This is a dire situation. I only hope that you take my warning seriously and act upon it as soon as possible. Our planet is on the edge of the universe. We used to think of this as a place of safety, but we’re the first in harm’s way out here, all alone and without allies. All of our worlds are in danger. We wouldn’t just lose our species, a lot of species could perish.”

​

“I can see you’re panicked and quite frankly it’s causing some of us to panic. No good will come of that. Please wait while we make a decision.”

​

It was the longest eight minutes of Agathon’s life as the lights went out on The Great Flower.

​

“Our decision is to wait until the situation can be validated. Once the danger has been seen and evaluated for severity, then we will issue evacuations, but until then this matte—”

Senior representative Nalos was unable to finish as the building filled with alarms ringing overhead.

​

An announcement came on over the speakers, “Attention! Attention! This is not a drill. We are under attack. Evacuations of areas two and eighteen have priority. All others must wait. Please remain calm. This is not a drill. Attention!”

​

Agathon stared down his leaders and shouted, “YOU FOOLS! IT’S TOO LATE!

Unbound