With the plan now in motion, everyone burst into action. Eren and Varon crouched near the remains of their spacecraft, yanking out delicate internal components with well-practiced ease. Metal clanked against metal, sparks briefly lighting up the corner of the makeshift base as Varon carefully severed the internal resonance cables needed to build the gold signal amplifier.
"Be careful with that," Eren muttered, sweat beading his brow as he held a stabilizer core in place. "If you twist the panel wrong, the whole capacitor grid could—"
"I know," Varon cut in tightly. "I’ll just hold it carefully." he cradled the thing carefully on his chest.
Meanwhile, Xing Yu stood a few meters away, kneeling next to one of the compact alien weapons laid out on the ground. With meticulous precision, he adjusted a small blue dial on its side, then pulled out a thin blade tool to calibrate the energy chamber. The barrel hissed faintly as it powered up. He didn’t flinch. His eyes never wavered.
In contrast, the two humans and a half alien—Jian, Li Wang, and Nansich—were the only ones left without any real tasks.... they were still just humans stuck in the middle of something far larger than themselves.
Li Wang shifted uncomfortably on the cold floor, eyes wandering until they landed on Jian. The other boy sat in a corner, quietly turning the sleek black sword over in his hands, watching the way the light danced off the razor-thin edge.
"Where did you get that?" Li Wang finally asked, curiosity breaking through the silence. His voice was hushed, as if speaking too loudly might disturb something sacred. He’d seen all kinds of alien weapons in the black market alongside his uncle—energy rifles, pulse blades, rare shields—but nothing like the sword Jian held now.
The blade didn’t hum or glow. It didn’t have buttons or wires. It just was—and that made it more terrifying. Something about it felt ancient, heavy, real. And deadly.
Jian said nothing at first, just kept his thumb near the hilt, eyes on the sword. As Li Wang leaned forward, hand half-lifting to touch it, Jian pulled it away with one smooth motion and looked up, his brows raising slightly.
"It’s quite sharp," Jian mumbled.
Li Wang chuckled softly, embarrassed. "I’ll take your word for it."
Nansich leaned in from where he was sprawled, arms behind his head. His eyes were fixed lazily on the sword too, though there was a pout forming on his lips. "He’s quite mean, yeah," he said to Li Wang, nose wrinkling.
Li Wang snorted at the brat-like kid. "Is he your friend?" he asked, gesturing with a tilt of his head toward the blond haired guy.
Jian glanced at Nansich without much expression. He shrugged. "Something like that."
Nansich’s mouth dropped open. "Hey! I thought we had a friendship bond happening between us!" His voice cracked a bit near the end, half teasing, half genuinely offended.
Jian couldn’t help it—he smiled faintly. "Nothing like that."
"its done!" Eren stood tall, holding the makeshift amplifier like a prized trophy. The wires sparked faintly as he twisted the core into place, locking it with a hiss. "Let’s go to the signal tower," he announced, beaming with pride. "I’ll go up the tower and shoot them down. Just—someone has to stay below and set this thing up properly."
"I’ll take care of that," Varon offered before anyone else could speak. He stepped forward and took the device from Eren’s arms, cradling it with care.
Xing Yu stood nearby, giving the energy guns one final check before clipping them into place on his suit. "I’ll handle any stray Graylings that come our way. We’ll need someone on defense while Eren gets into position."
"Okay, let’s go then!" Eren clapped his hands together and began stretching dramatically. His joints popped one after the other, and he grinned at the others like this was just another day in the gym. "God, I’ve been itching to move again."
Jian stood up suddenly.
"What about me?" he asked. "Where do I come into this plan?"
Eren looked startled, blinking at Jian as if he’d forgotten he was even part of the conversation.
"Your Highness, you..." He faltered. He glanced at Xing Yu, clearly unsure how to respond.
Xing Yu exhaled softly, already expecting this. "You’ll be staying nearby," he said, his voice low but firm. "I want you to observe. Stay close and monitor the skies. You’ll be our eyes—alert Eren the moment any ships come into range."
Jian’s frown deepened. He took a step forward. "That doesn’t seem fair."
The others stilled.
"Why do you guys get all the action," Jian said, voice rising, "while I crouch behind some bush like a coward?"
No one answered immediately.
Xing Yu finally turned, his gaze even. "It’s not about fairness. It’s about survival. This isn’t a game, Jian. If something happens to you—"
"I didn’t come all this way just to hide while others fight!" Jian snapped. "I’ve killed Graylings before too. I know what I’m doing!"
"And you’ve almost died doing it." Xing Yu’s voice was cold now, the softness gone. "We can’t afford mistakes. One wrong move, and Eren or Varon could die because you wanted in on the action. plus... I.. I really don’t want anything happening to you. I’ve just found you and I don’t want to loose you,"
Jian clenched his jaw, biting down on the wave of frustration. He looked away, fists tight. His heart was pounding. Part of him wanted to scream—he wasn’t a child to be babysat, not some fragile royal in a glass case.
But even he couldn’t deny the logic.
Still, that didn’t stop the sting.
"I’ll follow orders," Jian said after a long pause, his voice clipped. "But don’t treat me like I’m not part of this war."
No one replied, but Xing Yu gave him a long, unreadable look.
Then he turned. "Let’s move."
The plan was in motion, whether Jian liked it or not.