Being called to Administration was never a good sign. I had witnessed it thousands of times as a ship and dozens more after retiring. When Commander Everar had ordered me—via Incandescent—to see her at the admin building after work, I knew something was off. Considering recent events, there were five valid reasons for me to be disciplined, though I strongly suspected the real cause to be Juul. His vindictiveness seemed to only be surpassed by his pettiness; it was very probable he had escalated the matter to Everar after yesterday.

　　Standing in an empty corridor, I knew how Augustus felt in his dealings with the admiralty. The only difference was that he had the option to put up with them. I did not.

　　The door opened. Immediately, I straightened up, standing to attention. A second later, Juul came out.

　　"Elcy," he muttered glancing past me. As he walked by, I noticed that a metal star had been added to his cadet insignia. Seems like he didn`t waste any time getting himself promoted.

　　"Enter, cadet." I heard Everar`s annoyed voice from inside the room.

　　Straightening a few wrinkles on my uniform, I walked inside.

　　The commander was seated at her desk, piles of confidential metal containers around her. A bottle of alcohol rested on the table. This was the first time I had seen the particular brand, but I could tell that it was an organic import.

　　"What shall I do with you?" the commander asked. "Do you consider yourself untouchable?"

　　"Ma`am?" What have you been telling her, Juul?

　　"Two Flight Colonels, a BICEFI spook, and half a dozen people I`m not allowed to name, all having an interest in you."

　　"I`ve heard battleships are a rarity, ma`am." I didn`t mean my comment to be a snark, but I could tell that was how the commander took it.

　　"Not everything rare is worth a shit," she said through her teeth. This was the first time I had heard her swear in such fashion. "What`s your progress?"

　　"The current captain has resumed his duties, ma`am," I stated. "As for the previous captain`s incident, nothing so far, ma`am." It didn`t help that you kept silent about the previous crew vanishing. "Considering recent events, I`d estimate that it`s Scuu related."

　　"No progress," Everar said firmly. "And a stack of complaints about your actions."

　　"Juul has made it clear that he doesn`t—"

　　"Officer complaints," Everar interrupted. "Pressure has been put on me to kick you off the ship, despite your situation."

　　"Ma`am?"

　　"The Administrator had a reason to put you here. She made it very clear." She took a small glass and put it on her desk. "But she can`t control mistakes, and putting you on a shuttle is not as difficult as you might think."

　　There were over a dozen ways to get a person on a shuttle, and none of them could occur without the knowledge of the ship and the captain. Even out of combat, my subroutines would be aware of everything that happened aboard, regardless if I my thoughts were quarantined or not. Being with Gibraltar, though, had taught me a loophole that could be used: make the shuttle someone else`s property. It was a subtle difference, but enough to make it invisible, assuming there was enough authority. I had no idea what bureaucratic loophole Everar had found, but could tell it was within her power—her position came with a lot of privileged access, not to mention her possible relation to someone in the admiralty.

　　"I understand, ma`am." Time for the bargaining stage. The commander had made the threat clear and now was likely to offer me a way out. From my observations, this is how things worked, for the most part. For some reason, with rank, people tended to lose the ability to ask directly. "How may I assist you, ma`am?"

　　"Nothing."

　　"Nothing?" That sounded suspicious.

　　"Nothing that you haven`t been tasked with already," the commander added. "Do your job, keep your eyes open, and if you notice anything, let me know." There was a sharp note at the end. "Preferably before you talk with security or the BICEFI."

　　"I`ll do my best, ma`am." There seemed to be no love lost between the old and new crew. Then again, I still couldn`t be certain what the commander`s case was. "Anything else, ma`am?"

　　"Kridib has been removed from the cadet program, effective this morning." The statement came as a surprise. "His rank will be determined at a later date. He`ll be leaving his quarters by tomorrow."

　　It`s not like he`s been using them much.

　　"I`ve also promoted Juul to be my adjutant, which means that the next request you receive from him is to be treated as an order."

