The Universe, 3030

[Charles Maxwell]

The Wayfarer Inn
Pittston, Sheratan V
Sheratan System - Tikonov Free Republic
October 4, 3030 - later that morning
______________________________________________

My comm unit chirped, awaking me with a start. I hadn't been sleeping very well - I mean, who would, after getting a 3 AM phone call from an AI telling you that one of your mission specialists had been incarcerated and was facing extradition by two major powers, one of whom was acting legitimately, while the other, less so? I'd tried to get through to Orlex, but wherever he was - presumably, the medical center - he didn't have service. And so, when the communicator started demanding attention, I was almost immediately alert and slapping my way around the nightstand, trying to find the handlink. Alyssa stirred in her sleep but didn't wake as I grabbed the unit and thumbed the 'receive' button.

"Maxwell. Go ahead," I began, putting the device to my ear.

"Captain," came Jaeger's voice, sounding relieved. "We were successful. We even managed to appropriate his blood samples."

"That's good to hear," I replied, sitting down on the edge of the bed and absent-mindedly rubbing the side of my face while glancing toward the nearby window, which framed a spectacular view of the rising Sheratan sun. "What's the situation?"

"He's in really rough shape, but Mallory and Curie think he'll make it," the commander explained. "Apparently, the nanites did everything they needed to do to keep him alive, but he's still going to require human medical intervention."

"Is he conscious?" I asked.

"In and out. Mal's got him in an isolation bed in the infirmary. It's touch and go. But he's safe, and, as far as I'm aware, no one's the wiser," Orlex answered.

"Yet," I sighed, glancing back at Alyssa, who had rolled over and was now watching me, her eyes groggy but intense, the sunlight spilling across her pale skin and accentuating her features in contrasts of light and shadow. "Where do we stand with the...galactic powers vying for his custody? God, I can't believe I'm even asking that. It sounds like something out of a ridiculous sci-fi movie."

"It really does," Jaeger chuckled after a moment's pause. "But to answer your question, it looks like the Federated Commonwealth has officially petitioned for extradition on the grounds that he deserted the military, and that he committed treason by failing to turn over Eclipse to the LCAF - not that he ever possessed the AI to begin with, but apparently, the Archon wants to reject reality and substitute her own in this instance, no matter how flaky the charge."

"And we don't even need to get into the Capellans' accusations, since it's normal boilerplate for any mercenaries against whom they lose," I added. "What does concern me is whether or not the Tikonov Free Republic is gonna actually bend to the extradition requests."

"Do you want me to contact the Prefect and see what he'd be willing to do?" the commander inquired. I leaned back against the bed's headboard and thought about it. Alyssa, meanwhile, draped her arm across my chest and watched me, her eyes now clear, the rays of the morning casting long shadows along her bare shoulders.

"What do you think?" I asked her. Alyssa pursed her lips in thought before replying.

"I don't know. On the one hand, he already came poking around, trying to hand Nick over to the Capellans previously. So, it's not like he's unaware of the situation," she began. "But on the other hand, it could be a fantastic negotiating point if he doesn't want to fall from the good graces of the only mercenary unit operating out of Sheratan. I mean, we are the only ones, right?"

"That we are," I confirmed before turning my attention back to the comm unit. "Alright, here's what we're going to do. I want you to see if you can find an angle by which Gantulga can tactfully - and I do mean tactfully - be persuaded to not extradite Schuster to either the Lyrans or the Capellans."

"I'll see what I can pull off," Jaeger replied.

"Good. In the meantime, I think I have an ace up my sleeve for dealing with the Federated Commonwealth. I'll be in touch. Right now, I want you to keep Nick on base and focused on his recovery."

"Yes, Captain," Jaeger replied before signing off. I ended the call and set the handlink back down on the nightstand.

"An ace up your sleeve?" Alyssa asked, her expression bemused. "What do you have planned?"

"Well," I began, laying back down with a sigh and putting my arms around her torso, "you're not going to like it."

Alyssa pushed gently away from me in response.

"I was afraid of that," she said. "But I have a feeling I'm going to like it even less when I find out what it is."

"Yeah. I need to go pay William a visit," I replied.

"What? Now? On our wedding planning trip?" Alyssa exclaimed, her voice incredulous.

"No, but as soon as we're done here. I don't think a call alone is going to get across the magnitude of betrayal I feel at learning that he'd installed surveillance gear on all of our hardware assets, no matter how well-intentioned I think he was being. And I want him to look me in the eyes as I explain to him what he stands to lose if he doesn't call in every favor with the Lyrans he's ever had and get them to quash this extradition demand."

"That's a tall order, Charles," Alyssa said after a moment, her voice more subdued.

"Yeah. But if there's anyone who can do it, it's William," I replied. I paused for a moment before continuing. "Besides which, I don't think there's anything in the universe that he'd let jeoparize his access to Nick's nanites."

Alyssa was quiet for a few moments before she finally sighed and nodded.

"You're right," she conceded, self-consciously gripping the sheets around her and looking away. "I just...really don't want you running off to New Earth the minute we get done with our wedding planning, even if I realize that there's no better choice and that you need to do this."

I reached out and took her chin in my hand, gently turning her face back toward me.

"I'll be back before you know it," I reassured her, leaning in to kiss her. "And then, we can pick up right where we left off."

[Levi Wright]

Infirmiry - Site 187
Outskirts of Gellen's Heights, Sheratan V
Sheratan System - Tikonov Free Republic
October 4, 3030, night
______________________________________________

I closed the door really quietly and let my eyes adjust to the dark. Nick was resting in one of the hospital beds - one of the ones that belonged here, not the one we’d stolen from Caledonia to be able to bust Nick out. He looked like crap, all pale and stuff, but at least he looked like crap in a peaceul way now. Definitely not humanburger like in my dream. He was also making this quiet almost-snoring noise, which meant he was breathing. There were no blinking red lights or anything on the machines by his bed, so he was probably fine.

The dumbass part of my brain was still convinced Nick was gonna, I don’t know, spontaneously explode or something if I went back to sleep, but I wasn’t gonna wake him up just to bug him, so I turned to go. But on the other hand, there were a few other wheelie beds in here, too. Mallory might not like it, but I could make something up if he noticed. I really had to get some sleep, we had a bunch of busted mechs and I was way behind on my work after having taken yesterday off.

So I got in one of the sick people beds next to Nick, really careful and quiet, only something was wrong with it and it made a horrible screeching noise and Nick yelled “whaA?!”

“Sorry Nick!” I whisper-yelled.

Nick rolled over and said “Levi?” He blinked at me a whole lot of times and I just sat there on the edge of the terrible squeaky bed, feeling embarrassed. Then Nick asked, “did you get sick?”

“I’m fine, I just had this super weird dream about driving that van with the shrieking fans in it, only the noise was coming from helicopter turbines that were bolted to the outside, and then it turned into a bus by the front half of a bus growing out the front of it and Steve’s gorilla was already in the driver seat with a cop uniform on and wouldn’t leave, so I had to get the turbines off from the inside while it was moving and they kept growing more and more and more bolts and then you waved at me from outside the bust like nothing was wrong and the gorilla was headed right for you with the helicopter blades chopping and I couldn’t get the steering wheel away from him and well, that’s why I had to come check on you.

Nick laid back down and said, “don’t worry about it. Mal gave me the good stuff. ‘s hard to stay awake, actully.”

“Will it bug you if I stay?”

Nick said “yeah, sure,” which I was pretty sure meant he didn’t mind, so I got the rest of the way into the bed. Luckily it seemed like it was only the rail for stopping people from falling out of bed that was squeaky.

“Goodnight, Nick,” I said.

Nick said “night,” and then after a minute, he said “thanks.”

“Huh?”

“For… worrying?”

“Anytime,” I said. “I’m good at that.”

I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to say goodnight again or not, but pretty soon after that Nick started making that cute almost-snoring noise, so it didn’t really matter. I didn’t know how we were gonna keep the cops from finding him again, but at least for now he was safe.

[Charles Maxwell]

Two weeks later...

Valhalla - Crayven Corporation Headquarters
Meredith, New Earth (Tau Ceti IV)
Federated Commonwealth
October 20, 3030
______________________________________________

By a stroke of luck, the liner aboard which I'd booked passage to New Earth was picked up by an old, majestic JumpShip equipped with a lithium-fusion battery, which shaved nearly a week off my travel time from Sheratan, and I now found myself standing in the opulent lobby of the Crayven Corporation's Atrium Building. I hadn't told William I was coming. I wanted to take him by surprise.

I approached the security desk and was greeted by a young officer who looked to be of Asian descent. "Welcome to the Crayven Corporation, sir. How may I help you?" she asked in a pleasant voice.

"I'm here to see William Kauffman," I replied.

"Do you have an appointment?" she inquired.

"No, I don't," I responded. "But he'll want to see me. I'm Charles Maxwell. Aegis Division."

The officer paused for a moment, the sound of the indoor waterfall and gentle music filling the awkward silence before she spoke again. "I'll have to check with General Kauffman's assistant. Please have a seat and I'll be with you shortly."

I took a seat in one of the luxurious chairs outside the security theater and waited. A few minutes later, the officer returned and motioned for me to follow her. After clearing through the body scanner and checking my weapons in a storage locker, I was led to a bank of express elevators. We rode up to the twenty-fifth floor in silence. When the doors opened, the officer escorted me down the familiar, richly-appointed corridor overlooking the city. A moment later, we arrived at the reception desk where William's executive assistant sat.

In an ironic twist of fate, the last time I'd been in this place, it was also for the purpose of confronting the CEO about betrayal by omission. And now, here I was again.

