The Crew of the Aegis 74
"The Aegis 74 went dark in the Weru-213 nebula, a crew of 54 healthy, capable scientists on a research mission entered the cloud and simply dropped off of radar, swallowed up as if they never were, never to be seen again. Or so we thought. Three years later the Aegis 74 emerged from the other side of the nebula, apparently undamaged and with its reactor core and automated communications systems still operational. There was a great excitement, and we attempted to hail them, but got no reply. Eventually an expedition was put together to meet the vessel and determine the fate of her crew. I was part of that expedition. It ended with the Aegis 74 being fired upon by us, using old-era nuclear warheads, so that nothing biological would remain even in the debris. The Federation mind-wiped the entire incident from our brains, those few of us who returned. But just because the memory is gone... the fear remains. It walks behind you always, like a stalker in the dark, returning to you in impossible fragments glimpsed in horrific nightmares that vanish from the waking mind as soon as you open you eyes, still screaming, and unable to explain why. A lot of us from that reconnaissance... we aren't around now. But I refuse to... give up. In my heart, I feel a great truth, whose weight has bent me much more than the stress and the years. A truth I must repeat, to any who will listen, to you, now. They say the worst thing is when a man is lost in space, with no body to recover and bring home to bury in his native soil, under his own sun once more. But that isn't the worst thing. It isn't the worst thing when a man is taken... it's when he's... returned..."
An entry for the 2025 Halloween contest under "Eldritch Echoes". The theme is madness, alien takeover of the mind, and the lingering trauma that haunts the protagonist to his final days in the classic weird fiction tales of old. I'm actually very happy with this one, and the story I wrote to go with it. I really hope at least a few people take the time to read it besides just scrolling past the picture. Well, I had fun either way, but please leave a thumbs up or heart if you enjoyed this, it means a lot to me!