Callie, Nork and Barry all looked very solemn on the special broadcast. The place no one figured would be attacked… was attacked. It shook the sense of safety all the people had.
Callie heard there was footage coming, but that it could be shocking and viewer discretion was advised.
Callie took a deep breath. She had to prepare her viewers for anything.
Callie had also spoken to Duke Maddox. He hired the Pirates to investigate. She didn't much like it, being pregnant and having to see both of her husbands go out and investigate something so dangerous. Micro Ice would stay put, and Sonny had doubled the security around the house for the both of them. But this mission needed him an Corso there.
There was emergency medical equipment on board, but also body bags. Callie knew Corso and Sonny were both used to grim sights, but she could still sense they were apprehensive. Sonny also set up an emergency lab on board, to test samples for any Flux residue.
That said enough. He feared the worst.
Callie shook herself out of it. She just hoped they'd come home safe.
"We'll be back before you know it, and then we'll have plenty of time for the baby." Corso assured her.
Back at the studio, a sound indicated the images from The Black Manta had arrived.
It was a horrible sight.
"As you can see, it's a horrific sight at the Flux Society. I have Sonny Blackbones on call from The Black Manta." She said as Sonny's face appeared in the corner.
"I have to ask, now that you are on site, are there any survivors? It would be a miracle." She said. Sonny nodded grimly.
"There are a few survivors, including Brim Balarius, who has been severely injured. A total of 8 council members are confirmed dead at this point. We still need to identify many others." Sonny reported.
Callie could tell Sonny felt very out-of-place having to report like this.
"Sonny, as a former scientist, do you have any indication as to what kind of explosives may have been used?" She asked. Sonny nodded.
"We're investigating as we speak. Duke Maddox will probably know more at the moment." He said. Callie nodded.
"Thank you for your time."

Success! With the Flux Society and the Council of Fluxes down, there was no one left to enforce the rules. For now. Brim Balarius was still alive but at the moment wasn't a problem.
He was ready to lay siege with his army of Droids if he had to. So far, no one knew if Professor Benson blew his cover with Blackbones. He should be able to get his hands on the Metaflux formula. This was all coming together as planned. Now he just needed to show who they were. The Abraxian laughed. Everything would be alright in the end.

At Technoid's office building, Duke Maddox was looking at the images that Sonny sent The Black Manta. It was disturbing.
"Did you check the samples you're collecting?" He asked. Sonny nodded.
"This was a Flux explosion. Very violent and with such a velocity that the ones inside the circle had no time to react. At least their deaths were quick and painless." Sonny reported. Duke Maddox rubbed his beard.
"What about the survivors?" He finally asked.
"They're receiving treatment on board. We've pretty much done all we can here, I suggest the area is put under quarantine for now. We'll return to Genesis within twelve hours. I'll have to request a team to help analyze the Flux samples we got. It's a form of Multiflux, but enhanced several times from the original Mix. Someone must have written it down." Sonny explained.
"Makes sense, but how did they get it? Bleylock wasn't a person to share his plans." Duke Maddox said. Sonny sighed.
"He shared it with Harris, so he could have given it away as well. It's going to be challenging to get to the bottom of it. I will need extra resources. I was able to isolate a strain in this mix, and it's concerning me." Sonny said. Duke Maddox grew white as a sheet when he heard that.
"It can't be… The Darkness? That Flux is banned, and they actively dampened the Planet's Core." He managed in a stammering voice. Sonny nodded.
"I can't rule that possibility out. I'd also like to know how the Flux Society will uphold their rules with so many gone. Who do I contact?" Sonny asked. Duke Maddox nodded.
"There's a second group behind The Council for incidents like these." Duke Maddox said thoughtfully.
Sonny looked confused, this was news to him.
"Can you tell me who they are?" Sonny asked.
"You're already part of them. It's the Flux Masters"

