It had not occurred to Alex that showing up in a rare classic ship, escorted by six alien ships would generate interest. But as it turns out, gliding up with four shuttles and two things that had been transports but were obviously for interdiction based on the racks of missile pods and very large point defense cannons that were taking up space where the cabin would normally go... That sort of thing turned a lot of heads.
He landed it like a champ, at least. Followed the landing protocols exactly. Rotated it at five kilometers, shut down the four inboard engines and used the remaining four to gently decelerate, gliding into the hanger bay in reverse. Anyone who wasn’t familiar with this style of ship would probably assume he was showboating, or getting ready to leave after a robbery.
All it took from there was a handful of taps to the maneuvering thrusters bringing it to a stop, and gently easing the gravitics back to set them down right on the pad he was assigned. All that sim time had paid off.
Eleya let him open the hatch. It was his last chance to delete the intrusion package, but he was too far in at this point. The betrayal by the ONI was too big. He still considered himself a nobody, despite all the titles. Just some kid from the Arc who managed to get lucky a few times and land his dream job. If they’d do it to him, he assumed at this point, that they would do it to anybody.
A few moments after he cracked the exterior door, the ARGUS software that he was absolutely not aware of detected a public wireless signal and started up r_probe, which began trying to connect to that wireless network. Empire intel had figured out how it worked despite not having a proper wireless system, receiving signal with the threads that ran to his near-field connections, and resonating those same connections in concert to transmit.
It was actually a very impressive feat of engineering. No indication it was possible until the system was actually in use.
Another thing that had not occurred to Alex was that all that interest would actually translate into people showing up. Part of that was things that made sense to him immediately: the station commander, a guy from Diplomatic Security Service, and a bunch of regular station security showed up to greet Eleya specifically and him as well because he was standing behind her. It was nice to be the pilot again. They barely even looked at him, just scanned his ONI badge. They got a very polite ‘please leave the guys in power armor here in the hanger, but do bring as many of your soft security as you need.’
The Royal Guard posted up at the stairwell into the ship and waited.
He was roughly aware of the existence of paparazzi until now. An annoyance for famous people. The observation window a floor above the entryway to the station proper was currently packed with people, and there were a lot of lenses pointed their way. Several of them were clearly focused on the GX, which he understood at a very visceral level. That had been him in the past.
The rest were interested in all the aliens and that guy that popped out of that weird old ship with them. He assumed none of them were ship-heads, the most unfortunate slang term Alex had been called by his brother for being a big spaceship nerd, and would not recognize a classic when it landed in front of them.
Alex kind of didn’t care for that level of attention. Maybe he should have dressed a little nicer. Unless they all just thought he was a pilot, like some kind of chauffeur. Came with the ship. Probably wouldn’t have an ONI badge, though, or continued into the station. Was nice to sail through customs, at least.
It was way more normal when they were in the station proper. Eleya’s personal security team had opted for clothing that was more traditional military - kept the gray tunics, pants, and what have you, but shed the combat hardware. He assumed there was loads of armor and shielding hiding in their clothes anyway. They were covering him right now as well, as they were all headed to the same place.
The corridors had been cordoned off, a bank of elevators reserved to take them up to the conference room. There was more security up here, starting with the Diplomatic teams in conspicuously bulky business suits at intersections, and eventually more Tsla’o mixed in that had come over with Carbon’s flight this morning.
They were a solid thirty minutes early when they arrived. A DSS suit and portions of that early contingent were already there. It was a very nice suite. Spacious, brightly lit, nice wide table to keep everyone from fighting with each other or something. A spread of snacks and beverages off in one corner, too.
All the Tsla’o inside snapped to attention when they stepped in, the handful that were sitting down jumping up immediately. Rigid spines, fist clutched to their sternum. The Empress dismissed this with a wave of her hand and they mostly went back to doing whatever they had been engaged with, though Colonel Lehnan made a beeline for them.
“Colonel. Updates have been coming in clear, I assume that you have not had any issues since the last?” She tipped her head at him.
He bowed in return. “No changes in readiness. After the initial perimeter setup approximately three hours ago, all scans and comms have remained clear.”
“Excellent. Thank you.” She gave him another nod and he returned to the armored laptop he had been sitting at when they arrived.
Eleya turned her attention back to Alex. “And how do you fare, young pilot?”
“It’s good to be back. I appreciate the hospitality, of course, but... There’s just something about the familiarity, you know?” Alex knew better than to assume they could have a private conversation here. No way. Not just what was being recorded by the ARGUS, but the room must have had recording facilities - both covert and overt - so he wasn’t about to start talking about what they were actually talking about. Maybe Eleya and all her Intelligence personnel were starting to rub off on him. A week ago he would have started talking about any damn thing without a second thought.
His real reply to that question was him casually nodding along in the affirmative as he spoke. Yes, the upload was underway. While it was a very elegant system, it was not a very fast one. About two-thirds of the way done now.
She gave him a nod back, just as she had done to the Colonel. “I believe I do. While this space does not feel truly alien, it is... different. Little things pull at my senses. It seems to be a recurring theme today.”
