Those were the most intense, yet disappointing 24 hours in Luca's life.

The FTL microjumps across the Alpha Centauri system between Proxima b and Alpha Centauri A had been nerve-wracking, but they'd arrived. The drive spooled down as they drifted into orbit around Alpha Centauri A d, or as Ryan had romantically dubbed it, "Midnight Veil" - a name that made an actively corrosive and poisonous planet sound like some exotic vacation destination.

Below them, green clouds churned through the atmosphere as the Triumph established a stable orbit.

"Well," Luca said, settling back in his command chair, "we made it."

"What do you mean by made it?" Ryan's voice crackled over comms from Engineering. "Because if you mean 'survived a series of hyperspace hops that probably took years off my life,' then yeah, mission accomplished."

Through the main viewport, Midnight Veil rotated slowly beneath them. Swirls of sickly green and poisonous yellow storm racing across its face. Beautiful, in a "don't fucking breathe this" kind of way.

"Status report," Luca called out.

From his engineering station, Chris looked up with a quick thumbs-up. "All systems nominal. FTL drive is cooling down normally, no stress fractures in the Reality Anchor matrix. We're good to go."

Danny's worked on his console, sensor readings cascading down his display. "Sensors are online and scanning. And Luca..." His voice carried that particular note that meant the science had just gotten interesting. "You're going to want to see this."

Every head on the bridge turned. Great, Luca thought. That's Danny's 'we're about to get very rich or very dead' voice.

"What've we got?" Luca asked, though he was pretty sure he didn't want to know.

Pulling up sensor readings on the main display, Danny highlighted a familiar electromagnetic signature. "I'm picking up something from the surface. It's... well, it's definitely Varnathi."

"Varnathi?" Emily leaned forward, her expression shifting from curiosity to concern.

"Similar, but different. The EM pattern is distinct... not identical to the vault we found before." Danny's cursor traced the signal source. "This is something else entirely."

At navigation, Zoe looked up with Pixel chittering softly on her shoulder. "Again?" Suspicion colored her voice. "Another Varnathi site, just sitting there waiting for us? Seems rather convenient."

No shit, Luca thought. First Proxima b leads them into that whole clusterfuck with the sleeping aliens, now they arrive at Alpha Centauri A and surprise! More ancient alien archaeology.

"That's what I was thinking," Ryan said over comms. "Starting to feel like we're being guided somewhere."

The pattern was suspicious as hell. Guiding them from planet to planet, each stop revealing more Varnathi technology. Almost like...

"Like the System wants us to find these places," Luca said quietly.

Joey stepped forward from the medical station, concern written across his freckled face. "What about portal activity? If this place is active like New Dawn was..."

Zoe's fingers flew across her navigation display. "Portal signatures everywhere. I'm reading... Christ, thousands of them. Maybe ten, fifteen thousand across the planet's surface."

"Fifteen thousand?" Chris whistled low. "That's going to make landing interesting."

Interesting. Yeah, that was one word for it. Another word might be "fucking terrifying."

Double-checking his readings, Danny frowned at his console. "The signal is stable, though. Whatever's generating it has been active for a long time. But Captain..." He paused, uncertainty flickering across his features. "The electromagnetic pattern suggests this isn't a storage facility like New Dawn. This is something else."

"Something else?" Emily's question came sharp and quick.

"I don't know yet. We'll have to get down there and explore it."

"Of course," Luca scoffed. That made sense.

Luca stared at the sensor readings, the familiar Varnathi signatures, the massive portal network spread across Midnight Veil's toxic surface. The coincidences were adding up. Proxima b's discocery led them here. As though they had to unlock the first for the second to activate.

Felt like pieces of a puzzle they didn't even know they were solving. And Luca wasn't sure he wanted to see the finished picture.

"Atmospheric composition?" he asked, pushing aside the larger questions for now.

"Corrosive as hell." Danny's tone went grim. "Sulfur dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, atmospheric pressure about one point two times Earth standard. EVA suits will hold up, but we'll want to minimize exposure time."

"Local weather patterns?"

From navigation, Zoe grimaced. "Violent. Electrical storms, acid rain, wind speeds that could knock the Percival around if we're not careful. But there are clear windows, periods where we could make a safe approach to the signal source."

Emily pulled up their mission parameters on her tablet. "At least our survey objectives are straightforward. Atmospheric analysis, geological samples, life sign detection, artifact recovery."