Sonny carefully adjusted the microscope to the highest possible resolution he could get. Nothing. No incendiary traces at all. And still, the energy had been strong enough to tear the temple apart. He had a second test running simultaneously.
This test showed a Flux bomb was the culprit. But not the old Multiflux that Harris or Bleylock had created.
Sonny sighed. This was going to be difficult. This confirmed that the Chissian Scientists were involved, though he couldn't figure out in what capacity.
He needed help from Clamp. He heard the door to the lab open. Corso entered, looking dead tired.
"All done. We've taken as much remains as we could. The survivors are receiving medical care in the infirmary." He reported.
Sonny just nodded and turned back to what he was working on. Corso came up beside him.
"Any luck with your research? We could use some good news." He said.
Sonny nodded again as he closed up the session and turned to his husband with a heavy sigh.
"It was a Flux Device. We're dealing with skilled scientists. It's far more advanced than Bleylock's or Harris'. It has been strengthened with something that I have yet to identify. My suspicion is that it's synthetic. They need to be stopped. But with the Flux Society gone, things will become difficult." Sonny said. Corso nodded.
"This is far beyond what we've expected. Someone is trying to start a new war" He said. Sonny agreed.
"If so, we need to have all armed forces Galaxy wide on stand by for an attack. The missing scientists could very well be held captive, with someone forcing them." He said. Corso agreed.
"Could this be the Shadow behind the Throne's work?" He mused. Sonny shook his head.
"He was just a spy. We're looking for the actual leader. This was a demonstration of power. Not to mention he thinks this will stop rules from getting enforced. We need to stop him." He said.
Corso nodded as they exited the lab and headed for the galley to get something to eat before having a few hours of sleep on their way back to Genesis.

Professor Benson checked the new Mixes in his test tubes. The Flux strains were growing strong. Maybe this was how Blackbones once created his Metaflux. It really wasn't hard to do, He had no problem copying other scientist's research. This was how they operated in military circles. His own father, General Benson, taught him that. That old fool. He fought to make a planet that should have been as dead as Paradisia, prosper and come back to life. Gaia, The Chissian Flux, was not a strong Flux. Hell, even The Breath of Akillian, could beat it. It was rarely ever used, it was an embarrassment to his home planet. What if he could find a way to enhance their Flux, make it a Flux worthy of his planet?
His old man would abandon his desire to make the planet more green and prosperous if he could only succeed in that matter. He needed a healing kind of energy. And from a source that was strong. Could The Seed of Shiloh be what he needed?
Maybe. But where to get it from?
Sonny Blackbones?
No, he was too high profile. Maybe through his husband, Corso...
Professor Benson looked up the files one of his hackers gave him. The Pirate's Systems were too well secured to get into.
He just needed to find out details about Corso. Maybe the man could use their planet's Flux? He would be a perfect test subject.
Professor Benson laughed as he looked at the image on the file. This could be fun. The game was back on. And he was going to win this time.

The Black Manta landed on Genesis. Technoid Medics were ready to help the survivors of the explosion, and another team was ready to handle the more grim side of the task. Sonny secured the residue samples he gathered in safe, unbreakable containers. As soon as he was ready, Sonny called Corso.
"I need you to head home to Callie. I don't like leaving her alone for so long. I'll take these over to the Shiloh Security lab, and get started on the process to separate the strains of Fluxes. It's MultiFlux, but it's not Bleylock's version. I don't know which Fluxes are in it except one." Sonny said, as he looked at his husband.
Corso looked at Sonny's screen; the gauges showed three different strains of Flux, snaking around each other.
He knew the Abraxian flux, but what caught his eye was the brown, almost golden Flux. He knew this one, he used it in his childhood, before the fluxes were banned to Galactik Football only.
"I recognize the second one. Not so much the third." Corso said. "Synthetic, maybe?" Sonny rubbed his chin. This worried him. When he tried to create a synthetic flux it ended in disaster.
"Who made it?
It only took seconds before the answer occurred to him.
"Corso, tell Micro Ice to get ready for a special assignment along with me. We're going to pay Professor Benson a visit."

