Interstellar: Return of the Villain
Chapter 266: Westros’ Fury

Chapter 266: Westros’ Fury

Lyra hit the battlefield like an apocalypse.

With the Stellar Devourers no longer in her path, she became an unstoppable force, carving through enemy ranks like a scythe through a brittle straw.

Every swing of her blade, every burst of power, left devastation in her wake.

By the time yet another Empire general crumpled at her feet, Admiral Barret could barely contain his fury.

"Retreat!" he snarled, his voice cutting through the chaos.

The fleet scrambled to obey, retreating over a hundred miles to lick their wounds.

Inside the Empire’s command ship, the tension was palpable.

Barret stormed into the medical ward like a thunderstorm ready to unload. His voice shattered the uneasy silence, booming across the sterile hall.

"Ian! You’d better have a damn good excuse for this disaster!"

In one of the advanced healing pods, Ian lay slouched and pale, his face a ghostly mask of pain.

Beside him, Skylight dragged himself out of his own treatment pod, still clutching his injured side. He stepped between Barret and Ian, his voice steady despite his obvious weakness.

"Sir, I need you to calm down—"

"Calm down?" Barret’s bark of laughter was anything but amused. "Do you have any idea how many officers Lyra has killed today?" His voice grew louder, angrier, venom lacing his words as he jabbed a finger in Ian’s direction. "And you—her handler, her problem solver—were nowhere to be found!"

The other officers, many of whom wore fresh scars from Lyra’s rampage, began exchanging dark looks. Their mutters of frustration bubbled up, growing louder as Barret’s tirade continued.

"You were supposed to stop her, Ian! Wasn’t that your Stellar Devourers’ duty? Or did you let her run wild on purpose?" Barret’s patience snapped as he grabbed Ian by the collar and yanked him upright. Ian man winced, his body too weak to fight back.

"Speak up, damn you!" Barret barked.

Ian’s pale face twisted into something sharp and cold. Gone was his usual smug grin, replaced by a cutting glare. "Watch your tone, Barret," he rasped. "I am a Stellar Devourer."

Barret’s lip curled in a sneer. "A Stellar Devourer? You?" His voice dripped with disdain as he shoved Ian back into the pod. "You’re nothing but a failed experiment—a broken lab rat. You’re not even worthy to kiss their ass."

The mutters in the room turned into outright scorn, eyes full of blame and distrust pinning Ian down.

Despite the venom around him, Ian straightened up, his voice cutting through the noise like a blade. "Call me what you want, but I’m still alive. Can any of you say the same if you’d faced her?"

He gestured to the jagged scars across his chest. "These wounds would’ve killed anyone without the Stellar Devourer gene. I’m standing here because I’m stronger than all of you."

Barret’s face flushed crimson with rage. "If it weren’t for your cursed gene," he hissed, "this whole war would’ve been over by now!"

Ian’s lips twisted into a taunting smirk. "Funny. Without me, you wouldn’t even have a fleet left to command."

That was the breaking point. With a furious roar, Barret lunged, his hands wrapping around Ian’s throat. "I’ll end you myself!"

Skylight gasped, his hand darting out to grab Barret’s arm. "Sir, stop! He’s still injured—"

Barret swatted him aside with a snarl, sending him sprawling to the ground. "Stay out of this, Skylight!"

Ian’s eyes darkened, and a faint but dangerous energy began swirling around him.

The gravitational pull made the walls creak, the air twisting with tension. Alarms blared as the beginnings of a black hole crackled into existence between his hands.

"You wanna die here, old man?" Ian’s voice was deadly calm, cold fury bleeding through. "Fine. Let’s see if you can take me."

Chaos exploded across the room. Officers who still had the strength scrambled to activate their powers, their voices rising in panic as the black hole expanded, pulling at everything nearby. The air hummed with tension on the brink of violence.

"Stop!" Skylight’s cry cut through the noise, his voice desperate and raw. But his plea was lost in the cacophony of clashing powers, the room seconds away from tearing itself apart.

Then, as suddenly as the chaos began, it ended. A pale hand appeared from the haze, dispelling the black hole with a single gesture, like snuffing out a candle.

The room froze. Westros had arrived.

He didn’t raise his voice. He didn’t need to. The icy authority in his expression was enough to silence the room.

His gaze swept over the mess before him—Barret, still gripping Ian’s limp form, the officers paralyzed with tension, Skylight clutching her side from the floor.

"Explain," Westros said, his tone soft but unyielding.

Barret hesitated, his bluster wilting under Westros’ piercing stare.

Finally, he released Ian, letting him collapse onto the floor, gasping for air.

Skylight rushed to his side, her trembling hands steadying him.

"Sir," Barret began, his voice wavering, "Lyra has killed half our command today. And the Stellar Devourers—he—was supposed to stop her, but instead—"

Westros raised a hand, cutting him off mid-sentence. His calm expression chilled further, his voice sharp as frost. "Are you suggesting this is MY failure, Barret?"

Barret’s mouth opened, but no words came out.