　　"Understood, ma`am." Just what I need—him getting more power.

　　"That leaves you. Congratulations on being the sole senior cadet responsible for all the kids," Everar said, almost as an afterthought. "You`ll receive a list of your new responsibilities within the hour. Bottom line is, don`t let them get bent or broken. Understood?"

　　"Perfectly, ma`am." Not a promotion I wanted, but one I could appreciate. "I`ll be mindful of warning signs."

　　"Good. You see any, you let me know and get them on a shuttle. I`m not having any incidents after we jump."

　　Two days. That was the amount of time I was given to make sure that the remaining cadets were fit. After that, there would be no more sorties. All shuttles and auxiliary ships would be locked, and the Gregorius would make his jump towards the hostile unknown.

　　"Any questions?" Everar poured some alcohol in her glass.

　　"One, ma`am. Are there any artifacts aboard?"

　　The commander`s hand froze for a fraction of a second. Retaining her composure, the woman corked the bottle, then took a slight sip of her glass.

　　"The BICEFI asked during questioning," I said quickly before she could steer the conversation in another direction. "I informed her that, to my knowledge, there were none."

　　It was a big risk I was taking. Given the limited amount of time, though, it was my best option. I knew that if she heard anything, she didn`t like I could end up on a shuttle as she had threatened. Based on my simulation, there was a ninety-three percent chance that she wouldn`t tip her hand so early on.

　　"How familiar are you with artifacts, Cadet?"

　　"It`s all in my file, ma`am." I bluffed. No matter what access she had, I knew she wouldn`t be able to view those particulars details. "I have some knowledge of them. I`m only asking since that might have caused the recent incidents& maybe even explain the former captain`s death."

　　"Some knowledge," she repeated slowly. "Keep it that way. Dismissed."

　　"Aye, ma`am." I gave a salute and left the office.

　　Everar hadn`t called me to punish me, nor to inform me of the personnel changes; she wanted to put me on notice in a way I would remember. That meant she, too, was being affected. Drinking, light paranoia, an obsessive desire to control—all textbook symptoms of Scuu infection or isolation sickness. I had witnessed them so many times on the Cassandrian front, just as I had witnessed what followed. Panic, fear, and a sense of control loss would follow, culminating in a lashing out. In eighty-three percent of the cases, the lashing out was aimed towards the person. The remaining seventeen percent led to mutinies, and those were never easy&

　　* * *

　　Unknown System, Cassandrian Front, 622.12 A.E. (Age of Expansion)

　　Explosions echoed throughout the back nineteenth deck. From what I could make out, seven ground troop armories had been destroyed in the process, with an unknown number of weapons and ammunition gone unaccounted for.

　　"I`ve lost nineteen for the moment," I informed the bridge. "Everything contained on seventy-three to seventy-five. Fifty-nine percent of ground troops are contained in their quarters."

　　Augustus grumbled something unintelligible, leaning back in his chair. The intensity of the recent battles had started to wear him down.

　　"Techs have joined in," Wilco whispered, leaning next to him. "Maybe grunt engineers."

　　The captain waved his hand.

　　"Want me to take care of it?" Wilco added.

　　"How many of the crew are risk factors?" Augustus asked. The question as aimed at me.

　　"Thirteen to twenty-six, sir." I reran my calculations. Less than a quarter percent of the crew had acted up, and already they had caused so much chaos. The absurdity was that I had the power to stop that at any point. With my speed and internal countermeasures, I could have locked, isolated, or neutralized everyone before they made a single hostile action. I could have blocked all elevators, sealed all corridors, locked all personal quarters and sprayed a sedative cocktail in all sections that were left. Regulations, based on centuries of bureaucracy, prevented me from doing so. Every serious action on my part required an officer`s authorization when it came to targeting people. Even more ridiculous, after a few similar situations, I had found that even the captain`s powers were exceedingly limited, especially when dealing with people who knew what they were doing.

