Last Stand

"I can confirm that," Finn said, stepping out of the shadows, his face pale and drawn, illuminated by the flickering emergency lights. His eyes, wide and haunted, held a depth of terror that chilled them to the bone. He was covered in grime and blood, his suit torn in several places. "I saw it all."

Reyes, her hand still gripping her pulse rifle, regarded him with a mixture of suspicion and desperate hope. "Who are you?"

"I'm Finn," he repeated, his voice trembling slightly. "I was… I was stationed here. I'm the only one left."

The crew exchanged uneasy glances. They had found evidence of a massacre, a scene of unimaginable horror. And now, this lone survivor, this ghost in the machine, was claiming to have witnessed it all.

"Tell us what you saw," Reyes demanded, her voice firm.

Finn took a deep breath, trying to compose himself. He recounted the events of the past few hours, the Umbra's arrival, the brutal slaughter of his crew mates, his desperate escape. He described the creature in detail, its massive size, its crimson eyes, its terrifying speed and strength.

As he spoke, the crew listened in stunned silence, their faces growing paler with each word. They had encountered the Umbra themselves, had seen its terrifying power firsthand. But Finn's account painted a picture of something even more monstrous, something truly alien.

"It's… it's like nothing I've ever seen," Finn finished, his voice barely a whisper. "It's not just strong. It's… intelligent. It hunts. It toys with its prey."

A heavy silence descended on the command module, broken only by the hum of the failing life support systems and the distant, almost imperceptible, click… click… click…

"We have to get out of here," Riker said, his voice trembling. "This station is a deathtrap."

"He's right," Marcus agreed. "We need to get back to the Martian Dawn and get out of orbit."

Reyes nodded grimly. "Agreed. But we can't just leave. We need to know what we're dealing with. We need to eliminate whatever this… whatever this thing is."

"Eliminate it?" Riker scoffed. "We should be running for our lives!"

"Running won't do any good," Finn said, his voice surprisingly calm. "It's too late. It knows we're here."

As if to emphasize his words, the lights in the command module flickered and died, plunging the room into near darkness. The emergency lights kicked in, casting long, eerie shadows across the faces of the crew. And then, they heard it.

Click… click… click…

The sound was closer now, echoing through the station's ventilation shafts. The Umbra was hunting.

"It's here," Lena whispered, her voice barely audible.

Reyes raised her pulse rifle, her hand shaking slightly. "Everyone, stay alert. We fight our way back to the Martian Dawn. We stick together. And we don't leave anyone behind."

The crew nodded, their faces grim. They knew they were facing a creature unlike anything they had ever encountered. They knew that their chances of survival were slim. But they were determined to fight. They were the Martian Dawn crew. And they would not go down without a fight.

The click… click… click… grew louder, closer.

The rhythmic clicking echoed through the station, growing louder with each passing moment. The Umbra was closing in. Fear, cold and sharp, gripped the crew of the Martian Dawn. They were trapped, hunted, outnumbered. But they were not without hope.

"We have to get to the ship," Reyes said, her voice firm, cutting through the panic. "But we can't just run. We need a plan."

"A plan?" Jax asked trying to catch his breath. "What kind of plan can we possibly make against that… that thing?"

"We can't fight it head-on," Finn said, his voice surprisingly steady despite the tremor in his hands. "But we can use the station against it. We can overload the reactor. Blow this place sky high."

Reyes considered this. It was a desperate gamble, but it might be their only chance. "It's risky," she said. "But it might be our only option. Finn, you know the station. Can you guide us to the reactor control?"

"I can," Finn said. "But it won't be easy. The Umbra is probably guarding the main access corridors."

"Then we'll have to find another way," Reyes said. "Diaz, can you access the station's schematics? Find us an alternate route."

Diaz nodded and began working on the console. Within moments, he had a map displayed on the screen, highlighting a series of maintenance tunnels and access shafts that bypassed the main corridors.

"This might work," Diaz said. "But it's going to be tight. And dangerous."

"It's our only chance," Reyes said. "Let's move."

The crew followed Finn, navigating the maze of narrow tunnels and cramped access shafts. The air was thick with dust and the stench of decay. The clicking sound followed them, a constant reminder of the predator stalking them.

They reached the reactor control room, their hearts pounding. Finn quickly worked on the console, overriding the safety protocols, initiating the overload sequence.

"We have five minutes," Finn announced, his voice grim. "We need to get out of here."

As they turned to leave, it was too late.

The Umbra was blocking the exit, its crimson eyes burning with malevolent glee. It had anticipated their move, had herded them into a trap.

"Open fire!" Reyes shouted, raising her pulse rifle.

The crew unleashed a volley of energy bolts, but the Umbra was too quick. It dodged most of the bolts, absorbing the rest. It lunged, its claws tearing through the air.

Marcus was the first to fall. The Umbra's claws ripped through his armor, leaving a gaping wound in his chest. He screamed, his voice cut short as the creature's mandibles closed around his head.

The others continued to fire, desperately trying to hold the creature back. Finn, scrambling to escape, felt a searing pain in his leg. He looked down to see the Umbra's barbed tail protruding from his thigh. He screamed, falling to the floor.

Reyes, seeing Finn fall, knew they had no choice. They had to leave him.

"Go!" she shouted to the others. "I'll cover you!"

Riker and Diaz hesitated, but Reyes's gaze was unwavering. They turned and ran, leaving Finn behind. Reyes continued to fire, her pulse rifle spitting bolts of energy. The Umbra turned its attention to her, its eyes burning with rage. It lunged, but Reyes was ready. She rolled out of the way, firing another volley. The bolts struck the creature in the face, momentarily blinding it.

Reyes seized the opportunity, sprinting out of the reactor control room. She could hear the Umbra's enraged screech behind her, its claws scraping against the metal walls.

She reached the docking bay, the others close behind. They piled into the Martian Dawn, sealing the airlock.

"Riker, get us the hell out of here!" Reyes shouted.

Riker nodded, his hands flying across the controls. The Martian Dawn's engines roared to life, and the ship began to lift off.

As they ascended, they could see the station below them, its lights flickering erratically. Then, with a blinding flash and a deafening roar, the station exploded, consumed in a fiery inferno.

The Martian Dawn was rocked by the shockwave, but Riker managed to maintain control. They were safe. For now.

As they sped away from the wreckage of Enceladus Station, Reyes looked back at the expanding cloud of debris, a silent monument to the horror they had witnessed. They had survived, but at a terrible cost. They had lost friends, comrades. And they had seen something that would haunt them for the rest of their lives.

The Umbra was out there. Somewhere. Waiting. Hunting.

And they knew, with a chilling certainty, that they would never be safe.