Unlike the Vitae, the hangar of the Nyx was incredibly small by comparison, cramped even. Where the Vitae had spacious docks for each of its fighters and their crews, the Nyx forced everything to fit in a small chamber like a military grade version of tetris. The Nyx’s four fighters were neatly stacked in pairs on either side of the hangar. The T-22 Fighters were hung from the ‘ceiling’ pf the Hangar to make space for the main cargo of the Nyx- its pair of Destrier Dropships and its Beast Command vehicle. A smattering of smaller vehicles were stuffed into various corners of the hangar, and only the central lane of the hangar had any considerable amount of open space. Unlike the Vitae, craft from the Nyx were ‘dropped’ out of the back instead of launched off of catapults.

The general population of the hangar was considerably smaller, with an engineering crew that only numbered ten- just a few heads more than the squadron tasked to it. Unlike the Vitae, all the craft in the Nyx were already loaded for bear and prepped for launch before being loaded onto the Nyx, cutting down the noise to little more than a hush, with only the occasional clang of machinery.
Standing in the center lane of the Hangar was the rest of the 7th Grave Robbers squadron. In the possession of a few commandeered crates, the squadron was assembled in a haphazard fashion; several of the squadron's pilots sitting laxly on top of the crates, while others stood, idling around. Loch and Hawkins were peering over a datapad with the latest mission details when Loch noticed Atkov and promptly gave Hawkins a light elbow nudge, before gesturing towards the new pilot with his chin.

“There she is boss,” Loch spoke up, as Hawkins and several other members of the squadron glanced at their newcomer.

Riley stood up attentively, while Crowley and Lin gave the new pilot a quick, subtle, look-over. Thomas on the other hand made no such effort and quickly stood and approached the new pilot. He had the look of a predator, a shark circling a potential prey, analyzing a target before he struck. Much like a shark, he appeared to have replaced intellectual curiosity with carnal urges. “Well hello there…” Thomas drawled in his thick english accent, as he waited for her name.

Clearly uncomfortable being the center of attention, Cassandra defaulted to a brisk salute, “Cassandra Atkov, reporting for the away mission.”

“Cassandra huh? Cass for short? What ab-” Thomas started flirtatiously before he was smacked in the head by Lin, who repeatedly and rapidly whacked at the male pilot until the man retreated. Dusting herself off, Lin gave Atkov an approving nod. The diminutive pilot dismissively waved at Cassandra.

“Put the salute away, we’re pilots, not desk jockeys.”

Atkov nodded, whilst going back to a more relaxed position, however she still seemed somewhat nervous, “Alright. I guess things are more relaxed here than in my old squadron.”

“Finally had a chance to read your file,” Sara spoke up, approaching their new pilot, her eyes finally leaving the datapad in front of her. “Kuiper Incident huh? That sounds like a piece of work. Regardless, we don’t put much weight on formalities around here- only when the top brass are involved. If I see you sitting on a crate when the Admiral walks in, then we may have a problem.”

“Now that you’re here, you get to meet the rest of the squad,” Sara added, gesturing to the mottled assortment of pilots sitting in the hangar around them.

“You’ve just met Thomas, he’s a dick so don’t listen to a word he says.” Sara said, pointing at the cocky brit who seemed to take the jab with some amount of pride. He was the second tallest in the squadron, a few inches shorter than Crowley, with dirty blonde hair and an equally dirty attitude.

“Lin,” she continued, pointing at the almost childlike figure behind her, “is a lot more dangerous than she looks, so don’t underestimate her.”

“Riley,” Sara added, patting the rookie on the shoulders, “is new like you, but doesn’t have any combat experience, so we’re gonna have to keep a close eye on him.”

Sara’s quick and dirty introductions to the rest of the squadron continued like so, until the Nyx was prepped to launch. It was at this point Sara waved the squadron around her so they could listen up to their current assignment. “So since we’re one of the only squadrons to have faced combat, Command has decided to reward us with a milk run- why they don’t just send another squadron to do it, I have no idea, but we make do with the rusty nail covered sticks we’re given.”

“Anyway, Lin and Thomas, will be on escort duty in T-22s, guarding the Nyx as it approaches the planet. Upon atmospheric entry, Riley and Loch will head out on T-47s to gather more telemetric data. Upon return, myself and Atkov will be joining the away party on Shrieks for ‘eyes on’ scouting. Crowley will be Close-air-support in the Destrier. Any questions? Lets saddle up.”

It was getting to be that time of the day. Melanie wasn’t late, but she was cutting it rather close with time and the thought alone was making her anxious. Nevertheless, she had to regain her composure in order for her to do her job correctly, that, or manage to lose whatever self-respect she had for herself.

“Hi, I’m Dr. Melanie Larson. I’m here for an appointment with one of your subjects.” Melanie flashed both of her identification cards to the guard behind the desk. She looked down at her screen then back up at Melanie, giving her a quick nod before calling for an escort.

“Someone will be with you very shortly to take you in, Dr. Larson.”

“Thank you,” she added with a smile, then placed her credentials back in the bag. Melanie walked to the center of the lobby, eyeing some safety pamphlets that were scattered on the coffee table . She reached down for one of the pamphlets to read the content, curious as to what the security department had to say on the safety and well-being of the general population.

“Dr. Larson, this way please.”

Melanie looked back at the guard standing by the door. “Oh, of course!” She placed the pamphlet back down on the coffee table then hurried to meet him.

“I’m here to escort you down to the brig,” he said as he guided her down the hall. “Once there, you’ll meet with Warden Harrisen who will show you how to proceed so that you may get on with your appointment. Do you have any questions for me?” The guard called for the elevator, and the doors opened right away.

“No, thank you.”

He motioned for Melanie to step into the elevator first out of courtesy, and she obliged. Once inside, he pressed his palm to the scanner, followed by speaking "Sub-Level Brig" toward the voice recognition console. Melanie leaned against the wall opposite of him as the elevator started its descent. They both stood in silence for a moment, and from the corner of her eye, Melanie noticed the guard smirking at her, making Melanie a bit tense. She tightened the grip on her bag and waited until much to her relief, she heard a beep followed by the elevator doors opening. Melanie didn’t say a word as she hurried outside, eager to finally meet with the warden.

Marcus Harrisen stood tall and rigid just outside the elevators, a stainless steel coffee mug in hand, a small white paperbox in the other, and a warm smile across his dark-skinned complexion as he set his seemingly aged eyes on the woman emerging through the lift doors. From what Melanie understood, Harrisen had been in law enforcement for quite some time throughout his life and taking on the job of Warden wasn't much different than what he was used to, except perhaps slightly more babysitting duties.

"Doctor Larsen, welcome and thank you for taking the time to see the inmate as I'm aware your schedule is rather tight." He said with a nod as he lifted the lid on the paper box and held it up to Melanie. "Danish? They were made fresh only an hour ago."

"A danish would be lovely, thank you," Melanie replied before reaching for one of the pastries. She grabbed the one with the strawberry center and took a bite, chewing for a moment before nodding in approval. "And you don't have to thank me for simply doing my job, Warden, especially since it's at the request of Admiral Locke. Shall we proceed to see the inmate?" she asked before taking another bite.

"Right this way, ma'am."

With the Warden leading the way, the duo proceeded down one of the inner corridors and through two security checkpoints, which had several methods of identificational protocol related to biometric screening and voice recognition before allowing access into the "middle ring" which housed offices, guard stations, and interrogation rooms. They stopped in front of one of the empty rooms, which sat a single metal table, two chairs on either side, and a couple of metal latches fused to the table where handcuffs would be secured.

"Now, our 'honored guest' is being released from her cell and escorted here as we speak, so sit tight for a few moments and enjoy that pastry while it's still warm." He said with a wink, before taking a sip from his mug.

"Of course."

After the interrogation room was unlocked, Melanie walked in and made her way around to stand behind the table. She placed her bag down and took out a notepad, pen, and her tablet which contained the e-file on the subject. Since the inmate would arrive at any moment, Melanie finished what was left of the danish in a hurry and quickly got to work, retrieving the file and setting up the voice recorder which she had nearly forgotten about.

"I'm all set up, Warden. I promise this meeting won't take long as it will be more of an introduction for the both of us."

"Take your time, Doctor." Harrisen said with a grin as he stood in the doorway. "It's not as though the cyborg is going anywhere until your session has been concluded." He turned to look down the hall, and noticed the female known as 'Irons' being escorted by three officers across the last checkpoint before entering into the inner ring.

"I'd advise, however, Ms Larsen..." The Warden returned his attention to the psychologist seated at the table. "That you hide the pen and use an alternative means of recording your session. You just never know what could be used as a weapon."

"Well, that's unfortunate..." Melanie's smile turned into a frown as she put her notepad and pen away. She couldn't help but worry for her personal safety after the Warden's comment, but that didn't mean she wouldn't do her job. Instead, she waited for said cyborg and wondered what challenges awaited her.

Harrisen moved sideways to allow the prisoner and her escort to enter the room. She walked to the empty chair across of the psychologist with an even step, throwing her a curious glance before flopping down into it. The guards remained at the door, weapons at the ready, as the prisoner put her hands on the table and steepled her fingers. Her hands looked like tools made for violence - in fact, all of her did.

"I have been expecting you, doctor." She said slowly, her voice a serving of digital honey with some bolts mixed in, as her tiny red pupils dug into Melanie's face. "I do not believe we have met. My name is Yama-uchi Chizuru, and I am at your mercy."

She waved at the guards, then looked at the psychologist and gestured towards them with her head. It was probably up to her to decide whether they would be alone or with security personnel in the room. Melanie gave the guards a quick nod and a smile so that they could wait outside the door, and they left, the door locking with a click behind them.

"Ms. Chizuru, my name is Dr. Melanie Larson. I'm sure that you're more than aware of the reason behind my visit. First and foremost, I want to advise you that what you say in this room will be kept confidential between myself, Chief TreVayne, and Admiral Locke. Please be aware that I have to report everything, and that I am not able to accept any 'off the records' confessions as I've been directed to communicate everything up the chain. Also, this session is currently being recorded as we speak. The contents of that recording will be for my record-keeping only unless directed to do otherwise. Do you have any questions before we begin?"

"Not questions, but a few notes." the cyborg smiled at Melanie, showing off a row of unnaturally sharp teeth. "I will not ask you what the process of your examination will be, as the element of surprise must be a factor in it. But do know that Rorschach tests will not work because of how my eyes function - we have found that the printing or projecting technology used brings too much noise into the results."

She thought for a moment, then gestured with her hand. "Yes, that is all. At your will, Doctor."

"Alright, Ms. Chizuru, then let us begin." Melanie started typing away on her tablet, for now just the basics such as date, start time, and the name of the person she was interviewing. "Can you please give me an overview of your past up until this point? I'm primarily looking for significant events in your life, as well as what led you here."

"Just 'Chizuru' is fine." The cyborg cringed a little. "As for my past, I will give you the abridged version, and you can ask for elaboration on events that catch your attention."

"Let's see," She rubbed her chin, "Born under the same name in Okinawa Province, Japan, NC, fairly normal childhood, enrolled into Criminology immediately after school and applied for a job at the Intelligence department of the NC Internal Security office after graduation. That was before the war. This - this is where it gets complicated."

Chizuru leaned her head on her hands, the lights in her eyes reflecting from the metal table. She was silent for a long while. The events of the war itself would be deeply buried in her subconscious, but the memory of her time in the labs of Project Daedalus were not much better. A moment later, she had made a decision.

"Well, you remember how after the war everyone started coming up with 'solutions' for the 'future of humanity'? Almost all of those that originated in the NC, even after the merge, went through us. We had the tools to discover which are worth funding, and the means to funnel said funds, though that wasn't our main focus. Eventually I realized we were all just wasting time, while these people out there would sacrifice everything, burst through every box they have built around themselves, for even the tiniest chance to fight back. At this point, let's say my career took a sharp turn."

She flexed her fingers in front of her. "Project Daedalus. The idea that making humans into weapons has enough chaos and potential to exploit weaknesses in the alien army that may or may not be there. It may sound stupid but it worked before, many times, throughout history. And they had some serious industry heads backing them. I chose them, and forced them to chose me."