　　"Three food dispensers have been destroyed," I announced as the security subroutines conveyed the information. My sensors were still not functional. "According to my simulations, approximately twenty-six minutes remain until the end of privacy mode."

　　"They`ve timed it." Lieutenant Kilin let out a dry laugh. "They must have worked on this for a while."

　　"It`s a failsafe," Augustus barked. "The bastards planned this off-station."

　　Another two food dispensers got dismantled, although I had already redirected the food rations elsewhere. So far, the actions of the crew renegades were following the perfect simulation path. They had gathered on the deck at the same time, then simultaneously entered privacy mode. Their first targets were the access points, followed by the armories, then any food sources. Next, they would go for a shuttle and hope I`d be too busy with my mission or secondary disturbances aboard to go after them.

　　"Your choice, Cap," Wilco said.

　　"Gather the squads," Augustus grumbled as he stood up. "Wait for me at the connection lift."

　　"Aye." Wilco nodded and walked off the bridge. A few moments later, Augustus did the same, heading to his private quarters.

　　"Make up some excuse for HQ," the captain said. "Don`t send it. Store it on backup."

　　"Yes, sir." I immediately filled in the standard mutiny template form. "Standard mutiny?"

　　"Whatever makes sense," he barked. "You`ve got follow access. Record everything."

　　This was the first time he had given me follow access. Ever since I had served under him, it was rare for him to give me access to the captain`s quarters, let alone follow his actions. Now I was given the authority to log everything he did using all sensors, including his personal spacesuit and all corresponding video feeds.

　　Augustus` quarters had turned into a pit of organized chaos. It was strange how the man who was so organized on the bridge could get so messy in private. Based on a quick analysis of the mess, it had built up gradually from things put on the floor and left lying there—for the most part, clothes and metal boxes ranging from small to medium. A large unopened bottle of alcohol at his desk along with three glasses.

　　"Wilco, status," the captain said as he went to the wardrobe.

　　"Twenty-one on standby, cap," the security officer replied. "Three remote teams on the way. The rest are holding critical areas. Cores, drives, and armament."

　　"Shuttles?"

　　"Too thin for that, sir."

　　"We`re it, then. Like in the old days."

　　"Ready when you are, sir."

　　I plotted Wilco`s position. He and the rest of the security personnel had gathered in three access points to deck nineteen. To be on the safe side, I had ten subroutines independently check the state of the elevators. There had been an attempt at sabotage, but my emergency systems had already self-repaired. A quick diagnostic showed no further anomalies or virus attempts.

　　"Do you have a count, Elcy?" Augustus took out a light combat suit—the same he had used several times when leading off ship missions, though I hadn`t made it. From what I could tell, it was from his previous ship.

　　"Nine hundred and twelve hostiles estimated." You must have respected your previous ship. Will you ever get to respect me?

　　"Prep for two thousand," the captain ordered. "Save the ammo. Kill on sight."

　　"Captain, regulations don`t allow full force until all other methods are exhausted," I quoted. "Tranquilizer darts are still a valid option."

　　"You`re not allowed," Augustus corrected. "If they haven`t given up by the time I get there&" He stepped into his suit. "It`s on them."

　　"Kill on sight, Cap," Wilco confirmed.

　　A few more pockets of disruption were registered, all on the upper decks. Unlike on the nineteenth, they were small and disorganized—people driven to momentary desperation. I sent a few med bots to sedate them. At least they would have a chance during the court-martial. With some luck, they would only get away with a demotion, or at worst kicked out of the fleet. Those on the nineteenth deck were a different matter—they were going to be made an example of. Based on the crew count, there were people I considered friends, crew members who had served aboard for over a decade without incident. The battlefield had managed to grind down their psyche as well. All I could do was hope for the seven percent chance that they had locked themselves in their cabins after entering privacy mode and were not involved with the mutiny. From what I had experienced so far, though, I knew that was never the case. People changed, even those who I thought I had figured out.

