Night on Korbin lasted just as long as day, and the length of each season varied.
James and Beta Ray Bill arrived just as the planet's seventh consecutive day of uninterrupted sunlight ended and the long night began.
Korbin had almost no man-made structures on its surface. By rights, the barren planet should have been cloaked beneath the burning galaxy's crimson, shimmering night sky.
But the energy cannons of several giant "doughnut"-shaped ships descending from the heavens, along with hundreds of small fighters pouring out of them, lit the desolate continent as brightly as day.
James stood motionless beside the "shell" ship that had been destroyed for no reason. A mountain-sized blaze roared beside him, and the shock waves of occasional explosions made his figure stand out against the empty wasteland.
A short, shuttle-shaped, dark golden fighter skimmed toward James at a height of just over a meter. It didn't fire a single shot, instead charging straight at the man who seemed frozen in terror, as if intending to smash him to pieces.
Screee!
James didn't move. As the fighter rushed toward his face, he twisted his wrist and slashed upward at the instant of impact.
The Bone Blade between his knuckles sliced through the fighter with a smooth, forceful stroke. The pilot inside, whose skin was a purplish blue, was split in two at the breastbone. The wreckage continued on, carried by its momentum, and crashed into a tawny hill behind James, erupting into two pillars of blazing blue flame.
From the enormous ring-shaped ship, legionnaires began pouring down in a dense swarm, like ants.
James had slashed open one fighter, but it was as if he'd disturbed a hornet's nest.
Dozens of fighters roared in, flying in formation as they concentrated their fire on him. Their blasts only