Aurania sat in the central room of The Ghost of Mandachor, watching the planet Philos approach on the large wall-screen. The surface stretched out in a broken tapestry of scorched dirt, jagged ridges, and dust storms carving lines through the land like old wounds. The region they approached showed no signs of life. Wreckage from long-abandoned outposts jutted from the dirt, half-swallowed by time and sand.

  Their destination was a ruin near the equator. Once a research station, it was now little more than a skeleton buried beneath rust and sediment. Whatever had happened here had left the land scarred and angry.

  Philos sat on the edge of Corporate Expanse territory, caught between the freedom of independent space and the constant crossfire of competing interests. The ruins were somehow tied to using Aether Dust to manipulate gravity on a planetary scale, technology that wasn't only rare—it was exactly what Nox needed. The Conservatory had taken an interest too, but Philos lay far outside their territory. Their nearest holdings were nearly 40 light-years away; they'd have to travel for 2-3 weeks via Jump Drive to reach the planet without traversing star systems that considered them hostile. Any presence here would likely be through hired muscle or research teams, but that didn't make the risk of violence any lessl real.

  "Approaching Philos," came Raine’s voice over the intercom, snapping Aurania out of her thoughts. A sudden jolt rocked the ship as turbulence hit, and Raine’s voice crackled through the speakers again. "Sorry, still getting used to the controls."

  Tamiyo had begun teaching her how to pilot the ship, a wise tactic so their team had more versatility. Although the ride was currently a bit bumpy, it made her think about how much Raine had grown since leaving Nox. She wasn’t a fighter and didn’t exactly have a defined role amongst their team, but she had proved indispensable to almost every mission. Whether helping move gear, simply spreading word of scheduled mission briefs, or even helping cook, do laundry, and patch up the ship, Raine had installed herself as a core team member.

  The entire team had been growing and improving. Tamiyo was becoming more than just a CIPHER with a painful past. Inelius had sharpened his instincts and shown excellent leadership prowess. The tension with Soren was slowly dissipating. And things had even mellowed out with Veolo after Violet helped her get her head on straight.

  The ship broke through the atmosphere, and the landscape of Philos opened up beneath them. Jagged rocks protruded from the earth like teeth, ancient crumbling structures lay scattered across the landscape, and the air itself seemed permeated with a persistent red hue.

  “Yeesh, what a hellscape,” Violet breathed.

  “Just need to spruce it up a little,” Soren shrugged.

  “Yeah!” Amalia piled on. “Little bit of spitshine. And dynamite.”

  The team was all together for this op. Aurania was sick of her team being split up, and it felt wrong having anyone missing for something related to saving Nox. All but their two d'moria teammates sat crammed onto The Ghost of Mandachor.

  Elias sat up in the cockpit with Raine and Tamiyo as he usually did when they were about to deploy. Inelius and Riza were both quietly waiting next to Soren while he talked with Veolo. Aurania had been teaching her about leadership so the two were discussing what she had learned to help Veolo better retain it.

  No matter what strange attraction and tension lay between Aurania and Soren, the man had valuable military experience.

  With Tamiyo’s help, Raine set the ship down just a short distance from the ruins, the landing gear crunching against the rocky terrain. The ship shuddered as it settled on the uneven surface, the sound reverberating through the hull. Outside, the winds howled, kicking up a storm of red dust and grit.

  Soren stood, stretching the stiffness from his back, and grabbed his rifle from the compartment near the exit. Aurania and the others formed up behind him and waited. She could already taste the dryness of the planet’s atmosphere, a warning of the harsh environment they were about to step into.

  Just like they had practiced, Soren opened the starboard hatch and exited down the ramp, clearing the way before anyone else risked stepping out. After he gave the ‘all-clear,’ the other six fighters followed him down.

  They moved quickly, cutting through the dry, cracked ground toward the half-hidden entrance to the ruins. The area was eerily silent, save for the howling wind that swept through the gaps in the broken structures. The air was thick with the smell of rust and decay.

  The sound of engines broke the stillness, and they froze in place. Aurania's senses slammed into high alert. The deep thrumming of thrusters grew louder, and from the shadows of the ruins, a ship rose up. It was roughly the same size as The Ghost of Mandachor, but several differences were apparent from the silhouette. Mounted on both the left and right sides of the wide ship-face were large guns.

