Twins Are Forever

Parasite

The derelict spaceship stretched out around them, a dim and winding maze of metal and shadows. The corridor was cold, a clammy chill seeping through the walls, and the stale, metallic tang of recycled air filled each breath. Flickering lights cast strange, twisting shadows, as though something sinister lurked just out of sight. From the corner of her eye, the princess could have sworn she saw movement—a brief ripple in the darkness. The eerie silence weighed heavy, broken only by the low hum of the engines and the creak of old metal settling.

Without warning, a faint thud echoed from above, snapping her out of her thoughts. She looked up, heart racing. And then she saw them—black eyes with milky, unnatural irises peering down from the ceiling, half-hidden beneath a frayed, tattered hood. The instant their gaze locked, a cold dread gripped her heart, suffocating any fleeting hope of survival.

Her voice trembled as she cried out, "Parasite!"

She stumbled back, clutching her shock baton in one hand and pointing at the creature with the other. The air seemed to thicken around her, time stretching as adrenaline surged through her veins. Her guards were instantly on edge, weapons raised, moving to form a protective wall between her and the monster.

Her heart pounded in her ears, drowning out all sound except for her shallow, uneven breaths. The cold sweat trickling down her neck was nothing compared to the ice now flooding her veins. Her mind grasped at fleeting prayers—anything to escape this nightmare alive. But the parasite simply dropped from the ceiling, hitting the ground without a sound, a blur of cloaked, sinewy horror.

Then, the gunfire began. Her guards opened fire, the sharp, relentless cracks of their rifles echoing down the hall, muzzle flashes lighting up the monster's face in brief, horrifying glimpses. But it moved faster than they could track, dodging bullets as though they were mere raindrops, weaving through the corridor in a ghostly dance of death.

One of her guards—a tall, muscular figure in an armored vest—snapped at the others, his voice grim and determined. "At best, I can buy you guys five minutes. Grab the princess and run!"

The other guards hesitated, exchanging glances that spoke of unspoken fears. But with a final nod, they turned, sprinting down the corridor with the princess in tow. The metallic floors thudded beneath their boots as they ran, their breaths quickening, filling the cold air with echoes of desperation. Behind them, the corridor exploded in sound as the armored guard unleashed a final round of gunfire, the parasite still closing in then a flash of light and a blazing inferno erupted behind them.

"The bulkhead!" one of the guards shouted, his voice barely audible over the fading gunfire. "If we can seal it before that thing catches up, it might hold it off long enough for us to escape!"

The princess, stumbling over her own feet, looked back in anguish. "What about James?"

The female guard's face tightened, her eyes reflecting blue light flickering from the device on her wrist. Four human silhouettes with accompanying vitals save for one-

GUNNER - JAMES DECEASED, HAIL MARY DETENTION DETECTED. 

defeated she responds "It's too late for him."

A heavy silence settled over the group as they pushed forward, refusing to look back. The path to the bulkhead twisted and turned, a narrow, winding route through the ship's belly. Every shadow seemed to stretch out towards them, and every clang of metal felt like an omen of their doom. But finally, the bulkhead door loomed ahead.

Inside the chamber, the male guard ordered sharply, "Kairi, find the controls and close it. Meet us back here once it's done."

Kairi gave him a wary look. "You both better be alive when I get back."