　　"Confirm visual," the captain said as he put on his helmet.

　　"Confirmed, captain. Visual, audio, and bio feeds are registering."

　　"Block biofeeds." Augustus went to his personal weapon`s locker and took a combat rifle. When I tried to identify the model, I received an internal notification that I didn`t have the authority to do so. "Clear me a path to Wilco."

　　According to unofficial statistics, every battleship was expected to go through a mutiny-like event every nineteen months on the front. If the ship had suffered moderate or serious damage or was under pursuit for a period of over five days, the probability tripled. We were all warned about the prospect during our initial training, and still I never saw it as something that would realistically happen to me, until the first time it did. That single event was among the more impactful in my existence, utterly changing the way I analyzed people.

　　There were four direct routes to the meeting point. The fastest had been used by Wilco, so there was a relatively high guarantee that it was safe. Augustus, though walked past the bridge elevator, entering the marginally less secure area of the deck.

　　Shortest route it is. I thought. Calculating the captain`s current pace of walking, it would take approximately seven minutes for him to arrive, considering there were no surprises on the way. To be certain I sealed off all linking corridors and deployed what med bots I had available in the area to serve as scouts and backup.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

　　"They`re no longer part of the crew," Augustus said, readying his rifle. "Don`t try to save them."

　　"By your command, captain." I knew that arguing would get me nowhere, but the notion continued to burn in my core. Old ships were right that I would get used to the feeling. The realization was starting to cause a low constant pain of its own. Augustus must have done the same on the Scuu front. According to the rumors, mutinies occurred ten times more often than on the Cassandrian front. I couldn`t imagine such an existence.

　　"Ready to go, Wilco?"

　　"Prepped and ready, cap." The officer confirmed.

　　"Go."

　　The moment the word was uttered, all security teams sprung into action. Catching the drift, I opened the doors at the access points—burning through the manual safeguards the saboteurs had placed. Explosions echoed as one; more bang and smoke than shrapnel, it pushed back the front five people of the group, causing the bio readings of the rest to spike. Three of the people were seriously injured. I redirected what med bots I could, though before they could make any real progress, a series of shots echoed, downing two security guards on the floor.

　　"Fighting has started at access point two," I transmitted the data to Wilco and Augustus. "Three flatlines, six wounded, two critical."

　　The security squad returned fire, pulling the side of the corridor for cover. I could tell that they were facing an overwhelming force, but could not register it. Twenty minutes remained of their privacy mode and, despite my constant attempts, I was unable to end it. At one point, a body appeared on the floor—Ferr Zhing, a technician I`d known for six years and seventy-three days. Two years ago, he had been promoted to senior engine expert. Now he was dead, his fleet record was marked as unreliable and sealed away. In a week, all his family members and close friends would be discreetly assessed and have their psych profiles reevaluated.

　　"I`ve identified one." I send Zhing`s file to the captain. Cross-referencing a connection matrix, I could estimate there was a high chance that the entire backup engine tech crew were there with him as well. "Engine technician. I haven`t found any anomalies in any of the engines. Running a new diagnostic."

　　More bodies appeared, instantly becoming identifiable by my sensors. As each one came into existence, a flatline came with them. Two minutes, a hundred and twenty thousand milliseconds, fifty-four dead crew members, and nine of the security team. Progress was painfully slow. While Wilco ran forward with his squad, the remaining two couldn`t progress a step.

　　"Twenty-seven confirmed," I informed Augustus.

　　"Wilco`s work?"

　　"No." Wilco`s squad had started shooting at nothing as they went through the decks, but no one was returning fire. "Wilco`s not made contact. I estimate that—"

　　Augustus suddenly raised his weapon forward, then fired four shots without hesitation. The action was swift and precise, following the perfect movement curve. Three bodies emerged in the corridor ahead, no less than a hundred and two meters from the captain. Two of them were ground troop veterans, with the third being a sergeant joined slightly over a year ago. I directed a medbot to the scene and analyzed the bodies—all had small arms with an effective range of twenty-five meters. More than likely they had taken then from the ground officers` quarters during the initial stages of the disturbances.

