Disaster struck without any warning or premonition one day.
“When are you planning to arrive?”
“Sometime tomorrow afternoon.”
A sitting at the headquarters’ supply warehouse was busy organizing various items, while Siera watched him with half-closed eyes.
“That’s why I told you to organize things ahead of time.”
“I’m swamped; where do I find time to organize?”
“Why didn’t you help when I asked?”
“You’d just nag me again. Why give it to me if you knew that?”
They exchanged barbs as A organized the warehouse. The reason was A and Siera. It was the season for personnel transfers within their unit.
After several years serving in the same unit as combat operatives, they were reassigned to a newly formed aerial unit. A had delayed sorting his belongings until the last minute before the transfer date.
Though called an aerial unit, A would be going into space, making it impossible to meet his parents for a while. His parents, who hadn’t shown up for his enlistment ceremony, planned to visit to see their son, whom they hadn’t seen for a long time.
“Aunt and Uncle, how many years has it been since we last saw each other?”
“Yeah, the last time was when you enlisted.”
A, who had spent the past few years in the military, rarely had the chance to go home.
Even when he received his mother’s call and thought about visiting briefly, he got caught up in work and forgot about going home.
“You’re tough. Do you really like working in the military so much?”
“I did it because I liked it. How cool is that?”
Inspired by a soldier he met as a child, A pursued his dream of becoming a soldier and now found himself in the military. Siera joined the military to keep an eye on A, who could get into trouble if left alone.
Siera wasn’t unhappy with her assignment, but sometimes A’s enthusiasm made him seem like a bit of a weirdo.
“A, have you finished organizing?”
Just then, Klugger, a young man with dark brown hair, passed by the warehouse. He poked his head in to check on A’s situation.
“I’m almost done. Who’s been putting stuff everywhere?”
“It was you. Who else could it be?”
Klugger chided A for his lack of organization and chuckled.
“But why? Did you come to watch me organize?”
“The commander is looking for you.”
“Got it.”
Hearing that the commander of their current unit was looking for him, A stopped organizing and stood up from his seat.
“What does the commander want?”
“Probably the final interview. You’re the only one left, right?”
Having said his piece, Klugger left the warehouse and went his way. A glanced at Siera once.
Seeing Siera signal for him to go, A nodded and headed toward the commander’s office.
“A, welcome.”
“Yes, Commander Angelique. You asked me to come in.”
“Mm, come in and sit down.”
Angelique, the commander of A’s unit, welcomed him with her long white hair tucked behind her ear. After saluting, A approached her and sat on the opposite sofa, glancing around the office awkwardly.
“Two days until the transfer.”
“Yes, it’s already set.”
“It feels like it was just yesterday when you first arrived and caused trouble.”
Smiling gently, Angelique reminisced about A’s arrival. A chuckled uncomfortably, remembering the enthusiastic and ambitious version of himself back then.
“I’ve learned a lot from you, Commander. I’ll make good use of what I’ve learned in the new unit.”
“Since the commander of the aerial unit and I are the same age, I’ll tell you. Just don’t speak too harshly.”
“I’ll try to improve.”
“Alright, let’s get started.”
With a smile still on her face, Angelique proudly observed A’s growth as she spread her arms wide.
“Huh? Now?”
“What’s the big deal? Didn’t you call me ‘sister’ when you first transferred here?”
“Forget about that.”
Hearing this, A’s face flushed. When A was wild with youthful energy, Angelique chose to hug him to calm him down. This choice proved very effective, and they hugged often during his time in the soldier unit.
Feeling shy at the thought of the last time, A hugged Angelique without hesitation.
“Work hard there and meet your parents well tomorrow.”
“Thank you.”
After the hug, they chatted a bit more and concluded the final interview. The next day,
An alarm sounded early in the morning as A prepared to leave.
“What’s happening?”
Rushing to put on his suit and rush outside, A asked his busy colleagues. But the colleagues who had just woken up couldn’t know the sudden situation, so A hurried to the command center.
“A!”
“What’s going on?”
When A reached the command center, he met Seira, who was standing in front of it, and immediately asked about the situation.
“They’re in a meeting inside. I heard them talking, and it seems the Predator is attacking.”
Upon hearing the word “attack,” A’s face turned pale. Not only was the attack itself a problem, but the fact that the Predator, a non-intelligent life form, was attacking the planet indicated a scale far beyond normal.
“Just a moment.”
A tried to contact his parents who were on their way, but all he received was a signal indicating a communication jam.
“Communication jam? Why?”
This was strange. Since Predators were non-intelligent beings, it shouldn’t have affected communications even if they attacked. If the transmission network had been overwhelmed, it should have been prepared for such an increase. Therefore, the jamming must have been intentional.
Just as A’s face turned pale, the door to the command center opened, revealing a TV showing news rather than the officers in a meeting.
The words “Disaster Alert Issued” flashed, and the news quickly filled A’s mind.
“Predators are attacking multiple regions simultaneously…”
“Cities are being raided by pirates…”
Predators were attacking. Although it was unimaginable, A could understand this much. However, the news that pirates, who roamed the universe, were also attacking was overwhelming. As A stood motionless, Angelique nudged his shoulder.
“A, snap out of it. This is real.”
“…How large is the scale of the attack? Which areas are affected?”
“…It’s on a planetary scale. Reports indicate that most of the air forces in orbit have been affected.”
“Mom… Dad…”
As A’s parents’ faces flashed in his mind, he rushed somewhere.
“A!”
Seira and Angelique called out to him from behind, but their voices didn’t reach him.