Brim Balarius felt his head ache as he woke up. What… happened? He remembered being at the circle of Fluxes, a violent shaking, and then...he gasped as the memories started coming back. The circle of Fluxes had literally ruptured at the seams. He heard people scream, saw the members of the Council pull protective bubbles around themselves, but it had been too late. The screams of the ones dying was haunting his mind. This… this was the punishment for what his ancestors had done. His attempts at reconciliation weren't enough. He closed his eyes again.
"Grandmaster?"
He felt a gentle hand holding his. Dame Simbai.
As he opened his eyes slowly, he could see her sit next to his bed. She looked sad, but also determined. If only he could tell her… But he couldn't. And right now, there really was only one thing he could do.
"Dame Simbai, it… Falls on you now. Call together all Flux Masters, to do the task I can No longer do… "

The string with the Chissian flux really bothered Corso. He was raised, seeing their Flux as a weakness. Even The Breath Of Akillian was stronger than Gaia. The fact he used it was embarrassing. He remembered using the Flux to pick herbs out of the earth that usually weren't reachable. When he joined the military, he abandoned using it. But he still knew how it worked.
As soon as he came home, he found Callie didn't return from work yet. That gave him a chance to see what information he could find on this Flux. As soon as Corso initiated his search, he decided to contact General Benson. Time to update him on the discoveries on his son.

The Snow Kids all came together today. What had happened to the Circle of Fluxes, effected them all. Especially Dame Simbai. She lost colleagues today, friends she had for years. It only felt right for Tia to have the team come together, to see if it was anything they could do for her. She was always there for them. Now it was their turn to be there for her.
As they rung her doorbell, Dame Simbai was not her usual self when she opened. Brim Balarius' words stuck with her. She wasn't sure how to do this. Luckily, the Snow Kids all treated her with compassion and care as they hugged her.
They were a family, just like The Flux society.
Dame Simbai decided on putting together a list of whom she needed to contact after this visit.

Clamp made his own adjustments to a small sample of what they hoped would be a cure for Resonance.
His recent checks on Rocket, and now Warren, helped speed up the research. Sonny's idea had something to it. It was just a slow process. Clamp decided to take a small sample, to see if he could boost it.
He put the tubes in a safe. They had not forgotten the past and took precautions to ensure no one could steal their creation.
Once that was done, Clamp finished up and headed home.

D'Jok looked around the room. He had no idea why they were gathered here. Something to do with their status as Flux Masters. To his left, Ahito looked a bit bored, ready to fall asleep. He saw Sonny enter the room and take a seat next to Dame Simbai. To her left, he saw Warren sit down. Dame Simbai entered the center of the circle they were forming.
"You all know the situation with the Flux Society. We never once thought we would have to convene The Flux Masters like this. I can see we're not all here. The Masters from the Wamba's planet, Grandmaster Balarius' and of the Cyclopes are in the hospital receiving treatment for their injuries. We don't know much, but Sonny has discovered that what caused this, was a Multiflux device. We dont know why we were attacked, but it is plausible to think this is to destabalize the Galaxy. I've seen Grandmaster Balarius. He asked me to gather the known Flux Masters of the Galaxy, to preserve peace and make sure the Flux Society rules are upheld. We should contact other Flux Masters that aren't here, as well." She said.
All the attending Flux Masters silently bowed. Sonny, who stood next to Dame Simbai, read through the list of absentees. Good, only three of them weren't there.
Dame Simbai managed to establish contact with two of the absent Flux Masters, who would also join to help. Now only one absentee remained. Bennett's brother, Bertrand. That proved that he was still alive.
Dame Simbai honed in on his frequency. Static.
That couldn't be good.
After a short while, the screen started to flicker and the picture stabilized.
Sonny could not hold back a gasp when he looked into the yellow eyes of Bertrand Erwholer. A spitting image of Bennett.
Bertrand looked annoyed. Like he just woke up.
"Things are really messed up if you contact me, of all people. What do you want?"

So, he is alive. Bennett might not be able to hide from his brother for much longer.
It also seems Bertrand expected this.
What does he know that the other Flux masters don't?
Will The Flux Masters be able to preserve the Galactik Peace?
All this and more to come.
At the moment, the writing process is like a dream. I got a clear view on how this will play out and what is going to happen. I will stay at this for as long as the inspiration lasts. I'm not sure how long his will be, as I've shortened down the chapters a lot compared to my previous fics.
I am also very happy with the changes made by Paranoidgirl.
Would love to hear from you readers. If you don't write in English, don't worry, I Use a translator to read your reviews, and I will reply back shortly after.
Happy reading.