Interstellar: Return of the Villain
Chapter 342: Everglow’s Failure

Chapter 342: Everglow’s Failure

As Stellar Devourers absorbed more planetary energy, their power grew at an alarming rate.

When Westros had first crossed over from the Empire, he had barely managed to evade Lyra’s relentless blade.

But now, after consuming energy across much of the Alliance’s stars, he found himself capable of something he had never dared to imagine—standing against her.

Yet, when Lyra’s strike shattered his armor with a single blow, the disbelief on his face was undeniable.

"Impossible!" he gasped, his voice trembling with a mix of fury and dread.

Asteroid debris, flung through the void by the gravitational pull of a nearby black hole, struck his body.

Despite their immense size, the fragments disintegrated on contact, sucked into nothingness.

The surreal spectacle confirmed the truth: Westros had grown stronger. But even with his newfound power, he remained no match for Lyra.

The realization hit him hard—only the Phelixes might have a chance.

The thought stirred a storm of emotions within him, his frustration manifesting as his armor unraveled and expanded into the surrounding void.

In mere moments, it morphed into a massive black hole that loomed menacingly over the battlefield.

The radiant energy shields designed to suppress the Stellar Devourer’s influence shattered instantly.

In the blink of an eye, hundreds of starfighters and mechas were dragged into the abyss, obliterated without a trace.

Lyra acted immediately, her voice cutting through the chaos with sharp authority. "Retreat!"

Her superpower surged, forming emerald barriers to halt the black hole’s relentless expansion.

Soldiers scrambled back to their ships, amplifying their weapons to full power to expedite their escape.

The fleet moved swiftly, keeping a safe distance from the singularity’s pull.

Despite her efforts, the screams of soldiers lagging behind filled the comms.

Those who hadn’t even touched the black hole began to emit strange lights from their bodies.

The lights solidified into Crystal Cores, their ominous origins all too familiar.

Lyra’s eyes narrowed.

Crystal Cores—the essence of a Peculiar’s superpower—were being forcibly extracted.

Westros laughed coldly, triumph gleaming in his expression. "Impressive, isn’t it? Just finished perfecting this beauty."

Hovering beside him was a massive machine, nearly ten meters tall, glowing with a sinister light.

It was crude in design, with a singular purpose: to rip Crystal Cores from Peculiars on a massive scale.

Unlike its smaller prototypes, this device worked with ruthless efficiency, completing the extraction in mere seconds.

To combat the Alliance’s defenses, spearheaded by someone as formidable as Lyra, Westros had pushed his subordinates to perfect this monstrous creation.

With a mere flick of his power, the machine tore even more superpowers from Lyra’s soldiers.

Their anguished cries echoed as their essence was stolen, feeding the insatiable black hole.

Lyra’s gaze locked onto the abomination. Without hesitation, she issued a firm command.

"Retreat!"

Westros smirked, retreating into the black hole with the device, its menacing glow swallowed by the swirling darkness.

His voice echoed from within, dripping with mockery. "I may not be able to defeat you, Lyra, but your soldiers? They’re mine."

Lyra’s expression darkened as she encased her soldiers in emerald light armor, shielding them as best she could.

Yet even with her protection, nearly three thousand lives were lost.

The extraction process was merciless—bodies convulsed until their heads exploded, scattering blood and fragments into the void, only for the remnants to vanish into the black hole’s depths.

As she watched her comrades fall one by one, Lyra clenched her fists, her lips a grim line.

The black hole loomed behind them, an unstoppable force capable of devouring entire star systems, spreading its devastation without end.

She was just one person.

Facing Westros, the black hole, and his monstrous machine, even Lyra couldn’t afford recklessness. Her priority was the survival of the tens of thousands of soldiers under her command—a task that would drain her strength to its limit.

...

Later, in the stillness that followed, Mandy approached Lyra, who sat silently in deep thought.

"The troops in the medical bay are asking to see you," Mandy said gently.

Even after forming the Legion of Everglow, Lyra bore the crushing weight of isolation. To her people, she was their protector, their guide.

Every decision she made carried the weight of countless lives, with the smallest misstep leading to catastrophic consequences.

