The music abruptly cut off as the elevator shuddered violently, throwing Auron against the handrail. Alarms screamed in his ears as the lift ground to a halt, stuck between floors. The lights flickered ominously, bathing the space in erratic flashes of red and shadow. He could hear the tortured groan of metal under stress, a sound that didn't inspire confidence.

  "Nope. Nope. Nope," Auron muttered, his voice rising with each word. His gaze darted around the confined space, landing on a service hatch in the ceiling. Without thinking, he scrambled onto the handrail, pried the hatch open with a grunt, and hoisted himself up. The cold, greasy rungs of the service ladder greeted him, and he began to climb.

  The ladder trembled with every aftershock, sending vibrations through his arms that nearly rattled him loose. On occasion, he heard unholy screeches above, making him pause. Auron's muscles burned, and his hands cramped around the rungs, but he kept climbing, driven by the sheer desire to live.

  "Almost there," he panted, though he wasn't sure if he believed it.

  At last, the ladder ended in another hatch. With a final burst of effort, he pushed it open and dragged himself onto solid ground. His fingers were stuck in a claw-like shape, and his arms felt like noodles left too long in the pot. He collapsed onto his back, staring at the sky as his lungs fought for air.

  What he saw above wasn't comforting.

  The sky was a battlefield, a swirling tapestry of destruction on a scale that made him feel microscopic. Colossal starships clashed like gods, their weapons lighting up the heavens in bursts of violent brilliance. Swarms of fighters wove intricate dances of death, their paths interspersed with serpentine creatures that glowed with cosmic fury.

  "Okay," Auron murmured, forcing himself to sit up. "This is fine."

  He pulled himself to his feet. His legs wobbled as the ground shook. The coordinates S.A.M. had sent blinked on his HUD like a distant point of hope in a sea of chaos. Steadying his breath, Auron scanned the horizon for the ship and forced himself forward. His jaw clenched as every nerve in his body screamed the same command: run!

  Auron sprinted across the surface, dodging the occasional streak of energy fire that carved glowing scars into the barren landscape. Above, the sky was a theater of chaos. Starships and monstrous creatures tore into each other in a relentless barrage of light and shadow. Every step jolted his nerves. The ground quaked under the weight of the ongoing battle.

  He ducked behind an outcropping. His chest heaved as he tried to collect himself. A sudden wave of light forced him to shield his eyes, and he peeked around the rock just in time to see a mountain vaporize under the blast of an annihilation cannon. The explosion's shockwave rolled through the terrain, shaking loose boulders and pelting dirt against his visor.

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  "Okay," he muttered, peeking out again, his voice low. "That... was a mountain."

  His HUD pinged faintly, highlighting a sleek, alien vessel on the horizon. The ship's angular design stood out against the scorched landscape like a beacon of salvation. Auron's heart kicked into high gear.

  "There you are," he breathed, pushing off the rock and into a full sprint.

  His legs burned with every stride, but the ship loomed closer with each step. Stray beams from the battle above scorched the ground, forcing him to weave through debris and rubble. He nearly tripped as the ground buckled beneath another explosion, but he threw himself forward, ignoring the sting in his lungs.

  The ramp to the ship's cabin was down like an open invitation. Auron hit the incline hard, his footfalls echoing through the ship's empty corridors. As soon as he was inside, his hand slammed down on the first control panel he saw. The ramp retracted with a mechanical hiss, and the bay doors sealed shut with a satisfying finality.

  Auron bent forward, hands on his knees as he caught his breath. The muffled sounds of destruction outside made the quiet interior almost surreal.

  "Alright," he muttered, straightening. "Safe for now. Let's not blow it."

  He moved toward the cockpit, his eyes darting across the ship's unfamiliar layout. The moment he stepped into the small compartment, he froze. The consoles were an alien mix of glowing displays and holograms, their functions indecipherable at a glance. His gaze flicked to the large viewport just as a massive planetary flagship outside plummeted toward the surface, its fiery descent leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.

  Auron stumbled into the pilot's chair, his hands hovering over the controls. Panic set in as he stared at the panels. "Okay. Deep breaths. It's just a spaceship. People fly these things all the time. You've done plenty of sims. You've got this."

  He scanned the displays again. After a moment, his eyes landed on a panel labeled Navigation System. His hand shot out, slamming the button. Nothing happened.

  "Of course." He exhaled sharply, his voice tighter now. "Why would it work?"

  A violent tremor rocked the ship, and Auron gripped the armrest, fighting to steady himself. Through the viewport, he saw the flagship careening toward the surface, its massive frame breaking apart as it collided with the ground. The impact sent a shockwave rippling across the terrain, shaking the ship violently as dust rained from the ceiling.

  "Focus," he muttered, his gaze darting over the controls. "If they built it, someone can fly it. Just... figure it out."

  A second later, an ear-splitting explosion tore through the air. The flagship’s reactor detonated, cracking the shell of the vault planet like brittle glass. Auron had only a second to brace before the terrain buckled upward. The impact sent him hurdling into the ceiling like a ragdoll before he crumpled back into the cold, unforgiving floor. Pain blossomed in his shoulder, but there was no time to dwell on it.

  His vision blurred, distorted by the spiderweb of cracks that now marred his helmet's visor. With a sharp tug, he ripped it off, desperate for clarity. What he saw didn't help. His ship was grinding uncontrollably across the surface, skidding toward a newly formed chasm that yawned open like the jaws of some ravenous beast.

  "Oh, this is just perfect," Auron groaned. He imagined his ship free-falling into the heart of the vault world only to be torn apart in the maelstrom below. How could this just be the tutorial mission? Was he really that bad? No. He couldn’t let it end this way.