6

Inside the ship, it was an empty hall with a few people already standing there, waiting for the children to arrive. Though it was supposed to be a training session, they didn't believe so.

"Get in lines." When everyone boarded the ship, one of the men ordered the children to form lines. After that, he looked at the screen in front of him before announcing names and separating them into different groups.

And just like that, the crowd of more than a hundred children were divided into small batches of four children. And Xen was no exception. Looking at the three strangers standing beside him in silence, he was at a loss for words. He was hoping for Reon to stay with him, but unfortunately for both of them, it didn't happen.

"For now, go and rest in your room. We will reach our destination in a few hours." Handing out keycards with room numbers on them, the man dismissed them.

As everyone began to disperse, Xen stood in his position, hoping to see the scene of flying out of Earth. This had been a long cherished unfulfilled dream of his. Though he had experienced it countless times in recollection and simulation, he still wanted to experience it personally in real time.

Unfortunately for him, the place they were in was devoid of any glasses or screens. He could feel the ship moving, but he couldn't see anything other than the giant metal walls surrounding them.

"Heh." He laughed at himself for expecting too much before turning around and heading into his room. By the time he reached there, the remaining three were already sitting there, talking to each other.

"You are?" When Xen opened the door, the three pairs of eyes concentrated on him before one of the younger ones asked him the question.

"Xen," Xen replied with a smile. The three teammates were young, perhaps even younger than him. Instead of fear and panic, their faces were filled with nervousness and excitement as if they were going on a picnic. Perhaps Xen too would have been filled with these emotions if not for being mature beyond his age. He knew what was at stake and the risks involved. For a moment, he even envied their naivety.

"What about you guys?" Putting his bag aside, he asked them as he looked at the simple room with four beds along with four small tables and chairs.

"Me... I am Asher." The youngest one was the first to introduce himself in excitement. "I am ten."

"I am Zion, I'm eleven years old." One of the boys who had a shy expression introduced himself.

"I am Noah. I'm ten years old." The last boy too introduced himself with an excited expression.

Xen listened to their introduction before letting out a sigh. When they said they were going to create teams, he was hoping for people his age if not older in his group. Who would have thought he would be assigned with three brats? For a moment he almost wanted to laugh out loud. He escaped the chattering of his sister only to end up with three more just like her.

"You guys keep on chatting. I will just take some rest." With the age gap between them coupled with his already mature mind, he felt a bit uncomfortable sitting with them. So, after giving them a look of encouragement, he headed to his bed before lying on it. The past two days he had been full of nervousness; so much so, that he didn't get an ounce of sleep. And now that he was finally on the ship, heading towards his destination... he felt strangely relaxed. Since it had already come to this, he could only wait for whatever came next and hope for the best.

Closing his eyes, it didn't take long before he drifted into sleep.

---------------

Xen had a dream. In that dream, he along with many others fought bravely against the invaders. There were a few setbacks, but in the end, they were able to go against all odds and emerge victorious. In that dream, Xen took up arms, and fought bravely and with a ferocity unseen and unheard of. After the war was over, he headed back home, met his family, married a beautiful woman, had two children, and lived a happy life.

Alas! No matter how beautiful a dream is... in the end, it's just a dream. Destined to end one day... The same happened with Xen too.

"Xen, wake up." It was a rather young unfamiliar voice that woke him up.

"Umm!?" Waking up in a daze, Xen saw Noah standing in front of him, poking his face with his finger, while trying to wake him up.

"Wake up, let's go." He spoke hurriedly as if afraid of spending much time here. It took a moment for Xen to register what was going on before he nodded in response.

As Xen woke from his dream, he could still feel the thrill of victory lingering in his chest. But as his eyes adjusted to the dull surroundings of the ship, the harsh reality quickly crushed any hope the dream had given him.

Jumping out of his bed, he followed the boy and soon once again stood in the large crowded hall that was much more noisy than before. It was clear that the small few hours allowed them to ease their nervousness and form bonds with each other.

"Silence." It was at this moment a hoarse voice echoed in the hall, silencing everyone there. In the middle of the hall was an old man in his seventies with a head full of white hair. He glanced at the children present there before clearing his throat and speaking further.

"Many of you must be wondering whether you are here for the war or not." His voice was calm, perfectly demonstrating the gravity of the situation. "Well, let me tell you; you are not. You are here just for the practice session. Those who perform well would be assigned further roles."

After a brief pause, he spoke again. "This joint practice session is being held on Mars with the native Martians. They might look a bit different than us, but I hope you all can stay respectful."

"Differences aside, we all are humans and need to stick together to fight this war. I hope you can consider this and take suitable steps."

Nodding to the woman beside him, he let out a deep breath. "After reaching there, you all will be assigned a martian and together you all will work to complete your tasks."

With these words, he turned around and left the hall, leaving behind a crowd of confused kids who were still struggling to remember what he just said. Some of them had already forgotten about it and were beginning to chat with each other.

"This..." The woman looked at the scene with twitching lips. To think that an esteemed instructor like her would be put in charge of a bunch of kids... She didn't even have tears to cry out loud.

"Come on, fall in lines. We will now exit the ship." No matter how much she hated this new job, she had to do her duties. Waving her hand, she rallied them before walking out of the hall.

