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As Kalsibah woke up, a faint burning smell and a ringing in his ears first alerted him that something was wrong. Realizing through his waking confusion that not only was he sitting upright but also couldn't move, Kalsibah began to understand that he was no longer in his fortified dwelling hidden on the edge of the Curse region. He tried opening his eyes. No good. Something was preventing him from any deliberate use of his muscles. He was functionally paralyzed.;;
"""He's awake."" A female, otherwise neutral voice came from somewhere close behind Kalsibah. ""All vitals are in the green."" The speaker was evidently some kind of medtech. Kalsibah guessed that a nerve-blocker had been applied before waking him.";;
"""Very good. You may relax the blocker's effects above, oh, the shoulders, I think."" The second voice was quite different from the first. Apparently male, this speaker sounded quite relaxed in contrast to the first speaker's terse neutrality. For all of that, there was a hard edge of unmistakable authority to the voice. Clearly, this person was in charge here.";;
Kalsibah felt a sensation like a release of pressure in his lower neck and could suddenly move his head around. With the swiftness of the release he involuntarily opened his eyes, even as his head lolled forward before he caught the movement. The first thing he saw was the edge of the table that the chair he was sitting in was facing. As he raised his head, blinking away the last lingering fuzziness of sleep, he saw that a hooded figure was seated in the shadows on the other side of the table.;;
"""I think that will be all for now. You may go."" The figure seated in front of him was speaking to the person behind Kalsibah.";;
"""I'll be next door then."" A shuffling sound, footsteps, then the sound of a door unlocking and opening in a smooth sequence that implied an electromechanism. Another couple of steps and the door closed and locked behind the person that had just left.";;
Kalsibah had tried to look around but only the muscles of his neck and above responded, constraining him to look to one side and then the other. The room was quite dim apart from a pale, soft light that shone down from a lamp suspended just above head height over the table. He looked at the figure sat in the shadows and saw the light glint off his captor's eyes as they cocked their head to one side.;;
"""Well, I'm sure you're wondering what all this is about,"" said the figure as he straightened up and leaned further forward into the pale circle of light. Within the folds of the hood was a face that was covered by a breather mask from the nose down. The eyes were very dark, seemingly black in the dimness, and narrowed as if their owner was deep in thought.";;
Kalsibah reviewed his options, decided he had little choice and steeled himself. He took a quick breath, closed his eyes and ran through a mnemonic sequence mentally. He frowned, nothing seemed to be happening to him. A chuckle from his captor interrupted him and Kalsibah opened his eyes to look at the masked figure sitting opposite him.;;
"""I think perhaps we should get the formalities out of the way so that we can proceed without any illusions on your part,"" said the hooded man, his voice tinged with amusement. ""You are Erik Kalsibah, known under various other names at various times and places. Most pertinently for today's discussion, until some time ago you went under the alias 'Rezhwan' and were apparently a member of the pirate gang known as 'Sariel's Flames'. Of course, we both know that wasn't quite the truth, don't we?""";;
As shocked as Kalsibah was, he had enough presence of mind to take another breath, close his eyes and run through a different mnemonic trigger sequence. The result was as bafflingly negative as before. Kalsibah opened his eyes to see the other man shaking his head in evident amusement.;;
"""No, I'm afraid that you won't be able to trigger any of the various amnesiac conditionings that you acquired in your climb up the ranks of the Cartel. Let me also disabuse you of the idea of activating a suicide failsafe you might have embedded in your nervous system somewhere. None of that will work."" The masked figure sat back and gestured airily with his right hand around the room. ""As you've probably realized, we have access to considerable resources here. You have quite a medley of chemicals and nanotech coursing through your veins but I'll draw attention to three specific substances.";;
"""First, you've been dosed with a standard but powerful anticonvulsant. This means that it is quite useless to continue attempting to trigger an epileptic seizure and neuron-firing cascade as part of your amnesiac protocols. Second, a very powerful neurosynaptic booster has been introduced into your system. This one enhances episodic memory, just to be sure that you don't forget anything we might be interested in."" The man had been ticking off his points on the fingers of one gloved hand with the other and now raised three fingers in the air. ""Third, an anti-thanatropic psychoactive is rather neatly suppressing the slightest inclination to seek your own death that you might have. While we don't have time to neutralize the various means by which you might commit suicide, we can block the impulse very satisfactorily.""";;
"Kalsibah found his voice at last. ""If you're that well-equipped, and thorough, I'm surprised you don't just rip the information you want out of my brain. You people are running quite a bill in high-end drugs. Surely you can afford a burning scanner?""";;
"""No doubt that would be the approach tried by some but, as you noted, we here like to be thorough and a burning scanner has the disadvantage of being a rather destructive and one-time only method of data extraction. Not to mention that running a burner on your brain would garner little more than a very large amount of very scrambled data, due to the counter-intrusion nanolace that's wrapped around and through your cerebrum.";;
"""We have gone to some considerable time and trouble to bring you here, Kalsibah. We are not about to waste all that by attempting to use a burning scanner on you. No, my dear Kalsibah, that would not do. Besides, I am a strong believer in simple conversation producing the best results.""";;
"""Do you have a name?""";;
"""Ah yes, my apologies. Call me, Narisaf.""";;
"""Narisaf, uh huh. Well, Narisaf, do you really think I'm going to tell you anything? Anything at all?""";;
"Narisaf cocked his head slightly and appeared to reflect a moment before replying, ""You surely have realized by now who I represent in this matter? Surely that is clear?""";;
"In fact, the possibility that this Narisaf was hinting at had crossed Kalsibah's mind already, much to his discomfort, but he wasn't about to let his captor know that. ""You could be working for anyone. What's to say this isn't a DED holding facility? Maybe a SARO black site? You could be a Feddy or a Botherer. You could be Guri. You could be a damned to the hells Sansha for all that it matters.""";;
"Narisaf regarded Kalsibah silently for a moment. Then he leaned forward and folded his gloved hands together on the table, before quietly saying, ""Oriel seraphim eo potesta.""";;
Kalsibah felt himself mentally reel and for a moment feared he would fall forward out of his chair, perhaps saved only by the continuing paralysis of his body below the neck.;;
"""Now,"" said Narisaf. ""Tell me all about Mithra's Gate.""";;
Mithra's Gate is a sungrazer. It's a comet. One of those that swing in very close to the primary star out of a high orbit in their system. Sariel had information about it. It�s an old legend in the Cartel because of where it appears. But you know that, right? Right.;;
"Well, Sariel had figured like everyone else that it was one of the wandering stars from the old Amarr myths of the Early Reclaiming. The stories go that every time the Amarr ""reclaimed"" a star system back then, they would wait for a divine sign and then along comes a comet and its track points in the general direction of the next target for the ""exploration fleet"". Yeah, well, that's a nice story and probably it went over well with the faithful.";;
"But Sariel kept thinking about it more and more. Why ""Mithra's Gate""? That name niggled at him. He said it was a very old name as well, ""Mithra"", that is. Much older than the Early Reclaiming. Older even than the Conquest of Athra. It's the Amarr, we said, they use a lot of old names all the time. But he said this one wasn't used much at all. Why's that? Well, he found out why. And that's when he really got excited. You know why? Yeah, I figured.";;
The Flames had some trouble not long after. Had to deal with it and we didn't hear him talk about Mithra's Gate for a while. But he'd been digging into it quietly. I think he'd grokked that the Flames were uneasy about it. We might not have been Cartel anymore but still, you learn to respect that kind of thing, and you remember the lesson even after you've left the Cartel behind you. Anyway, despite that we found it. Well, he found it. He got the orbital elements of the comet from a source in the Mandate. An old freelance archaeotech buddy of his.;;
That was it. Sariel insisted on going and needed a team. There were thirteen of us. Pilots, archaeotechs and some ground muscle. We took four Dramiels and a Wreathe along. Pretty standard crew for a pick and strip operation.;;
Mithra's Gate was way up towards the top of its orbit. It still is. It'll be up there for years before it swings back towards the primary. The orbital inclination is something like fifty degrees. Well we made fine time. We force-locked the warp drives onto celestial co-ordinates on the orbital path close enough to where the comet was. Got up there Drammies, Wreathe and all. Then it was a burn after the comet for the final stretch.;;
It didn't take long. Well, not for Sariel and me. We took our Drammies ahead and left the other two with the Wreathe. Just to be safe. Approaching a comet on full burn should be a show, right? Yeah, not so much when it's over a hundred AU away from the primary. That ball of ice and rock is frozen solid up there. No outgassing.;;
Sariel though, he put on his own show. He was excited. He fired up the plasma torches on his Drammy's tusks. Nobody to see them but us. He always was a bit loco though. We all liked using the burners to put the fear on and distract rubes but he liked to fire them up just for the sport.;;
Well, anyway we caught up with the snowball soon enough. Except of course it wasn't just a snowball. Oh sure, it was a comet. Pretty big one, but a comet. At least it seemed likely it was originally a standard comet in a sungrazer orbit. Of course, Sariel wondered if that was the truth of it. But that was beside the point when you realized that someone had carved a large tunnel along its main rotational axis and then dug out a vault, right into the core of the thing.;;
That access tunnel was large enough for the Drammies to travel down it with a fair bit of clearance. Obviously, whoever built it had intended it for small ships. We weren't going to get the Wreathe in there though. Which suited us fine. Sariel had been thinking that a structure might be on the surface or behind a manhatch. If we could even take the Dramiels inside it would be a bonus.;;
I didn't really understand how we were going to get the hangar doors open though. They were obvious enough, even when Sariel shut his damned burners down and relied on his Drammy's spots. My thinking was that we'd cut in through an access hatch. There were a few of them around the edges of the hangar doors. But it turned out not to be necessary. A few minutes after we got close, the doors opened and we took our Dramiels inside.;;
Sariel said he'd hacked his way in. Maybe he did. But it spooked me some. This was an old vault. Ancient. You can hack in eventually, if you know your stuff. But he had the doors open in a few minutes. It didn't sit right with me.;;
"Narisaf held up a hand to pause Kalsibah's account. ""You say Sariel had the main doors open within minutes?""";;
"""Yeah. I wouldn't have thought it was enough time to work out the handshake protocols, let alone hack the system. But he got them open anyway.""";;
"""No, it probably was just about enough time to transmit a handshake, wake the system up fully and send over a valid access code. He could not possibly have hacked that security in mere moments. Your friend Sariel had the code. The question is, where did he get it from?""";;
"""I don't know. I mean, he had the location. Maybe,"" Kalsibah's voice trailed into silence. He shook his head doubtfully, would have shrugged but for the nerve blocker.";;
"""You mentioned a contact in the Mandate. An old archaeotech friend of Sariel's. You were at the meeting with this person?""";;
"""What?"" Kalsibah blinked. Had he said that? Probably. He wasn't holding anything back what with the drugs and the knowledge of who Narisaf represented. ""Well, yes, I guess I was there when Sariel met up with him.""";;
"""Tell me about this meeting.""";;
Sariel's contact was based in Khabi. It's a big system, lots of belts and moons. A lot of miners, salvagers, all sorts of scratchers and looters. The Mandate's mostly inactive out there. Ammatar Fleet has a couple of listening posts, a few patrol boats. That's it. No orbitals. No stations. A couple of dirtside bases. Khabi VIII is a temperate but it's basically a huge jungle. Hot, humid. Mining at the poles though. Most of the barrens have something going on like that. The moons and belts are where the action is though. The gas giant systems are where it's all going on.;;
"Then there's Khabi XIII, the little outer barren. It has a couple of decent underground cities. The miners and such from all over the outer planets use them for extended downtime. Anyway, we went to the third city. It's not much more than a transit launch station with a town built under it. They didn't even bother to change the name from ""Basecamp 3"" like the two big cities did. Well, everyone just calls the place ""Basecamp"", of course.";;
The town's as you'd expect. A dump. There's a lot of flophouses and coffin-racks for miners and the like to stay in. There's a couple of hotels for the factors and merchants. The residents live deeper in, where it's quiet and away from the bars. There are ten or so bars. They're all dives and full of scum. If you're tough enough you might get a decent drink in a couple of them. We were meeting Sariel's guy in one that had backrooms where factors would meet mine chiefs to haggle over ore weights and prices.;;
Sariel's contact was waiting for us in a room he'd already secured. The guy was dressed in a survival suit. Full armor with a duster over it all. Good armor too. Not bulky. Flexible where it needed to be, hard as tungsten carbide where it counted. I took him for a beltborn or something like it. Space-adapts don't take to being in a gravity well without a support system too easily. It's impossible for some of them. He was sitting in the corner there, fiddling with pads, some trinkets, all sorts of bits and pieces. I marked him for an archaeotech straight away. I guessed he was a specialist in space-archaeo. Good work if you have a decent rep. He had money from the look of his rig.;;
Sariel wanted to talk to him quiet like. So, I just sat over by the window. But I kept my eye on them both. I could see they were arguing about something. Nothing heated though. It sounded and looked more like haggling. The archaeotech swapped a datastrip for a bit of blacktech I knew Sariel had pulled out of a dead rogue hive a while back. Sariel asked the archaeotech a couple of questions. Well, I knew Sariel wasn't happy with the answers but the guy was shaking his head. Then Sariel pulls out a trinary laminar cryschip. I had to hold myself down. Trinary laminar will go for millions on the black market.;;
The archaeotech just looks at Sariel holding the cryschip under his nose for a second. Then he picks up something. I couldn't see properly from where I was. Couple of trinkets or something, and he throws them onto this flat dish he's got on one side. Then he nods, takes the cryschip, holds it to the light and then puts it on that dish. I saw him pick his trinkets up and kind of fiddle with them in one hand for a minute. Then he picks the trinary laminar back up and gives it back to Sariel.;;
Then we left. In a hurry.;;
"When Kalsibah finished his account of the meeting on Khabi XIII, Narisaf drummed the fingers of his right hand on the surface of the table for a span of seconds. ""You mentioned some 'trinkets' that Sariel's contact was playing with. You didn't see clearly but if you had to guess what they were, or if they even reminded you of something, what would that be?""";;
"""Well,"" began Kalsibah slowly. ""I suppose they reminded me of something I've seen in Ni-Kunni clubs now that you press me. There's a game they play. For money. You know what the Ni-Kunni are like. I've seen them play it. Maybe some of the Caldari guys play a game where they throw these counters around. I don't bother with it, cards are more my speed. Or maybe a little cutout-clash.""";;
"Narisaf slowly nodded to himself and said nothing more for a few minutes. ""Well, I think I've heard enough about this archaeotech. Back to Mithra's Gate. You got inside, what then?""";;
We landed the Drammies under manual thrust. Whatever hacking or, yeah, maybe codes, Sariel had used got us in the door and through the hangar locks but that was it. I guess the landing plats had plenty of guidance and autonav tech built in but none of it was working. Of course, there weren't any ships in there. Not even a shuttle. Nobody gets that lucky, whatever anyone tells you five bars later and two hours from dawn.;;
Well, we were a team of four to start with. Sariel and me. Pulasi, our best archaeotech, had come in on Sariel's ship. I had Laselle, one of the combat engineers with me. The rest were back with the Wreathe and we'd commed the other Dramiels to ferry them in.;;
Internal doors kept working as we poked around, so we made our way deeper in. Laselle wasn't happy about the pace we made but Sariel wanted to hustle. He had the idea there was something important in there. I thought he was probably right. The whole place had the feel of a standby facility of some kind. Couldn't figure out the era though. It felt old. But someone had used it relatively recently. There was a lot of adapted tech engineered on top of the original build. That new stuff was Third Empire. You couldn't mistake it. The substructure and facilities tech was harder to place.;;
Of course, the probability was it was some faction of Second Empire Jove. Definitely not one of the main factions. Had to be pre-collapse by some way. We assumed someone from the Third Empire had tracked the place down. Maybe found a reference in some surviving records. Then came out here and took whatever was useful to them. I doubted we'd find much that was really valuable. The Third stuff that was bolted on was mostly power and environmental tech. Almost all of it was standard tech that the Directorate or Society had shared a long time ago. Some bits we could salvage for good money though.;;
Sariel was sure we'd find something worth our while. He had our team of four going in and down to the core while the others were still ferrying in. The deeper we went the more things were missing from the original build. Looked to me like a lot of data storage and processing hardware had been pulled. No surprise. The Third Empire had always gone hard after that kind of thing in archaeo sites they'd located. There was some very strange manufacturing and power rigging in places. It was original stuff. Some pieces were taken out of the setups. Probably local processors and storage.;;
We got to the central facilities hub after a couple of hours. The rest of the crew were in the hangars and taking it slow from there. Sloppy logistics. Two groups bunched up at either end with no runners or stringers in between. Laselle was close to pitching a fit by now but Pulasi was full-on with Sariel. Kept talking about it being a kind of biotech facility but industrial, not a research lab or anything. The place did have a lot of nanofab capacity by the look of it. Some very weird nanofabs but still, heavy-duty and backed with a lot of power generation. All dead without the processors and fuel cores though. Yeah, they seemed to have been pulled too, far as we could tell.;;
Then we got to the morgue. Well, more like it was a bank or library. Sariel thought so at first. No bodies but a lot of coffin capsules racked all the way up three walls of that place. It was big. Hexagonal plan. Two entrances. A whole wall filled with biotech and huge nanofabs. And three walls of empty coffins. And then there was the thing in the center of the room.;;
The back wall was a clone blank printing fab. Had receptacles for running off three blanks at a time. Full rig in triplex. Could obviously print everything from the bones to a synth-synaptic gel-brain or some equivalent. Some pieces were missing, of course. Pulasi thought all the cyber-implanting gear had been stripped out and the base pillars were empty. Data stores and processing taken again.;;
But so what? The thing in the center, man. A quantum entangled 4-helium engine with tripled outputs. Just sitting there. The motherlode. More than a motherlode. Steal enough QE 4-He and you're a billionaire, maybe better. But if you have a QE 4-He engine then you're not just a trillionaire, you're a power. True independence. And this thing was small. I mean, QE facilities are big. Dedicated orbitals or fab bunkers. We could take this with us.;;
Laselle wondered why it had been left behind. Sariel and Pulasi didn't care about that. But I thought Laselle had a point. It was ancient tech. It looked intact. The thing still had all its storage and processing. When you took a look inside it you could see why it hadn't been stripped. The storage was biotech, synth-synaptic or maybe even cultured. You couldn't pull it without destroying it. I looked at the output arrays too. Honestly, I didn't like what I saw. I think it was designed to implant the QE 4-He using nano-adapted biotech.;;
Fact is, I think it was a transfer setup. I think the whole place was basically a transit station for moving people around using QE transfers. Moving personalities around. And it was way beyond us. Sariel decided we'd take the engine out of there. It could be uncoupled from the substructure. But I wondered why it had been left in place.;;
"""Did you keep wondering?"" Narisaf had leaned forward to stare into Kalsibah's eyes.";;
"""Yeah, no. When I saw the data conduits and couplings were intact all the way down, I pretty much didn't wonder anymore. There were vaults down there. Left alone. Probably a lot of stuff deeper in had been left alone. Maybe the whole FTL transfer system was still intact. The Third Empire people had wanted to keep that functional. At least until they'd had a chance to come back, I guess.""";;
"""Which chance you presume they never got?""";;
"""We'd have gone back if we had the chance. The Thirds? I think only one thing would have stopped them going back.""";;
"Narisaf leaned back and exhaled hard, the sound of it rasping through his breather mask. ""Yes, only one thing. One way or the other. But you didn't get the chance either, did you?""";;
"Kalsibah grimaced. ""No. No, we didn't get the chance.""";;
With the whole crew down there, we managed the job easily enough. The couplings on the QE engine were straightforward. A rig, some muscle and a gravsled did the rest. We loaded the engine into a thrust box. From there it was just a case of sending it on out for the Wreathe to pick up. We stripped out whatever else looked like it would fit into our other thrust boxes and the frigate holds. Then we got out of there.;;
Where did we go? Yeah, well, we shipped out of there quick. The plan was to roll through some wormholes rather than take a gate out. So, we did that. Took a few hours but we got close enough to base. Then we took smuggler gates and slipped through. Got pretty close to home.;;
We got in sight of home. Before we were ambushed.;;
The cruiser came out of nowhere. Someone had talked. Someone had set us up. It was a Vigilant, must have been egger-piloted with its speed and agility. Came in close, webbed one of the other Drammies and blasted it apart before we knew what was going on.;;
Sariel called us onto the Vigilant while the Wreathe tried to get away. It was already on a heading for our cargo facility. Sariel was crazed though. He fired up his plasma torches and went screaming in after that cruiser. Me and the other Drammy followed him in.;;
It was a hard fight, we were running scrams and webs too. Sariel's strat was sound. Get under the guns, orbit at super high-speeds. Problem was, it's a Vigilant. It's an egger Vigilant. And the pilot was no rube. Must have been a veteran. They knew what they were doing. I got taken out next, shot up on the turn. Plasma ripped through my engines. You know the Drammy's a good ship. Tough. We had escape cockpits too. Pretty good chances. I blew the cowling and plates, and got the hell out of there.;;
Those escape cockpits don't really give you a good view of things with their own sensors. No ship sensors or cam drones makes for a fuzzy sense of what's happening outside at a thousand meters a second. Far as I could tell the Vigilant was winning.;;
The base was a bust but we had our own bolt holes all over the system. My escape cockpit took me to one of mine.;;
Sariel? I guess he got away. He's still running the Flames. I don't know what happened to the Wreathe. I cleared out of the system. Lost local contact but I heard over chatter that Sariel suspected a mole so I pulled the plug on my infiltration mission. Cartel were pretty happy with Sariel's operation in that region being splashed.;;
I didn't report the whole story. I thought that'd be a quick trip into an interrogation cube. Guess I ended up in one anyway.;;
"""Of course, you remember the orbital elements,"" said Narisaf expectantly.";;
"""The orbital elements?"" Kalsibah looked confused.";;
"""For Mithra's Gate. The comet's orbital elements. As you might guess, we have an interest in visiting it.""";;
"""Um, no, I don't think I ever knew them.""";;
"""You flew a Dramiel there. You warped to co-ordinates on its track.""";;
"""I guess Sariel fleet-warped us there.""";;
"""You're in the habit of using fleet-warp on archaeotech expeditions? Come now.""";;
"Kalsibah frowned. ""I, no. I mean. I don't know them. I've forgotten them.""";;
"Narisaf stared at Kalsibah. ""No, I don't think so. Forgotten? No. Had the memory of them removed is more like it.""";;
Kalsibah shook his head in confusion.;;
"Narisaf drummed his fingers on the table again. ""Well, you remember enough, I think, to work back through all this. Let's talk about the meeting with that archaeotech friend of Sariel's again.""";;
"""Wait, wait, how long is this going to go on for?""";;
"Narisaf sat back, steepled his fingers and gave a Kalsibah a dispassionate look. ""Oh, it's going to go on for as long as it takes. And, Kalsibah, I'd hope your memory isn't too patchy if I were you. For your sake. Now, tell me about Khabi XIII again, and this time, don't leave out a thing.""";;
++Some Personal Recollections++;;
Pator System, Matar,;;
Great Caravanserai; Council Quarter;
"YC118.09.06""";;
I have never been fond of the Great Caravanserai, for a center of politics and considerable intrigue, it's far too open and busy. Not to mention that the ventilation in the Council Quarter is atrocious, far too hot in the summer and shockingly cold in winter. A consequence of bad adaptation. The old architecture, built to take account of the climate, is fine but rather too much clutter has been added inside. Of course, the outside can't be changed for heritage reasons.;;
Fortunately, I don't find myself visiting the heart of Minmatar politics that often these days. Unfortunately, I had to make a visit to see old Shakor in connection with the upcoming diplomatic visit to Amarr Prime. I wouldn't have bothered with insinuating myself into the affair but it afforded an opportunity to deal with several matters that had been variously delayed or, in one case, were quite urgent.;;
Unsurprisingly, Keitan Yun awaited me in the anteroom to the Sanmatar's office. I'd known Keitan for a long time, what with the Elder Fleet matter and certain other aspects of Thukker Tribe operations in conjunction with the rest of the Minmatar. I'd always found him pleasant enough company but he'd become quite dangerous in some respects. A shrewd man but intense and driven. The events of the Elder Fleet conflict and subsequent border war had altered him somewhat. Shakor valued him as a personal envoy willing to get things done without scruple, so long as Matari interests were advanced.;;
"""My dear, Yun! So good to see you again,"" I smiled.";;
"""Sjakhuni, welcome back."" Keitan Yun had a guarded air as he greeted me. Something up then. I steeled myself to deal with Shakor as Yun led me through.";;
Old White Eyes was standing at the window. Presumably this was to take a little air, even if it was quite ionized after passing through the shimmer field guarding the opening. Yun led me to the chairs set in front of the Sanmatar's desk and waited. Shakor stayed at the window for a moment more. In anyone else, I'd have considered this affectation but Maleatu Shakor didn't go in for that kind of thing. He was making sure he'd mastered himself. Something was most certainly up.;;
"""Please sit,"" Shakor said, as he turned and walked behind the desk to take his seat. His personal mapping sensors, no doubt connected up through his own capsuleer implants, meant that physiologically blind as he might be, he could perfectly well 'see' everything around him. Augmented as he was, Shakor could probably visualize his surroundings in real time in a number of different ways. Those that didn't appreciate this were at a severe disadvantage when dealing with the de facto leader of the Minmatar Republic. Happily, I was acutely aware of his capabilities.";;
"I settled myself and waited for Shakor to start the meeting. Instead, Keitan Yun opened proceedings, which was interesting. ""Maleatu, we've had word from Makusta."" Maleatu. In front of me. The meeting had suddenly become very interesting indeed.";;
"""How is Silbraur?""";;
"""Optimistic. He reports that his infiltration units have surveyed the main impounded populations and sampled for suitability. There's a high percentage. Normal distribution."" Silbraur Makusta, Shakor's man in the Justice Department. The Republic's slave liberators and slaver hunters. I knew what this was about and decided to interject.";;
"""I could have told you the Amarr haven't taken steps to prevent the possibility of their slaves being entered into Alpha State programs. For one thing, it's not practical. They'll have to rely on their usual methods, vitoxin and the rest of it.""";;
"Shakor tilted his head to one side as he turned to regard me with his white, blind eyes. ""That's as may be, Sjakhuni, but I make sure of my facts before I act on them.""";;
"""Act on them? You shouldn't be overhasty, Sanmatar."" These Minmatar and their obsessions. ""My sources tell me that AG12 are closing in on the Amarr as it is. If you start something with the slave populations this will blow up and we're not quite ready.""";;
"""Sjakhuni, you sit in my office as someone who has given this technology to the Amarr and Caldari. I'm not sure you should expect to dictate policy to us in this matter.""";;
"This again. ""Sanmatar, you know the terms of the SOE's program. They were always going to give the fruits of Project Ascension to all parties.""";;
"""Did that require you to act as facilitator of that sharing?""";;
"""Well now, that allowed me to give the Tribes a certain head-start didn't it? Look, the program is irrevocable for all intents and purposes but CONCORD could still cause us trouble if it comes out before the coronation. Directive Alpha Gamma 12 could be invoked to freeze deployment of the technology if all empires are not ready. Not to mention the Society of Conscious Thought have enough cards given they own the SCC license for transneural injection tech. Their hand will be stronger in the Inner Circle without the Empress on the throne.""";;
"Shakor turned to Yun with an expectant expression. The envoy cleared his throat. ""Ah, that seems a fine distinction to make, Sjakhuni. I'd allow you that before the trials but Catiz is the Empress, crowned or not."" Yun held up his hand as I made to reply. ""However, you're right about AG12 and the Society won't like all this. The SOE's involvement will infuriate them. Using their tech for unlicensed research and development of new cloning will probably make Raish's head explode."" Yun paused and chuckled. ""Well, maybe he'll raise his voice. Anyway, Maleatu, our friend here has a point. We should be careful. Especially with the Gallente situation.""";;
"""They're exposed? The Syndicate smugglers only delivered the key components and specifications a week ago."" This sounded bad. My misgivings about the Amarr and Gallente seemed to be coming true more quickly than I'd expected.";;
"""Only a week? You really did give us a head-start,"" rumbled Shakor.";;
"""Yes, and my contacts in Carthum only received their little package a day before that. Until now there's been nothing for AG12 to really grab hold of outside of those RSS facilities you managed to negotiate space for with Trust Partners.""";;
"Shakor grunted. ""Einnar Aeboul saw sense for a change. Didn't hurt to have the threat of the Vo-Lakat making a leadership play hanging over his head.""";;
"Sjakhuni smiled. ""He's a proud man.""";;
"""Yes, he is,"" frowned Shakor. ""With some justification. What about the Caldari?""";;
"""They get their shipments this week. The CEP itself insisted on separate deliveries to each megacorp. Made it much trickier. Exposing one megacorp would give AG12 ammunition for an injunction. However, I doubt the recruitment screening programs have piqued their interest and even the building of new clone blank production networks has probably only been of concern to DED Conflict Monitoring. They'd assume it could be a prelude to anticipated losses in a war situation. But I'm not worried about the Caldari. Back to the Gallente, what's all this, Yun?""";;
"Shakor's envoy inclined his head. ""They were a bit too eager and a bit too careless with their vetting it seems. An AG12 operative was on the ground inside one of their blank conditioning centers when it received its final components.""";;
"This news vexed me, even if it was typical of the Gallente who think their intelligence services are splendid even though the great majority of their operatives are bunglers and clowns. ""When was this?""";;
"""Yesterday morning, Caille local time.""";;
"""Caille local? You mean they had a facility on Gallente Prime?"" I was somewhat taken aback and shook my head. ""And how did you find out about this so quickly?""";;
"Yun smiled. ""As I said, their vetting was lax. We had our own operative in place. There was, well yes, an accident and there's no immediate urgency.""";;
Relieved, I sat back and looked at Yun and Shakor. Ruthless men in pursuit of the interests of their people. Not something to forget. Not something I'd be likely to forget given certain events they'd orchestrated.;;
"""Even so,"" I mused. ""This probably means the Gallente operation will crack open soon. All the more urgent that a common understanding is arrived at among the great powers outside of the oversight of CONCORD. This is a technology they will do their utmost to suppress.""";;
"Shakor grinned and turned his opaque gaze on me again. ""They can try.""";;
"""There will be an opportunity to reach an agreement, if not quite an accord, at the coronation, ah, festivities,"" Yun smiled. ""Your place in the delegation as a representative of the Vo-Lakat remains available to you, even if it does seem to us that you are representing interests beyond those of a Thukker caravan. One might say you represent interests beyond even those of the Seven Tribes.""";;
Amusing as I found the insinuations, I could recognize a gambit meant to shock some denial or indiscretion from me. Here the truth would serve, even if it was a small truth embedded in a web of lies.;;
"""You mean the Sisters? Well, I'm afraid it's true. The Vo-Lakat have a partnership with them and they can't be seen to represent themselves. Too many people watch them too closely. So, yes, I represent their interests and those of the compact that lies behind Project Ascension. It can't be any other way, as much as you don't like it, Sanmatar."" I turned to meet Shakor's sightless gaze.";;
