Nova's hand remained pressed against the metal door, his palm steady even as alarms blared softly in the background.
The door's interface pulsed to life, projecting a faint blue light across his face.
[Verifying genetic imprint... partial match detected. Subject not registered as active personnel. Scanning divine residue... Kin of Death God detected. Temporary access granted to Command Sector.]
The monotone voice echoed.
Anna's breath hitched.
"What does that mean? Gods don't have—"
She stopped herself, blinking at Nova.
Without turning, Nova brought two fingers to his throat and dragged them in a slicing motion, a silent order to stop speaking.
Anna shut her mouth instantly. She'd pushed too far. Her eyes darted over her shoulder as mechanical clanking echoed from down the corridor—getting closer.
"Nova, hurry."
The door groaned open with a hiss of steam and ancient hydraulics. The moment it was wide enough, Nova pulled her inside, and the door sealed shut behind them.
Silence fell.
The room ahead of them was wide and circular, lined with dust-caked consoles.
But at its center, floating above a circular pedestal, was a sphere of concentrated light—no bigger than an apple—casting pale, steady pulses across the darkened control room.
Nova stepped toward it slowly.
"That's the ship's heart."
He muttered, more to himself than anyone.
Anna followed cautiously, still eyeing the closed door behind them.
"So... you're related to a god? Like... by blood?"
Nova didn't answer. He reached out, fingers hovering over the sphere.
The sphere responded instantly, threads of data forming around it like a constellation of ancient memories.
[Welcome, Kin. Status: Ship derelict. Aether core dormant. Auxiliary systems inoperable. Hostile intrusion detected. Reactivation possible with override command.]
The voice of the ship's AI murmured.
Anna moved to stand beside him, glancing at the swirling data threads.
"Can you activate it?"
Nova didn't answer right away. His eyes scanned the interface, reading faster than any human should.
"It's locked to divine clearance. But it's responding to me. I can try."
He muttered.
Suddenly, the door behind them shook violently. Something slammed against it—hard. The impact echoed across the metal floor.
Anna raised her weapon, trembling.
"They found us."
Another slam. The seal cracked slightly.
Nova looked back.
"I'll buy us time. This room has inner systems. If I can charge the core just a bit, the shield will hold."
He stepped forward and reached toward the sphere with both hands. His aether flared around him, black and violet strands snaking into the core.
The sphere flickered—dimmed—then pulsed brighter.
Outside, another impact. The door bent inward.
Anna flinched but didn't move.
"Nova...?"
The entire ship vibrated.
[Initiating emergency lockdown. Inner shields activating. Please stand by.]
The AI announced.
The door sealed tighter. Metal bars slid across it. The lights in the command center brightened as systems momentarily flickered back to life.
Nova staggered back from the sphere, his breathing slightly uneven.
"That's all I can do. It'll hold for a while."
The moment Nova asked the AI for the records, the command center dimmed and the sphere above the pedestal pulsed brighter.
Strings of symbols and projections began spiraling around them in the air—unfamiliar glyphs glowing with faint energy.
Anna tilted her head, squinting at the language that looked more like ancient runes than anything she had ever encountered.
"I've never seen a script like this. "Can you read it?"
She muttered.
Nova didn't answer.
His eyes tracked every word, unmoving, his expression darkening as he absorbed the information.
His body remained perfectly still, so much so that Anna began to wonder if he was even breathing. He looked more like a statue than a person.
"Nova?"
She prompted again, softly this time.
After nearly a minute of silence, he finally blinked, exhaling through his nose.
"This ship was once a vessel meant for the inner circle of the Death God's cult. It carried something powerful… a core, a gift directly from the god himself."
Anna stepped closer, wary.
"A gift?"
Nova nodded.
"A sphere of condensed aether. Not just energy, but consciousness—an echo of the god's will. The ship was meant to safeguard it. But the container housing it shattered. Once exposed, the sphere's energy infected everything—machines, systems, lifeforms. It consumed their aether to survive… and eventually, it killed everything aboard."
Anna's eyes widened, and she unconsciously took a step back from both Nova and the glowing orb.
"So… this ship was eaten alive by something from a god?"
Nova said nothing. His attention was back on the sphere, its soft pulses reflecting in his eyes like stars caught in water.
"Nova. We've seen enough. Let's go back. We should just let Nyx fix our ship and not linger here."
Anna said sharply.
Still no answer.
Instead, Nova took a single step forward, extending his hand toward the sphere.
Anna's voice went up in alarm.
"Nova! What are you doing?! You just said this thing kills everything it touches!"
"I'll be fine. My aether comes from the same place as the God of Death. That's why I was able to access this place."
He said, voice calm.
Anna stared at him like he was insane.
"That's not a reason to grab a corrupted orb!"
He shrugged.
"It's reacting to me. That means something. Besides, we need this ship—and this is the key."
Before she could stop him, Nova reached out and clasped the sphere.
A rush of black and violet energy surged through his hand—but instead of devouring him, it coiled around his arm like a snake returning to its master.
Anna braced herself for an explosion, or a scream, or anything—but nothing happened.
Nothing, except the sphere glowing brighter and then… quieting.
The room dimmed to near-darkness for two heartbeats.
Then the entire ship shuddered.
The walls groaned. Lights began to flicker back to life. Rusted consoles lit up in sequence. The humming of systems returning to function echoed through the long-abandoned corridors.
Power flowed again.
Anna's mouth dropped open.
"Did you just—wake the ship?"
Nova turned his head slightly, his expression unreadable.
"No. I think it woke because I took out this sphere from the source."
Nova stood still as the ship came alive around him, shadows melting away as ancient systems reignited with quiet whirs and hums.
The sphere in his hand had gone dormant now, dim and cool against his palm—its purpose seemingly fulfilled.
Anna stared at him, stunned.
"You're serious… it responded to you."
Nova nodded.
"This wasn't just a container. It was a key—one tied to the Death God's bloodline. Only someone with that connection could calm it."
"But why would a god give you—"
She cut herself off, remembering his earlier gesture. Her hand slowly rose to her own throat, mimicking the silencing motion he'd made.
Nova's gaze met hers.
"It's complicated."
She didn't press. Instead, she looked around as status lights on the far wall began blinking.
A map of the ship's interior slowly unfolded, revealing countless rooms and locked vaults. Aether readings pulsed again, but this time they were stable. No anomalies. No threats.
Anna exhaled.
"Well… now what?"
Nova turned to her, slipping the dormant sphere into a small containment slot on his belt.
"Now we see what's left. If this ship really belonged to one of the Death God's inner circle… there may be more than just ruins here."