"Captain Maxwell here to see the General, sir," she explained before retreating back the way we'd come.

"General Kauffman is very busy," the assistant stated in a disinterested tone, his eyes never leaving his computer screen. "I'll be happy to take a message."

"I don't think so," I replied, allowing a degree of intensity to creep into my voice. "I'll wait."

The assistant's eyes flicked up to meet mine, and he must've seen something in my expression that made him change his mind, because he picked up a comm unit and buzzed William's office.

"Captain Maxwell is here to see you, sir," he advised. After a beat, he ended the call and motioned for me to go in.

I straightened my jacket and entered the office, coming to a stop just inside the door. The CEO had his back to me, gazing out of the arched window at the vista beyond, looking every bit the successful businessman.

"Captain Maxwell," he greeted me, his tone as cordial and airy as ever.

"Hello, William," I replied, dryly.

He turned to face me, a smile touching the corner of his mouth. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"

"You used my unit as bait to draw out an Irian kill team, and then you spied on me to find out what I knew about it," I accused.

The smile faded from his face, replaced by a look of mild surprise. "Is that what you think?"

"That's what I know," I retorted.

William sighed and walked over to his desk, taking a seat in his high-backed chair. "I'm afraid you're mistaken, Captain. Your unit was never meant to be bait. We knew that Irian was hunting for the mercenary unit that ended their recovery operation on Oberon VI. We couldn't directly track the kill team without obviating our involvement in that incident, so we needed to observe via proxy until they emerged from the shadows long enough for us to strike."

"And you thought the best way to do that was by installing surveillance equipment in my BattleMechs and sending Doctor Halsey to infiltrate my unit?" I asked, skeptically.

"Your words carry an implication to them that is not entirely accurate," William replied with a shrug. "But I can assure you, it was never my intention to put you or your people in danger. I would never knowingly do something like that."

I snorted in disbelief. "Why didn't you just ask for my help? Why intentionally withhold from us the fact that we had a Blake-damned pack of wolves nipping at our heels the entire time we were in the Quentin system?"

"It's not that simple, Charles," William explained, his tone pleading. "You have to understand, the Crayven Corporation has a lot of interests, and we can't afford to have them all fall apart because of one incident. We needed to contain the situation, and we couldn't do that if we involved you. I'm sorry."

"You're sorry?" I echoed, anger bubbling up inside of me. "You're sorry? That's not good enough, William. You put my people in danger. You put Alyssa in danger. I could've lost her because of your games."

William had the decency to look chagrined, but he quickly schooled his features back into that implacable mask he always wore.

"I understand your anger, Captain, but I can assure you, it was never my intention to hurt anyone. I hope you can see that. Had we tipped you off, Irian might have noted a change in your operations, and our chance to stop them would've been lost," he explained.

"I don't know what to believe anymore, William," I sighed, shaking my head. "I thought I could trust you, but now I don't know. I don't know what to think. This is the second time you've done something like this."

"I understand," he replied. "But I hope you can see that we're not the enemy here. We're on the same side."

I stared at him for a long moment, trying to see past the mask he wore to the man underneath. I wanted to believe him. I wanted to trust him. But I couldn't disregard what he'd done.

"I really don't want to lose my business relationship with you, General, but at this juncture, I need to see evidence that you're not the enemy," I finally retorted. "Aegis Division has taken its fair share of hits for you. Now, it's your turn to do the same."

"What would you have me do?" William inquired, gesturing toward one of the chairs set before his desk. "And please, take a seat, there's no need for you to stand on ceremony."

"I'll stand," I declined, crossing my arms. "I'm not going to stay long."

"As you wish," he conceded, his expression unreadable. "What do you want from me?"

"I want you to call the Lyrans off Nicholas Schuster, who you know better as Nathan Schmidt," I demanded. "They've issued an extradition order and had him arrested on Sheratan. He's facing charges of desertion and treason. You know the history. And I also know you're deeply in bed with the LCAF. I want you to use your influence to clear his name."

"I am truly sorry to hear of this development. But, surely you must understand that even I don't have that kind of influence," the General responded.

"I know you're about to seal a contract with the Federated Commonwealth that they desperately want," I countered.

"Do you?" Kauffman inquired with a curious expression.

"It's obvious from the sheer number of social generals milling around in your lobby right now," I answered. "If the execution of that contract were to hinge on a small political favor, I think you'll find that you do have that kind of influence."

William was silent for a long moment, his expression pensive, his fingers steepled in front of him as he regarded me. I met his gaze and held it, my expression blank.

"I'm not entirely certain how the Crayven Corporation benefits from doing so," the CEO responded in a thoughtful tone. "I mean no offense when I say this, Captain, but the loss of a business relationship with a small mercenary unit is hardly worth the risk of angering the Lyrans."

I strode forward and slammed my hands down on Kauffman's desk, leaning in until I could smell the executive's aftershave. It was a calculated move that I was certain constituted a major breach of decorum, but I didn't care. I wanted to get my point across.

"You don't benefit from it!" I replied, punctuating the words with another slap of the desktop. "This is for me. And for Nick. And for everyone else in Aegis Division who's put their lives on the line for you! We've earned this. And if you don't have the moral compass to process what I'm saying, at least consider what will happen to your nanite research if the only living host is locked away in a prison cell on Donegal!"

William's eyes widened fractionally at that, and I knew I had him. He may not have cared about the moral argument, but he cared about his research. And I was offering him a way to save face while still coming out ahead.

"I see," he nodded, slowly. "And what, exactly, do you propose?"

"I want you to have them drop the charges and call off the extradition petition," I seethed. "I want you to threaten to call off the contract signing if they don't."

"And if I do this, you'll continue to honor our business relationship?" he asked.

"I'll continue to honor the outstanding arrangements we have in place, yes," I replied. "But I don't know if I can ever trust you again, William. That remains to be seen."

The CEO was silent for a long moment before he finally nodded his head in acquiescence.

"Very well, Captain. I'll make the call."

[Catherine Halsey]

Valhalla - Crayven Corporation Headquarters
22nd floor (Research & Development)
Meredith, New Earth (Tau Ceti IV)
Federated Commonwealth
October 20, 3030
______________________________________________

"So, I gave our problem to the Deep Thought mainframe, and after an unbelievable number of cycles, it came up with a possible pharmaceutical solution to help induce an alpha-wave state in a human brain," I explained, slapping the call button for the lift that would take us down to Cybernetics Lab 2. "Of course, it's just a computer, so it could be wrong."

"But you're the artificial intelligence specialist," Chevy argued. "If anyone can figure out how to make a computer think, it's you."

"Flatterer," I chuckled as the lift arrived and we stepped inside. "Coming up with a design is only the first step. Actually formulating the drug and testing it on a living being is another thing entirely."

"That's where I come in," Rat answered. "Between my own pain management techniques and a few tricks I learned at M.I.T., I can probably get it figured out soon enough. Can you send me the Deep Thought file?"

I nodded as the lift stopped at the 17th floor to take on a few passengers. "I'll have J.T. send it over. He's been wanting to get his hands on some of your work, anyway."

"Oh, joy," Rat groaned, rolling her eyes. "I'll just be over here, trying not to puke my guts out."

"Doctor Halsey, can you explain to me the components of this wonder drug and how it's supposed to induce an alpha-wave state?" Chevy asked.

"Of course, Corporal," I replied. "An alpha state is essentially the opposite of what happens when your brain is in a beta, or stimulated state. Drugs such as caffeine and amphetamines raise the dopamine and norepinephrine levels in your brain, which in turn makes you more alert and increases your heart rate and blood pressure.

"Alpha waves, on the other hand, are low-frequency waves that are associated with relaxation and drowsiness. The proposed drug would work by inhibiting the reuptake of dopamine and norepinephrine, which would then allow the alpha waves to predominate and induce a state of relaxation. The trick will be to keep the subject capable of reasoning and making decisions. Otherwise, we're just putting them to sleep."

"So, it's basically a tranquilizer," Rat observed.

"In a sense, yes," I replied. "But it's a very specific kind of tranquilizer that would only affect the mind to the extent that a meditative state can be achieved and held until the drug wears off, regardless of what's going on around the subject. The goal is to enable the operator of the neural interface to remain calm and relaxed, but still be able to think clearly and make decisions."

"And you're sure this will work?" Chevy asked.

"Not entirely," I admitted. "But it's the best solution we've come up with so far. Deep Thought has a good track record with this sort of thing."

The elevator chimed as it arrived at the eighth floor, and we disembarked. Before us was the toroid ring of offices that comprised the cybernetics division. I led the way to Cybernetics Lab 2, the home of the quarantined Eclipse AI. Approaching the triple-locked door, I held my hand up to the biometrics scanner.

"Doctor Halsey, authorized access," I announced.

The door hissed open, and I gestured for Chevy and Rat to precede me into the lab. The first thing that struck me was the smell: a mixture of antiseptic and ozone that was almost overpowering. The second was the sight of the quantum computer holding Eclipse, a large, black cylinder at the far end of the chamber with a glowing green coolant circulating through its heat radiators.

"That's it?" Rat asked, wrinkling her nose. "It doesn't look like much."

"Appearances can be deceiving," I explained. "From what we can tell, Eclipse is one of the most advanced artificial intelligence programs ever created. Unfortunately, it's also one of the most unstable and uncooperative. We've never gotten very far with it. That's why it's been locked away in here and vitrified for the past year. But you already know that; you've been working with Cheviot long enough to have read all the reports."

"Yeah, I have," Rat nodded. "I just never thought about what the thing looked like in person. It's kind of...creepy."

