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Events unfolded rapidly during our expedition. Alaska had survived the crash with the Golem, but his mining ship was wrecked. Another ship we had lost after Friedrich’s 600i exploded. Two GEO mining mechs and two spaceships lost. And we already had to organize a new ROC. We didn’t have a good balance.

As if that weren’t bad enough, Brubacker told us about a newspaper article that said only certain parts of the population could regenerate. This was due to a specific genome that only these people had. And in Pyro, there were research facilities where secret experiments were being conducted.

Immediately, all my alarm bells went off. Professor Usagi was still researching ENOS in Pyro. This scandalous project that had kept us busy for so long. Were the research facilities Usagi’s laboratories? And was there a connection to the rain crisis? After all, regeneration technology was a Vanduul technology, and Usagi was researching with Vanduul corpses. In addition, the bio-bots developed in the ENOS project could alter humans. Were the people who could regenerate marked? Had the shadow circle behind ENOS chosen a portion of the population that would be allowed to live forever in order to dominate everyone else?

And then we also received information that Citizens for Prosperity would be sending a watchdog. We weren’t quite sure yet whether it was supposed to watch over us or monitor us. Brubacker had suggested that Citizens for Prosperity wanted to make sure we didn’t make a killing with the equipment they provided and then disappear.

And now I was on my way to the Stanton System with all the minerals we had mined so far. Hermieoth and Pike had helped me transfer the equipment to Hermie’s Asgard during the night. After that, I had hurriedly set off with the minerals. If Brubacker’s suspicions were correct, my departure would be extremely suspicious. But I had to leave; I had to meet someone in Stanton with whom I could talk about ENOS, the rain crisis, and the research laboratories. If even a fraction of what I suspected was true, it would be a conspiracy of biblical proportions.

With these thoughts in mind, I sat in the pilot’s seat and looked at the tattered asteroids gliding past the Starlancer. They seemed as shapeless and structureless as our expedition. To my left, some distance away, I could see the Stanton Gateway space station. A spaceship was moving away from the station and heading for the jump point ahead of me. I should reach it in a minute.

After all the chaos of the last few days, it felt good to be on my own again. So many people in one place stressed me out. I missed the solitude of the desert. But even more disturbing was the idea that someone was manipulating people on a genetic level just to give them the privilege of immortality. If it was a privilege and not a curse. But the rich and powerful couldn’t get enough. Not enough money, not enough power, not enough life. And they would do anything to expand their power and put themselves above others.

The jump point took shape before me. It formed its vortex, hurling lightning bolts into the brown gas clouds. The other spaceship approached the wormhole and disappeared. The displays on my instruments began to flicker, then the hole swallowed me too, and I plunged into the tunnel between the star systems.

After a quiet flight through the jump tunnel and the Stanton system, I reached Hurston. Covered in dirty brown clouds, the polluted planet lay before me like a memorial. An uneasy feeling rose within me. It had been a long time since Hurston Security had hunted me down and arrested me, and all database entries about me had been deleted, but a sense of uncertainty remained. The on-board computer reported that it had calibrated the jump to the capital city of Lorville. Hesitantly, I curled my index finger, the Starlancer performed the orbital jump, and the city’s skyscrapers, illuminated with yellow lettering, appeared outside the cockpit window.

After landing, I made my way to the hospital with my hood pulled low over my face. It felt as if I were trying to sneak into a forbidden place. I furtively ran past Hurston Security guards who eyed me critically. Unconsciously, I dodged the beams of searchlights that wandered around like suspicious eyes. At some point, I realized that I stood out in my outfit like a Valakaar in a bar. Nevertheless, I didn’t take off my hood until I arrived at the hospital.

I met Becky at the hospital. She worked there and was a friend of Madge Hartford, the founder of Citizens for Prosperity. I had worked with Becky before and got the Starlancer for the expedition through her.

