Chapter 4: A Fragmented Legacy

The room plunged into darkness, the only light coming from the faint glow of their helmet visors and the terminal’s flickering screen. Liora’s pulse pounded in her ears as she fumbled for her flashlight, its beam slicing through the heavy shadows.

“Power’s been cut,” Ayana said sharply, her voice crackling over the comm.

“Lockdown’s no accident,” Kiran muttered, his flashlight sweeping the room. “They don’t want us leaving.”

Liora’s hands trembled as she turned back to the terminal. The distorted voice still echoed in her head. “They’re controlling this place from somewhere,” she said, her voice taut. “We need to find the source.”

“Not in here,” Ayana said, her fingers flying over the terminal’s keyboard. “This is a relay station. The real controls are deeper in the system, probably tied to the station’s core.”

The faint sound of metal creaking in the distance sent a chill down Liora’s spine. She turned toward the door, her flashlight revealing jagged edges where rust had eaten away at the frame.

“We should move,” she said. “This place isn’t stable.”

“Agreed,” Ayana said. “Kiran, get the door open.”

Kiran grumbled but moved to the panel beside the door. “Give me a minute,” he said, pulling out his tools. “Manual overrides are older than dirt.”

Liora kept her flashlight trained on the panel as Kiran worked, her eyes flicking nervously to the shadows beyond. The air in the room felt heavy, as though the station itself was holding its breath.

“Got it,” Kiran said finally, stepping back as the door hissed open.

The corridor beyond was darker than before, the flickering emergency lights casting eerie shadows across the walls. Ayana led the way, her scanner glowing faintly as it mapped their path forward.

“Where are we going?” Liora asked, her voice tight.

“Deck 5,” Ayana said. “The environmental controls are routed through the core systems there. If we can access them, we might be able to trace the saboteur’s signal.”

The trek through Deck 7 was slow and tense, each step accompanied by the distant groans of the station’s failing structure. Liora’s heart raced as she followed Ayana’s lead, her flashlight illuminating fragments of abandoned equipment and rusted bulkheads.

“This place feels like a tomb,” Kiran muttered.

“It’s been sealed off for decades,” Ayana said. “The station’s power grid barely reaches here anymore.”

As they rounded a corner, Ayana’s scanner beeped softly. She stopped abruptly, her eyes narrowing. “There’s movement up ahead,” she said.

Liora froze, her flashlight trembling in her hands. “What kind of movement?”

Ayana adjusted the scanner, her jaw tightening. “Heat signatures. Faint, but definitely human.”

Kiran tightened his grip on his toolkit. “If it’s the saboteur, let’s find them and end this.”

“Quietly,” Ayana said, her voice low.

They moved cautiously, the corridor narrowing as they approached the source of the heat signatures. Liora’s heart pounded in her chest, her breath shallow as they rounded the final bend.

The room beyond was dimly lit, its walls lined with rows of dormant monitors and consoles. At the center of the space stood a figure, their back turned to the group as they worked at a glowing terminal.

“There,” Ayana whispered, raising her scanner.

The figure turned suddenly, their face obscured by the glare of the terminal’s light. For a moment, no one moved.

Then the distorted voice spoke again, its tone calm and deliberate. “You should have stayed away.”

Liora felt a surge of anger rising in her chest. “Who are you? What do you want?”

The figure tilted their head slightly, as if amused. “What I want doesn’t matter,” they said. “The station is beyond saving. But if you leave now, you might still survive.”

Ayana stepped forward, her voice sharp. “What are you talking about? The station can be stabilized—if we stop you.”

The figure chuckled softly. “You still don’t understand. The station was never meant to survive. It’s a monument to failure, a relic of a dead world. Your greenhouses are nothing more than a distraction, keeping you from seeing the truth.”

Liora clenched her fists, her voice trembling with anger. “And what truth is that?”

“That Earth is gone,” the figure said simply. “And clinging to it will only doom you.”

Before anyone could respond, the figure reached for the terminal. Ayana lunged forward, but the saboteur’s hand moved faster, slamming down on the controls.

The room shuddered violently as alarms blared, the monitors flashing red with warnings.

“Gravity stabilizers disengaged,” the terminal announced in a flat, mechanical voice.

The saboteur stepped back, their face obscured as the lights flickered. “You can’t stop what’s coming,” they said, their voice fading as they disappeared into the shadows.

“After them!” Ayana shouted.

But before they could move, another tremor rocked the station. The floor buckled beneath their feet, sending Liora crashing to the ground. She scrambled to her knees, her head spinning as the lights flickered again.

“We’re losing structural integrity!” Kiran shouted, gripping a nearby console for balance.

Ayana’s scanner beeped frantically, its display flashing with error messages. “The stabilizers are dropping fast,” she said. “We need to get to the core before the station loses orbit!”

Liora struggled to her feet, her breath coming in ragged gasps. “What about the saboteur?” she asked.

Ayana’s expression was grim. “We’ll deal with them later,” she said. “Right now, we need to save the station.”

Kiran nodded, his face pale. “Then let’s move. Fast.”

The three of them hurried out of the room, the corridor trembling around them as the station groaned under the strain. Liora’s heart pounded as she followed Ayana’s lead, her mind racing with the saboteur’s chilling words.

The station is beyond saving.

But Liora refused to believe it. She wouldn’t let the station—or its greenhouses—become another relic of humanity’s failure.

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