Wanderer Ch 25: The Fleet Of Darkness!

(Jack)

The words the two giants spoke hung in my mind like the endless void surrounding us. The most important person in the universe? Me? It felt impossible. Absurd. Hell, it was outright ridiculous. I was just a guy—a halfway-decent engineer and an astronaut testing out an unproven piece of tech. The idea that my very existence had sent these enormous beings on some kind of existential journey was beyond comprehension.

I stood there, staring up at the face of the brown-haired titan—Thalassa, she'd called herself—her golden eyes fixed on me with an intensity that made me feel like an insect pinned under a magnifying glass. She was waiting for me to say something.

I cleared my throat, which felt painfully dry in the open air of her palm. "Uh, right. I'm... I'm Jack. Jack Hartson," I stammered, trying to sound confident. "I'm an astronaut from the planet—uh—Solivara."

Her brow raised slightly, an expression I couldn't decide was interest or impatience.

"I was testing an invention of mine—a device that was supposed to—"

She cut me off with a scoff, her voice a low rumble that vibrated through her palm. "Spare me the details of some irrelevant toy. I didn't come this far to hear about your tinkering."

The casual dismissal hit like a slap to the face, but I swallowed the anger rising in my chest. Getting into an argument with a titan wasn't exactly a winning strategy. Instead, I took a steadying breath and shifted gears.

"Fine," I said, my voice tight. "Let me tell you about Solivara."

Her massive hand moved slightly, steadying me as I nearly lost my footing. It was unsettling how smooth her movements were—like she could crush me and not even notice. I pushed the thought aside.

"Solivara is a planet of cities—towers of metal and glass that stretch into the sky. Below, there are sprawling green plains, endless oceans, and deserts that stretch on forever." I paused, my mind drifting to the planet I might never see again. "There's a canyon—The Great Divide—created thousands of years ago during an era we call the Shattering Age."

Thalassa tilted her head, golden eyes narrowing slightly. "The Shattering Age?" she asked, bringing her hand closer to her face. Her breath, warm and faintly electric, swept over me.

I nodded, looking up at her colossal features. "Yeah. It's a mysterious era in our history. We don't know much about it, only that it changed everything for my kind. The land, the seas, even the skies—they all bear the scars of whatever happened back then. And yet... we've never been able to figure out exactly what caused it."

She seemed to think about this, her expression distant. For a moment, I wondered if my words had struck some kind of chord with her, but before she could respond, something shifted in the air.

It was subtle at first—a ripple that I wouldn't have noticed if I weren't standing so close to her. The ripple turned into a vibration, like an invisible wave bouncing off her massive body.

Her gaze snapped up, and I instinctively turned to follow it. That's when I saw them.

Ships.

Dozens of them, sleek and black, emerging from the void like predators from the depths of a dark ocean. They were enormous—each one as big as Thalassa's hand, maybe bigger—but compared to her, they were still dwarfed.

"Huh?" Thalassa muttered, her voice breaking through the silence. "What's that?"

"Fun," Eclipsa said from beside her, a mischievous grin spreading across her pale face.

The sight of the ships made my stomach churn. Something about them didn't sit right, though I couldn't put my finger on it. Their design was... too perfect, too predatory.

The ships came closer, forming a loose formation in front of Thalassa's chest. My nerves were screaming at me, but I stayed quiet, watching as one of the ships moved forward, its sleek hull reflecting the faint starlight.

Then I heard it—a voice. Deep, dark, and resonant. It echoed through space as clearly as if it were being spoken right next to me.

"Wait... how the hell can I hear him?" I muttered, confused. Then again, I'd already heard the titans talking in the vacuum, so maybe I shouldn't have been surprised.

The voice was male, confident and smooth. "Ah, Thalassa and Eclipsa," the man said. "What a privilege to finally meet two of the great Wanderers. I must say, I'm a big fan of your kind. Your power... your grace... It's inspiring."

Thalassa's expression darkened slightly, her lips pressing into a thin line.

The man continued, undeterred. "I come with an offer. Together, we could unlock the secrets of your power. With my resources and your abilities, we could reach the next stage of evolution."

Thalassa didn't respond immediately. She just stared at the ship, her gaze icy. Finally, she muttered under her breath, "Pest."

Her voice was quiet, but the contempt in it was impossible to miss.

"Uh... thanks for not moving," I said, looking up at her. I wasn't sure if she'd heard me, but I was glad she hadn't made any sudden gestures that would've sent me flying into the abyss.

Her golden eyes began to glow faintly, a soft yellow light that pulsed with quiet menace. I couldn't see the full effect—it was hard to make out the details of her expression from my vantage point—but I could feel the tension building.

The man's voice came again, almost pleading now. "Thalassa, surely you can see reason. This is an opportunity to—"

He never finished his sentence. With a casual flick of her finger, Thalassa obliterated several of the smaller ships in a single instant. The debris scattered like sparks, vanishing into the void.

The man's tone shifted, anger replacing his feigned charm. "What a shame," he said. "You leave me no choice."

The remaining ships split apart, moving with precision to form a circle around Thalassa and Eclipsa.

"You would attack us?" Thalassa said, her voice sharp and biting. She smirked, though there was a dangerous edge to it. "Do you know how many creatures have dared to do so—and how many have failed?"

I stumbled as her hand shifted slightly beneath me. The steady surface began to tremble, and for the first time, I saw something that shocked me to my core.

Sweat.

Beads of it were forming along her brow, glinting faintly in the starlight.

"What's happening?" I muttered, trying to stay upright.

Beside her, Eclipsa grimaced, her voice tinged with discomfort. "Sister... something's wrong."

The man's voice returned, triumphant. "Do you feel it? Your power... slipping away? I'm draining it, Wanderers. Siphoning it for myself. You are trapped, cut off from the cosmos—and therefore, you are mine."

The trembling beneath my feet grew worse, and my heart sank as I realized just how precarious my situation had become.

"Well... this just keeps getting better," I muttered, gripping her skin as the universe around me descended into chaos.