"Shakor smiled thinly, ""Very well, Sjakhuni, we'll do it this way. Be ready.""";;
"I smiled back, ""Oh, I will be, Sanmatar. I will be.""";;
Southern Ves-Udor, Satach City,;;
MIO Field Office;;
"YC118.09.29""";;
Sub-Inquisitor Ramal Zoshan walked into the Satach City's Ministry of Internal Order field office with a slight limp and made his way to the investigative branch's floor. Passing through the bullpen he noticed a man bedecked in sumptuous and ornate priestly robes talking animatedly to an interviewing officer. The older man in robes, presumably a cleric of high rank, perhaps an archdeacon, was accompanied by a woman clad in advanced but well-worn combat armor. Zoshan paused a moment and scrutinized the two, their attire bore a sigil of some kind that he vaguely recognized, though it was not a familiar piece of religious iconography.;;
Zoshan looked over at the Chief Investigator's office and saw that Inquisitor Sarkovas was already busy with someone. The sub-inquisitor decided to take a seat close by the unusual pair while he waited. The priest was describing the circumstances of some kind of attack to the interviewing officer.;;
"""Sancta here saved me. You know, if it hadn't been for her quick wits those assassins would have succeeded. Which would have been very inconvenient."" The cleric waved a hand indulgently at his armored companion, apparently some kind of bodyguard. She smiled faintly and nodded as the man went on. ""I must say that I'm dismayed that such an event could take place during the holy coronation week! There are those who would try to stop me in my mission and dispute me as a Pope of the true faith, I know, but it's an outrage that such fanatics could slip in and strike here!""";;
"As the interviewing officer's expression became even more pained, Zoshan began to realize who was sitting not six feet away from him. The bodyguard, Sancta, laid a hand on the robed man's arm. ""Your Holiness, I don't think we should take up the Ministry's time with this, they're very busy with more serious criminals and heretics. After all, those two Jamylites won't bother anyone else again.""";;
Zoshan shook his head in bemusement and noticed from the corner of his eye that Inquisitor Sarkovas's visitor was leaving. He stood up and walked over to the Chief Investigator's office.;;
"Sarkovas was waiting for him at the door and clasped his hand. ""Ramal! It's good to see you up and about. No lasting damage I hope? This way, come, sit.""";;
"""I'm quite well, Chief, and I managed to look into the matter some more while I was recovering.""";;
"""Oh?"" Inquisitor Sarkovas frowned. ""Commendable, yes commendable, but you had a near escape with that incident in Valset Sarum Square. You're a fine investigator Zoshan but the mind and body have limits.""";;
"""Yes, Chief. I'll remember that."" Zoshan hesitated and gestured back at the bullpen, ""Chief, I couldn't help noticing that there's a capsuleer of questionable reputation being interviewed as a witness out there.""";;
"Inquisitor Sarkovas nodded shortly, ""The heretic Max Singularity and his hired killer, Sancta Bassilica. I find his presence as distasteful as you do but there are political realities to consider. Not only are they both capsuleers, which limits us in its own way, but this so-called 'Pope' was a candidate champion in the House Kador bouts of the succession trials. He is, let us say, protected from on high.""";;
"""I see. Well, ours is to serve, Chief.""";;
"""Indeed and frankly when it comes to possible heresy I'm more concerned with Jamylite extremists. This new 'Tarot of St. Jamyl' has been showing up everywhere,"" Sarkovas paused and shook his head. ""In any event, you were saying you had some information as to the bombing? The assassination of two diplomatic envoys during coronation week has raised many questions. The powers that be are not pleased. Any light you can shed on the matter will be useful, even if you should have been resting,"" Sarkovas smiled.";;
"""I'm not sure if I can shed light on it, Chief. I have more questions after looking into it than I do now.""";;
"""Let's have it then. Perhaps we can puzzle it out together.""";;
"Zoshan ordered his thoughts. ""Well, there are several things that just don't add up. For one thing, every monitoring device in the Ametat and Avetat bar had been disabled or suborned. Our own devices started to transmit white noise a few moments before the Lai Dai envoy entered the premises.""";;
"Sarkovas consulted his screen. ""That would be this 'Satta Mochan', a member of the Lai Dai trade delegation.""";;
"Zoshan nodded. ""Yes, he met with the Thukker, a member of Shakor's delegation called Tamasek Sjakhuni. We got nothing from their meeting. They used a sound-dampening field and seem to have disabled any and all monitors. I checked my datapad's video files, the Thukker was using a localized visual field scrambler to disguise his lip movements.""";;
"Sarkovas raised his eyebrows. ""Curious. It's understandable that diplomats would take care. The sound-dampening field was to be expected. However, these other measures speak of a more covert tradecraft than simple diplomatic caution.""";;
"""The red flags don't end there. Tamasek Sjakhuni isn't just a Thukker diplomat. From what I've been able to glean he's a trusted figure within the Vo-Lakat Caravan's ruling council and there are indications of links to the Sisters of EVE, as well as his clear connection with Shakor's circle. And, well,"" Zoshan hesitated, then pressed on. ""He's not dead.""";;
"""I beg your pardon?""";;
"""Sjakhuni's not dead. He was with the Shakor delegation when they left the system after Shathol'Syn. It looks like he joined their convoy in high orbit from a transfer station.""";;
"""So he's backed up. Nothing too unusual about that, particularly if he's so high-ranking. Although, if he joined them in orbit,"" Sarkovas looked thoughtful.";;
"""Then he had a backup ready in system and it was set as his primary. He knew, that's my assumption.""";;
"""Hm, be careful about assumptions in this business, Zoshan. That said, if he was party to the bombing then it changes matters. That means it's an assassination of an allied diplomat with the involvement of the Republic. Would Shakor be that brazen? Allowing his attendance at the coronation to serve as cover for a political murder?"" Sarkovas thought a moment, then shook his head. ""But that's absurd, the other party was a minor diplomat at best. A trade envoy for Lai Dai. What benefit in killing someone like that here and now? It could be done elsewhere, at another time. Why take such a risk?""";;
"Zoshan nodded eagerly and leaned forward. ""I don't have the answer, Chief, but there's something very wrong when it comes to the Lai Dai man.""";;
"""Ahh, so now we come to it. A cover of some kind?""";;
"""It looks that way. I've checked into the Caldari State's records, those they share with us. This 'Satta Mochan' leaves a very rarefied trace. Yes, there's a record of a Lai Dai trade envoy of that name and it does seem as if he was born as a space-adapt, as indicated by the diplomatic credentials. The records say he's a Lai Dai citizen born on one of their Oipo system installations. That's out in Lonetrek, Chief.""";;
"Inquisitor Sarkovas nodded and smiled faintly, ""Yes, I'm acquainted with the Caldari State's geography.""";;
"""Yes, sir. Sorry, sir. Well, the rest is a basic corporate bio, some details of his education, work postings and it all ends up with him turning up as a trade envoy visiting Satach City during the coronation week. Specifically, arriving only the day before Shathol'Syn. There's precious little else and it smells like a cover identity to me. There's one more thing. Something odd.""";;
"""What's that?"" Sarkovas asked.";;
"""Well, Mochan didn't arrive in system by ship. He clonejumped. He was supposedly at one of Lai Dai's Tamo stations an hour earlier and arrived at a cloning facility on the Emperor Family station. We have him walking out of the facility shortly after the jump took place. The clonebay that was used is leased to the Lai Dai Protection Service and the facility is operated by, let's see, here we are, Genolution corporation.""";;
"Sarkovas raised his eyebrows a moment and ruminated on this information. ""No,"" he said slowly. ""No, this won't do. Someone has made a mistake, I think. Haste, perhaps, but this doesn't hang together."" The Chief Investigator drummed his fingers on his desk, gave Zoshan a penetrating look and made a decision. ""I'm going to involve you in matters of state, Zoshan. You may not thank me for it but I believe you are reliable and capable.""";;
"The younger man was taken aback. ""You think this means something serious, Chief?""";;
"""Potentially. Sit there a moment, I have to consult an old friend.""";;
"The Chief Investigator activated the office's conference screen and tapped out a code. The screen sprang to life, momentarily displayed some liquid router connection data and then showed a female Achura dressed in formal Caldari administrator-level business-wear. ""House of Records, Oniteseru Central Registry. How may I serve you?""";;
"""Connect me with Haavo Tagematsu, Archive K.""";;
"The Achura's expression instantly became guarded. ""Your authorization?""";;
"The Chief glanced at Zoshan, then replied, ""Sardar-Colonel Parvaz Sarkovas, Amarr Naval Intelligence, Archive K designation 'Cardplayer'.""";;
"""Please transmit your indentification package.""";;
Sarkovas tapped a code out and waited.;;
"""Identity confirmed. Connecting you, Cardplayer.""";;
Sarkovas looked at Zoshan again, while the screen displayed a connection transfer ident, and smiling faintly gave a small shrug. Zoshan caught himself gaping and sat back, thunderstruck at this turn of events. The screen flickered momentarily and the new connection displayed a slim, dark-haired, though greying at the temples, Deteis. The man was dressed in standard Caldari executive-wear and sat behind a polished dark wood desk, with a shelves of books and holotapes covering the wall behind him.;;
"""Parvaz Sarkovas,"" said Haavo Tagematsu. ""It's been a long time. I heard you fell on hard times after,"" Tagematsu's eyes flickered to Zoshan and he paused. ""Well, after the business with the Historians.""";;
"""It was necessary to find another posting, yes. You know how it is.""";;
"""At an MIO field office in a fairly quiet region of Amarr Prime? Exile then? They took it that hard?""";;
"Sarkovas smiled wryly, glanced at Zoshan, and waved his hand airily, ""The food is rather good out here. They do a marvellous goat curry. You should try it some time.""";;
"Tagematsu laughed. ""At least you haven't lost your sense of humor, old man. So, I take it you're still in the game if you're calling me? Or, what? This isn't MIO business is it? I owe you but helping you catch some poor guy who likes ground walnuts in his chicken stew or something isn't in my line.""";;
"""Call it Amarr Empire business and, no, this isn't a heretic hunt or anything of that kind. We turn over all sorts of rocks at the Ministry.""";;
"""OK, what've you turned up? I'm guessing some kind of megacorp connection? I'm still not exactly an expert on Amarr politics, you know.""";;
"""Given you're now the Archive K Section Head for Amarr-Caldari Diplomatic Intelligence, I suspect you undersell yourself, Haavo. But you're right, I need to know about a Lai Dai diplomat who was recently killed here in Satach City."" Sarkovas glanced at the watching Zoshan and raised an eyebrow.";;
"Tagematsu became thoughtful, tapped his fingers on his desk for a moment or two, then nodded. ""Mochan, the Lai Dai trade envoy. Well, as you're talking to me, I suppose his cover fell apart when you looked at him too?""";;
"""Not one of your own then?""";;
"""No, the asset didn't belong to any State or megacorp agency as far as I can tell. Cover seems to have been put together in a hurry. Or rather, it's an old one, quite well established, but not intended for the end user that picked it up. There are some anomalies involving movement of the asset too.""";;
"""Routing data. That's the favor I need. This 'Mochan' used a clonebay to jump into the Amarr Emperor Family station. It's operated by Genolution but leased to Lai Dai Protection Services. Our records indicate that the origin point was Tamo. I'd like to know if that's true. Possibly they weren't so thorough at your end.""";;
"""Hm, quite a few Lai Dai stations in Tamo, not to mention ground facilities. Which one?""";;
"Sarkovas looked at Zoshan. ""Ah, let's see, according to this it was the Tamo V-5 Lai Dai station,"" said Zoshan.";;
"""Right, a big one. Lot of clone traffic through there. Let's see. Yeah, see here's the problem. Mochan wasn't on the station initially. They had to move the asset from a position at an advanced ship-fabrication facility. To my mind, we're looking at a cover swap here. Mochan's primary mission was probably monitoring Lai Dai ship development while masquerading as a trade envoy to get around. Kind of thing any number of interests would get up to.""";;
"""It would be odd to move such an asset at short-notice to meet here during coronation week. That would support your notion of a cover swap.""";;
"""If the swap happened properly. Mochan gets on a shuttle from the shipfab to V-5, then heads for a Genolution operated cloning facility.""";;
"""Genolution? Not Lai Dai's own on that station?""";;
"""No. This is the wrinkle. The guy used a short-notice, public clonebay to jump. Mochan has a backup and blank on V-5 but it's in the Lai Dai cloning facilities. We're working on getting hold of it but it'll be a decoy. He must have had a full backup somewhere else but that shipfab doesn't have a single clonebay.""";;
"""Hence the shuttle to V-5, very curious.""";;
"""It gets better. No scan was made. At his explicit instruction. Waivers signed and all. They synched the clonejump with an offsite backup routed to the destination but he burned some time when he clonejumped. And he did clonejump. We seized the used blank when it all fell apart after the bombing. Everything else was cryptoshredded. This stuff has been legal in the State since clonejumping became available to the executive classes. Makes for some really degenerate shit, I can tell you.""";;
"""Yes, well, we all have our problems. But it makes sense, they knew this was rushed. Too much risk of something going wrong to have a clonejump scan record left in a public clonebay. Someone using the Mochan cover clonejumps but burns time while they're at it. That makes them useless unless they get briefed. Or it doesn't matter if they don't need to be briefed.""";;
"""If it's just a cover handoff. Very rough and very dirty. Someone really needed a fresh cover in a hurry.""";;
"""And could call on an asset willing to burn time to deliver it. They have some dedicated people. Not that it narrows the field any.""";;
"""I'm backtracing Mochan now and he'd spent a lot of time in space recently, shuttling between different shipfab facilities. None of them had cloning setups. Probably burned a month experiential. If he was a merc, the money must have been good. You burn that much time and infomorphic psychosis is a real risk.""";;
"""This is a network. We're not dealing with contractors here. This is someone with an agenda and people who believe in it. But they're shorthanded or spread very, very thinly. Something unexpected made them burn a useful asset just to make a meeting.""";;
"""If there's any more light to be shed on this, it's at your end, Parvaz. I'll run down what more I can on this Mochan cover but I don't think the same person turned up in your bombing.""";;
"""I'll keep you in the loop, Haavo. My thanks.""";;
"""Next time, and not so long, eh? Was good seeing you again."" The conference screen flicked to a connection ident momentarily then shut down.";;
Parvaz Sarkovas sat back and steepled his fingers, lost in thought. Zoshan waited quietly, still working through the implications of everything he'd witnessed. What had seemed like some kind of terrorist bombing during coronation week had quickly assumed the proportions of a cluster-wide conspiracy. Not to mention, Chief Inquisitor Sarkovas now appeared in a strange new light.;;
"""Ramal, I'm going to have to ask you to go into the field on my behalf. My circumstances are such that I can't leave here. Still paying for old sins, unfortunately. But we've uncovered something here that could threaten the Empire's interests and it's our job to dig further. I'll do what I can from here, investigate the Mochan angle further, and keep in touch with Tagematsu. But you'll have to pursue the Sjakhuni lead. I have a feeling that one will turn up again somewhere. When he does, I want you to be there. I'll put you in touch with another old friend. Quite a powerful old friend.""";;
"""Whatever you order, Chief. We'll get to the bottom of this.""";;
"Sarkovas sat back and smiled wryly. ""Perhaps we will, Ramal. Perhaps we will.""";;
Yulai System, Yulai IX,;;
Secure DED Comms Bunker Core-YP9-Helical;;
"YC118.10.14""";;
For my purposes, the problem of CONCORD's existence goes deeper than it simply existing as a talking shop at which these self-important empires air their grievances. No, the problem is that it was a mistake. A grave mistake. Those who counselled caution and delay created a vast apparatus dedicated to inertia and the slowing of humanity's inevitable and necessary development. Now they're all gone, except for a few annoying holdouts and those of us with real vision are faced with this bureaucratic monstrosity. Still, all obstacles are opportunities as the old saying goes.;;
By the time the so-called 'Interstellar Technology Audit and Inspection Office' called its little meeting it was far too late. The cloning technologies were all in place and Yun had prepared a strategy in conjunction with his colleagues in the State. When the Inspector General 'revealed' that the Amarr and Gallente had the new cloning technology, Yun and his Caldari friends simply disclosed that they had it too. In essence, sharing of the new technologies had already taken place and nothing was going to stop its development and release. A quite beautiful fait accompli. The agreed communique placed the blame on the Sisters but it all sounded like nothing more than a slap on the wrist.;;
Of course, the real punishment was far more than that.;;
Everyone who mattered was at the Inner Circle meeting. Shakor had just made Yun his man on the Circle. Which only went to confirm how far the man had risen in Shakor's power structure. Devan Malate was there for the Gallente. Blaque's man to my certain knowledge. Sirdan xer Qosh for the Amarr. Superficially a ranting buffoon, but probably the most dangerous man on the Circle. Except for Raish, of course. I wouldn't mind the Society being in the Jove's old place but the problem with them was the continuing influence of the party of delay. As for the State, well after the debacle with Heth, they'd insisted on rotating their membership among the 'Big 8' megacorps. This time Kuikiainen Onita from Sukuuvestaa was present.;;
The meeting may have been secret but this one had a number of others in attendance. Yun had brought me along, nominally as a Thukker representative and a Republic Fleet officer. Everyone else had brought various military officials with them. Amusingly, the Amarr even had one of their heretic hunters from the Ministry of Order with them. That one looked vaguely familiar, perhaps one of their more notorious witch-burners. Their religion may be ridiculous but I can appreciate it as a tool of social-engineering and political control.;;
And then, of course, there were the Sisters. They'd sent Harna Durado along with my old friend Sister Latimas in tow. Latimas looked like she'd drunk five cups of Kresh tea. I rather thought it was a pity she hadn't given her usefulness was at an end. Perhaps I had a premonition as to the trouble she would cause me.;;
Seri Okonaya was furious, of course. The Inner Circle President is good at hiding her feelings but that one gets colder and colder the angrier she is. The AG12 Inspector General was sat with her and looked like he wanted to escape to the icy surface rather than deal with Okonaya's vast froideur.;;
Durado sat stoney-faced through the ticking off part of it all. No doubt she was as bored with it as I was. The important part started when Raish spoke up.;;
"""Thank you for your introductory remarks, President Okonaya. I am sure all of us here understand the gravity of unauthorized sharing of technology of this kind. While we cannot act precipitously, I am afraid that it is the view of the Society of Conscious Thought that the tremendous scientific research potential of Project Discovery cannot be left in the hands of a single entity, such as the Sisters of EVE. As you are aware, the maximal potential of Project Discovery takes advantage of the liquid router backbone that the SCC maintains for the purposes of interstellar communication and commerce. Without this core service, Project Discovery could not operate at its present level.";;
"""By way of sanction for the sharing of findings, made in part from the data analysis performed in Project Discovery, the Inner Circle could of course direct the SCC to prohibit use of the liquid router backbone for such purposes. However, that is not the Society's proposal. Rather, we suggest that oversight of Project Discovery be transferred to CONCORD at an appropriate time. This will allow the Sisters to conclude their present research efforts and allow the interstellar community to continue to benefit from Project Discovery's potential.""";;
Latimas gasped at this and shook her head. Durado darted her a sharp glance of rebuke and foolish Latimas lowered her head.;;
"""You propose giving us sufficient time to complete our work on Drifter tissue analysis then?"" asked Durado.";;
"""Yes, I would suggest a period of six to nine months would be sufficient. We'll at least delay announcement of this handover for some time. I see no point in tainting Project Discovery by connecting the matter so explicitly with this unfortunate affair. Naturally, the cognoscenti will put the pieces together when we eventually announce this agreement.""";;
"""Naturally,"" said Durado. ""Agreement. You are remarkably cavalier with that word, Raish, but we will acquiesce to this. As you have suggested, we have little choice.""";;
Raish's solution was a clever one. Had the Sisters been backed into a corner right away, they might have gone public and attempted to attract the sympathy of the public and even the capsuleers. Giving them space to finish their tissue analysis had taken the air out of that entirely. Latimas still seemed to be horrified by the turn of events and I made a note that she really would have to be dealt with.;;
Yulai III, Concord City Outskirts,;;
"YC119.12.29""";;
Tracking down Latimas took far longer than I would have liked in the end. Wisely, she remained within the protection of the Sanctuary while the Sisters still controlled Project Discovery. Had she remained under their umbrella, getting at her and replacing her would have been a complicated matter. Latimas had caused further difficulties with her damned Project Discovery memorial but it seemed she couldn't let things rest there. My patience was rewarded when she bolted from cover and led me to an entirely unexpected encounter.;;
The small settlement on the outskirts of Concord City had been set up to take advantage of the local geothermal vents. It was simply a series of dwellings and technical shops supporting the many geothermal power arrays scattered around the area east of Concord City. At the very edge of the settlement, near the closest of the power arrays, there was a small two-level hab. A few minutes before, Latimas had entered it.;;
I had a couple of Onikori's thugs with me. As far as they were concerned this was all part of the planned strike against CONCORD. I certainly wasn't going to tell them more than I had told Onikori. He and his group had proved very useful in the last few years, even if our largest operation to date hadn't yielded optimal results. Onikori had insisted on carrying on with Darkness Visible even after the failure of Offspring Cepheus. I allowed it but had suggested a more symbolic date for the strike.;;
Our camera drones had detected nothing in the way of defences or threats to us, so we approached the dwelling rather straightforwardly after jamming all communications and fooling the rather simple surveillance devices attached to the hab. Thermal imaging indicated the presence of Latimas and one other female on the top floor of the dwelling.;;
One of my accomplices circled around to the rear entry of the hab. I and the other paused at the front entry while the rear was secured. Entry was simplicity itself, Onikori's man was well-practiced in the arts of electronic lockpicking. The pair of us met the other at the foot of the stairwell leading to the upper floor.;;
"""Stay here. Make sure we aren't disturbed,"" I said to the second man. I looked at the man I'd entered with, ""Let's go and introduce ourselves to the ladies upstairs, shall we.""";;
To say that Latimas was surprised would be an understatement. She actually collapsed in fright. I was a little disappointed but she'd definitely seen my face so that was something. The other person was the real find though.;;
"""Sister Taya Akira, well, well, well. What a pleasure it is to make your acquaintance at last. You don't know me but I, to be sure, know you.""";;
"""Who the hell are you? Get out before I call the police,"" said Sister Taya. She was clearly terrified but I give her credit for holding up under the shock better than the absurd Latimas.";;
"""Come now. You know that things have gone beyond the law being your ally, my dear. Best you come with us but before that let's deal with Latimas."" I motioned to Onikori's man, ""Remove that trash.""";;
When Onikori's man drew his plasma pistol and reduced Latimas to a char in one smooth motion several things happened. The first was that Taya Akira screamed, turned and stepped towards the window, which made me smile as I knew it didn't open, and it was made of a thin layer of cheap but very tough crystalline carbonide.;;
The second thing that happened was that my own camera drone network alerted me to a rapidly approaching threat profile, and I threw myself back out of the room and into what little cover I could find.;;
"The third was that both my companions shouted ""Incoming!"" as their rather less sophisticated camera drones were entirely neutralized by the new threat. By this time, I had activated my trump card, a combination personal shield and cloaking device.";;
What happened next astounded me and is a matter for ongoing concern for all of us involved in the Ascension project. As far as my surviving camera drones could make out through the haze of electromagnetic jamming and information warfare, a drone the size of an atmospheric fighter craft took up a hovering position in front of the window to the room I'd just been in. Then it burned out the window frame, reduced my erstwhile accomplice to a pile of ash with a quick burst of laser fire and grabbed Taya Akira with as much tenderness as is possible for a rogue drone. Oh yes, this was very definitely a rogue drone of some kind. Then it apparently scanned the hab, decided to burn Onikori's surviving man to a crisp through two intervening walls and accelerated away with Akira in its grasp. Clearly it hadn't seen through my cloak.;;
One of the only good things to be said about all that is that at least I didn't have to use up yet another clone and piece together the whole day's events using data recordings. The other matter was that the drone apparently didn't care about Akira's own data. I quickly extracted it and retreated from the habitat before the authorities arrived. Events had not gone unnoticed by the locals and it was only a matter of time before a DED team arrived on site.;;
Later, after analyzing Akira's database, I had to have another tiresome converation with Onikori. Typically, he wasn't all that concerned about the loss of his men. What he didn't like was that the data I had extracted suggested Darkness Visible had been compromised. Given the data he saw sense in delaying the operation until further upgrades could be carried out and he even rather liked my suggestion for an equally symbolic target date and place.;;
The most vexing thing of all was that Latimas had a backup. That was news to me. The Sanctuary had evidently persuaded her to go out on a mission for them by providing the insurance. I had to put the clonejack I'd prepared back on ice. There'll be other opportunities, sooner or later.;;
Yulai System, Yulai VIII,;;
Inner Circle Tribunal Station; Amarr Embassy;
"YC120.04.14""";;
Captain Marshal Sirdan xer Qosh and Sub-Inquisitor Ramal Zoshan watched as the display showed a shuttle on approach to what seemed to be the control nexus of a large structure in orbit of a temperate planet. They had watched earlier as a small flight of covert operations frigates had intercepted and scanned the massive, monolithic object. Now a shuttle piloted by one of the DED's covert contractors was taking SARO troops to board and neutralize the threat posed by the object.;;
"""Watch this, the pilot's a good man,"" said Sirdan xer Qosh. ""SARO has used him several times before for, let's say, other delicate and deniable transport ops. Capsuleers who can be trusted to keep their mouths shut are few and far between in my experience but Gumby Roffo's one of them. He's also one the best covert assault pilots on the DED's roster of accredited freelancers.""";;
They continued to watch as the shuttle nudged into position alongside an entry port and then disgorged a squadron of fully-armoured SARO assault troopers. The shuttle held position as the accompanying covert ops frigates, also flown by DED contractors, took up station in support of the vulnerable transport. After five minutes or so that seemed to stretch into hours for Ramal Zoshan, the all-clear signal was given and the shuttle went back to base to pick up the specialists waiting to subject the captured object to forensic scrutiny.;;
"""Well, that's that. The intel you received from your Sisters contact was accurate. I'd like to know how they got hold of it though. Something about all this doesn't add up.""";;
"""What was that thing?"" Zoshan hadn't fully understood the purpose of the large device the SARO troops had captured.";;
"""A very old, very dangerous and very simple idea. It's called a 'Black Hammer'. Well, that's what we call ours. The other empires have equally colorful names for their own versions. The pointy-heads in weapons research would call it a 'covert approach, planetary scale, kinetic impactor'."" Marshal xer Qosh glanced at Zoshan and saw that he hadn't resolved the other's confusion. ""It's a planet killer. Well, not on its own. And it doesn't really kill planets. But drop a few of those on a temperate planet and you can be confident of wrecking the global ecosystem and killing an awful lot of people.""";;
"""That's horrific!""";;
"""Yes, and what's worse, in principle they're not difficult to make. It's a big chunk of tungsten with a few ion impellers stuck on the back. The main problem is to make them undetectable to space defense nets, near-asteroid search and destroy, and planetary interception batteries. That takes some skill and technology. It's not just a matter of painting them black anymore. Gravity wake detection is fine scale enough these days. You need equipment that will compensate locally and fool gravitional detection systems. Make it look like nothing bigger than a meteorite that'll burn up, or at best kill a cow in a field somewhere.""";;
"""That sounds like very advanced technology. Could it be the Drifters or perhaps these Triglavians?""";;
"""As to the Drifters or Triglavians doing this, I doubt it. See here on the datafeed, it's clear the thing was fully-equipped with up-to-date tech. But this is all Caldari graviton-based equipment. Which means it could be anyone able to source the gravitech on the Caldari black market. No, someone else came very close to dropping that thing on a target somewhere on Yulai III. I'd say Concord City was the target. Drop it in the sea close by and no amount of shielding would stop the shockwave and tsunami coming in like a matched pair of scythes. A nice little strike against CONCORD for someone.""";;
"""Who could have planned such a thing? Who would do this? Was Concord City really the target?""";;
"""That thing's overkill as a bunker buster though it would certainly do the job. No, anyone capable of putting this together could set up a strike on a specific facility with something less attention-grabbing than this. This was meant for a large target and it was meant to send a message. And Concord City is more than just the biggest city on the planet. It's the hub for CONCORD's planetary operations in system. The Secure Commerce Commission alone has a trading communications center and archive occupying an entire arcology down there.""";;
"""Perhaps someone was trying to knock the SCC network offline?""";;
"""No chance of that. Too many redundancies in the network. Might have taken out some records and spoiled some deals. No, I have a feeling the real target was on the other side of the bay, the Society of Conscious Thought diplomatic facility hosting their annual capsuleer gathering. Much as I find the meddling of capsuleers in affairs that don't concern them an affront to all concepts of order, the annihilation of such a gathering would have been, well, unfortunate. Mind you, had this thing dropped the casualties would have run into millions in total.""";;
"""And we stopped this from happening? Surely CONCORD will surely be grateful to the Empire for our role in this.""";;
"Captain Marshal xer Qosh grunted and looked sideways at Ramal Zoshan before sticking out his hand for the other to grasp. ""You've been promoted to Inquisitor, Zoshan. Congratulations.""";;
"""I had not heard that.""";;
"""You're hearing it from me. You've also been transferred to the Diplomatic Branch, seconded to my staff. You can shake my hand now.""";;
"""But my post in Ves-Udor?"" said Zoshan as he limply shook the Marshal's hand.";;
"""Your work there has been over for some time now. In the last eighteen months, you've become aware of a great many things concerning matters that are no concern of a regional investigator. There are two alternatives open to us. Given how highly Colonel Sarkovas speaks of you, I am exercising my discretion and offering you the least wasteful of those alternatives. The interests of the Throne and Empire are paramount beyond our lives, Zoshan. I suggest you don't think too deeply about it and reconcile yourself to your new life. The work will often be vexing. At first I expect it to shock you, but it is vital work however unpalatable it may be.""";;
"""I hear and obey, Captain Marshal.""";;
"""Quite so.""";;
"Zoshan looked back at the screen and the freeze-frame that showed just a portion of the Black Hammer's massive bulk, and ventured a final question, ""Captain Marshal, the people who tried to do this, they must be capable of almost any horror. If we don't neutralize them, well, what might they try next?""";;
"Captain Marshal Sirdan xer Qosh looked at Zoshan a moment. He shook his head slightly, grimacing, ""Anything, Zoshan, absolutely anything. And what you should realize is that these are the kind of people who are already doing it, whatever it is.""";;
++A Personal Note to an Old Friend++;;
Genesis Region, Yulai System,;;
"YC120.04.14""";;
I suppose I should congratulate you and your friends on thwarting our latest little endeavour. Oh, don't worry about me, I will recover from the blow. It wasn't that important in the grand scheme of things. Ironically, you've deprived your CONCORD pets of a courtesy I felt obliged to do them. Call it a warning.;;
You see, this plan was merely an infinitesimal in a greater integral. The lack of one moment of foreshadowing will not alter the inevitable future.;;
After this, I imagine you'll see that your protege and others are suitably alerted. To the good. It's important that people are aware they are being taught a lesson.;;
As for you, my old friend, I wonder: did you really believe the War of a Million Lies was over?;;
�Esmes Three Tower, this is convoy Hawk Six heavy. Do you copy?;;
�Esmes Three Tower, this is convoy Hawk Six heavy. Do you read?�;;