-------------

"This place!?" When Xen finally exited the ship, he was stunned to see the scene in front of him. The buildings here looked the same as those on Earth except the buildings here were unnaturally long with long doors. Apart from the similar style, everything else was different. Compared to Earth, the trees here were towering huge... so much so, that even Xen was left in awe.

The same was with the vegetation and grass too. They were unnaturally long and completely different from what he was used to on Earth. And if that wasn't enough, he was pleasantly surprised to see how much lighter he was feeling here. It was as if he could float in the air if he just jumped a bit high.

But this wasn't what surprised Xen the most. It was the appearance of Martians roaming there. Even though he had seen them before, he was still impressed by their height which was almost twice the size of those on Earth.

"Follow me." The woman signalled them to follow her before they stood in front of a large hall.

After entering, they just followed the similar procedure they did while on the ship and headed to their rooms. As for their so-called Martian team-mate, they would arrive a few days later. By that time, they needed to get used to their new living conditions.

The four of them roamed inside their rooms before Xen finally took his leave.

"I will head out for a moment. You guys stay here." After these words, he walked out of his room and waved in front of him.

The moment he did, a transparent screen popped up.

"Contact Reon," Xen muttered softly as he waited for the call to connect.

Even though they were no longer on Mars, the smart chip embedded at the back of their head could let them communicate with each other.

At the age of one, every child would undergo the painless and quick procedure of inserting the chip into the back of their heads. This not only allowed them to access a myriad of information and connect over the vast network spanning the entire Milky Way, but the chips also constantly observed the changes in one's body and informed if there was a risk of getting sick. As for the holographic call... It was just one of its many features.

"Xen." Soon the call was connected to Reon who seemed to be in a hurry.

"Where are you? Let's meet up." Xen spoke out while stretching his body. After coming to this strange and unfamiliar place, he wanted to spend some time with his only friend. As for those three brats in his room... he didn't want to babysit them.

"Umm... Sorry man, I can't at the moment." Contrary to Xen's expectation, Reon declined his invitation. "I am occupied. See you later."

With these words, he disconnected the call, leaving behind the figure of a stunned Xen.

It took a moment for Xen to register what just happened before he broke out cursing loudly. "This motherfucker."

Gritting his teeth, he didn't think this guy would cut off ties the moment they arrived on Mars.

"Connect to Reo..." He was about to call that guy again, but in the end stopped mid-way. "Sigh, forget about it."

Reon's abrupt rejection hit Xen harder than he expected. It wasn't just the words—it was the sudden, cold detachment from the one person he thought he could rely on. Gritting his teeth, Xen cursed under his breath, feeling the sting of loneliness settle deeper in his chest.

Since Reon wasn't going to come and he was still alone, Xen thought for a moment before heading back to his room. There would be plenty of opportunities to explore later. But first, he needed to get accustomed to this low gravity...

-------------

Days passed in the blink of an eye and soon it was the day of meeting their Martian Teammate.

During these days, Xen spent most of his time in his room. Other than chatting with his teammates, there wasn't much to do. He didn't even chat with them for a longer period of time afraid that his mind would deteriorate and turn similar to theirs. As for walking around... He tried that once before a guard caught him and escorted him back to his room with a warning to stay inside unless summoned.

After spending days in his confined room, he was already going crazy. Thankfully, it all finally ended.

"Well, go and meet your teammate. They will have the same token as you." The woman instructed them with a slight smile on her face.

"Let's go."

"Yeah."

"Hurry."

Compared to Xen, those three brats were genuinely curious and excited. Xen too, followed suit before he finally met his last teammate.

"Holy..." he almost blurted out, barely able to contain his surprise. Standing before him was a towering woman, her presence casting a long shadow over the group. Xen's breath caught in his throat as he looked up, realizing just how small he was in comparison. Even her calm expression carried a weight of authority that made him uneasy.

She was nearly twice his height. Even when Xen stood in front of her, he only came up to her chest. Her skin was ghostly pale, and her large blue eyes stood out against her brown hair. Her features were delicate but edged with annoyance, and for a moment, Xen thought she looked closer to thirty, with her well-developed body adding to the impression.

"Hello sister, who are you?" It was Asher, who shouted in excitement. Even though he only reached to her waist, he was more than happy to meet her. In his small life, this was perhaps the first time he saw someone as big as her. And despite that, instead of fear, his face was filled with excitement. "I am Asher. I am ten years old."

The woman looked down and saw the boy who barely reached her waist before her expression softened for a moment.

"I am Aurora, and I am eighteen."

Aurora's pale blue eyes scanned the group, lingering on each face as if she were sizing them up. For a brief moment, her lips twitched—was it amusement or annoyance? Xen couldn't tell, but something about her made him feel both curious and wary at the same time.

The rest of the remaining ones introduced themselves one by one. After Xen introduced himself, he wanted to ask her a few questions. But before he even had the time to, an announcement suddenly flashed before his eyes.

[Notice to all participants: Please report to the training grounds in half an hour. Failure to do so will result in penalties.]

"Uh!" Swallowing his questions he along with the rest four of his teammates finally headed to their destination, completely unaware of the things that lay ahead...