I gasped for air.

  But there was none to breathe.

  No ground beneath me. No stars above. Just an endless void stretching in every direction. Cold. Suffocating. Weightless.

  I looked down.

  Black veins pulsed beneath my skin, glowing like circuits, threading through me like I wasn’t flesh and blood but something else entirely.

  Then, a voice.

  Not spoken. Not telepathic. Something older, transmitted straight into my soul.

  “You were severed from the source. You were made incomplete.”

  I stiffened. My breath hitched, but the void swallowed the sound.

  A presence stirred ahead. A feminine figure.

  She emerged from the darkness like light bleeding into the abyss. Tall, impossibly elegant, her form shifting between real and unreal. Pale skin like moondust. Eyes like frozen stars. A flowing robe that shimmered between blue and silver, like the cosmos itself had been stitched into the fabric.

  She sang.

  A single word, soft and aching, cutting through the silence like the edge of a blade.

  “Incomplete.”

  The void trembled. The veins in my arms burned.

  She reached out, and suddenly, I saw it.

  A monolith. Floating in the endless dark.

  Towering. Cold. Alive.

  Unreadable symbols pulsed across its surface, shifting, twisting, calling to me.

  Her gaze locked onto mine. A silent command.

  “Find the Eidolon Core.”

  She tried to say more, her lips parting, the shape of a word forming. But something tore her back.

  A shadow erupted from the void behind her, shifting wrongly, too many limbs, too many eyes, its form flickering like it wasn’t meant to exist in this reality.

  The woman’s body arched violently, her veins blackening beneath her skin, pulsing, twisting into jagged, unnatural patterns.

  Then, a new voice.

  It whispered from inside her, stretching the syllables like it had just learned how to speak.

  "You will never be whole.”

  I fell.

  Fell.

  Fell—

  I jolted awake, gasping.

  Sweat slicked my skin. My heart hammered against my ribs, my mind still tangled in the dream.

  My familiar room’s dim interior came into focus.

  For a second, the dream lingered, heavy, real.

  I looked down at my arms.

  Nothing. No black veins. No circuits.

  Just my hands.

  Shaking.

  Then, Ares' voice cut through the silence.

  “Nightmare again, Commander?”

  I rubbed the sleep from my eyes, exhaling slowly. “Shut it. Status report.”

  A brief pause, then the AI’s tone turned businesslike. "Zara and Nyx are outside, repairing the ship."

  I blinked. “…Together?”

  "Affirmative. They appear to be... cooperating. For now."

  I let out a tired chuckle, massaging my temples. “Huh. Guess miracles do happen.”

  "I wouldn’t get your hopes up, Commander. My calculations predict a 47% chance of homicide."

  I smirked. “That low?”

  "They are bonding over mutual disdain. Historically, this has led to property damage or organized crime in your crew."

  I frowned. “That was one time.”

  "Incorrect. That was five times. Two incidents classified as felonies. One involving explosives."

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  I groaned. “Fantastic. Ares, the only AI in the galaxy programmed for sarcasm instead of actual assistance.”

  "Incorrect again. I am also programmed for ship diagnostics, tactical coordination, and lest we forget, preventing you from flushing yourself out of an airlock while drunk."

  I sighed, pushing myself upright. “Damage report?”

  "Nyx is handling the primary repairs. Zara is assisting. Forcibly.”

  "Forcibly?"

  "Nyx has enlisted the local ‘hangar rats’ to retrieve supplies. Zara is now supervising.”

  I snorted. "So she’s babysitting street thieves while Nyx cons her way through repairs? Yeah, sounds about right."

  "Affirmative. Currently, no signs of homicide. But I estimate a 63% chance of escalation if Nyx continues attempting to ‘charm’ Zara."

  I rubbed my face. “You know, for an AI, you really enjoy watching me suffer.”

  "Incorrect. I merely observe and document your suffering. Enjoyment is optional."

  I collapsed back onto the cot. "You keep an eye on them. I’m getting more sleep."

  "You are not going to supervise?"

  "Nah. If Zara tries to stab me, I’d rather not see it coming."

  "And if Nyx attempts to take advantage of your... vulnerable state?"

  "You know what, lock the door. I’m not in the mood for death or… seduction."

  "Acknowledged. Door secured. Sleep tight, Commander. If you hear screaming, ignore it."

  "Ares."

  "Yes, Commander?"

  "Read me a bedtime story."

  "Processing… I have selected a Terran classic. The Tragedy of Varkus the Unyielding: A Tale of Betrayal, Blood, and the Unforgiving Void."

  I sighed. "Ares, pick something that doesn’t sound like it ends with mass executions."

  "Adjusting parameters… Initiating Goodnight, Moonbase."

  I smirked, closing my eyes as Ares' voice took on a deliberate, soothing monotone.

  "Goodnight, engines. Goodnight, thrusters. Goodnight, hull integrity, which currently sits at—"

  I faked a loud snore.

  Ares stopped. "You are not actually asleep."

  I snored louder.

  A long pause. Then:

  "…Enjoy your rest, Commander. And may your dreams be marginally less unsettling than usual."

  ***

  Zara outside with Nyx

  The hangar was still alive, buzzing with the typical noise of ships of grinding gears, hissing vents, and voices raised just enough to hint at violence. Zara crouched near the Valkyrion’s undercarriage, wrench in hand, forcing herself to focus on the task instead of the fact that she was helping repair a ship she didn’t fully trust. She didn’t have to like the crew. She didn’t even have to trust them. She just had to get Astra back. After that? She could walk away and never look back.

