Kaelen's heart pounded in his chest as he stared at the core. A countdown timer flashed on the main screen—10 minutes until total system failure.
R0NIN's voice came through the shipwide comms. "Warning: Core is destabilizing. Evacuation recommended."
But there was no time to evacuate. The ship was already beyond saving. The signal was too strong, its pull too powerful.
Mira grabbed Kaelen's arm again. "We have to go. Now."
But Kaelen didn't move. He was rooted in place, his eyes locked on the core. He could feel the entity's presence rising within him, the darkness pulling at his very soul.
You are ours.
"No," Kaelen muttered, shaking his head. "I won't—"
Suddenly, the core let out a massive, deafening roar. The walls of the chamber cracked, and the entire room shook violently.
"Laz!" Mira screamed. "Do something!"
Laz scrambled at the console, but the ship's systems were failing faster than he could react. The countdown continued, now at 5 minutes.
And then, everything went black.