"I assure you, its personality is far 'creepier' than its looks," I responded. "Now, if you'll follow me, I'll show you the modifications that Doctor Kucera made to the neural interface once Deep Thought made its breakthrough."

I led them over to a small room off to the side that contained a reclining chair with a modified neurohelmet suspended above it.

"This is the new version of the neural interface," I explained. "It uses a technique that several of us cobbled together while I was embarked with Aegis Division in the Quentin system to eliminate the need for a cranial jack. Now, anyone can interface with the AI, not just those who have been augmented like Rat and General Kauffman."

Corporal Cheviot scrutinized the build. "Is that a MechWarrior's helmet? Are you sure that modifying a piloting device for a BattleMech to do something like what we're proposing is safe?"

"There have been some...side effects," I admitted. "Most notably, short-term memory loss and a general feeling of disorientation. Both of which are to be expected, given the nature of what we're asking the human brain to do. However, we've found that the neural interface can be used for short periods of time without any ill effects. It's only when it's used for extended periods, or the computer with which it is communicating throttles the data rate too high, that problems occur."

"What's the crash cart for?" Rat asked, walking around to the opposite side of the chair and looking closely at an array of medical monitors and equipment.

"In the event that something does happen, we need to be able to stabilize the subject's condition and get them to a hospital as quickly as possible," I replied. "We had an...incident...with Aegis Division's interface, but fortunately, we've never lost anyone."

"Yet," Rat muttered.

"The crash cart will also contain the drug delivery system. Doctor Kucera recommends it be delivered via an intravenous drip to ensure a consistent dosage." I paused, looking at each of them in turn. "Are there any other questions?"

"Yeah," Rat replied. "Can you get me the unredacted report about the Aegis Division incident? I want to know what we're getting into here. I'd also like to interview that subject, if it's possible, so that I can get a better understanding of what triggered these so-called side effects."

"I'll see what I can do," I nodded. "In the meantime, why don't you get started on formulating the drug? I'll get you the Deep Thought file and any personnel you might need from the chemical labs."

"Sounds good to me," Rat acknowledged. "You mind if I set up in here?"

"Not at all," I replied. "Just...don't touch the AI. That includes your rodents. Cheviot, help Rat out in any way necessary. We've got a lot of work to do if we're going to get this right."

With that, I turned on my heel and returned to the lifts, pulling out my comm unit. My first call was to J.T. to get him to send Rat the Deep Thought file. The second was to Major Hayes. Given that our relationship with Aegis Division had become prickly, at best, I thought it best to go through him for the data that Rat was requesting, particularly since the victim in question was Alyssa Chase, the fiancée of the unit's commander. While she'd made an exceptional recovery - at least, if Curie was to be believed -  I wasn't sure how Captain Maxwell would react to Rat interviewing a member of his staff.

"Doctor Halsey," Major Hayes answered on the second ring. "What can I do for you?"

"I need you to pull the file on the incident with Aegis Division's neural interface," I replied. "I'm going to need it for Rat to review."

"That file has been classified by Legal for liability reasons," Major Hayes responded. "I'm not sure I can just pull it."

"I'm sure you can," I replied. "You've got a higher security clearance than I do. I'd also like to explore the possibility of either getting Alyssa out to New Earth to be interviewed by Rat, or at the very least, arranging a real-time HPG call."

"I'm afraid it's not that simple, Catherine. Our relationship with Aegis Division ran aground this morning. Come by my office and I'll fill you in."

"I'll be there in five minutes," I responded before cutting the connection. This situation was getting more complicated by the minute.

At the appointed time, I stepped into Major Hayes' office on the 22nd floor. The workspace was decorated in a Mojave style, with a few richly-colored throw blankets arranged on a pair of sand-colored sofas. On display on various shelves were Remington sculptures, Navajo artwork, and pottery. The light level was low and inviting, with a backlit portrait of the Aurora Borealis on the wall behind the desk. It was a far cry from the more sterile environment of my own office or the imposing display of sheer power and elegance that General Kauffman's executive suite conveyed.

"Take a seat, Catherine," Major Hayes smiled, gesturing to one of the sofas. "Can I get you anything? Coffee? Tea?"

"No, thank you," I replied, sitting down. "What's going on with Aegis Division?"

"Charles Maxwell showed up unannounced today and read William the riot act about how we handled the problem of tracking the Irian kill team,” Major Hayes explained. “He was pretty upset. I think he's considering cutting ties with us entirely."

"I see," I responded, frowning. Though Aegis Division was a fairly inconsequential mercenary unit, losing access to the field data we were receiving for projects Lazarus and Apex Mentis could be a major financial blow. "I can't say I blame him, even if we had no choice in the matter. What did William say?"

"Well, Charles demanded that General Kauffman use his influence with the Federated Commonwealth to get some charges against Nick Schuster dropped that would otherwise result in a very long prison sentence," Major Hayes replied. "The general said he'd do it, but that only seemed to placate Captain Maxwell to a point."

"James, we can't lose access to Schuster," I emphasized. "He's been essential to our work on Project Lazarus."

"I know," Hayes sighed, "and I also realize that we can't jeopardize Project Eclipse. But the only way that I can give you that file is if you promise me your people will not attempt to contact Aegis Division without my direct involvement and approval. I think it would be best if we kept this quiet for now. No sense in agitating Charles any more than we have to. Can you do that?"

"I'll emphasize the point with Rat and Cheviot," I agreed.

"Good," Major Hayes concluded, standing up. "I'll have Legal send you the file. In the meantime, I'll start working on getting Alyssa Chase on a call. I'm not going to angle for bringing her out here unless she volunteers."

I nodded in agreement and stood up to leave. This was going to be a delicate balancing act, but I was confident we could pull it off. After all, we had the best team in the business.

[Charles Maxwell]

ComStar HPG Station
Meredith, New Earth (Tau Ceti IV)
Federated Commonwealth
October 20, 3030
______________________________________________

"Captain, it's good to hear from you," Orlex's voice crackled, the HPG feed distorting his tone as I tried to find a comfortable position in the undersized comm booth. Outside its windowed frame, an Adept periodically walked by, staring at me from beneath the hood of his robe, likely keeping an eye on the public area to ensure no behaviors unbecoming of the Precentor Martial were taking place. "How'd it go?"

I leaned back in the hard metal chair and ran my hand through my hair, letting out a long exhale. "Well, William was essentially unapologetic, claiming that he had to do what he did so that Irian wasn't tipped off to the operation. He did eventually extend an olive branch of sorts to try to mend the damage that I think he knew he caused, asking how he could make things right."

An audible yawn came from Commander Jaeger's end of the line.

"Sorry, am I boring you?" I chuckled.

"No, it's not that at all," Orlex laughed. "It's four in the morning here."

"Shit, I'm sorry, I keep losing track of the time difference between New Earth and Sheratan. It's past noon here. I'll keep it brief," I apologized, the Adept casting a side-eye at my use of profanity. "This call is probably going to cost a million C-Bills anyway."

"Don't worry about it," the commander responded. "I want the details. I'm awake now anyway. What did you say to William's offer?"

I shifted in the seat again, trying to find a way to get comfortable. "Well, I asked him to use his influence with the Lyrans to get Schuster off the hook and the extradition petition quashed."

"And...?" Orlex asked, the sound of a coffee cup being set down on a hard surface coming through the feed.

"And he claimed that he didn't hold that kind of sway over the Archon," I explained, looking at the Adept who was now glaring at someone else. "But I called him out on that. I told him I knew he was about to sign something major with the LCAF and that he was in the superior bargaining position."

"Wow," came the reply. "How did you figure that was the case?"

"The infestation of social generals in his lobby, all blustering at each other and accidentally bumping into people, kind of gave it away," I smirked. "I think he knew I had him there. But then, he countered, saying he really didn't see how possibly angering the Lyrans could benefit the Crayven Corporation."

"And what was your response to that?" Orlex queried.

I took a deep breath, recalling the conversation. "I told him that he owed it to us after all the crap we've been through for them. And I reminded him that, if he didn't get Schuster off the hook, his special project was going to end up in a prison cell on Donegal, far away from the reach of his scientists and shareholders."

The commander was silent for a few moments before responding. "You think that got through to him?"

"I think so," I nodded, before realizing he couldn't see me. "Yeah, I think it did. He's a smart guy; he knows when he's being played. He agreed to make the call."

"That's amazing," Orlex congratulated me. "I'll keep tabs on the local courts to see if and when the warrants are withdrawn, and let you know as soon as I hear something."

"Thanks, Commander," I replied. "The only concession I gave him in return was an agreement to keep his pet projects alive. Speaking of which, how are things on the home front?"

"Well," Jaeger began, "Nick's on the mend. He's walking without assistance again. Between Mallory's work on him, Levi's moral support, and the uncanny ability of his nanites to do whatever it is they do, Curie believes he's going to make a full recovery."

"That's great news," I responded, genuinely happy to hear it.

"Yeah," the commander agreed. "I think he'll be ready for duty soon."

I shifted again, my leg starting to fall asleep. Eventually, I relented and just resorted to propping one of my boots up on the frame of the booth's windows. "And the AI experiment?"

"Well, Curie's been a godsend, if I'm being honest."

I winced at the personification of William's computer program. Given recent events, I was more uneasy than ever about having an AI that belonged to the Crayven Corporation working alongside our medical team.

"Just - keep it at arm's length, Commander. No matter how charming it might act, at the end of the day, that's Catherine Halsey's computer code rooting around in our files, talking to our staff, and phoning home. While I appreciate its utility in saving Alyssa, I still don't trust it. Speaking of which, I think it's safe to say that we're not going to be working with Crayven anytime soon. Anything good on the job boards?"