"At this point it gets all technical and tiring," She said after a pause, "And the end result is before you. One of the end results. To this day I am not sure how many of us survived, as most of the files I managed to steal were saved locally and the rest were destroyed too fast. Destroyed because humanity has given up on fighting back. 'We will rebuild elsewhere', the world leaders decided, abandoning everyone who wanted to fight back in the entropy of their individual fragile hopes." She clenched her hands into fists. "The thing is, when you abandon the frontline and retreat, it is kind of silly to think no one would look over their shoulder for guidance, or in my case, for something worth fighting for."

"After being refused to board several times, I have manipulated the ship's crew dossier to include a 'Mai Irons' in the engineering crew, figured it would be easiest to hide among machines. And I was right. I was discovered exactly when I wanted to be. Although a bit rough around the edges, my plan includes everything what has happened so far. Even you, Doctor, though in vague detail only. The fact is, I refuse to crawl into a cave and die, letting my fate be decided by proxy by people who believe they are somehow better than the rest of us. I refuse to be rejected by the same parameters that were completely disregarded when Operation Genesis was concieved. It is a spit in the face of everyone of us, hard at work at a plan of survival, while the world leaders are planning an escape behind our back. There is no honor in death for such as them." She clenched her teeth, her red pupils flaring to thrice their size, making her look like an armored demon.

When her eyes rose at Melanie, they suddenly contracted. The cyborg relaxed and leaned back. "That is the abridged version." She said without malice, as much as her slightly-artificial voice could be. "Is there anything specific you would like to know, Doctor?"

As the cyborg spoke, giving Melanie the details about her past life, she noted some of the pertinent information. Not much out of the ordinary stood out to her, aside from Chizuru's extreme enthusiasm toward her mission to save humanity.

"Okay, Chizuru. Let's backtrack to where you mentioned your career in the security office. Did anything occur there that led you to make the decision to be part of Project Daedalus?"

Chizuru appeared in thought for a moment. "I wouldn't tie this decision to a specific event. After the War I began to feel my current job had nothing in common with my dream anymore. I had to take a more hands-on approach. And Daedalus was not the only choice, far from it. I have checked with my department once in a while, and had my timing been different I'd have probably found myself in a completely different situation." She smirked, fiddling with her fingers.

"They were the first serious project to not require a background in science or engineering. Their entire entrance criteria hung on a physical and psychological examinations, kind of similar to pilot school. And the talk wasn't really of human weapons, otherwise it would've most likely scared me off."

She raised her gaze at the woman in front of her. "There are many reasons to work in Internal Security. Mine was the wish to protect my friends, family and everyone else. The war made them lose this side of their work, and I had to look elsewhere."

Melanie gave Chizuru a brief smile. "Alright, fair enough." For a brief moment, there was complete silence in the small room as Melanie updated Chizuru's file with the information she had just given her. After a minute or two, she moved the tablet over and leaned forward on the table, resting on her arms and interlocking her fingers in front of her "Chizuru, while your enthusiasm toward your mission is commendable, the fact of the matter is that you've gone through such lengths for it, that, as you know, it's raised some flags."

"Obviously, security here onboard the Vitae is crucial, and the job is a serious one to say the least, but part of being fit for duty is having the knowledge and willpower to stop yourself before you go too far. I'm not here to chastise you for your past actions, just merely advising you on some of the limitations that exist. It is important that you set aside any personal feelings on the job and go strictly by protocol. Sure there are times when you have a decision to make, but any and all options at your disposal should be justifiable." Melanie stopped for a moment, giving Chizuru the chance to process what she had just said. "Do you understand the point I'm trying to make?"

"I feel a light accusation in the air, but it is too subtle for me." The cyborg grimaced at Melanie, gesturing at 'the air' with her hand. "If you refer to the incident in engineering, I have already discussed it with Mr. TreVayne and we have reached an understanding, albeit in less polite tones. If it is my inexperience, I will obviously start from the bottom and learn the ropes. If it is my power, know that giving our enemy a potential chance by limiting ourselves doesn't cut it anymore."

"I have not hurt anyone on this ship." She pointed an accusing finger at the Doctor. "Cheating my way in is offset by the leaders of Operation Genesis trying to cheat their way out. Besides, protocol is Mr. TreVayne's field."

Chizuru leaned back into her seat again. This abrupt change of mood hinted at a dissonance between her facial expression and her mood. Or at her having a borderline personality disorder.

"I'm sorry if my statements came off as accusatory, Chizuru. Please know that those weren't my intentions." A bit apprehensive now, Melanie motioned for one of the guards to come inside.

"I'm gonna take a brief, 5 minute break. Just sit back and relax while I'm gone, okay?"

The warden showed the Doctor out, and glanced at the prisoner. She would always stare at him, trying to make him uncomfortable or something, but now her eyes were fixed at the table. Pondering on this, he locked the door.

William rubbed his brow with one hand, holding it closed on the bridge of his nose for a moment before turning back to the files before him. "You know, none of this makes sense-" He indicated to the plethora of files. "-I can understand the reasoning behind Armani modifications." He turned to look at his executive officer, XO, Joanne Carter. Who just so happened to have some of those modifications herself. Like most pilots mainly to do with a smart-hub and implants to try and make the most of her reaction time. "I really do, they make sense. They're all done very carefully, you retain your humanity though these projects-" He highlighted two files in particular. Projects Daedalus and Rebirth. "-They're just insane."

He brought Daedalus to the forefront. "A project to enhance a human being through the use of technology, to be a fighting force against enemy invasion. You could almost claim that these modifications stripped their humanity from them. Not to mention, let's be honest. Even with seeing our super soldier down in the brig, we've seen no evidence of foot soldiers within the Devastators ranks they tend to just blow stuff up. What good are super soldiers against an armada?"

"It does seem to be a significant flaw in the plan, though a well placed strike team could easily take out a ship. We drilled it all the time in the fleet." William nodded.

"Granted, it's a manuever Martians practice too. Though, we struggle enough with taking them out with conventional weaponry. In a full out fleet engagement waiting for a strike team to disable a vessel isn't exactly ideal, and Nagasaki stealth tech isn't really to par with sneaking a strike team into the middle of a fleet undetected. I'm not even sure Martian tech would be able to sneak past Devastator ships and Nagasaki units are nowhere near that calibre."

"Perhaps they were further on that you know?"

William shook his head. "No, when the Genesis Project began all member nations, and the Armani fleets that signed the accords, agreed full disclosure on their technology. Martian Stealth Tech was by far the best, which is why the Reaper class is a largely Martian Design. We were never so good at the big ships but the little ones, we're good at."

"It makes sense considering your population."

"Exactly, so really this Project Daedalus seems like someones way of playing God or trying to make their own private army. Though, let's put a pin in this discussion-" Joanne nodded as Locke raised another file up. "-Rebirth is the one that really gets me. It's insane! Armani, some ran. Some decided to fight and some hid. The Federals locked themselves in cryo-sleep, and the Martians decided to go down swinging to preserve their humanity. The Nagasaki? They try to remove what little humanity they have left. Put themselves into computers and then robot bodies." He shook his head. "It makes no god damn sense."

"Then why are you trying to make sense of it, sir?"

William sighed. "I need to understand it, because I need to understand our cyborg in the brig." He brought up a live action play of the cell that held the captive. He hadn't had a moment to stop yet today, though that was what he signed up for. It felt good to be working at an active command again, while technically he had been in command of the Ark for years it was a whole different ballgame once it launched, he felt thirty years younger. "She wants me to forgive her, for sneaking aboard my ship during a time of war and for causing an alert. If she had come forward I would have looked at her file and looked into getting her brought aboard. This was not the right way to do it, and she needs to know that."

"Yes sir."

"She's not going into security."

"I didn't think you would put her there, sir."

"At least-" He raised his hand. "-not yet. I don't doubt that she can be a useful asset. I mean from the files I've read and Noahs scans alone she can go toe to toe with any droid we have out there, and the bonus of training and having an actual brain rather than relying on programming. This makes her valuable, but not excuseable." He paused, and Joanne took that as her opportunity to speak up.

"If I may..." William nodded. "I see there as being four options. You can either throw her in a cryo-pod, which will likely not be easy. Then there wouldn't be a problem. You can keep her in the brig indefinitely, though again that wouldn't be an easy job, use Theta or alternatively start her small and get her to work her way up. "William perked up at the mention of Theta. He hated the program with a passion, and it still annoyed him that it was on his Ark.

"Nobody ever opens Theta, is that understood?" She nodded. "Also we'll just have to wait and see how she turns out, it's early days yet." He took a sip from his now, cold, coffee. "Though moving on, what's the status of the away team."

Joanne moved the paper files away, while also closing the computer files that were open overing above the table. Replacing them with data that was being streamed live from the planet. "So far everything seems to be going smoothly, we're still trying to decypher the scans of the area that seems to be emitting some form of EM. Noah is working on it now. Oxygen levels are low, but the temperature is warm so it shouldn't be too difficult for the away team while wearing their suits. Maybe a little uncomfortable, though everything looks like it's going to run smoothly." William nodded.

"Excellent, we're the first that we know off to explroe a planet. Let's just hope that it all goes well and that any aliens we meet, sentient or otherwise are friendly. I'm not really looking to make humanity a new enemy mere hours after entering a far off star system." Joanne gave a light nervous chuckle. "However, Commander. I still have a pile of logistical work to do until I have my shift on the bridge. Dismissed."

"Yes sir."

The evening was winding down to a close as SFC Calhound all but kicked in the door to TreVayne’s fourth floor office in the Security Centre building. Irons had been escorted back to her cell where unbeknownst to him, she would soon be greeted by Dr. Larson. Meanwhile he and his droid went to the office of the Chief of Security with more than a laundry list of complaints to levy.

With heavy heart he dropped into a chair like two tonnes of live ordnance, paying little attention to the bulky twin semi-automatic pistols laid out on the Chief’s desk, one of which was in several pieces as a thin pipe brush was being channeled through the barrel by its owner. Regardless, SFC Calhound was visibly ready to explode, but it was not he who spoke their introduction, but rather Sasha’s synthesized voice that was allowed to echo reason.

“Mr. TreVayne,” Sasha spoke from the position of a civilian social interlayer to the proceedings, rather than with any formal military decorum, “After reviewing the facts the decision has been made that it is in your best interest if you drop these charges and release our client.”

There was a coldness about the room: one of mechanical efficiency as the stainless steel that seemed to line every inch of the sub-level brig reached into the upper floors and even into this office. It was masked, of course, with the civility of society such as the mahogany desk between them, the walls lined with framed digital and printed photos, or even the low blues music emanating hidden speakers in the backdrop. Little things that reminded this job was done by humans, regardless of how dehumanizing the environment felt. It all felt very artificial, and superfluous to the engineer as the quiet between them stretched on in anticipation for a response.

“I see you haven’t lost your sense of decorum, Calhound.” The Chief finally said, in an even-toned voice, after a few moments of silence while continuing to focus his attention on detailing the handgun. “And yet once again you’ve managed to come kicking and screaming in hopes of getting what you want, but…” Gavon lifted his head slightly to meet Xaith’s fuming gaze across the desk. “I suppose I should appreciate the fact that you dragged your girlfriend along to speak for you while the blood vessels ready to burst in your forehead subsided.” He cracked a slight smile as he nodded to the synthetic woman standing next to its master, before returning his focus to the Chief of Engineering.

“So, why does the machine currently being detained for investigation into matters of ship safety and security so desperately need to be released? However, before you -or should I say your much better looking assistant- responds..” He gave the droid a mocking wink. “Just know that after speaking with your client earlier today, I’ve considered releasing her barring any red flags in her psychological evaluation results, as she has expressed some interest in working within my department.”

Though Calhound frowned at the joke made at Sasha’s expense he corrected only the important misstep made by the Chief of Security in this moment, as she was about to correct all the missteps he made in the last day. Xaith imagined the man had little experience in the ways of civilian court proceedings as he very obviously failed to observe even basic civil rights. He was visibly restraining himself as he stated in as calm a tone as he could muster: “Please address all questions and statements to the droid, whom is a legal extension of the client per the Automated Assistance Self-Representation Act, and not the operator who ensures its correct function.” It had been decades since public defenders were supplemented in this way to ensure all citizens of the UEC and the Roslin Federation’s domain received adequate representation despite the typical public defenders’ workload.

