In the third sector of the citadel, inside the kitchen of a three-story building, a reddish-skinned woman dressed as a maid was cutting some kind of tubers. Meanwhile, in the office on the third floor, her master paced back and forth, still thinking about what the adolescents had told him that night. He finally sat down on a nearby sofa, debating internally:
"Is it really possible that the golden ones aren't privileged from birth? Could the society I was born into be nothing but a lie? Could our leader be anyone who knows the recipe to change their skin color? I doubt the children lied to me. They even allowed me into their minds so I could confirm with my own eyes that what I saw—people changing their skin color—was real…"
Niter stared at the ceiling as the sounds of Muster Corporation ships flying overhead filled his ears. The maid entered the room to announce that the meal was ready. He smiled kindly and thanked her, leaving the plate on his desk. Turning his chair toward the window, he gazed out over his city.
After closing the office door, the red-skinned woman wiped the sweat from her forehead, thinking:
"Lord Niter is a good man. Since I've known him, despite being of a superior lineage, he has never treated me as his equal… which is unacceptable. His actions and his desire for that false equality will only bring chaos to our city. My family has served his for over a hundred years, and you insult our people by wanting to mix your blood with a woman who isn't even an Oksilis. I won't allow you to ruin your ancestors' legacy!"
She returned to the first floor to clean the living room furniture, trying to suppress her urge to kill the blue-skinned man. She knew that ever since those adolescents had arrived alongside the Barrier of Power, the status quo of their society was hanging by a thread. While killing her master didn't fully sit right with her, the King himself—along with Muster and Police Chief Craid—had contacted her months ago to keep Niter under surveillance. And since the adolescents had started digging into what her master sought, the likelihood of civil war seemed to grow by the second, according to the men assigned to monitor the hooded outsiders.
The adolescents arrived with the warrior at the blue Oksilis' residence and knocked on the door, all while being observed from a police vehicle nearby. The maid opened the door, letting the adult enter first, followed by the teenagers as they began climbing to the third floor.
The plate of food continued to steam untouched. Niter stood by the window, staring at his people, wondering if his entire culture had been built upon the lie of a single, birthright ruler. At the same time, he felt compelled to keep searching for these people, questioning himself:
"What will happen if they're found? What will I do if I learn how to change people's skin color?"
He sighed heavily and turned his head toward one of his shelves, noticing a bottle there. One thing became clear in his mind—no matter what, whether for his people's sake or to prevent further deaths, those responsible for killing thousands of gray Oksilis to bottle their blood had to be stopped and punished.
At that moment, the door behind him opened, revealing the adult and the youths greeting him. Niter sat at his desk and noticed the meal his servant had brought. Knowing it would be an insult not to taste it, he took a bite.
The warrior walked to the window, looking outside, while Francesca placed the cube in front of Niter and said:
"We managed to open it. It was designed to be opened using telekinetic abilities—pressing and rotating certain parts. We did it using Fiu. If you try it yourself, you should be able to open it more quickly and easily."
After she explained the process, it didn't take Niter long to open the cube. Inside was the strange egg.
"An egg?" he muttered. "I think… I've seen this before."
He removed it and hurried to a bookshelf, searching through his volumes. He was sure he'd seen something like it somewhere. The adolescents watched him with curiosity until Tyron asked:
"Do you know what species it belongs to, Lord Niter?"
"I think so," Niter replied immediately, "but I'm not entirely sure. What I can say with certainty is that it's not from any chicken on my planet."
"We need to open that egg," Francesca said seriously. "If we want to find out how Oksilis skin color is changed, we need to start experimenting."
"No," Emily replied, looking at her. "We can't. It's the only proof we have."
"Proof of what?" Francesca countered. "We don't even know who occupies that office in the palace. Claiming this belongs to someone like the King would be ridiculous—no one would believe us. Right now, this is a tool that could change Oksilis society, and that means discovering how skin color is altered."
Emily looked down. "That's true. We don't have proof to accuse anyone unless we find that sect again. Do you think it involves the yolk and white of the egg… mixed with blood?"
"Maybe. Or maybe not," Francesca replied. "That's why we need to experiment."
"But do we even know where we went to find that sect?" Alexa added thoughtfully. "There are no paths. We flew there at night to a completely unfamiliar place."
"I've got it!" Tyron said with a grin. "We just wait until nightfall, track it again, call the master, and together we stop them all!"
Everyone stared at him until his master spoke:
"I am not your attack dog."
While Niter continued searching for a book, Francesca said, "We can't afford to waste time. We need more information to lead us to whoever planned all of this. Emily, when you and Ty went to the ruins, you said you saw suspicious people there. Go back. Find out who they are. Get information."
The brown-haired duo nodded and left the room, heading toward the ruins in the first sector.
"What about us?" the black-haired girl asked, confused.
Francesca smiled slightly as the building trembled from a low-flying ship.
"I have a theory. If you want to move something highly illegal without raising suspicion, you mix it with something less illicit. So let's take a look at what Muster's employees are doing."
The two girls exchanged knowing looks and left.
The brown-haired pair reached the first sector and wandered through its ruined paths toward the ruins. Emily felt something off and whispered:
"Don't you feel like we're being watched?"