  Across from her, Nyx was elbow-deep in a half-cracked panel, humming some smug little tune like everything was unfolding exactly how she wanted. Her tail swayed lazily behind her, like she was painting the air.

  Then came the voice. Gravel-thick. Angry.

  “Oi!”

  Zara recognized that tone. Someone looking for a fight.

  Big guy. Skin like cracked rock. Four arms. One holding a metal rod that probably had a name like The Persuader.

  “You thieving bitch!” he barked, stomping toward her like he owned the place.

  Zara arched an eyebrow, resting a hand on her hip. “If you’re about to say I stole something, you might want to check your sources.”

  “Where’s my Phase-9 capacitor?” the alien barked.

  Zara gave her a look. This your mess?

  Nyx just smirked and adjusted a panel, fingers casually fitting the connectors in place.

  “I had it stashed behind Bay Four, and now it’s suddenly bolted onto that rusty bucket of yours.” His voice was a grated snarl, half spit, half ego.

  He pointed a thick, cracked finger at the Valkyrion, where Nyx was hunched beneath a side panel, frantically tightening bolts with the speed and guilt of a kid caught copying homework.

  She didn’t look up. “Zat’s so strange,” she said, voice lilting, innocent as sin. “You should report it to... someone who gives a shit, non?”

  Zara, squatting by the undercarriage, winced. Here we go.

  The guy’s face flushed a deeper brown, like rust bubbling to the surface.

  “You think I’m stupid?” he growled. “I saw one of your little ship-rats scurrying around. You think because you shake your ass and flash those teeth people won’t notice when their gear goes missing?”

  Nyx finally stood, stretching her back like she’d just finished a pleasant nap. “Good. You ‘ave eyes. I was starting to worry zat you were just all mouth.”

  He took a step closer, and his sneer curled wider.

  “Let me guess,” he spat. “This is that TRNC ship, right? The Valkyrion? Belongs to Commander Corvus himself?” He laughed, a mean, throaty sound. “So it’s true then. You really are his little bitch.”

  Nyx’s smile didn’t falter.

  He leaned in, stupidly emboldened. “What’s he got that you don’t get better from your own kind, huh? You spread your legs for a mass murderer while your own people rot. I’ve seen girls like you before… just loyal dogs who wag their tails for the butcher’s hand.”

  Zara stood halfway, unsure if she was about to witness a murder or be part of one.

  Nyx’s eyes twitched, just once.

  Then she crossed the distance between them in an insant.

  She looked up at him sweetly, like she was about to whisper a secret.

  “Zere is only one butcher ‘ere,” she cooed, voice dipped in honey.

  Her tail slid up behind him opened a clean red smile across the alien’s throat.

  His smug expression didn’t even have time to fade before the light drained from his eyes. His knees buckled, and he toppled without grace or drama.

  Nyx caught him with one hand, eased him down like she was tucking a child into bed. Her tail looped around his ankle and dragged him backward to the same floor panel she’d used before.

  It slid open with a hiss.

  The body dropped in.

  The panel closed.

  Gone.

  Zara stared at the empty floor panel. Then at Nyx.

  Then back at the panel.

  Nyx smiled, all teeth and mischief. She gave her gloves a theatrical flick, dusting off invisible debris like she hadn’t just committed casual murder.

  “Oh, do not look at me like zhat,” she said sweetly. “He started it.”

  Zara blinked. “You killed him.”

  Nyx tilted her head, mock-thoughtful. “Mmm. I did.”

  “You could’ve de-escalated. He was just yelling.”

  Nyx finally looked at her, that smile fading just a hair. “He insulted mon Commandant.”

  Zara frowned. “So?”

  “So,” Nyx said, voice like velvet, “I do not let men with filthy mouths walk free after dragging his name through zhe dirt.”

  Zara stared. “You slit his throat because he said something?”

  Nyx shrugged, acting like the whole thing had been mildly annoying. “Words matter, chérie. And besides… now no one else will try to touch our ship. Problem solved.”

  “Problem murdered,” Zara muttered.

  Mmm… now zat would make a good holo-series. One season, twelve episodes, and a very dramatic finalé involving a plasma torch and betrayal.”

  Zara rubbed her temples. “You’re completely insane.”

  “Oui,” Nyx replied, eyes gleaming. “Anyways, repairs are complete~”

  Zara narrowed her eyes. “That fast?”

  “Well,” Nyx said, waggling a finger, “ze outside is complete. Mostly. I may ‘ave had to bypass a few safeties and reroute power through an auxiliary coupling with a melted bracket, but…” she trailed off with a smile, like that explained everything.

  “Translation?” Zara asked flatly.

  “We should not explode.”

  “Not exploding is your bar?”

  “Low bars are easier to clear, non?”

  Zara muttered something very impolite under her breath.

  Nyx was already headed for the boarding ramp, her tail swishing behind her like she was on a runway instead of a half-legal asteroid dock. “Come now, let’s go wake our sleeping beauty.”

  Zara didn’t move. “Not exactly thrilled to see him.”

  Nyx glanced back with a little shrug. “And yet… here you are.”

  Zara scowled, but her boots moved anyway.

  She climbed the ramp behind Nyx, muttering, “This is going to be a problem.”

  Nyx’s laugh echoed down the corridor. “Only if you fall for ‘im.”