USS Healdsburg | 1600 Hours | Vaadwaur Blackout Perimeter | Observation Hold

The USS Healdsburg hung motionless in the cold silence of an asteroid field, tucked between two radiation-shielded chunks of rock the size of small moons. The ship’s lighting was dimmed to red, most of the systems powered down or placed on a cycling rotation to avoid energy bleed. Ghost Mode was holding. No warp signature. No comms. No emissions. Just silence.

They were a ghost ship in the void—watching.

On the main viewscreen, the Vaadwaur outpost loomed in the distance. Brutalist in design, jagged with weapons platforms and layered armor, it looked more like a siege weapon than a station. Two patrol frigates idled nearby, their formations lazy but deliberate, running predictable sweep patterns just outside the perimeter.

In the command chair, Captain Reacher sat forward with his elbows on his knees, studying the readouts with laser focus. Behind him, Commander Kate Townsend, his XO, stood tall, her arms crossed as her sharp eyes tracked the patrol route. The ship might have been powered down, but her mind wasn’t.

“To them, we’re nothing more than a background radiation pocket,” Kate said quietly. “Let’s keep it that way.”

At Tactical, Fox had pulled up a secondary scan map, overlaying faint sensor echoes from the last six hours. The pattern was beginning to reveal something.

“They’ve changed patrol timing by thirty-eight seconds. That’s the third deviation in two hours. They’re tightening the grid. Not randomly.”

“Do they know we’re here?” Reacher asked.

“Doubtful,” Fox replied. “But they know something’s wrong. Their sensor net is running more pulse sweeps than standard. It’s subtle—just enough to flush a fast mover, not something low and cold like us.”

At the secondary console, Lt. Katie Harlow, a 24-year-old new addition to the Security team, leaned over her terminal. Her blonde ponytail was tied high and neat, her uniform crisp, and her posture spoke of fresh Academy discipline. She tapped in a quick command.

“Commander Townsend,” Katie said, voice low but clear. “I’ve got a repeating pulse—every 420 seconds. Buried under the local radiation band, masked by the background noise of the station’s power grid.”

Kate walked over and studied the waveform. “That’s not ambient. That’s structured.”

Katie nodded. “Almost looks like a Type-6 pulse burst, but modulated. Not Federation… but someone’s trying to send a message.”

“Location?” Reacher asked.

Katie highlighted the source. “Originating from the southern hemisphere of the colony—somewhere inside the blackout perimeter. Deep underground.”

“Could be a prisoner,” Kate murmured. “Or someone hiding from both sides.”

Reacher stood and looked at Fox. “I want a probe ready. Passive only. Low power, gravitic glide. We’ll let the rock field pull it into drift. If it gets pinged, it’ll look like debris.”

Fox nodded and tapped a few commands. “Probe loaded in a radiation-shielded shell. Launching on local trajectory in three… two… one…”

On the screen, the probe floated free—riding the asteroid current like dust caught in a breeze. It curved slowly toward the Vaadwaur outpost.

“ETA to scanning range: nine minutes,” Fox said. “If we’re lucky, it’ll pick up structural layouts and signal source triangulation.”

Katie looked from her console toward Kate, voice more curious than nervous. “If that pulse is a distress call… what’s the plan, ma’am?”

Kate turned to face her, steady and calm. “We don’t leave Federation citizens behind. But we do this smart. No heroics. No open conflict unless forced.”

Reacher added, “We confirm what we’re seeing. If it’s a distress call and not bait, we’ll insert a covert team. Fox, you’ll lead. Harlow, you’re on her wing.”

Katie blinked. “Yes, sir,” she said quickly, masking the mix of anxiety and pride surging inside her.

Fox glanced over and smirked. “Welcome to your first real op, Ensign.”

Kate returned to her spot beside the captain. “Ghost Mode’s holding. But if one of those frigates catches a sniff of our EM field, we’re done. We have to move like we’re already behind enemy lines.”

The bridge fell quiet again as the outpost grew larger on the screen.

Seven minutes until the probe would hit scan range.

Seven minutes until they might have to make a decision.

Seven minutes until the shadow watching from the rocks decided to act.