The raider ship was a significant upgrade from the escape pod, though calling it luxurious would have been generous.
Ethan sat in what passed for the captain's quarters, it was a room that barely larger than a closet with a bunk welded to the wall and a viewport showing the swirling chaos of the asteroid field they were hiding in.
The fight had lasted exactly four minutes. Ethan hadn't even needed to leave the pod.
Through the thin walls, he could hear the three women arguing about their next move. Princess Lyra wanted to push deeper into the Frontier Zones. Commander Seris advocated for reaching one of her safe houses. Dr. Senna kept pointing out the medical risks of Ethan attempting rapid cultivation advancement.
None of them were asking him. So Ethan pulled up his system interface, studying the information it provided about Core Formation. The process looked insanely complex—compressing energy into specific patterns, awakening spiritual awareness, even forming a stable core that could handle exponentially more power.
Normally it required years of preparation and perfect conditions.
He had twenty-one hours and thirty-seven minutes.
**[CORE FORMATION GUIDANCE AVAILABLE]**
**[WARNING: ACCELERATED ADVANCEMENT CARRIES SIGNIFICANT RISK]**
**[FOUNDATION DAMAGE: 15% PROBABILITY]**
**[CULTIVATION DEVIATION: 8% PROBABILITY]**
**[DEATH: 2% PROBABILITY]**
**[PROCEED? Y/N]**
It's just two percent chance of death but Ethan had faced worse odds in combat. Hell knows he'd faced worse odds every time he'd launched his fighter against the Voidborne. At least this time he had some control over the outcome.
But before he could make a decision, the door slid open and Dr. Senna entered, carrying what looked like medical equipment.
"The others are planning to kill each other if I leave them alone much longer," she said, setting down her kit. "I thought I'd check on you instead. How are you feeling? Any aftereffects from the energy suppression?"
"Headache," Ethan admitted. "And I feel like I'm sitting on a bomb that might explode if I sneeze."
"Accurate analogy." Senna said and pulled out a scanner and passed it over him. "Your energy channels are stressed from the combined formation earlier. Channeling three Core Formation cultivators through a Foundation Realm body was... inadvisable."
"But it worked though." "So does jumping out of a moving aircraft if you happen to land right. Doesn't make it smart." She studied her readings with a frown.
"Your body is adapting faster than should be possible. The stress damage is already healing. By tomorrow you'll be…" She stopped. "Tomorrow. If we survive that long."
"You don't have to stay," Ethan said. "You're not a warrior like Lyra or a politician like Seris. You could leave, claim you were coerced. Stay out of whatever mess is coming."
Senna's amber eyes were now fixed on him with surprising intensity. "I argued for saving Earth when the Coalition was debating whether your species was worth intervention but I lost.
Hours of debate while millions died." Her scaled fingers clenched on the scanner. "I'm not walking away from the one human I did save just because it's dangerous."
The emotion in her voice caught Ethan off guard. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean…"
"I know." She took a breath, her professional composure sliding back into place. "I'm sorry. That was inappropriate. You've been through enough without me adding my guilt to it." She turned back to her equipment. "I should warn you, the others are discussing turning you over."
Ethan went very still. "What?"
"They are not that serious yet. At least, I don't think Lyra is serious." Senna began packing up her kit without looking at him.
"But Seris is calculating the political cost of keeping you versus the benefits of negotiating with Empress Kara. She thinks she could broker a deal—your temporary custody in exchange for certain concessions."
"Temporary custody." "That's a polite way of saying she'd sell me."
"She'd call it pragmatic alliance-building." Senna finally met his eyes. "Politics in the galaxy is... complex.
Everyone owes someone something, favors and debts matter more than laws. If turning you over to Kara means securing peace for her people, Seris will do it without hesitation."
The door burst open before Ethan could respond. Princess Lyra came in but stood at the doorway, her expression looking somewhat weird.
"We've got a problem. Multiple problems, actually." She gestured for them to follow. "Command deck. Now."
The command deck was barely large enough for all of them plus Lyra's two warriors. The viewscreen showed a tactical display that made Ethan's stomach sink.
"Explain," he said, studying the red markers converging on their position.
"Somehow," Commander Seris said from the navigation station, "our location has been compromised. Six fleets are converging on this asteroid field. Empress Kara's forces, the Obsidian Matriarchy, the Eternal Gardens, and three others I don't recognize."
"How?" Lyra demanded. "We're running silent, Ethan's suppressing his signature…"
"Doesn't matter how." One of the raider crew—apparently they'd kept a few alive for their piloting skills—spoke up nervously.
"Nd right now what matter is that we're trapped. Those fleets will blockade every exit from this field within the hour."
**[SYSTEM ALERT: CRITICAL SITUATION]**
**[MULTIPLE HOSTILE FORCES CONVERGING]**
**[RECOMMENDATION: UNCONVENTIONAL SOLUTION REQUIRED]**
Unconventional solution. The system seemed to specialize in those.
"We can't fight six fleets," Senna said unnecessarily. "Even if Ethan released his full power…"
"Then we don't fight." Ethan said but his mind was racing. "We negotiate."
Everyone turned to stare at him.
"Have you lost your mind?" Lyra asked. "The moment we open communications, every fleet out there will triangulate our position exactly."
"They're already doing that. We have an hour at most." Ethan pulled up the communication controls. "But what if instead of hiding, we do the opposite? What if we invite them all to the table?"
Seris's eyes widened. "An auction."
"Exactly. They're all fighting over me anyway. We formalize it, set rules, and make them compete openly. Highest bidder gets... consultation rights or something… The terms we are going to set."
"They'll never agree to that," one of Lyra's warriors protested. "Warriors take what they want. They don't bid for it like merchants."
"They will if the alternative is fighting each other while we escape during the chaos." Ethan was already composing the message.
"The moment we broadcast this, every fleet out there faces a choice, either they choose to work within our framework or risk losing me to a rival while they're busy fighting."
"It's insane," Senna said.
"It's brilliant," Seris countered, a slow smile spreading across her face. "And it buys us time. During the negotiations, we could…"
"Escape," Lyra finished. "Use the auction as a distraction while we plot a real exit strategy."
"More than that." Ethan's system was already highlighting possibilities. "While they're negotiating, I'm not being hunted.
Which means I can focus on breakthrough to Core Formation. By the time they realize we're stalling, I'll be strong enough to actually matter in the conversation."
The three women exchanged glances, an entire conversation happening in seconds of eye contact and microexpressions.
"I hate everything about this," Lyra finally said. "But I don't have a better plan."
"The Dominion will support this strategy," Seris agreed. "I can lend legitimacy to the proceedings."
"And I'll monitor his cultivation breakthrough," Senna added. "Try to keep him from exploding."
Ethan opened the broad-spectrum communication channel. Everybody around him can hear his heartbeat, but his voice came out steady.
"This is Ethan Reid, last human male, speaking to all forces in the region. I know you're hunting me and I also know why.
So let's stop pretending this is about anything other than what I represent." He paused, letting that sink in.
"I'm opening negotiations for partnership rights. One week of exclusive consultation, full compatibility testing, and potential long-term arrangements. Interested parties should transmit their offers within the next six hours and the highest bid will wins."
He closed the channel, and silence filled the command deck.
"Did you just auction yourself off?" Lyra asked, her tone sounded horror filled and at same time admiration filled.
"Technically, I auctioned consultation rights." Ethan tried to project confidence he didn't entirely feel. "There's a difference."
"A semantic one." Seris was already monitoring the response channels. "But potentially effective. Look—three fleets have ceased their advance. They're holding position."