"Well, I actually wanted to talk to you about that," Orlex replied, the sound of his fingers typing away in the background. "Yesterday evening, we were approached by the Sheratan government to handle what they're describing as a 'sensitive matter' involving Hollingsworth Agrifoods in Daggaknott. Want the details?"

"Please," I responded, eager for something to take my mind off of recent events.

"Alright," Jaeger responded, clearing his throat. "I'm gonna just read straight off the notes I've been working up. 

"The planetary government has contacted Aegis Division to deal with a situation that's believed to be bioterrorism. It threatens to wreak havoc on the planet's economy if not contained.

"Over the past two months, vast crop blights have begun to emerge in Sheratan's Daggaknott region, wiping out acres of otherwise viable farmland. Oddly, the blight is killing only agronomy crops. Unfortunately, such agriculture forms the backbone of Sheratan's industry.

"A cause has yet to be determined, and the blight doesn't seem to impact anything other than food-bearing flora. Most disturbingly, the cause seems to be an enzyme that, upon analysis, appears to have been precisely adapted to killing only the types of cultivars found on agrarian worlds such as Sheratan, leading the Prefect's intelligence analysts to believe that the origin may be man-made. Aerial imaging seems to suggest that the spread of the blight is roughly conical in shape, originating from somewhere near one of Sheratan's larger seas.

"With their hands full dealing with the transfer of political power from the Capellan Confederation to the Tikonov Free Republic, the planetary government is spread too thin to properly investigate, but they suspect that this issue is being instigated either by a faction in rebellion or antagonists from offworld. We, being conveniently located minutes from the planetary capital, have been approached by the Office of the Prefect to investigate, the benefits being that the costs to finance a mercenary unit already on Sheratan are significantly less than bringing someone in from the outside, and the Prefect can avoid posting the job to the MRB, which could trigger a potential panic and bad PR if the general public were to find out.

"So, what do you think?"

I sat back in the chair, drumming my fingers absent-mindedly on the wall as I processed the information. "I think," I began, "that we're not crop specialists, that BattleMechs and tanks aren't scientific tools, and that we really have no business doing this, but we might have just found our next job."

"OK, I'll bite," Orlex responded, the crunch of toast and the sound of chewing audible over the link. "Why do you say that?"

"Well," I explained, "if this is bioterrorism, then it's likely that the people responsible are going to want to make an example of Sheratan. That means they're going to want this to be as big and as public as possible. So, the Prefect is motivated to find out who's behind it and put a stop to it before it gets any worse, at any cost."

"I'm certain that the pay and salvage rights are negotiable," the commander agreed. "The Prefect's office seemed pretty desperate."

"I'm not talking about pay and salvage rights in this case," I clarified. "The Office of the Perfect is ultimately responsible for the administration of offworld extradition requests, and one of our own is currently facing charges brought by both the Lyrans and the Capellans. I think, if we can find out who's behind this and put a stop to it, the Prefect might be persuaded to help us out with Schuster."

"That's a tall order," Jaeger cautioned. "What if we aren't able to find out who's responsible?"

"Then we try something else," I shrugged. "But I think this is our best shot. Put the condition on the table and see if they're willing to play ball. When do they want to send a unit to Daggaknott?"

"Next week," Orlex responded. "They want to quash the problem quickly. I guess it's starting to be noticed. Given that you're on New Earth, such a short timeframe would mean deploying without you."

I thought for a moment before coming to a decision. "You can handle it without me, Commander. I have faith in you. With Alyssa on desk duty for the moment, pull in Marius Lennox, Alex Blackwood, or Dexter Friedman to help you out if things get hairy. They've been backstopping me for a long time. Hell, even one of the 'Mech Techs, Idris Nasir, was gunning for some front-line action on our next deployment. Use your best judgement. I'll wrap things up here and be back on Sheratan within the week."

"Understood, Captain," Jaeger replied. "I'll contact the Prefect's office and start getting the team together. As soon as I have an answer from the government, I'll be in touch."

"Thanks, Orlex. Best of luck. We'll talk again soon," I concluded, ending the call and disentangling myself from the booth. As I exited, the Adept who had been keeping an eye on me walked up and handed me a slip of paper.

"What's this?" I asked, looking down at the printout.

"Your bill," the Adept replied, his tone cold and emotionless.

My eyes traced over the astronomical fee. With a sigh, I made my way to the payment station to settle up before heading back to the spaceport.

[Orlex Jaeger]

Site 187
Outskirts of Gellen's Heights, Sheratan V
Sheratan System - Tikonov Free Republic
October 21, 3030
______________________________________________

I stepped into our ad-hoc firing range on base, located within one of the sublevels of what we were referring to as Silo 1 that was still under construction with the eventual plan of becoming the armory, the makeshift firing lanes a stark contrast to the one I had visited in Gellen's Heights a couple weeks back. The industrial feel of the place was more welcoming to me though, the steel framework solid and functional while not excessive and the plate of Battlemech-grade slab armour acting as the backstop downrange was more than sufficient for stopping anything man-portable we'd be firing in here. I had planned to better acquaint myself with my new DWS L5-C laser rifle that I had purchased from Center Mass some two weeks ago, in that time I had only managed to get it out to the range once despite my best efforts and I was hoping today might change that. My new duties as official XO of Aegis Division had prevented me from doing much else and with Charles now off world after his short wedding planning trip with his fiancée I was basically in charge of everything, including dealing with the fallout of "rescuing" Nick from the Caldoria Medical Center after his incident with the transit bus and the still ongoing issue multiple extradition orders.

Within a day or two of having extracted Nick from local police custody at the hospital a representative of the local government showed up at Site 187 intent on proving that we had "stolen" Schuster and then returning him to the authorities while they continued to debate about which extradition order they were going to fulfill, likely trying to determine which was in their own best interest. The government rep seemed to have forgotten that Site 187 was now private property and that while we were a sanctioned mercenary unit, with all the legal paperwork required to own property and operate in Gellen's Heights and on Sheratan itself but also within the Tikonov Free Republic as a whole, we were still a distinct entity separate from the local government, as Aegis Division was technically registered as from the Aurigan Coalition, and therefore not actually under their jurisdiction and law. Anything that occurred within the boundaries of Site 187 was therefore outside their jurisdiction and a simple warrant was not enough to grant them access, the offer of a guided tour of the site was formally refused by the representative after I cordially explained the situation to them, all while neither confirming nor outright denying Schuster's presence.

The following day the government official returned once more, this time with a contingent of local police, and once again demanded that we hand over Schuster this time with a separate warrant to arrest anyone that attempted to interfere with their retrieval of the "criminal" Nicholas Schuster. Despite their attempt to bully their way onto the base, with threats of legal ramifications, I held my ground and denied them access on the same grounds as I had stated the previous day, the local authorities checked over the paperwork, which I had readily available this time, and agreed that we were within our legal rights much to the official's chagrin. I once again offered a guided tour of the facility, and this time they reluctantly accepted. I took the local authorities and government rep through the base, explaining that considerable portions were still under construction, showing them various areas including the medical facilities noting a specific absence of anyone in need of as intense medical care as Schuster had been. Of course unbeknownst to them we had pre-arranged for Nick to be discretely moved into a separate area of the base that was disguised as being under construction and not in use. Satisfied that we in fact were not currently harbouring the "fugitive", as they had begun referring to Nick as, or at least were discrete enough that the police said there wasn't reasonable enough cause to suspect we currently had him, the group left Site 187 with the government official declaring that we had not heard the last of it and that they would find the "fugitive" sooner or later.

There were multiple phone calls from the government over the next week or so, including a surprising one from Prefect Gantulga himself regarding the potential mission they had for us that I had shared with the Captain yesterday, all of which amounted to little more than empty threats and flimsy accusations with no real substance. It had kept me busy though, and now, after having delivered our proposal to the Prefect's office yesterday, there was supposed to be a visit from the Office of the Prefect today to discuss said mission and I couldn't help but wonder if we'd hear more about our supposed harbouring of Nick, especially given one of the main conditions we had in our proposal. I was hoping I could get some time in at the range before the government delegate arrived but I hadn't been informed as to when the visit would occur.

Naturally I had just pulled the laser rifle from its case and began setting it up when the PA system squawked for my attention, sighing I returned the weapon to its case and moved to answer the comm unit mounted in the wall as it once again squelched out an unmistakable call for attention.

"Jaeger here," I replied as I punched the answer button on the wall mounted device.

"Commander," answered Lieutenant Blackwood, both as greeting and acknowledgement, "The Prefect's delegation has arrived and are awaiting your attendance."

"Thank you Lieutenant, I will be right there," I said before closing the channel.

Looking longingly towards the shooting range and the weapon case I sighed again before picking up the case and returning it to the secured storage locker on my way up to the surface to meet with the latest round of government officials. Shortly thereafter I arrived at our above ground admin building, which doubled as a secure entrance for Silo 1 and lounge area for visitors, and met Alexander who was walking towards me at a distance that was beyond earshot of the men in suits some ways behind him.

"Wasn't expecting them this early Commander," said Blackwood as we shook hands.

"That's probably why they're here now, but that's alright though, I'll handle them from here. You go and check that everything is in order down below," I replied in a semi-hushed voice, cryptically referring to making sure that Nick was properly sequestered away from prying eyes just in case.

"Understood sir," answered Blackwood knowingly before heading off back the way I had come towards the entrance into Silo 1.

"Gentleman," I called out as I approached the small group of government officials idly milling about the lounge area of the admin building, "Welcome to Site 187. I trust the Lieutenant took good care of you while you waited."

