Inside the spacecraft, tension filled the cabin like a rising tide. Every breath felt heavier, every heartbeat louder. The silence was thick, broken only when Isabella, voice trembling, asked, "So, what do we do now?"
I turned to her, tone colder than ice. "Aren't you the leader? Shouldn't you have a plan?"
Claire stiffened at my words. "Hey, don't speak rudely to our captain. Even if she said there's no need to be formal, she is from the Williams family."
I scoffed. "Still don't get it? A sudden mission with vague details, a spacecraft that launched on its own, and all this happening on our first mission? Even with a member of the Williams family aboard? It's all a setup. Isn't that right, young lady of the noble house?"
Isabella's eyes welled with tears. "I don't know anything! If this is a setup... are we going to die? I'm scared. What are we going to do? Vanita..."
"Who is Vanita?" Claire asked.
"She's my maid. She's been with me since I was a child."
A maid. A servant. In the face of fear, she thought of a servant. I frowned, unable to understand.
Suddenly, a loud siren echoed through the spacecraft.
"We've reached the moon," Powell announced.
Everyone quickly donned their space war suits. As Powell predicted, the doors opened the moment we landed. Sai took command.
"Let's move out and scout the area. We need to see what we're up against."
"I'll try to reboot the spacecraft's main systems," Powell offered. "We might still get back."
"I'll stay and help," Austin added. "If we get it running, we'll need to fly it."
That left me, Isabella, Claire, and Griffith to scout outside. The lunar surface was cold and barren, yet unease crackled in the air like static.
Then—whizz! A bullet aimed at Isabella. I leapt, slashing it away with the photon blade integrated into my suit. From the shadows, Alcrians emerged—dozens, maybe hundreds. Clad in their eerie blue skin, they surrounded us.
We engaged immediately. Photon blades clashed with alien weaponry. The battle was chaotic, every move critical.
Isabella froze, paralyzed by fear. She stood like a statue in the open.
More shots aimed for her.
Griffith lunged, shielding her with his body. Blood splattered the moon dust as he fell, groaning.
"Get back to the ship!" Powell's voice rang through the comms.
"Claire, grab Griffith! Isabella, move!" Sai commanded.
"Judas, let's buy them time."
"Fine by me," I growled.
Sai and I charged. Blade met flesh, dodging blasts, cutting through wave after wave. But they kept coming.
Isabella, Claire, and the wounded Griffith made it to the ship.
"Judas! Sai! Come on!" Isabella cried.
We jumped back in, and Austin sealed the door.
"I got the defensive field up," Powell gasped. "Fifteen minutes, max. But I need thirty to restart the engines."
"So you want us to fight them outside? Again? No way! I don't want to die!" Claire's voice cracked.
Sai turned to Isabella. "You're from a noble family. Don't you have powers?"
"I do, but... not for combat. I can only heal, and only by touch."
Without hesitation, she removed parts of her suit and pressed her hands to Griffith's wounds. Blood covered his torso. She tore fabric from her uniform, bandaging the worst gashes.
"Don't die... please don't die," she whispered, her voice quivering.
I watched. She wasn't like the others. When afraid, she thought of a maid. Now, she is tiring herself to save a soldier.
"Why do you care so much for a soldier?" I asked.
She looked up at me, eyes wet but resolute. "Does it matter? Soldier, servant, noble... Aren't we all human?"
In that moment, shame crept in. I had planned to use her death as justification. I wanted to burn the six families to ash, but in doing so, I had begun to lose my own humanity. She reminded me of what I'd forgotten.
"Hey, Isabella. When we get back to Earth, what do you want to do?" I asked, suddenly smiling.
She blinked. "I... I don't know."
"How about throwing a big party for the team?"
She nodded without hesitation. "Yes. Let's do that."
"Austin, open the door."
"What? Judas, are you insane? We still have time—"
"Open it," I said firmly.
"Let's see what he can do," Sai said.
As the door creaked open, the lunar battlefield beckoned again. I stepped forward, photon blade in hand, war suit clanking.
Just before I crossed the threshold, I turned.
"Captain Isabella," I said.
She looked at me, startled.
"From this day forward... I, Judas Neverland, swear to protect you with my life."
Then I leapt into the cold void of the moon, ready to face the darkness once again.