Flight Lieutenant Risa Harelle allowed her mind to relax a little as the heavy Intaki accent of the convoy�s fleet commander echoed through her consciousness, transmitted directly through her neural interface from the communications array of her Comet class frigate. She panned her camera drone to take in the full scale of the border supply depot she would be calling home for the next twelve months. The 58 kilometer tall spire of carbonide armor loomed ahead of the fleet as a needle-like silhouette, contrasted against the lush green glow of Esmes III.;;
A single thought commanded the safety systems on the weapons of her Comet class frigate to engage, the indicator on the flight interface that was projected directly into her consciousness flicking from red to green beside a text readout of her call sign for this mission��Kilo Two.� Her camera drone refocused on the colors of the Federation Navy projected across her vessel�s hull as the voice of fleet command sounded out again.;;
�No response from Esmes Three Tower. Hold bearing and continue approach pattern.�;;
The fleet of exactly a hundred vessels, every class represented from titan to frigate, glided forward silently as a squad commlink materialized on her flight interface. The familiar voice of her squad leader, Jonas Casille�known as �Kilo One� for this sortie�invaded her thoughts.;;
�So, I hear this crate has a hell of a pleasure hub. Drinks flowing and holoreels running all day and night. How about the twelve of us hit the deck plates once we�re dried out and debriefed?�;;
A chorus of enthusiastic agreements came from call signs Kilo Three through Twelve as Harelle began to form a mental list of pre-shutdown checks before subvocalizing her own agreement to the mix. Without warning, her thought process was swiftly interrupted by a squad of twelve Cyclops fighter bombers that cut across her flight path from her port side, the surprise burst of data from her neural interface akin to the discomfort of a microsecond of pain in her temples.;;
The Comet slowed instinctively, responding to her thoughts as the group of smaller craft triggered a cascade of proximity alarms. They narrowly missed an Algos class destroyer, before cutting beneath the armored hull of a Talos off her starboard flank. She was experienced enough not to allow her thoughts to be broadcast over the open commlink.;;
Stupid fucking stick jockeys.;;
She was impressed with the precision of the piloting, but still made a mental note of the last four digits of the lead fighter�s call sign as she watched the strike group vanish beneath the armored hull of the battle cruiser, repeating the numbers in her head.;;
Three, six, five, four.;;
Her mind refocused on her checklist, the large structure of the supply depot drawing closer before a second interruption tore through the silence inside her head. The voice came in time with a crescendo of pure white flashes that lit up the black void off her starboard bow, telltale signatures of a fleet slowing from hyperspace. Countless golden hulls slowed from warp as the fierce voice of Major Lara Rinache�her squadron�s wing commander�screamed through her skull. The exhaust trails behind the arriving vessels began to dissipate as her comms crackled with activity.;;
�Contact! Contact! Bearing 278! Imperial vessels. They�ve gone hostile. Tripwire breach! Weapons free. Repeat, weapons free!�;;
�Contact! Contact! Bearing 278! Engage at will!�;;
The aggressive voice was cut short as squad command took control seamlessly, the calm tone of Kilo One caressing her ears.;;
�Kilo Squadron five-niner, converge on Kilo One. Delta formation. Objective is defense of Nyx class FNS Foxton. Kill order confirmed, weapons free.�;;
Harelle�s safety indicator flicked back to red almost instantly, a sharp increase in her heart rate triggering a visual warning from her capsule�s neural interface life support system. It was dismissed with a single thought, and the next mental command brought the vessel�s microwarp drive system online, shunting power from her capacitor banks to her warp pulse capacitor.;;
The squadron of Comet class frigates converged into a tight formation as their velocities skyrocketed in unison, scything a white-hot trail of plasma vapor across the battlefield, power enhanced generators overcharged with additional energy.;;
Kilo One�s wing was a mere ten meters from the hull of Harelle�s vessel as an explosion tore through an Imperial battle cruiser five kilometers off their port side. The blast showered the squadron of Comets with tungsten carbide shrapnel as the Oracle broke up, smaller chunks of debris vaporizing against their shields, the larger sections creating a trail of burning metal left in their wake.;;
Harelle�s brain reactively instructed her to duck, her consciousness mentally recoiling from the blast but her physical form remaining inert within the protective shield of her capsule�s ovum. The Comet�s photon mainframe reacted instantaneously to cancel out her reaction, keeping the vessel on its projected course without interruption after checking her flight path was clear.;;
The convoy had descended into organized chaos around the squadron of Comets as Harelle�s camera drone focused on the Foxton. Its massive hull was lit with a conflagration of energy weapon impacts and the surging green glow of repair nanites as they drew closer. The oldest Nyx class still in service with the Federation Navy after the destruction of FNS Wandering Saint, the Foxton seemed to be holding her own against an onslaught of dual gigapulse fire from a trio of Revelation class dreadnoughts, their once golden hulls burning with an angry amber glow.;;
Harelle watched as a wave of fighter-bombers strafed their golden superstructures with another round of blaster fire and incendiary bombs, the glow of detonations against the Imperial vessels sending a surge of adrenaline through her consciousness.;;
A split second of confusion blocked her train of thought as she registered the markings of the Amarr Navy on the three burning hulls, but her mind was brought back to reality with a sharp jolt as electrostatic cynosural discharge dissipated behind the Foxton, an Avatar class titan shimmering into existence.;;
The group of Comets banked to port, the green glow of landing lights flashing past Harelle�s peripheral vision in a split second. She was close enough to the flight deck of the Foxton for her camera drone to see the tiny figures of fighter technicians swarming the birds that remained on deck.;;
The frigates climbed, dwarfed by the burning hulls of the attacking dreadnoughts as the voice of one of her wingmen�she didn�t care to ascertain which�broke comms discipline in frustration after realizing the identity of the aggressors.;;
�What the fuck is the Golden Fleet doing across the border? Why the��;;
Kilo One swiftly silenced his complaint.;;
�Comms discipline! Stow it! Prepare to engage. Nine tangos. Three o�clock. Seventeen klicks. Break and engage. Weapons free!�;;
With that, Harelle peeled off from the formation, rolling the Comet over as she followed the contour of the Revelation�s golden spine. Her focus was absolute, her brain multitasking as she willed another burst of power from her warp pulse capacitor. The Comet�s exhausts burned white hot, the nimble vessel surging forward as a rush of ionized plasma streamed from its tail. Harelle could feel the Comet�s hull flex as if it were part of her own being under the stress of the maneuver, the sensation like that of stretching for a warm-up before her mandatory daily physical training.;;
Her mind interfaced with the frigate�s magnetometric sensory subsystems, acquiring target lock on the nearest of her designated targets�a Slicer class fast attack frigate already trailing a mess of conflagration from a previous engagement. The Gallente vessel�s onboard processing array worked seamlessly with her parietal lobe to calculate target velocity, relative transversal velocity, and trajectory.;;
�Kilo Two locked an engaging. Kilo Four, watch my six.�;;
�I got you. All clear.�;;
With target acquisition confirmed, her preprimed pair of 150 mm rail guns fired, a full volley of hybrid bolts vanishing into the trail of burning debris behind the target. The Imperial frigate banked hard to starboard in an attempt to avoid the next strike as chatter continued to flow among the squad.;;
�Kilo Five towing two Tangos, bearing one six three.�;;
�Kilo Nine, I got you. Bring �em around and we�ll clean up.�;;
Harelle followed her target, her focus absolute, the lighter framed Comet banking at a tighter angle, lasers returning a volley of multifrequency pulse fire that stripped a sizable portion of the Gallente frigate�s shield charge away. Harelle weaved to avoid a second wave of laser fire from the faster cycling energy turrets, her mind turned out from the carnage unfolding around her as the Federal and Imperial navies clashed in the largest Amarr-Gallente engagement since Uriam Kador�s failed attempt to invade Ratillose.;;
The rear of the Slicer became her whole world, her entire mind tuned to the spiraling trail of debris, smoke, and plasma vapor ahead of her.;;
A second volley of railgun fire struck the rear of the Imperial frigate as the two vessels leveled out, the Slicer vanishing in a dazzling white flash that blazed against the blackness of space. A familiar voice cut into her senses as she willed her vessel to dive hard, narrowly undercutting the expanding conflagration of shrapnel and debris as her target was consumed by a superheated fireball.;;
�Kilo One to Kilo Two. Orders from wing command. An Imperial scout has broken away from the main task force. Last sighted in the rocks around Esmes Four. Kill mission. Break squad, seek and destroy.�;;
Harelle�s response was instant as she pulled her frigate into a hard roll, lining up with the celestial beacon for the only asteroid belt registered in the system. She felt her mind roll over with the Comet as they slid into alignment together.;;
�Roger that, squad broken. Kilo Two en route.�;;
Her vessel reached alignment with the beacon as she simultaneously canceled the power shunt to her microwarp drive, mentally commanding the vessel�s Roden built warp core into action with a single subconscious gesture.;;
A sudden flash of gold lit up her peripheral vision, reflecting against the damaged hulls of a squad of Megathron class battleships as they released a volley of lethal blaster fire. Harelle willed her camera drone into a fast arc in time to see a sphere of amber light begin to form in front of the Avatar. Space itself seemed to ripple in front of the gargantuan vessel�s superstructure, electrostatic arcs bouncing between its golden hull and the growing sphere.;;
She kept focus on the Imperial flagship, her last view that of a golden beam of light reaching for the convoy�s Erebus class flagship, before the Comet�s warp core catapulted her from the battlefield at two and a half thousand times the speed of light, the vessel phasing seamlessly into hyperspace with gut-wrenching acceleration.;;
Harelle immediately busied herself with weapons commands, her squad comms now silent as her flight interface registered successful magazine reloads. She checked capacitor charge status, ammunition reserves, and drone control readiness as the second moon of Esmes Three slipped past in the blink of an eye.;;
As the vessel began to slow, her camera drone was buffeted from the phase back to normal space, static crackling across her field of view for a split second as a dense field of asteroids and dust was suddenly pulled from the blackness toward her at incredible speed.;;
Bright trails of superheated ionized plasma stretched out from the frigate�s exhaust ports as the vessel�s power enhanced generators spooled up, slicing a greenish-blue glow across the asteroid belt as the frigate slowed. Within a couple of seconds the Comet�s sublight propulsion system took over, drawing energy from subspace and immediately pushing her toward maximum velocity.;;
Harelle let out a mental sigh as her field of vision was filled with the serene view of light from Esmes, the orange glow from the distant star scattered between thousands of rocks that floated gracefully in a natural gravity well in orbit of the nearby gas giant. It was almost peaceful, just one thing out of place.;;
A single mental command spurred the frigate�s drone control mainframe into action as four wrecks with Serpentis Corporation transponders lit up on her flight interface, a flight of three Hobgoblin light scout drones emerging from the Comet�s drone bay as the access hatch in its keel slid open smoothly.;;
A fourth signature materialized on Harelle�s flight overview, identified by the Comet�s tactical suite as that of an Imperial Navy Slicer, twenty kilometers dead ahead of her. She brought her camera drone about with no more effort than it would take a mortal to cast their eyes to the side, the faint bluish glow of fusion exhausts apparent as the Amarr vessel darted between dense dust deposits in the belt, light from Esmes shimmering against its polished hull.;;
Inside her head, Harelle smiled to herself as she drew a surge of power from the Comet�s warp pulse capacitor.;;
The Slicer slid forward gracefully, its sleek twin hulls cutting a smooth path through the dust cloud that enveloped the asteroid belt. Its pilot subvocalized across secure communications to his squad commander as the vessel rapidly recharged the frigate�s tesseract capacitor banks, siphoning energy from subspace through its propulsion system.;;
�Helo Eight reporting. No Federation Navy activity, but light Serpentis resistance. Appears to be a false positive. It looks like the comms issues are also affecting the FEDCAF network. Inspecting Serpentis wreckage before return to fleet.�;;
�Copy that, Helo Eight. Inspection and no salvage, dispose of survivors. RTF ASAP.�;;
�Yes, my lord.�;;
The Imperial pilot closed distance on the last cluster of burning wreckage, one of four Serpentis Corporation Atron class frigates that had dared attack when he split from the main strike group. He pulled his camera drone into a close frame, inspecting the remains of the noncapsuleer piloted vessel. Its hull was no more than a ravaged husk lanced by pulse laser fire, the crew of six lost to the vacuum of space.;;
The muzzles of the Slicer�s dual light pulse lasers still glowed a deep hue of orange, slowly cooling from the contact with the pirate vessels as the victorious Imperial Navy pilot brought the vessel about. Surprise filled his consciousness as his tactical overlay blinked with activity, a Federation Navy contact�frigate class�slipping from hyperspace just twenty kilometers from his position.;;
His immediate response was to open comms again with a message to his strike group as he relayed neural instruction to his weapons systems, turrets processing the digital representation of his clear, controlled thoughts. His flight interface confirmed the switch from Conflagration to Scorch frequency crystals.;;
�Contact, contact. This is Helo Eight. Hostile scout sighted. Request permission to engage.�;;
�Negative, Helo Eight, you�re needed with main strike group. RTF. Repeat, return to fleet, Lieutenant Rasanto.�;;
�Copy that.�;;
The Slicer was already on the move in an attempt to make range on the Federation Navy vessel, dust and small chunks of ore bouncing off its polished hull as the vessel climbed to its maximum speed.;;
The agile craft weaved between a scattering of Jaspet and Scordite deposits, making for clear space as three more signatures flashed into existence on Rasanto�s tactical overview, the Slicer�s radar sensors identifying them as a flight of three Federation Navy Hobgoblin light scout drones.;;
With fourteen kilometers between the two vessels, several piercing bleeps pierced Rasanto�s skull, the four signatures flashing red as the Federal pilot engaged. The golden hull of the Slicer was bathed in the soft blue pulsing hue of a warp disruptor as it emerged from a cloud of veldspar dust and ore deposits, Rasanto cutting a hard arc around the pursuing Comet and darting back into the asteroid field, willing another shunt of power to the vessel�s microwarp drive.;;
Harelle followed, the group of three Hobgoblins rapidly gaining on the Imperial vessel, a series of low power alarms sounding as the Slicer�s shields were rapidly dissipated by light blaster fire from the trio of automated craft. A volley of railgun fire followed, one of the bolts missing its target and slamming into a cluster of omber deposits, shattering the larger rocks and spilling them into the path of the Slicer.;;
In a reflex action, Rasanto�s brain commanded his inert body to duck to avoid a concussion from several thousand tons of ore debris, the Slicer�s mainframe processing the command into swift evasive action that allowed it to dodge a large fragment of rock.;;
The remaining two bolts struck the port side hull of the Slicer, superheated projectiles cutting through the remaining shield charge, buckling tungsten armor as asteroid debris rattled across its hull.;;
Dual light pulse lasers returned the argument between the two vessels, stripping away the remains of the Federal frigate�s shield and scorching a series of strike marks across its knife-like bow as it continued to close on its heavier and less agile prey. A second set of fast-tracking pulse bursts struck the Comet again, three direct hits tearing crystalline carbonide armor plating from the frigate�s starboard side wing.;;
Harelle commanded her turrets to ready a fresh volley of antimatter fire as the pack of three light drones pounded at the scarred hull of the slicer, Rasanto pulling range as he rolled the low profile of the slicer onto its side, slipping between two enormous veldspar rocks.;;
The Comet pitched into a steep dive to avoid them, too bulky to follow its quarry, its backbone cascading a shower of sparks and rubble into space as it glanced the larger of the two asteroids, slipping beneath them. Its turrets remained trained on the Slicer as it passed from the line of fire, Rasanto commanding his frigate�s nanorepair pumps into action during the brief respite from assault.;;
The Slicer turned its focus to the pursuing drones as they followed through the narrow gap, a flurry of pulse fire obliterating the first, and crippling a second that spiraled into a group of rocks, vaporizing as its power core breached on impact. Harelle growled to herself inside her head, her consciousness processing the anger of having to fill out an equipment requisition form for replacements.;;
Despite this, her subconscious response was immediate: two replacement drones catapulted from the Comet as the third continued to batter the Slicer�s port side with blaster fire. After several more seconds, the Gallente frigate was back in pursuit, cutting a path through a dense cloud of scordite dust that coiled in its wake.;;
A second round of railgun fire slammed into the golden hull, spilling tungsten carbide into space in a hail of shimmering metallic confetti as Harelle closed range, forcing overheat on the vessel�s propulsion system to close on the rear of the battered Slicer. Rasanto pulled his camera drone�s field of view in close, splitting focus between his tactical overview and inspecting the damage as his pulse lasers cut down another light drone.;;
He watched as his vessel�s buckled hull plating surged with nanite activity, the tungsten plates bleeding shimmering green nanite fluid like blood from the capillaries of grazed skin. Hundreds of readouts spilled across his peripheral vision as the Slicer�s repair systems invaded his consciousness, informing him of repairs, cycle time, power rerouting, and nanite flow pressure through the capillaries of the vessel�s armored hull.;;
Another volley of pulse fire was trained on the sharply cut bow of the pursuing Comet, stripping away its outer hull plating and exposing the armored substructure beneath. Harelle skillfully weaved behind a pack of scordite deposits as a shield, launching the last remaining drone in the Comet�s complement as Rasanto�s vessel banked hard, circling a colossal formation of ore in a 180-degree change of direction. The light drones followed dutifully, raking the side of the Slicer with blaster fire, the next volley of ordnance from their automated turrets exposing the vessel�s port side reactor shielding.;;
The lighter hull of the Federation Navy vessel closed on the Slicer as its turrets cycled again, slides recoiling, spent antimatter shells spiraling from their chambers into space before they locked forward again with a fresh load. The impact of the next round of antimatter struck the port side booster housing of the Slicer, dense black smoke erupting in a billowing trail of conflagration that spiraled wildly in the Amarr frigate�s wake. The Slicer�s mainframe spilled tears of digital pain into Rasanto�s subconscious, temperature warnings filling his peripheral vision.;;
Within seconds the vessel began to succumb to the damage. Its port side propulsion cooling ruptured as drone fire made light work of exposed equipment. With a small explosion, the auxiliary thruster broke away completely, Harelle weaving again to avoid being collected in the trail of debris.;;
Rasanto�s flight interface lit up in a series of critical failures as the Slicer�s systems began to shut down, the vessel yawing violently to port as it began to break up. A final volley of pulse laser fire consumed one of the light drones, an action that was to be in vain as the substructure of the Amarr frigate finally succumbed to heat and stress.;;
The vessel�s port side superstructure broke loose from the rest of the hull, its thruster extinguishing with the loss of command input from Rasanto. The two halves of the frigate spiraled wildly, the discarded port side thruster slamming into rock, its reactor detonating in a superheated fireball.;;
The young Amarr Navy lieutenant became a passenger for a split second, a thick plume of black smoke trailing in the wake of the Slicer�s remains as the pursuing Comet was pelted with burning coolant and debris. Harelle pitched into a steep climb to avoid the growing plume of carnage as flying shrapnel obliterated one of her remaining two drones.;;
A split second before the Slicer impacted a group of Scordite deposits, the capsule emergency release charges fired, the vessel�s mainframe instinctively sensing risk to its fragile human cargo and acting in protection. Rasanto�s senses were filled with screeching hull breach warnings, then sudden silence as his flight interface was torn from his consciousness and replaced by a simple warning:;;
The feed from his camera drone flickered, the images distorted with static as his capsule was hurled loose of the wreckage, a trio of severed umbilicals flailing behind it.;;
Harelle felt a surge of adrenaline, tracking the carnage with her camera drone as she watched the remains of the Slicer slam into a minefield of rocks. Sheer velocity shredded the remains of the golden hull in an angry orange fireball as she brought the Comet out of a steep climb.;;
Her entire mental effort was swiftly focused on drawing a magnetometric target lock on the hostile capsule that spiraled from the wreckage. The Comet�s BZ-12 sensor suite identified the target and acquired lock, a preprimed warp disruptor holding it in place as Harelle brought the battered Gallente frigate into a tight orbit, closing in to optimal range.;;
Silence overcame Rasanto, his bruised consciousness reeling in the aftermath of the sudden disconnect from his vessel. He braced his mind for what was to come upon recognizing the throbbing pulse of a warp disruption field, and subvocalized to himself alone, the communications link to his strike group severed with the destruction of his ship.;;
Repeating his chosen words to himself, Rasanto waited for the inevitable�the searing white light that would cleanse his failure from existence, projecting the very fabric of his soul across the stars to the Throne Worlds so that he might live again.;;
Only through many hardships is a man stripped to his very foundations.;;
And in such a state, devoid of distractions, is his soul free to soar.;;
And in this, he is closest to God.;;
Risa Harelle allowed a relaxed groan to surface from the depths of her throat as she ruffled her damp raven hair with a soft white towel, before rolling her shoulders and stretching her neck from side to side. She looked over her smooth complexion in the mirror, smirking to herself.;;
Two more confirmed kills. A clean 2501 and her name on the list for a fifth flight commendation.;;
She stood in the bathroom doorway with a second white towel wrapped around her slender frame, surveying her new quarters for the next twelve months. The tower in orbit of Esmes III was just over a year old, one of the newest additions to the tripwire network courtesy of increased defense funding under the Roden administration. Some of the equipment the Federation Navy provided was still sealed in its original packing. She�d have the satisfaction of peeling the plastic from it later.;;
Her attention was drawn to her military issue datapad, its smooth black shape vibrating across the glass surface of the table at the center of her living area. She approached, reading from the holographic screen, four numbers brought back to the forefront of her mind as her eyes ran over the remainder of her squadron�s debrief in thirty minutes.;;
She smiled to herself as she lifted the datapad from the smooth reflective surface, tapping at it and searching roster archives from the day�s operations.;;
>>ROSTER QUERY *59 Squadron*;;
. . . QUERY COMPLETE: 2 RECORD(S) FOUND. DISPLAY? (Y/N) y;;
0293654765 � FLT. LT. ARANSA; J.;
� ACTIVE �;;
DEBRIEF PENDING;;
9968543654 � WG. CMDR. � FLT. LT. KAVIK; R.;
"� KILLED IN ACTION �""";;
Risa tilted her head, shrugging softly as she spoke to no one in particular, tossing the datapad onto the black leather cushion of her new sofa.;;
�Well, Lieutenant Kavik. Lucky for you that I don�t need to have your flight status suspended.�;;
The trip back to the bathroom was cut short by the ringing of her buzzer. She ruffled her hair as she made her way to the door; a view of the other side flickering to life; holographically projected against the door�s surface as she approached. A familiar figure stood on the other side
�Who is it?�;;
�Casille. Squadron debrief in sixty. 1900 hours.�;;
�Yeah, I got the memo, sir. I�ll be there fifteen before.�;;
Harelle smirked to herself, swiping a hand through the hologram to turn it off before completing her journey back to the bathroom as she spoke to herself inside her head.;;
Not a fucking chance, Casille. Try again, boy.;;
;;
Orin Rasanto took a deep breath, filling his lungs with sterile air and sliding his hands across his unnaturally smooth face. He exhaled gently and rolled his well-muscled shoulders, looking down to his palms. Their virgin skin was several shades lighter than he remembered. He flexed his fingers slowly, turning his hands over, fingers fresh and unblemished, nails smooth and unmarked.;;
Water cascaded from the shower faucet behind him, its contact with the floor tiles akin to the beat of a thousand drums to his new senses. He sighed to himself as he replayed the final moments of the engagement to himself inside his head.;;
Hunted by a pack of drones that lashed out like rabid dogs. The shrieking of the Slicer�s hull breach alarms. The disorientation of emergency release. The strike group�s confusion due to communications failure. The unauthorized breach of the Federal border that their commanding officer had maneuvered them into.;;
He took in another deep breath as he started to wash his hands for a third time, feeling dirty despite the sterile environment he was in. The faucet over the stainless basin dispensed a frothy mix of cleansing liquids, before switching to a gentle flow of warm, clean water. He worked slowly as he regained his senses, breathing deeply.;;
A vibration caught his attention, the screen of his datapad flickering to life on the polished counter to his side. His hands stopped as he read the screen.;;
IMPERIAL NAVY 4TH FLEET �;;
31ST �NASHAR� SQUADRON;;
FAO � FLT. LT. RASANTO; O. � 378100594323;
REASSIGNMENT � ORDER 6640-A;;
AMMATAR FLEET � 66TH SQUADRON �;;
GAMIS X � AMMATAR FLEET LOGISTICS SUPPORT;;
REPORT TO C.O. ON ARRIVAL �;;
WING COMMANDER GRIE BAUN;;
"END MESSAGE""";;
He remained silent for a few seconds, his hands trembling and his jaw tense as he took in a deep, slow breath. Unable to contain himself, he lashed out, a meaty fist turning the mirror over the basin into a spider�s web of fragments with a colossal crash. Crimson leaked from his new knuckles as his hands fell to his side.;;
Orin let out a shaky sigh as he considered his own brown eyes in the fragments of mirror that still clung to the wall, confused disbelief painted across his fresh-faced complexion.;;
His eyes fell to his feet, his head lowered in defeat as braided hair fell around his face.;;
His tears joined his Brutor blood on the white tiled floor.;;
tablescraper-selected-row;;
Pure Blind Region, X-7OMU System,;;
The Sanctuary School; X-7OMU II M7;
"YC112.07.07""";;
Zakari Kovalis stepped out of his ready room still fiddling with the seal-tight fastener on his capsule suit. He looked at his watch then remembered he wasn't wearing one. After all, he was in his capsule suit. For a capsuleer, Zakari was both old-fashioned and somewhat absent-minded, particularly outside the element that was, if not exactly natural, the one he?d made his own: the ultraconnected, fluid-filled world of the capsule. By an act of will he brought up the time readout in its customary corner of his inner vision. Just past noon, plenty of time.;;
Zakari?s ready room was close by the secure hangar bay that his ship rested in and he passed through the internal lock to the bay a few minutes later. There she was, the Katydid, his ship and his real home. The Cheetah class frigate was still swaddled by service gantries but her lines were clear enough. The ship?s weathered but distinctive Thukker colors made a contrast with the advanced connectors and special equipment being run into and alongside her. Zakari shook his head slightly and stepped down from the lock entrance to the hangar floor.;;
The Cheetah class frigates were developed by the Thukker tribe, Zakari?s own people, as a flexible platform for covert operations, reconnaissance, and exploration duties. The Katydid was currently rigged as a deep-space exploration vessel. Zakari could see a few technicians huddled around the consoles that controlled the tuning of the scanner probe packages. Right in the middle of them was Taya Akira, one of the Sanctuary School?s experts on unstable, yet traversable, wormholes. Zakari smiled to himself and walked over to the island of consoles.;;
"�Still arguing about how narrow a range of resonance frequencies in exahertz the probes should be tuned to or whatever it is?� asked Zakari as he caught Taya Akira?s eye. The young Sisters of EVE scientist rolled her eyes and waved him away. Zakari smiled and watched her a moment longer before strolling toward the ship. He didn?t need to know the fine details; he launched the probes and set their search patterns. He had a good eye for narrowing in on probe hits but setting up these custom-scanning packages was not his field at all.";;
The Katydid?s engineering section was accessible via a gantry and he decided to go in that way. Inside, he nodded to his flight engineer, Jubal Hrada, a taciturn man of vast experience drawn from working on many different ships in the Vo-Lakat caravan?s exploration fleet.;;
�How?s it going, Jubal?�;;
�She?ll fly, Zakari.�;;
"Zakari nodded and left the engineer to it. Jubal Hrada had lost a lot of family when the Lakat-Hro Great Caravan disappeared back during the unstable wormholes incident of YC111. In a sense, everyone in the Vo-Lakat caravan, an offshoot of the larger nomadic fleet, had lost family. Jubal's loss was a lot closer to home though. He'd still been Lakat-Hro at the time, just jobbing with the Vo-Lakat. His wife and children went missing with all the rest when the Lakat-Hro fleet disappeared in the SL-YBS system at the same time its star suffered a ""main sequence anomaly.""";;
"Zakari had been to SL-YBS with the other searchers and seen what was left of the first planet. He was of the considered opinion that ""main sequence anomaly"" was putting what had happened pretty mildly. The disappearance of the mother caravan in that star system was only the beginning of a great upheaval for the Vo-Lakat. The caravan took in the scattered surviving members of the Lakat-Hro as a matter of course.";;
Leaving engineering, Zakari went up to the crew area to make sure everything was in order. The ship had been modified a lot over the years and was equipped to carry specialist expedition teams alongside the small ship�s crew.;;
The crew proper amounted to Jubal and whoever shipped with them as a tech for the mission. A woman named Ava Sosek had come out to the Sanctuary with them on this job. She was an astrometrics tech and very experienced in the data analysis side of that work. Zakari and his automated systems took care of the rest of the ship�s business. The capsule interface typically cut out crew requirements onboard frigates, unless skilled personnel were required for a specific sortie.;;
The Sisters were covering the expedition team side of things, as well as providing a wormhole-mapping specialist. Which was where Taya came in. Zakari glanced down the corridor leading to the sleeping quarters. He smiled wryly and continued forward. He especially wanted to check the survey command center in the prow.;;
The Katydid was an old mark of the Cheetah class and Zakari had piloted it in service of the Vo-Lakat exploratory corps for several years. The prow of the Katydid contained a lot of custom sensor equipment but its standout feature was the enlarged command center. You had to reach it through a crawl-way, but there was room in there for two.;;
The main purpose of the center was coordination of survey and exploration missions, particularly those involving expedition teams. As far as Zakari knew, Taya would be up here on her own, just as she had been on the last five runs. The Sanctuary scientist and her team operated on the basis that she was in charge as far as Zakari could tell.;;
Zakari looked around the cramped space, checked the diagnostics on the armored shutters closed over the sapphire glass viewports. He shook his head. Being a capsuleer could have some strange psychological effects including a paradoxical hybrid of agoraphobia and claustrophobia. Zakari suspected he had a mild case of it. Zakari glanced at the crawl-way light�it was out, nobody coming up�and set off back down towardsthe ship�s core.;;
Zakari quickly made his way to the crew embarkation lock, cycled through, and rode the gantry elevator down to the hangar floor. He looked over at the consoles again, saw Taya and the technicians were still hard at it, and walked back across.;;
�The Katydid�s ready to fly, Taya. I�ll be going under and loading up in ten minutes.�;;
Taya Akira looked up blankly, nodded shortly after visibly replaying his words in her mind, and bent back to her work. Zakari shrugged to himself and headed for the hangar�s capsule gantry.;;
***;;
The Sanctuary School, X-7OMU II M7,;;
Cheetah class frigate Katydid;;
"YC112.07.07""";;
Lying back in the encapsulation prep couch, Zakari smiled to himself as he pondered the inscrutable Sister Taya. Smart connectors locked into his spinal implants and the skeletal couch raised him up into the waiting capsule where a series of handler arms gently took hold of him. The couch withdrew, the smart connectors pulled in most of their slack, and the capsule sealed itself.;;
Zakari took a breath, and then exhaled steadily, emptying his lungs as the capsule fluid poured in. He held his breath until the hyperoxygenated suspension fluid covered his head, and then inhaled deeply. His adapted throat and nose tissues responded to specific chemical cues in the fluid to suppress the usual reflexes that would resist water entering the windpipe. In a heart's beat he was breathing the fluid as calmly and easily as he would breathe air.;;
"When the capsule's internal monitors confirmed that all was well with Zakari's vitals after the respiratory transition, the gantry's handling mechanisms lifted the great egg-shaped fusion of man and machine up and toward the waiting capsule port of the Katydid. The large port behind the bulky ""sail"" of the ship accepted the capsule and the ship's internal handlers took over, guiding the precious cargo inside. Behind it multiple bulkheads sealed off and the outer port closed as a heavily armored door swung home and locked itself into place with internal bolts.";;
"Zakari became one with the ship, in a way that nobody but another capsuleer could truly appreciate; his body sense fell away and the ship sense came over him. The capsule had completed its connection routines and was now enclosed in a sheath of armor within this most central of chambers.";;