“Unfortunately,” Sasha said as she gently placed a file on the security chief’s desk and, in doing so, disrupted the parts to the gun that was currently being detailed. “not only do you not have the grounds to hold Miss Irons, security footage shows that her detainment is wholly unlawful.” Sasha mechanically re-entered her secretarial ‘at-ease’ stance, while SFC Calhound glanced at the folder on the desk to imply the sequester for said footage lie within in addition to a few other choice documents. “So too is spying on privileged attorney-client communications a crime. One perpetrated moments ago by your staff. Additionally, records show the client had not been Mirandized–” the colloquial term coined by a court case from the Roslin Federation’s history may not have made it into the vernacular of the space faring cultures and so she clarified, “–advised of her ‘right of silence’ and legal representation. As such you have nothing stemming from her detainment will be admissible in any civil proceedings, as it is ‘Fruit of the Poisonous Tree’. In short you are to terminate your interrogation and release the client immediately’.”

With the situation summarized, Xaith stifled a grin at the complete dressing down of a superior officer by the civilian consultant—whom was within her legal right to do so. He was curious how the Chief would react as the logs, and what he could ascertain of his file, indicated it would not be well.

Gavon couldn't remember the last time he'd been sucker punched by so much legal jargon and paperwork, where words seemed to be the weapon of choice in a battle of wits and a heap of policy. And what was worse, it was coming from a walking toaster oven slave to a megalomaniacal Engineer on a warpath, whose intentionally slimy grin did not go unnoticed. Ignoring the fact that the firearm parts were carelessly scattered about by the unimpressive folder shoved onto his desk, Chief TreVayne nodded and glanced over at the synthetic, then to Xaith, and back to the droid.

“Alright, I get it.” He finally said in a nonchalant manner, as he gathered the various pieces of the semi-automatic pistol and placed them neatly in front of him as he spoke. “And yes, I’m aware of the fact that your client’s ‘rights’ weren’t read to her in the midst of an emergency situation called in by your very own Lieutenant Rorq.”

Keeping his focus squarely on the droid, Gavon picked up the pistol’s slide assembly and carefully inserted the thick barrel along the inner slot. “A call that started as a complaint by the Lieutenant regarding an ‘unidentified personnel in a hazmat suit’, and a request for Ark Security presence while the Lieutenant’s initial intentions were to question your client.”

The Chief proceeded with inserting the recoil spring into it’s intended slot, pushing firmly as the spring compressed until its length could easily slip into place. “However, the situation escalated into a possible ship-wide threat when my Agents found your client removed from her initial disguise and clearly not fully human, drawing and aiming their sidearms onto an unexpected entity who could have very well been a Devastator infiltrator considering, as you’re obviously aware, recent and horrific events.”

With the slide assembly completed, Gavon reached for the receiver which he gripped firmly by the composite stock, and dabbed a few drops of pistol grease along the slide’s track. “Needless to say, after a quick ID check by Noah, the Agents were aware that your client had forged her records to obtain access onto the ship, whereby she was not only a suspected Devastator conspirator, but also a stowaway…”

He slid the upper assembly onto the freshly greased receiver and pulled back until it locked into place, grabbed the magazine from the desk, and slid that into the lower part of the receiver until the magazine catch clicked and secured it. “And on top of that, she ran, just like any respectable suspect would.”

Gavon then switched his attention over to the Chief of Engineering, his expression turning slightly more grim as he continued. “So...Sergeant First Class Xaith Calhound”. He said in a stern tone, abruptly slamming the fully assembled firearm onto the desk. “Considering we are under Maritime Law and dead set in the middle of an obvious point of brutal, life-threatening warfare, please forgive me if I have a hard time understanding why in the thirteen levels of hell you’re so goddamn persistent in ensuring that your client’s legal rights were met? The job of Ark Security is to ensure the safety and security of it’s crew and it’s interests, and if that means breaking a ‘civil law’ in the face of emergency protocols, then so be it.”

A single deliberate exhale slipped through his clenched teeth as Gavon quickly composed himself once again, before returning his attention to the droid as he did initially. “The bottom line, is at this point she will be fully evaluated -psychologically as well as system diagnostics- to ensure she’s fit to serve as part of the crew on this ship. Her initial actions were obviously not what some would consider ‘normal behavior’, so we simply need to take the proper measures in order to reconcile the situation and move on with next steps, however, with all due respect, this legal bullshit is not helping matters.”

“Three points, Mr. TreVane,” Sasha said as she began playing back a holo-projection captured by Engineering’s internal sensors, “The first is that security was dispatched only as escort for the removal of a pair of disruptive engineers, wherein an assault was committed. Regarding that assault, the client is the victim, and the perpetrator submitted himself to security of his own accord.”

Sasha rewound the video to make a point of showing Irons introduction where she explicitly identified herself to Lt. Rorq before continuing. “At no point was the identity of either party brought into question. Coolant Specialist Mai Irons was dismissed from duty, but was not suspected of any crime, or providing any false or misinformation.” As the holo-recording played out, showing the hazardous materials suit--the accused disguise--being removed Sasha cited the regulations requiring the that coolant repair technicians are mandated to wear for their operational safety.

“Two,” Sasha counted down the points as she continued, “Your anti-augment bias is a discriminatory form of racial profiling. Cybernetic enhancement and augmentation is a cultural norm among humans. While most prevalent among the Armani, it is by no means exclusive to them. Due to this racial prejudice your officers raised their guns at the victim of the assault before asking anyone any questions.” The droid made it a point to zoom in on the holo-image with a focus of the still-leaking coolant behind the individual identified as Mai Irons, “By pointing their weapons at an exposed coolant-leak your officers endangered everyone in Engineering, and it is considered natural to flee an impending explosion brought on by over-zealous security officers.”

Even without the video evidence, it was obvious that the security officers did not actually trigger a cascade reaction in the primary core’s coolant array, by the nature of the ship being in its present unexploded state.

“Lastly, your confession of knowingly committing multiple egregious crimes is appreciated,” Sasha said as she motioned to Xaith, who simply nodded demonstrating that his EEGARD was in capture mode, “It will aid in expediting both the internal affairs investigation, and any subsequent trial for charges brought against you.”

The moment she finished speaking Sasha stepped back into Xaith’s right wing position with unerring precision. As he stood up to leave he finally spoke once more. “If you thought that part was a bitch,” he said over his shoulder, “Wait until you actually open that file.” As he made his way to the door, Sasha informed Gavon of their intentions. “We’re going to release the client now.”

Melanie returned to the small questioning room, taking her seat across Chizuru once more. She waited until the guard closed the door behind him before she resumed the session.

"Thank you, Chizuru, for your patience. What I want to do now is have you take a personality test. It's 50 questions, multiple choice." Melanie pulled up the assessment, setting some parameters with time. "You'll have a maximum of one minute to answer each individual question. After that time, the system will automatically skip to the next question. This assessment is designed to determine what your top personality trait is, but I'll explain a bit more after you've finished." Melanie turned the tablet around to face Chizuru. "Do you have any questions before I step outside?"

The cyborg blinked at the tablet. She looked at her gauntleted hand - with a quiet hiss, the claws split on the bottom and retracted, uncovering a small feminine hand, with grayish skin and some electrical conductors on the fingertips. "I don't think so." She said in a distracted tone of voice. "I can begin."

"Very well then, I'll be right outside with the guards if you need me."

Melanie got up and stepped outside, explaining to one of the guards that the cyborg was to have complete privacy until she was done with her assessment. Now that Melanie had quite a bit of time to kill, she started to wonder what she should do until then.

The front page of the test application stared at Chizuru. A program that determines dominant personality traits - for some strange reason, the result worried her deeply. What if she gets a 'no personality - AI detected' result? Or something about murderous intent, serious disorders or other results that would fail her?

She lightly touched the corner of the tablet's screen. A barely noticeable aberration wave washed over the picture as the interface was hacked to allow bidirectional data transfer. This would make any clicks on answers easier, she thought as the data stream ran through her head. Interface - kernel - database: She suddenly became aware she had access to the program's logic level, and were able to determine the meaning of each question. The cyborg quickly let go of the tablet - the real answer, as accurate as such a test can be, intrigued her. And it wouldn't do any good to cheat on a personality test anyway. She had nothing to hide.

The data interface on her fingers turned off, Chizuru lightly pressed the 'START' icon.

---

After Chizuru announced she had completed the test, Melanie went back into the small interrogation room with her.

"I'm sure you're ready to hear the results and get out of here, so let's get to it," Melanie said, sitting down once more before grabbing the tablet. She spent about half a minute clicking away before turning her attention to the cyborg again.

"Alright, let me give you the quick breakdown. The top 5 personality traits are as follows: extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness. Extraversion represents good social skills, it's the opposite of being an introvert. Agreeableness is characterized by your kindness, compassion, and trust towards others. Conscientiousness has to do with goal-oriented behaviors such as organization and attention to detail. Neuroticism is measured by emotional instability, moodiness, and sadness. Lastly, openness describes individuals who are adventurous and creative. Now, as far as your results go, you scored the highest on conscientiousness. This is good as it shows you'll be an asset to whichever team you join, although you must be mindful of the boundary lines, especially since we're living here in the ark." As she said those words, Melanie hoped Chizuru wouldn't act accusatory towards her again, although she could retaliate later by exposing Chizuru's major flaws to Gavon and Admiral Locke. She would focus more on the negatives than the positives, and it could very well cost Chizuru her much-desired job. But that's only if the cyborg crossed her; Melanie liked to save her manipulations for personal affairs.

"Now then, I will get these to Chief TreVayne and Admiral Locke as soon as I return to my office. Do you have any additional questions and concerns at this time?"

"Yes." Of the many thoughts about these results, one seemed to push the others away. "Have you ever had an AI take this test? Can it detect extreme psychosis or lack of basic compassion?“

Chizuru wasn't sure why this was so important to know. Perhaps prison was getting to her.

"Yes, this test has been administered on AIs as part of past studies. The purpose of this assessment, though, is to determine personality traits, therefore additional testing is required for psychopathy and other forms of mental illnesses." Melanie gave Chizuru some time to think. "I can conduct those assessments as well, if you'd like. It only becomes mandatory if one of the higher-ups makes the request."

"And they didn't request it?" The cyborg tilted her head. "Is this standard procedure for all applicants for Security duty then? I thought Mr TreVayne had a lot more tests in mind. Unless... unless he thinks that Mr Locke is a wall I can't pass."

"Yes," she finally said. "Please, throw everything you got at me." The Admiral was an unknown enemy and she needed everything she could get to use on him.

"Other security candidates are able to avoid this step. The assessments administered to them are different than those I use for my regular clients. You would still go through the various testing phases like everyone else if ultimately given the chance, but before we get there, I have to conduct a quick briefing with Admiral Locke so that he may reach a decision on whether to move forward with you."

Melanie started packing up her stuff, giving Chizuru the chance to think about the information that had just been given to her.

The large metal ramp lowered, from the first creeks of it opening the android took immediate notice of the natural light streaming through. A smile on his face, brimmed with wonder. They had been briefed on the procedure, this was an exploration mission. The scouts that had flown over the world earlier did not note anything of danger. Still, they were expected to move with caution and frequently report back if anything unusual happened. Michael had no weapons on him, he sincerely hoped they would not need them. As he took his first look at the planet from exiting the Nyx he felt a calmness, comparable to that in Eden.

He had his environmental suit on, along with others that were leaving the Nyx and taking humanity's first footsteps on this new world. It was ironic to Michael that he would be one of them, not being a human. Yet to them all he would keep the lie that he was indeed one of them. He did not like the deception, his programming informed him that lies were not the right thing to do. Dr. Phillip's strict instructions overruled that programming. He had not yet come to a conclusion regarding the situation, humans lied often, his files on human history put truth to that.