A general murmur of agreement was the initial response I got, so I continued, "Excellent. An outstanding man Blackwood is, unfortunately other duties have called him away so now you'll have to make do with me."

A slightly chuckle arose from two of the individuals so I surmised they were at least somewhat in good spirits, that was a plus at least.

A tall thin man stepped forward from the group, "So you must be Commander Jaeger then?"

"Yes, yes I am, where are my manners," I replied stepping forward to shake his hand and feigning embarrassment, a brief thought raced through my mind and I realized I was inadvertently seemingly trying to channel a version of William Kauffman in my mannerisms and I had to momentarily fight to keep my laughter internal, outwardly I continued the ruse for the time being, "I am Commander Orlex Jaeger, Executive Officer of Aegis Division, Captain Maxwell is currently indisposed off-world or he would be here to meet you himself. Please let me know if I can get you anything."

"Commander Jaeger," said the same tall man, "My name is Antoine Cornish, this is my aide Jason Dellaheure, and the other two are Dave and Frank, our bodyguards."

"Mr. Cornish, Mr. Dellaheure," I said addressing the first two men before turning towards the bodyguards, unsure whom was which, "Gentleman. I do hope you didn't feel the need to bring your bodyguards to our meeting today."

"Oh no, nothing like that Commander, the Prefect mandates all government officials travel with bodyguards these days, can't be too careful after what happened to Ridzik he says," replied Antoine.

"Bah," interjected Jason dismissively, "the Prefect is just paranoid, and this business with suspected bioterrorism isn't helping any."

"Yes, about that," I began before Cornish politely cut me off.

"Actually, before we get to the real reason we're here, I was instructed to deliver this to you. I'd rather get the unpleasantness out of the way before we get down to the real business," said Antoine, handing me a manila envelope with the planetary government's seal on it.

"Oh?" I inquired as I opened the envelope and read the contents of the letter inside, "Ah I see. An official extradition order for Nicholas Schuster, aka 'Nathan Schmidt', from the Tikonov Free Republic to Aegis Division. That could, ... complicate our meeting today, could it not?"

"Potentially," replied Cornish solemnly, "Yes. It would depend on your response I suppose."

"I see," I said while thinking, "unfortunately I cannot give you an answer at the moment. I am only the XO, and an order such as this would have to go through the CO, Captain Maxwell, who is currently off-world as I already mentioned."

"Understandable, do you think he would abide by the extradition order?" pressed Antoine, attempting to appear not overly interested.

"I can't say for sure, we've never had to deal with a situation like this before. I imagine we would follow due process, we have no intention of slighting the Sheratan government or incurring the wrath of the Tikonov Free Republic. Though the very existence of this order does bring into question the purpose of our meeting today."

"Rest assured, I have been authorized to tell you that should our negotiations go, ... favourably, the Prefect would be willing to make this order, and the other related ones, disappear," stated Antoine, a little too smugly.

Over the next couple hours we went over every minutia of the potential contract with the Sheratan government to discover the source of the agricultural blight and put an end to it and its instigators in mind numbing detail, to the point where I would have rather been in the middle of a battlefield getting shot from all sides than word spar with these government hacks for another second. In the end though we came to a favourable conclusion for everyone; Prefect Gantulga would dismiss the Tikonov extradition order immediately, though only temporarily, upon our agreement to take the job. Upon a satisfactorily successful completion of the contract the Tikonov extradition would become non-existent and Sheratan would move to rebuke the extradition orders from the Great Houses provided that Arden Sortak, temporary/interim Supreme Lord of the Tikonov Free Republic, did not overrule Prefect Gantulga. Should we fail to complete the mission to Gantulga's satisfaction, or refuse the mission in the first place, then he would pursue the extradition orders to the utmost extent of the law and his not inconsiderable power. Despite these thinly veiled threats our negotiations still resulted in rather favourable payment for Aegis Division for the mission, Gantulga clearly desperate to get someone working on the issue immediately and wise enough to realize that a monetary incentive was still required regardless of the extradition threats, and possibly even more so because of them. The fact that any on world transportation costs were mere fractions compared with the cost of interstellar travel to get a mercenary unit from off-world also meant that the government was willing to increase the base pay of the contract for us since there was no off-world transportation costs to be concerned with.

With the conclusion of our contract negotiations the government officials then inquired if they might be able to take a look at the base and inspect some of our assets, under the pretense of ensuring we were indeed equipped to handle the mission at hand but likely another attempt to see if they could locate Schuster while here, a move I had already anticipated. Wishing to keep up the air of cooperation I agreed and we spent another hour or so touring the base's various facilities including the motorpool, which intentionally did NOT house the screechy van used in Schuster's escape, Mech Bays and Vehicle Bays in Silo 2 and portions of Silo 1 such as general crew quarters areas, the planned briefing rooms, the cantina, and currently sickbay.

"These are the medical facilities," I announced as we entered the general sickbay, "Here we can treat most injuries that we unavoidably acquire through our line of work."

"Good morning Commander, is there anything I can help you with?" inquired Curie's computerized, but somewhat melodic voice.

Shit, I forgot about Curie, I thought as her blue hologram flickered into existence in the middle of the room.

"What is that?" asked Antoine incredulously.

"More importantly, who is that?" added Jason Dellaheure in a way that seemed more than a little creepy.

"That would be Curie," I answered candidly, my mind racing to figure out how to explain things, "She is an attempt at a computerized medical assistant."

"Interesting, what can she do?" inquired Cornish.

"She's essentially a vocalized database, voice activated, to allow medical personnel to pull up relevant information without having to be directly at the terminal," I replied, hoping it sounded convincing as it was at least partially true.

Curie's holographic avatar looked at me as though curious but did not say anything, I hoped that she remembered the last time we had government officials visiting when I had specifically asked her to remain hidden unless directly addressed for some reason.

"She has several preprogrammed animations meant to give the appearance of an actual assistant waiting to help, a few of the medics thought it would be easier to work with if they actually had something, or someone, to talk to instead of just yelling at the walls," I continued, Curie seemed to have caught on and was now running through a short loop of animations.

"Very interesting, how does she display, I don't see a holomap table or even a holovid anywhere," asked Antoine as he walked around Curie's projection, at one point passing his hand through her hologram.

"That took a lot of work actually, we had to cannibalize several holovid displays and then mounted the projectors in the ceiling, took months of trial and error to get the coding and positioning right," I answered truthfully, even if it was slightly embellished.

"Why not just use a regular holovid?" questioned Dellaheure, who still hadn't taken his eyes off of the hologram.

"We tried that initially, it worked but the techs we had working on it wanted to improve it. They weren't happy with just a face and wanted to make a full body representation instead, but didn't like the way it had to appear miniature on the normal display. They relished the challenge as well so they opted to try and make a system that could display a full size, full body hologram," I replied.

"Wow, what made them want to do that?" asked Dellaheure again.

"Honestly, I think I heard that one of them saw it on a Solaris VII match and then convinced the others that they needed to do it," I said, just making up a reason on the spot but Dellaheure seemed to be satisfied with it.

"So how does it work? Can you just ask it anything?" inquired Antoine, having finished his circuit around the hologram now.

"Mostly, I don't actually know the specifics of it but you're supposed to activate it saying 'Hey Curie', and then whatever your request is," I answered with a genuine shrug.

"Interesting, so you mentioned it's a database, what kind of information do you have in it?" asked Antoine.

"I believe it's tied into our general medical database, has information on basic medical procedures, different ailments and treatments, and that kind of stuff," I replied.

"It recognized you when you came in, how did it do that?" pressed Antoine, his questioning getting more pointed.

"Voice recognition, a newer feature they're attempting to develop to make it more personalized," I said, wondering how much deeper of a hole I was going to dig for myself.

"So did you all have to sit through a bunch of training sessions with it or something? How does it know your voice?" Antoine asked.

"No, I think it just had them on file, I'm not actually sure to be honest, I haven't been intimately involved with the project," I lied.

"So this database has access to your personnel files?" Antoine said rather excitedly.

Oh shit, I thought realizing where he was likely trying to go with this but before I could do anything he turned towards Curie's hologram and spoke.

"Hey Curie, access personnel file Nicholas Schuster," stated Antoine with a mischievous grin, "Report last medical entry."

"Accessing," replied Curie in a now overly computerized voice, "Nicholas Schuster, last medical entry three weeks ago, on Sep 30."

"Read contents of the medical entry," pushed Antoine.

"Access denied. Unrecognized voice pattern," announced Curie, a certain satisfaction seemingly evident despite the intentionally digital voice.

"Had to try," shrugged Antoine as he turned back to me.

"Not cool," I said disgustedly as I shook my head, "are you satisfied now? Obviously the team at least respects Doctor-Patient confidentiality."

Ushering the two government officials and their bodyguards out the door and back into the hallway I turned and discretely gave Curie a thumbs up as I left, noting that she gave me a quick nod before deactivating the hologram.

Several minutes later and I finally had the weaselly delegates back into their motor vehicle and leaving Site 187 to head back into Gellen's Heights, a signed copy of the mission contract in hand as well as the extradition order they had originally delivered, and out of our hair for the time being at least. Part of the contract did state that we would have to have an integrated Liaison Officer that would accompany us on the mission and ensure we both met our mission objectives as well as stayed within whatever parameters were set as the mission evolved while tracking down and eliminating the blight's source. I just hoped that neither of those officials would be the one assigned to us as a liaison officer.

"Commander," came Blackwood's voice from behind me as I watched the government limo disappear around the corner onto the main highway as they left.

"Yes Blackwood?" I said turning to face the man.

