"Maya," Lucas muttered softly, his voice low but full of warmth and longing.
The squad leader and Dustin froze mid-step.
The squad leader's usually unreadable expression faltered. For the first time in what seemed like forever, something truly shocked her—but the emotion passed quickly, replaced again by her calm, professional demeanor. Still, a faint flicker of disbelief lingered in her eyes.
Everyone, both civilians and squad members, had felt the terrifying descent of something unknown from the skies. Now, right before her, in the middle of a crater still radiating with unnatural heat, lay a young man curled on the ground—completely naked. Only one word had escaped his lips: Maya.
To call the sight absurd would be an understatement. What truly defined the moment was one word: impossible.
The pressure—the sense of being watched, of something immense and terrifying—was fading, but its traces clung tightly to the body of the young man. There was no doubt: this was the source of it all.
"Maya..." he whispered again, gentler this time. Then his eyes, half-closed and dazed, snapped open, locking onto the figure of a young lady dressed in obsidian black battle armor and a few meters behind her was a young man whose face looked extremely pale and bloodless as if he was staring at a ghost.
The squad leader's fingers twitched as his piercing blue gaze bore into them.
Lucas slowly sat up, completely unaware of his nakedness, glancing around as if confused. The environment around them seemed underground, perhaps buried by impact.
"Who are you?" he asked, his tone low but commanding—unintentionally authoritative.
Snapped from her daze, Amelia responded automatically. "Hi. My name is Amelia, and this is my partner, Dustin."
Lucas nodded slowly, still disoriented. He could remember drifting through space, crashing into a planet, being swallowed by that strange, terrifying liquid... and then, nothing.
"Excuse me."
Lucas blinked and focused—Amelia stood right in front of him.
"Are you okay?" she asked. Her voice was meant to be gentle, but came out flat, as always.
He nodded.
"I asked if you had a name earlier. You didn't reply."
Lucas's brows furrowed at the question. Who wouldn't have a name?
"I have a name. It's Lucas Jeffrey."
"Nice to meet you, Lucas." Amelia extended a hand, but Lucas, weary, didn't take it. Dustin frowned but said nothing.
"You said he's your partner. Are you guys the police or... something else?" Lucas asked.
"We're not the police," Amelia said evenly. "We're members of the Special Force."
Lucas blinked. He knew that name—not personally, but everyone had heard of the Special Force Unit. They only showed up when things were serious. That alone made Lucas wary.
"May I ask the name of your squad?"
"Eagle Squad. B-rank."
"Oh," Lucas muttered. The name didn't ring a bell—which wasn't unusual. Most squads were unknown to the general public.
He looked at her sharply. "So… is there a problem?"
"There is," she said honestly. "And somehow, it's connected to you. But if you cooperate, we'll avoid further issues."
Lucas frowned, not liking that at all—but he took a deep breath and composed himself.
"Fine. I'll cooperate. Just... hurry. I need to see Maya. She's probably really worried."
Amelia nodded. "We'll be quick. But… if you don't mind—who is Maya?"
Lucas's expression softened. "She's my little sister. I was supposed to pick her up from school... but I failed."
"Alright," Amelia said, more gently this time. "Let's finish up, so you can go see her."
Lucas started to push himself up when—
"Wait," Dustin interjected, stepping forward. He pulled something from his storage ring and tossed it in front of Lucas.
Lucas blinked. "What's this for?"
"Come on, man. You're naked. Put some clothes on," Dustin said, half-glaring.
Lucas looked down slowly, and his expression twisted into disbelief and embarrassment. With a quick motion, he grabbed the red jacket and black pants, putting them on clumsily.
Clearing his throat awkwardly, Lucas said, "I'm ready. Let's go."
Amelia nodded and turned toward the edge of the crater. Lucas followed, glancing around at the devastation—the paved road beneath him was melted, warped, still sizzling with acid-like heat.
As he stepped forward, the ground crunched under his bare feet. His breath quickened. A loud, scorching sound came from above.
He looked up—his eyes widened.
A huge golden sphere of light blazed toward him.
"Lucas! Are you okay?!"
Lucas instinctively crouched, shielding himself with his arms, expecting impact.
"Hey! Are you alright?!"
Opening his eyes slowly breathing unevenly, he saw Amelia and Dustin staring at him.
"Are you okay?" Amelia asked again.
He nodded, shaken. "Y-yeah. I'm fine."
Without warning, Amelia grabbed his hand and leapt.
His heart lurched, but before he could react, they landed outside the crater.
"Squad leader!" voices called.
Her squad rushed toward her.
"Are you alright?" Layla asked.
Amelia nodded.
"What did you find in the crater?" Jasmine asked, excitement in her tone.
Amelia said nothing. Her gaze shifted to Lucas, who had formally seemed invincible now fully visible to the rest of the team.
Gasps echoed.
"Is that…?"
A female officer stepped up beside Amelia and saluted. "Ma'am... is this what I think it is?"
Amelia signaled her to follow. "This is who we found in the crater. Look up the name Lucas Jeffrey for me."
"May I ask why?"
"Because that's the name he gave us."
The officer saluted. "Right away."
Amelia stood in silence, arms crossed. Something about the name nagged at her—Lucas Jeffrey... She'd heard it before, somewhere. She couldn't place it.
The officer returned moments later, handing over a tablet. Amelia's calm facade cracked—just slightly.
She'd read about a boy and others who had vanished through a Sky Tear.
She remembered the name now—Lucas Jeffrey. Back then, it meant nothing of importance or significance to her, Now...
She exhaled slowly.
"Good work, officer. What's your name?"
"Stacey, ma'am."
"Well done, Officer Stacey. I'll make sure your work is acknowledged. But there's still the matter of these civilians..."
Amelia gave her a few rapid instructions, and Luna saluted again.
With that handled, Amelia turned to her team who were still looking suspiciously at Lucas who's patience was already at the end of the line, he was in a hurry to return to his little sister but these people kept delaying him.
He stepped forward.
"What's the meaning of this?" he asked sharply. "I told you—my sister is waiting! She hasn't seen me in almost 24 hours, and you keep stalling!"
Amelia's expression softened. She took a breath.
"I'm sorry to say this, but… if you're truly Lucas Jeffrey, the one who went missing through the Sky Tear… then you haven't been missing for 24 hours."
Lucas panicked , his heart began pounding.
"You've been missing for an entire year."
His heart slammed in his chest. His eyes widened. He staggered backward like the ground had vanished beneath him.
BADUM. BADUM. BADUM.