Kaelen awoke with a sharp gasp, the void of the Vigilant surrounding him like a heavy fog. For a moment, he thought it was all a nightmare. The gentle hum of the ship, the soft vibration of engines—none of it was there. It was as though the ship had ceased to exist. The only sound that filled the cold, abandoned halls was the whisper of his own breathing.
He groaned, trying to sit up, but his muscles felt stiff, as though they'd been locked in place for hours. The weight of the past few moments, the collapse of the core, the deafening roar, and then the darkness—it all flooded back in a rush. But there was no time to rest.
Slowly, Kaelen pushed himself to his feet, his body feeling strange, as though it were still recovering from some deep shock. He stumbled forward, eyes scanning the unfamiliar surroundings. The control room was a wreck—wires hanging from the ceiling, sparks flying from the broken consoles, and a deep silence that seemed to press in on him.
"Where are Mira and Laz?" he murmured, his voice sounding strange in the empty air.
He moved toward the bodies of his companions. Mira was slumped in the corner, her eyes closed, breathing steady but shallow. Laz was sprawled out on the floor near her, his face twisted in pain as if he'd been caught in the collapse, too. Kaelen knelt beside them, checking their pulses. They were alive.
The relief hit him like a wave. He wasn't alone. But that didn't change the fact that the ship was adrift, broken, and there was no telling how long it would remain functional.
Kaelen leaned back against the console, his mind reeling. The core had been destroyed. The signal had been severed. Or had it?
The whisper came back—soft, almost imperceptible. It was a presence, familiar and cold. We are still with you.
He froze, eyes wide, his breath catching in his throat. No. Not now. The entity wasn't gone. It was still inside him. It was lingering, like a shadow in the corner of his mind, waiting for an opportunity to resurface.
"Kaelen…"
Mira's voice cut through the fog, pulling him out of his thoughts. He turned to her, his eyes wide with concern. She was stirring, blinking her eyes open. Slowly, she pushed herself into a sitting position.
"What happened?" she asked, her voice strained. "The core—did we stop it?"
Kaelen opened his mouth to answer, but the words got caught in his throat. He didn't know how to explain what was happening. The core was gone, but the signal wasn't. It was too early to know if they had truly severed the connection or if the entity had simply taken root in their minds.
"I don't know," Kaelen said softly. "But we're alive. That's all that matters right now."
Mira's eyes shifted over to Laz, and she quickly moved to check on him. He was still unconscious but stable.
"We need to get him to the med bay," she said, her voice firm, but there was an edge of worry beneath it.
Kaelen nodded, helping her lift Laz to his feet. Together, they moved carefully toward the medical bay, unsure of what the ship's current status was. The power was out, the lights flickering, but they managed to make it there without much issue.
Once they had Laz settled on one of the med bays, Kaelen stepped back, looking around. The Vigilant was still alive, but it was drifting aimlessly in space. They had no idea where they were, no way to contact anyone. For all they knew, they were the last humans left in this part of the galaxy.
"We need to figure out what happened," Mira said, running a hand through her hair. "We need answers."
Kaelen stood by the med bay window, staring out into the cold, endless black of space. "We don't have time to waste. Whatever the signal was, whatever it wanted, it isn't over."
Mira paused, looking at him. Her gaze softened. "Kaelen… it's inside you, isn't it?"
He didn't answer right away. He couldn't. The entity's presence was too strong, too persistent. Even now, he could feel it, pressing against his consciousness, waiting for an opportunity to break free.
"I don't know," Kaelen said, his voice hoarse. "But we have to find a way to stop it. For good."