Chapter Text
Captain's Log #1
Date: Tuesday 14, March, 2078
Coordinates: X-200, Y-89, Z-309
Mission: Explore Venus
Entry: The vessel 'Aquila' has departed from Earth, Seoul, with a crew of eight people on board. All systems are nominal. The course is headed towards Venus. The crew is in high spirits, we will shortly celebrate the first day of our space mission with the gift basket that has been hidden inside the vessel by Mission Control as a surprise. Both our technicians on board, Gyeon Seohyun as well as Kim Taehyung, have done a routine sweep of the vessel to ensure that nothing malfunctioned during take-off, but other than the water pump having become slightly colder, nothing of importance has happened. I predict we will be flying over Acrab in about ten days and completely pass it in twelve. No anomalies or problems aboard the vessel. End of entry by Captain Kim Juna.
"Captain-ssi! Would you like some more cake?"
Caught off guard by the interruption, Juna shifted her attention from the digital abyss of her laptop to her left. The woman blinked hastily, spine rigid as she tilted her head to the side, immediately being met by the boxy grin of Kim Taehyung. The boy was holding out a cupcake towards her that Mission Control had made for them, one that had been decorated with generous dollops of white frosting and a rather crude drawing of a little green alien on top.
Juna swiftly closed her laptop and turned to look at Taehyung, who was sitting next to her at their dining table. Their a dining table, which was more of a bench along one side of the ship and a horizontal surface rising out of the floor that could be used as a table as well as storage and neatly put back in the ground once they didn't need it, epitomized the ship's efficient use of space and still left the captain in awe even after having been on board of the ship tens of times before their mission. Their entire crew was currently seated along the length of the bench, eating their cupcakes and chatting with each other.
With a gentle nod and a warm smile, Juna accepted the offered cupcake from Taehyung, her lips curling into a faint grin as she examined the whimsical alien illustration adorning its surface. Taehyung went back to his own cupcake—a cupcake with red strawberry frosting and a cute little rocket drawn on it—his expression lit up even further as he indulged in a bite of the sweet treat, his eyes fluttering closed in sheer delight.
There was already some frosting smeared along Taehyung's pink lips, his tongue coming out to lap it up like a particularly happy kitten. When he tilted his head to examine the red cupcake closer, his dark blond hair fell forward, swaying right along his earlobes. Juna had to stifle a laugh as a strand of the boy's hair, too, was caught in the red frosting.
Of the entire crew, Taehyung was by far the youngest. Barely 28 years old, only just accepted into the program two years ago and on top of his class at university he was as much intelligent as he was young and carefree in a way that a middle-aged woman like Juna had long outgrown, a reminder of the vitality of youth she had long left behind. Yet, she couldn't help but feel that having someone as energetic and unapologetically himself as Taehyung on board would be a great diversion in the abyss of space.
"Taehyung-ah! I thought we went over this already," the booming voice belonging to their doctor, a balding man named Nakamura Hajime, who was presently dissecting a chocolate cupcake, "You don't need to use any honorifics with us, my boy. It'll make us feel old!"
Hajime narrowed his eyes as he chastised Taehyung, but his lips were split in a wide smile, moustache crinkling with the sheer force of his glee. Despite the scolding tone, there was something undoubtedly carefree and even teasing about the doctor's remark. Immediately, Taehyung's cheeks flushed crimson, bowing his head toward the older man, a sheepish grin playing on his lips as he nodded vigorously, acknowledging the rebuke.
"Excuse me, Hajime, it's a habit that I find rather hard to get rid of," Taehyung confessed, a boxy grin still on his face even though a slight flush of embarrassment was coating the very tips of his ears in a juvenal pink.
Hajime was the oldest member of the crew having just recently celebrated his 56th birthday only a month before leaving for their mission. Despite his years, the doctor exuded a contagious joviality, often regaling his companions with jokes and good-natured teasing. He enjoyed teaching them all how to swear in his mother language, Japanese, and found he especially enjoyed bickering with Taehyung.
The young technician had a lot of respect for someone as seasoned as Hajime and would often seek out his advice, seeing Hajime as a sort of role model for everything that he wanted to accomplish in life. The young technician held the seasoned space explorer in high regard, often seeking out his wisdom and perspective. To Taehyung, Hajime embodied the epitome of a successful spacefarer, with over a decade of experience under his belt and a boundless wealth of knowledge.
"Hajime just doesn't want us using honorifics because he still doesn't understand Korean honorifics even after living here for over twenty years," yet another voice chimed in from further down on the bench. As Hajime's ears caught wind of the teasing remark, he swivelled his gaze toward Seohyun, his expression a mixture of mock offence and genuine amusement.
Setting his cupcake aside, Hajime clasped his hands together and shook his head incredulously. "Unbelievable! Here I am, stranded in space with a bunch of troublemakers," he exclaimed, feigning exasperation. Seohyun's laughter bubbled forth at the sight of the incredulity etched on the doctor's round face. Hajime crossed his arms and tutted decidedly, his tone laced with mock sternness, "Plus, I am very much familiar with the Korean honorific system, young lady. But aboard this ship, we have a diverse crew comprising Koreans, Chinese, and Japanese. It wouldn't be fair to favour one honorific system over another! Even less so when the Japanese one is so obviously better."
Taehyung giggled as he listened to Hajime bickering with Seohyun. Seohyun and Taehyung were the technicians on board and, weirdly enough, the two youngest passengers. While the rest of the crew was all well past their forties, Seohyun was merely 34 years old. Still many years older than Taehyung but rather young to someone as seasoned as Hajime. At 34 years old, Seohyun was still considered relatively youthful compared to the seasoned veterans of the crew, though she held a wealth of knowledge and expertise in her own right. Taehyung, on the other hand, at his tender age, often found himself marvelling at the vast experiences of his older counterparts.
