Gunfire ripped through the night, sharp bursts of sound tearing through the darkness. The acrid scent of gunpowder clung to the air, mixing with the bitter taste of blood and sweat on my lips. My heart hammered against my ribs, each beat a relentless reminder that I was still here, still fighting.

I pressed myself against the remnants of a crumbling wall, trying to steady my breath, trying to make sense of the chaos around me.

But nothing made sense.

The world was a blur of shadows and fire. The once-familiar landscape was now a broken wasteland of ruin, the silhouettes of buildings barely standing against the inferno devouring them. Figures moved through the smoke—fast, desperate, relentless. I recognized them, but their faces...

Blurred.

Their voices shouted orders, warnings, desperate calls for cover—but they all sounded distant, like an old radio playing from another room.

Somewhere to my left, a heavy weapon roared in defiance, spraying fire toward the advancing enemy. Someone else barked a command through the chaos.

But it was a losing battle.

We were outnumbered. Surrounded.

I gripped my rifle, the cold metal grounding me in the madness. The ground trembled beneath me, the distant rumble of enemy vehicles growing louder, closer. I needed a plan. I needed to think.

But all I could see was fire and death.

Shadows falling.

Blurred faces collapsing into the dirt.

A voice cut through the noise, sharp, commanding—laced with a fear I had never heard before.

"We need to move!"

I turned, locking eyes with someone across the battlefield. Or at least, I thought I did.

Their face was... wrong.

I knew them. I knew them.

But the details slipped away, like trying to grasp smoke.

"We’re surrounded!" Another voice, barely audible over the static and gunfire. "We need to fall back, now!"

I nodded instinctively, even though I didn’t know if they could see me. I forced myself to rise, muscles screaming in protest, and glanced over the wall.

What I saw made my blood run cold.

The enemy was advancing in a relentless wave, their figures barely visible through the smoke and flames.

And behind them...

Something else.

A shadow.

Larger than life. Moving with unnatural speed, shifting at the edges of my vision. It pulsed—not like a creature, but like a force. A presence.

The ground beneath me shuddered again, a violent tremor that nearly knocked me off my feet.

Someone was beside me now, their voice strained, their movements frantic. “Snap out of it! We have to move, now!”

I nodded again, the weight of the moment pressing down on me. I turned, ready to follow them into the fray, when—

The ground erupted.

The explosion threw me back.

Dirt and shrapnel tore through the air, the force of the blast stealing the breath from my lungs.

For a moment, the world spun into darkness.

I opened my eyes.

And I was alone.

The battlefield was eerily silent.

The gunfire, the shouting, the chaos—all gone.

Smoke rolled through the ruins, thick and endless, swallowing what was left of the world. The air was wrong. Too still.

And then I saw them.

The others.

Figures lying in the dirt. Motionless.

My breath caught.

I forced myself to my feet, stumbling toward the nearest body—their form barely visible through the haze. I wanted to call out, but my throat was dry, raw.

They didn’t move.

I took another step—

And then I saw the shadow.

It loomed in the smoke, a hulking mass that seemed to consume the light around it.

No features. No face.

Just darkness.

And it was watching me.

A cold pressure wrapped around my chest, squeezing the air from my lungs.

The shadow moved.

I tried to run, but my body refused to listen. My muscles locked in place, my feet rooted to the ground as tendrils of blackness crawled toward me.

I gasped, struggling against the unseen weight crushing down on me.

The darkness reached me.

It curled around my limbs, dragging me down, down, down into the abyss.

"No!"

I fought. I struggled.

But it was no use—it was stronger.

It always was.

The last thing I saw—

The blurred faces of the fallen.

Then, a voice.

Sharp. Commanding. Familiar.

"Atlas, get up!"

The dream shattered like glass. I jolted awake, heart pounding, sweat cold on my skin. The battlefield faded, giving way to the sterile confines of my cabin. But the fear lingered, a shadow that wouldn’t let go.

I blinked, trying to ground myself. "What’s going on?"

Amelia Grayson’s face came into focus, her piercing blue eyes locked on me. "We’re about to hit Mars’ atmosphere. Gear up."

Already? I forced myself upright, the exhaustion clinging to every muscle. "Got it."

Amelia sighed, a touch of impatience in her eyes, even as she kept her posture rigid. "Five minutes, Atlas. Be ready."

She turned on her heel and left, her long, dark blond hair swaying with her brisk steps.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed, rubbing the last remnants of sleep from my eyes. "No time for more sleep, huh?" I muttered to myself, the fatigue weighing heavy.

I stumbled to the sink, splashing cold water on my face, trying to gather my thoughts. Staring at my reflection, I met my own dark brown eyes, noting the shadow of the nightmare still lurking there. My hair had grown longer than I liked, but with a quick style to the side it was out of my way.

Moving to the closet, I pressed the button that activated my suit. The fabric tightened around me, the black shoulder pads firm and the white streaks along my arms and legs a stark contrast. It fit perfectly, like always.

I gave myself one last look in the mirror. "Twenty-four years... still here," I murmured, the words heavy with reflection.

Then I turned, the mission ahead pulling my focus as I stepped out, ready for whatever Mars had waiting for us.

Navigating through the narrow halls, I made my way to the control room, having to duck slightly to get through the six-foot doors. As I entered, I was greeted by the sight of almost all the crew members, either strapped in or in the process of doing so.

Heading over to my chair, I glanced towards the front where Amelia was seated. Right next to her was Emily Carter, the flight control expert, focused on the guidance controls with her Short, dirty blond hair covering her Green eyes as she worked diligently.

"Amelia's voice cut through the chaos, her eyes scanning the room for any signs of hesitation. 'Where is Ethan?' Her tone betrayed no delay, the urgency in her voice driving home the seriousness of our situation." Before she could continue, an older man in his 40s hurried in and strapped himself in. "Good, it seems that you made it," she remarked just before a robotic voice interrupted.

"Ten seconds before atmospheric entry," the voice announced.

I looked around at the faces of the seven people I would be spending the foreseeable future with, a mix of excitement and anticipation building within me.

"Four... Three... Two... One..."

My hands gripped the armrests of my seat as the entire vessel began to rattle and shake with the force of reentry.

Outside the viewport, flames licked at the hull, casting an ominous glow that painted the interior in shades of fiery red. The sound of creaking metal filled the air, accompanied by the occasional loud bang as the ship fought against the atmospheric pressure.

"Steady, everyone!" Captain Amelia's voice boomed over the commotion, her tone a mix of authority and reassurance. "We're entering rough turbulence, but the ship can handle it."

With a violent shake I was thrust harshly into my harness. Gravity pulling at every fiber of my being, pressing me down with a weight that felt both exhilarating and terrifying.

"We're almost through," the captain's voice said, and I tightened my grip on the armrests, my heart racing with anticipation.

With a deafening roar, the ship broke through the final layers of the atmosphere, and suddenly, the turbulence eased. The once tumultuous journey now felt like a gentle glide as we descended towards the planet's surface.

Through the viewport, I caught my first glimpse of our destination—a world of untamed beauty, its landscapes, a patchwork of jagged mountains and rusty expanses. 

As the ship leveled out, the rattling and shaking subsided, replaced by the soft hum of the engines as we coasted towards a safe landing spot. The closer we got to Mars's surface, the more a surge of exhilaration mixed with relief coursed through me. Finally, the ship touched down with a controlled thud, the landing struts absorbing the impact. Our anxious anticipation transformed into a collective sigh of relief, a weight lifted from our shoulders.