Varik Juno

Log Entry 3162.10.31 Situation Summary: Engineering bay is in critical condition. Engines are unstable; pressure readings fluctuate wildly. Varik and Nyssa are struggling to keep the ISS Vigilant Dawn from either exploding or being pulled into Eretheon-6. A potential rescue team has been detected en route, creating both hope and new risks. --- Chapter LI — Varik Juno Sparks rained down the walls of the engine bay. The low hum of failing machinery was like a heartbeat slowing to its final pulse. He wiped grease and blood from his hands, forcing himself to focus. Every console flicker, every shudder of the hull was a reminder that one wrong move—and they’d be vaporized in the crushing pull of Eretheon-6. Nyssa paced nervously as she adjusted a failing conduit. “Varik… it’s getting worse.” He didn’t answer. There were no words that could fix this. The engines were beyond simple repair. Even a full systems override was barely keeping them together. Then—the speakers crackled, cutting through the chaos. A voice, crisp and authoritative, filled the bay. “ISS Vigilant Dawn, this is Operative Unit Omega, Imperium Solarae Strike Division. Extraction en route. Hold position. Repeat: Extraction en route.” Varik froze, disbelief and relief warring inside him. Hope. A lifeline. But… dread followed swiftly on its heels. If the Hive learned of this, if they reached the strike team before they could intervene… Nyssa’s eyes met his, wide with cautious excitement. “They’re coming… but Varik… what if the Hive…?” He swallowed hard. The possibility of assimilation, of losing the strike team before they could even reach them, tightened his chest. But there was no time to dwell. Pulling up comms, Varik patched directly into Command and Aria’s link. They quickly triangulated positions, listing known Hive clusters and vulnerable areas. Plans began forming—quarantine sectors, trap corridors, controlled bulkhead depressurizations. Every second counts.