The Last Stand of Earth

The Arrival

The world had no time to process it. Parents and loved ones were left in shattered silence as their children were torn away from them, helpless against the alien invaders. People staggered through the streets, dazed, their eyes searching the skies for any sign of hope, but there was none. The Xaroth ships, towering and dark, had already disappeared beyond the clouds, leaving only the destruction in their wake. The cities were empty now, the once-thriving heartbeats of humanity reduced to silent ruins.

As the last of the ships vanished, a thick, unsettling quiet settled over Earth. The world was not just defeated-it was abandoned.

But even as the survivors stood among the ashes of their civilization, a strange unease lingered. There was no answer to the most urgent question: Why the young? Why had the Xaroth taken only those between childhood and adulthood? What was their purpose? And why, in the final moments, had the Xaroth warriors seemed so focused, almost... deliberate? It was as if they had known exactly who they were looking for-and had no interest in anyone else.

As the survivors huddled together, desperate to make sense of the chaos, something was still stirring beneath the surface. The world seemed to hold its breath. The wind shifted, carrying with it a strange, electric charge. The sky. It was no longer just empty. Somewhere, far above, a new disturbance was growing-a faint, flickering light in the distant horizon.

At first, it was subtle. A single glow, soft and faint, like the flicker of a distant star. But then, the light began to grow, pulsing, moving closer. The survivors froze, gazing upward, feeling the hairs on the back of their necks stand on end. The ships-the ones that had already taken their children-were gone. But now, it seemed as though something else was descending.

A different kind of ship. Smaller. Faster.

And this time, it wasn't just a few. There were many.

They appeared out of the darkness like fireflies, glowing faintly, their forms sleek and sinister. Their movements were almost imperceptible, but their presence-it was undeniable.

In the distance, beyond the city's ruins, the survivors could see a faint silhouette against the glow of the horizon. It wasn't just a ship-it was something else. Something far larger, far more ominous than they could have ever imagined. A shape, shifting in and out of view, like a living creature.

Then came the sound. A low hum, a vibration through the air, subtle but undeniable. As the glow grew brighter, a voice-strange, haunting-whispered on the wind, incomprehensible but unsettling.

The survivors, paralyzed with fear, could only watch as the sky began to crack open once more. But this time, it wasn't a simple invasion. It was something far more ancient, far more dangerous. Something that had been waiting, hidden beneath the stars. And now, it was ready to emerge.

And as the final remnants of the Xaroth ships faded into the blackness, one chilling thought echoed through the minds of those left behind: This was only the beginning.