Shappard sat in front of the enormous viewport of his office, with his back turned away from his desk, his hands clasped together as he looked in the far distance to the spec of green that was Yeley. He had been in this position for what felt like hours now. He had seen him, the boy from Gol on the footage from the attack on the streets of Gol. He was there, and he was with former Captain Lawrence as well, protecting Lady Olivia. Shappard wondered how they had found themselves in a position like that, how is that they had been in the presence of the planetary head's daughter? if they had just made their way to Yeley, they would be hiding. Surely?

He shifted in his chair, clearly, there was something else at play here, someone else who was moving them around and had placed them under the protection of the Traes. It was the only thing that made any sense. That person may complicate the taking of Yeley. They would need to be cautious in their movements going forward. There was a game being played that they did not have visibility on, and one false step could mean a move that was in the control of their enemy. Sheppard cracked his knuckles.

The attack hadn’t gone completely to plan, but they would adapt, as the Dorlec always did, and there was an opportunity now to gain more than he had previously thought possible. With the fall of the Traes they would facilitate the capture of seven independent plants within the region for the Autarch, and with the boy, Meno on the planet, Sheppard would also deliver the only known person immune to the HX-31 disease to his House Head. This would give the Dorlec the ability to synthesise a vaccine that could allow their troops to enter worlds that they had infected, thus easing the capture. Their enemies would be helpless in the face of the disease, and the Dorlec would rip through them.

They had taken people from Gol previously to be used as walking bioweapons, though Sheppard had only seen reports of this, and it hadn't happened for a number of years. The people taken from Gol had also only been used on ships, to create infection among the compliment and annihilate threats while they travelled, but with the boy, they could eliminate planets that held any type of threat.

“They are ready for you, Commander,” said Smik from behind Sheppard. He could tell that he was bowing from the sound of his voice. Always diligent, he thought. He spun on his chair, prepared himself and then nodded to Smik, who turned as two holograms appeared before his desk.

One was a large man, with a bald head and a thick black moustache wearing Traes colours. Moran had a stern look, a defence mechanism thought Sheppard, the defence of a man who had bottled an operation. He cleared his throat as Sheppard became visible to him. He still would not greet Sheppard as a superior, some form of defiance about him even in his betrayal of the Traes. Almost commendable, if it wasn't for the fact that he had sold out his planet.

The second man was more aligned with the Dorlec aesthetic, though not as clear-cut. He was in his forties, with neatly parted greying hair, with a smug coolness about him. Expected from a professor with a following like his. Grasci wore a neat suit, carefully chosen not to appear too ostentatious, nor to make him look poor and ill-suited to it. A crafted exterior and presence. He looked across to Moran with disdain. Sheppard noticed that Moran did not respond in any way,

“Commander Shappard,” said the professor with a silky voice, composed, educated.

“Commander,” said Moran with a short nod and rough voice, expected of a soldier. Sheppard smiled at how the defiant nature collapsed as soon as he looked to be upstaged. However, this soldier was a glorified security guard and Sheppard doubted whether he had ever seen real action.

“Thank you for joining me, gentlemen. In light of the failed operation today, I thought it best to align and adjust accordingly” he said with cool composure. He felt it was important to highlight the attack as a failure, to ensure an added effort moving forward. The operation was not designed to kill, nor capture Olivia Traes, but to create an environment where Moran could swoop in with his guard and save her while being heavy-handed with the public. His guards would kill some bystanders, and some innocents and give Grasci the opportunity to use the now ‘cruel’ acts of the Traes guard as ammunition against the family on the Sun’s Rising Festival. The loss of the attacking soldiers was inconsequential. They had been the squad that had failed him on Gol. A fitting disposal.

“What did happen, Moran?” said Grasci, a sinister curl to his lip, once again looking over to the hologram of the Palace Commander, who took a breath in, seeming to understand that he needed to run through this, regardless of they may think of him.

“The Kryptea did not follow his orders, he was too quick in his response to the attackers. The guests of the Traes also… proved themselves better than we expected in a firefight” he said sharply, offering nothing else.