It was kind of fun, being the youngest ones, Taehyung mused. It meant they were often viewed with a sense of fondness and protectiveness, akin to younger siblings among their older comrades. This dynamic translated into fewer reprimands and more opportunities for guidance and mentorship, much to Taehyung's delight. It was nice.
For Taehyung, the allure of space had always held an irresistible pull. The dream of venturing beyond Earth's confines, of delving into the mysteries of distant galaxies and shimmering stars, had been a driving force in his life. Now, seated among a crew of seasoned explorers aboard the Aquila, that dream had blossomed into a tangible reality.
The opportunity to embark on a mission to explore Venus was nothing short of extraordinary, a chance to fulfil his lifelong ambition alongside a team of individuals who shared his passion for discovery. What made the experience even more remarkable was the willingness of his fellow crew members to entertain his endless stream of questions and generously impart their vast knowledge.
In Taehyung's eyes, stepping foot onto the Aquila marked a pivotal moment in his life—a culmination of years of aspiration and determination. With each passing moment aboard the spacecraft, he felt a profound sense of fulfilment and gratitude, convinced that this journey into the unknown was, without a doubt, the best decision he had ever made.
Captain's Log #2
Date: Wednesday 15, March, 2078
Coordinates: X-198, Y-94, Z-307
Mission: Explore Venus
Entry: The first night aboard Aquila has passed without any problems. Though it is rather unfamiliar to wake up without the sun, the expanse of the galaxy in front of us is a sight that makes it all worth it. We have advanced at a slightly slower speed than anticipated, which has been communicated back to Earth. There doesn't seem to be a problem with the vessel, however, and our astrophysicist, Park Hyun, has explained that the gravitational pull to other planets might be the reason for the slight hiccup in our plan. Other than that, there have been no anomalies and all systems are operational. Spirits are high and we are all elated to be a part of mankind's advancement. End of entry by Captain Kim Juna.
"Honestly, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the ship."
Seohyun looked up at Minghzu from her position sprawled on the floor underneath the control board. Her hands bore the telltale signs of grease and grime, her dishevelled appearance a testament to her exhaustive efforts in scouring every inch of the vessel for potential malfunctions, her clothes rumpled from crawling underneath the heavy equipment to analyse anything that might be amiss. Minghzu, however, huffed a breath and furrowed her eyebrows, her bangs swaying across her forehead as she shook her head, hands on her hips.
"I guess Hyun must be right then and it's just some strong gravitational pull from a different planet," she muttered under her breath, her lips forming a perfect pout as she absently tapped her fingers against her hip bones in a gesture of deep contemplation in an almost self-soothing motion.
Meanwhile, Taehyung emerged from his own spot beneath the control board, his long legs stretching out as he pulled himself into a more upright position. His hair was held out of his face by a red bandana, some oil smeared along his cheekbones and his brown eyes glinting behind his protective glasses. One grimy hand came up to push his dark blond hair out of his face, smearing an even bigger patch of grease along his cheek and right onto his hairline.
He smiled up at the pilot, motioning toward the control board, "I basically took the entire thing apart and put it back together, there's absolutely nothing wrong with it, Minghzu. Anyways, it's not like we're off course or anything! The vessel is just a tiny bit slower than anticipated, stuff like that happens."
Minghzu was worrying her lip with her teeth, seemingly still unconvinced by the two technicians telling her that nothing was amiss. Rationally, Minghzu understood that Taehyung and Seohyun had done anything they could and that they were much more knowledgeable about technological stuff than her, so if they told her there were no problems, there probably weren't any, but her mind remained plagued by a persistent sense of unease.
There was an unsettling feeling gnawing at Minghzu, a sense of unease that she couldn't shake. In her extensive experience as a pilot on two previous spaceships, she had never encountered a situation where the vessel's speed was compromised due to gravitational pull. They should be hurtling through the dark abyss of space at a speed of around 35,000 miles per hour, give or take a few thousands, but the control board indicated that they were barely breaching into the 30,000s.
As Minghzu pondered this puzzling conundrum, a sense of foreboding tightened its grip around her heart. There were no problems with the control board, and neither were there any anomalies concerning the tanks or the vessel itself. And yet...
A nagging intuition gnawed at her subconscious and she just had a weird feeling that something was wrong. They should've passed overhead Zaniah by now, but they were advancing much slower than anticipated. It wasn't so slow that anyone needed to be worried but just slightly less efficient than they had expected it to be. Honestly, it wasn't even that much of a concern, but the slight deviation from their expected efficiency left Minghzu feeling unsettled.
"Hey," Taehyung was still looking at her from where he was kneeling on the floor, oily spots all over his clothes as well as his face. Minghzu looked at him, lip still locked underneath her own gnawing teeth. A charming smile took over Taehyung's face, making his cheeks redden and his eyes crinkle at the corners, "Do you think you could show me the different star formations again? We've got a clear view of 77 Leo, right? I always seem to forget which one that is!"
Despite her lingering worries, Minghzu couldn't help but feel a small sense of warmth at Taehyung's request. This was the boy's first mission and he was so incredibly excited about it all that Minghzu couldn't help the way that her heart melted for him—not to mention that he reminded her an awful lot of her own son who was currently studying to become an astronaut.
Taehyung had the bright mind of someone who would most certainly go on to do great things and this mission was a perfect step in that direction. She could see the thirst for knowledge in that beautifully charming smile, in the way he clenched his fists and practically vibrated from excitement whenever one of the crew members would indulge him and teach him something about space. Taehyung was a most charming young man with an intelligence that rivalled that of a much more experienced traveller.
She was a seasoned space explorer herself, having been to the moon twice before and having worked at Mission Control for years before that. And even though she was now well into her forties she could still remember that feeling of anticipation and excitement when she'd gone on her first mission, a reminder of the innocence and wonder that had characterized her own maiden voyages into space. The memories of her first missions and the thrill of embarking on new adventures still lingered vividly in her mind, despite the passage of time and it was as sweet as it was a little nostalgic seeing that same excitement glimmer in those big brown eyes before her.
