Chapter 7 — Contact
The team crashed back into the Horizon chamber like debris thrown from a storm. The gate sealed behind them with a violent snap, and the facility screamed in response—alarms blared, lights flickered, and every display flooded with distorted readouts as systems rebooted under strain. Soldiers staggered off the platform. Some collapsed. Some leaned against the walls, helmets still on, breathing too loud in the sudden confinement. No one spoke.
One absence filled the room.
Dr. Singhania stood frozen near the central console, eyes scanning the survivors with mounting dread. He counted once. Then again. His jaw tightened.
"Where is Anshul Garg?"
Silence answered him.
Heads lowered almost in unison. Boots stayed planted. No one dared look up.
Arun Pratap stepped forward.
"As team leader," he said evenly, voice carrying despite the chaos, "the responsibility is mine." He paused—not for drama, but because the memory demanded weight. "The first entity appeared beyond the Horizon. Unknown structure. Unknown physics. Mohan fired. All technology failed instantly. Anshul advanced on his own. His blade bent. Space distorted. He… didn't survive."
No one corrected him. No one needed details.
Dr. Singhania exhaled slowly, as if forcing his lungs to obey. "Then why," he asked, eyes narrowing, "were you the last to return?"
Arun met his gaze. "Because there was a second entity on our retreat path. Smaller. Less oppressive. Everyone avoided it. I didn't." He reached into his suit compartment and withdrew a small, faintly glowing object. "I engaged it. Killed it. Its body collapsed—no residue, no energy surge. This was left behind."
A Relic.
The room shifted subtly, as if the word itself bent attention.
"When I touched it," Arun continued, "my vision changed. Distance compressed. Detail sharpened. It wasn't equipment. It was… perception."
Dr. Singhania held out his hand. Arun placed the Relic into it.
Nothing happened.
Arun blinked. The sharpness vanished instantly. The world dulled back to normal. Dr. Singhania frowned, turning the object over with gloved fingers. "Interesting," he murmured. He ran scans, flooded it with energy, subjected it to every non-invasive test the lab could deploy. The Relic remained inert. Dead.
Minutes passed. Confusion crept in.
Finally, irritated, Dr. Singhania pulled off his gloves.
Bare skin touched the Relic.
The change was immediate.
He gasped, gripping the table as his pupils dilated. "This… this is only dormant output," he said slowly, voice tight with awe and fear.
The room went still.
"If this is what a weak Vestige leaves behind—"
He didn't finish the sentence.
No one needed him to.