  It wasn’t facing directly at them, and for a second, she thought it was just mercenaries. But then Riza yelled out, “That’s a Conservatory gunship!”

  Aurania’s stomach dropped, and a moment later, the ship quickly began rotating towards them.

  She immediately began barking orders over comms. “Tamiyo, get in the sky! Riza! Take its weapons out! Shit— COVER!”

  They all dove.

  A viscous growl of heavy gunfire cracked the air, tearing through the ruins with deafening force. The wall Aurania was behind started to shatter, and the ground trembled around her. The sharp sounds of debris raining down filled her ears, and a chunk of stone exploded near her head, narrowly missing.

  The ship finally let up for a moment, and Aurania ordered them to return fire. Soren jumped up and leapt over some debris into open air, making himself a target. He was fast, but the ship spotted him and swung toward him—

  BOOOOOOOMMM.

  The massive shockwave of Riza's cannon slammed through the air, sounding like a planet had punched someone. The blast hit the gunship’s starboard weapon with a satisfying explosion of sparks, and it disintegrated into a twisted wreck. The impact caused the ship to spin several times, and it lost a bit of altitude while trying to regain control.

  The remaining gun opened fire before it even swiveled back toward them. It came around, a volley of shots tearing through the ruins in a wide arc.

  Another blast rang out from Riza, shearing the port gun off in an explosive fire ball of shrapnel. The gunship shuddered in mid-air, momentarily crippled, and its engines sputtered as it struggled to stay airborne.

  “Hell yeah! Nice shot!” Inelius called out.

  The damaged gunship limped through the air, dipping down below the ruins. But a moment later, the engines roared back to life. The ship popped back into the air and the thrusters surged, shooting up into the sky.

  “Cowards!” Amalia screamed.

  The team regrouped, and Aurania casually asked, “Anyone dead?”

  “Not for lack of effort,” Veolo quipped, looking at Soren.

  “Yeah, sorry,” Soren told her. “You can run out there next time.”

  They brushed the dust off, reloaded, and Aurania told Tamiyo to touch back down.

  “What the hell were they doing out here?” Raine asked over comms. “I thought we were only expecting hired mercenaries.”

  “Think we were given bad intel?” Veolo asked.

  “No,” Aurania answered. “This is Corporate Expanse territory for sure, but no matter how much power someone in this region possesses, they almost always choose to get out of the way if the Conservatory shows up.”

  “Why is that?” Soren asked.

  “Common sense,” Elias’ voice came in from The Ghost. “The Conservatory is better organized, has more resources, more funding, and is just better equipped than any of the Expanse’s mercenaries could ever hope for.”

  “Well, let’s go figure out why they were here,” Violet said. She aimed toward the entrance to the ruins and began walking. Soren fell in beside her, and the rest of the team followed.

  They proceeded cautiously through the ancient research lab, stopping every so often to check the environment for any signs of life or danger.

  The further they went, the more everything seemed to close in on them. The skeletal remains of the buildings cast long shadows in the harsh light of Philos’s red-hued sun. Aurania couldn't shake the sense that they were being watched, as if the ruins themselves were waiting for them to uncover the secrets buried within.

  But they met no further resistance. No sign of anything that might pose a threat. The eerie silence of the ruins pressed in, broken only by the occasional crack of stone underfoot or the distant howl of the wind.

  They searched for what felt like hours, moving deeper into the ruins, but nothing came to light. No signs of life. No clues as to why the Conservatory was so determined to have a presence on this forsaken world.

  “Clear,” Inelius said finally, breaking the silence. “Seems like all hostiles left aboard that ship.”

  They fanned out, inspecting what remained of the once-functional structures. The tech littered around them was rusted, cracked, and decayed, but there was still something intriguing about the remnants.

  “How is this place still standing?” Violet muttered as she picked through a pile of debris. “It’s practically begging to be scavenged.”

  “It doesn’t make sense, Soren agreed. “You’d think a place like this would be stripped clean by now. Anyone find anything of value?”

  Inelius looked up from the area he was scanning around a broken terminal. “It’s likely the Conservatory team wasn’t here for extraction. I think they were mapping things out, gathering intel. All the valuable tech was left behind because they weren’t here for that.”