Outside the base, it was utter chaos.
People’s voices could be heard from every corner, and black smoke rose from various parts of the city. Many soldiers had already been dispatched to the scene, and battles were raging across different locations.
Although they had conducted many operations, this sudden situation was unprecedented. The reality of a catastrophic disaster striking without warning felt surreal.
“!”
When A looked up, he saw a shadow and gazed at the sky in despair.
There was no identifiable object floating above, something indistinguishable to the naked eye.
“Predator…”
Determined to find his parents, A activated his suit and flew towards the base.
Flying low, he dodged debris from collapsing buildings and bullets, searching desperately for his parents.
Though they hadn’t met in years, his parents always gave him advice whenever he needed it. His mother taught him how to love, and his father taught him how to view the world and reflect on himself.
Their faces and voices echoed in his mind.
Thinking that he might find them if he searched quickly, A sped up. Upon arriving at the terminal, he saw another chaotic scene.
Broken TVs broadcasted evacuation instructions, but the sound was distorted. The place was in ruins, and bodies lay scattered everywhere.
Could his parents…
The thought made the veins on his forehead throb.
Suddenly, a black and silver suit and helmet were put on him, and he floated into the air.
A shockwave shattered the surrounding glass, and he grabbed a pirate aiming a gun from outside the window, slamming him to the ground.
“This is X09. Deploying battle suit to eliminate enemies.”
“A! Where are you?”
Blocking out the incoming voice, A flew straight up.
Seeing civilians moving and pirates and soldiers fighting everywhere, A realized he needed to resolve the situation and find his parents as quickly as possible.
Meanwhile, Predators were descending from the sky.
“Those bastards!”
He summoned two large plasma cannons and fired powerful beams at the Predator in the sky.
A blue flash scorched the Predator, but one person’s firepower couldn’t handle such a massive threat.
“Don’t interfere!”
A pirate flying nearby aimed his gun at A. A large iron shield appeared in mid-air, blocking the incoming bullets. A sensed something amiss as he observed the movements of the pirates and the Predator.
“Could it be…?”
The pirates seemed to predict the Predator’s movements accurately. Only one thought occupied A’s mind.
“Were you leading the Predators here?”
Pirates intentionally led the Predators to attack, aiming to plunder resources faster from a resource-rich planet.
Intelligent life forms used non-intelligent life forms like Predators to invade other intelligent life forms in the universe.
“F*cking hell!”
A flew in swiftly and swung his fist.
“!”
The pirate A faced blocked his punch with his bare hand.
“Full of spirit, aren’t you?”
“What are you?”
A, with some experience, quickly realized the pirate wasn’t just a regular subordinate. The pirate spoke with confidence and looked down on him condescendingly.
“Commander, we’ve cleared this area.”
Another pirate who had flown in addressed the one called Commander and reported the situation. Hearing the report, the pirate’s gaze returned to A.
“Running blindly without thinking will get you killed, kid.”
Then, Angelique kicked the one called Commander.
“!”
“A, are you okay?”
The commander, pushed away by the speed of the kick, was caught off guard. Angelique ignored him and checked on A’s condition.
“I’m fine, Commander. What’s the situation?”
“We’re retreating from the area. We can handle the pirates, but we can’t stop the Predator.”
Predators had already begun descending to the ground, consuming various life forms. Evacuating civilians, fighting soldiers, and invading pirates—everything was being consumed, and screams echoed from all directions.
“But…”
“Your parents are safe. I confirmed they’re on the evacuation shuttle.”
Hearing that his parents were safe, A’s expression brightened.
“Lucky.”
“Let’s go back first. We can’t handle the Predator here.”
Predators had descended, and pirates who led them attacked various facilities to counter the Predator.
This was a meticulously planned invasion, as if they knew exactly what was where.
Countless civilizations had been wiped out in the universe, some by Predators. No one ever thought their civilization would end up like that.
Civilizations that met unexpected destruction were powerless, regardless of technological advancement.
“Mom! Dad!”
Returning to headquarters and boarding the ship, A immediately contacted the civilian evacuation shuttle.
Seeing his parents’ faces on the screen, the tension he’d been holding onto finally eased.
“How are you? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Are you hurt anywhere?”
“No, we’re both fine.”
Seeing his parents, though covered in dust, but seemingly unharmed, A felt relieved.
“We’re fine. Focus on your safety first. Got it?”
“Yeah, understood.”
Through the window, A saw the civilian evacuation shuttle in the distance. Despite the distance, the communication worked, and he confirmed his parents were there.
“Now, let’s get to a safe area.”
The screen went blank.
Turning his gaze back to the window, A saw the shuttle, which had been rising safely, suddenly fall from the sky like a large fireball.
“Mom… Dad…”
Both A, who was communicating, and Seira, who was watching from behind, stared in disbelief.
Seeing the falling shuttle, A felt nothing. His senses returned when he saw a man outside the window.
“!!!”
The pirate commander who had faced A earlier stood behind the falling shuttle, watching a military transport ship move. It was as if he knew A was watching the shuttle through the window.
“Ah… Ahhh!!”
Eyes bloodshot, A shouted out the window, and Seira held A, who was about to rush out.
It was futile. The suddenness of the situation left A feeling a sense of futility.
For days, the alliance of nations and pirates continued to clash. The pirates formed a massive fleet, comparable in size to a great nation’s army.
By the time it was revealed that they had used Predators to invade, it was already too late to do anything. Despite being technologically superior, they failed to respond effectively due to the element of surprise and the overwhelming presence of the Predator.
