The Olympus core pulsed steadily in the center of the chamber, casting a cool blue glow across the walls.
Adrian hadn't moved for almost ten minutes.
He stood with his arms folded, staring at the twelve small objects moving across the solar system map.
Alien scout ships.
16 Days Remaining.
"That countdown is starting to feel personal," he muttered.
Elara didn't respond.
Her eyes were half-focused, half distant, as Olympus streamed data directly through her neural link.
She could see the scouts in a way normal sensors never could.
Their speed.
Their trajectories.
Their communication bursts.
Their strange, organic architecture.
"Olympus," she said quietly.
The system responded instantly.
DEEP ANALYSIS IN PROGRESS
The holographic projection expanded again.
The twelve scouts appeared like silver darts cutting through space.
But Olympus zoomed deeper.
And deeper.
Until the internal structure became visible.
Adrian leaned closer.
"That still doesn't look mechanical."
Elara nodded slowly.
"It isn't."
The internal scan revealed a network of living tissue intertwined with metallic frameworks.
Muscle-like fibers wrapped around energy conduits.
Neural structures connected directly to navigation systems.
Adrian exhaled slowly.
"So the ships are part machine… part organism."
"Yes."
"Which means destroying them might be harder than we think."
Elara studied the bio-signals.
"They can repair themselves."
Adrian blinked.
"You're kidding."
"No."
She pointed at the regeneration patterns forming across the scan.
"Olympus estimates cellular repair capability."
He shook his head.
"Alien ships that heal themselves."
Then he sighed.
"Great."
Before he could say anything else—
A new alert echoed through the chamber.
EARTH DEFENSE COALITION — URGENT UPDATE
Elara opened the channel.
The global council appeared again.
But this time the atmosphere was intense.
Dozens of engineers and military officers filled the room behind Secretary-General Kovac.
He spoke immediately.
"Elara."
"Yes?"
"Construction of Project Helios has officially begun."
Adrian straightened.
"That was fast."
Dr. Khanna stepped forward.
"We've converted three orbital launch facilities into Helios assembly sites."
A live feed appeared.
Massive rockets stood on launch pads around the world.
Florida.
Kazakhstan.
India.
Japan.
Workers moved around them like ants, installing components at incredible speed.
Adrian nodded.
"Humanity's moving."
"Yes," Khanna said.
"But we still face a problem."
Elara raised an eyebrow.
"What problem?"
Khanna displayed the energy requirements.
Helios required an enormous power source.
A solar array stretching hundreds of meters.
Adrian whistled softly.
"That's basically a floating power plant."
"Yes."
"And assembling it in orbit will take multiple launches."
"How long?"
Khanna hesitated.
"Twelve days."
Adrian rubbed his face.
"And the scouts arrive in sixteen."
"That gives us four days of operational time."
Elara nodded slowly.
"It will have to be enough."
The council continued discussing logistics.
Meanwhile, Olympus kept analyzing the alien scouts.
Suddenly—
A sharp alert flashed across the chamber.
UNKNOWN SIGNAL DETECTED
Adrian frowned.
"What now?"
Elara zoomed into the data.
The signal wasn't coming from Earth.
It was coming from one of the scouts.
"Olympus is intercepting a transmission," she said.
"To the carrier?" Adrian asked.
"No."
She looked confused.
"It's directed at Earth."
The council members on the screen leaned closer.
"Translate it," Kovac said.
Olympus began decoding the alien signal.
Symbols appeared across the display.
Then slowly…
Words.
Adrian read the translation out loud.
"Planetary inhabitants detected."
Another line appeared.
"Primitive intelligence confirmed."
The council chamber went silent.
Then the final line appeared.
Adrian whispered it slowly.
"Begin observation phase."
Kovac frowned.
"Observation?"
Elara's eyes narrowed.
"They're studying us."
Another signal burst arrived.
Olympus translated again.
This time the message was even colder.
LIFE FORMS CLASSIFIED: RESOURCE SPECIES
Adrian clenched his jaw.
"So we're not even enemies to them."
Elara whispered,
"We're livestock."
The council erupted again.
Military commanders demanded immediate action.
Scientists begged for more data.
But Olympus suddenly detected something else.
One of the scouts changed course.
Adrian noticed immediately.
"Hey."
He pointed at the map.
"That one's heading somewhere specific."
Elara zoomed in.
The trajectory line pointed toward Earth's orbit.
But not randomly.
It was targeting something.
Adrian's eyes widened.
"That's heading toward a satellite cluster."
Which cluster?
Elara expanded the map.
And the answer appeared.
TARGET: INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION
Adrian blinked.
"Wait…"
"The ISS?"
"Yes."
"But there are astronauts up there!"
The council reacted instantly.
Kovac shouted orders.
"Contact NASA immediately!"
Emergency signals spread across global space agencies.
The astronauts aboard the station were alerted within seconds.
Inside Olympus, the live camera feed appeared.
Three astronauts floated inside the station's main module.
They looked confused.
Then one of them saw something outside the window.
His eyes widened.
"Houston…"
His voice trembled.
"We have visual contact with an unknown object."
Adrian leaned forward.
"How far away?"
Elara checked the telemetry.
"Three thousand kilometers and closing."
The alien scout was approaching Earth.
Fast.
Too fast for the station to escape.
Adrian whispered,
"They're testing us."
Elara nodded.
"Yes."
The scout slowed as it entered Earth orbit.
Its silver surface shimmered under sunlight.
And for the first time—
Human eyes saw alien technology up close.
The astronaut's camera zoomed in.
The object looked almost organic.
Smooth curves.
Living surfaces.
Energy pulsing beneath its skin.
Adrian stared at the feed.
"That thing is beautiful."
Then he corrected himself.
"And terrifying."
The scout stopped two kilometers from the station.
It didn't attack.
It just floated there.
Watching.
Elara whispered,
"Observation phase."
The astronaut's voice shook slightly.
"It's… looking at us."
Adrian frowned.
"What does that mean?"
Elara didn't answer.
Because Olympus had just detected another signal from the scout.
A new message appeared.
The translation loaded slowly.
Then the words appeared.
INTELLIGENT SPECIMENS CONFIRMED
Adrian swallowed.
"That doesn't sound good."
Another line appeared.
BEGIN BIOLOGICAL SAMPLING
Adrian's eyes widened.
"Oh hell no."
The alien scout suddenly moved.
Fast.
Too fast.
It rushed toward the space station.
Inside Olympus, alarms exploded across the screens.
The war for Earth had just entered its first real confrontation.