The wreck of the Artemis IV stood silent in the clearing, its hull scarred and twisted. By dawn, the crew was already at work. Sparks flew as Marquez welded salvaged alloy into broken seams, sweat dripping into her eyes. Okafor hammered warped plating back into shape, each strike echoing into the restless forest.
Hayes barked orders, his voice steady despite the exhaustion in his face. "Focus on the core housing first. Then the conduits. Daniel—keep feeding Marquez the schematics you're seeing."
Daniel nodded numbly, the crystal in his chest glowing like a furnace. His vision pulsed with overlays of light—Earth-born circuitry woven with alien sigils. His hands guided Marquez to cut at precise angles, to reroute power through paths she never would've considered.
It worked. Too well.
---
The Interference
By midday, the air thickened. The forest pressed closer, branches curling toward the wreck like fingers. The shadows emerged again, yellow eyes blinking at the edges of sight.
At first they stayed distant. Then, as Marquez fused the last major conduit, the forest roared. The ground shook violently, tossing tools from their hands. A chorus of hisses rose as shadows lunged into the clearing.
"Contact!" Hayes fired, the rifle's crack splitting the air. Okafor swung his hammer like a weapon, striking one of the smoky figures—it dissipated, only to reform inches away.
Daniel clutched his chest as the crystal flared blindingly, sending a wave of light outward. The shadows staggered back, shrieking, their forms unraveling. But the crystal burned hotter than ever, nearly searing through his skin.
---
The Cost
Minutes felt like hours. When the quake subsided, the shadows retreated again, slinking back into the forest's ribcage.
The crew staggered, battered but alive. The wreck now hummed with new power. The rebuilt conduits glowed faintly, threaded with alien light.
Marquez collapsed onto the dirt, staring at their work. "It's… functional. But it's not the Artemis IV anymore. Look at it."
The ship's hull shimmered faintly where the alien alloys fused with Earth steel, veins of light crawling like living circuits.
Daniel's voice was hoarse. "It wanted this. The ship—it's part of the crystal now."
Okafor spat blood into the dirt. "Then we've built a monster."
Hayes exhaled, his jaw tight. "Monster or not, it flies us off this cursed ground. Tomorrow, we test her."
---
Nightfall
That night, the crew rested in shifts around the glowing hull. The Artemis thrummed faintly, alive in ways no ship should be.
The crystal's light finally dimmed in Daniel's chest, leaving him trembling, drained. He closed his eyes and saw the cloaked figure once more—waiting, silent, as if judging what had been done.
And though no voice spoke, Daniel understood:
This was only the beginning.