Deep Descent

Eve, Hannah, and Axel load into the Soul Drifter's airlock. The hatch hisses shut. With a final glance at each other, they launch—rocketing miles high before crashing into the water with a thunderous splash.

They sank fast, the cold biting into their suits as darkness folded around them. Eve and Hannah propelled by exosuit jets, Axel's feet transformed into a jet propeller.

Eve's visor flickered to night mode. Below, something moved. Slow, massive, hidden in silt. The lake floor vibrated. The thing wasn't sleeping—it was waiting.

Axel moved first, diving lower. Eve followed without a word. Hannah split off to the side, blade drawn. The creature shifted—its legs unfolding, massive and slow. The ground vibrated as it rose, its shape still hidden in the dark.

"Split and circle," Eve said through the comms, voice steady.

Axel veered left, vanishing into the haze. "Copy."

"I'll draw right," Hannah added, already moving.

Eve descended straight down, tracking the shifting mass below. "Keep distance until we see its head. No blind strikes."

The creature rose. First one leg, then another. Water shifted with its movement. Dust kicked up from the lakebed. Its shape was still unclear, but it was big.

"Visuals still low," Axel said scanning.

"Back off until it clears," Eve replied.

A sudden ripple pushed through the water.

"It's turning," Hannah said. "I think it sees us."

Eve shifted position fast. "Do not engage yet. Wait for a target."

The dust cleared. A part of the head showed. One eye. It was open.

"Target confirmed," Eve said.

Axel moved into position. "Left flank covered."

"I've got the eye," Hannah said.

"On my mark," Eve replied. "Three… two… one—move."

Axel hit the leg. It twitched. Hannah went for the eye. Eve dropped under.

The creature moved. Fast. A leg came down. Eve rolled aside. The water cracked. Pressure hit all three of them at once.

"Spread out!" Eve said.

Axel pulled wide. Hannah kicked up fast.

Another leg dropped—missed them by inches.

Eve boosted forward, reached the underbelly. She planted a charge fast. "Set," she said.

"Back," Axel called.

All three pulled away as the charge detonated.

The blast hit. The creature jolted upward, limbs flailing. Water surged. They rose with it, pushed toward the surface.

They broke through. The creature followed, rising out of the lake. Water rained off its body. It stood tall—fully awake now.

"Fire now," Eve said.

From the ridge, Jax opened up. The railgun cracked.

Anya followed, both rifles hot. The shots lit up the sky.

The blasts hit its side. The creature staggered. One leg slipped. It turned, slow but angry.

The Soul Drifter fired next. Twin plasma beams struck the chest. The impact blew chunks of armor off. The creature screamed.

Eve climbed up the far side, fast. Axel followed. They moved along the leg, placing charges. "Now," Eve said.

Both jumped clear.

The charges blew. The leg cracked, then collapsed. The creature dropped, one side crashing into the lake.

Anya fired again. Jax hit the core. The creature shook once, then stopped moving.

Steam rose off the water. Bits of armor floated. The lake went still.

Eve stood waist-deep in the water, watching the body sink. Then she turned back toward the ridge. "It's done"

.

.

.

Hannah climbed out of the lake. She didn't speak—just nodded once as she passed the others, eyes sharp, breathing steady. And then, she came out of her exosuit, now just standing in her bikini.

Jax descended from the ridge, steam rising off his gauntlets.

The lake was silent. Mist curled off the surface like breath. Overhead, the clouds parted—stars and galaxies glimmering across the night sky, reflected in the still water.

Hannah (softly): "We could set up camp. Just for tonight."

Eve didn't respond right away. She walked to the edge, slow and focused, eyes fixed on where the beast had gone under.

Eve: "Alright. Hold perimeter."

An hour later...

The campfire crackled lazily, casting flickers of orange across their faces. Eve sat on a flat rock, boots off, legs stretched out, her soaked crop top clinging to her. Behind her, the lake gleamed under starlight.

Anya sat cross-legged near the fire, combing fingers through her still-wet hair. "You know," she murmured, glancing toward the dark treeline, "we don't get moments like this much. No alarms. No tech whining in our ears. Just the air... and the quiet. I miss nature."

Soul drifter was parked near. They had drinks. Talked over night. Mira and Dr. Salam joined holographically from the Nomad, still still in the orbit.

They slept to dance, poetry and jokes. Next morning, the Soul Drifter roared through the sky and landed in Nomad bay.