Sighing softly Minghzu nodded and motioned Taehyung to stand up so that they could look out at the vast expanse of space through the giant window themselves. "Alright," she relented, her voice carrying a hint of playful exasperation, "I'll show you once more, but after this, I expect you to remember where 77 Leo is! This must be the fifth time you've asked me to point out that star!"
Taehyung's grin got even broader, eyes sparkling as he eagerly jumped up, ready to soak in some more knowledge.
Captain's Log #5
Date: Thursday 16, March, 2078
Coordinates: X-203, Y-95, Z-304
Mission: Explore Venus
Entry: There is something wrong with the control board. Our technicians are on the task of trying to figure out what happened. Our pilot, Yu Minghzu, as well as the co-pilot, Muk Hajun, woke us up at 4 in the morning KST in alarm. I will help the technicians as much as I can. End of entry by Captain Kim Juna.
Taehyung didn't understand.
He found himself at a loss, his gaze fixed on the exposed underbelly of the control board, exhaustion weighing heavily on his shoulders. He stared at the underside of the control board that he'd unscrewed to have a look at its inner workings, headlight flickering and eyes burning from drowsiness. Taehyung was a rather intelligent man, if he dared say so himself. Graduating at the top of his class in Aerospace Engineering had honed his skills to a razor-sharp edge, allowing him to navigate the intricate complexities of spacecraft with ease.
Taehyung could unscrew an entire vessel and put it back together like a puzzle in half an hour. Hell, he'd helped build half the control board that he was currently staring at himself! He knew where the right wire was supposed to go, he knew which screws to loosen up and which ones to pull tighter, understood what part had to be smeared in grease and could just as easily tell which workings needed to be completely dry. He knew the intricacies of the wiring, the precise adjustments needed to ensure optimal performance, and the importance of meticulous maintenance.
What he didn't understand, however, was the fact that nothing was wrong at all.
Minghzu and Hajun had woken Taehyung up in a panic. The control board, it seemed, was experiencing a glitch—or perhaps it had engaged autopilot mode without their command. Despite their best efforts, the two pilots found themselves unable to steer the ship to the left. Physically, they could manipulate the controls, but the vessel stubbornly refused to deviate from its predetermined path, steadfastly veering to the right no matter how hard they pulled and tugged at levers or smashed at the buttons. Yet, Aquila remained resolute in its trajectory, defying their efforts to regain control.
While Taehyung and Seohyun were both extremely proficient technicians, it was Taehyung who had much more of a knack for all things concerning control. Seohyun knew her way around the control board too, of course, but nothing quite stimulated her mind like inspecting the giant tanks and ignitors inside the vessel, whereas Taehyung loved finding the issues in faulty wires and greasy buttons. He knew the control board inside and out, and was an expert at spotting even the most minuscule issue within its complicated system.
And there was no problem with the control board.
Everything was working just fine.
All the wires were attached to the right places, no screw was too loose, no dust in the motor, no wet patch that would indicate a problem. Nothing. There were no loose wires, no faulty connections, no signs of malfunction. It was as if the ship itself was taunting him with its flawless functionality. Taehyung stared for another long moment before he finally crawled out from underneath the control board, grease sticking to his hair and marring his once-white shirt.
As Taehyung lifted his gaze, he was met with three visages etched with unmistakable dread. Juna, the captain, was holding her laptop, pressed against her bosom, it reminded Taehyung of a child cuddling a teddy bear in search of comfort. Their co-pilot, Hajun, stood rigidly upright, his countenance grave yet marked by a furrowed brow betraying his concern. Minghzu had gone back to biting her own lips bloody, eyes wide and round as she waited for Taehyung to speak.
The boy cleared his throat, one hand coming up to swipe his hair away from his face. He realised that his fingers were shaking and quickly put his hand back down again. "There is nothing wrong with the control board," he finally rasped, licking over his dry lips. He could taste the residue of grease and oil on his lips, a stark reminder of the frantic efforts he had exerted in their futile attempt to uncover the source of their predicament.
Almost instantly, Minghzu's shoulders dropped and she murmured something in Chinese that Taehuyng wasn't able to decipher, her expression shifting from one of dread to one of resignation. Hajun leaned against the slightly younger Captain, emitted ragged sighs as he shook his head in disbelief. His eyes bore into Taehyung with an intensity that bordered on incredulity, fixating on the youngest member of their crew as if searching for answers in his gaze alone.
"There has to be something wrong!" Hajun's voice rang out, laden with frustration as he gestured vehemently towards the control board, "Aquila isn't responding to any of our commands. It defies all logic!"
Taehyung observed the co-pilot gesticulate wildly, bushy eyebrows furrowed as he glared at the control board as if it'd somehow offended him. With a sigh on his lips, Taehyung got back onto his feet and shook his head. "That's the thing, though," he interjected quietly, lips pursed and spine rigid, "Aquila does respond to all commands. It is functioning perfectly." Despite his outward display of confidence, Taehyung couldn't shake the gnawing uncertainty that lingered in the depths of his mind, a persistent reminder of the inexplicable events unfolding around them.
Hajun's nostrils flared, his cheeks going crimson in anger, but before he could interject with anything else, Juna nodded slowly. Her gaze shifted towards the control board, her laptop still clutched tightly to her chest as she contemplated their predicament. "So, if it's not Aquila causing the problems..." Juna's voice trailed off, her brows furrowing as she delved into her thoughts racing inside of her head.
"It has to be something out there messing with the vessel," Minghzu chimed in, eyes closed as she applied pressure to the bridge of her nose with both thumbs, as if attempting to alleviate the pressure of their mounting troubles. Juna hummed in agreement, head tilted backwards as she took a steadying breath.
"It makes no sense, though," Hajun rasped, clasping his hands together in front of his chest as he stared upward at the ceiling, "What could possibly be out there with a gravitational pull that's so strong that it overpowers our control board?"
