened his eyes, gaze locked toward the direction of Rhyver's crash site.
"I've got nothing that can deal with that."
There was a pause.
Then Klara's voice returned, firm and resolute.
"Don't worry about that," she said. "Kajin has a plan."
All three of them froze.
Liam's brow twitched. Ruya's eyes widened with a spark of disbelief. Hano turned sharply toward the comm.
"… Really?" Ruya asked, voice rising with sudden hope. "What plan?!"