OLADOKUN_EMMANUEL

In the far future, space is cold, empty, and full of forgotten things.

Elias Thorne is a space scavenger—he travels alone, picking through old wrecks and broken stations. One day, he finds a ship floating near a dead star, where no one should be. Inside, there’s a woman in cryo-sleep. Her name is Maeve Calder, and she’s been missing for 50 years.

She wakes up with no memory of what happened.
The ship’s data is gone.
And something feels... off.

As Elias and Maeve try to figure out what happened, they start to grow close. But strange things start happening—time doesn’t feel right, and they keep hearing things in the ship. Maybe they’re not alone after all.

Now Elias has to choose—leave Maeve behind and save himself, or stay and face whatever’s out there with her. Even if it means they both get lost in the void.

Pulse In The Void

Maeve held Elias's hand tightly as the dark surrounded them. The engine room was dead quiet now—too quiet. No humming. No lights. Just the sound of their breathing and the whispers they were trying to ignore.

She hated the dark. Not the regular kind, but this kind—the kind that felt like it was waiting for something. Watching.

"Stay close," Elias said, his voice low. "Don't let go."

"I wasn't planning to," Maeve whispered back.

They moved slowly through the room, Elias using a small emergency light clipped to his belt. The beam was weak, barely enough to see a few feet ahead. Shadows moved strangely around them, like the light made them dance.

Maeve's thoughts wouldn't stop racing.

What if waking up from cryo hadn't been a rescue, but a trap?

A sudden thud echoed somewhere nearby—like metal shifting, or something walking.

"Yeah," Elias said. He turned off the light.

"If there's something in here, I don't want to help it find us."

They stood in the dark, breathing quietly, listening.

Slow. Soft. Like bare feet on metal.

Maeve's grip tightened. "We need to go," she whispered.

Elias nodded, but before they could move, the whispers returned—louder now, all around them, like they were coming through the walls.

Maeve squeezed her eyes shut. "They're in my head," she said. "I can feel them."

Elias pulled her close. "We'll get out. Just hold on."

Suddenly, the backup lights came on. A dull red glow washed over the room, not much help—but enough to see.

No figure. No movement. Just the same machines and shadows.

The symbol was still there—but it had changed. More lines now, like it had grown, like it was reacting to them.

"Elias," she whispered, stepping toward it, "it's not just a mark."

"It's like… it's listening. It knows us."

Elias looked at her, then at the symbol. "You said before—you don't remember anything before waking up, right?"

"But this symbol—when you saw it now... did it feel familiar?"

She didn't answer right away. Then: "Yes. But not like a memory. More like a dream. Or a nightmare."

Elias turned to the wall, staring at the glowing shape. He didn't believe in fate. Never had. But this… this felt chosen.

"Let's go," he said. "We need to figure out what this ship wants. Before it takes more from us."

As they stepped into the hallway, the red lights pulsing faintly above them, Maeve looked back one last time.

The symbol glowed brighter for a moment.

Chapter Ten: The Thing in the Dark