“That is a very succinct way to put it.” It was, in his estimation. The biggest changes were the smells and the colors. They were not so technologically different that corridors on ships were unusually built, Human machines had fabricated parts for the Sword without issue. “The use of red on the support ribs always throws me off.”
“Is it so? It is a classic naval color for the Tsla’o.” She seemed actually interested in that.
“Yeah, we stick with very light grays, cream, off white... That sort of thing.” He gestured at the walls, a very generic off-white. Eggshell? Maybe. Sported that blue stripe most Navy ships had running everywhere. Though here it was at about shin height, making room for paintings of famous naval-related ships and events.
“This color, it is a bit... Macabre, is the phrase? Grim. Walls of bone. It does have a nice shade of blue.” She pointed out the stripe.
He hoped that the ONI was enjoying this conversation. “The stripe is supposed to be calming, for some reason. Never understood why. Doesn’t make me mad looking at it, at least.” Alex shrugged.
“Reminds me of the sea.” Eleya stared at it intently before looking to a dark painting of a old sailing ship in tumultuous waters. “Another thing our kind have in common.”
“Indeed.” Was it sea related? Who knows. Alex pondered the list of things he could talk about, as Eleya perused the paintings. Everything felt like it was a secret now. “So... Got any plans after the reception?”
“No.” She had moved on to a painting of an Aircraft Carrier. “Nothing aside from returning to my flagship.”
“Last time Carbon was on station, we were having dinner with an old friend - a mentor, really - that got cut short. It’d be nice to finish that. And if I come back on station without at least saying hello, he’ll kill me.” Alex found a smirk curling the corner of his mouth, paired with a faint chuckle.
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She turned to look at him slowly, just a faint dusting of confusion on her face as she determined that was not literal. “Are you... Attempting to include me in this?”
Was he? Sure seemed like it. “Yeah. I am. He’s a good fellow, I’m sure my mother would be up for it. If Carbon was having any problems with her I’m sure we would have heard about it by now. You can meet some of the people who have had a hand in shaping me.”
Eleya’s desire for normalcy surfaced in her eyes for a moment. Sitting down with family members without pretense, even ones who were pretending to just be doing outreach, was something she obviously missed. “Is there an appropriate dining facility here?”
“Oh, sure.” There had to be some kind of dining room for brass and dignitaries. He had only been to the commissaries and Noonan’s... and as much as he wanted to go back to Noonan’s, that was not a joint to take the Empress. Even if she probably would have wanted to go there. Alex did find himself amused by the idea of dragging her into the retro sci-fi pastiche of that tourist trap restaurant. “I assume. I’ll ask around.”
“Very well. If arrangements are made, I will go.” She turned to Alex and gave him a single nod, her word final. Her attention was quickly drawn away, leaning to the side with brows furrowed as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing behind him.
“Oh, well look at this motherfucker!” That was Sergeant Zenshen. Shouting in English. In the hallway.
Alex turned to look. Sergeant Zenshen was in fact standing in the hall, and he saw her standing toe-to-toe with someone who was clearly a Confed Marine, based on the green camo BDU’s and very close cut hair. Stana gave the Human woman a shove, arms tossed out to the side and glaring hard, daring her to take a swing. They were exchanging words that were very much something Eleya would love to learn about as the Human stalked back up into her face. “Oh shit hang on I’ll be right back.” He blurted that out as a single word as he hustled his ass to try to divert this impending disaster.
About halfway to the door he realized that the flow of cussing from both sides also included an extremely involved handshake, and that both of them were now grinning as they insulted each other in a more conversational tone.
“Sergeant. Looking sharp, I must say.” The Marine spoke as she pulled Zenshen into a friendly hug, slapping her back carefully to avoid the antenna.
Zenshen had opted for the uniform update that he had suggested. She was part of his security detail, and could slot into Carbon’s if needed. She had recognized the name of the films he had dropped when making those recommendations as well, so her adoption of the charcoal three-piece suit was not surprising at all.
She went with the black shirt and tie. Even had the silver collar bar. It did look sharp, which had been the point. Less military invasion, more individuals that you don’t want to mess with. Real Baba Yaga shit.
“The green suits you.” Stana was still smiling as she turned to Alex. “Mister Sorenson. This is the Marine I’ve told you about, Lieutenant Williams.”
“So it is.” Alex could tell that they were already familiar with each other now, at least. He bowed. Fuck. That’s not how you greet a fellow Human. “Nice to meet you, Lieutenant.”
“Likewise.” Williams smiled as well, dark skin crinkling around deep brown eyes as she extended a hand, not calling attention to his faux pas. “Alex Sorenson? I’ve heard a lot about you.”
He shook it, of course. It had been awhile since he’d physically interacted with another Human and that realization was actually more unsettling than having someone he’d never met already knowing about him. “Hah, really? All good things, I hope.”
“Good enough.” The Lieutenant sounded like she meant that as a compliment. “If you both will excuse me, I need to make sure everything is prepped before the Admirals arrive.”