  “I agree,” Riza said. “They must’ve been more interested in assessing what was still here, rather than what they could immediately take.”

  “Reconnaissance, huh?” Violet echoed thoughtfully. “That makes sense, that ship wasn’t very big. They wouldn’t have been able to haul much out.”

  Aurania moved quietly between two collapsed beams as everyone scoured for salvageable tech. She scanned for anything that seemed out of place while her ears half-tracked the others’ chatter. Then she noticed Soren peeling away from the group.

  What are you up to?

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  He walked toward a section of the ruins with less debris and held his hand out toward it. She watched him closely as he focused, catching glimpses of that strange silvery-green light through the mental link.

  The air shimmered around a stone with a faint white aura where his palm was pointed, and an instant later, the rock flew across the room like it had a rocket attached to it. It slammed into the wall and shattered into a thousand pieces.

  Everyone turned and looked.

  “Ooooh, cool,” Amalia lit up. “Do it again.”

  “No, don’t,” Aurania said, more reflex than thought.

  For a moment, Soren didn’t say anything. Then he protested. “I’m more than a meat shield Aurania. I need to learn to control it at times when we're not in life or death situations.”

  She met his gaze but didn’t push back.

  “He’s right,” Inelius said. “The only way to not be afraid of what he can do is to practice.”

  “Yeah,” Soren went on. “And Tamiyo has been helping me meditate every day to try and understand them. But I can’t do any practical application aboard The Resolute Wind. I don’t want to lose control and accidentally tear a hole through the side of the ship.”

  Aurania held his gaze a moment longer, then gave in. “Alright.”

  “Oh, hell yeah!” Amalia lit up. “Let me throw something at you.” She looked around to see who was closest to her. “Riza, you want to get in on this?”

  “Nope,” she said flatly. “I’ve been on the receiving end of that ride, it’s all yours.”

  Amalia just laughed and picked up a stone twice the size of her fist.

  “Now hold on,” Soren said, “I don’t exactly—”

  She hurled the stone at his head.

  Soren flinched and dodged away from it.

  “Aww, don’t be boring,” Amalia said.

  “I’m still figuring this shit out!” Soren told her. “Don’t just provoke me without warning. It doesn’t go over well.” He made an exaggerated indication towards Aurania. She leaned against the wall and watched them with her arms crossed.

  “Just… just go over there, away from them,” Soren said. “I don’t want to accidentally hit someone.”

  Amalia moved over to where he had launched the first stone from. She picked up another stone, this one slightly smaller than the last. She weighed it in her hand before tossing it lightly between her palms, like she was trying to decide if she should throw it or not.

  “Anyone ever tell you that you’re an agent of chaos?” Soren said. He crouched a little, trying to prepare for her attack.

  Amalia feigned like she was deeply insulted. “How dare you, you giant glow stick.” She tossed the rock from her off hand to her dominant hand and cocked her arm back. “I am a beacon of joy.”

  She hurled the stone straight at him, way faster than expected. For a second, Aurania thought it was going to hit him. But then, with a sharp breath, he raised his hand and—

  The stone stopped a few inches away from his palm, held in the air by an invisible force.

  Everyone froze and watched. The stone vibrated faintly as he held it in the air with whatever force he’d wrapped it in.

  “That’s it. That’s it right there,” Soren muttered, his voice strained with concentration.

  But then the stone suddenly shot forward. It flew past Amalia and collided with a nearby pillar, causing the entire structure to vibrate. Soren winced, and said, “Oops.” Aurania could feel his radiating embarrassment.

  Amalia looked where the stone hit then back to Soren, her face a picture of innocent curiosity. “You need more practice.”

  “You think?!” Soren spat.

  He must not have realized she meant right now, because a moment later another stone came hurtling toward him. He batted at it before it reached him. It obeyed and changed direction mid-air, flying into the wall.

  She threw another, he deflected it down into the ground, shards scattering over his boots. The next he flung into the wall again.

  Then she threw one and he accidentally batted with the other hand. It careened across the room towards the rest of the group. It passed right between Violet and Inelius before breaking apart on the opposite wall.

  “Alright, that’s enough,” Aurania said.

