Despite the harsh conditions aboard the ship, Sofia and her team had settled into a routine. “Sofia what’s wrong?”. She activated the release mechanism, and the panel hissed open, revealing the narrow, dark passageway beyond. She blinked once—twice—but the passage before her blurred, the walls seeming to bend and pulse as if alive. “No, please, not this!” – Sofie tried to scream from horror, but only whimper and whines were heard from her. Without warning, a chill sliced through Sofia. Sofia’s boots clicked against the cold metal floors of the vessel’s command deck as she strode purposefully forward, the usual hum of the warp engine a constant, ominous presence in the background. The closer they got to the vent ducts, the more intense the vibrations became. Her family had been poor, struggling to make ends meet, and Sofia had learned to be resourceful from a young age. The closer they got to the vent ducts, the more intense the vibrations became. Sofia’s hand instinctively went to the lasgun slung across her back, her fingers brushing the cold metal of the weapon.