The android took his first steps down the ramp, his thick boots impacting loudly with each movement. His eyes looked intensely around at his surroundings as he reached the bottom of the ramp. The world's surface reminded him of Earth, or the images he had seen of it before the Devastator's arrival, before his creation. There was no movement around him other than other crew members of Nyx. No alien lifeforms, no artificial ones either. Michael stepped onto the ground of the world, underneath his foot the soil crunched. The science team could take plenty of samples from the planet, there were weeks of research they could do just from first landing.

Michael stared at one of the trees, it resembled the ones found in Eden but was different, had to be. The odds of finding a perfectly Earth like world numbered in the millions, especially out of a random hyperspace jump. He took a few steps towards the one his eyes were set on, then blinked. If the trees were indeed like those once found on Earth in their biological structure, then that would prove the existence of a breathable atmosphere on the world. He did not need such a thing, but for the others, it would be a breakthrough. Breathing real air, that would remind those from earth of the beautiful world.

A strange feeling went through his sensors, it made him shiver involuntarily. An overwhelming sense that he couldn't quite comprehend. He did not feel the same emotions he did while in Eden. Grief, sadness, despair, those all took a backseat to how his mechanical system felt while standing on the planet surface. Mere feet from one of the trees which dotted the area around the Nyx. He knelt down and ran a gloved hand across the solid ground. Michael carefully dug several of his fingers into it as he picked up some of the dirt. It slipped through his hand as he released it. His highly advanced 'eyes' watched every individual spec as they fell back to where they originated.

The android rose back to a standing position, silent as he continued to gaze at his surroundings. His systems still felt the strange sensation, internally Michael felt differently than he did walking in the Vitae or in Eden. It was likely his emotions were screwing with his programming, he'd never set foot on anywhere that wasn't the Vitae. He was still filled the brim with wonder and excitement over such an experience as this. Soon the beast would launch from the Nyx, and the true exploration would begin.

[ Planetfall | Nyx - Hangar Bay 2 | Loading onto R207-Beast Command Vehicle ]

Twinges of a tension headache were felt creeping up the nerves in the back of his neck, and considering the chain of events that had occurred over the last twenty-four hours, Gavon was more than surprised that his brain hadn’t gone supernova. That with the mixture of ship exhaust permeating through the busy hangar left him with a slight uneasiness. On top of the myriad of affairs transpiring aboard the distant Ark, he’d recently been informed of a suspected stowaway on the Nyx found near the Robotics department who was then identified as Mackenzie Leanne Newton, the Technician assigned to complete diagnostics on all droids aboard the reaper-class ship. And yet, the girl had inadvertently found herself locked away in one of the supply closets with a nasty cut across her forehead from spare parts that had dislodged from an overhead bin. With Newton’s credentials scanned and confirmed, she was cleared with Security and sent to the medbay first before proceeding, as her expertise would be invaluable no doubt, especially with the implementation of droid units in the field. However, due to time constraints, she would need to be quickly fitted for a bio-suit and briefed on current assignments, which included accompanying the Science Assistant known as “Michael”.

The Chief’s communicator lit up with several messages from SecCom since his departure from the Vitae, yet listening in on them proved to be futile by the massive static that scrambled most of what was being said, likely due to the electromagnetic interference on the new planet. Fortunately, Deputy Haas knew well enough to follow up with a coded transcribed version of the audio file that Gavon was able to pull up on his datapad with only minor indecipherable fragments.

< / :: / encrypted transmission start / :: / >

[ sender: Dep. CoS Jerrol Haas ]
[ recipient: CoS Gavon TreVayne ]

Chief, just a quick recap. As you know, the cybo-g known as Chizuru "Iron" Yama-uchi is being rel-ased from custody based on the incessant litigations SFC Calhound has kicked up. Any a-dio/video interr-gation records are being archived but are no longer a viable means of evid-nce for fu-ther prosecutions. Warden Harrison is s-eing to the release and, per yo-r instructions, has requested the cyborg be put under constant supervision as well as maintain t-mp-rary quarters near the Hub until full psyche evals are completed and given a gre-nlight.

At that point, I as-ume you will make a decision as to whether or not she will be ac-epted into the Sec Agent train-ng program…?

On a personal note, as I know it echoes many other’s thoughts as well, it blows my mind why SFC Calhound failed to show more restraint in his legal tirade in light of our current war-time situation and the possibility of enemy infiltration, realising that “civil rights” is the least of our concerns when an alien entity wants the entirety of the human race eradicated…

< / :: / encrypted transmission end / :: / >

Clearing out the message on the screen and shutting it down, he shook his head in disgust at the whole ordeal and -more importantly- the matter of public safety, as SFC Calhound made it clear he wasn’t about to compromise. But regardless of an Engineering Chiefs skewed perception, the cyborg was still considered hostile until proven otherwise. He also knew that it would be a hard sell to the current Sec Agents, and doubted that a cyborg would be quickly welcomed into their ranks with open arms. With his thoughts preoccupied, Gavon quickly found himself fiddling with the environmental suit’s oxygen tank, ensuring the intake hose couplings on the helmet were secured per instructions outlined at the earlier equipment briefing.

“You doing okay Chief TreVayne?” Captain Eccleson had just circled around following equipment checks and prepping her squads for deployment and recon assignments, when she noticed the difficulty her counterpart was having with the helmet connectors.

“Let me help you with that.” She said, putting her own helmet aside for the moment to free both hands.

“No, it's okay I'm fine-” Gavons protests were cut short by the Captains armored gloves quickly taking hold of his helmet and the valves in question.

“These things are a bitch unless you know how to handle them.” She said with a half-smile, twisting the coupling in place until a click was heard. “Besides, I’d hate to see you suffocate to death on our first mission together.” Eccleson placed the helmet over the Chief’s head and latched it into place before the oxygen system initiated and pumped the artificial air through the helmet's internal vents.

“Take a few deep breaths to ensure airflow is adequate.”

The Chief did as instructed, meanwhile Captain Eccleson caught a quick glance of Amara Locke, who was busy prepping field supplies and small medi droids for the mission ahead, near the cargo bay of the R207 Beast and slight hiss slipped from the Captain’s lips at the sight of the girl before returning attention to the man in front of her.

“You know she wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the fact that she was the Admiral’s kid.” Eccleson said flatly.

“Amara?” The Chief responded through his helms external annunciator unit, making his voice sound somewhat tinny, before removing the helmet and placing it on the crate nearby. “From what I understand, she’s taken a lot of shit for that over the years and yet it hasn’t kept her from becoming a great medic on and off the field. And frankly that’s good enough for me...”

Eccleson gave him a look as though she were slightly taken aback by the fact that he didn’t share her sentiments on the matter.

“In any case, Captain.” He continued. “Thank you for the help, I owe you one.”

Eccleson raised an eyebrow at the Chief’s last comment and smirked. “Well that's a debt I won't mind collecting when the time comes.” She said with a mocking wink and a quick pat on the shoulder before picking up her own helmet and heading toward the steps leading into the huge Command Vehicle that will be their mode of travel and survey during the ground mission.

“You heading out on foot to check the sites, Chief?” She said, turning to look over her shoulder.

“Negative, we're not here on holiday, Captain.” He said, lifting the ARX-59 semi-automatic rifle he’d acquired as part of the standard issue armaments for the away mission, a weapon he’d become familiar with even before his time on the Ark, and simply gripping the light-framed rifle brought with it a memory flash of a dark past he’d rather forget. Sliding the magazine out of it’s place, he did a quick ammo check before returning it into position, and making his way into the R207-Beast behind Eccleson.

Both headed through the narrow entry corridor and up toward the front navigation section, passing several soldiers on the way as they too prepared for the trip. The Beast’s internal structure seemed as solid and rigid as it’s external, and the RF’s Engineering teams pulled no stops when they equipped it with the latest all-terrain navigation and survey technology, which would allow for expanded exploration even in hard-to-reach places.

“Alright, Delta and Theta Squads have been deployed in R52-Shriek hoverbikes.” Eccleson said, pointing at a holo-map of the immediate area, with continuous updates pouring in. “With pilots Hawkins & Atkov taking point and setting up a wide enough perimeter to secure for our foot soldiers. Although hopefully we won’t need these bio-suits, but who the hell really knows what’s lurking on this planet?”

Gavon nodded in agreement while checking out the remaining roster. “We have a few more people ready to board soon before departure: K. Anderson, A. Locke, M. Newton, and I believe the science assistant, Michael, who is currently outside of the ship doing his own ‘sight seeing’ “. He said with a slight grin at the Captain’s expense. “We’ll give them another five minutes or so to check in.”

William sat, glass in hand. The golden liquid barely touched as he stared at the screen behind his desk. His back to the rest of the room, he was completely ignoring everything behind him and focusing solely on the view before him. The screen showed the last minutes of Mars, or at least the last he'd ever see. Placements fired up towards the sky as vessels crashed and burned, the Devastators as an never ending wave of foes tearing through the joint human fleet. He sighed as he lifted the glass to his lips again, the ice cooled his lips as he sipped at the liquid in the glass. Sighing as he lowered it again. "Noah."

The construct appeared before him. Though his voice sounded solemn. "Yes Admiral?"

"Play personal archived footage, Alpha-2-2-9."

"Sir I don't think-"

"Just do it Noah."

The screen changed. "William stop it." His heart skipped a beat, no matter how many times he heard that sweet voice. His feelings for Rita had been true, he had no doubt about that. Though Amanda would always be first and foremost in his heart, he knew that at how he still ached whenever he heard that sweet voice or saw her as he did now. Her hair a rich brown, with eyes as blue as the oceans of Earth. She had the appearance of someone who could be cold and distant, though that couldn't be further from the truth. At least when it came to him.

That's when he heard his laughter, it was younger. Less harsh, before his voice had grown tired with age and the burden of command. "Oh come on Amanda-" The camera shook. "-You know you love the camera. It certainly loves you."

She went to mock slap him, moving closer to the camera. "You're going to be late you know."

"Oh, it's my ship. It's not going to leave without me." This was so long ago, another life. Leaving for his first real command. The Nightfury. It was an honour to be chosen, but he could remember that in those moments all that mattered was Amanda. Not the fact that he was a young up and coming Commander being assigned to the top of the line stealth vessel. He should never have accepted the position.

"I'm not sure that's how it works."

"Well, I make the rules." Her laughter.

"Not all of them Commander Locke."

Not all of them.

He shook himself awake, the room was dark now. Noah had obviously seen fit to turn off the lights, he had noticed recently that the A.I had been increasingly taking care of him, probably due to the fact that after so long spending time together despite the fact that Noah was an A.I he was starting to accumalate an attachment to him. He had been told by the program leaders that this could happen, an A.I without a memory wipe could change and develop a personality. He turned around to face his desk, picking up a glass of water and drinking it in one go to clear his dry throat. "Time."

"The time is, 2130Hours. Ship time, Admiral." He nodded, he hadn't missed anything important then. The away team would likely be checking in soon via the Nyx. He sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. What had happened to the world? Or rather, the solar system. Things used to be so simple, and then aliens invaded. Giant spaceships constructed, and expeditions to other... well. Noah was still figuring out if they were just in a different solar system or galaxy altogether. In all of this, while he had managed to keep his daughter safe as he had promised to his wife... she was down on an alien planet doing god knows what. If he had his way she'd be in a cryo-pod, or stuck aboard the ship. Despite this, she had proved herself capable.

Picked by the council behind Genesis to serve, he had only just managed to snatch her up before she had been aboard another vessel. He knew there were rumours that she was her because of him, but he didn't care. She was safe so long as she was aboard this vessel, which is why it pained him that she was so good at her damned job and was selected to go down to the planet.

He turned back to the screen where a still of Amanda occupied the screen. "I'm coming back Amanda. One day, I'll come back for you."

In the mean time, he had humanity to look after. "Noah, give me an update."

Mackenzie swayed gently and hummed ,not so quietly, to herself as she worked. The sounds of the Martian National Orchestra reverberated loudly through her cordless headphones. She sat on a small stool surrounded by an array of tools and Droid bits with her hands wire deep into a droid.

