Game Dump

"I'm sorry, Mother. I know this isn't the career you wanted for me. But it's something I believe in. I consider it a great opportunity and one I can't pass up."

A silver-haired woman in her later years stands before you with her hands shaking and her eyes in tears. "I know, Jake. I know. You've always made good decisions, and I'm proud of you no matter what. It's just... so very dangerous. I'm worried. Why did you have to sign on with... with..."

You reach out in a feeble attempt to comfort your mother, but the vision fades as it always does in this dream. Never a second opportunity, never another chance to make things right before...

"Breeeeet... Breeeeet... Level 5 Emergency... Level 5 Emergency. Cryogenic pods activated. Hull Temperature now at critical. Guidance System damaged. Main Deflectors destroyed. Descent proceeding on last known trajectory..."

Your hearing is always the first to respond after waking from cryogenic hibernation. A few seconds later the other senses begin to thaw and your eyes regain some level of focus. Normally the first thing you would see is the soft glow of the overhead cabin lights. This time, however, your senses are greeted by unfamiliar and harsh stimuli. The tremendous light and heat, bearing down with the intensity of a hundred suns, don't allow your eyes to open for more than an instant. The grating noise all around you builds to a fevered pitch as it drowns out the automated warnings.

A few seconds later comes a thunderous boom, followed by darkness, and finally silence.

When you regain consciousness you are in possession of the single worst headache you can remember. Granted, this is the only headache you can remember having. Other than the bump on your head, you can vaguely remember a dream of your mother... and very little else...

An Interactive Science Fiction Short Story

Release 7 / Serial number 041121 / Inform v6.30 Library 6/11

You are lying prone on the inside of an all black cylinder. This area is cramped with only a minimum of room to move about. You see a small sensor panel located on the inside of the cylinder. Directly above you is a small window set into the frame of the tube. The cryotube is currently closed.