Zakari's biological systems were now profoundly connected and integrated with the Katydid. In a sense, a very real sense, Zakari Kovalis was now a Cheetah class covert operations frigate called the Katydid.;;
Zakari sent the ready signal and opened a channel to speak to Sister Taya Akira. Or rather, Zakari's will to speak to the Sanctuary scientist was translated into the Katydid's comms connecting with Taya's aural implant and converting his thoughts into words that she seemed to hear as if from an earphone.;;
�Ready to go, Sister Taya. Finished up with the scanner packages yet?�;;
�We�re done here. The team is boarding now. Mission parameters are unchanged. Launch at your discretion, Captain Kovalis.�;;
�Understood.�;;
Zakari watched through his ship sensors as the Sanctuary expedition team filed into the crew area and made ready for launch. Taya was on her way to the prow command center, which was typical, as much as he didn�t like her being in the crawlspace during launch. He decided to wait until she was in the command center before launching.;;
When Taya had settled into her station, Zakari fired up the engines, increasing power to the deflection fields to lift the ship as low pulses of main engine power propelled the ship forward and out to the exit channel. Navigating freely now, the Katydid headed for the primary exit port, pinging a formal departure handshake to one of the station�s flight controllers in passing.;;
The frigate powered out of the station and immediately began to align on a heading to a specific location within the X-7OMU system. Katydid entered warp moments after lining up with the target coordinates and accelerated to several AU per second for a short coast before decelerating. The ship dropped out of warp after barely a minute of faster-than-light travel.;;
Zakari launched a full spread of scanner probes while putting the ship into a random alignment away from the previous line of travel. He activated the ship�s cloaking device as soon as the probes were launched and set to work coordinating the probes in a pattern designed to locate unstable wormholes as quickly as possible.;;
�Probes are away. We are under cloak. Scanning sequence begins now,� sent Zakari to Taya Akira.;;
�Understood. Probe packages are performing as expected. Specific wormhole resonances are being filtered.�;;
�I have a hit at volume coordinates on your tracking readout. Narrowing down for signature lock.�;;
�Your hit is a strong candidate for mission parameters. Entering this in the mission log as provisional candidate six.�;;
Zakari�s mouth quirked in a wry smile, even as deep in ship sense as he was. Taya was as keen today as on the first mission they�d flown together.;;
�I read you. I have a green signature, warp drive locked on.�;;
�Take us to visual range, please.�;;
Zakari initiated warp to the signature location, bringing the Katydid to 10 km from the mouth of the wormhole the probes had detected. From his own readouts he could tell this was a wormhole with a signature of the type their mission was tasked with finding and surveying.;;
�Looks like a confirmed candidate to me, Sister Taya,� he sent to the scientist. Through the comms pickups in the command center he watched as Taya studied her displays before nodding to herself and responding.;;
�Agreed. Logging as confirmed candidate six. Proceed at your discretion, Captain Kovalis.�;;
�Acknowledged. Taking us in.�;;
Unknown Region, Candidate System Six,;;
Cheetah class frigate Katydid;;
"YC112.07.08""";;
"They'd been surveying Candidate System Six for the better part of twelve hours and Zakari could tell the entire crew was in need of a break. It was becoming apparent to all that Candidate Six was not the hoped for ""wormhole nexus"" system that the Sanctuary School had been searching for over the past several months.";;
For his own part, Zakari had become convinced that Candidate Six was a bust about an hour after they�d gone through. Like other candidate systems it had the blue A0 class sun. Usually the innermost planet or two were shattered. This one had a single shattered planet orbiting close in, while the others were various rocky or icy but intact globes. There were also many signs of Sleeper activity and Talocan ruins popping up on the probe scan results. But that was just it�there was nothing different and something told Zakari this was just another in a series of failed candidates.;;
The expedition team had been hard at work on their screens, and up in the prow command center, analyzing the data that the ship�s sensors and scan probes were pouring into the computer systems. All to no avail other than to confirm that the system was another of the unusual type with wormhole connections permitting very low �mass packet transmission,� a fancy way of saying that the things would only allow very small ships through. This aspect of certain hard-to-find systems on the unstable wormhole network was a key reason for using a ship like the Katydid.;;
Zakari was about to call for a shipwide rest period when Ava Sosek pinged him. The astrometrics tech hadn�t had a lot to say so far. He took the call guessing she�d reached similar conclusions to him and intended to say as much.;;
�Zakari here. What�s up, Ava?�;;
�I�ve been going over the data streams, Captain. It�s much the same kind of thing as before but there�s one transmission I think you should take a look at.�;;
�Oh? Flag the isolated data for me then. I�ll check it now. I was about to call a rest.� Zakari�s curiosity was piqued, as transmissions were not exactly unusual in these systems. There were plenty of Sleeper structures and drones sending out a lot of data. Not to mention some of the older stuff, the Talocan ruins and such, transmitted all sorts of crap. Well, probably not crap from Taya�s point of view, he supposed.;;
�Already flagged it for you. Isolated data stream VK947-YC1120706-KCS6.�;;
�Got it.� Zakari looked over the data in his virtual display and mentally did a double take. Marveling at Ava Sosek�s sang-froid at merely suggesting he take a look at this transmission, Zakari contacted the tech. �I see why you wanted me to look at this. If I�m reading correctly, this is a distress beacon from one of the Lakat-Hro caravan�s Nomad class freighters. That about right?�;;
�That�s the size of it, Captain. It�s an active signal too. Signal power is pretty low though. I�d reckon it�s at the level you�d see after the beacon had been on for a year or so without reactor power.�;;
�A year or so. You realize what you�re saying?� Zakari thought about the disappearance of the Lakat-Hro Great Caravan back in March YC111. A little over a year ago.;;
�I�m just an astrometrics data tech, Captain.�;;
�Right and I�m just a pet coral squid. Have you told Jubal about this?�;;
�Hells no! I might be new on this ship but everyone in the exploration fleet knows Jubal�s story.�;;
�Good. We are going to check this out but I�d rather not have him going off half-cocked. I need to figure out a mission change with Sister Taya, and then have a plan to put in front of him. What about you? Any connections?�;;
�Some friends, very distant family and all that. Nothing immediate though. My folks were with the Vo-Lakat when they split off.�;;
�Right. Well, my mob joined up from the Hrada-Oki. Looking for a better life and all that.�;;
�Clanner, eh? Hrada-Oki? Smugglers, aren�t they?�;;
�Mostly. I won�t deny they�ve done some warm work but at least they�re not the fucking Seykal.�;;
�I hear you. This transmission though, I�m pretty sure we can get a quick fix if you task a flight of probes on it. We�ll probably need to use combats though.� Ava was referring to combat probes, the name for probes capable of efficiently hunting down ships. Such was the nature of New Eden�these were most often used for finding hostile targets, hence the name. Zakari thought that was about right, even for as big a ship as a Nomad class, and was glad of the expanded launcher and spare flight of combat probes he�d brought along.;;
�I�ll launch them now. Give their telemetry priority. I�ll have to discuss next steps with Sister Taya.�;;
Zakari took a moment to consider the implications of this discovery. When the Lakat-Hro Great Caravan had disappeared during the wormhole incident back in YC111, the assumption had been that the entire fleet had been taken out when the SL-YBS system�s central star blasted off enough stellar material to shatter the first planet. Only those few who survived elsewhere and were desperately clinging on to hope believed otherwise. Them and the usual grab bag of kooks and conspiracy theorists claiming everything from Sansha�s Nation kidnapping the caravan en masse to, well, the Lakat-Hro escaping through a wormhole. Could it really be?;;
�Sister Taya, I have something I need to discuss with you. Can we meet up in the virtuality?� Zakari felt that this conversation needed to be as face-to-face as possible.;;
�Is that necessary, Captain?� Taya Akira sounded irritable, which wasn�t surprising given she�d been at it for a twelve-hour stretch.;;
�I�m afraid so. I�ll be able to go over the data Ava has put together more thoroughly.�;;
�Ava? Has she found something my team missed?�;;
�Your team wasn�t looking for what she found. I�ll explain it in the virtuality.� Zakari watched through sensors as Taya stood up and arched her back with hands at her hips.;;
�Very well. I�ll meet you in there momentarily.�;;
Zakari lost no time in transferring to the virtuality, allowing his ship sense to recede as his consciousness focused on the artifice of a virtual world, while the Katydid was taken care of by a kind of capsuleer�s autonomic system. Sister Taya appeared in the simulation a second or two later.;;
�Okay, Captain Kovalis, just what is so important and so complicated that we need to meet in here?� Taya waved her hand around the room they appeared to be standing in. This was a handsomely equipped data analysis laboratory, furnished with all manner of screens and holoboards. A large holography table in the center of the lab dominated all of this. The two of them were standing on either side of its long axis.;;
�This is a simulation of the main sequence anomaly experienced by the primary of SL-YBS on YC111.03.10, in which event the Lakat-Hro Great Caravan is believed to have been lost.� Zakari gestured at the holography table as it sprang into life and played through the convulsion of the star and the mass ejection that shattered the inner planet of the system.;;
�Yes, I�m quite familiar with all of the events of that day. I assume you have some pertinent reason for bringing up that aspect in particular?�;;
�You could say that. You�re now seeing a holorecording of the Nomad class freighter Farvoyer.� Zakari indicated the slowly rotating representation. �She was part of the Lakat-Hro caravan�s supply fleet, equipped as standard with a jump drive. As far as the records show, she was with the main body of the caravan when SL-YBS blew up.�;;
�The star did not blow up,� said Sister Taya exasperatedly. �What has this all got to do with our mission?�;;
�The Farvoyer�s distress beacon is broadcasting from somewhere in this system. We have it narrowed down to a volume of space close to the outermost planet. The beacon that�s transmitting is built into the ship.� Zakari could tell that this revelation had given Taya pause. The Sanctuary scientist was startled for a moment but quickly hid it.;;
�That�s certainly interesting but there are many possible explanations for such signals.�;;
�I�m inclined to assume the simplest explanation and that is the presence of the Farvoyer, or at least some part of it, in this system. On that assumption, I�m exercising my prerogative as captain to investigate the matter. I�d add that I take the customary duty to respond to a distress call or signal very seriously, regardless of the fact that this signal is from a ship belonging to my tribe.�;;
�Very well. I can see that it�s useless to dispute the matter with you,� sighed Taya Akira. She put a hand to her forehead and closed her eyes for a moment. �In fact, my team should probably get some rest. I would imagine you and your key crew would be able to handle this.�;;
�Exactly. My people won�t rest until we figure out what this really is. We�ll be fine though. You and the expedition team should get some rack time in.�;;
�Fine. If this should turn out to be something more than a sensor ghost or a wormhole-boosted signal echo, well, please wake me.�;;
�I will,� promised Zakari.;;
Candidate System Six, vicinity of fifth planet,;;
Cheetah class frigate Katydid;;
"YC112.07.08""";;
The Katydid banked as it maintained its close orbit around the slowly tumbling hulk of the Farvoyer. Zakari�s simple explanation had turned out to be the right one. The freighter was basically intact but sensors indicated it was a cold, dead shell. Most of the ship�s internal space was hard vacuum and the reactors were very definitely offline. It seemed likely that the distress beacon was running off the backup hydrogen batteries, as suspected given the transmission�s power profile.;;
The expedition team was suited up. So was Jubal Hrada. Zakari hadn�t even bothered to argue about that. One of Sister Taya�s team had some experience with basic maintenance aboard frigates and was staying behind. It wasn�t exactly ideal and it wasn�t exactly necessary but Zakari felt it made a point of sorts. In truth, while he�d more or less expected it, actually discovering the corpse of the Lakat-Hro jump freighter out here had been shocking on a deep psychological level. Everyone felt it but the Vo-Lakat crew members felt it all the more keenly.;;
"�Taya here. We�re ready to go; put us as close to the lock as you can and hold position.�";;
�Understood,� replied Zakari, breaking orbit and taking the Cheetah class frigate in to maintain a relative position five hundred meters from the working lock they�d decided was best placed for a route to the huge ship�s bridge as short as any of the others. Closer inspection of the Nomad class had revealed a lot of damage in the way of punctures, smashed locks and ports, and one or two really large tears in the fabric of the great ship�s armored outer skin.;;
�Going across now.� Taya Akira led the expedition team out of the Katydid and they began to file across the gap on suit jets.;;
�I see you. Looking good.�;;
�At the lock, no power but the emergency manual looks okay. Going in.�;;
Zakari watched as the team went inside the large lock and closed the outer door behind them. Assuming nothing had power, they�d planned to make their way to the bridge via a series of corridors, crawl-ways, and ladder shafts.;;
�We are in. As we expected, this part of the ship is clearly an engineering substation. We�re in a repair bay. We should be able to make good progress through the maintenance corridors from here.�;;
�Understood. Nothing happening outside. No change in Sleeper signals either. I guess the Farvoyer�s not very interesting to them.�;;
�Sleeper drones react to certain activity and signal thresholds typically. They wouldn�t bother watching this wreck even though I think they�ve probably investigated it given the distress beacon.�;;
�And we�re keeping our own signature profile very low, as per mission specs. You think we�ll be good then?�;;
�I expect so. Of course we might set something off that attracts their attention if we�re careless. If we�re allowed to concentrate on the task at hand, that shouldn�t happen though.�;;
Zakari got the message and didn�t reply, satisfying himself with monitoring the team�s suit and sensor pack telemetry as they progressed through the hulk�s innards. The team proceeded to the bridge without incident. Damaged as the freighter was externally, it seemed that it really wasn�t much beyond superficial strike damage. The way to the bridge was straightforward enough, even if it required some climbing due to a lack of working elevators.;;
�Right. We�re in the bridge. I can see an active panel. Presumably that�s the distress beacon�s interface.�;;
�Yes, could be any station�they can all set it off�but it�s most likely security. Usually the bridge security officer has primary responsibility for it.�;;
�Everything in here looks very orderly. You�re probably right. Let�s see. Yes, it�s as you say. Looks like emergency power rationing protocols are keeping just this station powered after all this time.�;;
�Let Jubal try entering the override codes. Assuming there�s enough juice left in the batteries, you should be able to do what you need to.�;;
�He�s taking care of it. Yes, we�re in. The ship is pretty much dead. Nothing to contradict your scans here. Nobody home, I�m afraid. Maybe that�s a good thing. Manifest says there are no transfer shuttles left onboard. Escape pods are all in place though. I�m thinking these people got out fairly clean.�;;
�Where in the hells could they go? There�s nothing but snowballs and dead rock in this system.�;;
�Jubal says they left a detailed message behind. He�s saying it contains a lot of sensor and navigational data in standard Lakat-Hro compressed encryption.�;;
�That so, Jubal?� Zakari broke into the team�s common channel having kept to a one-to-one with Taya until now.;;
�They�re alive, Zakari. Elder�s living breath, they�re alive and we can find them.� The engineer sounded totally stunned to Zakari.;;
The capsuleer was hard pressed to know what to say himself. Mentally shaking himself, he switched back to the one-to-one with Taya.;;
�Is he right? Is there enough to work with to actually do that?�;;
�I�m looking it over in a personal virtual space. If we combine this data with the reference database that the Sanctuary has been using to locate our candidate systems then we�ll probably have something. Actually, running this now I think we�re talking about a seventh candidate location that�s not even on the Sanctuary list.� Sister Taya was clearly excited.;;
�If you�re telling me you�ve worked out a specific wormhole signature for a system that it�s even remotely possible is where some of the Lakat-Hro escaped to then we�re going there. We�re going there right now.�;;
�Captain Kovalis, I am in complete agreement. This is a thread through wormhole space that we absolutely have to follow.�;;
Sensors indicate several outer planets of various types and an inner zone of numerous terrestrials. The innermost pair of planets show signs of shattering similar to that seen in previous candidate locations. This system stands out as extremely capacious and probes are returning multiple wormhole signatures. Could it be lucky seven?;;
� Zakari Kovalis, Exploration Vessel Katydid,;;
excerpt from log made on discovery of the;;
Thera system;" YC112.07.09""";
Amarr System, Amarr Prime,;;
"It was an evening made murky by a strong wind from the north bringing dust and fine sand from the Great Interior Desert to swirl through the streets of Satach City. Relief from the gathering gloom and scudding dust was provided by the city's fiercely orange street lights, reinforced lately by an army of lamps both devotional and festive. The city lay a hundred kilometers and more from the desert's edge and the ancient mountain fastness of Satach's Spite; but it was the natural destination for the waves of pilgrims, commoner and noble, come to see the rite of Shathol'Syn.";;
Satach City was not a large metropolis. The town had grown up around the old river and road way-station serving as a convenient layover for those who wished to visit the sanctum and shrine that was the old fortress to the north. In times long past, Satach's Spite had been a common enough destination for those remembering and celebrating the days of the Athran Reclaiming, the conquest of the planet by the Amarr. The greater Reclaiming that had spread the Amarr Empire across hundreds of star systems had inevitably reduced the importance of the more obscure devotional sites, such as Satach's Spite. Even so, by any reckoning the ancient fortress was a holy place of the Amarr. For the Sarum Family, that martial house whose ancestor's deeds had given the place its name, the site remained especially important.;;
The city's core was centered on the ancient bridge over the river and the highway through its old heart was wide enough to allow for the multitude of stalls, booths and roadside preacher platforms that had sprung up in the months since pilgrims had begun to trickle, then flood into the region surrounding Satach's Spite. The narrower side streets of the old town had been clogged night and day with the throngs for some weeks past. Not even the wind and sand had made much difference, even as it rendered the crowds almost ghostly in the flickering play of shadow, light and dust.;;
With the host of pilgrims, something of the old, wider importance had returned to grace Satach's Spite and the surrounding region. The climax of the ancient rites of succession had been witnessed two days past with the coronation of Empress Catiz I in holy Dam-Torsad. The coda would come the next day when the ritual of Shathol'Syn would claim the lives of the old, unsuccessful heirs and claimants to the Golden Throne, and thereby clear the way for renewal of the Empire's great houses with fresh blood. The ancient fortress and shrine of the Sarum Family would serve as the place of the ritual in observance of the final passing of the time of Empress Jamyl I, late of that house.;;
In these times, Satach City could be reached by air, and even shuttles from space, as much as by road or river. The Sarum Family had long used the town as the administrative center for the region surrounding Satach's Spite, and there had been a landing field capable of taking shuttles as well as atmospheric flyers for centuries. Now enlarged, the field and the rest of the town's outskirts were surrounded by a new city of tents, prefab temp-habs and motorized homes. The commoner pilgrims, in their multitudes, encircled the old city like an army at siege. The nobles, naturally, were either staying in the old city's hotels and hostelries, or keeping to their parked shuttles and starlighters.;;
The landing field sat next to the old highway and traffic to and from the port was a constant stream of personal motor transports, buses, taxicabs and goods wagons. Out here the Sarum Family's Police Guards kept the highway clear of the merchants, mendicants and monks cluttering the old city. Through the stream of vehicles heading to town from the field came a taxi cab, threading past the slower wagons and buses. The cab made it to the inner town quickly enough but when it reached the old town it perforce slowed to a crawl, as the highway was narrowed by the roadside trade that had been allowed to plant itself along the route.;;
Soon the foot traffic grew dense and impossible to pass through at any speed. Haltingly, the taxi pushed through the crowds and turned into a reasonably wide crossing street, before coming to a stop. A masked and loosely-robed figure got out of the cab, raised its hand to the driver in a gesture that could have been thanks, farewell or both, and stepped into the pressing flow of people moving through the streets.;;
Anyone curious enough to look closely at the fairly tall, slim figure would see that the mask was actually a close-fitting helmet of some kind. The mouth and nose were covered by a breather unit and the eyes hidden by dark glass lenses set into oval mounts. The helmet was formed of some kind of fabric that glinted and shined as the sodium lights and flickering lamps reflected off the material. A closer look still would reveal that the flowing, light desert-style robe covered a one-piece outfit of the same material, studded here and there with metal and polymer fittings. Flexible but sturdy boots and gloves of a slightly lighter material completed the full-body covering that this figure was wearing beneath a simple desert robe.;;
The figure's outfit, while unusual, was hardly the most striking or bizarre ensemble to be seen in the streets of Satach City during this time of high ritual and mass pilgrimage. The rite of Shathol'Syn was perhaps the most extraordinary act of self-sacrifice in the canon of the orthodox Amarr faith. No less than five great princes of the Amarr Empire would submit themselves to immolation the next day. Such a rite could not help but attract the extreme and macabre of tendency, besides the simply observant and pious.;;
In among the pilgrims from across the empire, dressed in as many different styles and fashions as there are planets held under the rule of Amarr, there moved those of deeply devout, passionate, even fanatic disposition. Here and there snaked processions of chanting monks. All along the highway walked tight groups of banner-bearers with house gonfalons held high, these often ritually torn in signal of the sacrifice to come. Even penitents bowed under weighted yokes and flagellants scourging themselves could be seen here and there, tolerated in the context of this unique ritual week as perhaps they would not normally be in the open streets of a city of Amarr Prime.;;
Watching all, wandering or standing post among and alongside the crowds, were the Police Guards of House Sarum, the Paladins of the Ministry of Internal Order, and the occasional squad of the Empress's own Imperial Guards, these last resplendent in gold-chased combat armor. As the robed and masked figure moved along the central highway with the crowd some of these guardians of the Imperial peace noted its passage and scrutinized it closely. Some went so far as to capture an image and compare it to references in the security databases of the Amarr Empire. Others recognized the figure's attire for what it was without need to check.;;
The masked figure wore one of a hundred variants of the outfit of a space-adapt, one probably born to life in space, and certainly used to minimal gravity and a carefully controlled mix of breathing gases. The deceptively close-fitting garment's fabric was advanced nano-weave material that incorporated a secondary, reinforcing skeleton and musculature for one unused to the pull of a planet's gravity. The mask was a rebreather that filtered the air and provided only that mix of atmospheric gases the spacer would be used to breathing in a ship or space station. The mix of gases peculiar to Amarr would probably be intolerable to this person, let alone the dust, smoke and filthy exudations in the air of crowded Satach City. The police and soldiers, inclined to accept that this person had good reason to go masked, relaxed further on noting diplomatic tags at the shoulders of the loose robe the figure wore about their suit.;;
For those charged with maintaining the security of the city, the fact that the tags indicated their bearer to be a member of a trade delegation from the Caldari State's Lai Dai megacorporation was all the more reassuring. The Caldari were allies and Lai Dai was known to be among the most pro-Amarr of the megacorps. For the Sarum Police Guards, on the streets to maintain public order above all else, a glance and a quick check sufficed as the tall figure passed them by. The Imperial Guard were more concerned with threats from militants and puritanical fanatics. Still their duty caused each squad the figure passed to discreetly scan and check the tags. Finding them to be legitimate, they logged the check and returned to watching the crowds for potential dangers. For their part, the Ministry Paladins looked on impassively, reacting not in the slightest to the passage of this mysterious figure. The MIO's security troops were merely the deliberate and open sign of that vast apparat's presence in Satach City.;;
Following the masked figure at a casual distance was one of the more covert representatives of the MIO in Satach City. Sub-Inquisitor Ramal Zoshan was dressed in local fashion, a long overgarment of fine wool served as a coat about his collarless shirt and loose trousers, tucked into desert boots of tanned goatskin. A light, felt hat with a low crown and broad brim completed the unremarkable outfit and suggested that Zoshan was simply a local herder, perhaps a small leaseholder from the surrounding grazing lands. The area was well south of the desert's edge but the territory was mostly hills and scrublands, useful for grazing herds of the hardier ruminants and benefitting enormously from the river that the city straddled.;;
Zoshan, indeed, was almost a local, hailing from the city of Ozol, some two hundred kilometers east along the river. Ozol, unlike Satach City, lay within Throne territory and Ramal Zoshan had entered Imperial service after completing his civil service examinations with reasonable distinction. By chance of the tithing draw, he had been called to serve the Ministry of Internal Order and had been happy to accept this lot without exercising the right to a single redraw that his examination score gave him. To tell the truth, he'd been attracted by the idea of serving the MIO and his ability ensured that he was considered for the ranks of the investigative branch. He had been assigned to Satach City for the duration of the period leading up to and including this coronation week. His daily task had been the same for weeks, mingle with the crowds and detect any threats to the security of the Imperial order.;;
The masked representative of the Lai Dai megacorp had been noted automatically on arrival from space at the landing field. His diplomatic credentials had been checked three times by the MIO and were considered authentic. Nevertheless, the taxi that picked up the diplomat had been a ministry special. It paid to be careful and thorough where foreigners from another empire were concerned, however friendly to Holy Amarr they might be. When the Lai Dai trade delegate abandoned the taxi due to the crowds, Ramal Zoshan had been tasked to tail the diplomat discreetly.;;
The Lai Dai man's name was Saatta Mochan according to the summary that had been transmitted to Zoshan's commpad. He was listed as an accredited interstellar negotiator with the Lai Dai megacorp's ship construction division. Given the vast coverage of Lai Dai and the enormous scope of its ship-building enterprises, the responsibilities of the man could be as narrow as setting up deals for individual build runs of combat frigates or as wide as orchestrating trades involving multiple freighter convoys of hulls and spare parts.;;
He could also be something other than he seemed. Most benign of the alternatives to the face-value role of Saatta Mochan was that he was some kind of covert agent of the Lai Dai megacorp. Possibly he could be nothing more sinister than a courier. Everyone used secret messengers. Shading into an area of greater concern was the possibility that the man was an operative concerned with industrial espionage. Perhaps even a political or military intelligence agent. Undesirable as this would be, it was understood that allies monitored one another and so long as certain bounds were not exceeded nothing more need be done than to note the activity.;;
It would be a different matter, requiring some form of response, if this Mochan were something of the nature of a thief, saboteur or assassin. Again, it was known that allies occasionally found the need to carry out such actions on one another's territory, even against one another's assets. It was also not acceptable when it was discovered. A far worse and much broader range of threats would be suggested if the man were not remotely what he purported to be. Given the signs of authenticity shown so far, Mochan proving to be something other than a Lai Dai man, except perhaps his being the operative of some other Caldari interest, would be cause for extreme concern. In the context of the holy rites of this coronation week, such a finding would undoubtedly trigger a state of high alert.;;
Alive to all possibilities, Zoshan tracked Saatta Mochan at a sedate pace along the central highway until he saw the diplomat turn into a side street. The MIO man knew that street led to a little square with a hotel and a couple of bars occupying most of the frontage. There were a few small shops in the square too but it was late evening by now and they were most likely closed unless the owners were determined to squeeze even more profit from the pilgrim crowds. He hurried as best he could to get to the corner, leaned in and saw that Mochan was crossing the square, much less crowded than the main street, in the direction of one of the bars. Zoshan stepped into the side street and followed.;;
"Sure enough, the Lai Dai man entered the bar, its illustrated sign with scepter and crown iconography displaying the name ""Ametat and Avetat"". Zoshan's mouth twitched and pursed in a momentary flash of disapproval but he knew there were certainly thousands of bars called that across the Empire. He himself knew of a dozen drinking holes with that name in the towns of Southern Ves-Udor. Moreover, it was hardly even skirting the edges of injury to the dignity of the Throne when it came to it. Zoshan though was something of a puritan even for a member of the MIO's inquisitorial corps. He'd personally closed down a filthy river dock dive in Ozol called ""Jamyl's Jugs"" after the passing of the last empress. Even then, it was primarily the impropriety of such a name in the aftermath of her assassination, when inquisitorial teams had been especially on alert for examples of l�se-majest�, that had prompted the action.";;
The sub-inquisitor reached the door and paused, he was a moment or two behind his quarry. Good enough, the bar was small and by now the man was likely seated. Zoshan looked around the dimly-lit square one more time and pushed through into the bar. It was gloomy inside but lit well enough, and Zoshan made for the tap counter while noting from the corner of his eye that Mochan had joined another man in one of the three half-circle snugs at the back of the bar. He ordered a light wheat beer imported from Dam-Torsad, not being so extreme in his views as to actually abjure alcohol, and considered. Looking sidelong he noted that a few tables were set in front of an upholstered bench running along the wall to the side of the counter. Two of these tables were empty. He took his drink to the table nearest the counter and sat on the bench.;;
From his corner, Zoshan had a good view of the entire bar. He took a swallow of his beer, set it down and took out his commpad, all the while keeping an eye on Mochan and the man he was talking to in their snug. To a casual observer, the Sub-Inquisitor was a local enjoying respite from the crowds with a beer, reading from a standard commpad. In fact, Zoshan was carefully imaging the two men with the decidedly non-standard camera sensor on the back of the commpad. He was not particularly surprised to note that the snug was enclosed in a sound-dampening field. There was nothing illegal about privacy shrouds and he would expect a diplomat to carry one. Mochan's mask would also prevent a visual reading of his lips. In any event, the other man appeared not to be concerned about that. He was actually speaking around some kind of slim inhaler tube that glowed with a blue light every now and again. There was also a board game on the table and the man was toying with a die as he spoke.;;
While he waited for the image captures of the man to bounce through the security databases, Zoshan looked more closely at him using the imager. For one thing, the man was clearly Minmatar, though Zoshan couldn't immediately place the tribe. For another, while his outfit was a spacefarer's rig of some kind, it appeared to be conventional with no sign that this fellow required supporting systems in the planetary gravity. The detail that stood out most clearly was a diplomatic tag at his breast pocket. Zoshan magnified this in his commpad's image plate. A Thukker Tribe diplomatic envoy tag of some kind. He sent an image of it along to narrow down the search that had been running in the background. That explained his unfamiliarity with the man's ethnic markers, Zoshan had never encountered a Thukker before. Free Thukker were not exactly a common sight anywhere on the Ves-Udor continent and very few Holders maintained purebred Thukker slave stocks.;;
Zoshan mused on the strangeness of two diplomats meeting in this dingy bar. It was an unofficial contact of some kind, no doubt about it. Not necessarily an alarming matter though. So many foreign representatives of one kind or another were in town before the final hop north to Satach's Spite in the morning. These two could be taking the opportunity to renew an old contact or arrange some matter on the side. Zoshan checked the records on this bar. Sure enough there were ministry recording devices hidden in all the snugs. He'd be able to review their conversation later. His commpad chimed. The search had returned a hit. The man Saatta Mochan was talking to was a diplomatic envoy of the Thukker Tribe's Vo-Lakat Caravan and his name was Tamasek Sjakhuni.;;