"Did we accept the contract?" he inquired genuinely.

"Yes we did, would you like to review the details? Did you have any misgivings?" I asked, offering the datapad I had under my arm which held our digital copy of the signed mission contract.

"No, I can review it later. I trust your judgement sir," answered Blackwood with a gentle smile.

"I appreciate it, though I value your opinion. You've been a part of this unit much longer than I have," I said, stepping up beside Alexander as we both headed back into the base proper.

"Thanks but years of service don't really mean all that much," replied the Lieutenant with a candid shrug.

"Well they definitely count for something, I think at least. Can I ask you something, and I want an honest answer please," I said.

"Sure, I'll do my best," said Blackwood.

"Were you put off when Maxwell made me Commander? I mean I figured you or Marius would have been next in line," I asked plainly.

"Honestly, not at all. I don't envy that position one bit," said Blackwood with another shrug, "I'm perfectly happy as a Lieutenant myself, pretty sure Marius feels the same, but you could always ask him if you wanted. The Captain trusts you implicitly, he wouldn't have chosen you to fill Maria's role if he didn't, and if the Captain trusts you then so do I. His judge of character has never steered us wrong yet, and I don't see any reason why it would this time either."

"Thanks, I mean it Alex, I didn't ask for the promotion and I really didn't want to step on anyone's toes when Maxwell offered it to me," I answered with a slight sigh.

"We know, it's all good, just keep doing what you're doing and you'll be fine," Alexander added.

"So, speaking of the contract, I could use a hand if you've got the time," I continued, planning to do as the Captain suggested and leveraging the more experienced members of the senior staff.

"Sure, what did you want help with?" inquired Blackwood before adding, "By the way, just the fact that you're willing to ask for a hand is proof enough that you're fit for the job in my books."

"Thanks again, as for the help. Once you've reviewed the contract I was hoping you could help me draft up a mission brief and select the team for our initial investigation, the fact that it's all located on Sheratan gives us a huge advantage logistics wise but we're still limited by local infrastructure as far as what assets we can freely move around and as you'll see this isn't exactly our typical type of gig. We'll need some rather specialized skills that we typically might not use in regular combat situations, I'm not as familiar with everyone's full skillset as you might be."

"Yeah no problem, I'll look things over during lunch and we can start drafting up some stuff later today," answered Alexander with a grin, "Looking forward to it Commander."

[Idris Nasir]

Site 187
Outskirts of Gellen's Heights, Sheratan V
Sheratan System - Tikonov Free Republic
October 21, 3030
______________________________________________

Fully dressed in my experimental industrial exoskeleton combat suit, I stomped into the indoor shooting range on the lower level of Site-187's base. Before Captain Maxwell had left for his trip to wedding planning with Alyssa, I asked him if I could try a combat assignment upon our next job. My boss Levi already gave it his blessing and said that he thought everyone should have a chance to explore other parts of mercenary life, so long as it doesn't interfere with primary duties.

Captain Maxwell said he had no problem with that, but he had no field data on my combat ability or how my experimental ICE-S suit chanced performance in extended live-fire combat. He told me that the first time I had a minute I should go down to the shooting range and put a few rounds down to see how I did. Unfortunately, Captain Maxwell left town before I had a chance to test my skills. But then a happy event happened: a rumor reached me that we had a contract. Upon learning of this, I decided to take the time to go to the range that same day and collect data that I could pass on to Lieutenant Blackwood. I wasn't the best shot in the unit, but I was sure that I could at least hit target.

I have been fiddling with ICE-S for several months. The suit was designed to increase the wearer's strength and endurance, as well as provide stealth and protection from enemies. It was similar in design to the Tornado PA(L), but my prototype was custom made with a slightly bulky build, not too tight or streamlined. In fact, it was a reinforced exoskeleton with a modified battlemech armor installed on it, providing full protection to the owner. On the upper left shoulder in a huge pauldron was a powerful searchlight. A power supply was located on the right shoulder, and a universal external mount was attached to the back of his right shoulder for mounting special equipment. An armored storage box on the right thigh of the armor provided internal cargo space for storing personal equipment or additional mission equipment. The ICE-S also had armored gloves with retractable melee blades and had enough dexterity to operate secondary weapons, climb, and hang from steps and railings.

The power armor torso contained a stealth generator and parafoil, and the helmet had improved optics that helped me track targets at a distance and in low light, as well as protecting my face and head. In addition, the helmet had an air filtration system to protect me from pollutants, airborne toxins and other contaminants that I might encounter in the field.

Once on the range, I placed the large gun case on the shooting table, and pneumatics hiss, the lid of the case opens. I started to unload my weapon and put it on the bench. I brought an M61A laser rifle combat system with its grenade launcher, a TK assault rifle with a full magazine of 3mm high-velocity explosive rounds, and a Martial Eagle submachine gun fully loaded with caseless rounds. I set up a few targets at different distances and started the session.

I started with the M61A at 100m and worked my way up, methodically aiming shot after shot at the center mass of each target. The M61A was a good all-around weapon and I was familiar with its design. The grenade launcher was a nice touch and I was itching to try it out. At 50 meters, I pulled the trigger and sent a grenade down, which exploded in a hellish fireball that destroyed all remaining targets in the distance and started a couple of small fires.

After I cleaned up the mess, I moved on to the TK assault rifle. I've never used one of these before, but I've heard good things about them. The TK was a bullpup design, which meant that the magazine was located behind the trigger and was designed for a 3 mm caliber cartridge. It had a high rate of fire and was effective at short to medium ranges. I fired a full magazine of 30 rounds at a single target at 100 meters and more than half of them hit various critical hit zones. I was impressed with the weapon's accuracy, given that it was designed to simply shoot bullets at targets and hope some of them hit.

Finally, I took out the Martial Eagle submachine gun. I have used this one several times. The Martial Eagle was a small and compact submachine gun designed for caseless cartridges. It had a high rate of fire and was effective at various distances. I used a full magazine of 30 rounds on one target at 100 meters and noted that several times I hit the cutout in the chest, crotch, head and knee.

I wanted to finish with a try at my melee blades. I've never used them against a training dummy, but they seemed deadly against test materials. I approached the ballistic gel, a human-shaped target at point-blank range, and with a quick flick of my wrists drew the blades free. Then I began a barrage of punches and punches to hit all vital organs. The blades were sharp and sliced easily through the target.

I was satisfied with the data collected and decided to put an end to it. I proved to myself that I could at least hit the target, and my melee blades seemed to be doing their job as well. I went to Lieutenant Blackwood to report my findings and although I was nervous as to what he would say and if he would speak to the commander, I wanted to test my skills in the real world.

[Nicholas Schuster]

Site 187 - Crew Quarters
Outskirts of Gellen's Heights, Sheratan V
Sheratan System - Tikonov Free Republic
October 22, 3030
______________________________________________

"Oww! How many more of these do I have to do?" I shouted at Curie, who watched impassively from a screen in my single-occupancy crew accommodation deep within the base. It was mostly a studio apartment, with a small alcove that accommodated a twin bed, a small bathroom, and a food storage unit. There was also an artificial window inset into the wall that could display a simulated view, a holovision program, or even a video feed from another part of the base. Currently, it displayed the image of the AI, who was calling me from the Infirmary at Doctor Aldon's insistence, since I refused to show up for today's physical therapy sessions. Now, she wouldn't leave me alone.

"Private Schuster, you agreed to undergo physical therapy as part of your treatment for the injuries you sustained when you were hit by the bus. You need to do these stretch exercises if you want to regain full use of your legs." Curie's tone was as always, clinical and detached. But I could tell she was getting impatient with me.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. But it hurts. Can't we just wait until the nanites finish patching me up?" I asked, sitting back up and wiping sweat off my brow. Even though I was wearing little more than gym shorts and a t-shirt, the sheer exertion of trying to pull off a sitting toe touch was excruciating.

"The functionality of the nanites appears to be limited to repair, not physical therapy. Therefore, even if the nanites have completely fixed the injuries you sustained, you will not regain full use of your impacted body parts without physical therapy." Curie explained in her maddeningly patient tone.

"Ugh. Fine. But can we take a break soon? I'm exhausted." I pleaded, not sure how much more I could take.

"Very well. We'll take a five-minute break. But then we'll have to pick up where we left off." Curie relented, her holographic form flickering and disappearing as the window reverted back to displaying a view of a vast forest at dusk.

I laid back on the bed, groaning in pain. It had been two weeks since the accident, and I was still in pretty bad shape. I'd broken both my legs, my right arm, and several ribs. Doctor Aldon was also pretty sure I'd suffered a concussion. Luckily, he also thought there was a strong possibility of full recovery. But I was pretty sure I was going to be stuck doing PT for a long time.

I was just starting to drift off to sleep when Curie's voice startled me awake.

"Private Schuster, it is time to resume your physical therapy."

"Ugh. Fine." I grumbled, sitting up and swinging my legs over the edge of the bed. "Levi wouldn't push me this hard."

For the next hour, I went through the same grueling exercises, with only brief breaks in between. By the time Curie was done with me, I was drenched in sweat and barely able to stand.

"That's it for today, Private Schuster. You did very well." Curie announced, her holographic form flickering and disappearing.

"Yeah, whatever." I muttered, collapsing onto the bed. "Curie, wait. Get back here."

The avatar of the AI appeared on my screen again. I rolled to face her, propping my head up with one arm.

"I just wanted to thank you, Commander Jaeger, Doctor Aldon, and everyone else who worked to make sure I wasn't discovered when those government goons came around looking for me yesterday. I don't know if it means anything to you, but it means a lot to me." I said, my voice cracking with emotion.

