So yeah, actually Zira and her crew dropped us in the refugee station. After helping Dr Senna and I escape those multitude. But I was sure she will come back for a price or let me said reward.
But for now, it's just me and Dr Senna, well that was before we walked into the whole new world again.
But before that let's explain a little bit how the experience was.
******
The refugee station Sanctuary Prime was supposed to be neutral ground. Ethan learned this fact approximately thirty seconds before watching that neutrality dissolve into chaos.
After a harrowing emergency jump that left his stomach somewhere between dimensions, the Stellar Mercy had docked at the massive orbital platform.
Dr. Senna had insisted on a medical escort through the station, but the moment they'd entered the main concourse, all pretense of normalcy evaporated.
Ethan had never felt so exposed in his life.
The concourse was a circular chamber easily the size of a football stadium, with multiple levels connected by gravity lifts and energy bridges.
And Hundreds of beings moved through the space—some humanoid, others decidedly not. But as Ethan emerged from the docking corridor, conversations died, even movement stopped. They all were just staring… AT HIM
*****
Lemme cut you short a bit, as of here…. I was so embarrassed because jezzz, all eyes were literally on me.
But thank goodness Dr Senne helped out. It was as if, the ground should up up and swallow me whole.
Now continue…
****
"Keep walking," Senna murmured, her hand firm on Ethan's elbow. "Don't make eye contact. Don't stop moving."
Too late, because a female with skin like polished obsidian and hair that floated in an invisible current stepped directly into their path.
She wore armor that looked ceremonial, inlaid with glowing runes, and carried herself with the confidence of someone accustomed to being obeyed.
"Dr. Vex." Her voice resonated with harmonic overtones. "Surely you're not trying to smuggle a potential mate through Sanctuary Prime without proper registration?"
"Lady Nyx," Senna's tone was carefully neutral. "This human is my patient, not a commodity. He requires continued medical observation."
"Your patient?" A second voice, this one tinged with amusement. The woman has crimson skin and actual flames dancing in her hair descended from the upper level, landing with grace that defied physics.
"How convenient that the one human male saved from extinction ended up in your care, Doctor. Some might call that suspiciously fortunate."
More figures converged from all directions. Ethan's pilot training kicked in… Those his assess threats, identify exits, and calculate escape vectors thingy.
But he reminded himself that this wasn't a combat situation he could dogfight his way out of.
"I don't know what you all think is happening here," Ethan said, stepping forward despite Senna's restraining hand, as he finally found some courage.
"But I'm not anyone's prize to claim. I just watched my entire species die. I'm not looking for…"
"Silence." The command came from above, reverberating through the chamber with such force that Ethan's teeth rattled. The crowd parted as a new figure descended on a platform of crystalline energy.
She was tall, even by the varied standards of the species present, with skin that seemed to contain starlight beneath its surface. Her hair was pure white, flowing past her shoulders, and her eyes were solid silver with no visible pupil.
She wore robes that shifted between states of matter, solid one moment and gossamer the next.
The temperature in the chamber dropped ten degrees, to Ethan's knowledge although.
"I am Commander Seris Tal of the Celestial Dominion," she announced, her voice carrying effortless authority.
"By Article Seven of the Refugee Protection Act, I am placing this human under Dominion custody pending evaluation of his status."
Lady Nyx's expression darkened. "The Dominion has no jurisdiction over…"
"The Dominion has jurisdiction wherever we choose to exercise it." Seris's silver eyes fixed on Nyx with a gaze that could have frozen stars. "Would you like to dispute this claim formally?"
The tension ratcheted up to a breaking point. Ethan could see hands moving toward weapons, energy beginning to wrap around certain individuals. This was going to turn into a bloodbath, and he was the reason.
"Stop." He didn't shout, but something in his voice made several heads turn.
"Just stop. I'm standing right here. I think I can speak for myself."
Seris's eyebrow raised fractionally. "You believe you have agency in this situation?"
"I'm a fighter pilot, not a breeding stud." Ethan met her silver gaze, refusing to look away despite the pressure that seemed to press against his mind.
"I don't care what protocols or articles you want to cite. I'm a person, not property."
For a moment, Seris smiled, more like a wicked smile.
"Admirable sentiment I will comment. However, you are also the last known member of a compatible species, which makes you a strategic resource whether you accept that designation or not." She gestured, and crystalline barriers materialized around Ethan, cutting him off from Senna and everyone else.
"The Dominion will provide protection while your status is determined. You should be grateful."
"Grateful?" The word came out as a snarl. "You want me to be grateful for being caged?"
"The alternative," Seris said, glancing at the dozens of increasingly hostile faces surrounding them, "is being torn apart by factions who see you as the answer to their declining populations. I will suggest you choose wisely."
Before Ethan could respond, an explosion rocked the station, and immediately alarms started shrieking, and emergency bulkheads began slamming shut across the concourse.
Through the massive viewport, Ethan saw a fleet of ships—all bearing the same emblem of a burning sun surrounding the station.
"The Solar Empress," someone whispered in a fear filled voice.
Seris's expression transformed from wicked authority to something almost like concern. "She couldn't have arrived this quickly. Our intelligence said she was three sectors away."
"Your intelligence," a new voice boomed through the station's speakers, "is always three steps behind, Seris." The voice was rich and commanding, touched with barely restrained violence.
"I am Empress Kara Solenne of the Pyros Dynasty. The human male belongs to my people by right of first discovery. Surrender him within five minutes, or I will board that station and take him by force."
The crystalline barrier around Ethan flickered as Seris's concentration wavered. And Lady Nyx laughed, a sound without humor.
"First discovery? Your scouts were nowhere near Earth when the Voidborne attacked."
"And yet," Kara's voice dripped with satisfaction, "my ships are here now, and yours are not."
Ethan watched the standoff develop with growing dread. This was spiraling out of control. Any moment now, someone was going to start shooting, and he'd be caught in the crossfire of a war he never asked to start.
Then he felt a tingling at the base of his skull, like static electricity building before a lightning strike. His vision blurred, and for just a moment, he could have sworn he saw text hovering in the air before him.
**[SYSTEM INITIALIZATION DETECTED]**
**[ANALYZING HOST GENOME]**
**[COMPATIBILITY: 100%]**
**[WELCOME TO THE IMMORTAL PATH]**
Ethan blinked, and the text vanished. But the tingling remained, spreading through his body like fire in his veins.
"What the hell?" he muttered.
Seris's eyes narrowed. "What did you say?"
Before he could answer, another explosion came and it was even more closer this time. The viewport cracked as a Pyros warship fired a warning shot across the station's bow.
"Two minutes," Empress Kara announced. "Choose quickly, Seris. Diplomacy or war. Though I confess, I'm hoping you'll choose the latter."
Ethan looked at the chaos around him—alien species on the brink of violence, empires positioning for war, all because he'd had the misfortune to survive.
And beneath it all, that strange sensation continued to build, like something powerful was awakening inside him.
His HUD was gone, his fighter destroyed, and earth had already reduced to dust. But somehow, impossibly, Ethan felt the faint thought of hope.
Whatever this system was, maybe it was the edge he needed to take control of his own fate.
He just had to survive the next two minutes first.