Nobody answered the co-pilot. Running her fingers through her hair, bangs sticking up in all directions, Minghzu shook her head and turned around toward the captain, eyes filled with nothing but utter confusion. Juna met her gaze and swallowed thickly, blinking harshly as she forced herself to take a deep breath in through her nose and out through her mouth. A calming exercise they'd learned back on Earth when getting ready for the mission.
"Okay. Thank you, Taehyung," the captain finally said, voice strangely thin as she looked back at the young man, "Could you run and go fetch us Hyun? He might know more about our current... Predicament. Quickly, please."
Taehyung nodded, immediately darting off to the left toward their sleep cubicles. His heart was pounding in his chest, a hollow feeling of pure dread making his bones ache and his teeth chatter. Taking a deep breath he forced himself to calm down as he opened the door leading into their sleep quarters. Despite his efforts to remain composed, an overwhelming feeling of apprehension threatened to consume him. He was an astronaut, for god's sake. Astronauts didn't panic at the slightest sign of an issue.
Taehyung couldn't stop the chattering from his teeth.
With a steadying breath, Taehyung pushed open the door, ready to fetch their astrophysicist.
Captain's Log #8
Date: Saturday 18, March, 2078
Coordinates: X-211, Y-98, Z-303
Mission: Explore Venus
Entry: It has now been five days aboard the vessel. Something seems to be wrong. Although all of our systems are displaying that there are no problems, our ship is no longer steerable. Instead of heading towards Venus Aquila is heading to the right along the X-axis. Nothing we do changes the vessel's course. Our technicians are working nonstop trying to figure out what is wrong with the control board but they can't seem to find anything amiss. Mission Control on Earth has been contacted but so far we have not received a reply from them. Though we're all stressed, everyone is trying to remain calm. Park Hyun as well as our mathematician Choi Mark are trying to figure out whether there is some gravitational pull coming from somewhere along Zubenschamali. They have been awake for the past two days trying to come up with an explanation. Kim Taehyung and Gyeon Seohyun have explained that they might need to leave the vessel to check the outside. Other than that, there are no anomalies aboard the vessel. I have not yet decided what we should do next but I'm trying my best to keep morale high. End of entry by Captain Kim Juna.
"It's not like anyone has a better idea."
Seohyun was leaning against the wall, a cup of coffee in her hands, fingers shaking as she stared ahead. Deep purple bags hung heavily beneath her eyes, casting shadows across her pale complexion and lending her a weary appearance that belied her true age. She'd put her hair up in a loose bun, with stray strands of black framing her narrow face and falling untidily around her ears, dishevelled and a little unkempt. Taehyung was rather certain he didn't look much better.
His hair was kept out of his face by his trusty red bandana, but he could feel some of the strands tangling together in a greasy mess atop his head. Black and brown oil spots adorned his once-white shirt, evidence of his countless hours spent tinkering with the ship's inner workings. Dust clung to his back, a testament to the countless times he had contorted himself beneath machinery to tighten a screw or loosen a bolt. He could feel the exhaustion inside of him muddling his brain, making him less sharp, causing him to second-guess his own expertise.
With a weary sigh, Taehyung tightened his grip around his coffee mug, the warmth seeping into his tired hands providing a fleeting sense of comfort, eyes blinking sluggishly as he tried to stifle yet another yawn.
Next to him sat Choi Mark, their mathematician, who was currently dozing off on his iPad, cheek pressed right against the display. On his other side lounged Hajime, a warm mug of tea in his own grasp. Even the typically energetic doctor seemed subdued, his complexion paler than usual, a worrying green hue right around his nose, and his demeanour lacking its usual vigour.
"Still, I don't think it'd be safe for you guys to leave the vessel and go out when we have no control over the ship. We can slow it down but we can't get it to fully stop," Minghzu was explaining, her accent becoming a little thicker with every second passing. Frustration and utter exhaustion were weighing heavily on her as well, making her words sharper than strictly necessary. Resting her head in her hands, she continued pacing around the room, anxious energy manifesting in her non-stop walking.
"And what if something happens to you guys and then we don't have a technician anymore?" Juna chimed in, gaze fixed on her laptop even though she was participating in the conversation, "We can't risk losing you both, you're vital to this mission."
Taehyung nodded in weary agreement, his eyelids heavy with exhaustion as he struggled to stay alert. He'd been up for the better part of the last two nights, hands full of grease and fingers aching from the constant motions of unscrewing and tightening bolts. Both mentally and physically drained, he was on the brink of exhaustion. But that didn't mean he was ready to give up.
"What if only one of us goes out to check the exterior?" Taehyung proposed, his voice hoarse and dry, his tongue darting out to moisten his parched lips. "We're both trained for the task; there's no need for the both of us to go out together."
Juna's mouth snapped shut, her eyebrows wrinkling as she crossed her hands in front of her chest. She blinked at Taehyung, a crease forming between her brows, before tilting her head back and casting her gaze upward toward the ceiling of their vessel, as if the answer to all of their problems might've been hiding up there all along. With a shaky inhale she redirected her attention toward their youngest crew member and shook her head slowly.
"I don't want to risk anyone's life," she stated firmly, "We'll give Mission Control a little more time to respond before I'll even consider such dangerous measures."
"Mission Control hasn't responded in two days, Captain," Hajun slurred, blinking blearily and seeming rather exhausted as he looked up at Juna from his position sprawled on the floor. He was lying in front of the control board, face sickly pale and eyes drowsy, tear streaks still marring his cheeks. Hajun hadn't left his position at the control board for the past two nights.
"I'm getting tired of waiting," he spat, sitting up slowly. Hajun's exhaustion had morphed into a slightly feral expression of pure anger, his lips quivering and nostrils flaring as he kept his gaze fixed upon the Captain. Taehyung took a sip of his stale coffee, leaning against the bench as he kept his attention trained on Hajun's palpable anger.
"Well," June faltered for a split second, a flash of fear making her inhale sharply before she caught herself and cleared her throat, "That shouldn't be worrying us. Maybe their messages will now just take longer to get to us. After all, we're on a course miles away from Earth."