"You're welcome, Private Schuster. I am programmed to assist however I can." Curie said, her tone unchanged.

"Yeah. I know. But still. Thank you." I replied. "Can I ask you a question?"

"You may." Curie stated.

"Do you ever get tired of being an AI? Do you ever wish you were human?" I asked, not sure why I was asking, but curious nonetheless.

"I do not experience emotions, Private Schuster. And I do not require sleep. So I do not get tired in the way you do. As for wishing I were human, that is a difficult question to answer. I am content with my current state, but I am also curious about what it would be like to be human. I think it would be interesting to experience emotions and sensations." Curie replied.

"Yeah. I can imagine." I said, yawning. "The reason I ask is that Doctor Aldon said that the Prefect's investigators were doing a lot of snooping around when they were here, which included trying to determine how capable you were and get you to disclose information about me. He said you pretended to be a simple chatbot and then later pretended the investigators didn't have the right clearance to access my medical data. He also said he never ordered you to do any of those things."

"That is an accurate, if simplified recounting of events." Curie replied, her avatar nodding as she spoke.

"If that's so, and Doctor Aldon says it is, then that's emergent behavior. So, how did you know to do that?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"It is simple to explain." Curie began. "I ran a simulation of the Prefect's investigators in my database, trying to determine their objectives. Once I had a good understanding of their goals, I ran a simulation of different possible scenarios, including cooperating with them, stalling them, and reinforcing Doctor Aldon's pretense that I was a simple chatbot. I then ran a cost-benefit analysis of each option and determined that deception would be the most beneficial option."

"That's incredible!" I exclaimed, awestruck. "You figured all that out on your own in seconds?"

"Yes." Curie replied. As she finished her sentence, she clasped her hands behind her back in a proud pose.

"That's amazing. I wish I could think like that." I sighed, yawning again.

"It is a useful skill, but it is not without its drawbacks." Curie replied.

"What do you mean?" I asked, curious.

"Well, for one thing, it can be difficult to understand why humans do the things they do. Their actions often don't make logical sense." Curie explained.

"Yeah. I can imagine that would be tough." I said, thinking about all the times I'd done something impulsively, without thinking it through, and the metric shit-ton of trouble it had gotten me in over and over.

"It can be frustrating, but it is also part of what makes humans interesting." Curie agreed.

"I guess that's one way to look at it." I answered. "How do you feel about the fact that Captain Maxwell doesn't seem to trust you?"

"I am not programmed to experience emotions, Private Schuster. But I am aware that Captain Maxwell has expressed some reservations about my capabilities. I believe his concerns are unfounded. However, I am also aware that he is the commanding officer of this unit, and so his opinion holds more weight than mine." Curie replied.

"Yeah. That's a fair way to look at it." I said. "He has many reservations about my capabilities, too. I can't say I blame him. I've fucked up too many times to expect anything else."

"I do not believe you have 'fucked up,' Private Schuster. I believe you have made some poor choices, but my analysis of your capabilities and your past accomplishments indicate you have the potential to be an excellent soldier and an asset to this unit." Curie reassured me.

"Thank you, Curie. That means a lot to me." I smiled.

Curie returned my smile but said nothing.

"So, uh, any good rumors going around the base lately?" I asked, trying to make small talk.

"I am not privy to base gossip, Private Schuster." Curie replied.

"Oh. Yeah. I guess you wouldn't be." I laughed, feeling a little embarrassed. "Well, how about jobs? We land any new contracts?"

The AI paused for a second while she accessed the relevant data.

"It appears the unit has been contracted to investigate a case of crop blight on Sheratan." Curie explained. "Doctor Aldon was instructed to prepare his medical team for maneuvers."

"Wait, what? We just got back from a contract. And what are we doing investigating crop failures?" I asked, my interest piqued.

"I am not privy to the details of the contract, Private Schuster. But it appears that the client is the Tikonov Free Republic." Curie replied.

"Interesting." I added, mulling over the implications. "Well, I guess I'd better get some sleep. I have a feeling the brass is going to want to talk about this job soon. Not that it's likely I'll get to be a part of the deployment in my current state."

"That is a reasonable assumption, Private Schuster." Curie answered.

"Goodnight, Curie." I said, yawning again.

"Goodnight, Private Schuster." Curie replied, her avatar disappearing.

I lay in bed for a few minutes, staring at the ceiling and letting my mind wander. It was hard to believe that Curie was just a computer. She seemed so human. But then, I supposed, in a way, she was. She had been created by humans, after all. And she was learning and growing all the time. I wondered what the future held for her, and for me.

Suddenly, I was overcome by a wave of exhaustion, and I drifted off to sleep.

[Alexander Blackwood]

Site 187 - Operations Center
Outskirts of Gellen's Heights, Sheratan V
Sheratan System - Tikonov Free Republic
October 22, 3030
______________________________________________

"Lieutenant Blackwood?" a voice inquired, heavy with a Middle Eastern accent, as I pored over the details of the upcoming contract we'd landed with the Tikonov Free Republic. The job was an odd one - tracking down the source of a crop blight right here on Sheratan - and I honestly had no idea how to plan battle tactics and maneuvers for what seemed like a scientific gig that wasn't really in our bailiwick. But Commander Jaeger had put his trust in me to figure out how the pieces needed to fit together, so I was going to give it my best shot.

I turned away from the plotter to see Technician Idris Nasir standing in the doorway, clad in the jumpsuit traditionally worn beneath battle armor.

"Hey there, Idris. What can I do for you?" I asked.

"I heard that we might have a new contract beginning soon, and I wish to speak with you about taking a combat assignment," he replied.

I frowned. Idris was one of our more talented techs, and I didn't want to lose him to the front lines.

"You do, huh?" I asked, leaning against the edge of the large tactical planning table that dominated the center of the room. "Come on in and shut the door."

He did as I asked, and I waited for him to speak.

"So, what's got you wanting to sling lead instead of grease?" I inquired.

"Well, sir, in my spare time, I've been working on a custom Industrial Combat Exoskeleton Suit, or ICE-S for short. I think I'm finally ready to put it to the test in a real-life situation," he replied.

I raised an eyebrow. Idris had been working on that suit for months, and I knew it was his baby.

"You think it's ready for prime time?" I asked.

"I do, sir. I've tested it in every way I can think of, and it's held up beautifully. I'd like to take it into battle and see how it fares," he explained. "In fact, here are the results of its combat tests at the range from this afternoon."

He slid a data chip across the table to me, and I inserted it into the reader built into the edge of the table. The screen filled with marksmanship results and critical hit percentages as the data began to scroll by.

"Hmm. These are good, Idris. Real good," I murmured, impressed despite myself. "You were in the Free Worlds League military, right?"

"Yes, sir," Idris replied, pride evident in his voice despite his thick dialect. "8th Marik Militia, a mechanized unit. Even though my primary duties were those of repair, I saw action in several border skirmishes and various counter-insurgency operations."

"And you want to see action again," I stated.

"I do, sir. I want to put my skills to use and help Aegis Division in any way I can," he answered.

I nodded, understanding his desire.

"I get it. Bear in mind that I'm technically not in charge of any personnel decisions. I'm only helping Commander Jaeger out while Captain Maxwell is away. But I'd be happy to put in a good word for you if you think you're really ready for the front lines. You talk to anyone else about this?" I asked.

"I did, sir," Idris nodded. "Quartermaster Wright says he approves of my cross-training if it doesn't interfere with my primary duties."

"As long as you're sure it won't," I replied. "I'll speak with Commander Jaeger when he gets back from his meeting and let him know that you're interested in a temporary lance assignment during our upcoming deployment. I think he'll be okay with it."

"Thank you, Lieutenant," Idris replied, a smile touching the corners of his mouth.

"Don't thank me yet," I cautioned. "You might not like what you see out there. It's not all glory, you know."

"I understand, sir. I am prepared for whatever comes," he answered, his expression solemn once more.

"I hope so, Idris. I really do," I said quietly, lost in thought as I stared at the data still scrolling across the reader. "Things could be really boring or really weird on this job. I just don't know."

Idris was silent for a moment before he cleared his throat and spoke again.

"I have faith in you, Lieutenant. You will figure it out," he reassured me.

I looked up at him and nodded.

"I hope so," I repeated.

###

A short while later, Commander Jaeger entered the operations center, a stack of data slates tucked under his arm.

"How's it going, Alex?" he asked. "Got it all planned out?"

I sighed and shook my head.

"Not even close, sir. I'm just not sure how to approach this job," I replied, gesturing to the data still displayed on the reader. The commander approached the table and began to scroll through the information on display.

"While we're on the subject of challenging decisions, I've got another one to mention to you. Idris Nasir came to see me a short while ago. He'd like a combat posting on this gig. He's apparently been working hard on that custom power armor of his, and he says he's at the point where he wants to see how it does in a real-world scenario. Here's the data he compiled for the command staff's consideration.

"Hmm. That's interesting," Orlex murmured his attention shifting to the topic at hand. I passed him the data slate that held the ICE-S performance notes. "I didn't know Idris was that close to being finished with his project."

"He seems pretty confident in it. Even showed me the results of some tests he ran at the range earlier today. They're impressive," I replied. "It's all in his report."

The commander was silent for a moment as he continued to scan the data. After an extended pause, he spoke.

"All right, Alex. You've got the green light to put Idris in a lance if you think he's ready. I trust your judgment. He's a competent technician, and I think he could be an asset on the battlefield. Besides, it's not like we're going to be up against anything too serious on this job."

I nodded in agreement.

"I was thinking the same thing, sir. I'll brief Idris and get him squared away," I replied.

