You nod sharply and dart toward the nearest diagnostic terminal, your fingers flying across the holographic interface with surprising confidence for an apprentice. The screen flickers as you pull up the ship's sensor readings, your eyes scanning the strange energy patterns. Waves of violet plasma ripple across the display in fractal formations unlike anything in the astrometrics database.

Chief Oren watches over your shoulder, his breath hot on your neck. 'Well?' he growls. 'What in the seven systems are we dealing with?' You zoom in on the spectral analysis, noting the unusual quantum fluctuations. The energy seems to be reacting to the ship's warp core emissions, forming some kind of resonant feedback loop.

Suddenly, the terminal beeps urgently as a proximity alert flashes. You swipe the data onto the main engineering display just as the entire ship shudders violently again. Through the viewport, the violet tendrils have coalesced into a swirling vortex that's pulling the Astral Dawn off course. Warning lights strobe across the bay as gravity fluctuates, sending wrenches and tools floating upward before crashing back down.

'Captain's gonna want to see this,' the chief mutters, slamming his fist on the comm panel. 'Veyra, we've got a situation down here. That energy signature? It's eating our warp field like star-berry jam.' The console sparks suddenly as the alien energy interacts with the ship's systems, bathing your face in an eerie glow.