The five days were a blur of frantic, silent preparation. Mela and Yeda became ghosts, their scouts mapping every inch of the coastline where the Hegemony fleet was projected to land. They found the perfect spot: a long, sandy beach, flanked on both sides by high, rocky cliffs. A natural kill box.
Vexia and Vasa, now connected to the Nexus's main research facility through a stable, long-range communication portal, began a new, audacious project. They didn't build weapons. They built a stage.
"The Hegemony relies on technology," Vexia explained to Nox over the comms. "Their soldiers wear powered armor. Their vehicles run on energy cells. All of it is connected to a central command network."
"So we cut them off," Nox said.
