"Incoming communication from the Sumer spaceship S-152, on our left," warned General Urla.

  "Reject it!" Alessandro ordered sharply. "We’ll let them hit us first. Get closer to S-152, let them take a good shot." He focused the fumes ticker around the shuttle.

  “I don’t think they’ll want to hit us. The Ziggurat would prefer to take us alive and execute us in front of the people,” Queen Nammu said. “They might try to reach the shuttle system and force us into the ship’s air cargo compartment.”

  “I don’t think so. They’d have done that by now if that was their plan,” Alessandro replied. “We can’t wait much longer. They’re almost directly above the city. General, can you get us closer to the shuttle connection door?”

  “We can’t connect to the shuttle if they don’t open the door from inside,” the general said, his voice tight as the shuttle sped toward the S-152. “They may decide to fire if we get any closer but maybe..”

  Before he could finish, the shuttle jolted violently from the side. The impact rocked them as the shuttle maneuvered closer to the connection. Alessandro watched as beams from the blast lashed against the dark fume shield that surrounded them. He couldn’t help but exhale sharply in astonishment.

  “Unbelievable,” muttered Queen Nammu. For the first time, she felt truly confident in her decision to seek refuge in Ars Pheria. As she looked at Alessandro, she saw the Emperor he was destined to become. In that moment, she understood that this young Emperor was unlike any other.

  It was thanks to the slender Ars Pherian girl, Ava, who seemed to possess nothing but the Ghull's favor. A wave of jealousy and fear swept over Queen Nammu’s heart. The Ziggurat had been right after all, the Ghull was to be feared. The last time the Ghull had taken an interest in a woman, it had brought only severe punishment and terror. Would the Ars Pherians face a similar doom for their connection to such a dark, powerful being?

  In the next forty-five seconds, as the shuttle drew closer to the connection door, Queen Nammu had already begun drafting the blueprint for her political agenda, though she knew it was subject to change, depending on the outcome of this life-or-death mission.

  “General, can they try to shoot us this close?” Alessandro asked, as the shuttle neared the connection door.

  “They’d rather not, Your Majesty,” the general replied. “The other ships might aim, but they risk hitting S-152 in the process.”

  “Very well,” Alessandro said. “Send a communication request to S-152. Queen Nammu, I want you to speak and find out if your daughter is on this ship.”

  “Incoming communication request, Your Majesty,” reported one of the Sumer soldiers.

  “Perfect timing, take it!” Alessandro ordered.

  The communication from S-152 was initiated by a Ziggurat priestess. Despite her best effort to sound bold and resolute, her voice carried a clear undertone of fear, a result of their unexpected defeat. They had no idea how a small shuttle had managed to evade a ballistic blast. As she mumbled how the Ziggurat would rightfully defend the rights of Sumer people, Queen Nammu interrupted.

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  "Open the connection door to the shuttle," she demanded. "We will claim our ships and what I rightfully own as the true Queen of Sumer. No one will be harmed if you cooperate."

  “This is Queen An,” An interrupted, her voice was cold and weary. “Surrender Queen Nammu in exile, and we will spare Ars Pheria from destruction.” There was a brief pause, the hesitation in her tone revealing that even she couldn’t believe the words she had just spoken.

  Alessandro signaled to the soldier to cut the communication line. Queen An was indeed on S-152, just as her mother had guessed. Alessandro could easily destroy the other two ships, sinking them to the bottom of the Ars Pherian Ocean. Or, he could board S-152 and take Princess An hostage. However, there was a risk: if he chose the latter, the two remaining Ars Pherian ships might lose their focus from the shuttle and target S-152 instead.

  Alessandro wasn’t sure if the dark fumes could shield something as large as a spaceship, he had never attempted it before, and time was running out. The flagship was descending steadily toward Ars Pheria, and it wouldn't be long before it settled over Terra Nova, ready to bring devastation.

  “Get to the door and take guard,” Alessandro ordered the Sumer soldiers.

  “General, how does the connection door operate from the inside? Is there a manual switch?”

  “Yes, but someone needs to pull the emergency handle upwards. It should be on the left side of the door,” the General replied.

  Alessandro extended a plume of fume toward the connection door and gently leaked it inside. He wasn’t sure if the fumes could pass through solid materials or if they would leak through airtight doors, but he decided not to risk damaging the mechanism. His analytical Ars Pherian mind, trained in rational thought, was in constant conflict with the unpredictable nature of the dark fume. While he wouldn’t dare challenge advanced technology without understanding its inner workings, especially given his upbringing and lack of exposure to anything like the dark fume, this was different. The dark fume wasn’t like the colorful bursts of emotion; it was more like an extension of his own skin. He could see and feel the surfaces it touched. After a moment of focused concentration, he found the emergency handle and pulled it. The shuttle connected immediately, and the door slid open.

  “Take cover!” the General yelled, rushing to shield Queen Nammu in the corner of the shuttle as the Sumer soldiers opened fire the moment the door slid open. Alessandro watched as two of the soldiers fired back but were quickly struck down, falling to the floor in a bloody heap. Through the chaos, he saw the Ziggurat defenders in their gleaming metallic uniforms, their weapons aimed at him. He raised his head just in time to shield himself with the dark fumes before the bullets could hit his chest. His reflexes saved him, but the stench of blood filling the shuttle made him realize just how close he had come to death. The Ziggurat soldiers hesitated, their eyes widening in disbelief as their weapons proved ineffective against Alessandro, who wore no armor and stood unscratched.

  “Stay close to me,” Alessandro instructed, his eyes scanning the darkened interior of the ship. “General, take the soldiers’ weapons.”

  General Urla complied, grabbing a weapon from one of the fallen soldiers. They moved quickly, following Alessandro down the narrow corridor of the spaceship. The silence was oppressive, broken only by the sound of their footsteps. They reached the bridge within minutes, only to find it empty.

  “The ship’s on autopilot,” General Urla said, his voice low. The control panels blinked with unblinking lights, the hum of the ship’s engines the only indication of life. “No one’s here.”

  “Oh shit!” Alessandro cursed under his breath.

  “They must’ve already left through the cargo bay while we were boarding,” General Urla said, his voice rising in urgency. “They’re heading for another ship! We’ve walked right into a trap. They’re going to launch missiles at us. Let’s hope they won’t use the nukes so close to the planet.”