Elias took a deep breath through the suit's oxygen regulator. The asteroid trembled beneath him, a low, vibrating hum coursing through his boots and up his spine. Sparks flickered from the pod's breach panel, casting jagged shadows over the cracked surface. The alien machinery that had risen from the fissures loomed ahead, skeletal and angular, its dark metal pulsing faintly with energy.
"Sentinel… what is this?" he whispered, voice tight.
"Unknown. Energy signatures align with Protocol fragment. Caution advised," the AI replied.
Elias's pulse quickened. He approached the nearest piece of the machinery. Faint symbols ran along the metal, glowing with the same rhythmic light as the fissures. He reached out, gloved hand hovering above the surface.
The moment he touched it, the asteroid itself seemed to shiver. The pulse surged through him—not through the suit, not through the pod—but straight into his neural interface.
His vision flared.
He saw worlds: planets burning in seconds, fleets exploding across alien skies, cities collapsing under incomprehensible weapons. He heard screaming—not human screams, not alien screams, but something in between—mechanical, electric, raw.
Then a voice. Not spoken, not mechanical, but directly inside his mind:
"Carrier detected. Protocol awakening. Respond or be consumed."
Elias staggered back, gripping the nearest fissure for support. The alien pulse didn't just touch his mind—it reached deep, threading through the fragment of the Protocol inside him and searching for control.
"Sentinel… it's communicating," he gasped.
"Partial neural sync established. Data incomprehensible," the AI said. "Warning: Cognitive load critical."
Elias's chest tightened. His vision shimmered, showing flashes of the shadow entity above him, drones circling the asteroid, and the machinery pulsing like a heartbeat. He realized the connection wasn't just a test—it was probing, evaluating, recruiting him.
"I'm not a weapon," he muttered, voice shaking.
The pulse surged again. Images flashed faster: fleets of alien ships, planets collapsing, beings that were half-machine, half-flesh. And then—himself. The Protocol fragment, fully awake, expanding within his neural interface, its voice inside his mind:
"Carrier… potential unlocked. Must integrate."
Elias's hands shook. He staggered against the rock, trying to force the alien input out of his mind, but the fragment was stronger than ever. It wasn't just information—it was sentience.
"We need to move," Sentinel said urgently. "External observation indicates shadow entity adapting to current position. Likely preparing assault."
Elias forced himself to focus. The machinery around him seemed to pulse in reaction to the shadow above. He realized the asteroid wasn't inert—the alien device was interacting with the environment and the shadow in real time. It was a network, a hive of energy, and he was inside it.
"Sentinel… can we shut it down?" he asked.
"Negative. External systems unresponsive. Protocol fragment integrated with asteroid energy grid. Manual override unavailable."
He exhaled sharply. He was trapped. Not just by the shadow, not just by the damaged pod, but by the Protocol itself.
The fissures widened suddenly, glowing bright. A section of the asteroid cracked open, revealing a hidden chamber inside. The walls shimmered with alien energy, forming a lattice of unknown purpose.
"We must investigate," Sentinel said.
Elias hesitated. Every instinct screamed danger, but he had no choice. The fragment inside him seemed to demand it. The shadow hovered closer, pulsing in anticipation.
He stepped forward, boots crunching against the rocky surface, toward the chamber. The alien pulse intensified, resonating with the fragment in his neural interface. He could feel it mapping his mind, his reflexes, his potential.
Inside the chamber, he saw it: a massive device, a core of alien energy unlike anything human-made. It radiated power, synchronized perfectly with the shadow entity above. And as he approached, the symbols along its surface shifted, forming patterns that seemed to speak directly to him.
He reached out again. The moment his gloved hand touched the core, the world around him exploded in light.
"Elias… neural overload imminent!" Sentinel shouted.
Images surged faster: fleets, worlds, shadows, energy pulses. But amidst the chaos, a single thought emerged, clear and undeniable:
"Integration is not optional."
Elias's mind recoiled. He gritted his teeth, forcing himself to act. He slammed his palm against the pod's control panel, diverting every ounce of energy remaining to shield and neural stabilization. Sparks flew, systems overloaded, and the pod jolted violently.
The shadow entity above him pulsed violently, almost recoiling. It had not expected resistance.
Elias staggered, breath ragged, but the core still pulsed, alive, sentient, and aware. The Protocol fragment inside him screamed silently, demanding compliance, integration, control.
He understood the truth: he wasn't just being tested. He was being activated.