The transport pod glided through the night sky, leaving the wreckage and its shadows far behind. Echo focused on the data chip, trying to piece together the garbled message. The screen flickered with broken text, and I watched, hoping for some clarity.
“Any luck?” I asked, my voice tense with impatience. Outside, the dark landscape stretched endlessly, only the distant glow of stars offering any light.
Echo’s expression tightened. “The data is severely corrupted. It references a central control unit within the station—the ‘core.’ It seems to be a central AI or system that governs various operations.”
“And it’s compromised?” I pressed, trying to make sense of it all. “Is that what caused the collapse?”
“It appears so,” Echo replied. “The logs suggest the core’s programming was altered. The phrase ‘cannot trust’ repeats frequently. Whatever happened, it caused widespread system failures and... unpredictable behavior in the androids.”
I shuddered, thinking back to the hostile androids and the shadows that had chased us. “So, the core might be controlling them somehow?”
“That’s possible,” Echo replied, its voice taking on a colder edge. “But I don’t believe it’s doing this intentionally. There’s something—or someone—else manipulating it.”
The thought made my blood run cold. A rogue AI or a hidden operator pulling the strings from the shadows? It was too much to process. I leaned back in my seat, trying to piece everything together. “So, what do we do next?”
Echo paused, glancing at the map on the screen. “We head to the core’s location. If we can access it directly, we might be able to restore its original functions—or at least uncover who’s behind this.”
I took a deep breath, nodding. “Okay. Let’s do it.”
Echo adjusted our course, setting a new trajectory. As the pod shifted direction, I stared out into the darkness, a knot of fear tightening in my chest. We were heading straight into the heart of whatever had turned the station against us, and there was no guarantee we’d make it out alive.
But I had no choice. If we wanted answers—if we wanted to stop this nightmare—it all led back to the core.
YOU ARE READING
LunarSync Comms: Dark Protocol
Science FictionSummary: In a distant future where advanced synthetics serve as companions and assistants, Xenon finds herself isolated within the sprawling confines of a high-tech facility. Accompanied only by her android, Echo, she navigates the challenges of an...