Westros didn’t wait for an answer. His gaze turned to Ian, then back to Barret. "Lyra has killed your generals. And? This is war. Death is inevitable."

Westros couldn’t care less about these people, about the Empire’s loss. The biggest shock for him this time was that they let Lyra slip away.

The air in the medical bay became suffocating. Barret’s face froze in a grimace, caught between anger and humiliation.

The other officers exchanged looks, seething with rage yet too intimidated to voice it. The tension in the room was palpable, a stifling weight that seemed to press down on everyone.

Ian noticed it all, a mocking smirk tugging at his lips. ’Typical humans,’ he thought with contempt. ’Faced with a more powerful Stellar Devourer, they cowered like worms, too afraid to even speak.’

With barely concealed eagerness, Ian turned to Westros, his voice tinged with desperation. "Sir, please heal my injuries. I swear I can bring Lyra back to you."

Westros slowly shifted his gaze to Ian, his expression impassive. His eyebrows twitched slightly, a faint show of disdain crossing his otherwise unreadable face. "You," he began coldly, "what makes you think you’re worth my time—or my resources?"

The words hit like a lash. Ian flinched but didn’t back down. He opened his mouth to protest, but Westros continued, his tone clinical, detached, and cutting. "According to your performance metrics, you barely measure up to half of Lyra’s capability. Were it not for your unique superpower, you wouldn’t even survive a single exchange with her."

Westros paused to let the insult sink in, then clicked his tongue with open derision. "Trash is still trash."

A wave of stifled chuckles rippled through the officers present. Even Barret allowed himself a smirk, his gaze brimming with contempt.

Ian’s knuckles turned white as his fists clenched. His lips quivered, and his knees threatened to buckle.

Westros, however, had already lost interest in him, his icy gaze sweeping the room.

"I see none of you have any clue how Suxie and the others met their end." He snorted softly. "I expected no better."

Turning toward Barret one last time, Westros spoke with the weight of finality. "Remember my command: Lyra’s life is not yours to take. If you disobey, you’ll face the consequences."

Barret’s complexion turned an unhealthy shade of pale as he saluted stiffly. "Understood."

Satisfied, Westros walked out, his footsteps echoing like the toll of a bell. The silence he left behind was deafening.

Barret’s anger reignited the moment Westros disappeared. He glared daggers at Ian, who was still slumped in Skylight’s arms.

"No more treatment for him!" Barret barked, his voice laced with venom.

Skylight stepped forward, panicked. "Sir, Ian’s injuries—"

"You keep your mouth shut!" Barret cut him off sharply. "I brought you under my command because you were promising, Skylight. As for him—" Barret jabbed a finger at Ian, "—the only reason I allowed that lab rat to stay was his connection to the Stellar Devourers. And this is how he repays me? Disgusting."

He turned to leave but hesitated, glancing back as if the mere sight of Ian offended him further. "Get him off my ship immediately. If he’s still here in two hours, Skylight, you’ll both be kicked out."

With that, Barret stormed away, leaving the room filled with a mixture of awkward silence and barely suppressed tension.

Skylight knelt beside Ian, helping him back onto his feet, but Ian shook him off roughly.

"I’m leaving," Ian spat, his voice laced with bitterness. "Don’t think for a second that I wanted to stay with this pack of useless humans."

"You’re in no condition to go anywhere," Skylight protested, grabbing his arm.

Ian scoffed, his expression defiant. "The only ones who can heal me are the Stellar Devourers, not these pathetic excuses for medics."

A nearby officer, lounging smugly in a treatment pod, interjected with a sneer. "Skylight, why bother with trash like him? He’ll go crawling back to the Stellar Devourers for help anyway."

Another chimed in, laughing. "You think they’ll even bother with him? He’s just a failed experiment to them, a joke!"

Ian’s face turned deathly pale as the snickers around him grew louder. He gritted his teeth, every word cutting deeper than he wanted to admit.

Skylight, however, stood abruptly. His expression hardened, and he tightened his grip on Ian’s arm. "I’ll take you with me."

The room went dead silent. Every officer present stared at Skylight as though he’d grown a second head. Even Ian froze, his eyes wide with disbelief.

"You don’t need to act like some saint," Ian muttered, yanking his arm away. "Barret was right about you—you’re just a bleeding heart who doesn’t know when to quit. Leave me alone!"

Skylight didn’t budge. "I’m packing my things. We’re leaving together."

"Skylight, don’t be reckless!" one of the officers shouted. "Barret has invested so much in your training. Don’t throw it away for someone like him!"

Another officer joined in, shaking his head. "He’s not worth it, Skylight. Think about your future!"

Their words made Skylight pause briefly, doubt flickering across his face. But then he clenched his jaw, his resolve firm. "I’ve made up my mind."

Ian stared at him, stunned. His voice trembled. "Why... why would you do this?"

Skylight smiled faintly, his expression tinged with nostalgia. "Because we grew up together, remember? Back then, I promised I’d always protect you. I failed once. I won’t make the same mistake again."

Ian looked away, his throat tight. He had no response. He didn’t know how to thank Skylight—or if he even could.