President Cade Morrow leads us through the corridors of the frigate.
We move fast.
It's the particular walk of people trying very hard to look calm… when they all know perfectly well that calm is just stage decoration, and the stage underneath is already on fire.
Metal echoes dully beneath our boots.
Step.
Step.
Step.
Each sound rings in my head slightly louder than it should.
The corridors are narrow. The ceilings low. Lighting is scarce.
Some lamps flicker in brief, cold flashes.
And in those flashes the faces of the soldiers ahead turn into masks.
White.
Empty.
Almost ghostlike.
I automatically note the details.
Damaged panels.
Scars from energy strikes.
Streams of melted metal.
The smell of burned polymer.
And another scent.
Faint. Almost gone.
Blood.
I exhale quietly.
"Yeah…" I mutter under my breath. "Looks like you folks had quite an eventful evening."
Sergeant Kael snorts behind me.
"Too bad they started the party without us."
The humor is dry.
But that's a good sign.
If Kael is joking, it means he isn't planning to die just yet.
I walk beside Cade.
He says nothing.
But I see the tension in his shoulders.
The subtle stiffness of a man who has only recently regained control of his own mind… and is still checking whether that control is real.
I understand that far too well.
Far too well.
For a moment, memory flashes.
A stranger's voice.
A stranger's will.
Foreign thoughts moving your hands.
I exhale slowly.
No.
Not now.
Control returns quickly.
As always.
I look ahead.
Behind me walks Liara.
Through the matrix network I feel her state.
Focus.
A thin thread of anxiety.
And a strange sense of anticipation.
Like the air before a storm.
Sergeant Kael closes the formation.
He doesn't simply walk.
He scans.
His gaze moves across the ceiling.
The ventilation shafts.
The shadows between panels.
If anything crawls out of there—
it will live for about half a second.
We turn another corner.
Another corridor.
And finally—
a door.
Large.
Heavy.
Segmented with armor plates.
The command chamber.
Cade stops before it.
Just for a second.
He takes a deep breath.
I notice.
I don't comment.
Sometimes a man just needs one breath before becoming president again.
The doors open.
We step inside.
The hall is spacious.
Bright.
Too bright after the dark corridors.
My eyes narrow for a moment.
I blink.
And immediately see them.
Two figures stand in the center of the room.
Admiral Grey Talbot.
And the head of the council—Orion Vale.
They are already waiting.
Orion steps forward first.
He smiles.
A tired smile, but real.
"Axiom… you came back."
Something inside me loosens slightly.
Well look at that.
Someone is still glad to see me.
A rare occasion.
I nod.
"Seems that way."
Admiral Talbot doesn't smile.
Not even a little.
He looks at me the way someone studies a difficult equation.
A very unpleasant one.
Savior…
or a new problem?
I snort quietly.
The honest answer is: both.
I spread my hands.
"Glad you managed to defend your freedom…"
I pause.
"…for the seventeenth time."
Silence.
Thick.
Even through the matrix network I feel Liara cough quietly.
Cade Morrow gives me a look.
That look.
Axiom.
Please.
Don't start.
Too late.
Admiral Talbot narrows his eyes slowly.
"Point taken."
I smile faintly.
"Just keeping the statistics accurate."
I don't add:
And yes, without me you'd currently be negotiating with a worm inside your skull.
Sometimes diplomacy is the art of not saying things that are painfully obvious.
The admiral asks:
"What is that ship in orbit around Nexus-Prime?"
Now that is a proper question.
I turn slightly.
As if I could see it through the hull of the frigate.
Somewhere out there.
In the cold darkness of space.
A giant hangs in orbit.
Synchron.
Silent.
Motionless.
Like a sleeping god.
I answer calmly.
"That's a vessel of the post-biological civilization of Ironheart."
A pause.
"Synchron."
I shrug.
"And they… are friends of mine."
Through the matrix network Liara quietly snorts.
Yes.
I exaggerate a little.
Fine.
A lot.
But sometimes it's useful to look like a person with very large friends.
Orion Vale clasps his hands behind his back.
"And what plans do your friends have for Nexus-Prime?"
Good question.
And a dangerous one.
I take a few steps across the room.
Gather my thoughts.
"This is the first strike against the Dark Mind's network."
The words come out louder than I planned.
"Nexus-Prime will become the first liberated planet."