After Amara had offered to show her around the Nyx, they spent a short time exploring the different bays of the ship. Along the way she made several quick notes about certain areas in which droids would be held or working. She also thought it was particularly apt to note the expresso machine in the break room. The last leg of the tour was Amara's medical bay. Mackenzie could see the sense of pride in Amara's eyes they entered. A creepy Droid stood at the back of the room waiting to be needed. Mackenzie had never liked the loom of the medical droids. It was like something from those very old thriller movies.

That was where Mackenzie left Amara and headed back to the common area. The Expresso machine called to her and she couldn’t resist. While she waited she was approached by cute Nyx Engineer. Mackenzie attempted to flirt awkwardly as she was not very good at small talk. They parted ways with the hope that they would see each other again when the Nyx returned from its mission. She then quickly found her way back to the robotics bay to get to work. had not taken her long to find a malfunction in a group of Droids. The malfunction had caused a sensor error and several of the droids kept running into the walls.

Mackenzie stood as she realized she needed another part from the storage room. She bounced to beat of the next song as she crossed the room and scanned her ID to allow her access. It glowed green as the door slid open. She was completely oblivious to the announcement made over the Nyx com system alerting the crew of immediate departure. The door slid closed behind her as it was supposed to be locked for the remainder of the away mission.

The ground shook as Mackenzie went to grab a spare part off the self. With loud yep, she fell backwards onto her butt. Pain seared her forehead and she reached up to rub it. Her fingers became slick with blood as she realized the spare part, now laying beside her, had cut her. She pressed a small button on her arm Datapa to stop her music. For moment she sat there wondering what the hell had happened.

Mackenzie grumbled as she got to her feet and headed back towards the door. She scanned her Id but the door panel just flashed red and beeped out in warning.
“ What the Hell?” She cursed as she tried again. Again it flashed red and beeped.

“NOAH, let me out of here.” She demanded. Nothing. Quickly she checked her data pad. NOAH it seemed was disconnected from the Nyx at that moment.

“Fuck!” It suddenly dawned on Mackenzie. The only reason NOAH would disconnect from the Ship was if the Nyx had left the Ark altogether.

In an act of pure frustration and desperation Mackenzie began pounding on the door in the hopes that someone might hear her.

When Amara was informed that there was a stowaway aboard the Nyx who needed medical attention, she hadn't really expected it to be Mackenzie. Although, somehow, Kenzie's story about getting locked in the closet and getting hit in the head seemed perfectly plausible...For Kenzie that is. If it had been anyone else, Amara probably wouldn't have believed them but, knowing Kenzie as well as she did, she knew that things like this seemed all too common. Kenzie had a habit of getting wrapped up in her work and not noticing the world around her. Amara didn't even question her. Although there would no doubt be questions from others.

Instead, as Amara entered the medbay, she simply gave Kenzie a weary look like a mother whose child had inevitably gotten into trouble again. She coupled it with the slightest hint of a smile though, just to let her friend know that she wasn't too upset.

As Amara treated the wound on Kenzie's forehead, Kenzie kept trying to explain the situation but Amara only said “Mmmhmm.” as she watched the tiny device she held to Kenzie's forehead knit the skin back together. She reminded herself of her own mother for a moment. The whole “I'm not mad, I'm just disappointed” attitude was something Amanda Locke had mastered. Amara couldn't help but think of the time she had wandered into a construction zone when she was six and somehow managed to set both her feet on fire. It was an incredibly stupid thing to do, looking back on it now, but she had been so curious at the time that she wasn't paying attention. When she was rushed to the hospital for treatment, her mother had given her the same look she now gave Kenzie.

Amara wasn't really mad or disappointed. It was just fun to make her friend slightly uncomfortable. This was probably why Amara didn't have many friends.

Of course the thing that was probably making Kenzie more uncomfortable at that exact moment in time was Ruby. The R-B series med droid stood just off to the side of the pair, watching them through her single photoreceptor. Her fingers were steepled in front of her abdomen an a pose which Amara could only assume her programmer had designed to make her look calm. It only made her look like she was plotting something like one of those old-timey villains. Ruby made everyone uncomfortable, Amara included, but she was the best medical droid model available. If Amara was to have any droid here helping her out, she was glad it was Ruby....Most of the time anyway.

“Good as new.” said Amara as she finished mending Kenzie's injury and began packing away her equipment.
“Great.” replied Kenzie as she enthusiastically jumped off of the bed but immediately shot Ruby a wary glance as the droid tilted its head at her. She did her best to ignore the droid and turned to Amara as she clapped her hands together and said “Lets go.”
Amara simply stared at her and said “Go where? I'm going to the hanger to get ready for the mission. I don't know where you're going.”
Kenzie gave Amara a confused and slightly annoyed look then said “But if I'm going to be here, I may as well make myself useful.”
Amara simply stared at her.
“You're taking my droids, so I'm coming to make sure you don't break them.”
Amara huffed for dramatic effect more than anything before raising an eyebrow at Kenzie's puppy dog expression. “Fine.” she relented, not really wanting to get into an argument. “But you have to sort out all the official stuff. I'm not getting into trouble for dragging a civilian along when you're not supposed to be there...And try not to get in the way.”
“I swear you won't even know I'm there.” replied Kenzie with a pleased smile that made Amara roll her eyes.
She waved Kenzie past her and began following her through the door, saying “Ruby, don't murder anyone while I'm gone.”
“That would be contrary to my progra--”
“Shut up.” Amara said wearily, not even bothering to turn around to address the droid. She half-heartedly waved over her shoulder as the medbay door closed behind her.

---

A short while later, once Kenzie had gone off to figure out how to join the away team and possibly be yelled at by more officers, Amara found herself in the hangar bay, going over some medical supplies she had laid out on a table by the bulkhead. Everything seemed to be working fine except for the small med droid she had chosen to bring along. There was something buggy about the little football shaped med droid and as it hovered at eye level in front of her, she pressed several things on the datapad she held in an attempt to figure out the problem.

“I don't...” she began with a furrowed brow before stopping and pressing something else. The droid made a series of whistling sounds in his own little robot language that Amara only partly understood. Her confusion only grew and she pressed several more keys until the droid suddenly beeped and shot out a thin wire with a pad on the end which slapped onto Amara's neck. The sudden impact stung more than it actually hurt and she recoiled a step as she exclaimed “Son of a--” before biting her lip to stop herself cursing. The droids display clearly showed her heart rate rising and as it made a low whistle it slowly began to descend towards the table as though recoiling from an angry monster.

Gaining control of her emotions but still glaring at the droid, Amara yanked the pad from her neck and tossed it aside. “You're lucky I don't have a hammer to hand.” she informed the bucket of bolts as it folded in on itself to resemble a football even more. “Yeah, you hide in there.” she whispered to it before realising how crazy she probably looked to everyone around. She was now glad Kenzie was coming along. Maybe she could fix the little bugger.

She decided then to just pack up her things and head over to the others. As she picked up her helmet and turned around, she caught sight of Captain Eccleson giving her a look not unlike the way Marlowe looked at her. “Oh good. Another one.” she thought to herself as she watched Eccleson and Chief TreVayne head into the beast and slowly followed after them. ”This should be fun.”

As the door to the third floor training room slid open, Lance wondered not for the first time if this all wasn't some dark yet humorous mistake. Before this posting he'd never been in charge of others, not really anyway. Oh he'd held a commanding officer's rank back on Mars but it was more of the 'Thank you for infiltrating that ring of smugglers and pirates' rank than the 'We trust you to be in charge of other people' rank. Sure, the job was hands on but that was just about its only saving grace. He'd have died at a desk job as sure as one of the older Martians gone Out-of-Dome.

As for what he was supposed to be doing here today well...it was true that he was, just factually and without bragging, perhaps one of the best hand-to-hand combatants of his generation on Mars. But he'd been so busy over the past month or so preparing for his position as patrol captain that he'd doubtlessly let his own training slip, lost his edge, 'gone dusted' the saying might've gone on Mars. How was he supposed to-

No, now wasn't the time for inner self-diatribes. Lance forced himself to look up and around, really see the training facilities and the people gathered and waiting for him. Agent Asara was there of course and he'd already met with her, prepped her for how today was going to go. She seemed competent and reliable both of which were invaluable traits to him at the moment. It was the rest of them he was going to have to worry about, all of them selected for excellence in various ways, but none of them prepared for the true significance of the job before them now-

-including Lance himself. Still, that all changed today. He had prepared for this, first thinking of how his mother might have done things in his place then discounting that as not organic enough to himself. No, for Lance it would have to begin from one of the things he understood best: Martial arts. He waited until Asara brought the still-practicing agents first to a halt and then to attention before scanning over each of the assembled faces, committing them to memory, suppressing his combat analysis and beginning his piece.

"I'm Patrol Captain Lance Lawrence and as of today, I'll be taking over your training here from Chief TreVayne. The first change made will be to expand your martial arts and hand-to-hand combat training. The reason for this is simple. Your training so far has been based mainly in Krav Maga and Krav Maga began as an art for soldiers, it's rooted in the idea of ensuring your own survival and destroying your enemies. We are not soldiers! We are Ark Security Agents and our primary responsibility is to safeguard every last life on this ship. In the days to come we may deal with criminals, spies, saboteurs and dissidents but every one of those lost instead of successfully rehabilitated strikes a blow against the future of the human race.

I'm retaining Krav Maga as part of the curriculum because there will be times we'll be required to fight to survive and to kill. When those times come you may be grateful for its efficiency and its pragmatism. But make no mistake, when we are forced to kill our fellow human beings in this new age it will be because all other options have already failed! So with that in mind, I'll begin by teaching you a wider variety of ways to subdue opponents with minimal force and damage. Who wants to be first?"

After that Lance ran them through some basic techniques and drills for the foundations of their new style, mainly to teach the principles behind good locks, throws and general standing grappling. When he'd run through it patiently enough at least once with each person and had them each have a go against a holographic opponent he lined them up in front of him in the simulation space and stood at-rest with Agent Asara by his side.

"Final exercise for today and it's a really simple one. I want all of you to attack me. All at once. Pretend I'm a saboteur who's been tampering with the ship's systems in order to hold everyone hostage to fulfill my demands or something."

A small mountain in human form spoke up: Bauer, his mind told him.

"But Sir, isn't this situation more than a little uneven for you? What are we supposed to learn from it?"

Lance gave the big man a grin. "Well, it's true that I'm your instructor but don't worry. I'm sure after about the tenth or so person piles on I'll start having some trouble. Now come on! Or did they send me a bunch of-"

To their credit he didn't get to finish the sentence before his new students charged. He also didn't make any movements or attempt to evade them, the same grin still on his face as he spoke up. "Noah, cut it!"

He kept the same 'I knew something you didn't know' look on his face as he activated the magnetic lock on his boots with a press of his toes along with Agent Asara and then watched the other agents drift up and past him mostly helplessly. "Oops, it seems that before this, I was able to damage artificial gravity for this section of the ship. Any one of you care to stop me?" Lance took careful note of those who were able to at least shift around their centers before he gave the signal to re-engage gravity. He also took careful note of those who landed better than the others before continuing.

"The lesson you were all supposed to learn Agent Bauer, was two-fold. First, even if you think you have every advantage our enemies will often use trickery or do the unexpected or both so it is our job to be both adaptable and prepared for any situation. Second, the importance of learning how to fight in a zero gravity environment. It's an entirely different style of combat from anything you'll find on a gravity-bound world and you'll need to develop a different kind of awareness to match it, but some of you already look to have the knack for it. Now, while you're picking yourselves up off the floor you'll be glad to know that my personally led training session is over for now. If you have any questions on technique or anything we went over, direct them to Agent Asara. As usual, she'll be Agent-in-Charge when my personal business or duties as a Patrol Captain take me elsewhere. Otherwise, dismissed!"

Lance turned and strode briskly up and to the elevator, not pausing until its' doors closed behind him to sink down onto the floor for a minute burned out, but with a grin on his face. If his timing had been just a little bit off, he would've been buried under what was roughly a spine-shattering amount of people and made a damn fool of himself. He had no idea what kind of impression he'd left on the other Agents either. But as these things went, his performance today might have made his mother...well not proud, but he was almost sure she'd say it was adequate.

