There was something graceful about the way the elite gunship danced between buildings as it flew from the Administration Tower to the Military Headquarters Tower about two miles away. It wasn't particularly in a hurry - at least, it didn't seem that way - but it was certainly moving. Its angular, white-gold and blue frame, with dual engines on either side of its wingspan, glimmered in the distant sunlight and bounced off lights from the few advertisements there were in the Admin Zone on Dysnomia. Yu watched from her seat, staring out the window, reflecting on how grateful she was here and not the Asteroid Belt or Venus, where advertisements were almost everywhere, in your face at all times.
Beside her sat her new assistant - new relatively, as they'd been working together for some time now since Serena disappeared - who was quiet and sullen, almost at all times. She made Yu uncomfortable. Yu wasn't sure where she'd even come from, having never seen her before she was appointed as her assistant by Xiao. The woman was short, but built, apparently spending a decent amount of time at the gym, though she and Yu hardly spoke outside of business. She had short black hair that was almost a bowl cut, and piercing brown eyes that were so deep and unreadable they may as well have been the depths of a silty ocean. The worst part about her, though, by far at that, was the way she accompanied Yu everywhere. She seemed to appear at the most unfortunate times, and followed Yu like a hunting lion. If Yu wanted to do what she was about to do, she'd need to lose the weight.
Carefully, she considered her options as the gunship weaved and bobbed through the "streets" of the Admin Zone. Officially, she was going to the Military Headquarters to speak to Admiral Tames about current troop movements across Haumea, as it was time for their annual ground training to commence. Unofficially, however, she was there to talk to Rear Admiral Gorison.
Gorison was an odd man. He kept an odd schedule and had an odd appointment calendar. Actually, for him, it was the middle of the night. Yet here she was, on her way to see him for an unofficially scheduled appointment. It worked for her. If people were expecting him to be sleeping, they would be less suspicious of he and Yu meeting, if they would be in the first place. So it was fine, if a little weird.
The Military Headquarters Tower was a tall octagon, and was colloquially called "The Hive" for both its shape and the number of coming and going NRT ships that, to those on the ground, might look like bees, if one were imaginative enough. And the farthest parts of the Solar System, with the loneliness they fostered, were plenty space enough to let one's imagination run wild.
The gunship rose as it approached the tower, heading to an upper airlock around the 32nd floor. The great black windowed building appeared in Yu's view as the gunship spun. It seemed the pilot would be bringing them in in reverse. The engines hummed and the lights in the rear cabin dimmed, before finally the building was at the rear of the ship. Then, the ship slowed, and began to back in. Then, the walls of the airlock closed around them, before the outer two-panel blast doors sealed tightly. They were in.
The chamber pressurized rapidly, though it was unnoticeable in the gunship's already pressurized interior. The rear door of the chamber hissed and slid apart from the middle, and the gunship backed in further. Now, from her window, Yu could see scafolding and people in green and black jumpsuits and gunships of all classes, and NRT civilian ships, and private vessels, all lined up down a row so deep and long that it was hard to see the end of. Then, the bird turned, and she felt it buckle as the magnets gripped it and guided it in. Soon, they were slotting into their own spot, and the gunship touched down on its landing gear.
Within moments, the side of the ship lifted open, and Yu unbuckled, as did her assistant. They both stepped down the side rails of the ship, snd set their feet on solid ground once more. Yu dusted herself down, and stood tall, stretching. Her assistant watched her, seemingly bored.
Just then, a man approached, in his forties apparently and with a gray buzz cut, and gave a salute to Yu, who saluted back. He said: "Director Solarum. I am Colonel Fastings, it's a pleasure to meet you."
He held out his hand, and they shook, before he looked to Yu's assistant. "And you must be the Director’s assistant," he said, a strange glimmer in his eyes. Then, looking at them both, said, "If you would both follow me."
Yu nodded, and they all started away from the ship. There was a cart waiting for them, painted black and green, and they got in it, with Col. Fastings at the helm. He put his thumb to the scanner, and the cart rumbled to life, and then they were off down the long corridor from which they came. Overhead, a small ship slowly passed by, tethered by magnets on a rail attached to the ceiling. Yu watched it. This passageway was almost impossibly large, though the Hive was a massive structure that ran high above and deep below the Admin Zone. Still, it always awed her.
They whipped down the corridor, hooking a right after a time into another hallway that ran deeper into the Hive. They slowed a bit here, passing by pedestrians and flight crews changing shifts and other carts filled with other people. Yu sat back in the back seat and folded her legs.
Col. Fastings drove them through the halls, taking a few turns down different corridors, some of which had coffee shops and others which held cafés and shops selling things you might find at an air or space port: magazines, newspapers, candy, pens. It was a little surreal, but capitalism had its way of reaching even out to here, and into one of the most heavily guarded buildings in all of Sol's system. She hummed to herself, lost in thought.
Then, as the cart came to a stop at a parking lot full of carts, near some elevators, Col. Fastings turned around and said, "I understand you're meeting with Admiral Tames. Unfortunately, he's fallen ill. So I will be taking you to his secretary, who will have the briefing files ready for you. Also unfortunately, I’ve been told they are for your eyes only. Your assistant will need to wait in the lobby, over there."
He pointed to a small cafe to the side of the enclosed lot. A few people ate at its tables. "Admiral's orders. Sorry miss."
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Yu's assistant seemed to stifle a sigh, before nodding, clearly annoyed, and stepping out of the cart and heading to the cafe. The Colonel looked at her and grinned, that glint in his eye once more. Yu smiled.
