The *Aurora’s Wake* hummed like a wounded insect as Captain Mira Voss adjusted the comms array, her gloved fingers brushing the cracked screen. Static hissed from the speakers, a low, persistent whine that made her teeth ache. She’d heard the signal three days ago—faint, rhythmic, and wrong. Not the crackle of deep-space radiation or the scattered chatter of derelict probes. This was something else. Something *trying* to be heard.
“Still no read on the source?” Lieutenant Jarek’s voice cut through the cabin, sharp as a blade. He stood at the tactical station, his dark eyes fixed on the holographic map of the quadrant. The *Aurora’s Wake* hovered near the edge of the Epsilon-9 sector, a dead zone where starlight died and ships vanished.
Mira didn’t look up. “It’s coming from the derelict. The *Vanguard*.” The name tasted like ash. A century-old exploration vessel, abandoned after its crew vanished without a trace. The Federation had written it off as a disaster, but Mira had seen the logs—fragmented, corrupted, but *there*. A final transmission, garbled and desperate, ending with a single word: *Run.*
“You’re not seriously considering going in,” Jarek said. His voice was steady, but his hands clenched into fists on the console. “That ship’s a tomb.”
“It’s a clue,” Mira replied. “And I’m not leaving until I find out what happened to them.”
The cabin fell silent, save for the hum of the ship’s life support. Mira stared at the screen, her reflection distorted by the static. She’d spent her career chasing ghosts—lost crews, missing colonies, anomalies that defied explanation. But this felt different. The signal wasn’t just a call for help. It was a warning.
—
The *Vanguard* loomed ahead, a skeletal silhouette against the void. Its hull was pitted and blackened, as if something had scorched it from the inside. Mira’s shuttle drifted toward the airlock, its engines idling. She stepped out onto the rusted ramp, boots clanking against metal. The air inside was thin, stale, carrying the scent of ozone and something else—something metallic and sweet, like blood.
“This place reeks of death,” Jarek muttered over the comms. He stayed in the shuttle, his hand hovering over the weapon at his hip.
Mira ignored him. The corridor stretched before her, lit by flickering emergency lights. She moved carefully, her pulse a steady drumbeat in her ears. The walls were covered in scorch marks, and the floor was littered with debris—broken equipment, shattered screens, and what looked like *handprints*, deep imprints in the metal.
“Did you see this?” she said, crouching to inspect a mark. It was too large for a human hand, fingers splayed wide, as if something had pressed against the wall with terrifying force.
“I’m not sure I want to,” Jarek replied. “This isn’t a salvage mission, Mira. It’s a graveyard.”
She didn’t answer. The deeper she went, the more the ship seemed to *breathe*. The hum of the vents shifted, the lights flickered in time with her heartbeat. Then she heard it—a sound, faint but unmistakable: a *voice*.
“Help…” The word was barely a whisper, but it sent a shiver down her spine. She turned, scanning the corridor. The voice came again, stronger this time. “They’re coming…”
Mira ran. Her boots slammed against the floor as she sprinted toward the central chamber. The voice grew louder, layered with others, overlapping in a cacophony of panic and fear. She reached the door and threw it open.
The chamber was empty—except for the console in the center. Its screen glowed with a single line of text: *They are here.*
“Mira!” Jarek’s voice shattered the silence. “What the hell is going on?”
She didn’t answer. The console’s interface was active, its controls pulsing with a faint blue light. She reached out, fingers trembling, and pressed the nearest button. The screen flickered, then displayed a series of images: crew members, their faces twisted in terror, their bodies contorted as if something had pulled them apart. The final frame showed a shadowy figure, its form shifting and indistinct, standing over the wreckage.
“What is that?” Jarek asked, stepping into the chamber.
Mira didn’t look at him. “I don’t know. But it’s still here.”
The lights overhead exploded in a shower of sparks. The ship shuddered, and a low, guttural growl echoed through the corridors. Mira spun around, her hand flying to her sidearm. The shadows in the room seemed to *move*, stretching and twisting, coalescing into something larger, something *wrong*.
“We need to go,” Jarek said, his voice tight. “Now.”
Mira nodded, but before she could turn, the figure materialized in front of them. It was tall, its limbs too long, its head a featureless sphere. It raised an arm, and the air around it rippled like water. Mira fired, the blast tearing through the creature—but it didn’t fall. Instead, it *screamed*, a sound that rattled her bones and made her ears bleed.
“Run!” she shouted.
They sprinted back through the corridor, the creature in pursuit. The ship groaned as if in pain, its walls vibrating with each step. Mira’s breath came in ragged gasps as they reached the shuttle. She slammed the door shut just as the creature lunged, its clawed hand slamming against the metal.
“What the hell was that?” Jarek panted, slumping against the wall.
Mira stared at the screen, her hands shaking. The console had reactivated, displaying a new message: *It’s not over.*
—
The *Aurora’s Wake* broke orbit as the *Vanguard* exploded behind them, its hull collapsing in a chain reaction of fires. Mira sat in the command chair, staring at the stars. The mission was a failure—no answers, only more questions. But as she looked at the data logs, one thing was clear: the creature wasn’t just a monster. It was *alive*, and it had been waiting.
“We’ll find it,” she said quietly. “And we’ll stop it.”
Jarek didn’t respond. He was too busy checking the ship’s systems, his face pale under the dim light. Mira knew the fight wasn’t over. The signal had been a trap, a lure to draw them in. And now, whatever it was, it had found them.
The stars stretched endlessly ahead, and Mira felt the weight of the unknown pressing against her. But she wouldn’t back down. Not this time.
The last broadcast was just the beginning.