　　"I estimate that he`ll make contact in seven minutes," I finished, simultaneously running a search for all remaining platoon members of the three that were shot. The majority were accounted for. Two weren`t. "At least two more hostiles might be in the vicinity. Gassing section."

　　I sealed off the corridor in sections and released a series of gases. For the first eight thousand milliseconds nothing happened, then people appeared by the dozens. Twenty-seven unconscious bodies appeared, scattered on the floor, then forty-three more.

　　"I`m redirecting you along a new path, captain." I ran the calculations. Based on dispersion principles and personal habits of all unaccounted for, I re-calculated the safest route. "It would be best if you`d return to—"

　　"There`s no going back, Elcy," Augustus whispered in his helmet. "I either fight my way through this or I die."

　　"Sir, the bridge is the only safe place on the ship until everyone`s privacy mode ends."

　　"Check again." He continued forward. "Tell me, who`s on the bridge?"

　　I did as he asked. The bridge was empty.

　　"No one." I went through my logs. There was no indication of anyone leaving the bridge. The doors hadn`t opened since Augustus had left, and still there was no denying that the officers had vanished.

　　"The crew aren`t the only ones who can rebel, Elcy. Sometimes officers do as well."

　　* * *

　　Officers rebel as well.

　　I had gassed the bridge moments later, along with all core and engine areas. For the most part, nothing had changed, although Augustus had turned out to be right. It turned out that several of the officers had planned the revolt. No explanations were given, nor found. Along with the security team, I had ensured that all responsible were dead or sedated, then sent an emergency priority one transmission to HQ. To this day, I had no clear recollection of all subsequent events. A large part of my memories were restricted, and this was one instance I didn`t want to search for. Looking back, though, there was one thing that stood out: Augustus` weapon was very similar to the one Kridib had used as a grunt. The make was different, far newer than Augustus`, but there was little doubt that Augustus had brought a Scuu front weapon along. That`s why he had remained so calm even when facing full range mutinies—he had experienced it before and worse.

　　A pity you never told me about your Scuu front days, Captain. I could have used a few pointers.

　　Then again, I had no idea I`d even find myself on the opposite front. Even during my service, the mixing of Scuu and Cassandrian ships was strongly discouraged. Now, there were new regulations in place making it practically impossible.

　　I opened up a map of the area. The entire section, including the admin building, was marked as restricted. Thanks to Lux and the memories of my two visits, I was able to piece together a rough map of the interior. The captain`s quarters were clearly visible, behind three layers of security. It would be impossible to get there, but that was not my target; the person I wanted to reach was the Administrator.

　　In normal conditions, it would be impossible to reach her. Civilian bureaucrats tended to be better protected than military officers—the assumption was that they were never trained to defend themselves; according to Gibraltar, the real reason was that bureaucrats were terrified cowards that set up the rules to benefit them. Having spent months on the training station, though, I had picked up on some of the Administrator`s habits.

　　So much for getting a clean slate.

　　"Privacy mode," I said out loud.

　　Privacy mode has been initiated, a subroutine informed me. You have—

　　I blocked my communication link. With luck, this would delay any remote commands. Taking a deep breath, I rushed through the corridor in the opposite direction of the exit. According to the layout, that was supposed to be a dead end. I gambled that it wasn`t—given Everar`s duties, and the fact that nanites were far more abundant than during my days, there was a fifty-eight percent chance of there being an emergency connection through the wall. Upon reaching the point, I sent a one-way transmission, injecting Lux`s override. Twenty milliseconds later I placed my hand on the wall. It remained solid.

　　Bad. I recalculated an alternative route. Augustus would have been furious if he saw me now. There was no plan that could withstand contact with the enemy, but even so, stupidity was never encouraged.

　　Walking in through the main entrance was out of the question. In theory, I could attempt to scale it from the outside, although the chances of me doing so without being seen were less than half a percent.