Tyron glanced around and shrugged. "No. But it wouldn't surprise me. We're students of the guy who almost wiped them off the map, and there aren't many humans around here."
Emily laughed softly and nodded—he had a point. They'd been causing trouble since the moment they arrived.
From an abandoned house, a red Oksilis kept his eyes on them.
After a long walk, they finally reached the ruins. In what looked like a small plaza, Tyron asked:
"Do you remember where it was?"
Emily shook her head—just as they heard a collapse and a scream. They spun around and ran, finding a crimson-skinned Oksilis trapped beneath rubble, struggling to free himself.
They rushed to help, but upon seeing them, the alien attacked—lifting rocks with psychic powers and hurling them at their heads. Emily drew her katana in a fluid motion, slicing the projectiles midair, allowing Tyron to knock the attacker unconscious with a right kick to the head.
"What the hell is wrong with him?!" Tyron exclaimed.
"I don't know," Emily replied, sheathing her sword, "but grab his shoulders while I lift the debris."
Tyron sighed as he grabbed the Oksilis. "Sometimes, Emi, I swear I don't understand you. He just attacked us—and we're still saving him?"
"He attacked us," Emily said gently, lifting the rubble, "but we can't leave him here to die."
They freed him and dragged him into the shade of a sturdier building. As they turned to leave, Tyron noticed something strange—a bright, metallic-looking button on the man.
He reached for it.
The object suddenly began to glow.
Emily reacted instantly, grabbing Tyron and stepping back. The device pierced straight through the Oksilis' chest, killing him with a precise stab.
They froze.
Someone shouted from the wall:
"MURDERERS!"
Seeing a bleeding body of their own kind and the two adolescents beside it, the onlookers jumped to conclusions. Thanks to focusing Fiu in their ears, the teens understood the words clearly.
With no time to decide, they ran. Emily led Tyron into a zigzag path through the destroyed houses near the broken wall, escaping the watchers above.
Minutes later, they dove through a window, panting but safe.
"What the hell just happened?!" Tyron exclaimed. "I was getting closer and someone just killed him! You were right—he was watching us, but someone was watching him!"
Emily raised a finger to her lips and peeked through the front window. She spotted several floating motorcycles and the same car from before—but no guards.
Tyron ran outside.
"Ty, at least wait—this could be a trap!" she whispered, reaching for him.
They both stared at a hatch in the ground—open, unattended.
"That's where they are," Tyron said.
Without thinking, he jumped in. His fall echoed against metal.
"Tyron! Don't be so reckless!" Emily scolded, jumping in after him. "You were already injured once!"
"It's a hallway," Tyron replied tiredly. "Are you coming or staying up there?"
Emily puffed her cheeks in frustration but followed.
Using their phones as flashlights, they advanced into the unknown.
Silence ruled the corridor.
After several minutes, they reached stairs leading downward—and heard footsteps approaching.
Emily turned off her light. Tyron followed suit.
"What do we do?" he whispered.
"I don't know…"
Then Tyron smiled. "Can you make an earth plate?"
She looked confused but complied.
Tyron focused cold energy in his right hand.
Two gray Oksilis with red markings, wielding metal spears, approached—guided by a bluish-skinned leader carrying an assault rifle with a flashlight. When the light hit the corridor, Tyron raised his hand and shouted:
"Say cheese!"
A lightning bolt exploded outward, slamming all three into the walls and ceiling. The metal dispersed the electricity, but Emily's earth plate absorbed the worst of it.
They restrained the unconscious trio, sealing them inside thick earthen walls, and moved on.
An hour later, they reached a chamber filled with electronics surrounding a massive, contained energy sphere illuminating the room. Gray Oksilis assisted blue ones in filling bottles connected to cylinders, siphoning energy from the sphere.
About seven individuals worked there.
"Don't you think they're taking too long, Axel?" asked a subordinate in a purple coat and cap.
"If you're so worried, go check," Axel replied telepathically. "Relax. The police don't interfere in my business."
Moments later, footsteps echoed.
"They're back!" the man said cheerfully, heading down the dark corridor.
Gunshots rang out.
A thud.
Silence.
The man was thrown back into the room.
Tyron burst in, hurling him into two others. Emily followed, slicing weapons in half and slamming enemies to the ground.
Only the leader remained.
Before he could fire, Emily pierced his pistols and pressed her katana to his throat.
"It's over."
Tyron held his weapon steady as Emily sealed the others inside an earthen pyramid.
"Who sent you?!" the leader shouted. "Craid?! Muster?! Confess and I'll let you live!"
They removed their hoods.
"We're students of the Barrier of Power," Emily said.
"Of… who?" he stammered.
"The same angry guy," Tyron smirked. "Black hair, two eyes, a nose—the one who threatened to wipe out your species."
The man trembled.
"We need answers," Emily said calmly.
Meanwhile, the other two girls reached the end of a street enclosed by fences around a wide four-story building. Ships landed on the roof. Guards stood watch with heavy weapons.
"How do you plan to get in?" the black-haired girl asked.
Francesca scanned the area as police cars patrolled nearby.
"No idea. Jumping from another building would get us spotted. Hopping the fence too. The only way in is with an authorized vehicle… unless—"
She looked up, smiling, pointing at the ships overhead.
"…You're joking," the green-eyed girl said.