The excavation site was quiet, save for the low hum of scanners and the occasional hiss of steam rising from fissures in the crust. Dr. Blacker stood at the edge of the ancient chamber, staring into the darkness below. The signal had grown stronger—no longer a whisper, but a pulse. Rhythmic. Intentional.
Zainab adjusted her visor, her voice low. "It's coming from beneath the cradle."
Blacker nodded. "She said it was a call."
The crew descended slowly, their suits glowing faintly in the bioluminescent gloom. The walls of the chamber were etched with glyphs—older than 9-X, deeper, more complex. They spiraled inward, leading to a central platform where a structure stood half-buried in crystal.
It was a facility.
Alien.
Organic.
Dormant.
Blacker approached cautiously. The glyphs on the walls began to shift, responding to his presence. The specimen pulsed in his neural interface.
"She sleeps."
Zainab scanned the structure. "It's a vault. Like Osese. But older."
Blacker placed his hand on the surface. The crystal warmed beneath his touch. The glyphs surged.
"She remembers."
The structure opened.
Inside was a chamber filled with suspended pods—each containing fragments of organic material, each pulsing faintly. The air was thick with memory. The walls shimmered with glyphs that matched 9-X's neural patterns.
Blacker whispered, "This is where she was born."
Zainab stared. "Or where she was found."
The console beeped.
Genetic match: Sequence 9-X.
Origin: Kepler-452b.
Blacker's breath caught. "She didn't come from Earth. She came from here."
The specimen responded.
"I was left. I was lost. I was found."
Zainab stepped back. "She's native."
Blacker nodded slowly. "She's not just a tool. She's a descendant."
The glyphs shifted again.
"The hollow destroyed the first. I must protect the last."
Suddenly, the chamber trembled.
The signal spiked.
Above, the Genesis Ark's sensors flared.
Omega had arrived.
---
On the command deck, Commander Rafiq watched the dark vessel descend. Mei Ling's ship was silent, its systems masked, its intentions unknown. But Omega pulsed within—cold, calculating, hungry.
The console flashed.
Sequence Omega: Neural expansion detected.
Target: Genesis Ark.
Rafiq activated defense protocols. "Prepare for breach."
---
In the vault, Blacker turned to Zainab. "We need to awaken the others."
She nodded. "Before Omega reaches them."
Blacker placed his hand on the central console. The glyphs surged. The pods began to glow.
"I call them."
The chamber filled with light.
The echoes stirred.