Captain Jora Icaan stared out into the Rift, and the void stared back at him.

The Raonteid Rift loomed over the perimeter station, its cloud of darkness and shadow nearly blotting out the entire view from the window. Only at the edges of the view, away from the Rift, was the light of the universe still visible. There was something primal about it. Something that made you want to run away at the mere sight of it. Something that warned you to stay away. And yet, something else called you towards it. For hundreds of light-years in every direction, civilizations were haunted by that hole in the sky.

Below him, the Paradoxical Discovery sat waiting. The delicate frame of the science vessel a mere speck against the vastness of the Rift. The vessel and its crew were his to command. Their survival was in his hands.

Jora pulled himself away from the window, staring down at the orders in his hands. It was madness. It had to be.

"Something troubling you?" A voice asked beside him.

Jora stumbled sideways in shock. He swore under his breath.

"Enrax? How long have you been sitting there?"

The first officer laughed. "Long enough."

The Unatri uncoiled its serpentine body, slithering across the floor towards Jora.

"I didn't hear you come in," Jora noted.

Enrax shrugged.

"It's an acquired habit. When you've spent as much time in the Rift as I have, you tend to appreciate the silence." Enrax stared down at the tablet in Jora's hands. "So, what's the situation?"

Jora held up the tablet. "New orders from the Council. We're being sent on a mission into the Rift."

Jora paused for a moment, waiting for a reaction from Enrax that never came.

"You don't seem surprised," Jora said, almost disappointed.

He laughed again. "This is the Raonteid Science Council we're talking about. I'd be more surprised if they didn't want us to investigate the Rift."

"It's a suicide mission."

Enrax rolled his eyes. "It's not that dangerous. Ships explore the Rift all the time." 

"A lot of them don't make it back."

"Most of them do, though."

Jora pulled some papers from his jacket, unfolding the crumpled pages. "I don't know how, but the Council's been covering up the casualty statistics for years. Keeping the full extent off of official records."

Enrax raised a hand, shushing Jora. "I'd suggest you not put so much stock in such rumours. Least of all in here. Despite what you might think, the Council does know what it's doing."

"But even the ones that do, the anomalies they encounter…"

"I've run into my fair share of those on past missions. Have I told you the story of the time I met myself? We returned to the station a week before we left. Now that was quite the party." Enrax chuckled nostalgically. "Shame they wouldn't let us keep any pictures."

"That's exactly what I mean though. They're hiding things."

"There are things we encounter out there that it's better everyone doesn't know about. There are enough things to worry about in the galaxy already. Our job is to make sure they don't have to worry about the Rift."

Jora started pacing back and forth in front of the window uncomfortably. Enrax watched with concern.

"What's gotten you so worked up about this mission?" Enrax asked.

"These orders, they don't even make any sense," he said, handing the tablet towards Enrax.

He continued pacing while Enrax read.

"They want us to recover something a probe found? It's hardly the most unusual mission. I've been sent in for stranger things before."

Jora shook his head. "Look at the instructions. They're sending us in blind. No probe signal to follow. Not even a description of what we're looking for. Nothing but a heading to follow. With the way the Rift shifts, there's no guarantee we'll even end up as the same decade as whatever we're supposed to be looking for. Let alone actually find whatever the damn thing is."

"Respectfully, Captain, you worry too much."

"And you don't seem to worry enough, Commander."

Enrax put a hand on his shoulder. "Let me let you in on a little secret. I've learned the orders usually don't make sense. Not at first, at least. Things get complicated when dealing with the Rift. Makes missions interesting. From what I've gathered they often don't give the full situation off the bat. But it always works out in the end."

"How can you be sure of that?"

He smiled. "The Council knows what it's doing here. They have something of an uncanny ability in that regard"

"What exactly is that supposed to mean?" Jora asked suspiciously.

"Just have a bit of faith in them, Jora. Everyone gets worried about these things their first time going in. Especially ones like you. But things always work out, and you get used to the quirks. Don't bother stressing over things you can't control."

Enrax turned away, sliding towards the door.

"Come on then, Captain," he said. "We have a ship to prepare."