Heavy was the weaponry that dangled at her hip and it was loosely bound through two links in her tactical harness--the very model of efficiency. Lt. Rorq poured through technical specifications of the sample site whilst optimizing the laser drill's targeting array. As officer in the navy she was cleared to carry standard issue firearms, and though she hadn't used one in a long time, it was just like riding a bike. Well, in that riding a bike for the first time in a long time is also often filled with awkwardness as one's body reacclimates to the sensation.

"What do you think you're doing?" Lt. Leandra called over to Lt. Rorq when she entered the maintenance bay of the Nyx, which had already been in flight for some time. "That's work for the engineering staff. As I recall, you're here as a geologist."

Lt. Rorq sighed as she put down the tools and backed away from the drill. It ate at her that she wasn't the highest link in the chain on this boat even if she was on the Vitae, and seemed to be something Lt. Leandra relished. "Permission to speak freely," Lt. Rorq stated.

"Permission denied," Lt. Leandra responded.

---

It had been a long day and the Chief of Engineering was happy to see it come to a close. Unlike his highly ordered CPC counterpart Xaith discarded his tools the moment he walked into his quarters. Tools which bounced off the ground like spent shell casings as he slipped out of his clothes and walked to the shower. All save for one as he rest his EEGARD carefully on the nightstand and pulled from his scalp a plethora of RFID tags that were attached with adhesive. Each numbered not only by an order of application but also with cranial application coordinates.

He had been shadowed all afternoon by Sasha, and nearly forgot to wave her off when he entered the water closet.

"Should I continue strategizing for the case?" she asked through the open door.

A long drawn out pause was followed by a dejected sigh. "No," he said over the sound of hot water splattering across the tile floor and winding its way down the drain. "Disengage all ancillary databases and resume alpha protocol."

"Acknowledged." The statement was followed by databanks physically being ejected from the base station her avatar was designed to incorporate into. "Databanks disengaged. Memory has been wiped and default settings restored. Directives?"

The process of wiping all traces of secondary systems found in the modular databanks took some time, as to be thorough, and Xaith had finished his shower in the interim. He collected the drives and stored them in a cabinet next to the conical-base of the cylindrical station and retrieved a different set of older modules. Another was produced and placed into a unique interface slot designed explicitly for it.

Despite being older in appearance that final one was nearly mystical in design as it did not follow any of the conventions of man-made computer technology. It's icoshaedronic shape was perfectly cut into a strange translucent composite-polymer that he doubted even Lt. Rorq could readily identify. Pockets of geometric shapes, made of special alloys, belied its nature as a data device but it was more crystal than drive. It was something sufficiently alien that it might easily be mistaken for Devastator technology, had humans ever captured a sample, but was itself distinct and unique from even their technological signature echoes seen on their sensors.

"Resume construct: XYI-001."

Warden Marcus Harrisen switched off the earpiece communicator and sat back in the leather armchair within his office, staring out the small window and across the corridor toward the interrogation room which currently held Doctor Melanie Larson and the cyborg known as Chizuru "Iron" Yama-uchi. He received the inevitable call from Deputy Jerrol Haas - via instructions from Chief Gavon TreVayne - that Irons was to be released from custody based on a series of legal “technicalities” preventing any further prosecution. However, considering the circumstances of the cyborg's initial discovery and falsified identification in order to slip onto the Ark undetected, conditions would still need to be met in order to ensure the safety and well-being of the Vitae’s crew.

He eventually made his way to the holding room, where it appeared Doctor Larson was wrapping up her evaluation with the cyborg, and stood at the end of the table with his hands folded in front as he addressed Chizuru.

“You’re free to go, as clearly you have an ally looking out for your…interests.” The Warden’s tone of voice and expression showed little compassion for the situation as he continued without missing a beat. “However, per Admiral Locke and the welfare of this ship and its crew, you will be assigned temporary quarters near SecCen and subjected to 'round-the-clock supervision until your psychological evaluation results have been processed and cleared by Doctor Larson.”

He motioned with one hand to the woman sitting across from the cyborg before continuing.

“In addition, you will be required to have a full systems diagnostic performed by a certified technician, with routine check-ups as needed, and access to this ship will be restricted to all non-essential areas only. Are there any questions?”

The cyborg's face contorted visibly at the warden's words. An ally looking out for her interests? Her guesses for the meaning of this development were all on a scale between 'bad' and 'horrible'... well, there was also the Chief Engineer, but she never did find out what his motives were. In fact -

"Yes, I have questions." her coarse voice conveyed distress. "What kind of allies do I have that somehow make the chief of security release an unevaluated threat into the ship? I mean, not to bite the hand that feeds me here, but Mr. TreVayne's conditions for my release are logical and acceptable. What changed?"

Chizuru threw a look at Dr. Larson's direction, gauging for response at this event. She also hoped she would be able to see a hint of the evaluation result.

"Chizuru, these matters could very well be above Chief TreVayne's paygrade." Even though Melanie didn't want to get involved in such matters of security surrounding Chizuru's freedom, she too couldn't help but wonder where the sudden change of heart had come from that had led them to cut her loose. Yet once more, the cyborg's need to question their methods made Melanie wonder whether her discussion with Admiral Locke would be a favorable one regarding Chizuru's status.

"This may be the case, as Miss Larson has pointed out." The Warden added. "Although I believe the correct answer to your question is that no such 'ally' would allow legalistic absolutes to get in the way of common sense...but that's all I can comment on the matter."

Harrisen turned to the guard nearby who then handed him a thin datapad.

"So without further delay." He continued, keying in some information on the small computer. "You are officially released from my custody and allowed restricted access through the ship at your leisure, shadowed by two plain-clothes Agents. Furthermore, your locations -whether static or roaming- will be monitored by our ship's A.I. and, or course any unauthorized and/or criminal activity will void this agreement." Harrisen looked up from the screen for a moment at the cyborg, raising a bushy eyebrow and causing his forehead to crease. "So please do not make me regret allowing you freedom, Chizuru Yama-uchi."

"What the hell..." the cyborg hissed through her teeth. "Wait, is Mr. TreVayne available? I don't want this to ruin everything..." She gave Harrisen the same hopeless gaze one gives to a government clerk when facing an illogical bureaucratic wall without the know-how to bypass it.

But then there was a change in Chizuru's face. An internal struggle gained more and more of her attention. She forced her eyes shut, as if her thoughts pained her.

"No." she rose from her seat and at that moment, Harrisen took half a step back and shouted “Sit down Miss Yama-uchi!”, his deep booming voice echoed off the metallic walls -alerting the two guards outside the door- only to be overshadowed by the cyborgs continous efforts to make a point.

"This is wrong." She continued. "No bureaucratic bullshit should ever win over common sense, or more importantly, the safety of the human race." She struggled for words, as if boiling from within. "Look,"

Her arm flew sideways. A dozen loose plates around her forearm spiraled forward, forming a wide black blade that pointed outward above her palm. There was a sudden pressure in the air of the room, and Melanie noticed the ends of her hair curling upwards slightly, as small arcs of energy began walking the blade's length, discharging into the air around its point.

A single taser round from the lead guard's assault rifle was discharged, ricocheting wide off the cyborg's metal skull plate armor, towards the unfortunate position of the only civilian in the room.

"Shit!"

Melanie's reaction was not one she would particularly be proud of, but given the circumstances, who could blame her. She dropped her belongings to clutch her neck as soon as the charged tip of the taser made contact with her skin. As if the pain wasn't bad enough, her vision also faltered, and she had to lean forward on the desk for support before her legs completely failed her.

"Warden...I think--I'm gonna be sick."

"Stand down Agent!" Harrisen held his hand out toward the guard. "Dammit." He exclaimed, seeing Doctor Larson hunched over the table holding her neck as he ran to her side and simutaneously opening communication in his earpiece. "Code Red18, medical assistant needed in Interrogation Room 2, electrical shock to the neck, possible paralysis..."

"I'm not sure they'll...make it on time..."

Melanie felt a wave of nausea invade her system as her skin became sweaty and cold to the touch. She reached for the warden in an attempt to communicate to him the terrible symptoms she was experiencing, but the little strength she had left her just as her vision got worse. Without warning, Melanie dropped to the ground, missing the edge of the table which could have seriously innjured her had she not been as lucky.

Meanwhile, the cyborg's first reaction was to grab the table's edge from below to flip it at the guards, the sword already retracted into her arm. The fact that it was bolted into the floor slowed her down enough to notice the Psychiatrist collapse. With an unnerving catlike motion the black-clad prisoner leaped under the table to position herself between Melanie and the doorway.

"Dr. Larson!" she reached out to turn the limp woman over, but quickly realized it would be similar to picking her up with scissors. Returning to an upright position, she looked at the Warden. "I haven't realized how on edge your men were! I can't do anything for her..."

The Warden shot Chizuru a look of contempt.

"And what the hell did you expect during an otherwise 'peaceful' negotiation where a cybernetically enhanced super-soldier such as yourself suddenly decides it would be wise to abruptly stand and pop open like a goddamn utility knife?"

Harrisen pressed his fingers against Doctor Larson's neck. "Her pulse is slowing..."

"I don't know what is it that you want." He finally said as he looked straight into the cyborg's dark eyes. "But if you're as honorable as you claim to be, then my suggestion is that you stay put in the cell we initially placed you in until further notice. Clearly we were wrong to grant such concessions to a being we hardly understand..."

Chizuru held Harrisen's glare for a moment, then collapsed into the chair previously occupied by Dr. Larson. She was quick to return to her original train of thought, as there was nothing she could do for the Doctor. "Perfect." she exhaled. "That's actually exactly what I wanted." She looked at her hands as the claws retracted. "You and your boss are in control again, Mr. Harrisen. Until I pass physical, technical, psychological and personality evaluations, I should stay here, despite what legal technicalities may suggest."

The cyborg gave the room's camera a "Let it be known that putting me under surveillance of two guards outside of a cell is a joke. Either release me fully after satisfactory testing, or test me further until satisfied" look.

The Medical team, along with a small supply droid and a gurney, entered the brig and hustled toward the interrogration room. After a quick scan of the woman's vitals and a few words with the Warden on what had transpired, they eased Melanie onto the gurney, which hovered a few inches from the metal floor, and quickly headed for the med-evac transport that would take them to the nearest med-bay.

"Escort Miss Yama-uchi back to her cell." Warden Harrisen motioned to the guards. "I think we've had enough excitement this evening."

Cryogenics
Lance Lawrence and Loretta Riadne

Lance had no idea what it was he was doing down in Cryogenics, only that there was some commotion going on and he was in the mood for real work after running his training session with the Agents rather than being forced to go back to his desk or patrolling aimlessly. The scene that greeted him was certainly more concerning than he’d expected though. A cryo-pod cut open with the occupant nowhere to be found. Could the people frozen in there survive having their pods cut open? Was this a missing persons case, deliberate sabotage or a murder investigation? He spoke up to try and get the attention of those gathered.

“My name’s Lance Lawrence, I’m a Patrol Captain with Ark Security. What’s going on here?”

He tried his best to play it off as if it were natural that he take control of the scene, which he supposed it was given his job title. Still, he only knew the basics when it came to the people cryogenically frozen down here, awaiting either the needs of the ship or arrival at wherever their eventual home might be before they woke up again.

Loretta turned as someone, in stress on the one, wearing security attire walked within earshot. Not only that but within distance to be heard, but see what was going on. She wasn’t sure whether or not he could see that the wires and tubes had been cut to remove the occupant, or solely that it had appeared to be force opened. She pushed her way past all the other techs milling around, waltzing right up to the captain.

“Doctor Raidne, head of Cryogenics. We’ve got an open pod, and the occupant appears to have been cut out. You need to quarantine cryogenics and review any and all security footage within the last two hours-” At least that would exclude her activities “-of all exits. Someone has come in and removed the occupant, and somehow managed to get them past security. Though it should be done quietly to not cause a panic.”

