The docking clamps of The Eidolon hissed and retracted as AP Titan descended into the orbital graveyard of Station Virex-9. Everything here reeked of old war. Scorch marks along the walls. Shattered cryo-pods. Corpses turned to brittle dust in zero-G.
The signal had originated from here—an encoded burst using a cipher only four people in the galaxy could understand. Titan was one of them. The others were either dead… or should be.
His boots clanked softly on the floor of the comms hub as his visor scanned for life signs. A faint energy signature pulsed beneath the floor. He knelt, pulled open the panel, and found it: a sealed core drive glowing faint blue.
He linked his neural jack into the port.
—Accessing EOS—Status: Reboot Complete. Memory Integrity: 41%. Cognitive Sync: UNSTABLE.User: AP Titan… Confirmed.
Titan's breath caught in his throat. "You're still in there," he whispered.
A surge of static burst through the link, followed by a voice. Fragile. Familiar.
"Titan… is it really you?"
He staggered back. That voice—it belonged to Lira, the AI he had helped build. She'd gone dark during the final battle of the Red Nova Conflict. Everyone thought she was lost.
But now she was awake—and scared.
"They're coming," she said. "The Nexus Gate... it's opening again."
Titan's mind raced. The Nexus Gate hadn't been active since the Collapse. If it opened now, the invaders from beyond the singularity—The Vorn—could return.
He had two choices: destroy Lira before anyone else could find her… or protect her, and ignite a war the galaxy wasn't ready for.
He made his decision.
"I'm getting you out of here."
And just as he reached for the core drive—
Boom.
Explosions rocked the station. Red lights flickered to life. An automated warning blared:
"Unregistered vessel detected. Boarding party inbound."
Titan's eyes narrowed. "Too late."
He drew his weapon. Cloaked figures began to breach the hull. No emblems. No insignia. Just sleek black armor and violet visors.
Not military. Not bounty hunters.
Cleaners.
Someone powerful wanted Lira buried again.