I feel the tension in the room slowly rising.
Hope.
A very fragile thing.
I continue.
"There will be an outpost here."
"Ironheart technology will destroy the Dark Mind."
Admiral Talbot watches me for several seconds.
Then he begins to clap.
Slowly.
Very deliberately.
"Inspiring."
The sarcasm is dense enough to mine.
"Absolutely magnificent plan."
"Save the galaxy."
"Nothing complicated about that."
I'm just about to answer.
Something sharp.
Something thoroughly deserved.
But at that moment—
the matrix shudders.
A signal.
Sharp.
Urgent.
Kelith's channel.
Her voice appears inside my mind.
And it is not calm at all.
"Axiom. Leave the ship immediately."
My heart slams once.
"What happened?"
The answer comes instantly.
"We have detected an incursion."
A pause.
Tiny.
Yet somehow far too long.
"The Dark Mind is approaching."
Everything inside me goes cold.
Of course.
Of course.
Why did I ever think we would get even one quiet hour?
I lift my head.
"Admiral."
Everyone looks at me.
"Ships of the Dark Mind are entering the Nexus-Prime system."
The words fall into the room like heavy stones.
Silence.
I continue.
"We are returning to our ship—the Phoenix."
"You should remain neutral."
"And stay out of the battle."
Admiral Talbot slowly raises an eyebrow.
Then smiles.
A very unpleasant smile.
"Wonderful, Axiom."
He spreads his hands.
"You freed us."
A pause.
"Shame it didn't last long."
I feel irritation rising inside me.
But before I respond, Orion Vale steps forward.
His voice is firm.
"Go."
He looks straight at me.
"And fight."
"For our freedom."
I nod.
No jokes.
No comments.
Because time is gone.
I turn.
"Squad. Move."
Kael reacts instantly.
"Double time!"
We burst out of the hall.
The corridors become a metal tunnel again.
Boots thunder.
Soldiers step aside.
Somewhere alarms begin to howl.
The matrix network erupts with new data from Kelith.
Scans.
Trajectories.
Signatures.
And numbers.
Numbers I really don't like.
Really.
I run.
And think about only one thing.
They are already here.
And somewhere out there…
in orbit over Nexus-Prime…
Synchron meets them first.
Which means—
in a few minutes
we will find ourselves
right in the center
of the largest battle
of this entire cursed war.
And for some reason I have a very bad feeling…
that this time
the Dark Mind
has not come
just to talk.
**
The Phoenix shudders through its entire hull as the engines surge to full thrust.
I feel it through the seat.
Through my spine.
Through my teeth.
The gravity compensators do their honest best to keep the strain within reason, but the ship still growls like a beast that has just had its muzzle ripped off.
"Launch," the onboard AI announces.
Calm voice.
As if we're simply backing out of a parking space.
We tear out of the destroyer's hangar.
The blast doors fall away behind us.
And for one brief second, space feels… quiet.
Black.
Still.
Empty.
I even manage to think:
Maybe today will go a little easier.
And at that exact moment, reality tears open.
Right in front of us.
At first—just a crack.
A thin line across the black fabric of space.
Barely visible.
Then it widens.
Like a wound.
From that rupture an invasion ship begins to force its way through.
It doesn't appear.
It pushes through space itself, as if something far too large is trying to squeeze through a door that's much too small.
"Damn…" Tarek exhales.
I'm thinking roughly the same thing.
But I don't get the chance to say it.
Because the tear keeps widening.
And a second ship emerges.
Then a third.
They're enormous.
Black.
And… wrong.
Not like ships.
More like thoughts that someone forced into metal shapes.
And those thoughts are already turning their weapons toward us.
I tighten my grip on the controls.
My fingers turn white.
"Phoenix, full thrust."
"Executing."
The ship lunges forward.
Toward the point in orbit where Synchron hangs.
The giant.
Our only real chance.
I stare at the screen.
At first I can't understand what's bothering me.
Something moves wrong.
Too sharp.
Too early.
Then it clicks.
"Wait…"
Liara leans closer to the display.
"Axiom…"
Her voice is quiet.
"It's leaving."
I squint at the screen.
And yes.
Synchron is breaking orbit.
Without warning.
Without forming any defensive formation.
It simply begins accelerating.
The massive ship is moving on a trajectory toward the system's star.
"What is it doing…?" Tarek whispers.
