CHAPTER ONE

Our home, no longer.

The sun sets on the frigid remains of a planet we once called home. It is the final night before Zero, and the team face their most fierce enemy yet: nature itself. As the remaining citizens of Axiom board The Ark, Martin dons his heat-insulated suit and braves the now-forbidden outdoors. He looks up as everything he's known since Scion is pulled into the Nexus Rift, scattered amongst the stars.

"Where do you think it's going?" Mantis says as he points at the last brick of Ancient Acropolis leaving the atmosphere.

Martin replies, "Somewhere better than here, I hope."

Brian stands with his fellow bears as they watch their village be torn apart by the full power of that orb in the sky. The Nexus Rift knows no difference as it pulls apart any helpless planet, such as ours, without its core.

Alarms sound as The Ark is declared operational. "Launch in T-30 seconds" is heard over the loudspeaker as everyone rushes into the packed airlock.

"I feel no energy but our people; this world is dead."

"It's time to go. This is not goodbye, but a new start." Says Zero as she ignites The Ark's fusion boosters.

"Ten, nine, eight…" The ship's AI counts down.

Martin checks on the passengers as he finds his seat.

"…seven, six, five…"

Brian watches as the sun rises for the last time on Axiom, making its final accelerated orbit around the Nexus Rift.

"…four, three, two…"

The airlock doors close. Martin turns back as Zero disappears. She rifts back, carrying a woman who could not make it onboard in time, and tells her to find a seat.

"One."

The Ark launches, destroying its launchpad with all its might as it emerges from the dust cloud it created. Quiet sobs are heard amongst the roar of the fusion engines as uncertainty for the future overwhelms the fortunate survivors of the destruction of their beloved home.

CHAPTER TWO

A plan like no other.

Zero and the team make their way to the holotable, leaving the autopilot in charge of navigation.

Zero explains the plan; "Alright, everyone, this mission is life or death."

"Theta has taken the Axiom and used its power to fire at the Nexus Rift, destabilizing our entire Nexus System. If we fail to stabilize it, the Nexus Rift will go supernova and destroy all six planets in the system."

"I have devised a plan to extract the cores from each of the five remaining planets and insert them into the Nexus Rift to re-ignite its core. If successful, the Nexus Rift will absorb all the energy it has released, even creating a flow of energy to the planets that will keep them together without the need for a core."

"How do we know this will work?" Exclaims Mantis.

"I have been working with my good friends Terra and Natalie to create this plan. Natalie is a nexus energy scientist who worked with me before I got my powers; she's the best of the best. Terra is the leader of The Elementals, a team of four elementally powered warriors who maintain our Elemental Harmony. She knows more than anyone about each of our universe's elements," says Zero.

"One of our neighbouring nexus systems had a shift in power thousands of years ago, where its planet's cores were absorbed by its Nexus Rift. This resulted in the excess energy flowing through the planets, just like what will happen in our system if this plan works."

"I know it seems like a long shot, but what other choice do we have?"

"I believe it will work. Everyone must believe it will, or it will not." Adds Martin.

"I believe." Says Brian as his mech lifts him into the air.

"Alright, I believe." Says Mantis.

"Mantis and I will go to the Delta planets, Scion and Omega, while you three will go to the Alpha planets, Osiris, Gaia, and Hades," Zero says as she points to Brian, Natalie, and Terra.

"Dad, you will stay here and watch the ship."

"Got it." Says Martin.

Zero continues, "I have equipped the Ark's escape pods with Nexus Magnets… the same ones Theta used to take the Axiom and cause this mess."

"You will extract the cores and carry them to the Nexus Rift, where I can fix said mess."

Brian looks around; "Let's do this!"

Determined to fix the Nexus Rift, the team runs to their pods. The Ark's passengers cheer them on as they board.

"Whatever happens, we are a team," Zero says as she closes her pod's door and launches.

CHAPTER THREE

No going back now.

One by one, each pod launches and joins the formation. Martin watches nervously as the pods fly past while Zero and Mantis break off to go to the Delta planets.

Mantis is the first to arrive on his planet. As he breaks through the thick purple clouds of Omega, he sees its core. Hovering above the frayed metal vault, crystals of contrast orbits prevent him from reaching the unstable core. The crystals collide and break off, flying towards his shuttle at high speeds. New crystals grow, replenishing the jagged field.

"Okay, ship, let's see what you've got," Mantis says to himself.

He carefully approaches the core. Tiny crystals shoot through the outer metal layer of his ship, only stopped by the inner galactium, an impenetrable metal invented by Theta with compacted corrupt matter. A metal so strong that not even nexus energy can penetrate its solid surface.