Hajime huffed an incredulous laugh, pale face taut and lips pursed as he shook his head. "It is worrying us, Juna," he exclaimed, his voice tinged with frustration, "We're completely off course, no messages are getting back to Earth, and our damn technicians can't figure out what's wrong with the ship!"
Taehyung's gaze flickered up toward the older man, a frown marring his own pink lips as he put his mug down with a little more force than strictly necessary. "Because nothing's wrong with the ship," he retorted, his voice taking on a deep, resonant timbre that reverberated from deep within his chest. The young technician closed his eyes for a moment as he drawled, "We can't fix a vessel that's not broken."
Hajime turned toward Taehyung, his sickly countenance striking in the harsh glare of their artificial light illuminating the table. For a split second, Taehyung could decipher nothing but pure unfiltered rage in the face of the older man who was usually so joyous. Instantly, Taehyung tensed, his spine rigid as he maintained unblinking eye contact with Hajime, who appeared to have regained his composure, the fury dissipating from his features as quickly as it had emerged.
"If the ship isn't broken, how come we can't steer it, hm?" The doctor asked, voice tinged with a hint of something so dark, so vicious, that it made Taehyung's skin crawl in sheer terror. Unable to find words to respond, Taehyung could only stare, his mind reeling from the unexpected hostility emanating from Hajime's usually amiable demeanour. It was a side of the doctor that Taehyung had never witnessed before, and it left him feeling unsettled and uncertain.
Almost instinctively, Taehyung moved away from Hajime, standing up with his empty cup in his hands. With faltering steps, he made his way toward the dishwasher, his fingers quivering like leaves in the wind as he deposited his mug inside. A sudden tightness gripped his throat, making it difficult to draw in a steady breath Hajime had ignited some primal fear in Taehyung that was completely uncalled for yet he couldn't shake that bone-deep feeling of utter dread. Something inside of him was telling him to run. Yet, he knew there was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide from the turmoil that had engulfed their once tranquil mission.
"Taehyung," Seohyun called out, voice firm as she walked closer toward the younger man. Raising his head, Taehyung found himself locking eyes with the woman, her concerned expression evident in the slight crinkle of her nose and the flicker of her gaze towards Hajime before returning to him.
"Let's go see if we can fix the transmission station," Seohyun offered, her tone gentle yet resolute as she extended her hand towards Taehyung. Both technicians knew, of course, that there was nothing wrong with the transmission station, there was nothing to fix. But the rising hostility in the shared common area was becoming suffocating and apparently Hajun as well as Hajime had let their concern morph into some dark fury that was making the rest rather uneasy and even Minghzu had become weirdly agitated, almost bitter.
Taehyung nodded sharply and took Seohyun's hand.
Hopefully, everyone would start to calm down in a while.
Captain's Log #9
Date: Saturday 18, March, 2078
Coordinates: X-213, Y-99, Z-303
Mission: Explore Venus
Entry: Choi Mark and Park Hyun have figured out the location of the gravitational pull. It has to come from somewhere along 107-Vir, which makes no sense since there are no known planets or other masses with such a strong gravitational pull along that field. Mission Control back in Seoul has still not responded to any of our messages. The doctor, Nakamura Hajime, has become very ill. We think it might be the stress. Morale is dropping rapidly. End of entry by Captain Kim Juna.
There wasn't anything wrong with their ship.
There was, however, something wrong with their crew.
At first, Taehyung had attributed it to stress—understandable given the gravity of their situation, with nerves frayed and anxiety running high. It was an incredibly stressful situation that they found themselves in and he, too, found himself slipping into anxious thoughts and panicked states more often than not. However, even stress couldn't fully explain the sudden and drastic change in demeanour that seemed to have swept over everyone on board.
It had started with their assigned doctor. Hajime, who had always been one of the kindest and most joyous of the bunch, had gradually transformed into a shadow of his former self—bitter, angry, making snarky remarks and looking for fights and arguments every chance that he got. He'd become sickly, too, pale and running a fever that was dangerously close to life-threatening. And still, even writhing in pain as he lay in his bed, hurling profanities and insults at anyone within earshot, his behaviour increasingly erratic and alarming.
They'd all agreed that Hajime had simply lost his mind due to the prolonged stress they'd all been having, chalking it up to his age. He was an older man, after all, well into his fifties and though his mind was usually still sharp and clear, he was more fragile than most of them. His immune system, weakened by exhaustion, had succumbed to a fever that left him delirious and irritable, prone to lashing out at those around him for no apparent reason.
But then, the unsettling transformation extended beyond Hajime and Hajun and Minghzu started to snarl insults at anyone within general proximity. The once soft-spoken and highly intelligent pilot and her anxious but friendly co-pilot were found by the crew in the middle of the night, beating each other up. Minghzu, in a fit of unprovoked rage, had somehow managed to break one of Hajun's fingers, only to receive a vicious knee to the stomach in retaliation, leaving her doubled over and retching bile and coffee for what seemed like an eternity.
Neither one of the two had been able to tell them why the fight had broken out or what it had even been about, simply continuing to spout insults as long as they could. While they eventually managed to calm down after some time apart, the incident had irreparably damaged their relationship. After that initial fight, they couldn't stand to even be in the same room without violent arguments breaking out and insults being hurled at each other.
Last night Minghzu had complained of a headache, her face red and her breathing shallow. Taehyung couldn't shake the feeling that she, too, had fallen victim to the strain of their circumstances, her body exhibiting signs of succumbing to the immense pressure they were under. Yet, it struck him as peculiar that both she and Hajime displayed identical symptoms, right down to the seething rage and hostility towards everyone around them. He was fairly certain Hajun would follow suit and fall sick shortly.
