Elias leaned in, driven by a terrifying curiosity. He expected to see a machine or a terrifying creature. Instead, he saw a swirling, viscous liquid that seemed to reach toward the edges of the container, mimicking the shape of the hands he held against his chest. "It's learning," Vane whispered. "And it’s hungry."
"The reason we’re flying with the transponder off," Vane replied. "The reason we aren't stopping at the Port Authority for inspection. This 'silent cargo' is a prototype—a biological processor capable of terraforming a dead moon in forty-eight hours. But it needs a host to stabilize the initial reaction."
Vane didn't answer. Instead, she tapped a command into the crate's keypad. The seals hissed, venting a cloud of frigid, white vapor. As the lid slid back, a soft, bioluminescent blue light spilled out, illuminating the narrow room. Silent.Cargo.S01E04.PL.720p.AMZN.WEB-DL.H264.DD...
Elias jumped, nearly dropping his tablet. Commander Vane stood in the shadows of the bulkhead, her face obscured by the flickering emergency lights. She wasn't wearing her usual bridge uniform; she was in a tactical vest, a sidearm holstered at her hip.
Elias looked back at the crate. The hum was getting louder, shifting from a dull thrum to a rhythmic pulse. "What’s inside?" Elias leaned in, driven by a terrifying curiosity
Elias felt a cold sweat break out. "A host? Like... a person?"
The metal hull of the Andromeda groaned, a low, rhythmic sound that echoed through the empty corridors of the cargo deck. In the belly of the ship, tucked away in Sector 4, sat a single, unmarked crate. Unlike the others, it didn't rattle with the ship’s vibration. It was perfectly, unnervingly still. "It's learning," Vane whispered
"Just checking a vibration in the floor plates, Commander," Elias lied, his heart hammering against his ribs.