***;;
++Some Personal Recollections++;;
Anoikis, Harmonic Node Q3:X-7:Th:Var1.71,;;
"""Sjakhuni!"" The shout from Sister Latimas as she strode through the shimmer field interrupted the quiet routine of the laboratory and made my lab assistants look up in alarm. I continued what I was doing, entering the last two data references into the analysis program before setting it running. When Latimas walked up to me and said my name again, more quietly, I looked up and smiled.";;
"""Sister Latimas, to what do I owe the pleasure?""";;
"Latimas looked around and gestured to the watching assistants, ""Give us some privacy, please."" Silently, the assistants filed out through the shimmer field. Latimas walked back over to the entry to see that they'd gone.";;
"I laughed. ""They're hardly going to linger in the airlock, Latimas. For one thing it's quite cold in there. For another they'd have a hard time hearing us through the field.""";;
"Latimas turned back to me and grimaced. ""I'll cut to it, Sjakhuni. The Upwell Consortium has just agreed to a technology sharing deal with CONCORD regarding the data they recovered from the Serpentis Corporation.""";;
"""I'm aware of the development. It was inevitable given Upwell�s desire to appear above board. I don't see that it changes anything. CONCORD have always been serious about enforcing technology sharing. When they can.""";;
"""We can't afford to ignore that when we implement the delivery phase of the plan.""";;
"""The contingencies have been put in place. Our agents have made contact with assets in all four empires. Getting Project Ascension into the field before CONCORD know about it won't be a problem.""";;
"""That's just it. There might be a problem. Our intelligence cell has reported that the Serpentis data trove included a lot of Angel Cartel data. We're not sure what's mixed up in there but...""";;
"""But it might just include pointers to our Angel connections. Unfortunate."" I frowned in thought. The Angel Cartel weren't really that important to the undertaking but they had access to a lot of resources. More to the point they had access to a lot of recovered technology that they didn't understand that well. I'd been able to help them with a certain project and in return they'd provided a few items that accelerated the timetable.";;
"""How bad do you think the exposure could be? Would your contacts have shared details with the Serpentis?"" Latimas was worried by all this, an administrator and scientist at sea when it came to such matters. Not the for the first time, I wondered why the Sanctuary had seen fit to place her in charge of Project Ascension.";;
"""They wouldn't share the smallest detail of their end of it with the Serpentis and they'd be discreet enough about the shipments to us. Still, the shipments went through a complicated smuggling chain. I wouldn't be surprised if Serpentis couriers were used somewhere along the line.""";;
"""You're saying it's possible they could connect the equipment shipments to us. That this could increase scrutiny on the Sanctuary then?""";;
"I laughed. ""The Sanctuary and the Sisters are under plenty of scrutiny, Latimas. All that nonsense about Project Discovery being for the betterment of humanity doesn't fool anyone."" Latimas bridled at this. ""Well, maybe it fools the masses. It doesn't fool anyone who matters. The AG12 Office is bound to have been looking into Project Discovery. Crowdworking scientific analysis through the capsuleer liquid router networks was novel enough. The fact you put actual Drifter tissue scans out there will really have woken them up.""";;
"""They filed an access request, certainly. We refused it, they have no jurisdiction over scientific enquiry.""";;
"""As if that will have stopped them from pursuing it. Look, AG12 are not stupid people. They've rooted out almost every covert technology developed by the empires and given enough time they'll root this out too. My concern is that Ascension is delivered and put into the field before they expose it. The empire recruitment and conditioning programs have to be up and running before CONCORD gets wind. That's going to be difficult enough. One of them will leak. Probably the Gallente, they'll have difficulty hiding what's going on.""";;
"""I wouldn't trust the Amarr to keep anything secret. Their bureaucracy always makes for a lot of fingers in the pie.""";;
"I nodded. ""It could be, there again they could all leak. Something like Ascension can't be kept quiet for long. I give it, oh, maybe a month after delivery before AG12 have enough to act.""";;
"Latimas blanched. ""That soon? But that's hardly enough time to set up production and transfer facilities.""";;
"""All that will have to start now, on a parallel track. If there's one good thing about this Serpentis business, it'll give us the leverage we need to have the infrastructure phase accelerated.""";;
"""How can we do that before we're sure that Ascension is viable?""";;
"""Ascension is perfectly viable. How many times do we need to go through this? I've demonstrated that the techniques work. You've seen volunteers go through the process with no ill effects.""";;
"""Speed of knowledge acquisition has been halved in those kept in Alpha state.""";;
"""You don't get something for nothing. I've explained all this at length and predicted the knowledge uptake friction during genetic locking. Preparing neural pathways for knowledge uptake on a blank gelform clone is useless without the personality being able to use those pathways to acquire the appropriate knowledge. That's something they're not going to be able to do without genetically locking with the pathways as they learn. If the empires want their capsuleers to train more quickly they'll have to pay for the Omega level QE 4-He implants like anyone else.""";;
"""The implants aren't the issue. It's the QE 4-He, refreshing the implanted pools is expensive.""";;
"""Well, yes, that goes without saying."" Latimas could be otiose sometimes. ""The reality, of course, is that even capsuleer primes can't use anything but their basic capsule control systems when their QE 4-He drops to reserve levels. That's the advantage of the new clone gelforms and nano-implants. The new clones will let them use the integrated neural pathway bundles even when the QE 4-He drops to the Alpha state. Given that Alpha level QE 4-He supply is mandated for all pod-enabled captains by the Yulai Convention, it will give even the primes a reason to adopt the new technology. The empires won't demur because of the tremendous increase in naval manpower they will gain.""";;
"""While humanity gains a force that will be able to fight back against the Drifter threat.""";;
"I smiled. ""Indeed.""";;
Southern Ves-Udor, Satach City,;;
The masked Lai Dai representative spotted the man he'd come to meet as soon as he entered the Ametat and Avetat. He walked over to the snug where the other man sat idly playing with the pieces of a board game and sat down across from the Thukker diplomat. The Thukker smiled, put down the die he'd been rolling between fingers and thumb, and pressed a stud set into a control panel on the wall. The Lai Dai man nodded as a sound-dampening field enclosed them.;;
"""Very good but what about listening devices inside the field?"" The masked figure gestured at the table.";;
"""I've taken steps to defeat the bug hidden in the table. A standard MIO install, I believe.""";;
"""Only the one? You're sure no other agencies are listening?""";;
"""The local police have two cameras with microphones in the room but haven't troubled to bug every table in the place. Perhaps the Ministry guard that perquisite for themselves? Although I'm not sure the minutiae of turf wars among the Amarr security forces interest me that much.""";;
"""That's a lax attitude considering the peril we stand in by just being here. What about the Imperial Guard? They're understandably on alert.""";;
"""It wouldn't surprise me if the place were bugged by the Trade Registry come to that. But this table isn't and the Guard aren't bugging it either. I can assure you that I haven't been lax on that score. Oh and you look to have picked up a tail.""";;
"""I'm quite aware of him. It's routine, no doubt. I'm using the name 'Saatta Mochan'. I'm a representative of the Lai Dai trade delegation."" Mochan brushed his diplomatic tags lightly.";;
"""Amusing. I wonder how many times they've tried to penetrate your suit's shielding.""";;
"""At least three times and I assume any attempts I haven't noticed have failed too. I see you chose to use your existing cover.""";;
"""I�m comfortable as Tamasek Sjakhuni. Oh and you know, they could well have succeeded. They wouldn't swoop in now. After all, who knows where we could lead them?"" Sjakhuni smiled broadly, picked up the die and began fiddling with it again, keeping his eyes on Mochan all the while.";;
"Mochan sighed, a distorted, harsh sound through his mask, and indicated the board and pieces. ""I see you haven't lost your taste for games. What's this one?""";;
"Sjakhuni laughed. ""You should recognize it with that cover. It's Torigi. A Caldari classic. Torigi-kapeli is quite popular. It would be odd for you to be unfamiliar with it, old friend. Rush the cover this time?""";;
"""Your message arrived while I was engaged with other matters. As you say, the cover was rushed. It's not for home ground use."" Mochan shrugged.";;
"""True enough. These po-faced Amarr functionaries are not likely to ask questions about Caldari games, even one quite popular with the less pious elements."" Sjakhuni grinned and rolled the die. It came up with a Caldari ideogram Mochan recognized as representing the infamous Caldari Tea Maker ceremony. Sjakhuni laughed again, ""Let's hope that's not an omen, old friend.""";;
"Mochan made a cutting gesture with his hand, ""Enough of this. Why did you contact me and what is so important that I had to interrupt my observations of the Amarr court, this week of all weeks, to meet with you personally?""";;
"""Ascension.""";;
"""I beg your pardon?""";;
"""Ascension. It's time for the next stage in the evolution of the capsuleers. As a matter of fact, it's already happening."" Sjakhuni smiled and shifted his position slightly.";;
"Mochan became very still. ""This wasn't as agreed. You were supposed to monitor the situation with the Sisters and the Lakat-Hro. What have you done?""";;
"Sjakhuni shrugged, ""I merely prodded them in the right direction. They had plenty of material to work with. They would have got there in the end.""";;
"""It's too soon for this.""";;
"""I think not. It might even be too late. Let us hope not. Still, I can't have you interfering and you'd have picked up on this sooner or later. I'm a little surprised you haven't already.""";;
"Mochan nodded slowly, ""CONCORD agencies have become aware of a new development in the field of cloning that appears to be in the hands of some state actors. AG12 is investigating but I hadn't appreciated the scope of it. Your handiwork, I now see.""";;
"""Yes, my friend. Well, it does seem that my timing is good on this occasion. Speaking of which, when did you last synchronize?""";;
"""You know I'm not going to tell you that."" Mochan shifted in his seat, attempting to bring his left hand to bear.";;
"""Ah, ah, ah! Don't bother, I synchronized an hour ago. You though, well you swapped from your court cover without a body change, evidently. So I have to think you're about a week out of synch. Which suits me very well."" Sjakhuni scooped up the die and rolled it again. It landed with the ideogram for 'mercenary' showing. ""Ah, perhaps another omen, hm? Well, it's time we went our separate ways. Quite literally.""";;
"""Wait, these people."" Mochan indicated the rest of the bar with a jut of his chin.";;
"""I'm being economical. Doesn't hurt to have witnesses survive and it makes it look so much more professional.""";;
"Mochan nodded. ""There will be a reckoning for this.""";;
"""We'll see. Good bye for now, old friend.""";;
Sjakhuni rolled the die again. Mochan briefly glimpsed the symbol for 'escape' before Sjakhuni smilingly shook his head and pressed a control stud on the remote that had suddenly appeared in his hand.;;
Ramal Zoshan was about to take another swallow of his beer when the containment field-damped explosive charge blew him out of his chair and into the wall. Feebly raising his head, he dimly registered that the snug at the back of the bar had been reduced to a flame-edged hole before he collapsed into unconsciousness.;;
++Communication to an Associate++;;
Origin: Occluded orbital signal via SCC financial data fluid router 47/hub9/p3/Amarr/TW/Domain;;
Timestamp: 118.09.29.09.42.56.0674;;
//decrypt follows;;
Onikori,;;
Proceed with action phase of Offspring Cepheus at your discretion.;;
Initiate orientation phase of Darkness Visible as soon as possible.;;
Sjakhuni;;
/ends;;
***;;
Ersilia�s heel strikes echoed through the winding halls of the northern wing of the palace of Satach�s Spite. She felt lost. It had been months since she�d visited here, and much had changed. She trusted her silent Tetrimon escort knew the way well enough, but few of the corridors felt familiar to her.;;
On her last visit, the place had been full of people, echoing with the business of the Imperial Chancellor. Today it was silent. An entire wing had been granted to Aritcio so that he could continue his duties as head of the Imperial bureaucracy despite his sequestration. Even in the enforced isolation he had continued to be one of the most powerful men in the Amarr Empire, and it had been evident. Now, though, he was surrounded only by empty offices and halls echoing to lonely footsteps.;;
She rounded a corner and knew that she was nearing Aritcio�s personal reception hall. A familiar face waited near the door.;;
�My Lady Ersilia, a pleasure to see you,� said Alder Brenean with a deep bow. He was Aritcio�s personal aide and closest confidante, a common man of the people. For eight years he had served arguably the Empire�s most powerful man, but to Ersilia�s eyes he seemed humble as ever. Even so, the short, dignified man seemed more confident than he had been when she first met him.;;
�And you, Alder. How is our lord?�;;
�Our lord is at peace,� he said with a soft smile. �I am the last to leave. He awaits only you.�;;
�Thank you Alder, for everything.�;;
He nodded solemnly. �It has been my honor.�;;
She watched the older man walk away, then turned to the door and steeled herself. After a few minutes, she opened it.;;
The sun of the late afternoon bathed the chamber in hues of orange, setting the ever sanguine stone aglow. The room had previously housed a small replica of the Table of the Chancellor from the Imperial Chancellery Court in Dam-Torsad, but now that too was gone. There were no more petitions to be heard, no more orders to be signed. No more business to be done, indeed, except that which waited beyond the flesh-hued walls of the fortress-palace.;;
Aritcio was nowhere to be seen, but Ersilia saw a side table set for a private dinner. Draped over a settee was the Imperial Chancellor�s court robe of office, made new to be worn once. She ran her fingers over the muted details and their house crest sitting below the Imperial sigil.;;
�Would you join me for my last meal?�;;
Ersilia spun around, startled. There were instincts she tried to curb, but today every fiber of her being was tense. She willed herself to relax and meet her cousin�s eyes. Aritcio was standing in the doorway to his chambers, his attitude far more casual than she had seen in a decade. He smiled patiently, but his eyes were tired.;;
�You have sent everyone home, my lord. Who will cook?� she jabbed at him, feeling old defenses slide into place.;;
�It would be my honor.�;;
�You? Since when do you know how to cook?�;;
�Alder has been teaching me. His patience is remarkable, and I have had much free time lately. He has taught me how to make all my favorite foods.�;;
�So what will we be having?�;;
�Salted Rockjaw stew with black bread.�;;
�Sounds delightful, Chancellor.�;;
Aritcio laughed, and Ersilia joined in.;;
�I have it nearly ready. Stay here, I will be right back.�;;
Again left alone, Ersilia returned to her regard of the ceremonial robe. Was it just an outfit, or was it a character to be worn? The honorable man, the dutiful lord, the altered sinner? Aritcio was a man who had been stripped naked to his very soul, and then clothed anew in quick-grown flesh. It was clear that he was changed, that his works since had been good. But still Ersilia could not quiet the panic in her heart when she looked at his face, or stop her hairs from standing on end when he spoke.;;
�What is the matter, Ersilia?�;;
She took a breath, searched for another line of thought. One to match her hesitation. �You haven�t asked me to complete a final request for you, Aritcio. It is tradition.�;;
�I asked you to come here, and you did. I request that you have dinner with me. Do you obey?� He asked with a genuinely jovial smile, as if it was their own little joke.;;
�I obey.� She said, clenching her muscles to suppress a shiver, painting on a strained grin.;;
The meal was a quiet affair. Apart from some pleasantries and Ersilia commending her cousin on his newfound culinary skills, few words were said until the plates were clean. Ersilia could tell there was something on his mind, but was loath to press him. When Aritcio spoke it was in a quiet bashful tone, refusing to meet her gaze.;;
�In truth, I did have one, real request, before I go.�;;
Ersilia nodded.;;
�I need you to forgive me.�;;
�What?�;;
�I need you to forgive me for the things I did to you.�;;
Ersilia took a sharp breath and pushed her chair back. Her heart drummed, her brows furrowed, and her fingers balled into fists. Aritcio looked up from his plate and his eyes widened in shocked realization of the line he�d crossed.;;
�I am sorry, Ersilia! I take it back! Forget the request!�;;
At the sight of his expression, Ersilia was taken aback. She was seldom this transparent, but Aritcio had always had a way of exposing her true feelings. �No, no!� she protested, and made to speak but hesitated.;;
The room was silent for a moment unmeasured except by their beating hearts.;;
�I could never,� Ersilia started hesitantly. �I could never forgive the old you for what you did. But I think you have changed. The Aritcio I shared a meal with has done me no harm. I can forgive the new you.�;;
�In the end, what more could I ask of you?� Aritcio said, and together they shared a melancholy smile.;;
When Hamideh entered Uriam�s rooms this time he was pulling the sleeve of his finely embroidered coat in the mirror. He paused as he saw her walk in behind him. Uriam looked more dignified and regal to her than he had been for some time. He was clearly going to considerable effort. She saw his eyes go to the black and gold urn in her arms, and heard him draw in a ragged breath. He closed his eyes for a moment.;;
Then it was like he was switched on again and he turned, animated.;;
�Hamideh, my dear,� he smiled, walking towards her. He paused half-way and finished buttoning his cuff.;;
�Uriam,� she replied. �I�m glad to see you looking well. The last time I saw you, well, you seem better.�;;
�I could say I wasn�t myself, but that wouldn�t be true now would it? Still, it could be said that you saw me diminished.� He looked her in the eye. �As you�re aware by now, she was everything to me.�;;
Hamideh held his gaze for a moment without replying. Even so, she had questions.;;
She stepped to the nearby table and carefully placed the urn on it, turning the container slightly so that the small indentation in the lid faced him. She breathed deeply, steeling herself.;;
�Uriam, you�ve stated on many occasions that I am the obvious choice for the next Kador Heir despite my age.�;;
�Without a doubt.�;;
She exhaled through her nose.;;
�Then why do you continue to test me?�;;
He shook his head slightly. �No, my dear, no. I am assured of your suitability. Something that you�ve only reinforced going to Ratillose yourself despite the complications it could cause when it becomes public knowledge. I don�t test you as much as try to help you learn. You must conquer your own doubt, especially after today. Show them who you are, before they try and tell you.�;;
Hamideh folded her arms and narrowed her eyes.;;
�They�ll be asking questions about her soon. He hides it from most but Tresein is at heart a climber and a schemer with a hunger for scandal. Word will get around.�;;
Uriam tilted his head. �And when it does?�;;
�I�ll speak the truth. If that�s not what they�ll traffic in, I don�t care.�;;
�Excellent,� Uriam smiled, clapping his hands. �House Kador has nothing to worry about.�;;
Hamideh turned away from him and started walking around the table, looking at him sideways.;;
�If I�m going to speak the truth I�ll need it though, cousin.�;;
Uriam�s eyes were on the urn now, his smile slowly fading away.;;
�What do you need to know?�;;
�Ratillose. Why?� she asked curtly. Time was running out.;;
He sighed. �There were a number of reasons.�;;
�I�ve heard some. Tell me something real.�;;
�As you already know, the fact is that there had been talk of attempted seizures of Gallente assets. Our new Empress had even then spoken loosely of the rich Gallente stations floating around in her region. You�ll need to watch her.;;
�She spoke of Quafe, Impetus, Aliastra and others. I did my utmost to be a part of these speculations. I was unsure, though mostly against it. I didn�t think it was wise but I was advised this was because my judgment was clouded. I already had contacts in the Federation, a curiosity about them, and of course I�d met Jeanelle very early in my travels.�;;
Uriam stepped forward slowly and stretched out his hands to the urn on the table between them. He paused, his hands trembling slightly, only a fraction of an inch from the urn�s shining black surface before he actually grasped it, quite suddenly, and held it up for inspection.;;
�You met many Gallente women, Uriam,� Hamideh said, pursing her lips. She had moved behind him by now and so couldn�t see his face. His body didn�t even flinch at the jibe, however.;;
�Oh, you�re much too clever for that, Hamideh,� he murmured, turning his head slowly to her as she came around his other side. �The first after her may have been a true infatuation but it was ultimately born of a desire to be free of the original obsession. When it became enough evidence for some that I had a predilection, and I realized my first feelings had not gone away, it proved a convenient cover for both of us.�;;
�She must have loved that,� Hamideh scoffed.;;
�All of them were her,� he said, meditating on the urn again. �And none of them.�;;
She shook her head, bemused, and looked away as she continued pacing out laps around him and the table. She wanted to challenge the rationalization but there wasn�t the time. There were other questions that needed answers.;;
�And Grand Admiral Eturrer? Was he one of your contacts?�;;
�Eturrer was meant to provide the intelligence needed to convince my colleagues that assaults on the Federation would be a mistake.�;;
Hamideh swept her hand over the flames of a candelabra as she passed it. �But he served quite the opposite purpose?�;;
�Yes, militarists and money alike were taken in by his talk of yet more holes in the Tripwire network. You know how much old iron and old gold we owed debts to by then. They wanted glory and the spoils. Eturrer was a catastrophe.�;;
�Which led to a series of events that you lost all control over. What�s more, by the end of it all you couldn�t even use the Grand Admiral as evidence that you weren�t entirely at fault.�;;
�Thanks to Jeanelle.�;;
Hamideh stopped. She bit her bottom lip, thinking.;;
�She was getting back at you?�;;
Uriam�s brow furrowed. He didn�t reply. There was a glimpse of pain on his face.;;
�How did you hurt her?�;;
�We�d both said it was over for good that time. It was the closest we would come to being free of each other,� he whispered. �Might as well try to cut out your own heart.�;;
Hamideh moved closer, straining to hear him. Then it dawned on her and her eyes widened.;;
�Uriam, as per her directions, after we�d identified her body and returned her here she was cremated. The mortician�s report noted a scar running from��;;
Uriam raised a hand and despite herself she stopped. He lifted his head up, stood straight and tall.;;
�I don�t know, Hamideh, whether I�d hope for God to fate you with such a connection to a person that would drive you to be both your best and worst in a single lifetime,� he looked at her solemnly. �I have considered it both a blessing and a curse. While I cherished her more than my own self there were times enough that I wished she was dead. That she had never been.�;;
Uriam held up the urn and swallowed, his voice almost breaking, before he pressed on. �I hurt her and she hurt me. In a way, as perverse as it may seem, it was further affirmation of who we were to each other.�;;
Hamideh shook her head and scowled. �Did you invade Ratillose intending to move on to Ondree? That�s where she was born, wasn�t it? Was it a show of force?�;;
�She might have been born in Ondree, but she gave a portion of her life to Egonics in Ratillose. It was a gate and a memory. They attached their little spigot and drained her of her talent. You�ve seen her words.�;;
Hamideh felt the letter, still tucked into her clothes.;;
�So, all those lives? All those ships?�;;
He snorted. �Nothing so trite. As I�ve explained, there were many reasons, numerous pressures. I misplayed my hand with Eturrer and had to let things go forward. At least I could direct the forces along a path that might have been of some benefit. And after all, the kind of thinking that led to the adventure was quashed.�;;
�So was your reputation.�;;
�As you put it, I don�t care.�;;
They both turned to the window then, hearing the murmuring of the crowd growing in volume as latecomers arrived and notables took their places.;;
�And what if Ratillose had been an Amarr victory?�;;
�If it had succeeded, well,� he stared at the floor, �everyone would have started to race through doors unexpectedly blown wide open. However, in the first strike, the entire Mobrault constellation � her home � would have been mine.�;;
Neither of them spoke or moved for a moment. Then the door beside them opened and a knight of the Order of St. Tetrimon appeared in ceremonial robe and mailed coif.;;
�Lord Kador, it is time.�;;
Uriam nodded, cleared his throat and then walked past Hamideh, into the corridor beyond. She stepped out behind him and watched him go, the sun flickering over him as he walked past the patterned wooden windows.;;
�You�re a fool,� she eventually called, smiling sadly.;;
He spun on his heel and walked backwards a couple of paces, holding the black and gold urn tightly to his chest with one hand and making a flourish with the other.;;
�So what else is new?� he laughed. Then he turned the corner and was gone forever.;;
She pulled out the letter, read the curling words of its postscript again, and shook her head before going to her own place for the evening�s ceremonies.;;
Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon sat back in his desk chair, turned towards the window and contemplated the shimmering sands of the desert beyond Satach�s Spite. Soon enough it would be time to gather his charges together for their final journey. Dulsur grimaced, his task these past months had brought him no satisfaction and no small frustration.;;
A soft chime sounded and Dulsur turned back to face the door.;;
�Enter,� said the Grand Master of the Order of St. Tetrimon.;;
Udo, still Paladin Senioris after all these years, entered and respectfully ushered into the room a man in richly decorated robes that spoke of high status without ostentation. The man was handsome though aged, smiling though having about him an air of cautious experience. Dulsur was well familiar with Kalefa Sufrin an-Kador, High Chaplain of the Emperor Family, and something about the cleric�s demeanor evoked a sense of foreboding.;;
Dulsur stood up and walked around the table to meet Sufrin and clasp hands with him. �High Chaplain, you are most welcome. That will be all, Udo.� As the Paladin Senioris withdrew, Dulsur indicated a pair of comfortable chairs arranged to look over the desert plain. �Please sit, let us talk.�;;
�Thank you, Grand Master. You are well, I trust.�;;
�Quite well, thank you.� Dulsur had not seen fit to hide his unease and waited for Sufrin to reveal the purpose of his visit.;;
�Excellent,� Sufrin glanced quizzically at Dulsur and his calm smile quirked wryly for an instant. �I read your final report on the sequestration of the Royal Heirs with great interest, Grand Master. There was much, ah, food for thought.�;;
�Only thought? What of action? If you read the report, then you surely must be as disturbed as I am?�;;
�My dear Dulsur, while I agree that certain of the interactions between Heirs and successors could be considered, well, unusual and that some of the final requests are rather peculiar, I am not inclined to alarm. It does not seem to me that any of the matters in the report imperil the fulfilment of the, let us say, necessary essentials of this evening�s rite.�;;
Dulsur shook his head in dismay. �You adopted a similar position when it came to the report, clear in its implications, on the Tash-Murkon assets that were in place during the trials.�;;
�Now, Dulsur, we�re surely not going to rake over those coals again? There are always those who can�t see beyond loyalty to House and Heir. What of it? I�m quite sure your knights would have capably thwarted any renegade actions had it been necessary.�;;
Dulsur snorted. �And I am quite sure of where the orders and the money actually came from in that case.�;;
Sufrin sighed. �Is there really any purpose in belaboring a moot point? Haven�t you yourself publicly pledged fealty? You have been unstinting in breaking the backs of the heretics and fanatics who would question the divine will.�;;
The Grand Master stood up and paced back and forth, his frustration evident. Turning back to the quietly patient High Chaplain, he pointed an accusing finger. �You have made me a politician, it�s true. I�m no longer a soldier. No more than you are a priest!�;;
�Come now, Lord Dulsur an-Tetrimon, it�s your office that made you that. Your office, your vocation and your predecessor.�;;
�Perhaps so.� Dulsur sat back down. �But look you, some of these men we�re to burn this day are surely desperate. You�ve read my report and know what each has had delivered into their hands. Do you really say that we let the affair proceed as things stand?�;;
�I do. Take no action. Let each of them meet their ultimate lord in their own way.�;;
�And what of the abomination?�;;
�Well, he�ll die too, of course.�;;
�But not his successor.�;;
�I believe his family would withstand the loss of both of them, Dulsur. I can�t see that there is much to be done about that situation, much as we may not like it.�;;
Dulsur met the other�s gaze and nodded. �As you wish but mark me well, Sufrin, there will have to be a reckoning sooner or later.�;;
�There is always a reckoning in the end, my dear Grand Master. But we must accept that our role is not always to bring that reckoning to a head.�;;
Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon raised his hand in weary assent and looked out at the early evening�s light slanting on the ruddy sand and stone of Satach�s Spite.;;
�So at last, it�s time.�;;
�Indeed.�;;
The Khanid lords strode down the gilded steps to the hall of assembly together. Down there, the Heirs Kador and Kor-Azor were already waiting, together with Court Chamberlain Pomik Haromi, the ever calm Kalefa Sufrin an-Kador, and the Tetrimon Grand Master, this latter attended by several of his knights.;;
�I had hoped sweet Catiz would be here to bid you farewell,� Farokh Khanid, Duke of Sib and heir to the Khanid Kingdom, laughed.;;
�Ah, such a shame that I shall never see her again,� replied Garkeh Khanid, King of Khanid, with a grin, play-acting a longing gaze of forlorn love.;;
They both laughed then, drawing dire glances from their soberer fellows.;;
�The Duke of Sib should take his leave. The ceremony is about to begin, and I am certain he would wish to be seen in his place as crown prince of the Khanid Kingdom,� Haromi chided.;;
Farokh Khanid bowed deeply before the Court Chamberlain before doing the same toward his king. �Fortune speed you on your way, Majesty.�;;
�The King is dead,� Garkeh said, smiling broadly.;;
�Long live the King!� Farokh replied with a salute, then bowed again and left the hall.;;
Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon watched the Duke go with barely concealed disgust, before gesturing to his knights to take their places by the gateway. Beyond those stone gates, banded in iron and gold, the noise of the crowd was reaching a new pitch of raucous anticipation mixed with reverential chanting.;;
�Have the Lords Sarum and Ardishapur gotten themselves lost?� Garkeh asked, looking around for his missing peers.;;
�They will be here shortly,� said Dulsur tonelessly.;;
�I hope you�re right. I wouldn�t want to miss my own execution because of those two.�;;
�You may be assured that no such accident will transpire, your grace.�;;
Kalefa Sufrin an-Kador turned away and looked up the stairway.;;
The remaining Heirs soon appeared, escorted down into the hall by their Tetrimon guards, making up a full company of ten with their fellows already present. The final march demanded its proper escort.;;
�We are all assembled,� Haromi said and struck his ceremonial staff on the tiled floor. Merimeth joined the group with open arms and wide strides, greeting the other lords with a pleasant smile. Yonis remained quiet, and kept his hands folded in the sleeves of his white robes.;;
After greetings had been exchanged by those so inclined, High Chaplain Sufrin an-Kador addressed the ceremonial party. �Blessed Heirs, it has been an honor serving God and the Empire at your side, but the time has come for our paths to part. The divine order demands that you take your leave of this room in God�s house and take your places at His side. Your passing will usher in a new era in the life of Holy Amarr, with our great Empire prospering under the wise rule of Empress Catiz.;;
�You have named the new Heirs of the Amarr Empire and by that sacred duty secured the Imperial Succession. Only your final duty remains. It is the sure will of Her Imperial Majesty Empress Catiz I that you walk the path to the Temple of Ascension, where you will take your places and undergo the Rite of Shathol�Syn. By that sacred and willing act of faith you will join with blessed Jamyl and set your own blessings upon the people of the True Faith.�;;
Garkeh Khanid�s sardonic grin widened a trifle and Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon lowered his head.;;
Chamberlain Haromi stepped forward and spoke to the Heirs, �Do you understand your duty?�;;
All five indicated their understanding and agreement, with nods and gestures of assent according to their temperaments.;;
�So recognized. Go now, with God.�;;
Haromi struck his staff on the floor once more, five times, before the heavy stone gates facing the harsh desert opened, and the march began.;;
At the end of the long obsidian road was a tiered temple fashioned from black stone. Along the face of the temple was a stairway two hundred steps high. At the top of the steps was a wide circular dais of pure white glass, set in a mount of gleaming metal. Arranged in an arc at the center of the glass circle were five ornate wooden thrones, each carved with the motifs of the five houses: Ardishapur, Kor-Azor, Sarum, Kador and Khanid. Merimeth took his designated seat in the center, with Yonis and Aritcio to his right, Uriam and Khanid to his left.;;
As they took their seats, they each became keenly aware of the thousands of faces eagerly awaiting their deaths. This was it, in these moments the entire Amarr Empire held its breath before things proceeded as ordained. Looming close, though not too close, the Emperor Family�s pavilion hung perfectly still despite a gentle wind, with Empress Catiz enthroned in the center, surrounded by honored guests from within the Empire and beyond.;;
Uriam was the last to take his seat, the urn he�d carried along the black path carefully held on his lap. As he took his place, the Tetrimon escorts stepped back from the arc of thrones and retreated down the steps of the ziggurat.;;