“Really, Moran? The Kryptea didn't follow his orders? A weak excuse if I have ever heard one” the professor said beratingly, but then composed himself and looked at the Commander once more, “These guests, have caused quite a stir among my supporters. From my understanding, they were meant to be visiting in a political manner, but now they seem to be hardened soldiers. A rather awful estimation on your side, Commander Moran” The Traes Commander harumphed,

“The woman was a soldier, a former Luitenet within the Hulfean fleet before moving to a Dorlec commission where she attained the rank of Captain. The boy was trained by one of her compatriots” added Sheppard, “Though after reviewing the footage, he does seem more capable than I would have thought possible. ” both of them looked at Sheppard with that wondrous amazement trying to understand how he would know this, he wouldn't explain. “You should have detailed these guests further when they first arrived, I will take part of the blame there for not digging further, but variables must be considered carefully before attempting to balance the equation” he said as a lesson, echoing the words of Lord Valentine, who uttered sentences like this with an ease that Sheppard did not quite possess…yet. “The boy is of special interest, Moran, I would like him captured during the siege,” Sheppard said allowing his tone to have an heir of unquestionability.

“So, we move ahead as planned?” Shappard looked at Grasci, he had become smug in his fame, in his role as acting as opposition to a planetary head. It was only at the grace of Lord Valentine that he had a voice, and now he used it with such a tone, as though he was more than a pawn. Sheppard dropped the thought, how would a man like this know that he was just that, a pawn when he had been given such a lofty platform? Hubris always clouds judgment.

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“Adjustments have been made. Media outlets will play their role, the people will begin to question the Planetary head's ability to protect the people in light of his own guard's failure” he watched Moran shift irritatedly with the words, “Professor, you will still speak at the Sun’s Rising Festival, your focus will not change, but ensure that it is a knife that is twisted, not just thrust. Understood?”

“Perfectly,” he said, his lip curling once more.

“Moran, there will be an attack on the Temple on the day of the Sun’s Rising Festival, ensure that there is a clear path to the planetary heads for our intruders, you have the Kryptea, use them effectively, you could not ask for a better resource. It is imperative that we seize the temple and intercept any defence that may be made against us. Two more Dorlec Pillars will arrive to quell any resistance in other regions. I want this attack to be swift, smooth and above all, without response. We have turned the eye of the galaxy away from Yeley, you may act as needed, but do not draw any attention to the Dorlec while doing so”

“Three Pillars for a planet,” said Grasci, “That will be quite a feat, Commander Sheppard”

“Your planet is a farm, Professor” Sheppard said with a sharp dismissive tone, which to his pleasure, cut through the fog of his arrogance, even if just for a moment.

“Of course, Commander,” he said with a slow tip of his head forward.

“What of the guests, Sheppard?” said Moran seeming to find disgust with Grasci.

“You have your orders on the boy, do what you will with the former Captain, she is of no concern”

“And the pilot?”

“What pilot?”

“Paba Rebapa, the pilot that brought them, she is still in the temple” Sheppard sighed heavily. This man was an imbecile. How was he only letting them know about this now? The pilot is still with them? Sheppard knew that the boy must have escaped on the ship, but he had never been sure if he had taken the ship himself or whether a pilot was waiting for him. Only now, had this ridiculous excuse for a Commander decided to hand that information over.

“Send me everything that you have on this pilot, and I will let you know how to proceed” he said with exaggerated irritation. “Now, follow the plan, we have two weeks until the festival, Grasci ensure that your people are sufficiently incentivised for the attack. Moran, give them the incentive” They both nodded firmly and the holograms dissipated.

He sat for a moment looking over his desk contemplating the pilot. It couldn't have been the pilot, he thought. The ship had left before his soldiers walked into the town. Someone else was still involved in this, but he had nothing that he could clench on to discover their identity. The pilot could potentially be a key in unlocking that though, surely they would know, they had been a part of that plan.

Regardless, it was close now, soon he would be taking a planet in the name of the Dorlec, in the name of Lord Valentine, soon he would be standing higher than he had stood before, his ascent was close, with his actions he would carry out the orders of the Autarch himself. His name would be honoured, he would win favour with Lord Valentine, and he would be attaining true prominence.

