‘Nada. We have an anomaly on approach to Eden II,Khan,’ she clipped, her voice tight.
Kainan’s brow knitted, eyes flaring and narrowing, knifing up straighter in his seat. ‘Out with it.’
‘It’s a Crat vessel. I have a definite and confirmed signature.’
‘The hell?’ Kainan’s deep timbre dropped an octave. ‘The Crats? We eliminated thekinais. They’re extinct.’
‘Not all of them, it seems,’ she countered. ‘They’re broadcasting a distress signal, but other than that, I can’t get a bead on their intentions.’
‘Show us,’ Zane rasped, crossing his arms, his aqua-blue eyes turning to ice.
Mirage flicked her wrist, projecting a massive tactical virtual display mid-air.
A capital ship appeared onscreen, gun turrets gleaming, cutting through the void with singular, terrifying purpose.
‘It’s half a day out,’ Mirage added.
Kainan’s face hardened into a mask of cold fury.
‘Go to Defcon 1,’ he growled. ‘Get the rest of the Riders on-planet in this room. The others can patch in via our holo link.’
Mirage’s head snapped to the side, her form flickering with a sudden distortion. ‘I’m receiving an incoming priority signal. They’re hailing us.’
Kainan dropped into his seat, his mouth in a straight slash, body braced and roiling with tension.
His face was a mask of cold, controlled rage as he shot a look at Zane.
Zane jerked his chin and turned to the demi-urge, taking over, his expression grim.
‘Sweep the incoming link for hacks, back door codes, or malicious logic-bombs,’ he gritted out. ‘Once you’ve cleared it, accept. We have to know who thefokkthey are and what the hell they’re after.’
Mirage’s hands moved in a blur as she wove a defensive shroud through her omniscient network.
As she worked, the heavy double doors hissed open, and Kage, Xion, and Riv stormed in.
The atmosphere in the room thickened with tension, pressurized by the sudden influx of even more smoldering Rider energy.
‘Tis true?’ Xion grated, his dreadlocks flying as he flicked his eyes over his brothers. ‘The Crats?’
Kainan nodded, with a slow, disbelieving shake of his head.
Idan and Molan exchanged a wary glance, bracing themselves.
They’d witnessed the Riders at high alert, but never this raw, primal charge that vibrated through them, pulsing through the air.
Mirage gave a cautious grunt. ‘The line is clean. They aren’t hiding a Pandora’s box of horrors.’
‘Accept the hail,’ Zane growled.
In the center of the office, a massive holographic screen unfurled, the resolution shimmering before snapping into terrifying focus.
The Riders leaned forward as one, glaring at the visuals.
Five men stood on the bridge of the Crat ship.
They were humans, most certain; muscled and rugged, but their eyes burned with the unmistakable, luminous glow of meta-potency.
Dark scars and shifting, sentient ink crawled across their skin like living shadows.