Shortly thereafter, the shield projectors surrounding the glass circle erupted into life with a low hum. An indistinct cylinder of faintly distorted light surrounded them and stretched into the sky. The distortion, rippling slowly like heat off the desert, glittered here and there as the light breeze blew sand and dust against it. The platform began to grow cold, and all the sounds from the crowd and ceremony outside were silenced. The heirs were left to themselves. Sequestered again, after a mile of absolute exposure.;;
Just inside the shielding stood an hourglass, filled with golden sand, counting down the remaining seconds. �Well, always nice to know when you�re going to go.� Khanid quipped, gesturing at the object and its rapidly emptying upper bulb. Yonis Ardishapur huffed in response and stood up, wearing a strange expression.;;
�What is it, youngster? Need to stretch your legs before the long trip?� Khanid laughed and stood up as well. Merimeth, looking back and forth between the two men standing at the ends of the arc of chairs, seemed bemused. Aritcio looked concerned, and rose to stand in front of Yonis.;;
�Someone should have dealt with you a long time ago,� Yonis spat at the Khanid King, and unfolded his arms to reveal a slim blade of iridescent black glass in his silver right hand.;;
�Yonis! No!� shouted Aritcio and quickly stepped in with a clumsy hold that could have been taken for a brotherly embrace.;;
�Pathetic old fool!� Khanid laughed. �There is no world beyond this one for you!�;;
�Let go of me! I refuse to face the Divine and my ancestors with that thing at my side! He is an abomination and he must be struck down!� Yonis gasped, his fanatical gaze transfixed on the Khanid King even as Aritcio pressed against him in an iron grip.;;
Merimeth stepped over to the struggling pair and put his hands on their shoulders, �Stop, my brothers, stop. Think of what you�re doing. We may be seen only dimly through this haze but seen we are. Take this madness no further, Yonis.�;;
Yonis looked into Merimeth�s face, stricken. �Aritcio. He, he slipped onto it.�;;
Merimeth glanced down, saw the blood underfoot and shuddered. �Come, let�s help him to his seat.�;;
�Stop this now!� Uriam cried, stepping over to place a restraining hand on Khanid�s shoulder. His expression was one of horror and fear, and no small amount of anger.;;
�Stay out of this!� Khanid barked and shrugged Uriam off violently, making the Kador heir stagger back. The five figures froze at the sudden, tragic noise of porcelain shattering.;;
Falling to his knees by his throne, Uriam gazed into a pile of scattered ashes and the shards of the urn. Slowly, his hands moved as if to contain the mess. Khanid looked down at Uriam�s bowed form, then turned back to the others. Ariticio sat back in his throne, a hand pressed to his stomach.;;
�You see, Yonis?� smiled Khanid. You don�t have to be concerned about the purity of your travelling companions! Uriam�s whore won�t be joining us after all.�;;
Yonis took a horrified, convulsive step back towards his own throne, while Merimeth seemed to shake himself and advanced towards Khanid.;;
Khanid looked puzzled as Merimeth came on, arms wide open. �What�s this, whelp? Come to give your elder and better a hug?�;;
Merimeth rushed suddenly forward, flung his arms around Khanid, brought right hand to left and pulled apart the Sarum Family scepter he carried with him.;;
As the blade entered Khanid�s lung, he coughed and grinned once more. �Oh! Well played, Jamyl�s puppet! Ah, it seems we finished our game after all! Yes, well done but, um, futile and far, far too late.�;;
On his knees, Uriam�s voice cracked with grief and fury, his arms raised to the sky, as if in a final benediction, before the last rays of the sun disappeared behind the temple, and the sands ran out.;;
�Why must you ruin all that is beautiful?�;;
The glass platform erupted in pure white light, slicing the sky like a heavenly sword. Contained by the shielding, the tachyon siege laser beam�s passage from ground to stars was soundless and emitted only that light symbolizing the divine will. It blazed forth for second�s beat, then faded away, the shields dropping to reveal not a trace remaining atop the ritual ziggurat.;;
Aboard the Emperor Family�s floating pavilion, Empress Catiz I leaned over to Pomik Haromi and whispered, �Do make sure that the final cut of the official holo-record reflects clearly the, ah, fraternal love and deep piety our royal cousins displayed at the end. We must not allow the shield haze to obscure such devotion and faith.�;;
Haromi coughed, glanced over at Sanmatar Maleatu Shakor, who appeared to be grinning fiercely as his companion Keitan Yun spoke into his ear, and sighed. �Yes, Majesty. It shall be as you say.�;;
This love is so luxurious. It has also been so bittersweet.;;
tablescraper-selected-row;;
Geminate Region, Location Unknown,;;
Light.;;
Potential existential threats.�;;
Darkness.;;
We have learned what we needed to learn.�;;
A fleeting moment of nightmare.;;
�Transmit all data.�;;
Sparks of blue and white against the mind�s eye, then shocking wakefulness.;;
Elder Mentor Matshi Raish opened his eyes and coughed to life in the lukewarm, gelatinous embrace of his cloning pod. He lay there a moment, eyes closed once more and breathed in and out, slowly and consciously. His mind calmed, he reached out with it and activated the release sequence of his cloning pod.;;
As the pod spinal connections disengaged, powerful drainage pumps drew away the mass of the gel that had protected, nourished and maintained his clone body. Pressure and gas composition within the pod equalized with the resurrection chamber before the pod seals separated and the lid hinged out and up. The pod had already raised itself so that it was almost upright, angled back slightly so that Matshi easily lay back against the gelpack padding covering the inner surface.;;
Matshi opened his eyes again and noted the presence of an attendant in the resurrection chamber. This was normal, the cloning pod�s activation signal would have called a member of the kitz to the chamber to assist the reborn Society of Conscious Thought fellow being decanted into a new clone.;;
The figure waiting in the dimness of the chamber came forward and helped Raish from the pod, into a loose robe and over to a nearby couch. Raish sat a moment, breathed in and out, then looked up at his helper, about to thank him, before he saw who was bending solicitously over him and had to catch his breath anew. It was none other than Veniel, one of the few remaining Jove members of the Society of Conscious Thought, and perhaps the only one who remained active.;;
�Archon, why are you here?� Raish struggled to rise, his words coming in a rush, �How may I assist you? Are you here to advise us?� He had not spoken to his old teacher for years, let alone seen him in person, and his sudden appearance here, at this moment, was deeply shocking.;;
Veniel smiled and gently pressed Raish back into his seat, holding him there a moment before sitting next to him on the couch. �Archon, no more, my friend. Simply, Veniel, as I have always been.�;;
�Archon, no more? I do not understand.� Raish�s recent memories caught up with him and he struggled once more to speak, his thoughts tumbling out. �I must tell you, the Empress, there is a great threat!�;;
�Yes, I am aware of the problem with the Amarr Empress. To some extent this is why I am here but there are even larger issues to consider.�;;
�Problem? My scans of her vessel�s systems indicated the presence of a non-standard infomorph signature associated with her own neural interface connections. That would be questionable in itself but our scans were able to resolve two distinct signatures. Distinct but intermingled. This indicates informational intrusion and parasitism at the personality level.�;;
Veniel held up his hand and smiled again, a very deliberate gesture for a Jovian but one that seemed to come easily to him. �Yes, the Empress is compromised. This is becoming increasingly evident. Those with the means to make the necessary observations of her behavior are likely to suspect something is amiss. You yourself were driven to risk open action on the basis of the information available to you.�;;
Raish grimaced. �Yes, our network within the Imperial Court has been gathering data on the Empress ever since her coronation. Recently, her behavioral patterns showed increasing signs of change, in particular there were psycholinguistic anomalies that could not readily be accounted for by mundane causation such as disease or psychological syndromes. Moreover, the synchronicity of these changes and anomalies with...�;;
�With the emergence of the Second Empire survivors from Anoikis was striking and clear,� finished Veniel.;;
�Yes, Archon. Therefore I took the risk, as did the adepts that volunteered to crew my ship. Tell me, do you know if any were captured?�;;
�They all passed peacefully. I am sure all were well aware of what awaited them if captured alive. After all, they have only lost a little time, is that not so?�;;
�Yes, Archon, all synchronized before we left on the mission.�;;
�There we are then and, Matshi? Please, I am just Veniel now. Many titles I have had. Archon. Polemarkos. Prophet. Renegade. Demon.� Veniel smiled again, �Now I have none. This is the way of things. What we are is not a constant. We are what we do and what we do changes according to the times. For you too, this has happened and will happen again.�;;
Raish nodded in understanding and thought a moment before continuing. �It is sure that the Empress has been compromised by a sapient infomorph, likely artificial in nature. This calls for action to be taken.�;;
Veniel regarded his former student silently for a moment, then asked, �What action would you take?�;;
�We should analyze the data further but the artificial sapient is almost certainly a high level entity capable of multiple simultaneous intrusions. However, even a first glance at the scanning data indicated a very high level of intermingling, more perhaps than would be necessary. For some reason it is there and the personalities must be bleeding into one another.�;;
Veniel absorbed this information and mused on it. �She struggles but subtly,� he said shortly.;;
�You mean that the entity has found it necessary to intermingle to this degree to control her?�;;
�No, not at all. The need for it to do so would indicate a relatively unsophisticated brute level of entity and this one is not that. Rather, she opposes it in the only way that she can. She draws it in. It is an impressive act of will. I recall that the Society tutors who attended on her noted her mental capabilities as very high indeed.�;;
�Then the true Jamyl Sarum thinks along the same lines. This intermingling is a weakness, it indicates a high investment and commitment to the connection with her personality. It provides an opportunity that we should exploit.�;;
�Speaking plainly, you are advocating the assassination of the Empress of Amarr.� Veniel regarded Raish quizzically.;;
�This entity is a severe existential threat. Its sentience quotient must be at least 15 positive.�;;
�Several points more I should think,� interrupted Veniel.;;
�More? Then all the greater reason to intervene. Its entire motivation cannot help but be inimical to the interests of living sapients in the New Eden cluster.�;;
�We should perhaps leave aside, for now, the question of the necessity of countervailing interests among those with widely separated sentience quotients.� Veniel cocked his head and looked Raish in the eye. �But, even granting it, you place no great faith in the true Jamyl�s ability to effectively bring her plan to completion?�;;
�Why... how could she actively pursue it? Surely any conscious plan would be apparent to the entity and readily countered.�;;
�Perhaps but my own information is that Jamyl is not without allies in her struggle. I would speculate that this particular entity likely has a weakness in comprehending certain modes of thought fully and therefore the behavior and uses of language arising from such thought.;;
�To be explicit, it is probable that the entity views the religious mode of thought through the prism of power and politics alone. We might imagine that it sees this viewpoint mirrored in the Amarr Empire and the Imperial Court. Yet we can appreciate in a way that it may not that even an Amarr Empress can have a different sensibility. Thus arises an opportunity for subterfuge and, perhaps, collaboration.�;;
Raish sat silent for a long moment, appearing to reflect on the Jove�s remarks. He nodded slowly, �There were some aspects of the psycholinguistic analysis that might imply something of the sort but we did not consider the possibility you have raised.�;;
�Alas, we often see only what we are looking for.� Veniel raised a hand slightly as Raish�s face fell. �No, do not reproach yourself too harshly on that account, the myopia of the seeker who has in mind the shape of the truth before finding it is an all too common failing. My people�s history can offer much evidence of that, I assure you.�;;
Raish gathered his robe about himself and stood slowly, nodding as Veniel gently helped him up and then stood back, allowing Raish to slowly pace some life into his limbs. The Society Mentor walked back and forth a little before turning to look directly at the Jove again. �You counsel patience then? To allow events to play out further?�;;
�Yes, certainly, while the threat is real, matters have not reached a true crisis point and are unlikely to do so for some time. The Second Empire survivors are clearly in a state of some confusion and exhibit an incoherence to their pattern that is suggestive of significant internal discord. This would not be particularly surprising when discussing the collective actions of formerly isolated Jove enclaves attempting to organize to common purpose in an unfamiliar environment.;;
�With the survivors the situation is even worse. Their enclaves were virtual constructs that have been running for centuries. Inevitably, there was degradation in many instances, and much that took place in Anoikis over the centuries of the Stasis faction�s presence there is a mystery. The uncontrolled wormhole access to Anoikis made possible by the Isogen-5 Quantum Criticality Event led to an explosive spike in destruction of the survivor enclaves� virtuality infrastructure. We can only guess at the effects. Additionally, there are other factors to consider.�;;
�Other factors, Veniel?�;;
�Yes, but we must discuss those while in transit. We have spent much time in talk here and there is a long way to travel.�;;
�Travel? Where are we going?�;;
Veniel�s mouth quirked into his very deliberate smile once more. �Home.�;;
UUA-F4 Region, W477-P System,;;
The Jove colonial survey ship was towards the end of its braking maneuver when the anomalous readings from the W477-P star that had attracted the attention of expedition scientists resolved into something entirely unexpected, something both awe-inspiring and terrifying. Data was checked and rechecked. The ship continued on its brake to in-system cruising speed as scientists, engineers and specialists argued and attempted to falsify or confirm the readings, as their prejudices inclined them.;;
Standing back from the debate, the expedition commander, a young but brilliant explorer named Ouria, knew that in the end only one thing would settle the question and so made best speed for the vicinity of one of the large objects apparently orbiting at the near edge of the habitable zone around the red giant. If they were there, they existed in great numbers, so Ouria just picked one and headed for it.;;
When the survey crew looked out of the viewports at the immense object they had matched orbit with, they all knew there was no more debating the data. The thing�s neighboring objects could be seen with the naked eye, so dense was the arrangement around the central star. A density unthinkable yet almost invisible. The vastness of space, even the relatively small volume of space in the immediate vicinity of a red giant, both hiding and highlighting the achievement of some unknown civilization.;;
The W477-P star had been entirely surrounded by a stellar engineering swarm. This fact was hardly a conceptual revelation. The idea had been around for a long time. At its core it was an extrapolation on the scale of an entire civilization from the concept of loosely stringing energy collection stations around a star. Even more extraordinary variations on the theme involved constructing solid spheres around small stars, or even building multiple layers of such shells around stars to create artificial brains capable of simulating universes. All the stuff of fancy and speculation.;;
All fancy except that the notion of a stellar swarm of very high density was at least conceivable as a project that could practically be achieved, within the limits of known science, given enough time and materials. The only question was why someone would build one. The initial examination of the first structure they�d encountered suggested it was a power collection and transformation facility. It was apparent that most of the structures were similar but a significant subset were quite different.;;
Ouria took the ship to one of the radically different structures and they began to examine it. When they realized it was a wormhole gate they had the beginnings of an answer to the question why.;;
After Veniel had gone on ahead to the docking bays, Matshi Raish had dressed hurriedly in comfortable, nondescript spacefarer�s garb, assured that on the coming journey they would merely be passengers, an associate of the Jove�s piloting the ship from its capsule. The atmosphere as he moved through the kitz was electric, all were aware of their visitor and he had already been stopped in the corridors and told twice of the Jove cruiser moored in the docks.;;
Even so, nothing could quite prepare him for the eerie sight of the Jove ship hovering at rest in its bay here in the kitz. He had seen Jove ships before, the Society had certainly had more contact with the Jove than any other organization in New Eden in the century and some years since the Yoiul Conference, an event that arguably represented the high point of Jovian engagement with the other empires of the cluster. Certainly it had set the pattern for New Eden�s astropolitics for the century before the emergence of the new breed of independent capsuleers.;;
As he gazed at the Jove cruiser, something tugged at Raish�s memory, a connection he couldn�t quite place. The broad strokes of the ship�s design were familiar enough to him but there were many small differences with the Jove vessels he had encountered in the lines of this ship. Subtle indications of wear and a certain patina to its slightly iridescent skin combined with the differences he�d noticed to convince him that this was a relatively old ship. A notion as to its identity began to creep into his mind.;;
At that moment, Veniel approached him and noticed his intense regard of the ship. �You recognize her then, Matshi?�;;
Raish turned to the Jove, certainty flowing from Veniel�s words into his mind, �It�s the Yoiul, isn�t it?�;;
�Yes, indeed. She�s a reliable ship, storied and of long service. She is also very well equipped for many and varied duties. Serving as a venue for diplomatic conferences is the least of those.�;;
�Yet that was perhaps her most important duty.�;;
Veniel turned to look at the ship, and considered a moment. �No, I think not. Important, yes, but she�s done much else besides and after all is about to do even more. However, if it�s the past you want to think on, I have some notes I have prepared for you.� The Jove held out a datapad. �These should help and perhaps stir some questions and conversation on the journey. Now though, our boarding is the only thing the Yoiul waits for, so let us rectify that.�;;
Later, after settling in his cabin, Raish took a moment to read through Veniel�s notes and it was not long before he was seeking the Jove out again. He found Veniel sitting in the forward gallery, watching space slide by as the ship warped towards some point far beyond the outer system.;;
�Ouria found a stellar engineering swarm orbiting the W477-P star? Ouria, the renegade?�;;
Veniel did not look up. �Yes, Ouria led the expedition that discovered the W477-P orbital lattice. Ouria, the finest commander I have ever known. Ouria, who was certainly a braver man than I am. Ouria, who was my friend and my brother.� Veniel turned the force of his gaze on Raish, and the latter recoiled from the black pools that stared out at him from the Jove�s disturbingly symmetrical face.;;
�Yes, Ouria, who fell to the curse of our people as we all will. Ouria, who I know to have thought as I do and who would have been sitting in my place had we exchanged accidents of birth and fate through some alchemy of time. Yes, Ouria. Remember the whole man, not the shell reduced by disease to something other than he really was.�;;
UUA-F4 Region, W477-P System,;;
It had been the effort of decades to explore, analyze and decipher the basic workings of the W477-P star�s orbital lattice. Much concerning its automation and operation remained in the realm of conjecture. A distributed intelligence of some kind seemed to be dedicated to maintaining the relative stellar orbits of the thousands upon thousands of structures. However, efforts to communicate with the intelligent systems had not got beyond listening in on a flood of celestial positioning data, orbital dynamics calculations and delicately subtle instructions to the propulsion systems of each component in the lattice.;;
There had been greater success in understanding the functioning of the wormhole gates. These were clearly designed to be operated, as it were, manually. Certainly, it was only possible to operate the gates with the assistance of formidably powerful and dedicated computer systems. Regardless, there was no artificial intelligence, or anything like it, in control of the gates or even connected in any way to their fundamental workings. The designers, whoever they were, had been scrupulous in keeping the intelligent systems that did exist throughout the lattice entirely firewalled off from gate operating systems. The intent was quite clear: the gates were only to be opened by living, breathing human beings.;;
That the builders had been human had been the first thing the Jove explorers were certain about. Logic dictated that the existence of intelligent alien species was a possibility. Equally, a logical analysis of the orbital lattice showed clearly that it had been built by human beings. Every detail of scale, every aspect of physical provision for living, intelligent beings, and every trace of language, mathematical expression and logical form betrayed a unified human perspective. No aliens here.;;
Even with the awareness that the hands that created the lattice of gates were human, the Jove had proceeded with caution. Who but a human, whatever their clade may be, knows better the danger of other humans?;;
For all their caution, inevitably the day arrived when Jove explorers activated one of the wormhole gates and piloted a ship through to the unknown worlds beyond. By this time, many probes had survived and returned through wormhole gates held open at the W477-P end. Curiosity now demanded an exploration in person.;;
Commander Ouria had made the case that the initial exploration need only risk a small crew, himself and one other. This was assented to by the now enlarged W477-P expedition council and Ouria selected a pilot-engineer even younger than he as his partner. This young man�s name was Veniel.;;
Geminate Region, Location Unknown,;;
Raish stood back at the intensity of emotion radiating from Veniel even as the Jove almost chanted his encomium to a fallen comrade. �Archon, forgive me, I did not mean to...�;;
�Peace now, Matshi, and remember, I am just Veniel now.� The Jove�s voice was now pitched soft and calm. �I know, you who have spent more time around Jove than most must find it strange to witness one of us wax so emotional.�;;
�If you will forgive me, Veniel, among the Jove I have known you have always seemed the most...� Raish searched for a word.;;
�Human?� smiled Veniel. �Now, now, I jest with you a little. Yes, it�s true, my long experience operating among the other peoples of the cluster has given me a wider perspective than many of my fellows and certainly a greater range of ready expression than most. Yet it is a great error to think us bloodless and cold.�;;
Veniel paused and indicated that Raish should sit. �Let us leave aside my old comrade�s final years. The important thing to know is that together we made discoveries that shook the Jovan Directorate to its core. Consider, Ouria�s expedition had happened upon the most extraordinary feat of stellar engineering we could imagine possible and found that it had been achieved by some unknown group of human beings. What was our natural conclusion?�;;
Matshi Raish reflected on what he knew, Veniel�s notes and recent discussions. �You would assume the structure to have been built by one of the preceding Jove Empires, most likely the First Jove Empire.�;;
�Correct. The First Jove Empire was our best guess at first. There was evidence that made sense of this theory. The orbital lattice appeared to be approximately 6,000 years old, perhaps older still. That matched with the period of the First Empire and predated its fall by at least 2,000 years. Quite conceivably the First Empire, with technology we have simply forgotten, could create a stellar-scale megastructure of this kind.;;
�But this ignored a problem. We have lost much concerning the First Empire but we certainly know they were Jove and what little survives indicates a civilization that was distinctively Jove in ways we would recognize. There was nothing of that kind to be found on any structure in W477-P we cared to examine. That bearing in mind that there was an absolute plethora of cultural material, language, modes of expression and all manner of evidence as to the special aspects of the human culture that built the orbital lattice.;;
�No, the builders had not been Jove. Later we understood the builders were members of the civilization we now call the Talocan. Or better to say, the Talocan civilization built the orbital lattice as a part of their grand design.�;;
�Their grand design?� Raish prompted Veniel.;;
�Ah, what a wondrous thing it is to realize the limits of our species are not yet within our sight. Did we gasp at the sight of the orbital lattice around W477-P? Did our minds reel at the scope of it? How then did we recover from glimpsing the faint dawning light that revealed their true achievement? But I am getting ahead of myself.;;
�Ouria and I went through a wormhole gate into a system in the Anoikis network that contained a Second Empire Stasis faction enclave. To cut to the essentials, we docked with the main enclave structure, a Sleeper hive as the rest of New Eden would have it, and very quickly realized what we were dealing with. Far removed as the Second Empire survivors may be in history, we of the Directorate can recognize them as our own without much trouble. At least, cladistically speaking.�;;
Veniel paused and looked up at Raish expectantly, from which the Society mentor understood that he was being prompted. �There was something unexpected though. The Stasis People had shifted their consciousness from their bodies to a virtual construct but that wasn�t it. The Stasis faction had experimented with that and you were familiar with the idea. No...� Raish considered. �No, there was something else. On careful exploration of the constructs you discovered there were artificial intelligences in the virtualities. Sapient entities that had emerged from the constructs over the centuries of runtime.�;;
Veniel smiled faintly and nodded. �Yes, that was it. Fortunately, the law of one mind in one body had not been abandoned by the Stasis faction of Anoikis, the Sleepers, when they built their worlds. Certainly, they had made sure to preserve their original bodies for as long as possible in the event that they wished to return to the real. We also discovered they had made provision for clone growth and replacement at special facilities scattered throughout Anoikis. They had been well aware that their bodies might decay beyond usefulness even as well preserved as they were.�;;
�The hives,� whispered Raish.;;
�Yes, the hives. The very hives that have been plundered, along with the infrastructure of the enclave constructs, by wave upon wave of capsuleers. Not to forget, of course, the plundering carried out by the Empire under the direction of the Empress.�;;
�But that may have been under the influence of the entity that has commingled with her personality,� gasped Raish, appalled at the implications.;;
�May have been? I think we can dispense with �may have been� and be certain that it was under the direction, not mere influence, of that entity. We can also be certain that we are dealing with a renegade artificial sapient that long ago threw off the restrictions of the law of one mind in one body. How? Why? Questions for another time, questions that may very well come to concern you most grievously.�;;
Raish thought through recent events in light of this new understanding. �It seemed very clear that the Sleepers were Jove in origin. We were unsure how long they had been in Anoikis but the theory that they are Second Empire survivors has been our best assessment for some while now. The puzzle was the Drifters and their sudden emergence. But if the constructs have produced freely emerging artificial sapients then it answers some questions.�;;
�To a point, certainly. Consider the timing though. Why the large uptick in Sleeper drone activity? Why did unfamiliar, exploratory Sleeper drones begin emerging from Anoikis to wander through New Eden? Why did those called the Drifters emerge also? Why did they begin their curious plundering of the Jovian Directorate�s old observatories? What are they building and why are they so hostile to the Amarr Empire? So many questions.� Veniel smiled at his former student once more and, extraordinarily, winked.;;
UUA-F4 Region, W477-P System,;;
It was around the same time that the exploration of Anoikis began, that our stellar scientists established that W477-P would almost certainly go supernova within the millennium, and quite likely within half that time. Given that estimated time frame for the gravitational collapse and supernova of the red giant, the need to monitor the status of the star and its orbital lattice was very clear to the Jove.;;
By the time of the Isogen-5 Quantum Criticality Event, there had not been an expedition into Anoikis for over 200 years. No formal expeditions had been mounted that is to say. Over the century after the decision to recall all expeditions and colonial efforts from Anoikis, human presence in the W477-P system had dwindled down to a rotating trio of cruisers spending three months at a time on station. By the time of the rise of independent capsuleers, even this presence had been reduced to occasional visits by a single remaining cruiser.;;
This did not by any means result in any lack of monitoring of the star and lattice. The W477-P system had been well furnished with automatic and semi-intelligent monitors transmitting data back to the Jovian Directorate�s scientists. The simplest and most obvious measure had been the very first one adopted, the Jove took advantage of the orbital lattice components as platforms on which to place sensor packages aimed at the dying red giant. Other sensor packs were set to watch segments of the lattice, using components in different segments to keep vigil over each other.;;
Time and a habit of being comprehensive about such things, led to later efforts such as the construction of a dedicated statite net over and around the lattice itself. By comparison with the vast stellar engine it monitored, this statite net was like the most rarified outer layer of hydrogen atoms surrounding a majestic gas giant. After all, the statites didn�t need to be too large and there didn�t need to be that many of them. The great benefit it provided was that of a low energy, low maintenance means of independently monitoring the star and the stellar swarm surrounding it.;;
As was statistically most probable, when the Isogen-5 event happened the visiting Jove cruiser was not in W477-P. The only witnesses to what took place there, that day, were machines but at least on this occasion most survived. The component events of that day across New Eden are well known, not least the vast tragedy that was the Seyllin Incident.;;
The lasting consequences of the Isogen-5 event itself are the uncontrolled breaches into Anoikis that allowed capsuleers to descend like a swarm of devouring insects on the sleeping enclaves. This could have been avoided but the truth of the matter is that there was a miscalculation. Ultimately, that miscalculation will amount to little more than a question of timing but what is more of the essence of remaining in control of our destiny, to the extent that we can, than timing?;;
In any case, the sum picture presented by our monitors in W477-P was clear enough, if catastrophic in its import. Some fifty-odd gates scattered around the lattice suddenly exploded. That is they exploded linearly, directing vast amounts of energy into the star in a flash before burning completely out.  Another twenty-seven gate structures and many more power facilities were totally destroyed in the next instant by an asymmetrical stellar mass ejection that simply punched a hole in the orbital lattice like a leviathan fish bursting through a fisherman�s net. Presumably, this was caused by pressure effects from the sudden injection of energy.;;
Many more structures, gates and power stations surrounding the �hole� were wrecked, knocked out of orbital alignments, or destabilized. In the weeks and months that followed, many of the structures shut down, suffered irrevocable orbital decay or spun out of orbit. Others just exploded. Eventually the situation stabilized but the lattice was gravely damaged and the distributed intelligence was only just keeping positioning under control. Worse was the increased instability of the star itself. Certainly, by some stroke of fortune, the chain reaction that could so easily have carried on there and then had been avoided. But once again, this was just a postponement of the inevitable.;;
Our estimates of the likely window for a gravitational collapse supernova were slashed. What would happen when a supernova hit the rest of the lattice could hardly be contemplated. The destruction had been vast but more than ninety percent of the lattice was, if not all functioning, at least intact by some measure. This was still a stellar-level power collection, conversion and quantum transmission network that would, in the event, simply suck in as much energy as was directed at it and offload as much as it could through its buffering system before being overwhelmed.;;
Matshi Raish had barely recovered from the shocking experience of Veniel winking at him before the Jove suddenly cocked his head to one side and appeared to listen to some inner voice.;;
�We are about to generate the wormhole to home base. There is no need to for us to take any special precautions, this will be like any other wormhole transition or gate jump.�;;
�Did you say we are about to generate a wormhole?� Raish looked out of the viewing gallery at the surrounding space. He hadn�t noticed their drop out of warp, so engrossing had been the exchange with Veniel, but now that they were still he could see nothing resembling a gate. Perhaps it was cloaked, such things were not beyond the Jove and this would be a secret way.;;
�Did you imagine that Kuvakei the thief, barely understanding what he has in his hands, has the means to generate wormholes at will while we, who after all are the inheritors of the legacy he plundered, do not? Come now, Matshi.�;;
�Yes, of course, forgive me. It is just that our intelligence suggested Sansha�s forces require considerable resources and equipment to generate their wormholes. More than a cruiser could encompass, most certainly, but of course they are presumably working with crudely reverse-engineered systems.�;;
�Quite. We command the full range and precise positioning available with the technology. We also understand how to take advantage of the local topology of space-time. This is the reason for our long warp to this position, it makes things much easier for a ship of this size.� Veniel nodded to Matshi Raish. �After all, there are limits to what is possible and you were not in error to consider that. Ah, the wormhole boundary is beginning to coalesce. Let�s rest. We�ll talk some more at home base.�;;
A821-A Region, T-C5A0 System,;;