She pointed over to two techs who appeared to be more shaken than anyone else. “I’ve kept the technicians who made the discovery here, as well as having a list of names of anyone who has had access to this pod and the skills to prevent N.O.4.H or our own failsafes from alerting us. So, where do you want to start?”

Lance was certain that if she hadn’t introduced herself as such, the good doctor’s attitude would have practically screamed the fact that she was the Head of Cryo and used to being in charge. Well, if she thought that applied to this investigation too, she’d have to make some adjustments. He agreed with her about the need to avoid panic. Cryogenics was the best hope for humanity and it being in any way endangered could make panic spread like sand in a dust-storm. “I’ll start by getting this place under quarantine. Then I have some questions to ask the primary witnesses. My Agents will escort you safely from the field interview station until it’s your turn for questioning.”

He called in just ten agents to carry out the quarantine, two for each entryway and two to help him manage the area and investigations. As the first pair arrived Lance met them at the entryway and gave hushed instructions that he wanted the surveillance footage for the last six hours gone over, then gone over again with a fine-toothed comb and every person on that list who wasn’t already here brought in for questioning as quickly as possible along with anyone else whose skills and access matched the description. Doctor Riadne might have her opinions on how to handle things but he wasn’t about to rule anything out.

Loretta herself was next after the two witnesses. In terms of immediate suspects she was top of Lance’s list, if only because in terms of both skill and access to the pods she immediately fit both criteria and had already had ample time and authority to access the crime scene. Unfortunately that also meant it would be hard to pin her down if she was the culprit.

They’d set up a makeshift interview room with a set of opaque dividers, with the two Agents not currently on quarantine duty standing by to make sure nobody eavesdropped, and it was here that he’d had them bring each suspect for questioning. Lance sat on a swivel stool and regarded the Head of Cryogenics critically.

“So Doctor Loretta Riadne, you mentioned you run things down here in Cryogenics, correct?”

Loretta sighed. Every moment she wasted playing cops and robbers with this idiot was one less working to improve cryogenics or running her experiments to better humanity. “Obviously, you have access to my personnel file. If you’re going to ask such basic questions then I advise you to read it.”

Lance shot her a rather disappointed look “Oh, but I have read it. I’ve read and memorized files for quite a few of the notables aboard the Vitae. As a result I already know that you’re Loretta Riadne, Age 31, Born on the Vigilance before it went down over Titan when the Devastators attacked. I know that you’ve spent your whole life afterward driving yourself to be the best in your field, that you’re a practical genius when it comes to the technology behind these cryogenic storage pods. I know that your co-workers describe you as utterly brilliant and utterly cold. I know your parents stayed behind when the Devastators returned despite both of them possessing valuable experience as engineers. What I don’t know, Doctor Riadne, is how cooperative you’re prepared to be during the course of this investigation. An investigation that’s become necessary under your supervision.” He watched her reactions as he spoke, trying to get a read of her as he continued.

“Now that we’ve established who you are and the fact that you doubtless think this is a tremendous waste of both our time, why don’t you tell me everything you can remember of your activities over the course of the past day, especially anything unusual or of relevance to this incident.”

She could have sworn at him, why he had asked when he already knew. “Excellent, then I advise we skip anymore unnecessary questions as I want to get to the bottom of this as much as you do, Captain. I clocked in this morning at zero seven thirty two hours, worked in my laboratory until zero nine thirty three where I then moved onto my standard maintenance checks. Which I am sure you can understand take a rather large amount of time. The pods require constant supervision and have a balance between the technological components, software components and the chemical components. The slightest mix up could result in the death of one, or all occupants.”

“At-” She paused for a brief moment, recalling something. While her implant did help her remember sometimes she had to take pause when processing vast amounts of data. “Fourteen hundred hours I was made aware of a software glitch by the technician responsible for that system. While I was trying to resolve the problem, as per procedure, I ordered a visual inspection which yielded the open pod.” She sat back and crossed her arms to indicate that she was finished.

Lance took her statement in, committed it as best he could to memory along with her reaction when further angered before continuing his questions. “Were you the first one in that day? Who was the occupant of this pod? Was the software glitch related to the pod having been breached? Finally, why was it you suggested a timeline of four hours back for the video data? Why not a narrower band of time?”

“First one in? Of course not. These systems are regulated twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. I was the first one to ever enter the vault once it had a cryo-pod in it technically speaking, but that particular day no I was not. One of the first few day staff I suppose. In terms of the glitch, it would be sensible to presume that the two have some form of correlation, whether the glitch allowed the culprit to breach the pod or the breach caused the glitch is unclear. With my understanding of the systems I am more likely to go with the former. In terms, why four hours? That is the time between the glitch being brought to my attention and the empty pod being discovered. There are a lot of pods, visual inspection takes time. Thankfully the system is fully online again.”

She stretched her legs, pointing her toes away from her as she did so. “Is there anything else you need Captain? I need to ensure that whatever caused this breach cannot happen again.”

Lance listened without giving much in the way of reaction, masking his face with professionalism. “Well, on that point we’re agreed. That’s why I’ll be keeping a skeleton watch here until we get to the bottom of this. The agents involved already will split and guard the area in shifts. I don’t want whoever’s responsible for this striking again. Like you said earlier, we’ll keep it discreet but the work you’re doing here is too vital to risk further sabotage.”

Loretta made to go to stand up. “Excellent, so long as my people don’t feel like they’re under a microscope. They need to be at their best, so is that all you need?”

Lance stood up just before Loretta “Yes, that should be all. We’ll be in touch as the investigation progresses, I’m sure. Thank you for your eventual and somewhat forced cooperation.”

Without waiting for anything more Lance walked out of the little curtained off interview area and moved back over to the sliced open pod that was the center of all this and started going over it with a critical eye, looking for anything of use.

Two details stuck out to him afterward. The first was the blood around the area. They hadn’t taken samples for analysis yet so he motioned one of the Agents on standby to take them in thoroughly. The second was more subtle and more concerning. There were signs, once he looked and mentally compared, that the cuts made on and around the pod were made with a blade that was standard issue for the Vitae’s military and security personnel. So either somebody had misplaced a knife or things had just become a lot more complicated.

Lance made sure the blood was already set to be sent in and analyzed then left in a hurry.

His other duties as a Patrol Captain aside, he was going to have to start looking for traitors in his own ranks if he guessed right.

“Ah, you’re awake.”

Melanie looked to her right to see a middle-aged man dressed in white standing by the wall.

“How long have I been here?” she asked with a weak voice, very well remembering the incident that had occurred earlier.

“Only a few hours, Dr. Larson. We ran some tests during that time and it looks like you’re in the clear from long-term or permanent damages.” He turned to one of the screens next to him to key in some information. “You’re also up for discharge as soon as you have the strength to—“

“Will that take long?”

“Not at all. It varies by person, but the average is 1 to 2 hours. The medications we’ve given you just need to run their course.” He gave her a smile after looking at his watch. “Is there anything else you need Dr. Larson?”

“May I have some water, please?”

“Of course. Someone will be here with that in a minute.”

Melanie watched as the man left the room. Her neck was still tender, and her body felt like weighed a thousand pounds from whatever chemicals they’d pumped into her, but nonetheless, she was eager to get back on her feet again. Even though this whole mess had been an accident, Melanie wanted to have a few words with TreVayne regarding his trigger-happy guard. Maybe protocol called for weapon usage in such small confines which were additionally occupied by innocent bystanders, but if it didn’t, then at the very least, the guard would have to be verbally reprimanded. Melanie looked up again when she saw someone enter the room.

“Here’s your water, Dr. Larson,” a young woman placed the glass of water on a bedside table barely big enough to hold a couple of books.

“Thanks.”

The woman turned around without saying another word. Before she was gone, though, Melanie realized she could get a head start on some of her work.

“Excuse me, ma’am? My apologies for bothering you again, but would you be kind enough to bring me my belongings? There are some things I’d like to take care of.”

“Right away, Dr. Larson.”

The young woman left without hesitation, but she returned just as quickly with Melanie’s bag. After Melanie thanked her, she was left alone with some much desired privacy. She decided it was time to send the message to TreVayne regarding everything that had happened earlier.

Chief TreVayne,
I hope all is well. Please note that the preliminary assessment on Ms. Chizuru Yama-uchi was completed and will very shortly be added to case file #11-A2. I would like to have a meeting with yourself and Admiral Locke to discuss whether we move forward with the candidate as well as what options are at our disposal should she be denied for your department.

On another note, I would like to have a 1-on-1 with you regarding one of your guards. It’s in reference to the incident that occurred earlier today. Please don’t hesitate to contact me at your earliest to arrange the meeting times.

All the best,

Dr. M. Larson

After Melanie sent the message, she closed her eyes for a moment. The fact that she'd been awake for about 10 minutes didn't seem to matter as she still felt extremely drowsy. But maybe all she needed was just to rest a little bit more...

[ Security Centre Complex 4th Floor | Security Command ]
[ Deputy Chief of Security Jerrol Haas ]

“Alright, let’s dial the aperture back a few degrees in Section 6 and make sure that the arc they’re following covers the entire corridor.” Deputy Haas pointed to various areas of the holo-grid layout for a specific section of the Ark, as a few SecCom personnel took notes regarding camera positioning and diagnostics. “The PTZ cams in that section have been a little finicky as of late and I’d hate for our eyes to be taken away from us. But it’s really nothing more than preventative maintenance at this point.” He switched off the projected schematic and the image reverted to the default “Ark Security” logo hovering and slowly rotating in the center of the holo-table. “So I’ll expect a full report within the next hour.” He concluded, as the Dispatch and Communications Agents returned to their workstations with updated orders.

Haas pulled up the pending messages on his datapad, one of which was a recent message addressed to Chief TreVayne from the ship’s Psychologist, Melanie Larson. Deputy Haas had been automatically forwarded any messages from the Chief’s inbox that were not marked “personal” in an effort to take care of any urgent matters, or simply filter out the non-urgent, during Gavon’s absence. Needless to say, there were several that required the Chief’s attention in such a short time span, particularly with the cybernetic female locked up in the brig, but the Deputy was given a soft “forty-eight hours” until the away team would return and so would need to shelf that particular subject until then. However, Doctor Larson’s secondary inquiry regarding one of the Sec Guards was intriguing, and when he had the chance, would contact her in order to discuss further. Continuing his rounds, he made his way to the far side of the room where Natalie TreVayne was working with a two newer members of the SecCom team, going through the network security processes as well as evaluating their response times. She nodded to him in respect as he passed, and he returned the gesture with an added half-smile. Haas did his best to be as professional around her as possible, since on the one hand she was, in fact, the wife of his boss, and on the other, she was a respected colleague who took her job just as seriously as he did and would not tolerate such behavior otherwise. But the Deputy was still a man nonetheless, and an inter-office attraction to a woman who radiated not only strength and beauty, but confidence as well, drew his attention regardless of the environment. He finally smirked when he was out of her line of sight, definitely counting the Chief as one of the luckier men on the Ark.

“Deputy Haas, Sir.” One of the Dispatchers called out as he approached their area. “ There seems to be some comm interference with a few Agent transmitters down in Section 3, should I relay to the S3 station Captain?”

“Affirmative, and also place a service request with maintenance to get on that ASAP.”

“Ten-four”

[ Office of Deputy CoS Jerrol Haas ]
---------------------
_{collab with @Xandrya}
---------------------

Jerrol took a seat in the polycarbon constructed armchair situated behind the large desk made of essentially the same material, and let out a long-awaited breath of air, which carried with it hours of mental and physical exhaustion. His office was rather plain in decor, keeping most of it as uncluttered and unremarkable as possible as to not detract from his work, which was the polar opposite of his neighboring boss’s office. Haas simply felt it unnecessary to add any more complication to a life as structured as his own, and littering his office with mementos and images of a now-destroyed civilization just didn't fit into his lifestyle.

He pulled up the earlier message from Doctor Larson, and re-read it before opening up a comm.

“Noah, locate Doctor Melanie Larson and patch me through to her please.”

“Doctor Larson is in the Medbay. Establishing a connection now, Deputy Haas.”

After a few moments of data tones followed by a indicating "ring" that the call was going through, the line was picked up by the recipient.

