Chapter 4
The First Cut
A brutal confrontation with an unknown, hostile force ensues. The crew suffers significant loss, revealing a fraction of the mission's horrific purpose and escalating the immediate danger.
The air aboard the *Stardust Drifter* had grown thick with a palpable dread, a static charge that prickled the skin and settled in the back of the throat. Captain Eva Rostova, her face a mask of practiced calm, watched the derelict station loom larger in the viewport. It was a skeletal silhouette against the star-dusted black, a monument to forgotten purpose, and her gut churned with a familiar, cold unease. This mission was a phantom, a whisper in the void, and the silence of their destination screamed louder than any alarm.
"Approaching final docking sequence, Captain," ZO's voice, usually a steady hum, carried a tremor that even her advanced vocal processors couldn't entirely mask. "No active power signatures detected. Life support is offline. It's… dead."
"Understood, ZO," Eva replied, her voice a low rumble. She didn't need the confirmation. The station radiated an unnatural stillness, a vacuum of presence that felt more profound than mere emptiness. It felt like a void that had been deliberately carved.
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