The core fights back as Mantis lowers and activates the nexus magnets.

Confused, Mantis asks Zero, "I thought you said this thing was dead! Why's it fighting back?"

"Fighting back? It's never done that before…" Zero replies.

Realizing what's going on, Terra butts in, "Kill it."

"What, how?" Mantis says to Terra.

"I've seen this only once before. The corruption has turned the core sentient. You have to kill it."

"How do you kill something that has no heart, no lungs, no brain? How is this thing alive." Asks Mantis.

Terra Explains; "The core is simply a host. Kill Omega's hive deep below its surface. You will free the planet from corruption, and the core from its control."

Mantis lands his ship at a nearby cave. Corrupt particles hit his face, fogging up his visor. The toxic air instantly kills his potted golden mushroom; its spores are taken by the wind and deposited among the wastes.

As he ventures into the cave, Mantis asks, "How exactly do I kill this hive, stab it? I can't see that doing much."

"Its weakness is cold; freeze it." Explains Zero.

"Oh, thanks, that explains my other question: why it's so hot in here."

Mantis slices through thick, corrupt roots and overgrown vegetation. Eventually, he arrives at the hive. Its glow is menacing yet inviting. He readies his sword and charges up his energy.

"I destroyed my planet; let's fix this one," Mantis exclaims.

Sweeping his sword across the cavern, he freezes everything in sight. The purple glow fades as the hive dies. A dying cry from the hive erupts a storm of the undead, who flood the cave in a horde. Mantis strikes the frozen heart with his sword, shattering it and freeing Omega from this corrupt spell. The roots shrivel and turn to dust, and the horde collapses.

"For Scion, and for my brother."

Mantis climbs out of the cave to see fields of blackened dirt. Trees without leaves tower the horizon, and the clouds blow away. A warm breeze creates waves on the shimmering blue bay as the river once again flows over the jagged rock cliffs into the vast ocean.

Mantis removes his mask and stabs his sword into the ground. Grass grows from the blade's edge and spreads across the dirt. The island has been restored, but the job is not yet done. Mantis once again boards his ship and attempts to grab the core. He prevails and flies into the beautiful blue sky, past Omega's rings, which lose their purple pigment as he passes.

"Ellie, you can go home," Mantis says over the radio.

A joyful tear falls down Zero's face as she replies, "Thank you, Alex."

CHAPTER FOUR

The key to life and the lock of death.

Terra is next to arrive on her planet, Gaia. Located in the centre of Gaia's Concord island is the Elemental Harmony, a spiritual anomaly maintained by The Elementals, which holds balance in the nexus system's countless elements.

Terra is reminded of her past on this planet as she soars down through the winding valleys and beautiful, vibrant meadows of Concord. She grew up among the traditional Concordian tribes. Their village was built in an expansive cave carved out by winding underground rivers over thousands of years. In the centre of their village sat Gaia's core, Mother Planet, as they called it; believed to be a small planet given to them to protect, which they did until the interplanetary trade routes provided them access to modern-day amenities, and they were taught all that is known about the universe by Osiris' most notable scientists.

Despite having caught up to the other world's advances, the Concordian people have maintained their long-established values and continue to care for Mother Planet dearly.

The Mantis, known in Scionic mythology as a royal figure, was originally the Elemental Harmony's keeper. They who were "Mantis" at the time would use the Sword of The Mantis to isolate an element and cure several ailments, such as cleansing people of evil by having the harmony absorb all evil energy in an individual.

Today, two Swords of The Mantis exist. The original, forged on Gaia and given to the original Mantis, was taken by Alex and brought to the ancient acropolis on Axiom, where it was taken and Alex locked up. A new Mantis claimed the sword and brought it back to Gaia to continue its legacy with the Elemental Harmony. Hundreds of years later, Alex has waited out all those years of his sentence on Axiom, as the sword gave him immortality. He was released, yet missing his sword.

Theta, wanting to weaken Team Axiom, brought back Ancient Acropolis with her time device, which brought Alex's sword with it. Alex reclaims his sword, his title of Mantis, and joins Theta in her attempts to rewrite the nexus system. He has since abandoned Theta and rejoined Team Axiom; however, there are now two Mantises in the powered community.

Today, The Elementals have sworn to protect the Elemental Harmony, as life would cease to exist without it, and all that is known may change if tampered with.

"Evacuate the village; Mother Planet is needed up there." Screams Terra as she steps out of her ship and points at the sun.

"Mother Planet is needed down here; our people will have no purpose if not for her presence." Ventus, the air Elemental replies.

