The Solaris Ark cut cleanly through the upper skies. Beyond the viewport, clouds parted and reformed like obedient currents.
Then—
Marie's voice echoed through the Ark.
"We've caught up," she announced calmly from the control seat. "Visual confirmed. The Solaris Ark that departed earlier is directly ahead."
The effect was immediate.
Conversations stopped. Heads turned. Several people moved toward the viewports.
"What?" someone blurted out.
"That's impossible. Only a few hours have passed," another muttered. "They left half a day before us."
Arctyx narrowed his eyes, mentally retracing the timeline. "You were inside the ruins for more than half a day," he said slowly. "That Ark departed during that window."
Yet there it was.
Another Solaris Ark cruising steadily ahead.
They hadn't merely closed the distance—
They had overtaken it.