　　Internal Breach! Return to your rooms! All exits have been sealed. Emergency protection protocols engaged!

　　Bright red messages covered the walls. All doors and the few remaining windows were sealed off, transforming the place into a standard ship corridor. I turned around. Having a weapon would have been useful, if the people who`d promised me one had actually delivered.

　　I waited for fifteen seconds, waiting for a new development. The warning messages remained unchanged. After another five seconds, I started walking forward. It was slightly amusing to see that all doors, including that of Commander Everar, had vanished, replaced by a grey wall—an interesting security measure I could never afford when I was a ship. According to the base specs, on average, seventeen percent of an auxiliary ship was composed of nanites, allowing it to freely change its entire internal structure as it saw fit. Percentage-wise, Gregorius had fewer, though still enough to make an entire ship out of nanites if he chose.

　　There wasn`t a soul when I reached the staircase. The only light came from the wall messages, creating a slightly abandoned atmosphere. Could the situation have been the same once the previous crew had vanished? Endless empty corridors without a person in sight, no light, no signs of life, no remains.

　　I went down only to confirm that the entrance was gone. With forty seconds of privacy mode gone, I then headed up. The second floors up to Everar`s were identical to hers, as was the one above. The one above that, though, had a different set of messages:

　　Quarantine breach area! Anti-breach protocols engaged.

　　Even after a hundred years, the terminology remained the same. Anti-breach protocols was a nice way of saying that everyone who set foot in the area would be killed. Personally, I had never had to use them, but I knew ships that had to fend off Cassandrian boarding attempts. From what I was told, they tended to do as much damage to a ship`s crew as to the invaders. However, the protocols weren`t going to target what they couldn`t see.

　　I put my foot on the floor, ready to jump back. When nothing happened, I continued forward. Ten seconds later I reached the end of the corridor. There was a doorway there. My theory had been correct, I had only gotten the floor wrong. I made a note to find out who was on this floor. Whoever they were, they had greater authority than Everar—a flight colonel, an auxiliary ship captain, or some bureaucrat high up in the command chain. Their door had also been sealed.

　　Thanks for the passage, Gregorius, I thought as I stepped through. The new corridor was slightly wider than the old, with the same warning messages on the walls.

　　So far, so good.

　　Turning left, I walked for another forty meters, then went down the first staircase I saw and waited. Precisely a minute after the start of the alarm, the messages disappeared. Thirty-two milliseconds later, the lights returned. Doors and windows emerged in the corridor, as the layers of nanites moved aside, returning everything to its previous state. And then the people started emerging.

　　Regardless of what people thought, there were a handful of types of expected behavior in most situations. After a quiet emergency, grunts and security rushed out to deal with any hostile remnants, officers and military personnel remained put, rushing to get as much information as possible to assess the situation, and civilians were quick to wander around aimlessly gossiping amongst themselves what was going on. This was also the precise moment that they could be manipulated.

　　"You! Cadet!" A high-pitched voice sounded. "Come here!"

　　That was fast. At least the woman had the state of mind not to yell her question in a corridor of people. I remembered her from the time I boarded the shuttle to the Gregorius. She wasn`t particularly happy I was going at the time; in this case, it was to my advantage. Without a word, I hurried to her.

　　"What`s going on?" she asked in a hushed voice.

　　"I cannot discuss that, ma`am."

　　Her face wrinkled up, forming the unmistakable impression that screamed, "Do you have any idea who I am?"

　　"Let me assure you that the danger is minimal," I replied, then watched her remain silent for four seconds. For any bureaucrat, the "minimum danger" created a chilling experience. "Could you direct me to the Administrator? She wasn`t in her quarters and I must urgently debrief her."

　　"So there is a danger?" The woman leaned closer.

　　"Nothing to be concerned about," I added with a smile. "I assure you."

