**355 Days Until the Trial Gates Open**
The *Argonaut* left lunar orbit under strict radio silence.
Unlike previous operations, there were no escort fleets or ceremonial departures. Only those with Omega clearance knew where the ship was headed.
Officially, the *Argonaut* was conducting long-range sensor calibration beyond Neptune.
Unofficially, it was racing to answer the first distress call ever received from another living civilization.
---
The bridge remained unusually quiet.
Captain Roland Rolf stood with his hands clasped behind his back, watching the main display as stars stretched into lines during the ship's FTL transit.
"Time to intercept?"
"Nine hours," Rika answered.
"Any change in the beacon?"
She shook her head.
"It continues repeating the same automated distress signal."
Flint sat at the science station, studying the signal's waveform.
"It wasn't meant to last this long."
Captain Rolf looked over.
"What do you mean?"
"The transmitter should have failed centuries ago."
Everyone looked at him.
"Something aboard that ship is still maintaining it."
---
Below, in Hangar Zero, the three Gundams stood ready.
Sentinel occupied Launch Bay One, its six fin funnels mounted neatly on the backpack. Flint had spent the previous week refining their control software, and Leon had spent nearly every waking hour mastering them in the simulator.
The results were promising.
The funnels no longer felt like separate weapons.
They felt like extensions of his own thoughts.
Nearby, Gundam Tempest rested on its launch cradle. Elias Voss performed another careful inspection, checking every thruster and every weapon mount with meticulous precision.
Marcus Hale leaned against Gundam Bastion's massive leg, sipping coffee from a dented metal mug.
Leon walked over.
"You know we're about to meet aliens."
Marcus shrugged.
"Still need coffee."
Leon laughed.
"I can't argue with that."
---
An alarm echoed through the hangar.
"Five minutes to arrival."
Pilots moved immediately.
No unnecessary words.
No dramatic speeches.
Only practiced professionalism.
Leon climbed into Sentinel's cockpit and closed the hatch.
The familiar hum of the reactor settled his nerves.
The panoramic monitor flickered to life.
**Sentinel Systems Online**
**Psycho-Frame Synchronization: 98.7%**
**Fin Funnel Network: Ready**
Leon smiled.
"Let's hope this goes better than Jupiter."
---
The *Argonaut* dropped out of FTL.
The stars returned.
And the bridge fell silent.
The alien ship drifted directly ahead.
It was enormous—nearly six kilometers long.
Unlike the sleek symmetry of Ascendancy vessels, this craft had been built with graceful curves that resembled flowing water. Much of its hull was scarred or missing entirely. Entire sections had been melted away, exposing empty decks and silent machinery.
It had clearly survived a catastrophic battle.
Yet somehow...
It was still alive.
Tiny navigation lights blinked weakly along its battered hull.
---
"Life signs confirmed."
Rika zoomed the image.
"Only one."
Captain Rolf frowned.
"One?"
"That's all I'm detecting."
Flint studied the readings.
"Cryogenic life support."
His eyes widened.
"...Someone has been asleep for a very long time."
---
The *Argonaut* approached cautiously.
No weapons were powered.
No targeting systems activated.
Captain Rolf wanted their first meeting with another civilization to begin with trust rather than fear.
---
A narrow docking tube extended from the *Argonaut* toward one of the surviving airlocks.
Leon, Flint, Rika, Marcus, and a squad of Federation Marines gathered inside the boarding module.
Everyone wore sealed environment suits.
No one knew what atmosphere awaited them.
Captain Rolf's voice came over the intercom.
"Remember—our objective is rescue."
"If the survivor is hostile?"
Marcus asked.
Rolf answered immediately.
"Then we defend ourselves."
"But we do not fire first."
---
The airlock cycled open.
Darkness greeted them.
Emergency lighting flickered weakly along the corridor beyond.
The architecture was unlike anything human engineers had ever imagined.
The walls flowed seamlessly into the ceiling, with no visible bolts or welds. Soft blue crystalline panels illuminated the passage just enough to reveal centuries of dust floating in the still air.
Leon knelt beside a strange symbol carved into the floor.
"It doesn't look military."
Flint scanned it.
"No."
"...It looks like a memorial."
---
As they advanced deeper into the ship, signs of battle became more obvious.
Bulkheads had been torn open from within.
Scorch marks covered the walls.
Several humanoid figures lay where they had fallen centuries earlier.
Their armor was elegant, crafted from silver alloys that had resisted corrosion despite the passage of time.
None of them carried weapons.
Marcus frowned.
"They weren't soldiers."
"No," Flint agreed quietly.
"They look like civilians."
---
The realization hung heavily over the boarding party.
Whatever had happened here...
It hadn't spared anyone.
---
Rika stopped suddenly.
"I've found the cryogenic chamber."
A massive circular door stood at the end of the corridor.
Ancient symbols glowed faintly around its edge.
Flint approached the control panel.
The Helix crystal hanging around his neck pulsed once.
The door responded.
Slowly.
With a deep metallic groan.
It opened.
---
Inside the chamber stood a single cryogenic pod.
The lid had already unlocked.
Standing beside it was a woman.
She wore a white-and-silver uniform marked with a symbol none of them recognized.
Her skin carried a pale blue hue, and long silver-white hair fell almost to her waist.
She looked exhausted.
But she was standing.
In one trembling hand she held what appeared to be a compact energy sidearm.
She raised it instinctively as the humans entered.
The Marines immediately aimed their rifles.
Leon stepped forward before anyone else could react.
"Easy."
He slowly removed his helmet.
The Marines looked at him in disbelief.
Flint whispered over the radio.
"Leon..."
"If the atmosphere was dangerous," Leon replied quietly, "I'd already be dead."
He looked back at the woman.
"We're not here to hurt you."
She stared at his face.
At his human features.
At the blue Earth Federation insignia on his uniform.
Confusion slowly replaced fear.
"You..."
Her voice was weak but perfectly understandable.
"...aren't Ascendancy."
Every Marine looked at Flint.
Flint simply shrugged.
"I have absolutely no idea how she's speaking English."
The woman looked just as confused.
"You call this..."
She searched for the word.
"...English?"
Leon blinked.
"...Yes."
A faint smile crossed her face despite everything.
"Then..."
She lowered the weapon.
"...the Translators still work."
Before anyone could ask another question, her legs gave way.
Leon caught her before she hit the deck.
She looked up at him, fighting to stay conscious.
"My name..."
She whispered.
"...is Lyra."
She reached into her uniform and pressed a small crystalline data cube into Leon's hand.
"You..."
She struggled to breathe.
"...must protect..."
Her eyes closed.
She collapsed unconscious.
The chamber fell silent.
Flint looked at the glowing data cube.
"It contains an enormous amount of information."
Rika checked Lyra's vital signs.
"She's alive."
"Barely."
Captain Rolf's voice came over the comms.
"Bring her aboard immediately."
Leon carefully lifted Lyra into his arms.
As the rescue team hurried back toward the *Argonaut*, none of them noticed the small beacon hidden deep within the wreck.
It had remained dormant for centuries.
Now, sensing that its last survivor had left the ship...
It transmitted a single message across the stars.
**Archive Vessel Recovered.**
The signal traveled far beyond the Solar System.
And somewhere in the darkness, something answered.