The ship trembled. Sirens blared. Flames licked the edges of the control room, casting shadows against the walls.

And there, standing in the doorway like a specter from Jake’s worst nightmares, was Dr. Adrian Voss.

The metallic mask reflected the chaos, his coat swaying as the ship groaned under its own impending destruction.

Yet—he did not move.

He just stood there. Watching.

Jake’s breath was ragged. His body screamed in pain. He was battered, bruised—but he wasn’t dead yet.

He clenched his fists, forcing himself to stand despite the ache deep in his ribs. Blood trickled down his temple, sweat stung his eyes, but he refused to look weak. Not now.

Voss tilted his head slightly, his voice cutting through the alarms like a knife through flesh.

“Look at you.”

Jake stiffened.

“Bleeding. Exhausted. Desperate.” Voss took a step forward, unhurried. “And yet, you still think you can stop this.”

Jake’s jaw tightened. “This ship is going down, Voss.”

A pause. Then—a slow chuckle.

“You don’t understand, do you?” Voss sighed, as if disappointed. “This ship is irrelevant. The research is redundant. You think you’ve won something?”

Jake’s stomach twisted.

Voss wasn’t panicked.

He wasn’t rushing to escape.

He was calm.

And that terrified Jake more than anything.

“What… did you do?” Jake rasped.

Voss stepped fully into the room now, the flames behind him making him look almost inhuman.

“I am not the villain you’ve made me out to be, Jake.” His voice was measured, calculated. “I simply see further than you. While you scramble in the dark, I look into the abyss and understand it.”

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Jake took a shaky breath. His hands trembled—not from fear, but from exhaustion.

“You’re insane.”

Voss let out a low, amused hum. “Insanity is relative.”

Then—he moved.

Fast. Too fast.

Jake barely had time to react before a fist slammed into his ribs.

White-hot pain exploded through his body. His vision blurred. His knees buckled, but he forced himself to stay upright.

Another hit.

This time to his jaw. His head snapped back, and he staggered against the console.

Voss didn’t relent.

A brutal kick to the gut sent Jake crashing into the floor, gasping for air. Blood pooled in his mouth. His limbs felt like lead.

He was losing.

Voss stood over him, untouched.

“This is what happens when you fight something beyond your comprehension.” His voice was smooth, unshaken. “You are a child trying to stand against the tide.”

Jake coughed, spitting blood onto the cold metal floor. His arms shook as he pushed himself up.

“Shut up.”

Voss sighed. “Still defiant. Good. I was hoping you wouldn’t break so easily.”

Then—he reached into his coat.

A knife.

The serrated edge gleamed under the flashing red emergency lights.

Jake’s breath hitched.

This was it.

Voss crouched beside him, dragging the blade slowly across the metal floor. Taunting him.

“You were always my best student.” His voice was almost affectionate. “That’s why I was disappointed when you left. When you chose ignorance over knowledge.”

Jake’s hands clenched into fists.

Voss leaned in closer. “Tell me, was it worth it? Betraying your own curiosity?”

Jake’s breathing was shallow. His vision blurred. Every nerve in his body screamed in pain.

He was outmatched.

He couldn’t win.

Not in a fair fight.

But this wasn’t about winning.

This was about finishing it.

Jake’s fingers curled around a piece of broken glass near his hand.

One shot.

Voss didn’t see it—he was too focused on his monologue, on his own sense of superiority.

Jake let out a ragged breath.

Then—he struck.

The glass shard plunged into Voss’s side.

For the first time, Voss gasped.

Jake didn’t stop.

He grabbed Voss by the coat, slammed his forehead against the metal mask, sending them both reeling. Voss staggered backward, clutching the wound as blood seeped through his coat.

Jake lunged.

They crashed into the main console. Sparks erupted. Wires snapped. The countdown ticked to the final two minutes.

Voss, despite the wound, still tried to stand.

Jake grabbed a loose, sparking cable—

And jammed it into Voss’s side.

Electricity surged through the scientist’s body.

Voss let out a strangled, distorted scream as his body convulsed violently. His metallic mask cracked, the glass of his visor shattering.

Then—silence.

Voss collapsed. His body motionless.

Jake staggered back, barely able to breathe.

His vision swam. His entire body was screaming in agony.

But he had won.

The ship shuddered violently.

Jake knew he had less than a minute left.

He turned, stumbling toward the exit. Flames erupted around him. The ship’s metal groaned as it began to tear apart.

And then—

He ran.

Jake barely made it to the deck before the explosion hit.

A deafening BOOM tore through the night.

The force sent him flying, crashing into the cold ocean below.

The last thing he saw before he blacked out—

Was the ship disappearing into the abyss.