CHAPTER 3

THE GHOST FLEET

1. Awakening in the Unknown

Kael's senses returned in fragments—first the smell of ozone and burnt metal, then the hum of an engine deeper than any he'd heard before. His body ached as if he'd been dragged through a storm of knives.

"You're alive. Good. Waking corpses are harder to explain to port authorities."

The voice was sharp, laced with mechanical distortion. Kael forced his eyes open and saw a woman leaning over him, her left eye replaced by a glowing blue lens. She wore a long coat stitched with circuit patterns, and a plasma pistol rested at her hip.

"Where—?" Kael tried to sit up, but his ribs screamed in protest.

"Celestial Drake," the woman said. "My ship. You're lucky we caught you before the Vorthax turned you into scrap."

Kael's breath hitched. Luminis. The invasion. The last thing he remembered was falling—

"Seris—the knight—"

"Dead," the woman said bluntly. "We pulled you from the wreckage. You were clutching that sword like it was your firstborn."

Kael's fingers twitched toward Dawnbreaker, still strapped to his side. The blade pulsed faintly, as if breathing.

"I'm Captain Ryn," the woman said, crossing her arms. "And you're a problem."

2. The Ship That Remembers

The Celestial Drake was unlike any vessel Kael had seen. Its walls were lined with glowing veins of gold, and the air smelled of incense and ionized metal. As Ryn led him through the corridors, the floor shifted subtly beneath his feet—not like a machine adjusting balance, but like something alive.

"This isn't just a ship," Kael muttered.

Ryn smirked. "Observant. Most people take a while to notice."

They entered the bridge, where a dark-skinned woman in scholar's robes studied a holographic star map. She glanced up, her eyes narrowing.

"So this is the one the ship insisted on saving," she said. "Lira Veyne. Historian and unwilling crewmate."

Before Kael could respond, the walls shuddered. A deep, resonant voice echoed through the chamber—"He bears the mark."

Kael spun. No one else had spoken.

Ryn sighed. "Drake, stop being dramatic."

The holograms flickered, reforming into the shape of a dragon's skull. "The Starborn Sigil burns in his blood. He is kin."

Kael's breath caught. "You're… the ship?"

"I was Eldrin, once," the Drake murmured. "Now I am steel and fire. And you, Kael Ardent, are the last of your kind."

3. The Starborn Hunters

Lira activated a recording—a massacre. Hooded figures slaughtered men and women with glowing eyes like Kael's.

"Starborn Hunters," she said. "They believe your powers bring ruin. And they've been erasing your lineage for centuries."

Kael's skin prickled. "Why?"

"Because the last Starborn who reached full power destroyed a star system," Ryn said flatly.

A proximity alarm blared. Lira's hands flew over the controls. "We've got company."

The viewscreen flickered to life, revealing a sleek black vessel marked with a crimson eye.

"Hunters," Ryn snarled, drawing her pistol.

The Drake's voice darkened. "They've laid a trap. The distress signal was bait."

Kael gripped Dawnbreaker. "Can we outrun them?"

"No," Ryn said. "But we can outfight them."

4. Battle in the Asteroids

The Drake dove into an asteroid field, Hunter ship in pursuit. Plasma bolts seared past the hull.

"Man the turrets!" Ryn barked, throwing herself into the pilot's seat.

Kael stumbled toward a weapon console, but Lira yanked him back. "No—the ship responds to you now. Touch the core!"

She dragged him to a pedestal where a pulsing orb of gold and blue light hovered.

"Do it!"

Kael pressed his palms against the orb—

Fire roared through his veins.

The Drake shuddered, its hull plates shifting like scales. From its wings, plasma fire erupted—not in scattered bolts, but in a cohesive beam that sliced the Hunter ship in half.

Silence.

Then, the Drake's voice, softer now: "Welcome home, Starborn."

5. The Truth of the God-Engine

In the aftermath, Kael collapsed, his nose bleeding from the energy surge. Lira handed him a vial of glowing liquid.

"Drink. It'll stabilize your cells."

Ryn watched him like a bomb about to detonate. "You just weaponized my ship. How?"

"The Starborn were meant to wield the Astral Forge," Lira said. "A device that could rewrite reality. The Vorthax want it. The Hunters fear it. And you…" She met Kael's eyes. "You might be the only one who can control it."

The Drake's hologram reappeared. "But first, we find Sylas Veyne."

Kael frowned. "Who's that?"

Lira's voice broke. "My brother. The man who killed the last Starborn."

TO BE CONTINUED…