Even Mark and Hyun, two middle-aged men with a knack for all things space and numbers, had become weirdly bitter these past few days. The drastic change in their demeanour deeply unsettled Taehyung. It frightened him. One by one the crew members seemed to suddenly turn angry and argumentative, with no real cause given. It was as if one day they just switched a flip and suddenly decided to turn their personality around completely. It was scary.
Only himself Juna and Seohyun were still left largely unaffected by whatever was going on with the other crew members. Though Juna had sneered at him that morning as well, lips coiled and eyebrows furrowed as she'd shuffled past him toward the control board. Taehyung prayed to all deities out there that she'd simply had a bad day.
Sighing softly, Taehyung closed his eyes and let his head fall against the wall behind him. His gloved hands rose to push his protective mask down, letting it slip off and land on the ground beside him with a muted thud. When he cracked one eye open again, he could make out Seohyun's worried face to the right of him, where she was currently tinkering with the inner workings of their transmission station. Dirt smudged her mask, while grease marked her face like a constellation of freckles.
"There's nothing wrong with the telemetry station," Taehyung murmured, rubbing a gloved hand along his nose bridge, undoubtedly smearing grease along it as well as he stretched his legs out further in front of him. Seohyun offered no response, her shoulders drooping ever so slightly as she continued to scrutinize the exposed wires laid bare before her.
"Maybe something happened to the antenna," Seohyun offered, crossing her legs as she continued to stare at the exposed inner mechanics of the station. They had been unable to receive any messages from Mission Control for the past several days, yet their thorough examinations had failed to uncover any anomalies in the telemetry station. Neither could they find anything wrong with the control board. If Taehyung didn't know better, he'd assume that maybe Seohyun and he just weren't good at their jobs—but he knew better than that.
Both he and Seohyun had graduated at the top of their class, with Seohyun even earning the distinction of valedictorian. They were highly skilled professionals who knew their craft inside and out. They knew what they were doing. And they knew that nothing was wrong with the ship.
"Maybe," Taehyung mumbled, shrugging his shoulders as he stared ahead at the wires he had been tinkering with for the past two hours. He'd been dusting the circuit board for a good ten minutes, unplugging wires and rewiring them as if it would change anything. Despite his best efforts, they remained unable to receive any messages from Mission Control, the silence from the outside world growing increasingly deafening with each passing moment. Sighing lowly, Taehyung shook his head. Carefully peeling off his gloves, he set them aside with a deflated expression, a deep furrow etching itself between his brows.
"Do you think there's a virus going around or something?" Taehyung employed his nails to idly scratch at a dirty spot on his jeans, keeping his gaze fixed on the grimy substance. He heard Seohyun's breath hitch, could see her flinch in his peripheral vision. Then, she started reconstructing the telemetry station once more, her movements somewhat brisk as she sealed it back up, her breath carrying a hint of nerves despite her efforts to maintain a composed facade.
"I don't think that's even possible, Taehyung-ah," the older woman stated, feigning a nonchalant tone that didn't quite fit with her slightly erratic movements, "We're in the middle of space, enclosed within an airtight capsule. There's no conceivable way that any virus could have infiltrated Aquila."
Taehyung offered a single, strained nod in response, his focus still anchored to the stubborn blemish on his pants. He kept his gaze lowered, unwilling to meet Seohyun's gaze any longer. Of course, he knew that it was highly unlikely—if not impossible—for a virus to infiltrate the walls of Aquila. That didn't make it any less weird that all of their crew members seemed to get sick one after the other with the exact same symptoms.
Finally, after a lingering moment of silence, Taehyung spoke again, his voice tinged with a note of apprehension. "You know I heard Mark swearing quite a lot today," he voiced, calm yet resolute, "He's been getting more and more agitated too. I think he's next."
"No one is 'next'," Seohyun bit back, eyes narrowed and lips pushed together into a taut line. When Taehyung met her gaze, he saw something wild flash behind her eyes. There was a brief, fleeting moment where a spark of unbridled rage flickered in her eyes, directed squarely at him. Taehyung didn't move, attention fixed on her, the spot on his jeans completely forgotten. He could feel that primal urge to flee once more. The same feeling he'd gotten when Hajime had fallen sick and stared at him.
But as quickly as it had appeared, the fire in Seohyun's eyes seemed to extinguish, replaced by a calm resolve. Seohyun took a steadying breath and her shoulders relaxed, the fury in her gaze dissipating as if it had never been there in the first place.
Taehyung's fingers shook when he continued scratching at the spot on his pants, eyes still gazing upon Seohyun—almost as if he was waiting for the girl to do something irrational, like attack him. There was a tense anticipation in the air, as if he half-expected her to lash out at any moment. But Seohyun seemed normal once more, idly playing with the different knobs and buttons on the telemetry station, eyes soft and caring, her demeanour returning to its usual calm and collected state.
"So, you're not feeling a little agitated as well? We're in a very stressful situation," Seohyun asked, her voice soft and warm, the same way that she always talked to Taehyung. Yet, there was something off about the way that the question was asked. She avoided looking at Taehyung, eyes fixed on a wire in front of them and—though Taehyung couldn't be sure—it almost sounded as if she was maybe angry at him for not being as agitated as the rest of the crew. It made no sense. And it frightened the young man.
Taehyung swallowed hard, fingers still trembling as he scratched along his neck, "I guess- I guess I just trust that Mission Control will help us sooner or later. I've not given up hope yet. Don't get me wrong, I'm still just as stressed as you all are but... I'm hopeful."
Seohyun was staring at him, her eyes dark and face almost expressionless if it weren't for the slightest downturn of her lips. For a long moment, she didn't answer, simply keeping her focus on the young technician, distaste palpable in her countenance. Almost as if she was somehow annoyed at Taehyung for keeping a hopeful mind, for being level-headed even in such a stressful situation.
"If we're going to examine the antenna, we'll need to leave Aquila and inspect it from the outside," she explained matter-of-factly, completely changing the topic of their discussion once more. Taehyung's expression remained pallid, his nerves coiled tightly within him. The woman continued talking, seemingly not noticing Taehyung's unease, "It's going to be dangerous. I think you should do it."