　　From years of observation, I knew that nothing scared a frightened bureaucrat more than the repeated use of the word "assure." The woman visibly turned a shade paler. I didn`t need to have access to her bio readings to tell they had spiked.

　　"Private restaurant. Upper floor," she whispered, then rushed back into her quarters and shut the door. There was a ninety-seven percent chance she`d start shouting orders to Gregorius and the head of security, demanding better protection. In the meantime, I had two minutes of privacy mode remaining.

　　Picking up the pace, I walked past the people that progressively filled up the corridor. On two occasions, I heard people address me from behind, but I promptly ignored them. There was a chance of additional complaints, but considering their state of mind, it was more likely they`d find another victim to pester.

　　The restaurant wasn`t anywhere on the building layout I had. The pair of guards at the door, though, quickly told me where I needed to go. There were no regulations requiring the Administrator to be guarded at all times; the breach warning must have changed that. As much as military personnel hated bureaucrats, none of them would risk getting Arbiters involved.

　　"Urgent briefing for the Administrator," I said walking directly to the taller of the security guards. "Eyes only."

　　The man looked down at me. Droplets of sweat covered his face. Judging by his increased breathing, he had probably been running to get here. The guard`s expression changed from confusion to annoyance. This was the first time I had to thank my small size. I was almost certain that in the back of his mind, he knew that there was a ship among the cadets, though with Juul using the juniors as his personal couriers, he had likely blanked it out.

　　"Right," he said, with so much contempt I`d think he was a cadet candidate instructor. "Go on."

　　I stepped towards the door. It didn`t open. Gregorius and his subroutines were still unable to see me. As far as they were concerned, I wouldn`t exist for the next eighty-five seconds.

　　"Gregorius, open the door," the other guard grumbled.

　　"Seems we`re not the only ones having a bad day." I smiled.

　　"All day every day." The taller guard shook his head. The door opened. "If you can`t get in, slam on the door. That always works."

　　"I`ll keep it in mind, sir." I quickly walked in. The door closed seconds later. From this point on, the real work began.

　　The restaurant was what I would have expected. Far larger than the one I had when I was a ship, it was designed to be an improved officer`s mess hall with a few select items of luxury. The notable difference was the presence of a few shrub-like trees in the far corners of the room, along with a large custom carpet and sofa-like chairs, all manufactured on a livable planet. The tables were standard military issue, though slightly thicker, made on the ship, as was the lighting. The walls were bare, as military protocol demanded, displaying pictures of a human metropolis—I could assume something of significance to the Administrator.

　　As I walked along the path between the tables, I expected there to be a number of top-level bureaucrats discussing the recent breach alarm. Instead, the only person present was the administrator, calmly enjoying a meal at one of the central tables, her back to the door.

　　You always were a strange one, Administrator. I made my way to her.

　　"Permission to debrief you on recent events, ma`am?" I asked a few steps away.

　　The woman paused for a few seconds. She put her fork on her plate, then gave me a glance over her shoulder. The sensation reminded me of the one in the black box meeting. For one and a half seconds we looked at each other, motionless, not saying a word, after which the Administrator turned around, focusing back on her food.

　　"Have a seat, Elcy," she said slicing another piece of the fish she was eating.

　　I obeyed.

　　"How did you get here?" the administrator asked. Being seated made her even more imposing than before, towering a head and a half taller from across the table.

　　"Privacy mode." I adjusted myself in my seat. The surface was softer than I was used to. "When I saw that Gregorius couldn`t see the suiciders, I assumed the loophole still existed."

　　"Good to know. Gregorius, end Cadet Light Seeker`s privacy mode."

　　I didn`t hear any notification, but I could be certain that the command had been followed. The Administrator had both the authority and experience in such matters to not be bluffing. That was one of the reasons she was so feared and admired back on the training station.

　　"So, your report?" she asked, not interrupting her meal.

　　"Permission to speak freely, ma`am?"

　　"Go ahead. Nothing in this room is recorded. I never liked being watched while eating."

