The Shadows Within

[Back to the present]

The LRV sped across the lunar landscape, leaving trails of dust that hung momentarily before settling in the absence of the atmosphere. Hermann's knuckles were white on the steering controls, his jaw clenched beneath his helmet.

"Status check," he commanded through the comms system.

"Oxygen at 87%," Miles reported mechanically.

"Suit integrity holding," Celeste added, her scientific training providing a thin veneer of calm.

Ruby remained silent, her gaze fixed on the dark expanse behind us.

I couldn't stop replaying the scene in my mind: Dennis's face contorting as the darkness enveloped him, his screams cutting through our comms before an abrupt, terrible silence. The memory of what emerged from the shadows afterwards made my stomach turn.

"We need to contact Earth immediately," I managed to say, thinking of Ashlyn, of our unborn child. "Whatever that thing was—"

"We don't know what we saw," Hermann interrupted sharply. "Not yet."

The lunar base appeared on the horizon, six interconnected modules gleaming under Earth's reflected light. It should have been a reassuring sight, but the structure appeared unnaturally dark.

"External lights are offline," Celeste observed, professional concern edging into her voice.

Hermann slowed the vehicle. "Base, this is the DELTA team returning. Do you copy? Navigator? Mech?"

Only static answered.

"Comms could be affected by whatever caused the seismic activity near the cave," Miles suggested, though his tone betrayed his doubt.

The LRV came to a stop beside the primary airlock. Hermann turned to face us, his expression visible through his visor – grim determination masking fear.

"Listen carefully. We enter together, we stay together. Standard emergency protocol." He paused. "If the base is compromised, we proceed to the emergency shuttle."

"And Dennis?" Ruby finally spoke, her voice small.

Hermann's expression hardened. "Our priority is to report what we found. Then Command can send a proper rescue team."

The airlock cycle felt agonizingly slow. Each hiss and mechanical click amplified in the silence. When the inner door finally slid open, darkness greeted us.

"Power's down," Miles observed unnecessarily.

"Backup generators should have activated automatically," Celeste said, running a gloved hand along the wall panel. "Something's interfering with the systems."

"Helmet lights on," Hermann ordered.

Six beams cut through the darkness, creating overlapping pools of light that did little to dispel the shadows beyond. The main corridor stretched before us, eerily silent.

"Navigator? Mech?" I called out, my voice echoing through the empty passageway.

No response.

We moved deeper into the base, our footsteps unnaturally loud in the silence. The command center door was sealed – standard procedure during emergencies.

Hermann placed his hand on the manual override. "Stay alert."

The door slid open with a hydraulic sigh.

The command center was in disarray. Screens flickered with static, equipment had been overturned, and most disturbing of all – both Navigator and Mech were missing.

"Check the logs," Hermann instructed Celeste, who immediately moved to the main console.

"System recorded a transmission approximately four hours ago," she reported after a moment. "Origin unknown."

"What kind of transmission?" Miles asked, moving to peer over her shoulder.

Celeste's fingers flew across the keyboard. "Audio only. Playing now."

A burst of static filled the room, followed by Navigator's voice, tight with barely controlled panic:

"—detected movement in sector seven. Mech went to investigate. That was forty minutes ago. No response to comms. Something's interfering with—"

More static, then:

"—shadows moving. Not possible. There's something—oh god, it's here. It's—"

The transmission cut abruptly.

"Sector seven," Hermann said quietly. "That's where the cave is."

"It followed them back," Ruby whispered. "Or..."

"Or it was here all along," Miles finished.

A low, vibrating hum began to emanate from somewhere deep within the base. The lights on the console flickered, then died completely. For a moment, we were plunged into darkness before our helmet lights activated automatically.

"We need to reach the emergency shuttle," Hermann said, his calm voice belying the urgency of the situation. "Now."

As we turned to leave, I noticed something on the floor near the doorway – a dark, viscous substance that hadn't been there when we entered. It seemed to pulse slightly, as if alive.

"Don't touch it," Celeste warned, noticing my gaze.

The substance began to move, flowing toward the wall like water seeking the lowest point. As it reached the metal surface, it began to form patterns – the same strange markings we'd seen in the cave.

"It's communicating," Celeste breathed.

"Or marking its territory," Miles suggested grimly.

A loud bang echoed from somewhere deep within the base, followed by the unmistakable sound of tearing metal.

"Move!" Hermann ordered. "To the shuttle bay!"

As we raced through the corridors, emergency lights finally flickered to life, bathing everything in a blood-red glow. The shadows seemed to deepen, stretching toward us with each step.

Behind us, something moved in the darkness – something large and impossibly fast.

The Voidhowler had found us again.

And this time, there was nowhere left to run.