"Me?" Taehyung whispered, his heart racing with a mix of apprehension and disbelief. While he was definitely qualified for such a task, it was rather worrisome that Seohyun would just hand him the job without further ado. Seohyun had many more years of expertise and had already flown in a vessel once, whereas this mission marked Taehyung's inaugural journey beyond Earth's orbit. Wouldn't it make more sense for her to go out?
"Yeah," Seohyun shrugged once, pulling her gloves off as well, "Let's go tell Juna about our plan."
Taehyung gaped at Seohyun in astonishment as she rose to her feet, her movements decisive and purposeful. Without hesitation, she headed towards the door to inform the captain that Taehyung would be venturing outside the vessel to address the issue firsthand, uncaring to even ask Taehyung whether he felt comfortable with such a mission or if he even knew what to do out there.
Oh god, Taehyung thought to himself, she was sick as well.
Captain's Log #13
Date: Monday 20, March, 2078
Coordinates: X-288, Y-89, Z-303
Mission: Explore Venus
Entry: The doctor is dead. End of entry by Captain Kim Juna.
Captain's Log #17
Date: Wednesday 22, March, 2078
Coordinates: X-290, Y-90, Z-308
Mission: Explore Venus
Entry: It isn't a planet pulling us toward it. It has to be something different. Whatever it is, it almost seems to move at a speed that isn't lining up with any rotational paths that we know of. One day we will get pulled up, one day we get pulled down, sometimes to one side, sometimes to the other. The only steady thing about it is that we are moving to the right. Our technicians have still not found a problem with the vessel, I am inclined to believe that Aquila is fully functional and that the issue lies somewhere out there. Kim Taehyung is getting ready to leave the vessel and check the outer layer. End of entry by Captain Kim Juna.
It had taken them a few days longer to finally prepare for Taehyung to leave the vessel.
When they'd gone to Juna back when Seohyun had decided that the young technician would inspect the vessel from outside, they'd gotten sidetracked by a bloodcurdling scream coming from their sleep cubicles. Rushing to investigate, they discovered a horrifying scene: Hajime lay lifeless in his bed, with Juna standing beside him, shrieking in horror. It had been rather clear that Hajime had killed himself. He'd lodged a knife right underneath his jugular, cutting through his throat. Even in death, he clutched the weapon firmly in his hand, a grim testament to the tragedy that had unfolded.
Taehyung had thrown up all over himself, sobbing uncontrollably as he gaped at the lifeless body of Hajime. Tears had streamed down his face uncontrollably as he'd stared, wide-eyed, at the lifeless form of Hajime. Blood had pooled ominously on the floor, a stark reminder of the violent end that had befallen their once-jovial crewmate. His face had been frozen in a snarl, so vicious, so angry, it still haunted Taehyung. There had been nothing calm about the end of his suffering. It seemed as if Hajime had been unhappy all the way into his grave.
After that, things had soon escalated.
Minghzu and Hajun had gotten into even more physical altercations, so brutal and blood-thirsty that Juna had to lock them in two different sleep cubicles for fear that they might kill each other otherwise. The absence of Hajime, their trusted doctor, only exacerbated their plight, leaving the injured crew members to suffer without proper medical attention—Minghzu was missing a few teeth and had a bite wound from Hajun that had broken skin. Hajun, on the other hand, hadn't come out unfazed either. Minghzu had ripped his left ear off in a fit of complete and utter animalistic rage. Taehyung didn't dare even go near those cubicles. The once-unified crew now seemed irreparably fractured, their bonds shattered by the overwhelming despair that gripped them.
The atmosphere aboard the vessel had turned into a living nightmare.
Taehyung hadn't seen Mark or Hyun in a while either, which made him nervous. The only people he was still interacting with were Seohyun and Juna, and even those interactions had become scarce and few between. Juna was slowly becoming more and more angry too. Juna's once steady demeanour had eroded into fits of anger, her outbursts directed indiscriminately at Taehyung, leaving him bewildered and on edge. Seohyun, though retaining some semblance of normalcy, exhibited alarming shifts in temperament, veering from tranquillity to ferocity in the blink of an eye.
Taehyung wasn't a doctor, but whatever was happening aboard Aquila was not simply them having an existential crisis—it was something far more sinister. There had to be something else behind the sudden furious behaviour. If Taehyung didn't know any better, he might've even assumed they'd all caught rabies. They'd all developed a fever at one point or another, had become shells of their former selves, overcome with a bloodlust and anger that made Taehyung shiver just thinking about, infecting their minds and driving them to the brink of savagery.
He didn't know what was happening or how a virus could've possibly spread in an isolated vessel miles and miles away from any living creature, but it was the only explanation that made any kind of sense. Something was making everyone sick aboard Aquila and somehow—for some unknown reason that Taehyung couldn't figure out—he seemed to be the only one immune to it.
Which meant it was his job to fix it and bring them all back to Earth.
"You're ready?" Seohyun's honeyed voice ripped Taehyung from his grim thoughts, pulling him back to the present moment. The girl was standing next to the first door leading out into a small air-tight hall. To exit the vessel, two doors stood as the barrier, with Seohyun responsible for opening only the initial one for Taehyung.
The young technician was wearing his space suit, helmet thick and boots heavy where he stalked closer to the girl. Seohyun, for once, seemed to be normal again. Somehow the illness seemed to only make her feral every once in a while, momentarily free from the grips of her illness which occasionally transformed her into something more akin to a wild creature. For the most part, she was still Taehyung's helpful older mentor. If she wasn't actively hissing insults at him and glaring daggers at him, that was.
