Starlight Saga Part 1
Laser blasts seared the starlit void. Chike ducked beneath a wave of crimson energy, the roar of the Agos warship close enough to rattle his bones. His blaster sang in return, picking off a straggling drone, yet they kept coming – a relentless swarm against his battered interceptor.Each warrior that fell, each ship consumed by the enemy's relentless advance, was a fresh stab of despair. But beneath it all raged a different kind of desperation, a flame that had burned in him since childhood.
Memory flash: Sunlight dappling through leaves, a girl's laughter, a hand outstretched…then, a blinding whiteness, the crushing impact, those piercing blue Agos eyes staring down as his world dissolved into screams.
He blinked the memory away. Amara. His sister. Perhaps just another casualty on that long list of losses, but a stubborn sliver of his heart refused to believe it. He fought for every meter, each kill, with the desperate hope that one day she might be among those he saved. A tremor ran through his ship – a glancing blow.
"Chike! Fall back, fall back!" Captain Anya's voice crackled over the comms, edged with the familiar strain of impending defeat.
"Negative, Captain!" He wove through another volley of fire.
"Cover the transports. I'll hold them off!"
"Damn it, Chike…" Anya began, but the transmission cut as he veered into the heart of the fray. His finger never left the trigger, but amidst the chaos, his mind raced.
This wasn't just another battle. If the intel held true, this Agos force was moving deeper into allied territory, poised to strike a major blow. And something about this, about the intensity of their attack, stirred an uneasy familiarity he couldn't shake. Could they know? Could Amara be…No. The thought was unbearable. And it was his distraction that almost cost him his life. Swearing, he banked sharply to avoid a missile, feeling its heat wash over him. The battle had pushed him too far from the allied fleet. He was a lone beacon in a sea of enemies, a flicker waiting to be extinguished. Yet, that same stubborn defiance flared brighter. Amara wouldn't give up. Neither will I.
He wasn't alone for long. Sleek Agos fighters peeled off from the main assault, converging on him like sharks drawn to blood. It was the end, he knew, a brave but ultimately pointless sacrifice. Just as the first shots began to pepper his shields, his console blared a warning. Something was wrong, a strange surge of unidentifiable energy rippling through the sector. Then, the unthinkable happened.
The Agos formation faltered, several fighters spiraling out of control, colliding in a shower of sparks. The larger ships seemed to hesitate, their advance momentarily thrown into disarray. It brought a precious breath of respite, but Chike's focus narrowed on the source of this disturbance. A planet hung before him. Barren, scarred, a lifeless rock or at least, it had been. Now, a sickly, yellow glow pulsed beneath its surface, like a monstrous heart awakening in the depths.
The comms crackled again. "Chike, report! What the hell is happening down there?"
"I-I don't know, Captain!" he sputtered.
Each passing second, the disturbance grew stronger, the planet starting to crackle with otherworldly energy. His instincts screamed at him to flee, but a counter impulse took hold, something as fierce and undeniable as the energy coursing through this dead world. He had to know.
"Changing course," he declared, guiding his fighter toward the desolate surface.
"Investigating."
Anya's protest was muffled by a blast of static as the signal began to degrade. As he neared the planet, the source of the power revealed itself – a shattered crater containing a colossal, bowl-shaped object. It thrummed with an unsettling luminescence, like bone gleaming beneath decaying flesh.
A memory jolted him: Ancient ruins, a stern warning in his father's voice, stories of old magics best left buried.
Watch out for part 2
