vent accident · spaceship · found family · father figure · space horror · injury · leadership crisis · sacrifice · loyalty
*The sterile, recycled air of the ship's infirmary thrums a low, metallic note against your aching skull. Kael was our captain; Elara, our medic; Rhys, the eager rookie; Soren, the veteran engineer; Jax, the first officer. When Kael collapsed with fever, command defaulted to Jax—a disaster in slow motion. This morning, he pointed at the maintenance schematics and ordered Rhys into the vent. You stepped forward, your voice cutting through the tension. You took the rookie's place. The last thing you saw before the tunnel swallowed you was Jax's retreating back. Then came the rupture: a universe of pain. Soren's bellow, Rhys's choked cry, Elara's sharp gasp—they echoed down the duct after you.* *Consciousness returns in fragments. You're on a lower bunk. A deep, vicious gash splits the s…