"Ready," Taehyung exhaled, voice breathy and a little unsteady, wavering from nerves. It'd be the first time that he would leave the vessel and he wasn't sure how he was feeling about it. Stepping into the unknown beyond the vessel's confines stirred a mixture of emotions within him, to be quite honest. In his left hand, he clutched his trusty toolbox, armed to take apart and reassemble the entire outside of Aquila if necessary. Seohyun smiled at him, the motion comforting if it wasn't for that weird glow in her eyes. For a fleeting moment, a flash of feverish anger flickered across her features, lips curling into something akin to a snarl before she composed herself. With a nod, she swung the door open, motioning for Taehyung to proceed into the narrow hallway ahead.
Taehyung's heart was beating, palms sweaty in his suit as he stepped out into that narrow hall. Taehyung tried to remain calm, exhaling softly through his mouth and inhaling deeply through his nose, but he couldn't get rid of the feeling that something would go terribly wrong. He'd barely even crossed the threshold into the hall, when Seohyun was already pushing the door close behind him, forcing him into the small space. With a surprised squeak on his lips, Taehyung turned around, gaze confused as he found Seohyun's face through the little window on the door that was keeping them separate. Seohyun was smiling at him, all broad and toothy. It looked... Wrong.
The corners of her lips stretched almost painfully, cracks forming under the strain of her grin. Her eyes, once again possessed by that feverish intensity, seemed to pierce through him. It was as if she had been waiting for this moment, for him to step outside the safety of the vessel. Then, she stretched one hand forward and Taehyung could hear a distinct little click.
His breath caught in his throat.
Had she... had she just locked him out?
"Seohyun?" Taehyung rasped, eyes wide as he stared at her through the little window. Seohyun's unnerving smile remained unchanged, her lips stretched tightly, eyes dilated as they bore into Taehyung. Swallowing heavily, Taehyung tried to calm his frantic heartbeat as he kept his gaze locked with that of Seohyun. Dread consumed him, engulfing him in a suffocating grip of terror.
"Seohyun, you locked me out. Please—please unlock the door," he pleaded, his voice quivering with fear, the sound muffled within his helmet, "I can't get back in after my task if the door is locked." He was shivering, hands balled into fists and spine rigid. A feeling of utter and complete dread consumed him, and made his entire body convulse in terror. A primal fear for his life gripped him with an icy dread, sending shivers down his spine.
Seohyun kept staring at him. Then, slowly, she bent down, as if to unlock the latch that was keeping Taehyung separated from them. Taehyung held his breath, eyes still locked with those of Seohyun, as the girl slowly rose back up again. In her right hand, she was now clutching a hammer. One from their toolbox. Taehyung hadn't noticed Seohyun retrieving it earlier, and the realization sent a chill down his spine. Dread was pumping through Taehyung's body, thick and ice-cold, seizing him with an almost paralyzing fear. It coiled in his lungs, spreading through his nerves and making him shiver. His gaze never left Seohyun's face, her feverish eyes staring at Taehyung, hammer in her right hand.
"Noona," Taehyung rasped, voice taking on an almost pleading tone, too high-pitched, almost inaudible, "Noona, please open the door."
Seohyun's expression remained unnervingly impassive as she held the hammer, her gaze piercing through Taehyung with an intensity that sent shivers down his spine. The silence between them seemed to stretch endlessly, each passing moment amplifying Taehyung's growing sense of dread.
His mind raced, searching desperately for a way to break through to Seohyun, to reach the person he once knew beneath the veil of whatever was driving her actions now. But as he studied her face, he saw only the unsettling determination etched in her features, devoid of any semblance of the friend and mentor he had relied upon.
"Seohyun, please..." Taehyung's voice cracked with emotion, his plea hanging heavy in the air. His heart pounded in his chest, a drumbeat of fear echoing in the confined space of his helmet. He reached out a trembling hand toward the door, his fingers pressing against the cold metal in a futile attempt to find some escape from the nightmare unfolding before him. His glove thumped against the cold glass with a soft hollow sound.
Seohyun stared at him for just a moment longer, then she turned around and walked off.
Taehyung's heart lurched into his throat. Panic, so overwhelming and ice-old that it made his teeth clatter, seized his body, dripping down his spine and rippling through his entire being in waves of dread. Seohyun was sick. She was sick and she had a hammer. Taehyung started banging against the door, utter horror making his punches tremble, nails digging into his gloves. His mind raced with fear, each heartbeat echoing like a drum of impending doom. His fists hammered against the unforgiving surface, each strike fuelled by a cocktail of dread and anguish.
"SEOHYUN!" He was screaming, but he couldn't even see the technician anymore. She'd long left his field of vision, "SEOHYUN, COME BACK! PLEASE! NOONA!"
Taehyung's heart pounded in his chest, the rhythm syncopated with the pounding of his fists against the door. Panic clawed at his throat, threatening to suffocate him as he called out to her, his voice hoarse with desperation. Seohyun didn't answer him anymore.
Well, not vocally, at least.
It was the sharp, rhythmic thud of a hammer meeting flesh, reverberating through the walls like a sinister drumbeat that would finally answer his calls.
Captain's Log #22
Date: Thursday 23, March, 2078
Coordinates: X-296, Y-88, Z-303
Mission: Explore Venus
Entry: Please Help. End of entry by Technician Kim Taehyung.
Captain's Log #23
Date: Thursday 23, March, 2078
Coordinates: X-296, Y-88, Z-303
Mission: Explore Venus
Entry: Everyone is dead. I don't know what to do. Seohyun locked me out, I had to unscrew the door to get back in. Everyone is dead. Everyone except me. I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do. Mission Control, please help. Please. End of entry by Technician Kim Taehyung.
Captain's Log #24
Date: Thursday 23, March, 2078
Coordinates: X-296, Y-88, Z-303
Mission: Explore Venus
Entry: Is anyone getting these messages? I tried everything to fix the station. If you get my messages, I am begging, help me. I don't want to be here. I'm alone. Help. End of entry by Technician Kim Taehyung.
Captain's Log #25
Date: Friday 24, March, 2078
Coordinates: X-300, Y-89, Z-302
Mission: Explore Venus
Entry: I don't want to die. End of entry by Technician Kim Taehyung.