Into The Stars

Into The Stars_004 // Code_0 //

Chapter 1: A Glimpse of Hope

Suddenly, the station's sirens blared, and red lights flashed. Code 0 was initiated as government agents broke into the shuttle. Time was slipping away; they were just moments from disaster. Panic erupted as the agents rushed through the station, their approach heralded by the screeching metal of cutting tools.

The Commander navigated the shuttle down the tunnel designed for launch, heart racing. Just one step remained: the Admiral had to press the Xenon detonation button at the tunnel's halfway point to propel them into the void. The positioning was crucial; the half-tunnel was the only safe zone to ignite the fuel without endangering the shuttle.

"Stop right there, Admiral! Don't move, or I'll kill you where you stand!" Roshid, a high-ranking government agent, barked.

"What have I done, Roshid? I've given humanity its last hope, and you're threatening to snuff it out with your twisted agenda!" the Admiral shot back, defiance fueling his words.

In that fateful moment, the bullet struck, piercing through the Admiral's back. He collapsed to the floor, dreams and aspirations crumbling around him as the life faded from his eyes. His last thoughts were of the project he had devoted himself to, now slipping away into nothingness.

"Ten seconds to detonation," the Commander urged, the urgency of the situation boiling over.

"This can't be happening!" Jakson yelled, panic overtaking him.

The shuttle was now experiencing violent energy reactions; toxic gases filled the cockpit, choking them. Time was running out.

"In ten seconds, the Admiral must push the Xenon button, or we're done for!" the Commander insisted, fighting against despair.

"Yeah, if we don't suffocate first!" Jakson shot back, frustration spilling over.

As the countdown reached its critical point, the darkness of unconsciousness descended upon them, the shuttle spiraling towards catastrophe. But just before everything went black, the Admiral managed to press the button, launching the probe into the depths of space.

"His madness has cost us countless lives!" Roshid seethed, anger radiating from him. In his mind, the Admiral had sabotaged the government's plans, and now they would leverage this failure for their own gain.

"Let's move. It didn't work as we intended, but we can fund our own project," Roshid ordered, leaving the chaos behind.

Unbeknownst to him, this act of betrayal would ignite a conflict far greater than humanity could comprehend. They abandoned the Admiral's body, gathering whatever information they could on Star Shuttle 01. But due to the Admiral's foresight, crucial data remained uncollectible. Yet, he took solace in the knowledge that he had launched the probe before his death, ensuring that humanity's quest for the stars would continue, even against all odds.

And now, the story would forge ahead from within the shuttle.

The team aboard Star Shuttle 01 had passed out. The combination of toxic gases and minerals produced in the combustion chamber seeped into their room, overwhelming them in an instant. Despite the shuttle being equipped with advanced oxygen purification systems and safety protocols, a mere delay of three to six seconds was enough to knock them unconscious. It was an unfortunate design flaw in an otherwise state-of-the-art vessel.

The atmosphere inside the shuttle felt eerie—an almost one-in-a-million moment. It held a strange calmness, juxtaposed with the intensity of the events that had unfolded just moments before their launch. It was as if the universe itself was singing a serenade, a lullaby from the stars, wrapping them in its cold, indifferent embrace.