Silence thickened the air like dust after an explosion. No one spoke. No one moved.
Asterin's fingers trembled.
That vision—it hadn't felt like a hallucination. It felt real. Like something ripped from her future and thrown at her with violent urgency.
Nova was the first to recover.
"What the hell was that?" he said, voice sharper now. Less composed.
The Scientist walked calmly around the table, unfazed.
"Quor X doesn't like to be discussed. Not openly. It reacts when we get too close to the truth."
Kael's face had lost all its humor. "You knew that would happen."
The Scientist stopped. "Yes."
Asterin stepped forward.
"You said we were chosen. What does that mean? Why me? Why us?"
He turned to her.
"Because Quor X chose you.
Each of you has a frequency—a resonance—that syncs with the anomaly.
Most people die trying to enter it. You… might not."
Kalex muttered, "That's… encouraging."
The silent girl, still unnamed, finally spoke.
Her voice was soft, but sure.
"What happens in the loop?"
The Scientist stared at her a moment.
Then walked to the far wall.
With a swipe, a section of the metal shifted—revealing a docking chamber. Inside was a small, sharp-edged spacecraft. Black. Sleek. Like it had been grown, not built.
"This is Echo One," he said. "You'll board it at 0400. You'll follow the path we've plotted—directly into the Quor X rift. Once inside, time will break. You'll relive events. Refract. Repeat.
And if you're lucky…"
His eyes flicked to Asterin.
"You'll find the stone."
The room darkened again. But this time, it wasn't a glitch.
From the center of the table rose a second hologram: a rough black stone, swirling with faint light inside. Alien markings wrapped around it like veins.
"This is what powers the anomaly. What created it. And what I need you to bring back."
"So this is a heist?" Kael raised an eyebrow. "Inside a cosmic blender?"
Nova narrowed his eyes. "You said if we're lucky. What if we're not?"
The Scientist hesitated.
Then simply said, "You die. Again. And again. Until you either escape… or become part of it."
The words sank in like lead.
And somewhere deep in the lab—MOVA began humming again, softly. As if the loop was listening.
___________
Just wait guys many twists are going to come🙌🏻