Chapter 13: The Dreams of an Inheritor

Kia lay in the medical bay aboard the Destiny, the lights dimmed to a soft glow. Outside, the remnants of the fleet worked tirelessly to repair the rest of the fleet and fortify their position. Inside his mind, however, Kia was transported far from the quiet of the room.

The dream began with silence, the kind that follows a cataclysm. Kia stood amidst a celestial battlefield, surrounded by shattered planets and extinguished stars. The void stretched infinitely in all directions, lit only by the dim glow of dying suns and the flicker of distant explosions. Despite the dreamlike haze, everything felt real—too real.

A massive armada filled the blackness, stretching across entire star systems. Battleships the size of moons traded fire with impossibly sleek vessels that seemed to glide through space as if bending physics to their will. Streams of light, weapons of unimaginable power, arced between the ships, leaving trails of destruction in their wake.

Kia could feel the weight of the conflict pressing on him, the sheer scale of it almost suffocating. Then he saw them—the beings at the heart of the battle.

They looked human. But as Kia's gaze focused, he noticed subtle differences. Their movements were more fluid, their faces sharper, and their presence exuded a confidence born of immense knowledge and power. Their technology was far beyond anything Kia had ever imagined. Ships repaired themselves in real-time, armor shimmered with adaptive energy fields, and medical devices replaced damaged limbs and organs in moments.

Kia's attention was drawn to the leader. Clad in ornate combat armor that pulsed with energy, the figure stood aboard a colossal command ship that dwarfed even the Destiny. The leader's face was obscured, but their posture radiated authority and determination. Despite the power they wielded, there was a deep sadness in their presence—a burden that could not be lifted.

"This wasn't just a war," Kia thought. "It was fight to the death between titans of war."

The leader's forces were being pushed back, their fleet dwindling against an overwhelming enemy. Star after star was extinguished, leaving cold darkness in their place. The enemy was relentless, their ships faceless and unyielding, their purpose clear: annihilation.

Kia felt a strange connection to the leader, as if he shared their pain. He could feel their desperation to save their people, their determination to fight to the end—even as they knew they were losing.

As the dream shifted, Kia found himself aboard one of the ancient ships. It was eerily similar to the Colossus, but the corridors were alive with activity. Engineers worked at glowing consoles, and soldiers in advanced armor prepared for battle. He walked through the ship, unnoticed, as if he were a ghost.

In one of the rooms, a group of engineers worked with a substance that looked strikingly familiar. It flowed like liquid but hardened into shapes and textures on command. Kia realized what it was immediately: programmable matter.

"This is what the nanites in the vault were," he thought. But these engineers were using a more primitive form, less efficient and far more cumbersome than what had integrated with him. Yet, it was still centuries ahead of anything humanity currently possessed.

His gaze moved to a window where the battle raged outside. Ships he recognized from the knowledge implanted in him darted through the fray. Their designs were stored in his mind—he knew their specs, their capabilities, even their weaknesses. He understood their purpose: tools of survival in a war that could not be won.

Suddenly, a voice echoed in his mind. It was the same voice from the vault, calm and resonant.

"You are the inheritor of a legacy forged in fire and tempered in despair. Learn from our mistakes. Protect what remains."

The dream shifted again, and Kia stood on the bridge of the leader's command ship. The atmosphere was tense, the air heavy with unspoken defeat. The leader gazed out at the battlefield; their hands clenched at their sides. A holographic display showed the positions of their forces—scattered, broken, outnumbered.

A subordinate approached, their voice trembling. "We've lost contact with the outer systems. Reinforcements aren't coming."

The leader didn't respond immediately. When they finally spoke, their voice was steady but filled with sorrow. "Then we hold. Every second we delay them buys our people time."

Kia wanted to shout, to warn them that their sacrifice wouldn't be in vain, but he couldn't move, couldn't speak. He was a witness, nothing more.

The final moments of the battle played out before him. The leader's ship, surrounded and battered, unleashed a desperate attack, its weapons tearing through the enemy fleet. But it wasn't enough. As the flagship fell, a blinding light consumed the scene, and Kia was thrown back into darkness.

System activated. 

Inheritor Kia Mercer accepted.

Initiating start-up sequence. 

Start-up complete.

Kia jolted awake, gasping for air. The medical bay was quiet, the soft hum of the Destiny's systems a stark contrast to the chaos of his dream. Sweat beaded on his forehead, and his heart raced.

Professor Roman was seated nearby, his face etched with concern. "Kia, you're awake. Are you all right?"Kia struggled to find the words. "I… I saw them. The people who built that ship. They were like us, but more advanced. There was a war, a galaxy-wide war. They were trying to survive, but they failed."

Professor Roman leaned forward. "What else? Did you learn anything specific?"

Kia hesitated. "Their technology… it's in my head now, but it's… overwhelming. It's going to take time to sort through it all."

Roman's eyes widened. "You're saying you have access to their knowledge? All of it?"

"Not all," Kia clarified. "But enough to understand the scale of what we're dealing with. That ship isn't just a relic—it's a lifeboat. A second chance to rebuild what they lost."

Professor Roman sat back, his expression a mixture of awe and trepidation. "Well, if we can unlock the secrets of that ship, it could shift the balance of power in the galaxy." Kia nodded, though he couldn't shake the weight of what he'd seen. 

"Professor," he said, his voice firm, "we have to be careful. This technology is powerful, but it's also dangerous. If we're not ready for it, we could end up the same way they did."