"Well," he said, "shall we?"
Yu nodded, and together they alighted from the cart and headed to the elevators. The Colonel called one of them - there were ten in total, all in a line, letting others on and off - and soon, they were ascending to the Admiralty offices. Once there and through the scanners and security, Colonel Fastings led her to an office deep in the heart of the Hive that had no nameplate, and ushered them both inside.
The office was dusty, dark, and bare, and the air was stale. Colonel Fastings flicked on the lights, which flickered to life and illuminated the room in a white glow. Then, he sat at the desk near the wall, and turned to face Yu.
Then, he laughed.
Yu laughed too.
"So," she said, placing her hand on the desk and leaning forward, "that was your plan?"
He shrugged and grinned widely. "It worked, didn't it?"
They shared another hearty laugh. Then, Yu said, "I can't believe it, but it did. Admiral Gorison, it's a pleasure to meet you in person."
"The same to you, Director." The Admiral chuckled lightly, and sat back. "It's true that Admiral Tames is sick though. Convenient, but true."
"Oh is he?"
Admiral Gorsin nodded, his demeanor looking a little grave. "Something has been going around. It's a respiratory thing."
"Oh… I see. A cold?"
"No," he said, kicking his feet up on the desk, "a little worse but non lethal so far."
"Then what's with the look?" Yu asked, raising an eyebrow.
Gorsin sighed. "People who catch it suffer brain damage, some of our white coats think. People aren't right afterwards, just something a little off about them. Thankfully it spreads slow as shit apparently."
Yu's eyes flashed. "How long has this been going on?"
Gorsin shrugged. "Couple of years. Maybe three or four infections a year. The lab guys are working to isolate the virus but so far they've had no luck. Honestly it's a little mysterious."
"Why was I not alerted?"
"It's been dubbed Kuiper madness, so maybe you've heard of it like that. But honestly the cases are so rare that Commander Xiao doesn't even take notice of them anymore. It’s mostly deal with it in-house, wherever the infection pops up."
Yu hummed, and sat on the desk, facing Gorsin at an angle. "Tell me more about this 'Kuiper madness'."
"Kuiper madness." Gorsin cocked his head and huffed. "Well, people report schizophrenia symptoms. Hearing whispering, seeing things, thinking they can talk to spirits or something, it's a mess for them"
Yu felt a cold stillness fall upon her. She frowned, and looked away. Gorsin squinted on eye at her, and then said, "I know why you're here. Really, I mean. I know what's been going on with your father."
A panic ran through Yu like lightning through a wire. She looked at him with a glaring intensity. "How?"
Gorsin sat up, and now his face held nothing but a frown and angry eyes. "Serena, your old assistant?"
"What about her?" Yu carefully asked.
He nodded. "Her full, real name was Serena Gorsin. She was my daughter."
Yu's heart dropped. With trembling lips she said, "I thought her last name was Gipson."
Shaking his head, Gorsin said, "That was a fake name we gave her to cover the nepotism. I am the reason she was assigned as your assistant. I had high hopes for my daughter."
His face bore pain all of a sudden, as though he were about to shed a tear, before returning to a more calm, neutral disposition. He looked up at her with glazed eyes, and said, "I don't know where she is. But you aren't the only one she told about Xiao. She told me too. So you and I are alike in that we both share this burden of knowledge. And so, I ask you, what should we do?"
Lips taut, Yu started to chew on her nail. "I don't know. That's why I arranged this meeting, you're right. I need your help."
"What makes you think I'm the one to turn to?" Gorsin asked.
Yu shot him a quick look. "You were there at the battle of Icarus Way. You know what happened there and so do I, even if the official reports differ. You called off the bombardment against the Ophius. You saved thousands of lives, all by going against the orders of your higher ups. I think I can trust you."
Admiral Gorsin's lips twitched as though he were about to smile. "Someone did some digging."
She nodded. "I did. On many of the Admirals here. You seem to be the one with the cleanest record, at least in my eyes." She stood and walked over to the wall, running a finger on it and inspecting the dust. "Whose office is this?"
"Mine," he said, "technically. My actual office is elsewhere but on paper this is where I've set up shop."
Yu hummed to herself, before turning to face him. "You are very odd," she said, inspecting him. "I think we can work together. I want informants, and information. People close to my father, who are willing to spare any information they can on his condition. I want your help with this. And I want a direct line of communication with you."
"Already ahead of you," Admiral Gorsin said, pulling a small flip radio from his chest cargo pocket. "Here," he said, sliding it across the table. "Take it. It is encrypted and directly linked to mine."
Yu took it and tucked it into her pocket. She nodded to him, and he nodded back. "“Thank you.”
“You’re very welcome, Director. I want answers too. Let me know what you find, and if you need anything, and I will do the same.”
Admiral Gorsin stood, and folded his arms. “So, then, I will get some men close to men closer to your father, and you will, hopefully, help me find my daughter.”
Her eyes darted to lock with his. “Yes. I will help you find your daughter.”
“Well then, we are done here. You have some papers to pick up I believe. You mentioned they were something about the training on Haumea?”
Yu nodded. “From the sounds of it, it’s been much more intensive this year than in the previous. I’m eager to look at the paperwork.”
“I won’t hold you then,” Gorsin said, waving to the door. “If your assistant asks what took so long, tell her you got split up from me and that I had to come find you. You know, to pad out the time.”
Smiling, Yu gave a small mock salute, and turned to head out the door. Then, she made her way deeper into the building, disappearing into the halls and corridors of the Hive.
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