Terra replies, "Her true purpose has been realized. She is needed to restore the Nexus Rift."

The Concordian people come rushing out of the cavern in a panic. Standing confused, they watch as Terra extracts Mother Planet from the cavern, creating a large hole in the cavern ceiling. Rocks fall on some unlucky houses, damage that is nothing compared to that of a Nexus Rift's supernova.

Terra leaves the atmosphere, knowing that Mother Planet's sacrifice will be worth losing such an integral part of her life and culture.

"Let's save the world… all the worlds, mother."

CHAPTER FIVE

Eternal night in the land of light.

Scion, a once thriving world, was home to the largest empire in the nexus system. All that remains is a shell of what many called home. The Scionic Empire, in its long lifespan, has participated in countless wars and established trade routes with other planets in the system. As one of the most wealthy planets, Scion was a symbol of the nexus system as a place of prosperity and progress. That is until the last Scionic Civil War when Scion's people were divided, and many revolted against the empire. A resistance was created surrounding the proposed legalization of superpowered people.

The war was cut short by the Galactic Fog, which rapidly spread across the planet, killing anyone unfortunate enough to get in its way. Alex brought the fog to Scion after discovering the Sword of the Mantis in a cave near his house. He became The Mantis but could not control this immense power. He inadvertently summoned a galactic gate, bringing the fog virus to these beautiful lands.

A lucky few hundred people were evacuated to other planets, including Theta, who went to Osiris to start a new life. She continued her research here and began constructing the foundation of her lasership. She believed that she could rewrite the nexus system by destroying the Nexus Rift, killing the fog that destroyed her home and creating all new worlds. A fresh new start that would result in the deaths of trillions of people… a loss Theta was willing to take.

Zero descends on Scion, with its lifeless rolling hills and thick black fog. The fog virus surrounds the dying core above the island's centre, feeding off of its immense energy. A slight blue glow from the core is turned purple by the fog's particles; an eternal night plagues this planet.

"Does the fog have any known weaknesses?" Questions Zero to the team.

Martin replies, "Just me. I am its weakness, but that thing… it's grown too strong."

"What would Aurora say before she was corrupted?" Says Brian to Martin.

Martin's face goes blank, remembering his wife. Lost to the corrupt evil of the fog, she turned from the world's leader in humanitarian aid and research to a harbinger of destruction and death with The Scavengers.

"She always said to do the right thing, no matter the consequences."

Zero switches to Martin's private channel. "I believe in you, Dad. The fate of everything is up to you, and who better for it to be up to than you."

"Let's do this." Screams Martin.

Zero sets her shuttle to hover and teleports back up to The Ark. Martin assigns Ezra, his good friend from the former Axiom Defence Agency, to watch over The Ark while he's gone. With a deep breath, Zero teleports herself and Martin back to Scion. Martin looks around at this familiar place; childhood memories fill his head.

Looking up at the giant heads carved into Mount Ploûtos, Martin says, "Look, Mom, I've got powers like you always said." "I'll fix this mess."

"Ready?" Zero says as she pulls energy from the Nexus Rift, directing it at her father.

"As I'll ever be." Martin raises his hands. They start to glow as he kills the vortex around him. Slowly approaching the central virus, Martin's power begins to fade. He collapses as the fog starts to fight back ferociously. Zero reaches out a hand energized by the nexus power flowing through her veins. She creates a force field around them and pulls Martin to his feet, powering up his abilities.

"You've got this."

"Get me up there." Martin requests.

Zero materializes a staircase of nexus energy up to the virus. Martin looks back before ascending. He holds his hands to his sides on the way up, growing stronger as Zero flies up, still draining the Nexus Rift to charge his powers.

As Martin nears the top, Ezra and The Ark's passengers start noticing the Nexus Rift's increasingly accelerated decline. A riot breaks out on The Ark as people begin to doubt Zero's plan. Mantis hovers his pod near The Ark and boards the ship. Holding his sword in the air, he grabs the rioters' attention with a bright aura.

"Everyone, please, take your seats. Zero knows what she's doing."

The Nexus Rift starts to dim. The Ark plunges into darkness, only illuminated by the onboard lights.

"Bring us home, Martin." Says Mantis.

Martin touches the core with his hand, providing it with his power. The core turns purple as it charges with his corrupt energy. Scion's darkness fades as the core's glow brightens. The core begins to pulsate, and tendrils of energy reach around the planet. Zero teleports both herself and Martin to safety in her shuttle. The core sends a shockwave across the planet's surface as the tendrils squeeze the fog out. The core rises into the air. A beam of energy shoots out the bottom, draining the life from the virus.