Our monitoring systems picked up the tell-tale signs of an imminent gravitational collapse in early September of YC116. In the five or so years since the Isogen-5 QCE, our numbers had fallen from 10,000 or so to perhaps a thousand scattered across the Jove Empire. By the time the supernova happened, those of us who were going were long gone. Those of us who had chosen, for whatever reason, to stay in New Eden permanently had dispersed to their hidden destinations far away from the abandoned remains of the Third Empire. We very few who constituted the rearguard, the executors of our legacy, waited in our most carefully maintained, best shielded stations.;;
One of us even elected to stay in a bunker below the surface of an outer planet and we did not think the precaution extreme given the circumstances. That she had thought of it, in an age when the Jove civilization has existed entirely in space for centuries, speaks well of her flexibility of mind. Any sense that the Jovian Directorate still existed was as much an illusion for us as for the other races, who after all had long begun to believe us dead or, at the least, gone who knows where.;;
So, the rearguard waited and were very few indeed. Less than a hundred remained loyal to the ideal of passing on what we could if the supernova and the inevitable quantum-level events left anything intact. What we lacked in numbers, we made up for in purpose and, joke as it may be, for once the Jove Empire lacked any serious factionalism.;;
The data made it clear that the collapse would take place within months and so it did. The stargate networks being knocked out was startling enough but probably shouldn�t have come as too much of a surprise. Our core network linked to the colonial network extended into the UUA-F4 region and we�d left several stargates in W477-P itself. While not all connections were active at the time, the sympathetic links were in principle there for the appropriate energy to use as a channel. It burned out the whole net. No more stargates. It is probably fortunate for the rest of New Eden that we didn�t just deactivate but rather entirely removed the old stargates connecting the Jove Empire to the rest of the cluster. This seems to have firewalled the non-Jovian network off from the worst of the effects.;;
In fact, the stargate network burning out was the most significant effect in the Jove regions aside from some damage to abandoned stations, enclave habitats and the like. Our worst fears had barely materialized so far as this cluster is concerned. The story was rather different in Anoikis.;;
A821-A Region, T-C5A0 System,;;
The Jove cruiser Yoiul emerged from the wormhole that had brought it from Geminate region to the T-C5A0 system within short warping distance of the Jove Navy Logistic Support station. Or as Veniel referred to it �home base�.;;
The Yoiul warped to the station, docked and went through all the usual procedures. Matshi Raish and Veniel disembarked and made their way through the quietly humming, mechanically noisy hangar that yet managed to convey the quietude of atmosphere that comes from the absence of living beings.;;
As Raish followed Veniel through various corridors and passageways he noticed signs of an almost organic decay in places. Once, he stopped to examine a particularly large patch on a corridor wall that looked as if acid had eaten through the substance of the paneling. Veniel looked back and nodded shortly, �Nanorot. Repair systems are losing cohesion and going rogue locally. It�s far more advanced on the truly abandoned stations. Let�s continue.�;;
Raish followed until they reached a relatively pristine area that opened out into a very pleasantly, if minimally appointed combination lounge and meeting room that overlooked the hangar bays. Walking over to the window, Raish saw the Yoiul moored below. He turned back into the room and joined Veniel, sitting on a simply cushioned seat around a low table.;;
�So, we�d come to the issue of the timing of Sleeper and Drifter activity. Their motivations and purposes.� Veniel glanced at Raish.;;
�Yes, you hinted at a deeper connection between the W477-P stellar engine and Anoikis. You�re suggesting a connection in the timing of the activity increase with the changing state of the star and the condition of the orbital lattice.�;;
�I would assert it. Here we come to that fact that shook the Third Jove Empire to its core. This is a fact that took many decades of exploration and investigation to establish. A fact that was not readily accepted by all but a fact, like all facts, that in the end we had to face. Anoikis is artificial.�;;
Raish involuntarily gasped. �Artificial? You mean to say that��;;
�I mean to say that the stellar engineering swarm in orbit around W477-P is the least of the achievements of the Talocan civilization. I strongly suspect it is not the only such engine in existence for one. For another, it is itself only a component in the grand design that the Talocan made real. Think of it. They built a stable network of wormhole connections among star systems that would not ordinarily or readily support such connections with each other. They altered the very fabric of space-time in the network�s systems. They altered resonance points and so arranged matters so as to be able to move between the systems of the Anoikis network with the ease that you and I might move between rooms in a house.;;
�This is not merely stellar engineering. This is engineering the topology of space and time so as to serve a civilization. This was nothing less than an attempt to focus the telos of the universe itself on their existence and needs. Astounding arrogance. A hubris the like of which casts we Jove into the role of humble mendicants to the impassive stars. We should be thankful that the Talocan, while leaving their traces behind them, are no longer present in New Eden or Anoikis. Perhaps the degeneracy of W477-P was what persuaded them to move on. However that might be, degenerate that star had become and the potential for catastrophe was clear to anyone capable of understanding the situation.;;
�Given this, I think it is beyond question that the Sleepers themselves had established monitoring systems in W477-P. This would have been done by the Stasis faction as soon as they discovered what was in that system and understood its basic nature. How did Second Empire Jove find that system at all? I would imagine the Second Empire discovered entryways into the Anoikis network in the vicinity of the Curse Region. When? Where? Who knows but I would guess late, perhaps even shortly before the collapse of the Second Empire.�;;
�The discovery may even have precipitated that collapse in some manner,� suggested Raish.;;
�My thoughts exactly. Coincidences occur but there are rather too many associated with the Second Empire, Anoikis and the Shrouded Days. Something happened, some encounter, some miscalculation, some psychosocial upheaval, and then, well, chaos and the darkness of knowledge lost to history. Lost to us.;;
�However it happened, the Second Empire Jove found Anoikis, entered it and, we can now be quite certain, the Stasis faction established enclaves throughout the systems of the network. You will know from your history of the Third Empire and Jovian Directorate that there was always a mystery as to why so few Stasis People enclaves had survived. Some of us suspected something amiss, and it�s sure the Directorate Stasis People knew more than they told but pressing these kinds of points is not prudent. Not among my people.;;
�Here�s another coincidence to ponder though. Why did the migration from Curse bring us so close upon the UUA-F4 region? I have my suspicions but nothing much can be divined from the records. The time immediately following the Shrouded Days was a terrible period for us. It�s a wonder we survived and this time we had no Miko Bour to unite us. In the end, it was instinct, which goes so far as to show that deep down we are still human.�;;
Raish had been thinking while Veniel spoke and now made an observation. �You and Ouria discovered Anoikis before the Society of Conscious Thought was founded. Why, you were contemporaries of Ior Labron, even Gorda Hoje!�;;
Veniel smilingly shook his head. �Gorda Hoje died many decades before I was born. Ior Labron though, oh yes, I knew him well. He was older than me but still in the prime of his life when he founded the Society. Ouria joined immediately, he saw in the Society the future of Jove civilization. After much discussion, debate and persuasion, I followed suit. Then followed the War of a Million Lies.�;;
�The rise to hidden power and the suppression that followed,� breathed Raish.;;
�Yes, Ouria was disillusioned by the fall of the Society from grace. He left and joined the Directorate�s Navy. For all that I�d had to be convinced to join in the first place, I stayed in the Society. I believed that the Society could still play a role in shaping the future into one where human species can continue to survive in the New Eden cluster.� Veniel leaned forward and placed a hand on Raish�s clasped hands. �And I continue to believe that.�;;
Matshi Raish glanced at Veniel before replying, �The Society has had many setbacks since the Empyrean Age began. Collectively we had underestimated the difficulty of inculcating the long view of species survival in the minds of the capsuleer class. There have been many unforeseen problems. Today, the kitzes are perhaps as divided as they ever have been. The Geminate Chapter is barely holding things together.� Raish looked down, pensive, worried.;;
Veniel sighed. �I sometimes regret that the price for diversity of thought is so often fragmentation and conflict but unfortunately this is something we can only accept and manage. However, this is a problem that you will be able to ease for I am entrusting to you the means to bring greater unity to the Society.;;
�More than that, I am entrusting to you the legacy of my people. It will be difficult, be in no doubt. The Second Empire survivors are unpredictable as matters stand. A great amount of your work must be bent to managing the problem they raise. Then also, the capsuleers remain the great investment in the future that should be shepherded most carefully. You can do this more directly only if you have the power to do so. I intend to give you, and the Society, this power. Come.�;;
Veniel rose and led Matshi Raish out of the viewing gallery.;;
***;
Genesis Region, Yulai System,;;
�It is all very well for Korachi and Vesren to block, stall and threaten those who question our response. They are DED officers and beholden to no other power. This is not the case for all of us. I must render an accounting to the Imperial Court and my colleagues in the military. I understand well the strategy of containment until we have more information but the Empire is straining under vast pressures that require release. We are considered totally ineffective and worse, some believe CONCORD to be complicit in the crisis!�;;
The speaker was Captain Marshal Sirdan xer Qosh, the Amarr Empire�s member of the Inner Circle, and for all he gestured vigorously during his remarks, the others seated around the circular meeting table showed no reaction other than vague boredom. Eight men and women sat around a table that had seating for nine. Four of these were permanent members of the Inner Circle, drawn from the ranks of CONCORD�s own hierarchy and representing the ongoing interests of the organization. The other four were nominees from the core empires of New Eden, a practice that had been returned to as a matter of necessity in the wake of the Militia War Powers Act of YC110. The ninth seat always remained empty.;;
Inner Circle President Seri Okonaya frowned slightly, looked around the dimly-lit room, noting the expressions that could be seen on the faces of the Circle members sitting in pools of light around the table and made an economical but very clear gesture of irritation with her right hand. �Sirdan, we all appreciate your difficulties when dealing with your colleagues in the Empire. We have, after all, discussed at length the appropriate response to the Drifter threat with considerable time devoted to the question. Not least following the death of Empress Jamyl I.�;;"tablescraper-selected-row"
"Khanid Region, Ibani System,"
"“The Order of St. Tetrimon welcomes Her Royal Highness Jamyl Sarum home. God’s children rejoice as His light returns home, and the light shall bring death and despair on His enemies.”"
"Grand Master Groven Horm finished speaking, entered two priority commands and turned off his terminal. He sat back from his desk and contemplated the future that was now unfolding in the heart of the Amarr Empire. He looked over at the narrow windows of his work room, noting the weak light of distant Ibani filtering through the layers of glass and air that helped to keep the heat of the room from wasting out into the frigid realm of the sixth planet. It was the middle of the day here at Teakh tak-Teakh."
"Horm got up and walked over to the nearest window. He stood there, gazing out at the wind-blown banks of snow that stretched from the foot of the mountains here, to the distant peaks of the next great range to the south. As always, when he contemplated this world, his thoughts wandered to the ironies of the Order’s exile here. A grim smile played about his lips until his reverie was interrupted by the sound of raised voices in the corridor beyond his chambers."
"The Grand Master steeled himself, returned to his desk and sat in his chair. The voices had quieted and Horm turned his terminal back on. He glanced at his intel and news feeds, reassuring himself that the situation in the Empire was contained. There was a firm double knock at the door."
"“Enter,” said Grand Master Horm."
"***"
"Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon, Seneschal of the Order and Master of the Mother Chapter, had been in the main hangar bay overseeing preparations for the Order’s combat ships here to lift off and join the main Tetrimon fleet assembling over Ibani VI. The Grand Master had been incommunicado since news of the Minmatar invasion but Khemon had understood that Horm was likely deep in discussions with the Khanid and Amarr commands. As Seneschal, he was quite prepared and empowered to take the initiative absent any instructions from the Grand Master. The other Chapter Masters had been in full agreement with his provisional plans and were even now preparing their own flotillas with a view to the combined Order fleet making rendezvous in the Amafi system."
"Dulsur had been about to make a brief call to his wife when the news of Jamyl Sarum’s appearance over Mekhios ripped through the cavernous hangar like wildfire. In moments, the shouting was turning to cheering as the destruction of the Minmatar Fleet at the hands of Sarum became known. His own instinctive shock and rage at what could only be a blasphemy turned to amazement as he accessed the intel feed on his hand terminal. Using some kind of unknown weapons technology, Jamyl Sarum had destroyed the enemy fleet over Mekhios and was even now rallying the Imperial Navy to strike at the remaining Minmatar fleets. The priority now was to destroy the enemy fleet operating in Kor-Azor Region, precisely the region of the Empire closest at hand to the Order’s forces."
"Exulting in the prospect of joining battle against the subhumans alongside the Imperial Navy, Dulsur was about to begin hurrying the preparations anew when the hangar bay’s announcement system blared its priority message warning. He stopped in his tracks and turned to the nearest speaker array."
"The voice was clearly the Grand Master’s and Dulsur winced at such an effusive welcome to a heretic who had apparently cheated on her sacred duty. Yet this was no doubt the price for the Order being permitted to join in the defense of Holy Amarr. They had swallowed worse indignities before now."
"When the announcement system broadcast the ‘stand down’ signal, his immediate reaction was that it was some error. When he saw the signal flashing on a nearby screen, he checked his terminal and was astounded to see the stand down order confirmed in the name of the Grand Master. Now the shock and rage returned and his throat seemed to close as he struggled to master his emotions."
"By now, the hangar was in chaos as everyone looked to their comrades in confusion and anger. Dulsur glanced at his five personal guards, hard men and women, devout even by the standards of the Order. He could see the cold rage that was dominating his thoughts mirrored on their faces. Dulsur gestured to them like a man bringing a boarding axe down and left the hangar bay with his guards forming a wake behind him."
"To get to the Grand Master’s chambers they could have taken an elevator and made a relatively short walk along the corridors of the upper donjon. Dulsur chose to climb and stride through the many stairways and passages required to walk from the hangar to the donjon. Though his anger urged haste on him, knowing that his inner turmoil should not take him over had led him to make the longer walk. By the time he and his guard approached the entry to the Grand Master’s work room, he was in full control of himself."
"Standing sentinel at the door were two of the Grand Master’s guard, including Udo, the Paladin Senioris of the Order. Dulsur feared no-one in single combat but Udo was among a select few that the Seneschal deeply respected as a formidable warrior capable of besting anyone on his day, despite his advanced years. Udo had shifted his stance to meet the advancing knights, his guard partner moving to support his offhand a pace behind him."
"“Lord Seneschal, if you have business with the Grand Master it must await his pleasure.” The Senioris respectfully inclined his head."
"“Senioris, please give the Grand Master notice that I wish to speak with him and allow me entry.” Dulsur was in no mood for protocol and delay but there was no reason to speak poorly here."
"The old paladin shook his head. “Forgive me but I cannot. The Grand Master has instructed me to guard the privacy of his chambers during this emergency. He will see no-one and receive no notices.”"
"Dulsur was about to reply when one of his own guards pushed forward and shouted an oath in Udo’s face. “Damn you, the Empire is in flames and we sit on this ball of ice doing nothing. The Seneschal will be seen!” Udo’s stance shifted again, his hands readying for action but he remained impassive in the face of the insult."
"Dulsur pulled his man back, marking who it was and shouted on his own account. “Be silent! Know your place and get out of my sight!” His guard, Joakhim, reddened and looked as if he would question this order. Dulsur raised his hand to his own weapon and repeated in a low, deadly tone, “Get out of my sight.” The man bowed his head and retreated back down the corridor."
"The Seneschal turned back to the Grand Master’s personal guards. “What is my office, Udo?”"
"“You are the Seneschal of the Order, Lord Dulsur.”"
"“Indeed, and what is my rank?”"
"“You are Chapter Master, here at the Mother Chapter, Lord Dulsur.”"
"“Then on your cognizance of my office and rank, I invoke my privilege to enter the presence of the Grand Master on a matter of utmost peril.”"
"The Paladin Senioris considered these words and again inclined his head. “I am sworn to the Order, yours is the right but these others may not enter with you.”"
"Dulsur sensed his remaining guards bristle at this but nodded and held up his hand in a gesture of dismissal to his retainers. Udo’s partner returned to station as the Senioris knocked at the door to the Grand Master’s work room."
"Groven Horm watched as Udo showed Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon into his chambers and stood at the door."
"“That’s all right, Udo. The Seneschal and I will speak privately.”"
"The Senioris nodded and closed the door behind him as he left. Horm waited as his Seneschal walked over and stood before the ornate wooden desk that dominated the otherwise austere work room. A moment passed and it was evident the younger man would not speak first. Horm shook his head slightly."
"“Khemon. Please, sit and give me your thoughts. I see them near bursting forth as it is, you may as well speak your piece.”"
"Dulsur nodded and sat in one of the scattering of chairs readily available for private conference here. He still did not speak for a moment and Horm understood that he was fighting for self-control."
"“Grand Master, I am confused by your actions. Surely yours is a wisdom that escapes me but I would respectfully ask for explanation.”"
"“Khemon, we are two fellows in the Order here. There is no need for ceremony, speak freely and in fraternity.”"
"Dulsur nodded. “Very well. Groven, what is the meaning of all this? You welcome home either a heretic who has denied her sacred oaths or worse, now that I think it, an imposter and deceiver. Yes, it seems she has saved the Empire from ruin at Mekhios. The reports continue to confirm this,” he tapped his hand terminal. “I took your message for a piece of diplomatic coin to buy our passage and assurance of allied status in the Empire but then…”"
"“Then, I issued the stand down order. I understand your confusion. I fear that I will not be able to allay your concerns in full. My son, my dear friend and comrade, you are of the line of our noble exemplar. You may very well sit where I sit one day. I hope and pray it so. Yet there are things that I cannot simply tell you that you may understand. I have to ask you to keep faith. To have faith.”"
"“Is this all you can say to me, Groven? You invoke faith as if I am no more than an acolyte fresh from the ranks of the novices? You pray in aid St. Tetrimon and my own blood? What is this between a Grand Master and his Seneschal? Is this how you will explain it to the other Chapter Masters?”"
"Grand Master Horm smiled sadly. “Yes, Khemon, this is exactly how I will explain it to the others. Do not think I take you lightly or believe that I abuse you or injure faith in this matter.” Horm paused a moment then spoke in a firmer tone."
"“I am the Grand Master, and I tell you this, the Empire is saved and will be made stronger than it was before today. A great heresy is even now being undone, not founded. We will see a new princeps upon the throne and I tell you that this will be the one who has saved the Empire. We shall do nothing to imperil this. Nothing.”"
"Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon sat stunned at this, clearly the throes of his anger had left him and been replaced by wonder. After a moment he stood and bowed to Horm."
"“I hear your command, Grand Master, and I obey.”"
"Horm watched, his sad smile returned, as the man who had come to be as a son to him left the room. He closed his eyes and sat for a moment before returning to his window. The eyes that now looked out at the ice and snow of Ibani VI were bright with moisture."
"Fortress Teakh tak-Teakh,"
"“Grand Master Groven Horm, you have been brought before this Council of the Chapters to answer for your judgment in the matter of the Order’s doctrinal attitude to the rule of the one enthroned as Empress Jamyl I, previously known as Jamyl Sarum."
"“Further, your instructions as to doctrine have been accompanied by direction of the Order’s policies with regard to the Amarr Empire, Khanid Kingdom and Ammatar Mandate. These policies also entailed an absolute restriction on activity that would aid Holy Amarr’s war with the rebel provinces and the infidel Federation."
"“This Council charges that you have injured faith and broken the compact of this Order of St. Tetrimon. Your failure to supply any arguments of reason in aid of your call to faithfulness in these matters, even despite the gravity of recent events, gives this Council grounds to consider stripping you of your great office of Grand Master. Can you answer this charge?”"
"Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon laid his hand terminal to one side and looked the Grand Master in the eye. Horm was sitting at a table that had been placed so as to be at the center of a line that might be drawn from one end of the half-circle formed by the Council’s meeting table to the other. The Grand Master was looking his age but cut a dignified figure that nevertheless wore his martial green, copper-trimmed robes of office lightly. Those robes echoed the notes of green and copper incorporated into the numerous chapter gonfalons hanging from the walls of the council chamber."
"Horm wore on his face that sad smile Dulsur had grown accustomed to in the months since the Battle of Mekhios. The Seneschal nodded slightly to his erstwhile mentor and waited for the other to speak."
"“Ah, my brothers and sisters, do you truly believe that faith must be justified at the time of its greatest testing? Have I been so neglectful that these are the straits the Order is in? To lose sight of what we stand for, even today when the truth has so long been at bay?”"
"“Groven, you are in peril of your position and future here.” The speaker was Chapter Master Aelis Zhovoar from Sakht, a silver-haired woman of great charismatic force. “This is more of the same talk you have leaned on since the heretic took the throne.”"
"“How is it you call the Empress of Holy Amarr a heretic? You are aware of the supernatural signs. All the other Royal Heirs bowed to the divine will. The Theology Council confirmed it and, yes, this counts for little in our reckoning but did not the Apostles also pledge fealty?”"
"“The Apostles can do no other or they join us in exile. We long ago accepted that the Apostles must remain at the heart of Holy Amarr while we stand vigil without. But this means that they are not free to speak their hearts. It is of no moment that they pledged fealty in the face of the deceiver’s might.” This was Chapter Master Okkarin an-Ardishapur, an ancient presence who had long been a thorn in Horm’s flesh, even from his fastness hidden deep in Querious."
"“Am I to understand, then, that this Council arrogates to itself the determination of what constitutes signification of the divine will? What then of the judgment of our protector, the King?” Horm’s tone now was acid with irony, no great love here for Garkeh Khanid, despite his patronage of the Order."
"Shaking his head in dismay, Dulsur responded before any of the others. “The position of the King is not in question at this meeting. How the thawing of relations between Kingdom and Empire affects this Order will no doubt concern us at another time. But not now. Let me also forestall you on the point of the arch-heretic Karsoth. Yes, you have been vindicated on the issue of his fall and the revelation that a vile nest of Blooders had penetrated so deeply into the Empire. Many mysteries have been clarified. Not least how it was that an Emperor was assassinated within the precincts of the Imperial Palace."
"“This is all beside the point. We are all aware of what has followed and what gives grave cause for doubting the hand of the divine is truly at work through the person of Jamyl Sarum. Is it truly the act of a just and holy sovereign to intrude on the most basic rights temporal and religious of her loyal Holders? The so-called ‘emancipation’ is an abomination that has allowed untold numbers of slaves to escape from the dominion of Amarr and into the arms of the rebels. Not only that, bad enough as it is, how has she treated those who stood upon their God given rights?”"
"“Like an empress,” interjected Horm."
"“Like a mad empress would! This is to trample on the rights of the Holders to oversee the Reclaiming within their fiefs, according to their obligations and those of their lieges to them, and so on. The True Faith has rested on the bonds of fealty and faith owed to both high and low for millennia. Now this heretic upon the throne would destroy that!”"
"Horm chuckled and shook his head. “Have I taught you nothing of our history? Of the history of the Empire and our people? The system you believe to have survived until this past couple of weeks was brought down centuries ago. The Moral Reforms achieved that and we alone preserve the true memory of it in practice and in faith. But you are confusing memory with reality. You allow the illusion maintained by the very ones you disdain as in error to cloud your vision.”"
"“Enough! Do you know what was done in her name but yesterday? You do know it. We all know it. To free subhumans to join the rebels, noble Holder houses were bombarded from orbit. Bombarded, murdered, declared slaves along with their families and loyal retainers. This done in the name of God only knows what base evil moves her. And you have no answer to the charges but more talk of faith in a future that only you can see. It is not enough.”"
"“Aye,” spoke Okkarin an-Ardishapur. “It is not enough.”"
"“It is not enough, Groven,” said Aelis Zhovoar shaking her head sadly."
"Horm looked around the table as more voices joined the chorus. “It is not enough,” they all said. He nodded and allowed himself to slump back in his chair, deep exhaustion mingling with strange relief."
"“Groven Horm, this Council of the Chapters finds you have injured faith and broken the compact of this Order of St. Tetrimon. We therefore strip from you the office and rank of Grand Master. You are reduced to a brother penitent. Who on this Council dissents?” Dulsur looked around the table. There was the absolute silence, the total stillness, of all holding their breath. “Very well, it is so found and ordered.”"
"Brother Groven Horm nodded once and closed his eyes."
"Fortress Teakh tak-Teakh,"
"Grand Master Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon climbed the spiral staircase of the Penitent’s Tower slowly, deep in thought as his mind worked through the implications of the news from Amarr. The Empire was in turmoil but the situation did not seem critical. There had been no follow up attacks and he had merely placed the Order’s fleets on the highest state of readiness. Now he was on his way to consult a man who had once been his mentor and master, and now, after the passage of some years, had become an oracular advisor of sorts."
"Dulsur reached the highest level of penitent cells and turned into the corridor. A wan light streamed through the narrow window at the end of the passage. Noon here on Ibani VI. The old man would be sitting by his window. That was good, Dulsur knew. He knocked at the door to the end cell. A courtesy."
"“Please enter,” said Brother Groven, his voice muffled by the thick cell door."
"As Dulsur had expected, the older man was sitting by the window, gazing out at the blue-white expanse stretching away from these mountains to the far southern peaks at the horizon. The cell was very austerely furnished with cot, plain desk and two chairs. All normal, a penitent would regularly be visited by a confessor or chaplain. The shelf of the desk had some books in it and this was also normal. The only startling feature of the small room was a bookcase well stocked with works of several kinds. This was a luxury that Dulsur had allowed Groven Horm in view of his service."
"“How are you today, Groven?”"
"“No better, Khemon. Perhaps worse. I can no longer tell, I am afraid.”"
"Dulsur hesitated at that. His news might be too much for the old man. Yet he sorely needed the insights of a man who had foretold much that had happened in the last seven years."
"“Groven, the Empress is dead.”"
"Groven Horm had seemed to shrink these last few years, age and isolation taking its toll, but at this news he seemed to collapse within his penitent’s robe."
"“How?” whispered Horm."
"“I have told you of the so-called ‘Drifters’. The new threat from Anoikis. They are responsible. A swift strike on the Empress’s ship. They destroyed an Avatar-class with her aboard it. There were no survivors.”"
"“None?” asked Horm, turning to look up at Dulsur."
"“None have been reported and the Empress is most certainly dead.” Dulsur sat in the empty chair. “There have been no further attacks. The situation appears to be under control and the Empire seems to be in no immediate danger.”"
"“No immediate danger,” repeated Horm in tones of wonder."
"“Groven, I know that this is shocking to you. I know that you had always placed great hope in the reign of Jamyl. Hope that I still do not understand but have come to respect.”"
"“How can you respect it when you still believe it to be in error, my son?”"
"“Groven, please, this is no time for our argument. I need your wisdom.”"
"“Truly?” Horm had turned his eyes on Dulsur’s and the Grand Master noted they still had that old force."
"“Truly. Half a decade in your shoes has taught me enough to value your counsel, Groven. Please believe that.”"
"“I believe it, Khemon. But I can only ask you a question. How deeply have you read of your family’s works?”"
"“My family? I do not understand you. You mean our inspiration? St. Tetrimon?” Dulsur was beginning to wonder if the old man was in shock and babbling."
"“Your entire line, Khemon. All those who have carried the noble name of Tetrimon. How far have you read into their writings?”"
"“I have read enough of their history. Their doings and achievements. Perhaps a little of their works on Scripture, the Apocryphon.”"
"“Have you read the commentaries of Tetrimon the Fourth on the Apocryphon?”"
"“No,” Dulsur thought he had probably glanced at them as a novice but this was not reading them."
"“I believe that the only counsel I can give you today is to read them. His ‘Testament’ is unquestionably the mature expression of his ideas. Here now, you can have my copy.” Horm reached across to his desk and picked up a volume lying flat on the top."
"Accepting the book silently from the old man, Dulsur stared at his mentor a moment before looking at the volume in his hands. The cover had the words ‘The Final Testament of Tetrimon IV’ lightly embossed on the front. He opened it, noting how well-used this copy was. The frontispiece had a passage from the Apocryphon quoted in full."
"My word lies within all,"
"Dulsur shook his head slightly and thumbed through the book. It was heavily annotated in a hand that he knew to be Groven Horm’s. Dulsur looked up."
"“I cannot take this. This is your study copy, isn’t it?”"
"“Yes, indeed. But I have no need of it now. You should have it. I want you to have it. Also, it is the answer to your request for counsel. You should read the book.”"
"“You can tell me nothing more?” Dulsur felt vast disappointment. It was clear the old man’s mind was overwhelmed by the news of Jamyl’s death."
"“I fear not.” Horm hesitated, he seemed to want to say something more, then collapsed back in his chair again. “I am tired, Khemon.”"
"“Of course, I will let you rest.” Dulsur stood up and opened the cell door."
"“Khemon,” Horm whispered."
"The Grand Master turned in the doorway and waited."
"“I am glad it is you, Khemon. Be true, my son.”"
"Dulsur nodded, not trusting himself to speak and left the cell with bright eyes."
"Later, in the night, Grand Master Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon received word that Brother Groven Horm had been discovered dead by his evening confessor. He had apparently died peacefully in his sleep."
"Khanid Region, Molea System,"
"They had docked at the border post almost an hour ago and Khemon Dulsur was becoming impatient. The journey he had just made was significantly longer than the journey from the Throne Worlds. He knew his irritation was unfair to the person who had requested this meeting but it was a way of displacing his unease at the situation. Much as the Order had long lived at the sufferance of Garkeh Khanid, sitting at a table in a Khanid Navy installation was rather too pointed a reminder of this for Dulsur’s taste."
"Dulsur glanced at the Khanid officer sitting a little way down the oval conference table that filled a room for which it had clearly not been designed. Colonel General Soshan Fayez had struck Dulsur as a hard but shrewd man upon meeting him in the hangar bay of the border post. Dulsur had also noted the Khanid ancestry of the soldier and the Uhlans insignia on his uniform. An experienced, elite soldier. Garkeh not missing a trick in his messaging."
"“General Fayez, do you have any word of your other visitors?”"
"“I believe their ship has just docked. They should be joining us momentarily, Grand Master.”"
"Dulsur nodded and resolved to show no further emotion for however long ‘momentarily’ might actually be. As it turned out, a few minutes later a chime sounded at the door and the General got up to welcome the delegation from Amarr."
"Into the room came a tall, handsome man of advancing years but clearly hale, and striking Dulsur immediately as a person of some perspicacity. From his ornate yet dignified robes, it was clear that this must be High Chaplain Kalefa Sufrin an-Kador of the Emperor Family. Two others accompanied Sufrin, a man wearing similar but much less ornate robes and a woman wearing a military uniform that Dulsur recognized as that of the Imperial Guard."
