Chapter 5: Race Against Time

"Detective McAllister, share your deductions."

On the conference room screen, a gray-haired senior officer looked grave, waiting for Daniel’s report. They knew Daniel wouldn’t contact headquarters directly unless the situation was urgent.

The video call crackled with static, the faces of top brass lined up in neat squares. Daniel felt the weight of their attention, every eye fixed on him. He cleared his throat, gathering his thoughts.

Daniel took a deep breath. He knew what he was about to say could affect the fate of all humanity:

He glanced at his notes, then looked straight into the camera. His voice was steady, but his hands trembled just out of sight.

"We captured a Tristar member and intercepted his overseas emails. In them, we found a Morse code message. Decoded, it reads: 'Calling 1988, the Milky Way is about to bloom.'"

He paused, letting the words sink in. The silence on the line was heavy, expectant.

"Have you cracked the code?" an elder asked.

The elder’s voice was gravelly, the kind that came from decades of late-night strategy sessions and too much black coffee.

"Yes. It refers to the children’s song 'Planting the Sun.'"

Daniel’s words hung in the air. He could see one of the officers’ eyes widen in recognition, the memory flickering across his face.

One of the senior officers was visibly shocked. At his age, he remembered 'Planting the Sun'—when it was popular, he was still young. He never imagined this song would become a Tristar contact code.

The officer’s hand went to his mouth, as if to stifle a gasp. Daniel pressed on, knowing time was short.

Daniel continued, "The song was released in 1988 by the Milky Way Children’s Choir. Its content directly reveals Tristar’s plan—they want to 'plant the sun.' What is the sun? From a physics perspective, the sun is a giant nuclear fusion reactor. The metaphor of 'planting the sun' is clear: they plan to carry out nuclear explosions."

He spoke quickly, urgency building. The implications were staggering, but the logic was airtight. Daniel felt the room’s collective heartbeat quicken.

The elders’ expressions changed. They understood the gravity of his words.

One officer scribbled frantic notes, another stared at the ceiling, lips moving in silent calculation. Daniel saw fear in their eyes—a rare thing.

Daniel went on, "'Planting the Sun' not only reveals their plan, but also their targets—'One for Antarctica, one for the Arctic Ocean; one shines in winter, one shines at night.' In other words, two nuclear bombs: one in Antarctica, one in the Arctic Ocean. The Antarctic and Arctic are opposites in terms of day and night—when it’s night at the Antarctic, it’s day at the Arctic, and vice versa. These two bombs will be detonated simultaneously at both poles. I don’t know their exact yield, but they’re at least in the tens of thousands of tons. The radiation and heat would melt the polar glaciers, raising sea levels and flooding most cities on earth."

He laid out the facts, each one heavier than the last. The officers exchanged worried glances, the reality sinking in.

"This is outright anti-human behavior!" an elder said, his lips trembling. "If this is true, Antarctica, the Arctic, and the sun—that’s three fusion bodies… Now I finally understand why their group is called 'Tristar'—the 'Three Stars.'"

The elder’s voice broke, the weight of the revelation almost too much. Daniel nodded grimly.

Daniel said, "We still don’t know Tristar’s motive, but time is running out. 'One shines in winter' hints at their timeline. There are only two days left until the start of winter—these bombs could be detonated within 24 hours!"

He checked his watch, the numbers blurring. The urgency was real—he could feel it in his bones.

"No time to lose!" an elder decided. "Contact the FBI, Interpol, and the UN Secretariat immediately. Launch a full-scale search of the Southern Ocean and Antarctica. Find those bombs!"

The call ended with a flurry of orders. Daniel leaned back, exhausted, but there was no time to rest. The race had begun.