The first thing any smart pilot does when a proximity alert goes off is reduce speed to give themselves time to maneuver around whatever the obstacle happens to be. Some pilots even set up a trigger to automatically slow ship velocity as soon as a warning sounded, but those same pilots tend to find out that pirates count on just such a tactic to make pursuit easier.

Rachel favored a different tactic, which involved firing reverse thrusters while scanning the object in an attempt to figure out the best course of action. As her ship lurched backwards, Rachel studied the readouts in front of her with an increasing sense of confusion. There was nothing coming from the ship in front of her—no energy signals, no discernible movement, not a hint of radiation to indicate reactor failure.

It was as if someone had methodically shut the ship down, turned off the lights, and left. It was also very likely to be dangerous.

Rachel told her computer to find an entrance. This was too interesting to pass up.