Page 17 of Galactic Sentinels: Vol 2
“Let’s move,” Vlad whispers, already unpacking the repair kit.
He sprays the compound into the cracks. It melts, then hardens into place. Solid seal. We triple-check the entire area.
“No more breaches,” he says, exhaling.
“One final pass,” I insist.
“We don’t have time,” he shoots back.
“We make time,” I say, firm. “We screw this up, we lose more people. One last sweep.”
He grumbles, rolls his eyes, but joins in.
No further damage.
“Okay,” Oscar says. “Let’s bring the system back online and hope it holds. Should be a manual control nearby—hallway panel.”
We wade through more debris, searching the blackened walls.
“Here!” Oscar calls.
He pushes against a scorched tile—it shifts, revealing a small lever.
“Of course,” Vlad groans. “A flimsy little lever. Because that’s what you want lying around in an explosion zone.”
“Relax,” Oscar says. “This only works if the AI has shut down due to a critical event. It’s just a hard reboot. Wouldn’t do anything under normal conditions.”
He turns the lever.
Nothing happens at first. We wait. Holding our breath.
Then—Melissa’s voice in our ears: “Sector 6 systems back online. AI is now in control.”
“Oh, Gorgeous, you spoil us,” Vlad answers without missing a beat. “We nailed it.”
“You’re behind schedule. Pick it up.”
“In a hurry to see me again?” he fires back.
I let out a long, tired sigh and head toward the next airlock.
“She’s right. Time to find our people.”
We follow the same drill. Step stool, manual release, careful pressurization. The airlock opens.
We step into Sector 5.
Empty corridor—silent, sterile, unnervingly calm.
“The AI said they were in room 5C,” Vlad reminds me.
“Third one down. But protocol says we check rooms 5A and 5B first,” Oscar points out.
“Yeah, well, protocol can go straight out the nearest airlock,” I snap. “Our friends are in 5C. They might be hurt. You check the other rooms—we’re heading straight to them.”
Oscar stops in his tracks. He’s not used to me raising my voice. I don’t do anger, not like this. But today? I can’t afford my usual calm.
I inhale sharply, trying to keep my voice steady.
