The speed of objects, as observed by EXTERNAL (to the object) observers, can never exceed the speed of light.

EXTERNAL to the object – is key to understanding relativity.

In a speeding spaceship, little of interest happens INSIDE the spaceship. Time flows at the usual rate, and lengths measure their usual selves.

It is only when viewed from OUTSIDE the spaceship, that things start looking weird.

Taken to an extreme, if an object is indeed moving at light speed, it will appear completely stationary (frozen in time) to an external observer (as predicted on a black hole’s event horizon)