CHAPTER 94:

The command console blinked in steady intervals, its rhythmic pulse a stark contrast to the chaos outside. Dr. Bastian stared at it, his hand resting lightly on the sleek metal edge, fingers tapping idly in thought. Behind him, the vast observation window framed the desolate surface of Pyros-9, its jagged mountains and crumbling ruins stretching into the distance beneath the relentless gaze of twin suns. The ruins of the Arkanis civilization lay scattered across the planet, a once-great society reduced to relics of stone and memory.

"Prepare the landing teams," Bastian ordered, his voice low but commanding. "We need to assess the resources of this planet." He barely glanced away from the console, though his words carried the weight of inevitability, the march of The Order across the stars.

Beside him, Rylan Quinn folded his arms, his eyes f