Comet Research Station “Breacher”
Jin sat watching the sensors. He went to take a sip of coffee but found it empty.
Another ping ran deep through the ancient hunk of space ice, scanning the interior but turning up no further definite clues on the mysterious contents.
Suddenly a blast of light and noise echoed across the surface. A huge jet of frost and icy boulders ejected upwards, followed by a hail of starships.
“What in-” Jin said as he scrambled to get to the comms. But before he could, they began blaring out. “THIS IS A HUNTER OPERATION. ALL CIVILIANS ARE TO STAY BACK. IF YOU ENTER THE APPREHENSION AREA, YOU WILL BE CONSIDERED AMONG THE PERPETRATORS. REPEAT. THIS-” The message went on, its voice of god driving out all thought until Jin could shut it off. He looked out the window and saw, bewilderingly, a dogfight.
He sat there with his mouth open until he finally processed another sound. The scan had produced results?! He tore himself away from the window to look and saw readings that didn’t make any sense. A discontinuity in the spatial readings? Assuming the thing wasn’t busted, that could only happen if… But then he saw the energy pattern scan. Something was active inside this comet! Best estimates had rated this rock as around a million years old. In months of study, he hadn’t seen anything like this. He rushed back to the window, watching bursts of smoke and light above. Whatever was with these readings, it obviously had something to do with these ships. But where had they come from?