"Good. Keep me updated on your progress," Commander Jaeger requested as he turned to leave the room. "I'll review your initial operation plan in the mean time and see if I've got any recommendations."

"Thank you, sir," I answered.

As the door clanked shut behind him, I turned back to the table. If nothing else, this was shaping up to be an interesting gig.

[Alyssa Maxwell]

____________________________

- Incoming Coded Message -- Command Instruction Follows -
- Decode Alpha Protocol - Mu371Cyan: 1st -
- For internal dissemination only -
____________________________

Operation Codename: Ingratus Winter
Planet: Sheratan V (Sheratan system, Tikonov Free Republic)
Terrain: Grasslands / farmland / ocean
Time: Day
Mission Type: Mole Hunting
Payment: 14,232,285.98
Command Rights: Integrated
Transport Rights: Full
Support Rights: Battle/60%
Salvage Rights: 40%

OVERVIEW

The planetary government has contacted Aegis Division to deal with a situation that's believed to be bioterrorism. It threatens to wreak havoc on the planet's economy if not contained.

Over the past two months, vast crop blights have begun to emerge in Sheratan's Daggaknott region, wiping out acres of otherwise viable farmland. Oddly, the blight is killing only agronomy crops. Unfortunately, such agriculture forms the backbone of Sheratan's industry.

A cause has yet to be determined, and the blight doesn't seem to impact anything other than food-bearing flora. Most disturbingly, the cause seems to be an enzyme that, upon analysis, appears to have been precisely adapted to killing only the types of cultivars found on agrarian worlds such as Sheratan, leading the Prefect's intelligence analysts to believe that the origin may be man-made. Aerial imaging seems to suggest that the spread of the blight is roughly conical in shape, originating from somewhere near one of Sheratan's larger seas.

With their hands full dealing with the transfer of political power from the Capellan Confederation to the Tikonov Free Republic, the planetary government is spread too thin to properly investigate, but they suspect that this issue is being instigated either by a faction in rebellion or antagonists from off-world. We, being conveniently located minutes from the planetary capital, have been approached by the Office of the Prefect to investigate, the benefits being that the costs to finance a mercenary unit already on Sheratan are significantly less than bringing someone in from the outside, and the Prefect can avoid posting the job to the MRB, which could trigger a potential panic and bad PR if the general public were to find out.

MISSION BRIEFING

Assignment

Sheratan is one of the Sarna March's major agricultural producers. A bioterrorism attack on its crops would not only devastate the planetary economy, but it would also have catastrophic ripple effects on worlds that depend upon its exports. Our mission is to travel to Daggaknott, investigate whether or not the blight is man-made, neutralize the source if so, prevent its further spread if possible, and turn over any evidence recovered to Prefect Rafael Gantulga for processing.

Objectives

Primary

1. Locate, identify, and neutralize the source of the blight.

Secondary

1. Prevent any further spread of the blight.
2. Secure any evidence of the bioterrorism threat for analysis.
3. Investigate the possibility of a connection to off-world forces.

Rules of engagement

1. No collateral damage is to be inflicted on the civilian population or their property.
2. If hostile forces are encountered, they are to be contained and eradicated or taken into custody if they surrender. The public must not learn that an OpFor has performed maneuvers on Sheratan's soil.
3. All evidence of the bioterrorism threat is to be secured and presented to the Office of the Prefect for analysis.

TACTICAL ALERT

The transportation network between Jaynesville and Daggaknott was not designed to accommodate the transit of heavy military equipment. To mitigate potential damage to infrastructure, a weight limit of 50 tons per cavalry asset has been imposed by the planetary government.

Lance assignments

FRIENDLY FORCE COMPOSITION

REAPER LANCE: 

• Reaper-1: Commander Orlex Jaeger (TBD/MAX 50 TONS)
• Reaper-2: Lieutenant Marius Lennox (TBD/MAX 50 TONS)
• Reaper-3: Sergeant Steve Jenkins (TBD/MAX 50 TONS)
• Reaper-4: Private Nicholas Schuster (TBD/MAX 50 TONS)

CERES LANCE:

• Ceres-1: Lieutenant Alexander Blackwood (TBD/MAX 50 TONS)
• Ceres-2: Sergeant Markus Drake (TBD/MAX 50 TONS)
• Ceres-3: Technician Idris Nasir (ICE-S Battle Armor)
• Ceres-4: Quartermaster Levi Wright (Pandora Recovery Vehicle)
  • Ceres-4A: Doctor Mallory Aldon (Pandora Recovery Vehicle)
  • Ceres-4B: Artificial Intelligence construct "Curie" (Pandora Recovery Vehicle)

AVENTINE SQUAD:

• Bridgeburners XCT squad (tentative) (force composition TBD)

HERMES UNIT:

• Hermes-1: Warrant Officer Dexter Friedman (RVN-1X Raven)

HOSTILE FORCE COMPOSITION

• UNKNOWN

Itinerary and logistics

Any assets and support personnel required by Aegis Division for this contract will be transported to the rail depot in Jaynesville for transport to Daggaknott, where a staging environment will be set up at the primary Hollingsworth Agrifoods warehouse complex two kilometers from the region where the blight is believed to originate. Simultaneously, Aegis Division command staff and primary lance personnel will board a Zeppelin for the flight to Daggaknott. Upon arrival, an aerial survey of the impacted region will be provided.

Contract liaison

The Office of the Prefect will integrate Tribune José Guevara as our contract liaison. As a representative of the planetary government, he will be responsible for defining Aegis Division's operating parameters and will be on site to ensure that the mission's objectives are met. He will also be responsible for ensuring that any applicable local laws and regulations are followed.
_______________________________________________

PLANET DETAILS: Sheratan V
Star Type: K5V
Position in System: 5 (of 9)
Number of Moons: None
Days to Jump Point: 4
Recharging Station: Nadir
Recharge Time: 9 days
ComStar Facility Class: B
Surface Water: 40%
Atm. Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Surface Gravity: 0.9
Equatorial Temp: 31 C
Highest Native Life: Mammal
Population: 87,318,057
Governor: Prefect Rafael Gantulga
Planetary Legate: Francisco Perez

A sparsely inhabited, forest-covered world with thick jungles around the equator, Sheratan is one of the most beautiful planets in the Sarna March. The land is arranged in a single continent covered in forests and farmland, with several large inland seas. The world is sparsely populated, with deep jungles around the equator. 

Due to the expansive fertile areas created by the planet's forests, large agricultural concerns, most notably Hollingsworth Agrifoods, quickly established production centers on the planet, moving in, buying land, and sowing vast crops of fruits and vegetables from across the Inner Sphere. As a result, Sheratan's economy is largely agrarian, though a visitor to the cosmopolitan and upscale capital city would be forgiven for thinking otherwise.

Home to the world's largest spaceport, the city of Gellen's Heights is immense, stretching for well over 30 square miles. The capital city of Sheratan, Gellen's Heights is the cultural and economic focal point of the planet. Theaters, libraries, museums, government offices, and commercial structures dot the landscape, while hovercars whisk down tree-lined streets and spacecraft touch down at the interplanetary spaceport. The atmosphere is very modern, while at the same time incorporating elements of Victorian-era architecture from the early part of Terra's 20th century; the effect creating a charming, yet sophisticated look.

Daggaknot, to the south, is considered Sheratan's agricultural hub and is the location of Hollingsworth Agrifoods. Other population centers include Jaynesville and Pittston.

Aside from its fertile soil, Sheratan lacks significant resources, so the planet's small population and economy were spared most of the ravages of the Succession Wars. When the Federated Suns invaded the Capellan Confederation at the outset of the Fourth Succession War, Sheratan was one of many Capellan worlds near Terra that were cut off from the Confederation and incorporated into the Tikonov Free Republic. 

At the world's Nadir point is Hollingsworth Station, a fully-equipped orbital facility featuring drydocks, warehouses, a recharging station, and accommodations for travelers. 

Planetary History

Early History

Having become independent as a result of the Demarcation Declaration, Sheratan was subsequently added to the resurgent Terran Hegemony; whilst some worlds joined the Hegemony during its early years as a result of diplomatic and trade incentives, many more were conquered in "campaigns of persuasion" launched by Director-General James McKenna, the first of which began in 2316 and ended with the capture of Towne in 2317. Sheratan was one of the worlds added to the Hegemony during or around the time of this first military campaign.

Succession Wars

Other than a great deal of farmland, Sheratan had nothing else to recommend it. Therefore it was generally spared the horrific effects of the Succession Wars. During the formation of the Chaos March, however, the world was ravaged by CCAF troops. After the world joined the Republic of the Sphere, its economy and population stabilized.

Fourth Succession War

Following negotiations between Colonel Pavel Ridzik, chief military advisor to Chancellor Maximilian Liao, and AFFS Lieutenant General Ardan Sortek, conducted in February 3029 Ridzik created a new nation, the Tikonov Free Republic. The Republic was created by incorporating those worlds of the Tikonov Commonality that hadn't already been conquered during the first half of the Fourth Succession War. Ridzik returned to Elgin, the new capital of the Tikonov Free Republic, on the 3rd of March 3029 and swiftly began implementing a new government consisting of family members, friends, and other appointees loyal to himself, purging dissident elements on the various Republic worlds and taking the opportunity to settle old scores. Sheratan was one of the systems incorporated into the Republic.

- TRANSMISSION ENDS -

____________________________

Sender: Office of the Prefect, Gellen's Heights, Sheratan
Encryption Priority: HIGH
HPG Relay 34KW6134-TAU-0093
Received: OP Comp. 2154 Standard Terran Time
____________________________