The elevator car was surprisingly spacious.
Kai sat on a plush chair, his backpack resting at his feet. The room was circular, with soft, blue lighting emanating from the walls. There were other chairs, a couple of beds, even a small bathroom with a toilet and a sink.
"Not exactly what I expected," he muttered, looking around in wonder. He'd imagined a cramped, metal box, not this… luxurious lounge.
Tower's voice echoed through the room, calm and reassuring.
"Apologies for the delay," it said. "The artifact requires a… recharge period after sustained use. And the… previous passenger load was… significant."
Kai nodded, recalling the hordes of purple creatures he'd seen pouring into the city.
"So… how long until we… take off?" he asked.
"Estimated time to departure: thirty minutes," Tower replied.
Kai leaned back in the chair, letting out a sigh. Thirty minutes. It felt like a lifetime. He was anxious, nervous, excited. He was about to be launched to the moon in an alien elevator powered by a gravity-manipulating artifact. It was the craziest thing he'd ever done.
But… it was also the most exciting.
He looked around the room again, his gaze lingering on the smooth, featureless walls.
"Tower?" he said.
"Yes?"
"What… what happens when we get to the Nexus? What should I expect?"
"The Nexus is equipped to receive and process… individuals arriving under Code Black," Tower replied. "You will be met by… personnel who will provide further instructions and… assistance."
Kai nodded, feeling a sliver of relief. At least he wouldn't be completely alone when he arrived on the moon.
He was about to ask another question when a loud rumble shook the elevator car. Kai gripped the arms of his chair, his heart leaping into his throat.
"What was that?" he asked, his voice tight with anxiety.
"A… minor tremor," Tower said, its voice still calm, but Kai noticed a flicker of… something… in its blue light. Concern? Uncertainty?
"Minor?" Kai repeated, his eyes wide. "It felt like the whole tower was about to collapse!"
"The artifact is… recalibrating," Tower explained. "It is a… normal part of the launch sequence."
Kai took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. He wasn't sure if he believed Tower. That flicker of concern had been… unnerving.
But he had no choice but to trust the AI. He was strapped in, literally and figuratively, to this crazy ride.
He closed his eyes, bracing himself for whatever came next.
The tremors grew stronger, more frequent. The elevator car shook violently, tossing Kai back and forth in his chair. He clung to the armrests, his knuckles white, his heart pounding in his chest.
"Tower?" he shouted, his voice barely audible above the roaring noise. "What's happening?"
But there was no response. The AI was silent.
Panic clawed at Kai's throat. Was the tower collapsing? Was the artifact malfunctioning? Was he going to die before he even reached the moon?
He fumbled with the straps that held him in the chair, his hands shaking. He had to get out. He had to find a way to escape.
But just as he was about to unbuckle the straps, Tower's voice echoed through the room again, urgent, strained.
"Do not panic," it said. "But… there has been a… complication."
"Complication?" Kai repeated, his voice trembling. "What kind of complication?"
"A… large creature," Tower said, its voice hesitant. "It is… attempting to… destroy the elevator."
Kai's eyes widened in horror. A creature? What kind of creature could destroy a tower this size?
"Will we… will we be okay?" he asked, his voice barely a whisper.
"I will… attempt to… launch the elevator prematurely," Tower said. "But… it will be… a bumpy ride. There will be… no deceleration. Brace yourself."
Before Kai could even process Tower's words, a deafening roar echoed through the tower, followed by a violent shudder that sent him crashing against the side of the chair.
And then… he was falling.
The world became a blur of colors and sensations. Kai's body slammed against the walls of the elevator car, his vision swimming, his stomach churning. He could feel the immense force of acceleration pressing him into his seat, his bones aching, his lungs struggling for air.
The roaring noise continued, a deafening symphony of metal screeching and energy crackling. He squeezed his eyes shut, his teeth clenched, trying to block out the chaos.
He didn't know how long it lasted – seconds? Minutes? It felt like an eternity.
Then, just as suddenly as it had begun, the violent shaking stopped.
Kai opened his eyes cautiously, his body still trembling. He was no longer being pressed into his chair. The roaring noise had subsided, replaced by a low hum.
He looked around. The elevator car was still intact, but the blue light had dimmed, replaced by a flickering red. The walls were dented, and cracks spiderwebbed across the glass ceiling.
He unbuckled the straps, his hands shaking, and stumbled to his feet. He felt dizzy, disoriented, like he'd been tossed around in a washing machine.
"Tower?" he croaked, his voice hoarse. "Are we… are we there?"
But there was no response. The AI was silent.
Kai went to the window and looked out.
And gasped.
He was in space.
Stars, a million bright dots, filled the blackness like diamonds scattered on velvet. Below him, a blue and green planet curved – Earth? – filling the window.
But it wasn't the beauty that made him gasp.
It was the crack.
A jagged tear in the blackness, a wound in space, like a lightning bolt frozen forever. And from that crack…
An arm.
Not human. Not flesh and blood.
Huge. Bigger than any spaceship Kai could imagine. Made of… something… that shimmered like a trick of the light. It was a deep, pulsing purple, the same color as those creatures.
And its hand… a giant hand with claws… was wrapped around Earth. Fingers digging in, like it was holding the planet in a deadly grip.
Kai stared, his mind spinning, his breath caught in his throat. What was that thing?
He'd been thrown into an alien war, escaped a ruined city, survived a crazy trip through space… and now this?
He felt a cold fear, a fear that froze him in place. This wasn't just a war. This wasn't just an invasion. This was… bigger. Worse.
Something that could destroy not just a city, not just a planet… but everything.
Kai stared at the colossal arm, his mind struggling to process the impossible sight. He wanted to scream. He wanted to run. He wanted to do something, anything, but his body was frozen, his mind paralyzed by the sheer scale of what he was witnessing.
"What the fuck…" he whispered, the words barely escaping his lips.
But before he could even form a coherent thought, the elevator car lurched forward.
It wasn't just a tremor this time. It wasn't a bumpy ride.
It was like being shot out of a cannon.
The force of acceleration was unimaginable. Kai's vision blurred, his body slammed against the back of the chair, his bones screaming in protest. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't move. He couldn't even think.
Then…
BOOM
A deafening explosion ripped through the elevator car, tossing it like a toy in a hurricane. Kai was flung from his chair, his body colliding with the ceiling, then the wall, then the floor.
Pain, a white-hot agony, consumed him. He tasted blood, felt something crack in his ribs, heard a ringing in his ears that drowned out everything else.
And then…
Darkness.