The air filters groaned like a dying beast, their metallic whine slicing through the sterile hum of the colony’s ventilation system. Dr. Elara Voss pressed her palm against the cool steel of the control panel, her breath fogging the visor…
## The Lunar Bloom The biting wind clawed at Albrecht’s threadbare coat, a stark echo of the fever that gnawed at Prague. He walked with a stoop forged from years hunched over simmering pots and cryptic texts, the cobblestones slick…
## Hollow Bloom The dust tasted like static. Old metal, older regret. Jessa ran a gloved hand along the hull of the *Artemis*, the chipped paint flaking off like dead skin. The ship wasn’t derelict, not exactly. More… asleep. Decades…
## The Bloom Thief The chipped Formica countertop stuck to Elsie’s forearm. Rain lashed against the window of the diner, blurring the neon glow of “Rosie’s” into a smear of pink and blue. She traced the condensation with her fingertip,…
## The Shifting Shell The dust tasted like burnt cinnamon, clinging to the back of Elara’s throat. She pulled her cowl tighter, shielding her face from the perpetual grit swirling around the Crawler’s legs. Not real legs, not anymore. They…