I told Becky about my suspicions regarding ENOS, the laboratories in Pyro, and the rain crisis. She looked at me with an expressionless face. Seconds passed in silence. A loudspeaker announcement echoed through the hospital. Then she spoke.

“I don’t know much about ENOS. Only what I read in that newspaper from ArcCorp. What was it called again? …”

Becky paused.

“… Ah yes, ‘Off The Record’. And yes – only some can regenerate. Those with the genome. At least that’s what it said in the Terra Gazette. It also said that secret research is probably being conducted in laboratories in Pyro. That’s probably what your friend meant. The newspaper refers to laboratories belonging to ASD, Associated Sciences & Development. According to a leak, a scientist is conducting experiments on irradiated creatures to find a way out of the rain crisis. I don’t know what to make of it either.”

Becky paused again and looked very thoughtful, almost sad. Then she continued in an energetic voice.

“But regardless of all that, it’s important to us that regeneration technology is accessible to everyone. Because of the crisis, support for our dangerous pioneering work is crumbling massively. We have to find a way to end the crisis. That’s why I’m grateful that you and your friends are supporting us.”

“Do you trust us?”

The words came out of my mouth like a bullet from a gun.

“I trust you, Zero,” Becky replied emphatically.

“Then why the chaperone?”

“What are you talking about?”

“About Lyrana Sorell, whom you want to send to us.”

“I don’t know anything about that. Your expedition was commissioned by Christian Hutton. He is a logistics coordinator specializing in Bloom/Orbituary and represents the interests of Citizens for Prosperity in Pyro. He doesn’t coordinate every action with us at headquarters. But I can check the files to see if there is an entry for this Lyrana Sorell.”

Becky went to a terminal and entered a few commands.

“Indeed, there is a file in the internal register of Citizens for Prosperity on a Lyrana Sorell…. And there seems to be more. Wait a moment…. That’s strange, why in this deep subdirectory? … I don’t understand …”

Becky’s voice grew quieter and more thoughtful. Suddenly, she cried out loudly.

“Oh no! What are these strange cryptic symbols?”

I jumped to the terminal, roughly pushing Becky aside with my shoulder. I frantically entered several commands. My fingers flew across the display like a whirlwind. Then I took a step back and said:

“Hopefully I wasn’t too late. An encryption algorithm was activated. I transferred everything to my Mobiglas. I think I can crack the code. But now I have to hurry to Microtech to meet an old friend.”

*

Cracking the code wasn’t a big deal. I looked at the file while we were still on the quantum flight to the planet Microtech.

Lyrana Sorell—born in Pyro on the planet Bloom—mid to late 30s—parents residing on the Orbituary orbital station—which was also her current location—freelancer with no contractual obligations—focus on air superiority, target acquisition, movement protection.

One thing puzzled me. According to the file, her state affiliation was UEE with restricted registration. A Pyro native under UEE registration? How did that fit together? Didn’t she belong to the free peoples? According to the entries, she was also not a member of Citizens for Prosperity.

Her spaceship made things even more interesting. She owned a modified Aegis Gladius, a light space fighter. The registration was non-standard and outside the UEE transponder network.

The really interesting stuff was in the encrypted part of the file. My astonishment grew with every line I read.

A freighter went missing while crossing Pyro – The cargo: a Gladius with a military configuration – Later, a Gladius appeared at Orbituary, with a signature that matched the missing Gladius by over 92% – The Gladius’ firmware: completely overwritten and it had a new ID The suspicion: Lyrana Sorell had appropriated the Gladius.

I whistled through my teeth and sank thoughtfully into the backrest – Lyrana seemed to be a sly one. The file stated that there were no negative entries or disciplinary measures, but also that she had low group dynamics.

I suspected that this lady still had a few surprises in store for us – I was warned. It was not out of the question that she was pursuing her own goals and would ultimately pull the rug out from under us. Perhaps she was not our guardian. But our test.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)