*

Liv watched her father slowly pace around the room, her mother watching him with a furrowed brow of worry that rested above her red still puffy eyes. It was the first time that Liv had been able to sit across from her mother without her needing to be held by her, which had allowed her a sense of relief, though, if holding Liv had made her mother feel better, she would oblige. She could understand her parent's concern for her, and she had initially needed comfort from them. She sat on one of the large sofa’s in her parent's apartments with a large blanket wrapped around her. The fire in the corner was not needed for heating but added to the warmth that she and her parents both needed.

Her father was contemplating whether the Prelude Gala should go ahead like it had every year as the premier event for the heads of regions and major players on Yeley where the message for The Sun’s Rising Festival was dictated. The strategy for the coming year would be laid out and the alignment of the planet was brought together. It was usually the most coveted invite of the year for members of the Yelean elite and stakeholders.

“Would we not look like we are running from Reform if we cancelled?”, Liv had considered this while the silence fell in the room just the sound of her father's soft material shoes shifting across the floor and the crackling of the fire. Her own attack was being cast as the reason not to have the event, but she also knew that if they folded at this, they would be showing weakness at a time when they needed to convey strength.

Grasci was going to speak. Liv had made her opinion clear, she believed that the event needed to take place, the Traes needed to be visible, Liv needed to show that she had not been rattled, and her parents needed to assert their position as planetary heads at a time when the Yelean people were in a position for the first time in generations, to consider their leadership. Her father stopped pacing and looked at her with a heavy expression, he took a deep breath,

“Will you speak at the summit?” she felt her mother's eyes flick to her immediately, uneasiness resting in them,

“Of course,” Liv said without hesitation, “I would be happy to” she added now considering the importance of this. She would need to convey that she was thankful to the people and that she would still stand up even when facing difficulty, she needed to show this to the people of Yeley, and also to her parents. This was an opportunity for her to raise herself to the position of a Traes.

She had already invited Angie, Paba and Meno to the event, though she may have underplayed the magnitude of the event by calling it a dinner, she was speaking to Angie at the time, and though she had always been kind and amiable, Liv still found her quite intimidating. She knew that this would come back on her, but she had immediately thought it important to give them a presence at the event after their efforts during the attack. Her parents had agreed, and even Harold, who had primarily been concerned with their safety, had felt that hiding them away after the attack would be a foolish move.

“Are you sure about this?” her mother said softly,

“Yes,” she said trying to convey the strength that her parents needed, “Our people need to know that we are strong, that we will not be swayed by him”, her mother gave her a cracked smile showing pride. She felt that it might have been a bit much, but she felt as though this was a true chance to stand against Reform, something that they had played down for so long.

She watched her father nod slowly, she could see that he did not want to make this decision but knew that it was right. Her mother reached out and gripped her hand, squeezing it.

“There’s one more thing that I think that we should do,” she said strongly, emboldened by her new responsibility, her parents both turned intently to her, she thought it would be best just to say it, knowing that they would both find this a deplorable idea. “I would like to invite Professor Grasci,”

*

Angie got to their apartments, her hand on the back of Paba who was almost asleep already as they walked from Meno’s medical room, she had been directing her from the lifts. They arrived at the door and saw a small paper envelope sitting on a small table outside of the door of their apartments. She picked it up carefully, examined it, and rubbed the paper in her hands, unable to stop a small smile from coming to her face as she felt the texture of the grainy envelope. She had never felt paper before, it was a strange thing. She knew that the elite used paper as a way to show off their wealth and class, and the poorest used it because they could not connect to systems, but she had never been in a position where she had actually held paper.

Paba looked up at it and watched Angie pass it over her hands,

“What is it?” she said in a sleepy tone,

It was addressed to all three of them, and she broke the wax seal that had the mark of the Traes upon it, an image like the statue of Det’er that she was now so familiar with. It was an invite to the Prelude Gala, directly from the Traes themselves, happening in two days. She closed her eyes tightly, knowing that this was the ‘dinner’ that Lady Olivia had invited them to as an offer of appreciation. She had done this on purpose, she had waited for Angie to find out this way rather than tell her herself,

“Oh that little bitch”