The blue sky awakens from its deep slumber; Scion has been purified from the fog's curse. The core returns to its bright blue glow and settles above the deep, glowing sinkhole in the island's centre.

Martin hugs Zero; "Thank you."

Mantis and the passengers of The Ark cheer as they watch from the pod's live camera view.

Zero takes control of her shuttle and flies over Scion's core, picking it up with its nexus magnets. With high speed, Zero and Martin, with Scion's core, leave the planet and head for The Ark.

CHAPTER SIX

For them.

Natalie, one of the defunct ADA's top agents, approaches Osiris, the most technologically advanced planet in the nexus system. With a dense metropolis spanning its surface, Osiris lights up its three moons in an amber essence. A thick smog covers the inland areas, flowing towards each of the planet's three cleanser jets, shooting the toxic air toward the moons to be cleaned and sent back.

While Natalie proceeds towards Osiris, Brian begins to worry as his planet, Hades, erupts with a fierce storm of galactic fog.

"This doesn't look safe. Are you sure I can take this on my own?" asks Brian.

"Whate-" Zero is interrupted by the bears of Brian's Teddy Bear Kingdom; "We believe in you. Do it for Echo."

Brian's best friend, Echo, was the ADA's founder and leader. She saved both Omega and Axiom from various threats to the core and kept the citizens safe and happy. That is until F-612b, Theta's android fish, infiltrated the ADA and killed her to gain control of the agency. F-612b single-handedly took down the Axiom Defence Agency, allowing Theta to extract the helpless core to power her lasership, then firing it at the Nexus Rift.

Brian continues his approach to Hades; for Echo.

Osiris' planetary officers open portions of the planet's energy field to allow passenger and trade ships to migrate to and from Gaia. An officer taps into Natalie's communications as she nears the gate.

"Origin and reason for entry?"

"Uhh-" Natalie pauses

"Where are you coming from? Where are you going?" The officer yells.

Terra chimes in, "She's with me."

The officer opens the gate; "My apologies, your highness."

Natalie enters Osiris' atmosphere and slowly descends on the city. She joins the procession of ships through the checkpoints that mark various floating aircraft highways.

Terra tells Natalie, "Osiris' core is harvested to power the city. Look for one of the massive cavern entrance points; they're hard to miss."

Brian cuts in and out of the radio as he enters Hades' atmosphere.

"Gu-"… "th- -ere's"… "a-"… "hu-"… the fierce winds of Hades rip off Brian's communications module.

Zero yells, "Brian, get out of there!"

No response is relayed from Brian.

Ezra switches The Ark's monitors to show Brian's view. The passengers gasp as "NO SIGNAL" is displayed.

A piercing silence falls over the team.

Minutes pass, and their displays show Brian's shuttle view as it leaves Hades, carrying its core.

Everyone cheers as the connection with Brian's shuttle is re-established.

Zero teleports into his ship and approaches the pilot seat to check on Brian. She is relieved to see his mech piloting the craft.

"Brian, what happened down there?" She asks him with no response.

"…Brian?"

She turns the seat to see his mech is empty. She steps back, trips on rocks behind her, and falls to the floor. She turns to see the ship's door wide open before picking up a note from the floor, reading "Do it for Echo."

Zero's heart sinks as she looks back at Hades. She screams and teleports back to her ship. Martin quickly turns and rushes to comfort her.

"Ellie? What happened? Is he okay?"

Zero, wiping the tears from her face, says, "He's gone, Dad."

Ark passengers' faces go blank.

Brian's shuttle airlock opens as it docks with The Ark. His mech steps out and lifelessly walks past the shocked group of passengers. It opens the storage compartment and puts itself away. Ezra checks on Brian's ship, only to see it empty.

Brad, a member of Brian's Teddy Bear Kingdom, stands up.

"This is Zero's doing. If it weren't for her 'plan,' Brian would be alive right now. That witch has controlled our world for too long. Why should we be trusting her blindly?"

Another bear, Theo, tells him, "Calm down, Zero created this ship. She did what she could to save us from Theta, and now she will fix what she couldn't before."

Zero wipes her eyes and teleports into The Ark. She holds up the paper, reading "Do it for Echo," and writes, "And Brian."

"I am no witch. Theta is the person you are comparing me to. We will finish this mission and reverse what she did. For Echo and Brian."

Natalie looks around, noticing a bright blue glow in the distant night sky.

"I have eyes on the last core. Let's finish this."

She exits the highway and heads for the kilometre-wide pit. Planetary officers take notice and start quietly tailing Natalie. She speeds up and lowers her altitude, flying between buildings and dodging hovering obstacles. After losing her pursuers, she dives into a smaller crevice, and follows it down into the core cavern.