The answer arrives almost immediately.
The invasion ships pivot.
In perfect synchronization.
Like a pack.
Like predators that have suddenly scented blood.
And they give chase.
A channel opens in my mind.
Kelith's voice.
Calm.
Far too calm.
"Axiom. Follow us."
I answer automatically.
"Copy."
Her voice continues.
"We will draw them away from Nexus-Prime's orbit."
A pause.
"And engage them in battle."
I chuckle quietly.
Great plan.
Run from the monsters.
Until we get tired.
Then turn around and fight them.
Very rational.
"Sounds fun," I say.
I glance at the crew.
"Well… ready for a fight?"
Sergeant Kael doesn't hesitate for a second.
His grin looks like someone just promised him the best day of the week.
"Now the fun starts."
Of course.
For Kael, any battle is practically a holiday.
Sometimes I suspect he was born holding a weapon.
The Phoenix accelerates.
We close the distance.
Ahead of us—Synchron.
A massive silhouette against the star.
And behind it—the ships of the Dark Mind.
And they start firing.
The first beam passes close by.
So bright it lights up space for a moment.
Like lightning.
In a vacuum.
Then a second.
A third.
Spears of death carve through the darkness and slam into Synchron's hull.
I brace for the explosion.
But it never comes.
The giant holds.
Lines of energy blaze across its surface.
And it answers.
A flash.
I recognize it instantly.
Rupture Sigil.
Reality in front of the invading ships fractures.
Like glass.
The fabric of space folds.
Vacuum crackles.
I almost smile.
That's it.
Game over.
"We won…" I say quietly.
But a second later I realize I'm wrong.
The invasion ships keep moving.
Another beam erupts.
Then another.
They're not destroyed.
I stare at the screen.
For several seconds I simply don't understand what I'm seeing.
"What…"
A message from Kelith appears in the matrix network.
"Axiom. Their ships have been upgraded."
A pause.
"Rupture Sigils cannot penetrate the hull."
For a moment my mind goes completely blank.
Perfect.
We just discovered that our most powerful weapon no longer works.
I exhale slowly.
Calm.
No panic.
Panic is a luxury we can't afford right now.
"All right…" I say. "Then we go to Plan B."
Kelith's answer arrives instantly.
"Dock with an enemy vessel."
I blink.
"Say again."
"Infiltrate the ship."
A brief pause.
"Detonate a Rupture Sigil bomb inside."
Ah.
Of course.
Just boarding a Dark Mind ship.
Nothing special.
Through the matrix network I feel the crew's reaction.
Uncertainty.
Skepticism.
And the thought no one says out loud:
Are we really doing this?
I answer calmly.
"Understood."
Sergeant Kael gives a satisfied grunt.
"Finally. A proper plan."
Tarek groans softly.
"I hate proper plans."
I look at Liara.
She looks back at me.
Through the network I feel her emotions.
Fear.
Yes.
But stronger than that—trust.
She gives a barely noticeable nod.
And that's enough.
I swing the Phoenix around.
"We're boarding."
The ship accelerates.
The enemy hull grows ahead of us.
Black.
Wrong.
Its surface shifts.
As if the metal itself is breathing.
"Distance closing," the AI reports.
My heart speeds up.
Too fast.
I force my breathing to stay steady.
Control.
Always control.
And at that exact moment a voice appears in my mind.
Quiet.
Familiar.
Slippery.
"Come to me…"
I freeze for a fraction of a second.
No.
Not again.
The voice grows clearer.
"My Axiom…"
Cold runs down my spine.
"Axiom-126."
I clench my teeth.
You don't control me.
"Distance two hundred meters," the Phoenix reports.
But the voice continues.
Softer now.
Almost gentle.
"I've been waiting for you."
I stare at the approaching hull.
Massive.
Black.
Like a mouth.
"Come closer…"
And I realize something very unpleasant.
It knows I'm here.
I grip the controls tighter.
And say quietly, more to myself than anyone else:
"Bad news for you."
Kael glances at me.
"What bad news?"
I give a crooked smile.
"I've been waiting for this meeting too."
The enemy ship fills the entire view.
Distance collapsing.
One hundred meters.
Fifty.
And then another thought hits me.
Very simple.
Very unpleasant.
If the Dark Mind's voice is calling me inside…
…then maybe
this entire ship
is a trap.
Built
specifically
for me.