Williams parted ways, leaving him standing there with the Sergeant. “How’s the uniform working out?”
“Base gear needs some work, got a lot of technology tucked away in here that is not as comfortable as it could be. They reworked a bunch of stuff because, you know, new threads mean new layout. Thermals are good, lots of pockets. The vest is growing on me. Visually? Badass. Humans love it. I’ve had to scoot more folks away because they wanted pics than because they were encroaching on the diplomat.” She was pretty pleased with that, fiddling with the top button on the waistcoat.
“Well, you wanted something less aggressive. Maybe we overshot a little bit.” If people were approaching the security teams specifically, that would present a very different problem than the one they were originally trying to solve.
“It does seem so.” She shrugged. “I’m keeping this suit either way.”
“Williams was right, it does look sharp.” The eetaleeahn cut suit, from the waist up anyway, was actually very handsome even outside of the movies. It was growing on him.
“Thank you. Ah, speaking of the diplomat...” She nodded down the hall to Carbon, Amalu and Tenar in tow. Those two had opted for the white shirt and wore a refined version of their armored combat goggles over their eyes, a suite of sensors giving them more information about their surroundings than plain old flesh and blood could. It was still a good looking outfit.
Maybe he would consider a tie. If Carbon liked it.
Maybe.
“Lan Tshalen. Good to see you again.” He smiled pleasantly and gave her a little bow, fighting off the urge to greet her in a far less formal manner. They were keeping up appearances of just being something more like friends, after all. “I hope my mother wasn’t a bother?”
“As I expected, she was a delight. Very informative about the finer details of Human clothing, as well.” She grinned, bowing in return.
“Oh, well that’s good.” Why did that make him anxious? Was it the grin? Yeah, just a little too toothy for her not to be leaving some details out. It was also weird to be talking to her like this.
Man, he was not cut out for spy stuff.
“Indeed it is. I may require a trip to somewhere with a wider variety of stores in the future. I have been apprised of the fact that there are many fashion capitals on Earth.” She said, looking into the meeting suite and changing the subject. “I assume the Empress is here as well?”
Oh no, was she getting into fashion? Had she been into fashion before but he didn’t know anything about Tsla’o fashion so he had been completely oblivious to it? Shit. Neya would know. Neya would love it if she was. “Yeah, I left her in there when I thought Zenshen was out here picking a fight.”
Carbon turned back to him with a raised eyebrow, a hint of alarm in her voice. “Why would she be doing that?”
“She wasn’t. The Marine she had worked with is here too and... Human military personnel greeting each other can get a little out of hand. Clearly she picked that up.” He shrugged. Took all sorts to make a military run.
“Ah. Curious.” She put the eyebrow away and relaxed. “If you will pardon me, Pilot Sorenson, I should check in with the rest of the delegation.”
“Of course. See you inside.” He did the formal bowing thing again. She returned it and the security team followed her in.
He went to get a snack. Breakfast had been too damn long ago, and some mediocre food that he already knew sounded like it would hit the spot. The platter of Danishes left him with a strange sense of melancholy, perfectly baked and gleaming in the bright overhead lights. He missed Human stuff, and the flakey crust on the pastry he set on a little china plate taunted him.
Not going to be seeing the likes of me very much from now on, are you?
Alex got a cup of coffee with a splash of cream and circled back around to the Confederation side of the table, his mere Intelligence Specialist rank leaving him at the end of the table next to Williams. In good company at least, according to the Sergeant. “Excuse me, Lieutenant... Have you heard if there’s a name for this operation yet? I’ve been a bit out of the loop so far.”
“As of this morning, it is being called Shadow Steppe.” While she did not roll her eyes at that, there was a certain tone in her voice that intimated it. “Like a prairie, not walking.”
He recalled the rolling hills and hundreds of acres of grasslands that had greeted them on the other side of the portal onto the artifact. That wasn’t obvious at all. “That feels a little on the nose. Like somebody got their thesaurus out and just sifted through words until something sounded kinda spooky.”
“Better than the first two I heard floated.” She finished that under her breath as she stood to salute the arrival of Admirals Argueta and Serrat.
Alex did not join her, being a civilian and all. He had no idea how his integration into an alien society would change that reaction, effectively being a dual citizen now. Probably would be the same, though.
Neither Admiral seemed to mind, dismissing the Lieutenant and giving him a nod. Alex watched the two of them, in their crisp dress whites with a tasteful amount of ribbons and medals, approach Eleya.
Both of them bowed, about as deep as he would expect from one of the Empire’s own Admirals, though Serrat’s was deeper and more crisp. They could have gotten away with less, but had no doubt been coached to ensure they weren’t being insulting, particularly not on the first meeting. It was Argueta that spoke first. “Empress Tezhan. Thank you for coming here in person. It was a surprise to find that you wished to take a direct interest in this project, but we are pleased that you have.”
Eleya waited a beat, before she gave the Admirals a nod in return. “Given the importance of the task, it was clear that I should be personally involved. Particularly when one considers how our previous joint effort yielded such an unusual outcome.”