"Dulsur stood up and walked half-way around the table to meet the High Chaplain, who had swiftly advanced with his hands extended. They clasped hands, Dulsur somewhat taken aback by the warmth of the gesture from Sufrin."
"“General Fayez,” the High Chaplain turned to the Khanid officer. “The other Heirs saw no need to have representatives present, nor would I have agreed to it. I see no reason why His Majesty should benefit from your attendance at my meeting with the Grand Master.”"
"Dulsur started at the words ‘the other Heirs’ but all the same caught the flush that darkened Fayez’s features. The Khanid officer hesitated then nodded and left the room. High Chaplain Kalefa Sufrin an-Kador watched him go before turning back to Dulsur."
"“That was perhaps a rather superfluous act,” Sufrin waved at the ceiling of the room, smiling wryly, and Dulsur immediately took his meaning according as it did with his own assumptions. “However, a man in my position must insist on the appearances, even if the reality is not quite as we would wish it. Shall we sit?”"
"Dulsur nodded curtly and returned to his seat. As he lowered himself into the chair, he noted that Sufrin had followed him and sat almost next to him at the table. Dulsur’s questioning glance evoked another smile from the High Chaplain."
"“I would rather not have us bellowing at one another across this absurdly large table, Grand Master.”"
"“I suppose that could be tiring after a while, though I hope our talk will not take too long, High Chaplain.”"
"“I do not think it will but let me first thank you for making the trip from Ibani, I realize that your office is one with many demands on your time. I am sorry that I am perhaps adding to them.”"
"“All courtesies aside, your own time has surely been fully occupied these last few weeks, not least yesterday. I admit to being curious as to what is so important that we must meet in person here.” Dulsur waved vaguely around the room. “But one point first, I marked your words to Fayez. You said ‘the other Heirs’ when speaking of Garkeh Khanid. What does that mean?”"
"“Ah, there you come very much to the point, Grand Master. Very much to the point. Put simply it means that the right of Garkeh Khanid to lay a claim to the Throne of Holy Amarr will be recognized as valid by the Privy Council and Theology Council. This was agreed in certain discussions I was party to yesterday. I have no doubt it will be formally agreed by the councils and proclaimed within days.”"
"Dulsur was thunderstruck at this but managed to contain his astonishment. He nodded slowly and decided to attack."
"“I see that the capacity of the pretender houses for blasphemy and heresy is undiminished even when it comes to their very own unholy interpolations into Scripture.”"
"Sufrin was clearly pained by these words and looked at his two companions. The man remained impassive. The woman smiled and shrugged. Sufrin nodded and turned back to Dulsur."
"“Grand Master, your Order figured heavily in the informal discussions between the Royal Houses and those others of us with some, let us say, influence in this matter. This was no idle fancy or bizarre gambit by any one house. It’s true that there was disagreement but in the end the compromise was reached and you have your part to play in it.”"
"“We have our part to play in it? Do you actually have any idea what part the paladins of my Order would like to play in it, High Chaplain?”"
"“I can well imagine,” replied Sufrin drily. “Be that as it may, little in this affair is palatable to anyone except perhaps our present host.” Sufrin reached inside his robes and drew out a datapad. He glanced at it before sliding it along the table until it lay in reach of Dulsur. “This will explain everything.”"
"Dulsur looked at the slim
�Assassination, you mean,� interrupted Sirdan xer Qosh.;;
Okonaya�s frown deepened slightly but she went on, �Our policy has been revisited after each major event in the current crisis. Our conclusions have remained the same. There is not yet enough information on which to base an intervention plan. That being so, we maintain the policy of containment, bearing in mind our paramount directives must continue to be the priority of the organization.�;;
There were nods and murmurs of assent from the others seated around the table even as xer Qosh shook his head in annoyance.;;
�Again, it is all very well for CONCORD officials and those from empires who think themselves to have limited exposure to take this line,� here Sirdan xer Qosh jabbed fingers in quick succession at President Okonaya and the Caldari and Minmatar nominees. �But the peoples of our empires are becoming aware of the problem. You must know this more than anyone here, Malate, what say you?� This last was addressed to Devan Malate, the Gallente Federation�s nominee.;;
Malate shrugged. �It�s obvious we have great media attention turned on the Drifters, and no shortage of incidents being covered given the extent of our territory but ultimately it�s just one more story competing with the everyday issues of our citizens. People are not as concerned with what goes on in space as you may believe.�;;
�The capsuleers are though. What of them? They are constantly stirring up trouble. Always going into Anoikis or messing about in ancient ruins. Then they blare their asinine speculations to the whole of New Eden. What of them?�;;
�What, indeed, of them?� asked Matshi Raish as he stepped into the pool of light that surrounded the empty, ninth seat at the table.;;
The men and women sitting around the table sat stunned for a moment but Seri Okonaya was quick to recover her composure. �Matshi Raish, we had thought your long absence from interstellar affairs indicated your death, it is good to see you are alive, though your presence here demands a very clear explanation.�;;
�Never mind about that, this man directly interfered with Her Imperial Majesty�s ship only weeks before the Drifter attack that killed her!� Sirdan xer Qosh stood up and pointed at Raish. �This man is involved with the Drifters in some way, he should be interrogated immediately!�;;
�I would counsel very strongly against taking precipitate action against my person or indeed the Society. The death of Empress Jamyl is regrettable but, as she herself so obviously appreciated, was necessary.�;;
Seeing xer Qosh was close to exploding, Seri Okonaya quickly cut across the Amarr and questioned Raish. �What do you mean by her death being necessary? Surely you realize that such a remark calls for precisely the treatment that Captain Marshal xer Qosh demands? I do not know how you entered this chamber unannounced but you will not leave it so easily.� Okonaya knew that by now a range of automated weaponry, of kinds both lethal and incapacitating, were trained on the Society elder.;;
By way of answer, Raish smiled, stepped forward to the table and placed his hand on the neurochemical reader that sat discreetly by the empty, ninth seat. A clear, harmonious tone sounded. A tone that everyone around the table knew signified the reader�s recognition that the person activating it was an authorized member of the Inner Circle.;;
Seri Okonaya slowly stood up, her mask of composure now entirely gone. �How is this possible?� She pointed at the reader. �That device is set to acknowledge only the authorized nominee of the Jove Empire. It can�t possibly recognize you. It won�t recognize anyone. They�re all gone.�;;
�They are indeed, for the most part, gone. Certainly the Jove Empire and the Jovian Directorate are no longer functioning entities. To that extent, the Jove are gone. But they did not leave without setting their affairs in order.�;;
Okonaya had noticed a growing number of alerts scrolling down her screens and bent to look at them quickly, before looking back up at Raish in amazement. �You have reactivated the Jove participation protocols. You have access to every aspect of CONCORD operations. How?�;;
Matshi Raish smiled again, sat down in his place and clasped his hands together. �It is quite simple. The Society of Conscious Thought have inherited the mantle of the Jovian Directorate. From this point onwards, we are the fifth point of the star.�;;
Seri Okonaya slowly sat back down, looked at her displays again, then looked Raish in the eye and nodded slightly.;;
Raish nodded back and steepling his fingers leaned back in his chair. �Now, what can you tell me about the Upwell Consortium?�;;
"tablescraper-selected-row"
"Khanid Region, Ibani System,"
"“The Order of St. Tetrimon welcomes Her Royal Highness Jamyl Sarum home. God’s children rejoice as His light returns home, and the light shall bring death and despair on His enemies.”"
"Grand Master Groven Horm finished speaking, entered two priority commands and turned off his terminal. He sat back from his desk and contemplated the future that was now unfolding in the heart of the Amarr Empire. He looked over at the narrow windows of his work room, noting the weak light of distant Ibani filtering through the layers of glass and air that helped to keep the heat of the room from wasting out into the frigid realm of the sixth planet. It was the middle of the day here at Teakh tak-Teakh."
"Horm got up and walked over to the nearest window. He stood there, gazing out at the wind-blown banks of snow that stretched from the foot of the mountains here, to the distant peaks of the next great range to the south. As always, when he contemplated this world, his thoughts wandered to the ironies of the Order’s exile here. A grim smile played about his lips until his reverie was interrupted by the sound of raised voices in the corridor beyond his chambers."
"The Grand Master steeled himself, returned to his desk and sat in his chair. The voices had quieted and Horm turned his terminal back on. He glanced at his intel and news feeds, reassuring himself that the situation in the Empire was contained. There was a firm double knock at the door."
"“Enter,” said Grand Master Horm."
"***"
"Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon, Seneschal of the Order and Master of the Mother Chapter, had been in the main hangar bay overseeing preparations for the Order’s combat ships here to lift off and join the main Tetrimon fleet assembling over Ibani VI. The Grand Master had been incommunicado since news of the Minmatar invasion but Khemon had understood that Horm was likely deep in discussions with the Khanid and Amarr commands. As Seneschal, he was quite prepared and empowered to take the initiative absent any instructions from the Grand Master. The other Chapter Masters had been in full agreement with his provisional plans and were even now preparing their own flotillas with a view to the combined Order fleet making rendezvous in the Amafi system."
"Dulsur had been about to make a brief call to his wife when the news of Jamyl Sarum’s appearance over Mekhios ripped through the cavernous hangar like wildfire. In moments, the shouting was turning to cheering as the destruction of the Minmatar Fleet at the hands of Sarum became known. His own instinctive shock and rage at what could only be a blasphemy turned to amazement as he accessed the intel feed on his hand terminal. Using some kind of unknown weapons technology, Jamyl Sarum had destroyed the enemy fleet over Mekhios and was even now rallying the Imperial Navy to strike at the remaining Minmatar fleets. The priority now was to destroy the enemy fleet operating in Kor-Azor Region, precisely the region of the Empire closest at hand to the Order’s forces."
"Exulting in the prospect of joining battle against the subhumans alongside the Imperial Navy, Dulsur was about to begin hurrying the preparations anew when the hangar bay’s announcement system blared its priority message warning. He stopped in his tracks and turned to the nearest speaker array."
"The voice was clearly the Grand Master’s and Dulsur winced at such an effusive welcome to a heretic who had apparently cheated on her sacred duty. Yet this was no doubt the price for the Order being permitted to join in the defense of Holy Amarr. They had swallowed worse indignities before now."
"When the announcement system broadcast the ‘stand down’ signal, his immediate reaction was that it was some error. When he saw the signal flashing on a nearby screen, he checked his terminal and was astounded to see the stand down order confirmed in the name of the Grand Master. Now the shock and rage returned and his throat seemed to close as he struggled to master his emotions."
"By now, the hangar was in chaos as everyone looked to their comrades in confusion and anger. Dulsur glanced at his five personal guards, hard men and women, devout even by the standards of the Order. He could see the cold rage that was dominating his thoughts mirrored on their faces. Dulsur gestured to them like a man bringing a boarding axe down and left the hangar bay with his guards forming a wake behind him."
"To get to the Grand Master’s chambers they could have taken an elevator and made a relatively short walk along the corridors of the upper donjon. Dulsur chose to climb and stride through the many stairways and passages required to walk from the hangar to the donjon. Though his anger urged haste on him, knowing that his inner turmoil should not take him over had led him to make the longer walk. By the time he and his guard approached the entry to the Grand Master’s work room, he was in full control of himself."
"Standing sentinel at the door were two of the Grand Master’s guard, including Udo, the Paladin Senioris of the Order. Dulsur feared no-one in single combat but Udo was among a select few that the Seneschal deeply respected as a formidable warrior capable of besting anyone on his day, despite his advanced years. Udo had shifted his stance to meet the advancing knights, his guard partner moving to support his offhand a pace behind him."
"“Lord Seneschal, if you have business with the Grand Master it must await his pleasure.” The Senioris respectfully inclined his head."
"“Senioris, please give the Grand Master notice that I wish to speak with him and allow me entry.” Dulsur was in no mood for protocol and delay but there was no reason to speak poorly here."
"The old paladin shook his head. “Forgive me but I cannot. The Grand Master has instructed me to guard the privacy of his chambers during this emergency. He will see no-one and receive no notices.”"
"Dulsur was about to reply when one of his own guards pushed forward and shouted an oath in Udo’s face. “Damn you, the Empire is in flames and we sit on this ball of ice doing nothing. The Seneschal will be seen!” Udo’s stance shifted again, his hands readying for action but he remained impassive in the face of the insult."
"Dulsur pulled his man back, marking who it was and shouted on his own account. “Be silent! Know your place and get out of my sight!” His guard, Joakhim, reddened and looked as if he would question this order. Dulsur raised his hand to his own weapon and repeated in a low, deadly tone, “Get out of my sight.” The man bowed his head and retreated back down the corridor."
"The Seneschal turned back to the Grand Master’s personal guards. “What is my office, Udo?”"
"“You are the Seneschal of the Order, Lord Dulsur.”"
"“Indeed, and what is my rank?”"
"“You are Chapter Master, here at the Mother Chapter, Lord Dulsur.”"
"“Then on your cognizance of my office and rank, I invoke my privilege to enter the presence of the Grand Master on a matter of utmost peril.”"
"The Paladin Senioris considered these words and again inclined his head. “I am sworn to the Order, yours is the right but these others may not enter with you.”"
"Dulsur sensed his remaining guards bristle at this but nodded and held up his hand in a gesture of dismissal to his retainers. Udo’s partner returned to station as the Senioris knocked at the door to the Grand Master’s work room."
"Groven Horm watched as Udo showed Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon into his chambers and stood at the door."
"“That’s all right, Udo. The Seneschal and I will speak privately.”"
"The Senioris nodded and closed the door behind him as he left. Horm waited as his Seneschal walked over and stood before the ornate wooden desk that dominated the otherwise austere work room. A moment passed and it was evident the younger man would not speak first. Horm shook his head slightly."
"“Khemon. Please, sit and give me your thoughts. I see them near bursting forth as it is, you may as well speak your piece.”"
"Dulsur nodded and sat in one of the scattering of chairs readily available for private conference here. He still did not speak for a moment and Horm understood that he was fighting for self-control."
"“Grand Master, I am confused by your actions. Surely yours is a wisdom that escapes me but I would respectfully ask for explanation.”"
"“Khemon, we are two fellows in the Order here. There is no need for ceremony, speak freely and in fraternity.”"
"Dulsur nodded. “Very well. Groven, what is the meaning of all this? You welcome home either a heretic who has denied her sacred oaths or worse, now that I think it, an imposter and deceiver. Yes, it seems she has saved the Empire from ruin at Mekhios. The reports continue to confirm this,” he tapped his hand terminal. “I took your message for a piece of diplomatic coin to buy our passage and assurance of allied status in the Empire but then…”"
"“Then, I issued the stand down order. I understand your confusion. I fear that I will not be able to allay your concerns in full. My son, my dear friend and comrade, you are of the line of our noble exemplar. You may very well sit where I sit one day. I hope and pray it so. Yet there are things that I cannot simply tell you that you may understand. I have to ask you to keep faith. To have faith.”"
"“Is this all you can say to me, Groven? You invoke faith as if I am no more than an acolyte fresh from the ranks of the novices? You pray in aid St. Tetrimon and my own blood? What is this between a Grand Master and his Seneschal? Is this how you will explain it to the other Chapter Masters?”"
"Grand Master Horm smiled sadly. “Yes, Khemon, this is exactly how I will explain it to the others. Do not think I take you lightly or believe that I abuse you or injure faith in this matter.” Horm paused a moment then spoke in a firmer tone."
"“I am the Grand Master, and I tell you this, the Empire is saved and will be made stronger than it was before today. A great heresy is even now being undone, not founded. We will see a new princeps upon the throne and I tell you that this will be the one who has saved the Empire. We shall do nothing to imperil this. Nothing.”"
"Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon sat stunned at this, clearly the throes of his anger had left him and been replaced by wonder. After a moment he stood and bowed to Horm."
"“I hear your command, Grand Master, and I obey.”"
"Horm watched, his sad smile returned, as the man who had come to be as a son to him left the room. He closed his eyes and sat for a moment before returning to his window. The eyes that now looked out at the ice and snow of Ibani VI were bright with moisture."
"Fortress Teakh tak-Teakh,"
"“Grand Master Groven Horm, you have been brought before this Council of the Chapters to answer for your judgment in the matter of the Order’s doctrinal attitude to the rule of the one enthroned as Empress Jamyl I, previously known as Jamyl Sarum."
"“Further, your instructions as to doctrine have been accompanied by direction of the Order’s policies with regard to the Amarr Empire, Khanid Kingdom and Ammatar Mandate. These policies also entailed an absolute restriction on activity that would aid Holy Amarr’s war with the rebel provinces and the infidel Federation."
"“This Council charges that you have injured faith and broken the compact of this Order of St. Tetrimon. Your failure to supply any arguments of reason in aid of your call to faithfulness in these matters, even despite the gravity of recent events, gives this Council grounds to consider stripping you of your great office of Grand Master. Can you answer this charge?”"
"Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon laid his hand terminal to one side and looked the Grand Master in the eye. Horm was sitting at a table that had been placed so as to be at the center of a line that might be drawn from one end of the half-circle formed by the Council’s meeting table to the other. The Grand Master was looking his age but cut a dignified figure that nevertheless wore his martial green, copper-trimmed robes of office lightly. Those robes echoed the notes of green and copper incorporated into the numerous chapter gonfalons hanging from the walls of the council chamber."
"Horm wore on his face that sad smile Dulsur had grown accustomed to in the months since the Battle of Mekhios. The Seneschal nodded slightly to his erstwhile mentor and waited for the other to speak."
"“Ah, my brothers and sisters, do you truly believe that faith must be justified at the time of its greatest testing? Have I been so neglectful that these are the straits the Order is in? To lose sight of what we stand for, even today when the truth has so long been at bay?”"
"“Groven, you are in peril of your position and future here.” The speaker was Chapter Master Aelis Zhovoar from Sakht, a silver-haired woman of great charismatic force. “This is more of the same talk you have leaned on since the heretic took the throne.”"
"“How is it you call the Empress of Holy Amarr a heretic? You are aware of the supernatural signs. All the other Royal Heirs bowed to the divine will. The Theology Council confirmed it and, yes, this counts for little in our reckoning but did not the Apostles also pledge fealty?”"
"“The Apostles can do no other or they join us in exile. We long ago accepted that the Apostles must remain at the heart of Holy Amarr while we stand vigil without. But this means that they are not free to speak their hearts. It is of no moment that they pledged fealty in the face of the deceiver’s might.” This was Chapter Master Okkarin an-Ardishapur, an ancient presence who had long been a thorn in Horm’s flesh, even from his fastness hidden deep in Querious."
"“Am I to understand, then, that this Council arrogates to itself the determination of what constitutes signification of the divine will? What then of the judgment of our protector, the King?” Horm’s tone now was acid with irony, no great love here for Garkeh Khanid, despite his patronage of the Order."
"Shaking his head in dismay, Dulsur responded before any of the others. “The position of the King is not in question at this meeting. How the thawing of relations between Kingdom and Empire affects this Order will no doubt concern us at another time. But not now. Let me also forestall you on the point of the arch-heretic Karsoth. Yes, you have been vindicated on the issue of his fall and the revelation that a vile nest of Blooders had penetrated so deeply into the Empire. Many mysteries have been clarified. Not least how it was that an Emperor was assassinated within the precincts of the Imperial Palace."
"“This is all beside the point. We are all aware of what has followed and what gives grave cause for doubting the hand of the divine is truly at work through the person of Jamyl Sarum. Is it truly the act of a just and holy sovereign to intrude on the most basic rights temporal and religious of her loyal Holders? The so-called ‘emancipation’ is an abomination that has allowed untold numbers of slaves to escape from the dominion of Amarr and into the arms of the rebels. Not only that, bad enough as it is, how has she treated those who stood upon their God given rights?”"
"“Like an empress,” interjected Horm."
"“Like a mad empress would! This is to trample on the rights of the Holders to oversee the Reclaiming within their fiefs, according to their obligations and those of their lieges to them, and so on. The True Faith has rested on the bonds of fealty and faith owed to both high and low for millennia. Now this heretic upon the throne would destroy that!”"
"Horm chuckled and shook his head. “Have I taught you nothing of our history? Of the history of the Empire and our people? The system you believe to have survived until this past couple of weeks was brought down centuries ago. The Moral Reforms achieved that and we alone preserve the true memory of it in practice and in faith. But you are confusing memory with reality. You allow the illusion maintained by the very ones you disdain as in error to cloud your vision.”"
"“Enough! Do you know what was done in her name but yesterday? You do know it. We all know it. To free subhumans to join the rebels, noble Holder houses were bombarded from orbit. Bombarded, murdered, declared slaves along with their families and loyal retainers. This done in the name of God only knows what base evil moves her. And you have no answer to the charges but more talk of faith in a future that only you can see. It is not enough.”"
"“Aye,” spoke Okkarin an-Ardishapur. “It is not enough.”"
"“It is not enough, Groven,” said Aelis Zhovoar shaking her head sadly."
"Horm looked around the table as more voices joined the chorus. “It is not enough,” they all said. He nodded and allowed himself to slump back in his chair, deep exhaustion mingling with strange relief."
"“Groven Horm, this Council of the Chapters finds you have injured faith and broken the compact of this Order of St. Tetrimon. We therefore strip from you the office and rank of Grand Master. You are reduced to a brother penitent. Who on this Council dissents?” Dulsur looked around the table. There was the absolute silence, the total stillness, of all holding their breath. “Very well, it is so found and ordered.”"
"Brother Groven Horm nodded once and closed his eyes."
"Fortress Teakh tak-Teakh,"
"Grand Master Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon climbed the spiral staircase of the Penitent’s Tower slowly, deep in thought as his mind worked through the implications of the news from Amarr. The Empire was in turmoil but the situation did not seem critical. There had been no follow up attacks and he had merely placed the Order’s fleets on the highest state of readiness. Now he was on his way to consult a man who had once been his mentor and master, and now, after the passage of some years, had become an oracular advisor of sorts."
"Dulsur reached the highest level of penitent cells and turned into the corridor. A wan light streamed through the narrow window at the end of the passage. Noon here on Ibani VI. The old man would be sitting by his window. That was good, Dulsur knew. He knocked at the door to the end cell. A courtesy."
"“Please enter,” said Brother Groven, his voice muffled by the thick cell door."
"As Dulsur had expected, the older man was sitting by the window, gazing out at the blue-white expanse stretching away from these mountains to the far southern peaks at the horizon. The cell was very austerely furnished with cot, plain desk and two chairs. All normal, a penitent would regularly be visited by a confessor or chaplain. The shelf of the desk had some books in it and this was also normal. The only startling feature of the small room was a bookcase well stocked with works of several kinds. This was a luxury that Dulsur had allowed Groven Horm in view of his service."
"“How are you today, Groven?”"
"“No better, Khemon. Perhaps worse. I can no longer tell, I am afraid.”"
"Dulsur hesitated at that. His news might be too much for the old man. Yet he sorely needed the insights of a man who had foretold much that had happened in the last seven years."
"“Groven, the Empress is dead.”"
"Groven Horm had seemed to shrink these last few years, age and isolation taking its toll, but at this news he seemed to collapse within his penitent’s robe."
"“How?” whispered Horm."
"“I have told you of the so-called ‘Drifters’. The new threat from Anoikis. They are responsible. A swift strike on the Empress’s ship. They destroyed an Avatar-class with her aboard it. There were no survivors.”"
"“None?” asked Horm, turning to look up at Dulsur."
"“None have been reported and the Empress is most certainly dead.” Dulsur sat in the empty chair. “There have been no further attacks. The situation appears to be under control and the Empire seems to be in no immediate danger.”"
"“No immediate danger,” repeated Horm in tones of wonder."
"“Groven, I know that this is shocking to you. I know that you had always placed great hope in the reign of Jamyl. Hope that I still do not understand but have come to respect.”"
"“How can you respect it when you still believe it to be in error, my son?”"
"“Groven, please, this is no time for our argument. I need your wisdom.”"
"“Truly?” Horm had turned his eyes on Dulsur’s and the Grand Master noted they still had that old force."
"“Truly. Half a decade in your shoes has taught me enough to value your counsel, Groven. Please believe that.”"
"“I believe it, Khemon. But I can only ask you a question. How deeply have you read of your family’s works?”"
"“My family? I do not understand you. You mean our inspiration? St. Tetrimon?” Dulsur was beginning to wonder if the old man was in shock and babbling."
"“Your entire line, Khemon. All those who have carried the noble name of Tetrimon. How far have you read into their writings?”"
"“I have read enough of their history. Their doings and achievements. Perhaps a little of their works on Scripture, the Apocryphon.”"
"“Have you read the commentaries of Tetrimon the Fourth on the Apocryphon?”"
"“No,” Dulsur thought he had probably glanced at them as a novice but this was not reading them."
"“I believe that the only counsel I can give you today is to read them. His ‘Testament’ is unquestionably the mature expression of his ideas. Here now, you can have my copy.” Horm reached across to his desk and picked up a volume lying flat on the top."
"Accepting the book silently from the old man, Dulsur stared at his mentor a moment before looking at the volume in his hands. The cover had the words ‘The Final Testament of Tetrimon IV’ lightly embossed on the front. He opened it, noting how well-used this copy was. The frontispiece had a passage from the Apocryphon quoted in full."
"My word lies within all,"
"Dulsur shook his head slightly and thumbed through the book. It was heavily annotated in a hand that he knew to be Groven Horm’s. Dulsur looked up."
"“I cannot take this. This is your study copy, isn’t it?”"
"“Yes, indeed. But I have no need of it now. You should have it. I want you to have it. Also, it is the answer to your request for counsel. You should read the book.”"
"“You can tell me nothing more?” Dulsur felt vast disappointment. It was clear the old man’s mind was overwhelmed by the news of Jamyl’s death."
"“I fear not.” Horm hesitated, he seemed to want to say something more, then collapsed back in his chair again. “I am tired, Khemon.”"
"“Of course, I will let you rest.” Dulsur stood up and opened the cell door."
"“Khemon,” Horm whispered."
"The Grand Master turned in the doorway and waited."
"“I am glad it is you, Khemon. Be true, my son.”"
"Dulsur nodded, not trusting himself to speak and left the cell with bright eyes."
"Later, in the night, Grand Master Khemon Dulsur an-Tetrimon received word that Brother Groven Horm had been discovered dead by his evening confessor. He had apparently died peacefully in his sleep."
"Khanid Region, Molea System,"
"They had docked at the border post almost an hour ago and Khemon Dulsur was becoming impatient. The journey he had just made was significantly longer than the journey from the Throne Worlds. He knew his irritation was unfair to the person who had requested this meeting but it was a way of displacing his unease at the situation. Much as the Order had long lived at the sufferance of Garkeh Khanid, sitting at a table in a Khanid Navy installation was rather too pointed a reminder of this for Dulsur’s taste."
"Dulsur glanced at the Khanid officer sitting a little way down the oval conference table that filled a room for which it had clearly not been designed. Colonel General Soshan Fayez had struck Dulsur as a hard but shrewd man upon meeting him in the hangar bay of the border post. Dulsur had also noted the Khanid ancestry of the soldier and the Uhlans insignia on his uniform. An experienced, elite soldier. Garkeh not missing a trick in his messaging."
"“General Fayez, do you have any word of your other visitors?”"
"“I believe their ship has just docked. They should be joining us momentarily, Grand Master.”"
"Dulsur nodded and resolved to show no further emotion for however long ‘momentarily’ might actually be. As it turned out, a few minutes later a chime sounded at the door and the General got up to welcome the delegation from Amarr."
"Into the room came a tall, handsome man of advancing years but clearly hale, and striking Dulsur immediately as a person of some perspicacity. From his ornate yet dignified robes, it was clear that this must be High Chaplain Kalefa Sufrin an-Kador of the Emperor Family. Two others accompanied Sufrin, a man wearing similar but much less ornate robes and a woman wearing a military uniform that Dulsur recognized as that of the Imperial Guard."
"Dulsur stood up and walked half-way around the table to meet the High Chaplain, who had swiftly advanced with his hands extended. They clasped hands, Dulsur somewhat taken aback by the warmth of the gesture from Sufrin."
"“General Fayez,” the High Chaplain turned to the Khanid officer. “The other Heirs saw no need to have representatives present, nor would I have agreed to it. I see no reason why His Majesty should benefit from your attendance at my meeting with the Grand Master.”"
"Dulsur started at the words ‘the other Heirs’ but all the same caught the flush that darkened Fayez’s features. The Khanid officer hesitated then nodded and left the room. High Chaplain Kalefa Sufrin an-Kador watched him go before turning back to Dulsur."
"“That was perhaps a rather superfluous act,” Sufrin waved at the ceiling of the room, smiling wryly, and Dulsur immediately took his meaning according as it did with his own assumptions. “However, a man in my position must insist on the appearances, even if the reality is not quite as we would wish it. Shall we sit?”"
"Dulsur nodded curtly and returned to his seat. As he lowered himself into the chair, he noted that Sufrin had followed him and sat almost next to him at the table. Dulsur’s questioning glance evoked another smile from the High Chaplain."
"“I would rather not have us bellowing at one another across this absurdly large table, Grand Master.”"
"“I suppose that could be tiring after a while, though I hope our talk will not take too long, High Chaplain.”"
"“I do not think it will but let me first thank you for making the trip from Ibani, I realize that your office is one with many demands on your time. I am sorry that I am perhaps adding to them.”"
"“All courtesies aside, your own time has surely been fully occupied these last few weeks, not least yesterday. I admit to being curious as to what is so important that we must meet in person here.” Dulsur waved vaguely around the room. “But one point first, I marked your words to Fayez. You said ‘the other Heirs’ when speaking of Garkeh Khanid. What does that mean?”"
"“Ah, there you come very much to the point, Grand Master. Very much to the point. Put simply it means that the right of Garkeh Khanid to lay a claim to the Throne of Holy Amarr will be recognized as valid by the Privy Council and Theology Council. This was agreed in certain discussions I was party to yesterday. I have no doubt it will be formally agreed by the councils and proclaimed within days.”"
"Dulsur was thunderstruck at this but managed to contain his astonishment. He nodded slowly and decided to attack."
"“I see that the capacity of the pretender houses for blasphemy and heresy is undiminished even when it comes to their very own unholy interpolations into Scripture.”"
"Sufrin was clearly pained by these words and looked at his two companions. The man remained impassive. The woman smiled and shrugged. Sufrin nodded and turned back to Dulsur."
"“Grand Master, your Order figured heavily in the informal discussions between the Royal Houses and those others of us with some, let us say, influence in this matter. This was no idle fancy or bizarre gambit by any one house. It’s true that there was disagreement but in the end the compromise was reached and you have your part to play in it.”"
"“We have our part to play in it? Do you actually have any idea what part the paladins of my Order would like to play in it, High Chaplain?”"
"“I can well imagine,” replied Sufrin drily. “Be that as it may, little in this affair is palatable to anyone except perhaps our present host.” Sufrin reached inside his robes and drew out a datapad. He glanced at it before sliding it along the table until it lay in reach of Dulsur. “This will explain everything.”"
"Dulsur looked at the slim