  Soren turned to look at her just as a small pebble bounced off his helmet. He shot Amalia an incredulous look and she said, “Hehe… last one, promise.”

  Aurania cocked an eyebrow at Soren.

  “You done fucking around?”

  “Me? Yes,” Soren answered. “Her? Doubt it.”

  Aurania’s glare softened, her mouth twitching into a smirk before she turned away to hide it. As Soren and Amalia made their way back over to the rest of the group, Veolo asked, “So do we think they’re coming back at some point?”

  “Either that,” Violet said, “or something here told them where to go next.”

  Several glances were traded around the room.

  “I think you’re onto something,” Inelius said, typing away at a terminal he had got working. “They weren’t here for the technology, just the information it might hold. They probably knew they didn’t have time to secure anything major.”

  “So, if they’re not after the equipment,” Soren said, then they're after... what, exactly? The data? A blueprint? It’s supposed to be connected to planetary gravity effects, right?”

  “This,” Inelius said, pointing at the terminal screen. “There’s a locked data core deeper inside the facility.”

  “Wait, if that’s what they were after, why is it still here?” Violet asked. She leaned over Inelius’s shoulder to get a better look.

  “Because this is the backup,” he replied. “There was another module here that looks like they grabbed and left. They didn’t pass over this one, they probably only had time to grab the one. The backup is locked up pretty good.”

  “Then let’s go unlock it,” Aurania said.

  The team pushed forward, navigating through the rubble and deeper into the structure, following Inelius’s lead toward the sealed-off section of the facility. Along the way, they came across several pieces of older technology, much of it decayed, some of it barely functional, but enough to be worth salvaging. Small power cells, tactical interfaces, and a few pieces of advanced circuitry were all that remained from what had clearly been once state-of-the-art equipment.

  “Interesting,” Riza said, tossing a small component into her pack. “I think I can rig something useful out of this.”

  They kept a steady pace, collecting what they could as they moved toward the heart of the facility. Every piece of equipment they found seemed to hold the potential for something more, something they could use or learn from.

  By the time they reached the locked door, they had gathered enough that Aurania felt like they had something tangible. Now, all they had to do was figure out what was on the data core, and why it had been so carefully hidden.

  The door was 10 feet tall and 20 feet wide, a type of blast door that slid along tracks to open. It appeared to be locked via a nearby, unpowered terminal.

  “Riza, think you can blow it open?” Aurania asked.

  “Yeah, but I can’t promise the data core will survive.”

  Aurania turned to Inelius. “What about restoring power to the computer?”

  “I can think of a quicker way,” he said.

  She hesitated before answering, not wanting to acknowledge the suggestion. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

  “Come on Aura,” Inelius said, “Give him a chance. If he was able to tap in against a giant sea beast, this should be a breeze.”

  After several moments, she turned to Soren. “This is something more delicate, think you can handle it?”

  He nodded immediately, fierce determination in his eyes.

  She waved the rest of the team away. “We should stand back.”

  Everyone backed up against a wall where they could watch but hopefully avoid being collateral damage. Amalia was excitedly bouncing up and down. “Tear it the fuck off!”

  He looked nervous, but he took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. Then he raised a hand toward the door.

  Aurania watched closely.

  The door didn’t move.

  She frowned. She could feel his frustration bleeding through their mental link. Too much, he'd destroy everything. Too little, nothing would move.

  He reached deeper, and the air began to change. A subtle pressure built, and finally, some dust shook loose from the seams around the door. He kept trying, and the metal let out a low groan from inside the walls.

  Soren grit his teeth, and the sounds grew louder. It seemed like he had it, but then something faltered, and the door settled back into place.

  Soren forcefully exhaled, releasing the tension from his body.

  There was a moment of silence from the group. No laughter, no jeering, just the quiet shuffle of gear and a few exchanged glances. But Aurania could feel his embarrassment. He wanted to succeed. The damn mental link was letting his thoughts slip through, and she could feel how much her approval meant to him.

  He rolled his jaw and moved his head side to side, trying to loosen his shoulders up.

  Amalia sympathetically told him, “Hey. You almost had it.”

  “Almost isn't good enough,” he muttered.

  Then, without another word, he turned and unslung his rifle, tossing it to Amalia. Then he reached up and removed his helmet. Sweat clung to his hairline as he pulled it off and let out a breath.

