01 - Prologue: Iron Echoes

Beyond the known lanes of quiet space, our scanners caught a signal drifting through the dark. Old... Degraded… Damaged.... It calls to us on the Outerrunner… Luring us to investigate. “…are approaching… Relay Alpha… restricted sector… containment zone… all vessels… depart -art -art… immediately…” It's an extremely ancient signal... Automated, barely holding together… yet, it wants us gone… “…unauthorized entry... detected… containment integrity… thresholds unstable… departure… urgently advised…” Eya’thala… venai… solari vanei thir… Asha’valen… tora kai… ven thara… Salindae… vanei… ouana valen’thala… <([Translation])> “…we did not know… these stars were forbidden…” “…our people, we seek refuge… devils are hunting us…” The signal origin is close, now, but our scanners are drowning in an ocean of wreckage… Colony ships… Star stations… Luxury liners… Whole civilizations worth of ghosts, all lost to time... “…any vessel out there able and willing… please grant us asylum… something in the wreckage… hunts us…” Zha’thran… vek tal… zha’kor vel dra… Vek tor… vuk tal… zha’kor… Dra’ven tal… kor sha… vek… “…breach logged… hostile presence confirmed… defense protocols engaged… fatal countermeasures… authorized…” There it is… Through the debris: ...Relay Alpha. The hull is torn open… like something burst through. It's a wonder it's still operational… “…warning… all channels… wraith signatures… emerging… …outer containment layer... failing: …neural controls… degraded… …approaching… vessel, designation… un- un- unknown… …this region is an-an-an-an active hunting ground… …de- de- de- depart immediately…” Our proximity alarms detect movement in the wreckage. Something gigantic… weaves between the hulls. “…unknown threats… approach… approach..."