"The artifact bounty alone could be worth billions if this is another major Varnathi site," Ryan added, his voice carrying that familiar note of optimism that usually preceded something going horribly wrong.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves." The money was tempting, sure, but the implications... Luca still wasn't convinced they should be telling Earth about any of this. Those thousands of stasis pods on New Dawn, sleeping Varnathi that could be anything from refugees to an invasion force... did humanity really need to know about that?

"We'll go down," he decided. "Full survey mission as planned. But we stay alert. If we're being guided somewhere, we need to know why."

A few hours later, they gathered in the mess hall around a display of their mission objectives. Coffee cups and data tablets cluttered the small table, the familiar smell of recycled air and caffeine filling the space. At least some things stayed normal, even when they were orbiting an alien death world.

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"Alright," Emily said, pulling up their charter specifications, "let's review what we're actually supposed to accomplish down there."

The display showed their primary objectives in neat, corporate formatting that somehow made exploring a toxic alien world sound like a standard business transaction.

"Habitable Zone Analysis with seventy-five million credits, seven hundred million potential. Atmosphere, climate, surface gravity, magnetic shielding, presence of liquid water." Emily gestured at the readings. "We can knock most of this out with standard equipment."

"Core Sample Collection, that will be a tough one. Worth fifty million base, two-fifty potential. We'll need surface access, but it's straightforward geological work. Dig some holes and bring back the dirt."

Danny looked up from his tablet. "Alien Lifeform Detection... Microbial samples, biosignatures, observable ecosystems... The multitools will come in handy here."

She paused at the final objective, the big one that made everyone's pulse quicken. "Alien Technology or Artifacts. Seventy-five million base, two point five billion potential."

Gesturing at Danny's sensor readings, she continued, "Those Varnathi installations? If they're what we think they are, we're looking at the largest payout in IFC history."

"Assuming we can access them." Chris leaned back in his chair. "Fifteen thousand active portals, corrosive atmosphere, unknown hostile presence. This isn't exactly a low-risk operation."

No kidding, Luca thought. When was anything they did low-risk anymore?

Leaning forward over the display, Danny highlighted the atmospheric interference patterns. "The atmosphere's going to blind us the second we hit that green soup. Our sensors can penetrate maybe five kilometers through it. We'll be flying blind once we get below the cloud layer."

"Landing zones?" Luca asked.

Zoe manipulated the display, highlighting areas of relative stability. Three potential sites glowed on the rotating planet model. "This valley here offers the best protection from wind shear, and it's within a reasonable distance of the installation complex."

"How reasonable?" Ryan's voice carried over comms.

"Fifteen kilometers. Manageable with the Percival, but we'll want to watch the weather patterns."

From his tablet, Joey pulled up biological hazard assessments. The data looked about as cheerful as expected. "Medical considerations: the atmosphere isn't just corrosive, it's actively toxic. Sealed suits at all times, no exceptions. Exposure protocols are critical."

"What about the portal spawns?" Emily's question voiced what they were all thinking. "If this place is as active as the readings suggest..."

"We go in armed and ready." The decision felt inevitable. "This isn't a peaceful archaeological dig. It's a combat operation in an extreme environment."

The display showed the swirling mass of Midnight Veil below them, its toxic atmosphere punctuated by constant lightning strikes. Somewhere beneath those poisonous clouds lay answers to questions they were only beginning to understand.

And probably things trying to kill them. There were always things trying to kill them.

"Descent plan?" Luca asked.

"Standard approach. We take the Percival down during a clear weather window, establish a secure perimeter around the landing zone, then proceed to the Varnathi installation on foot with the Centurion."

Joey looked up from his medical protocols. "Equipment load?"

"Full survey kit, plus combat gear. We treat this like we're going into hostile territory."

Studying the weather patterns on her display, Zoe frowned. "Next clear window opens in six hours. We'll have maybe a four-hour operating period before the next storm system moves in."

"That's cutting it close," Ryan pointed out.

"Everything about this mission is cutting it close." Luca gestured at the toxic planet rotating beneath them. "But we've come too far to turn back now."

And besides, he thought, it felt like the path of least resistance was a trap anyway.

The prep bay buzzed as everyone suited up for the drop. Joey and Chris had spent the morning resupplying the Centurion and loading it with fresh med pod cartridges and enough MREs to last two weeks planetside. The familiar ritual of preparation helped calm everyone's nerves.

Well, almost everyone's nerves.

