Hunter Zol and his team spent many weeks carefully evading the dangers of the void, sometimes taking a long time to wait for a passing storm before they continued moving forward.
Eventually, they made it to the antenna where the signal originated from, eliciting a heavy sigh of relief from the captain and his flight crew.
"Lord Zol, we're finally here," Captain Charles said to Lord Zol who gave a curt nod in acknowledgement.
"Well done, Charles," Zol said and then turned around to leave. It was time for the rescue team to take over the rest.
For many light years around, the only thing besides the waves of cosmic storms and clouds was the ruined galaxy in the distance and the most likely place Alex was to be.
Arriving at the observation deck, he made a gesture and then sent a message to those he brought along.
"Everyone, report to the observation deck. We're arrived."
Initially, his voice stopped everyone, but as the crew heard the message, they knew who is was meant for and quickly resumed their job after.
"We're here," Ross muttered turning to look at Julia with a knowing smile. She was already beaming in joy and wasted no time to go clean up.
"Come on, Henry. Let's clean up as well," Ross shook his head and then motioned to Henry to come along.
Their group spent most of their days training and cultivating, using every bit of time to get as strong as possible. None of them liked feeling helpless, especially when they had to find their friend.
Sometime later, everyone reported to the observation deck, noticing the chaotic galaxy in the distance and already having some thoughts as to where they would be going.
Zol waited for everyone to take a seat before he began his short briefing. His gaze roamed the entire chamber, taking in everyone's expression.
There were traces of worry, some with determination and others with joy—obviously from his own niece.
"As you can see, that is where we're headed." Zol pointed to the galaxy and then shifted to the sides, making a gesture that brought out a floating display.
"We'll be split into three teams, each with a Class S hunter at the helm. Once there, each team will explore different directions, specifically targeting planets with some life.
"Also, your crew will be transmitting periodic signals in the hopes Alex's system picks it up. Any questions?" Zol concluded.
"Yes, Lord Zol." How long are we to explore that galaxy?" Principal Yiny asked and everyone turned to Zol for a response.
"Depends. If the galaxy proves to be more dangerous than it appears, we'll have to consider other options…" He didn't say what they were, but the Class S hunters knew he was referring to them venturing in alone.
Looking at the kids, Zol noticed their resolve to do everything possible to find their find and might even do something as crazy as going in there alone.
"You three will be coming with me," Zol pointed at them, prompting a collective nod from them.
Sometime later, everyone was assigned to a team, they headed for the hanger bay where smaller spacecrafts waited. They chose to bring along smaller crafts with their own hyperdrives.
"Remember, your own safety should be your first priority. Do not engage or do anything unnecessary."
"Right!"
The men nodded and boarded their crafts before their assigned leader joined them. Soon, the crafts left the bay, opened warp gates and disappeared, leaving the mother ship to go into stealth mode.
The three teams quickly chose their directions and began their search for Alex, carefully navigating the treacherous storms and void creatures if they had to.
They flew to relatively safe star systems with planets showing traces of life and other activities, expanding their search to floating continents and rogue planets.
They would also send out transmissions for Alex's system to detect, but so far, they had no success in that endeavour.
Slowly time passed as hours turned to days and then days to weeks, having no success at all. Mason's team had even encountered a Class A void creature which he took care of with no issues.
Charlotte and Zol's team did not have any luck either.
"I don't think he is here," Charlotte said over their shared communication line. "I hate to say this, but the golden boy might already be…"
"No, Alex is alive!" Julia chipped in before her uncle could even get a word out. "He's shown that the veil storms and spaces are no threat to him. Maybe… maybe…" Julia couldn't finish her sentence.
But everyone knew what she wanted to say: Alex could be taken by another cosmic mana wave or what Charlotte also implied.
Whatever the case, Alexander was nowhere to be found. But Zol had a different thought altogether. 'It's a long shot but it's possible he was taken by another group.' Zol mused to himself and then moved to give further instructions.
"We search for another week and if we find nothing, we return," Zol said, attracting a glare from his niece but ignored her.
Meanwhile, another force equally in search of Alexander appeared in the area some two weeks ago: The Order.
But this force kept a low profile and ensured they stayed hidden from Zol's group while they also searched.
"There are no signs of the boy anywhere we've searched, and from what we've seen of the empire's search group, they also have no luck."
A crew member said, his gaze focused on the man in charge of the mission: Kenneth Lorde—the man who once spoke with James during their first contact with Alexander back on Earth.
"Mm," Ken nodded and stayed silent for some time before saying. "He might no longer be here. Let's leave."
"Yes, sir!"
Kenneth knew Alexander was still alive from the words their oracle spoke. But he was also told he might fail to find him as they would not be the only ones searching, excluding the empire, of course.
'We're too late. Whoever took him acted very fast and I hope nothing bad happens to him, or this world is doomed.'
Kenneth swallowed the lump in his throat, but his expression remained neutral as their craft returned to their mothership.