The rust-red, radiating dust storm swirls up metal debris from the abandoned starport, sweeping across Marine Scout Kale’s tactical helmet flashlight. His knuckles turn pale from the sheer force of his grip as he clutches the Stardust Cracker at his side. Three hours ago, his squad encountered an outpost garrison infected by the subspatial contagion in the armory, and the agonized screams of his comrades still reverberate in his ears. This dagger was salvaged from a sealed compartment; its ribbed handle fits perfectly in his palm, and the faint purplish glow emanating from the blade is actively suppressing the nascent signs of infection raging within him. From the shadows at the end of the pier comes a slick, dragging sound. Kale slowly draws the dagger, and subspatial energy condenses into tiny flecks of light at the tip of the blade. Suddenly, he notices a hidden groove in the handle, embedded with a metal fragment that bears an exact match to the pattern on the missing captain’s identification tag🔍—the very captain who vanished without a trace three years ago after carrying out a top-secret mission in this starport, a legendary scout and Kale’s biological father, a fact Kale has never revealed to anyone. The silhouette in the shadows is closing in, and for the first time, Kale’s hand holding the dagger trembles ever so slightly, overwhelmed by a complex mix of emotions.