Back at Arkbound HQ, the air was buzzing with momentum. Kael and Nyra had just returned from the government pitch, walking straight into the central planning room where the team had gathered.
"They heard us out?" Lira asked, her eyes locked on Kael.
Kael grinned wide, practically radiating. "More than that. I think we left them stunned."
"They know Arkbound built Baron's city in 45 days," Nyra added, dropping into her chair. "They didn't expect us to say we're placing our HQ in that very sector. And when I told them we were planning to launch Arkbound Space from there... they didn't even hide their excitement."
That's when Kael turned suddenly, voice booming.
"Wait—you're saying we're moving the whole HQ?"
Nyra leaned forward, elbows on the table. "Yes. We bought hundreds of acres of land. Thirty kilometers outside the city, near the ridge line. Remote. Secure. Ours."
Kael blinked. "All of it?"
"Every square meter."
Kael let out a low whistle, then crossed his arms. "Alright. That's bold. But how the hell are we going to transport everything? These bots, the lab, the reactors...?"
Raen, who had been quiet until now, stood up slowly. "Leave that to me, Korin, and Lira."
Kael raised an eyebrow. "What exactly are you planning?"
Raen just gave him a calm look. "Something better than a truck."
Without another word, Raen turned and gestured to Korin and Lira. The three of them exited the meeting room and headed toward the private R&D wing beneath the HQ.
Once inside, the lab sealed behind them with a soft hiss.
Raen brought up a massive display. A sleek, unfamiliar silhouette began to form on the screen—long, angular, reinforced with dark composite plating.
"A starship?" Korin whispered, stepping closer.
Raen nodded. "We're done crawling."
Korin stared at the initial design. "How are we powering this? Even for atmospheric lift, the thrust requirements are—"
"You forgot," Lira cut in with a grin. "The bots. What powers them?"
Raen added, "The same Aetheric Resonance Reactor tech I embedded into the NEAR series. But this... this reactor is a scaled-up version. A hundred times the power output. Self-sustaining. We're integrating three of them into this ship."
"Three?" Korin's eyebrows shot up. "That's overkill."
Raen smirked. "Call it redundancy. Think of them like engines. One fails? The other two keep us flying. This isn't just about relocation. We're building something that can move our entire operations anywhere—fast, quiet, and safe."
Lira crossed her arms. "And it won't just hover. This thing can touch orbit."
Korin stepped back, still absorbing it all. "This... this changes everything."
Raen tapped his comm. "Nyra. Kael. Meet us in the lab."
Back in the control room, Nyra's comm pinged. She looked at Kael.
"Looks like it's time."