In the uncharted reaches of the galaxy, the Brotherhood stumbles upon the ancient starship known as the Icarus, adrift on the fringes of the Unknown Regions. This legendary vessel, once the pinnacle of a clandestine hyperdrive experiment, vanished into obscurity eons ago, carrying with it its crew and a revolutionary prototype propulsion system called the Resonance Engine. Now, the Brotherhood entrusts you with the daunting task of venturing aboard the ghostly craft, retrieving the enigmatic Resonance Engine, and unraveling the enigma surrounding the Icarus’ inexplicable disappearance. However, from the instant you set foot on its dormant decks, it becomes evident that the Icarus is far from an ordinary derelict. The ship hums with an unsettling, malevolent energy that bends reality, distorts perceptions, and taints the thoughts of any intrepid soul who dares to explore its shadowed passageways. Whispers reverberate through its metal hull, and the very architecture of the vessel seems to writhe and contort as though imbued with a sinister sentience— an insatiable hunger lurking within.

As you journey deeper into the heart of the ship, an unsettling truth unfolds: The Icarus did not merely vanish; it traversed into a nightmarish dimension where the boundaries between reality and the darkest depths of the Force have merged into a grotesque fusion. The ship itself has metamorphosed into a predatory being, feeding upon the terror and delirium of those who traverse its haunted corridors. Amidst this increasingly perilous and distorted environment, you face the harrowing choice of harnessing the potent energies of the Resonance Engine, risking potential corruption, or obliterating it to prevent the encroaching darkness from proliferating beyond the confines of the Icarus. The ship inexorably tightens its clutches, distorting your perceptions and mutilating reality in a relentless bid to claim you.

Your very survival hinges on your resilience against the ship’s insidious influence, your pursuit of uncovering the truth, and your race to escape the clutches of the Icarus before it engulfs you entirely. However, with every stride deeper into the heart of this malevolent vessel, the stark truth dawns upon you—escape may well prove to be the ultimate trial.

Rules:

• This Competition will be graded using the Fiction rubric

• Entries should be a minimum of 500 words

• Any characters! No sheet, an old sheet, back in time, whatever. Snapshots are not required.

• Entries MAY be CO-OP with one (1) other member. If co-op, make sure to indicate who wrote what using a different color or breaks, and please include your respective word counts. It just makes things easier. These submissions are a minimum of 500 words.

• Entries MUST relate to the given word prompt.