"I still don't like this," Emily said, tugging at Luca's scout suit as he sealed the joints. Her fingers traced the lightweight armor's surface, testing its thickness. "It feels so... thin."

The TL9 material felt almost fragile under her touch, especially compared to what they were about to face. Luca had to admit, looking down at the form-fitting suit, it didn't exactly inspire confidence against a planet that wanted to dissolve them.

"It's rated for extreme environments," he said, though the words sounded hollow even to him.

Across the bay, Danny looked up from his heavy power armor. Zoe was helping him with the back plating, checking each seal twice. "The atmospheric readings show chemical concentrations that could eat through unprotected gear in minutes."

"Which is exactly why we're not going unprotected." Ryan sealed his medium armor with characteristic confidence, joints clicking into place. "Besides, mobility matters down there. Those portal spawns aren't going to wait for us to lumber around in walking tanks."

"This walking tank is going to keep me alive when the acid rain starts," Danny shot back, testing his joint mobility with a series of careful movements.

Chris looked up from his own medium armor setup, power cells humming as they activated. "The gear specifications show chemical resistance ratings that should handle most corrosive environments. The question is risk tolerance."

"Exactly." Genuine worry crept into Emily's voice as she gave Luca's scout suit another critical look. "You and Zoe are choosing speed over protection."

Finishing with Danny's armor, Zoe moved to her own scout suit. Pixel chittered softly on her shoulder, bioluminescent patches pulsing with what Luca had learned was contentment. "Sometimes speed is protection. Can't get corroded if you're not standing still long enough for it to matter."

"You know," Zoe added as she pulled on her helmet, "Pixel's not even worried. Maybe we're overthinking this."

"Pixel doesn't have to breathe corrosive atmosphere," Emily pointed out, though she was smiling now. "She'll be staying put in the Centurion."

With this power system humming to life, Joey's heavy armor activated. "Medical protocols are in place either way. If anyone shows signs of exposure, we extract immediately."

Luca caught Emily's hand, squeezing it gently through their gloves. "Em, we've faced worse. Remember the heat on Venus?"

"This feels different." Her voice went quiet, vulnerable. "More... unknown."

"That's what makes it exciting," Zoe said, her voice carrying that familiar note of adventure. Her scout armor's adaptive camouflage was already starting to shift colors to match the prep bay's lighting.

Exciting. Yeah, that was one word for it. Another word might be "suicidal." But then again, that pretty much described half their missions.

"All systems green here." Ryan announced, running through his final checks with the efficiency of someone who'd done this too many times. "Chris?"

"Sealed and ready." Chris confirmed, power levels stabilizing across his display. "Environmental systems online."

"Medical suite is operational," Joey added, his voice now coming through the comm system with electronic clarity.

Danny sealed his helmet with a soft hiss, joining the comm network. "Heavy armor squad ready for toxic wasteland deployment."

"Scout team ready for high-speed exploration," Luca replied, smiling and checking his own suit's flexibility one last time. The material moved with him, responsive and light. Still felt like wearing a wetsuit to a chemical fire, though.

Emily and Zoe burst out laughing.

"You are such dorks," Emily said, slapping Luca's arm. "Heavy armor squad? Scout team? What are we, twelve?"

"Hey!" Luca said, "That hurt."

"I think it's cute," Zoe added, her voice warm with affection. "Like kids playing space marines."

Moving toward the Percival, the team formed up. The dropship sat in the hangar like a sleeping predator, its hull gleaming under the bay lights. The Centurion was already secured inside along with their survey equipment and emergency supplies.

Taking their positions in the cockpit, Luca and Zoe ran through pre-flight checks while the others strapped in. Midnight Veil loomed below them, its toxic green clouds illuminated by constant lightning strikes.

Looked like a storm system having a seizure. A very angry, very toxic seizure.

"Clamps releasing," Zoe reported, her hands steady on the controls despite the magnitude of what they were about to attempt. "We're clear of the Triumph."

The dropship drifted away from their starship, beginning its slow orbit around the planet. Lightning flickered through the green sludge that passed for an atmosphere, casting eerie shadows across the cockpit windows.

Luca swallowed hard, watching the electrical storms rage through those toxic clouds. Somewhere down there, buried beneath kilometers of poisonous atmosphere, waited another Varnathi installation with answers they weren't sure they wanted.

And probably things that wanted to kill them. There were always things that wanted to kill them.

"Here we go," he said quietly.

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