CHAPTER 1
Central Base / Time Gate Room
Footsteps echoed across the metallic floor. In a massive, windowless chamber lit only by cold, pulsing lights, six figures stood ready. Determined eyes. Tension in their shoulders. The countdown had already begun.
[Central Command – Female Voice]
"Vanguard 6, coordinates locked in. You're cleared for deployment."
A brief silence followed.
Cole stepped forward, eyes fixed on the glowing portal before them. On a nearby console, energy readings flickered.
"Copy that, Command."
"Vanguard 6 is ready. Tower's listening."
[Command]
"Connection is stable. Core energy levels are at full capacity. All mission data has been uploaded to your systems."
Each team member glanced at their lenses, visors, or wrist implants. They gave a collective nod. Heart rates rose in sync with the incoming data streams.
[Command – tone shifts, voice lowers]
"Your target... is a shapeshifting manipulator we've traced across several timeline fractures."
"Codename: Nethrak."
"The first of its kind. The most dangerous. And this might be the closest you've ever been."
The six exchanged looks no words, just understanding. This mission was different. Deadlier.
[Command]
"Coordinates confirmed. Initiating countdown."
3... 2... 1...
A blinding light engulfed them. The ground shook. The gate opened. As the echoes of time filled the chamber, Command's final warning came through:
"Be careful. Trust no one on the other side."
"And don't forget your activation chip codes."
Surface of Tharion
They had never set foot on this land before.
The air was strange breathable, but pressing on their lungs like it didn't quite belong there. The sky looked almost Earth-like, but something in the color felt... off. The hues were duller. The light harsher. As if the world had been drained of warmth.
The ground beneath their boots wasn't quite soil, nor stone. It was soft, yet it pulsed faintly like walking across the back of something ancient and alive.
This was Tharion.
Their systems had loaded the basics: the planet's name, atmospheric data, samples of local fauna. But nothing around them matched those files.
Yes, the atmosphere was supposed to be stable. But every instinct screamed otherwise.
Something was wrong.
Elias was the first to feel it.
He slowed his pace, knelt, and pressed his fingertips into the quivering ground. His eyes narrowed as he looked up at Cole.
"Something's off," he said in a low voice. "This place… it's not adapting to us. It's watching."
Cole scanned the landscape silently. Then, after a breath, he lowered his head and gave a single word:
"Formation."
The team moved without hesitation.
No one spoke.
Cole led with careful, deliberate steps pausing before each one, gauging the ground, the silence, the tension in the air. Every step forward was a quiet gamble.
It felt like walking through a minefield.
Like Tharion itself was watching.
The Deep Unknown of Tharion
The team moved forward in silence.
Each step was cautious, every eye scanning.
Their target could be anywhere hidden in anything, behind everything.
Maybe… it was already among them.
Cole motioned to tighten formation.
But it was already too late.
The ground exploded behind them.
A sharp crack, followed by a violent burst of earth.
Mud and stone erupted skyward.
Then came the fractures splitting, widening, stretching like the spine of something ancient and furious.
"Scatter!" Cole shouted.
His voice barely cut through the roar.
The team ran without hesitation.
There was no time to ask questions.
Only instinct.
Only survival.
The soil shifted beneath their feet, breaking apart in waves behind them.
Something below was rising.
Something that wanted to drag them down.
No one dared to look back.
They didn't have to.
They could feel it.
Something was there.
Still unseen.
But undeniably awake.
Cole's Solitude
The blast had torn everything apart.
The team... scattered.
Each of them thrown in a different direction.
And Cole he had been at ground zero.
His thoughts were foggy. A high-pitched ring still echoed in his ears.
The ground beneath him was cold and rough.
His lungs felt like they'd collapsed, but somehow… he managed to stand.
His knees shook.
The power core on his back was completely drained.
Cracked. Fractured. Every last drop of energy had been used to keep him alive during the explosion.
There was nothing left.
No weapon.
No comms.
Most of his armor had been burned away only the torn, scorched remains of his suit clung to him.
Even his gloves were gone.
But he was still breathing.
The chip implanted in his neck was loose, humming with static.
He reached up with trembling fingers and ripped it out, gritting his teeth.
Then tossed it aside.
Dead weight now.
Lifting his gaze, he saw it.
A city, glowing in the distance.
Neon lights lit up the sky
Blues, purples, greens...
Strange signs, drifting holograms, creatures of all shapes and sizes.
It was alive.
The streets were crowded. Music blasted from alleyways.
And beings laughed and drank under flickering lights.
It felt like another world.
The blast had thrown him somewhere near its edge.
But right now, he had only one mission:
Find the team.
He could barely stay on his feet, but he started walking.
His steps were unsteady.
But his eyes… were focused.
Because being alone
Was something Cole had learned to live with.