The Helix Arc emerged from subspace just beyond the orbit of Raloen. Its hull shimmered slightly as its shields rebalanced from the strain of gravitational lensing. Ái Lan stood at the observation deck, arms crossed, eyes fixed on the distant outline of Station V-12.
A battered skeleton against the stars. No welcome lights. No defense systems active. Just a faint pulse—emanating from its main communications array.
"This is Ái Lan of the Helix Arc," she spoke into her comms. "Requesting docking access. Trần Hoàng Nam, if you're alive in there... you better be."
There was silence. Then a static-crackled voice: "Lan? You came."
She smiled slightly. "Still dramatic, I see."
Ten minutes later, Ái Lan stepped onto V-12's central corridor. The station smelled like dust, old metal, and stale air—like a graveyard long forgotten. Nam was waiting at the core terminal, eyes hollow but alert. He handed her a tablet with the decoded message.
Her eyes scanned the data, fast. Her fingers trembled.
"This… these aren't just coordinates," she whispered. "It's a quantum key. A lock. A map. Someone—or something—is trying to show us a way through the event horizon."
Nam nodded. "I've been running simulations. It's not a natural emission. It's structured. Purposeful."
"But who would be inside a black hole?" she asked. "It should be impossible. Spacetime breaks down. No causality, no information return—"
Nam cut her off. "Unless the rules don't apply anymore. Or never applied the way we thought."
A silence passed between them, heavy and terrifying.
Ái Lan looked up. "You know the Council won't let this lie."
"They've already seen it," Nam replied. "I intercepted a transmission from Serex. General Bùi Hữu Hoàng is moving a fleet."
Lan's face hardened. "If the Stellar Dominion gets there first, they won't ask questions. They'll claim whatever's inside… as a weapon."
Nam looked toward the viewport. "Then we have no choice. We go in."
She turned slowly. "Into the black hole?"
He held up a data chip. "This message wasn't just a signal. It contains the blueprint for a vessel—something that can survive the descent. It uses field inversion. Quantum phase shielding. It's technology far beyond us."
Lan blinked. "Then who sent it?"
Nam's voice dropped. "I don't know. But they're waiting for us. And they sound… human."
Elsewhere, deep in the void between systems...
General Hoàng stood aboard the SSD Dự Báo, watching the stars bend around G-Delta 7 on the projection screen. His face was unreadable.
"Launch the scouts," he ordered. "I want a full perimeter scan. And get me a wormhole-ready drop pod. I'm going in."
His aide stared in shock. "Sir, you can't—!"
Hoàng's eyes gleamed. "You don't understand. This isn't just a discovery. This is the origin of everything. Whoever controls this... controls reality itself."