Orlen Vance

Log Entry 3162.10.31 Situation Summary: Orlen Vance has retreated to a temporarily secure section of the ISS Vigilant Dawn, tending to his wounds and catching brief rest. Hive forces continue to surround him, with Serah Korrin now free and actively implementing new psychological and physical tactics. The Hive Hunter is nearby, its attention strangely diverted, allowing a fragile window of reprieve. --- Chapter XLIV — Orlen Vance The smell of burnt circuitry and blood hung in the corridors, a stench that would never leave him. Orlen sank onto the cold steel floor, leaning back against the wall, the weight of the fight pressing against his ribs. His breaths were shallow, careful, measured; every movement reminded him of bruises, sprains, cuts. A small part of him wanted to close his eyes and let exhaustion claim him—but he knew better. The corridors beyond his temporary refuge were alive with the hum of Hive energy, tiny clicking noises from distant grunts, the faint whisper of wings or claws scraping metal. Somewhere, Serah Korrin moved—free now, orchestrating chaos with a precision that made Orlen’s gut twist. She knew him, remembered childhood jokes, and now weaponized every shared memory against him. Chains of fear rattled in his mind, memories of captured friends, and the faces of those he couldn’t save. And yet, a stubborn thread of defiance held him upright. He checked his weapons, silently counting rounds and tools, knowing every second mattered. The Hive would find him eventually, and when they did, there would be no mercy. A distant vibration, almost imperceptible, tugged at his attention. The Hive Hunter—massive, alien, and unrelenting—prowled somewhere nearby. Its footsteps were deliberate, scanning, but… distracted. Orlen didn’t know why, but the fact that it wasn’t actively hunting him brought a flicker of hope. A lifeline, however thin.