  She suddenly realized how close she was watching his every move. He crouched and gently set the helmet beside him, then stepped forward. Closing his eyes, he inhaled through his nose. Then he opened his eyes again and raised both palms toward the door.

  The tension in the air returned immediately, and Aurania felt like her ears needed to pop. A low sound escaped him, half grunt, half growl, as his muscles tensed and his boots slid half an inch across the floor. His fingers curled involuntarily, as if gripping something that wasn’t there.

  Then he lit up.

  Tendrils of light began to crawl through his hair, and it moved as if buffeted by some cosmic wind. His eyes began to glow as the Aether Dust coursed through him. It was less explosive this time, but it was no less magnificent as it gradually grew.

  The blast door shuddered. Once, then again. A harsh grinding noise split the air as the massive structure lurched forward an inch and sparks popped from one of the wall tracks.

  “Easy,” Aurania warned.

  He kept going.

  His fingers curled more and he began to tremble as he strained. She saw veins start to stick up along his neck, and for a moment Aurania thought he might make himself pass out.

  But then he closed his fists, locking his invisible grip on the massive metal slabs. His arms yanked back.

  The doors ripped towards him with a screech. They barely missed, slamming into the wall behind him with a deep, heavy CLANG. Dust filled the room, swirling in a red-tinged cloud as everything fell silent.

  The glowing light slowly receded from his hair and eyes.

  Veolo muttered, “Holy shit.”

  Then Inelius, Amalia, and Violet all let out cheers. Soren looked at Aurania and she avoided his gaze, afraid her thoughts would betray her.

  “I knew you could do it!” Inelius said.

  Soren wiped sweat from his brow, breathing hard. “Thanks—”

  “LOOK OUT!!” Inelius yelled.

  Soren looked up just as the heavy door landed on top of him. Aurania involuntarily took half a step forward and began to reach a hand out, as if she could have done something to stop it.

  More dust and silence followed.

  For a second, Aurania couldn’t see him. She held her breath, scanning the ground through the thickening haze. Then she heard him weakly groan.

  “I’m okay,” came his muffled voice.

  “Might wanna define ‘okay,’” Violet called out.

  As the dust cleared, she saw just the top of his head barely sticking out from under the door. It looked like he was completely pinned on his back, his face held looking away from them.

  Aurania sighed and turned to Inelius. “Go get the data core.”

  Then she walked over and stood next to Soren’s head, crouching down and grabbing the edge. The slab was enormous, and the weight staggering. Her arms trembled under the strain, but she didn’t let it show. She clenched her jaw, and her armored hooves scraped on the stone floor as she lifted it enough for him to crawl out.

  He just blinked up at her, not moving. He looked dazed, or starstruck, and he just continued staring with wide, innocent eyes.

  She glared down. “What the fuck are you waiting for?!”

  “Shit yeah sorry. Moving.” He scrambled backward, dragging himself out from under the door with all the dignity of a crushed insect.

  Aurania exhaled sharply and dropped the door, a puff of red dust billowing around her. She stood there, panting and not yet ready to speak as he sat up. Their eyes met again, and she felt his thoughts slip through as he regained his composure.

  At least the thoughts were flattering.

  She shifted her weight to one leg and pressed her tongue into her cheek. “You know I can still hear what you’re thinking.”

  He turned red and actually scowled. “Not fair.”

  A giggle escaped her before she realized it. Instead of acknowledging it, she just walked away. Violet and Veolo went over to help him stand. Amalia tossed him back his rifle, and he clumsily caught it with one hand.

  “Where’s your helmet?” Violet asked.

  All four of them looked at the door lying flat.

  “How many helmets have you gone through since we left Nox?” Veolo asked.

  Soren awkwardly averted his gaze. “Hey Inelius, how’s it coming in there?”

  The lazarco was walking back toward them, and held up his hand, “Got it.”

  “Excellent,” Aurania said. “Good work, Inelius.”

  She motioned the team to head back to the ship, and as they began to move out of the room, she felt the need to linger. She looked back at Soren and their eyes locked. Her heart leapt, and she almost wavered. She forced her tone to stay even and said, “You too.”

  Then she left without waiting for his response.