Upon entering the cavern, hundreds of sentry turrets and security personnel turn to aim at her before looking the opposite way. A red glow intensifies in an access cave. The sound of air, water, and fire overpowers the city's hum and the core harvester's mechanics. Ventus, Aqua, and Ignus descend upon the operation.

"Oh good, The Elementals are here." An officer exclaims.

Ignus ignites the officer, and Ventus throws him into the core. The officers open fire on the three as they plough down waves of military units. Natalie b-lines for the core before being pelted with artillery. Ignus melts the wires connected to the core as Aqua washes away smaller turrets. Natalie locks onto the core and begins to ascend with it.

A rumble and deep roar cause a break in the action. Realizing what it is, Ventus directs a strong gust of wind at Natalie's ship, launching her out of the cavern just before an orbital cannon opens fire on the cavern. Natalie corrects her course and accelerates towards the closed energy field. The three elementals emerge from the expansive sinkhole that has consumed a portion of the city. They approach Natalie's craft as she ascends. Aqua slices through the energy field with a massive blade of ice, and Ventus knocks out lone security ships that begin to follow. They stay back to fight as Natalie continues for the Nexus Rift.

Ignus liquifies one of Osiris' moons and rains molten rock on the army of planetary officers leaving the planet.

"Thanks guys, I owe you." Says Terra.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Let's fix this mess.

As Terra delivers the final core to The Ark, the final phase of Zero's plan takes shape. Fueled by revenge for the deaths of Echo and Brian, among many more, Zero hastily brings each core towards the Nexus Rift before it begins the last phase of destabilization, supernova.

The Nexus Rift's nexites, which orbit and protect it from primary threats, break their orbits and float away, allowing it to show its dying glow.

"One, two, three, four, five," Zero counts as she collects the cores.

The final core, The Axiom, sits within Theta's lasership's remains.

"I've got this." Says Martin as he pilots his ship near the field of debris. He looks at the picture of Brian on his dashboard before picking up the core.

Everyone gathers at the port side windows of The Ark as Zero begins to insert the cores into the Nexus Rift.

"Theta has terrorized our people for as long as I have known, creating the cube on Omega, redirecting the meteor's orbit towards our island, and using the time device to tamper with our timeline." She says as the Nexus Rift absorbs Omega's core.

"She brought me to Axiom but built The Extractor, Extractor Prime, messed with time again, and caused the death of millions by crumbling our world." Zero lets go of Axiom’s core. It is consumed by the Nexus Rift.

Zero readies Scion's core; "Her home of Scion was destroyed, but that is no excuse to harm others. Her dream of rewriting our nexus system is not reasonable. Ending countless lives will not make things right." The Nexus Rift begins to pulsate as it absorbs Scion's core.

"After leaving Scion and being corrupted by the evil of Galactic Fog, she started a new life on Osiris. In this world, she devised her plan to destroy our planets, making anew. She built the foundations of the lasership, feeding off government resources. She had convinced the people of Osiris that this space station would help society and build a prosperous future for humanity." Zero inserts Osiris' core into the Nexus Rift. A planetary officer catches up to the core as it is inserted. Zero materializes a bubble of nexus energy to contain him.

"Mother Planet. Despite your absence, your presence will remain strong." Zero says as she offers Gaia's core to the Nexus Rift.

The Nexus Rift glows brighter than ever before as it takes Hades' core from Zero's hands and begins to spin.

"For Echo… and Brian." Zero teleports back inside The Ark.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Home again.

The Nexus Rift sends a shockwave through space, expanding the nexus system. Moons are destroyed, and space junk is shot into neighbouring galaxies. As the Nexus Rift begins to heal, its glow intensifies. A scene not exclusive to those near, a spectacle for all to see in the sparkling night sky.

A flow of energy is established through each of the Nexus Rift's six daughter planets, forming a ring. The crumbled remains of Axiom are pulled together, forming three micro planets that orbit each other and the Nexus Rift.

In a light show of explosions, new moons are born among the many new nebulae created by the shockwave. Simultaneously, the Nexus Rift is reunited with its lost energy as it pulls from near space, growing as it feeds.

Countless new moons collide, whose accretions form new planets. The Nexus Rift slows its spin before dimming. In a flash, the Nexus Rift glows brighter than ever, sporting colourful new nexites; each assigned an element from the harmony.

Worlds reborn, new ones forged. The nexus system has healed, cured from Theta's spell, and has grown united. Zero and Axiom's citizens set course for Scion to begin recolonizing this once-thriving land.