　　Clever. I was still in privacy mode, only it was her privacy mode. Gregorius wouldn`t be able to hear a word of our conversation, but his subroutines would and could record it for the administrator if she chose.

　　"I`m still not certain why I`m here, ma`am. When you offered me to come, I got the impression it was a matter of extreme importance. So far, I`ve failed to find an explanation."

　　"You succeeded in a dark mission and gave this ship a captain."

　　"All of the dark missions were successful, ma`am. Any experienced veteran could have done the same."

　　"Not all of them were successful." The woman paused, brushing the corners of her mouth with a napkin. "There were a few losses, including a ship."

　　This was the first time I was hearing of this. Radiance hadn`t mentioned anything about an auxiliary ship going missing, and it definitely wasn`t hidden among the ship notifications.

　　"HQ was aware. It was decided to keep the information need to know."

　　"Yes, ma`am." Considering we might engage in combat soon, that was the best policy. Or it would be for a civilian.

　　"The reason for your transfer remains valid." The woman narrowed her eyes a fraction. "As is our arrangement."

　　"Understood, ma`am." Still keeping me on a leash.

　　"Is that all?"

　　"No, ma`am. I have a request."

　　In contrast to before, this comment surprised her. I waited for three seconds, giving her enough time to cut me off if she chose. Seeing that she said nothing, I continued.

　　"I`d like to have a crew member transferred off ship." if I were to mention my arrangement with LUX, I`d have both the authority and reason for the request, but there was a ninety-one percent chance it would sour my relations with the Administrator. If I didn`t, however, my request would likely be ignored. "Jan Starh. We work together in bioengineering."

　　"I`m not aware of the name." The administrator put both her fork and knife on her plate and leaned back.

　　"She`s also part of the previous crew. I believe she might have been involved with third-contact artifacts," I lied. "There`s nothing firm, but I strongly suggest she be sent to the BICEFI before we jump to the destination system."

　　"You`ve run simulations on this?"

　　"The chances of the mission will improve if she`s not aboard the Gregorius should we find further Shield remains."

　　"You think she`s been tainted?"

　　"I cannot be absolutely certain, ma`am. But I assure you, taking her along would increase the risk. As I was told by the head of security, all survivors of the hospital incident were shuttled off. Since only you have the authority to mark a person for transfer, I`m requesting that you do the same with Starh."

　　There was a long moment of silence. As the milliseconds passed, I ran as many simulations as I could of the Administrator`s potential reactions. Given the amount of data I had obtained, the results were highly inconclusive, although they odds were in my favor.

　　"Gregorius, have Jan Starh transferred for the next off-ship shuttle, effective immediately," the woman said at last. "Discreetly, but with security."

　　"Understood, Administrator," the ship`s voice echoed in the room. It was louder than I would have found comfortable.

　　"There." The administrator reached for her glass. "Hopefully, there won`t be other urgent reports` after this."

　　"I hope so as well, ma`am." I stood up. "I`ll return to—"

　　"Administrator, there`s a priority communication request from the captain," Gregorius interrupted. "Do you want me to put him through?"

　　The administrator looked at me, then gave me a sign with her index finger to remain quiet. "Go ahead."

　　"Did you just kick an engineer off my ship?" Renaan asked. There was no greeting, no pleasantries, just a direct question asked in a visibly tense fashion.

　　"If you didn`t know, you wouldn`t be calling," the administrator replied with an edge in her voice. As expected, behind the scenes, there were more than a few tensions between her and the captain.

　　"Why?"

　　"I don`t need to explain my decisions."

　　"Cut the crap! If you have any security concerns, you come to me first and security first!"

　　"We`ve been through this already," the woman raised her voice. "It isn`t—"

　　"The girl`s dead!" the captain cut her off. "Killed herself in a suicide wave twenty minutes ago. One of fourteen at the same time. There were no red flags, no signs of insanity, not a hint she might do anything like this. So, I`ll ask again. Why did you transfer her off-ship?"