"Hello?" The woman answered rather unenthusiastically. She'd just been jolted out of a deep sleep by the call and was silently cursing whoever was on the other end of the line.

"Doctor Larsen? This is Deputy Chief of Security Jerrol Haas contacting you regarding your recent message to Chief TreVayne. As he is currently on assignment off ship, I've been tasked with overseeing any ship's Security-related duties and noticed you had a concern regarding one of our Agents?"

"Yes, Deputy Haas, thank you for contacting me." Melanie sat up on the bed, making herself comfortable. "There was an incident involving one of your agents in the interrogation room. After my session with the cyborg, she proceeded to demonstrate how dangerous she was while insisting that her release was a bad idea. During that time, said agent discharged a taser round aimed at the cyborg. Unfortunately, the round ricocheted off of her and hit me, making me lose consciousness after a few seconds.” Melanie paused for a moment to find the right words. “I understand that agents have certain duties to fulfill, Deputy Haas, but Ms. Yama-uchi wasn’t necessarily threatening the lives of the individuals in that room, and I believe that the conflict could have been resolved through less violent methods.”

"Yes ma'am, I was made aware of the incident within interrogation and offer our sincerest apologies as this is not typical protocol in such cases. However, with the unpredictable nature of the cyborg and the obvious display of Ms. Yama-uchi's...weaponry, it was not an unusual reaction to possible hostility. That being said, a standard issue shock baton would have been a less volatile means of subduing given the smaller enclosure..."

Jerrol paused for a moment in an effort to not come off as though he were wholly defending the young Agent's actions.

"The guard in question is on suspension and his case is being handled by Warden Harrisen where he will be re-evaluated and re-trained on Standard Operating Procedures to ensure preparedness when released back to active duty."

The Deputy cracked a smile at that moment, realizing he'd almost forgotten to be a gentleman.

"But eh, more importantly Doctor, how are you feeling? Have the medical facilities been helpful in your recovery?"

"I'm feeling okay, I suppose. I mean, I've only been awake for maybe 20 minutes since being here, but they've done their best to keep me"-beep-"um...comfortable." Melanie looked down at the notification. It was a message from Jonas confirming their date later that evening. With everything that had happened, she had completely forgotten about it.

"But I'm glad that the agent has been suspended from duty pending an evaluation. Not just due to what happened to me, but also to help prevent future incidents. I'm curious, what's Ms. Yama-uchi's status?"

"Her status hasn't changed much frankly. She is, for the most part, sitting quietly in her cell as we speak." He paused for a moment before continuing. "Is there anything more that you may need to tell us about her 'status', Doctor?"

“No, nothing further. What’s left is for Chief TreVayne and myself to have a meeting to discuss our next steps. And speaking of that, when is he due to be back? I want to make sure I don’t have any conflicts so that we’re able to take care of this as soon as possible.”

"I was given a timeframe of 'fourty-eight to 'seventy-two' hours before the away team would return, not counting the debriefing period upon their arrival. So at the very least, it'll be about that long."

“Oh, alright. I guess we have no choice but to wait.” Melanie was a bit annoyed at the fact that no one had mentioned this little mission to her. She couldn’t help but feel bad for Chizuru, as odd as that sounded. “But thank you for the phone call, Deputy Haas. I hope to be out of here sometime this evening as recovery has been easy for me.”

"I'm glad to hear that, Ms. Larsen. Good day to you ma'am."

An acknowledging "mhm" could be heard on the other end before disconnection, as Jerrol sat back in his chair thinking about the call and wondering what the final verdict would be with regard to their distinguished guest in the brig. He personally held no grudge against the cyborg, but also realized that her previous actions and background were still a cause for concern and he would be on board with whatever decision was made in the matter. He glanced over at the time on the wall and realized he was slightly behind his own scheduled tasks, many of which were routine inspections that needed to be delegated specified personnel.

"Noah, pull up the daily reports for today."

Being in charge of a ship the size of a small nation was strange, while he had been in command of a vessel before he had already grown to understand the position of being a figurehead of a group of people. In a position where everyone looked up to him, followed his command and watched your every move. With a ship this size it was something else, he made a job of trying to remember the names of all those who worked for him but it was impossible due to the sheer size of the vessel. As such he took to noting important names, such as the ensign that served him his breakfast and food in his quarters and as many of the bridge crew as possible. The big one was head of departments, especially as not every department was military.

Though it didn't matter where he went, everyone knew who he was. The military personnel that noticed him would salute, some of the non-military would too(poorly), civillians would acknolwedge him in some way or another. In this particular instance no-one particularly bothered him, which was a novelty. However the reason they were probably neglecting to bother him was likely the fact that two TR-90s fell in step with him. Their menacing red eyes scanning everything around them as their feet literally made a 'clanking' noise when they hit the floor. Far heavier than the standard security droids these were Martian built, and built for war. Several military personnel still stopped and saluted, though he could see the questioning on their face as to what was going on, was he about to declare martial law? Had there been a threat to his life? Was he giving the droids some exercise?

As he entered the Sec-Centre there was the understandable raised eyebrows. Technically, he had no judicial authority as the minds behind the Arks had set the Security up as a civillian organisation, separate from the military forces to ensure that if authority was being flaunted or there was evidence of corruption security could step in and take control of the situation without red tape getting in the way. In Hindsight it made things complicated with very little civillian infrastructure, but then these were things that weren't really considered until they had been cut off from the laws and regulations of the old world. After all the UEC never had a constitution, and each faction had their own way of dealing with matters. Had the cyborg been classed as a Martian Citizen, then under Martian Law he could have had her shot if he had really wanted. While the laws of the Nagasaki Conglomerate actually loopholed enough that she could be released, thankfully she had proven herself enough of a threat that he could still have her held. The legal nonsense that he needed her to actually threaten a psychiatrist and several guards was ridiculous, and it'd be one of the things he'd discuss with Kevin Ford as soon as they had time to meet up with one another.

he needed to be able to have his people work in the best interests of the Arks survival without having to worry about legal jargon. Next thing is the Federals would be petitioning for the right to bear arms and the Armani would demand that security wasn't armed as they feel 'threatened'.

He still had himself riled up as he got through security, his droids disarmed (Not that they weren't deadly without weapons, the TR-90 was essentially a walking weapon) he made it through the layers of security until he stood face to face with her.

"So, you're what all the fuss is about?"

In a process typical to her by now, Chizuru's face cycled through widely different expressions - surprise, disgust, curiosity, aggression, and finally amusement - and she fluidly rose to her feet.

"Mr. Locke, a sight for sore eyes to be sure." She said slowly, looking interchangeably at the Admiral and his mechanical bodyguards. "Finally someone takes me seriously on this ship." Taking a step towards the force wall, the cyborg scrutinized the droids with her shining red eyes. "Yeeesss... these may work well. I will request to beat one up later."

She was silent for a long minute after centering herself in front of Locke again, her augmented face stuck in an artificial half-smile, as if goading a response from him. "Well, let's get down to business. I am not sure how much of Mr. TreVayne's report has reached you, nor have I read such a report, so please stop me if I am saying things you already know. I have infiltrated this ship with the sole purpose of joining one armed crew or another, in order to use my acquired skills to humanity's benefit. After studying the ship's personnel structure I have reached the conclusion Mr. TreVayne's security forces are an appropriate destination. Due to unforeseen side-effects, my first official encounter with his crew was a bit angry, so I have decided to run a short drill before turning myself in, the results of which the Security forces had better analyzed already, because let me tell you, they are far from perfect."

The cyborg tilted her head slightly, to see if the Admiral was actually listening. "In a meeting with Mr. TreVayne, where I have officially requested to be accepted into his roster, we have set the path which would make this possible. Among the points this path hinges on, the two most important ones are Dr. Larson and you. She would not budge about the results of her testing, so I have no idea where I stand. Thus I have no choice but to assume I did fine. And now, Mr. Locke, I am at your mercy."

She spread her arms to the sides. "My purpose was set in flesh and steel, to stretch the proverb, ten years ago, after the Three Day War. I am a tool to be used by humanity, a sword to cut a path for our fate in unknown waters. Take me, Mr. Locke, and use me. It would be a horrible waste otherwise."

Eccleson stood aboard the command deck of the Beast as the behemoth tore through the underbrush of the forest. Doctor Anderson had assured her that the trees weren't actually trees, and some form of complex structure that had been built by some sort of creature. At least that was the current theory, but they had taken samples to be evaluated at a later date anyway back on the Ark. What everyone was more excited about was the EM Zone. As soon as the report had come back Eccleson and TreVayne had contacted the Vitae and set immediate course with all haste, while it was true there was more to do in the initial landing site the EM zone was far more interesting.

Hawkins and Atkov had reported in the ruins of a settlement. Buildings as tall as the trees reaching up into the sky, derelict for Gods know how long. As Eccleson thought about it her hand strayed towards an old cross that hung around her neck, before the Devastators had attacked Religion was a dying thing. Understandably with the trials that humanity had faced several people turned back to it for some semblance of comfort, she herself wasn't extensively religious in that she merely wore it as a reminder of her mothers who had met at a religious gathering. Could there be some divine hand in all of this? The first planet they came across having remnants of an alien civilisation? She had seen the footage, while it wasn't like any human city she had ever seen it was hard to not notice the obvious structure as pathways connected the buildings that reached higher and higher as they approached the centre of the EM zone. She looked up through the viewport as they broke through the denser vegetation into the 'outskirts' of the city.

It was incredible, until they passed the barrier of green there wasn't any sign of any structures other than the threes. Then suddenly they were everywhere, derelict husks of a time long past. She was sure that someone on the team would be able to tell her how long they had been there though she didn't really care. She just had to remain on the top of her game, and not ensure that she wasn't distracted by what was on front of her. "Tell Smith to set up his squadron in a patrol, I'll send the grid to him momentarily. Have Hawkins take her wingman deeper into the EM zone, tell her to keep an eye out for any structure that stands out more than the others-" She leaned down so that she could look above the beast as it slowed, up at one of the orbs that hung suspended by what looked like cables. "-Also get her to keep a rough track of how many orbs she sees. If we can get a number on how many they are, and how often they appear we may be able to figure out what they are."

As the vehicle came to a halt, she couldn't help but to keep looking up at the Orb. It was incredible, a perfect sphere with intricate carvings all over it. Well, it would be perfect but like many of the ones she had already seen it appeared damaged in some way, most of them big or small were in some way or another. The most curious thing about them was how the lines holding them up appeared to break into, and through, buildings before latching onto something. Which made her think they weren't native, or at least not initially meant to be there. She couldn't even begin to take a guess as to what had happened but then again it wasn't her job too. "Deploy all squads, fan out in standard formation until they are fifty metres away from the command vehicle. Once there they should begin to circle until ordered to move out further, also have them prevent any scientists from straying out too far by themselves."

She heard the affirmative from the comms officer, and the affirmatives through his headset as he relayed the order. "Lower the ramp and let the scientists go, TreVayne has people in their teams to keep them safe. They all know their objectives. Let's see what this planet has to offer.

---

Jeffery Hux placed several files before the Ambassador, though he kenw enough about the man and the state of affairs on the ship that he may not hold that title for long. Maybe even aiming for something more auspicious, such as President/Prime Minister/Leader or whatever title he and the Admiral concoted. He himself was surprised that a career military Martian man had went for someone of non-martian descent, and someone who as far as he knew had no ties to the military whatsoever. Then again he hadn't spent enough time with the Admiral to get a good read on the man, and only had what he had heard either through word of mouth or the ships PA system to go on.

"As you may well know, during the founding days of the United Earth Council the idea of a constitution was placed before them by the Roslin Federation. The Conglomerate was willing to work with it with some minor adjustments, Armani were wholly against the idea and the Martians felt that it ceded too much political control out of their sphere of influence. If you're looking at forming some form of legal and judical system for the Vitae then I wish you luck. I pushed with the board in charge of the Project to come to some consensus but the four parties never agreed, so there's no real clear sense of law aboard the ship. Are we under Martian, Federation, Conglomerate or Armani Law?" The older man shrugged his shoulders. "Anyway, those are the files you requested. Is there anything else you need?"