Mandy hesitated before adding, "Helion is there too."

At the mention of his name, a flicker passed through Lyra’s eyes. After a long pause, she stood and adjusted her emerald cloak.

"Let’s go."

When Lyra entered the bustling medical hall, the room, previously filled with chaos and noise, fell silent for a moment.

All eyes turned toward her, brimming with hope and desperation.

"Can she help us regain our superpowers?"

"She’s here! Our powers will return now, won’t they?"

The voices rose in a cacophony, overlapping with anxious urgency.

Suddenly, Helion slammed a medical kit onto the floor, the crash cutting through the clamor.

"Quiet!" he barked, his tone harsher than usual.

Though his external wounds had healed, the lighthearted smirk he was known for was gone, replaced by a dark, brooding expression.

Fixing his intense gaze on Lyra, he demanded, "Ma’am, be honest with us—can we ever get our superpowers back?"

The absence of his Crystal Core left him feeling hollow, vulnerable in a way he had never known.

Lyra didn’t answer directly. Instead, she said, "Once, I too had my power of freezing taken from me."

Gasps rippled through the crowd. The soldiers stared at her in disbelief until the realization set in: if her powers had returned, perhaps theirs could too.

But Helion wasn’t easily swayed. His voice was low, deliberate. "How long did it take?"

"Fifteen years."

The words fell like thunder, plunging the room into stunned silence.

Fifteen years.

Helion’s face turned pale. "You have a unique healing superpower. We don’t."

His observation struck a nerve. Even Lyra couldn’t confirm whether her recovery was due to natural regeneration or her unique abilities.

Nearby, a once-proud level-seven Peculiar sank into a chair, his voice trembling. "My superpower... it’s gone."

The quiet admission seemed to trigger an avalanche of despair, spreading rapidly through the hall.

Some soldiers shouted in anger, while others wept openly. Many cast accusatory glances at Lyra, their leader.

"Why did we have to face the Stellar Devourer? Even Admiral Frederick is hiding on Elden Prime, safe and sound!"

"If they wanted new weapons, they should’ve sent them instead of us! Why were we sacrificed?"

Tension boiled over as several soldiers began to surge toward her.

Zinnia stepped forward, blocking their path. "We are soldiers. We knew sacrifices were part of the job the moment we signed up! And you’re alive—that’s more than some can say!"

Her words carried weight, but they didn’t dissolve the bitterness in the room.

Helion turned back to Lyra, his gaze a mixture of anger, resignation, and lingering loyalty.

Deep down, he suspected she had a larger plan—a grand vision that excluded him.

He had once abandoned his promising career with the Rose, telling himself it was because he despised the Empire’s corruption. But in truth, he had done it for HER.

Time and again, Helion had placed himself on the front lines for Lyra’s sake.

Now, it all felt meaningless. Without their superpowers, he and the others would inevitably face discharge.

Clenching his fists, Helion’s voice quivered with frustration. "You..."

Before he could continue, a cascade of radiant green light descended. It shimmered like falling crystals, dense and vibrant.

Lyra had pushed her superpower to its very limits. Her pale face betrayed the toll it had taken. "This is all I can do for you," she said softly.

Straightening her posture, she added with quiet determination, "After today, you will each proceed with medical discharges. Alongside the government’s compensation, you may draw from Everglow’s relief fund. It will provide sufficient annual support and cover all medical expenses."

The fund had been established to assist the families of fallen soldiers and was the best she could offer under the circumstances.

The restrained anguish in Lyra’s dark eyes made even Helion avert his gaze in reluctant defeat.

No one could have imagined that Lyra—the symbol of resistance against the Stellar Devourers—would face such a devastating loss.

Elsewhere, in the Alliance’s Military Council, the reactions were far less empathetic.

Some sneered openly. "Ha! She always acted untouchable, like she could wipe out the Stellar Devourer with a flick of her wrist. And now? Look at her, crawling back with her tail between her legs."

Even Ronin, ever the smug observer, leaned back in his chair with a satisfied grin. "Ah, young people... they always need a harsh lesson or two before they learn."