Orphans of the Void

On a barren world orbiting the dim star Tyban, a small mapping vessel drops onto a windswept plain littered with twelve solitary stone buildings. Captain Steffens and his lieutenant, Ball, examine the weather‑worn walls, noting the lack of airlocks and the deep wind‑carved striations that suggest a construction age of many thousands of years. The discovery hints at a long‑lost, space‑faring civilization that vanished long before humanity took its first steps among the stars.

As the crew sets up a modest excavation camp, they wrestle with questions that eclipse any single mission: why would an advanced race build such permanent stone outposts, and where did they go? The silence of the ruins forces the explorers to confront the enormity of an ancient heritage that may hold clues to humanity’s own future. With each careful brushstroke of dust, the mystery deepens, promising a journey that blends scientific curiosity with the timeless wonder of the unknown.