Nestled high above the vibrant metropolis of Haveskon, the plush office suite had been meticulously crafted by an army of highly overpaid designers and architects working tirelessly towards one singular objective - to cater to the ego of the man who now sat upon the rich velvety chair. His demeanor was not much unlike that of a king of ages past.

Greymus Ortimus had a well-deserved reputation as a man people tried not to cross. His career was built through a vast range of questionable business dealings across a large network of Irvanian conglomerates. And this city was the epicenter of his influence. The floor-to-ceiling windows around him framed a breathtaking panorama of Haveskon.

The cityscape unfolding beyond was a mesmerizing tapestry of towering skyscrapers, bustling streets, and lush pockets of greenery. The gentle hum of activity below was a constant reminder of the energy and dynamism that lied at the heart of this bustling city.

On an ordinary day, in the confines of this plush, verdant oasis, the senator would unwind and find solace away from the chaos of running an enterprise. But today was not such a day. "What is the meaning of this?" The senator bellowed, slamming his fist on the table.

Before him sat a dark, bald man with a neatly trimmed salt and pepper beard. His deep blue suite bore the unmistakable insignia of the Protectorate: A soaring falcon circled by a ring of stars. "We have located your son, Senator. Unfortunately, it looks like he has been a victim of an accident."

The man's measured tone and expressionless face were the polar opposite of Greymus's beetroot-red, angry visage.

The Senator had a hard time believing that. His heir - dead. And an accident. In the present day and age. With all the resources that Remus had at his disposal. Ridiculous.

Trying to suppress his rage, he urged the inspector to continue: "Walk me through what you found."

The inspector tapped through his tablet, and a holographic projection unfolded before them. In ethereal blue colors, the image depicted an asteroid belt where a single large one was highlighted in red. "This asteroid belt revolves around the star-system of Fiera Azakus in Sector two. In the same star system, we have the planet Harkinsis - a Gireth settlement." Norman had chosen this location after a careful selection. Seventy-five light years away from the location of the ziggurat, it would be impossible to connect to the place they had originally traveled to.

"Gireth?" The senator rubbed his temples. The name sounded familiar, but he couldn't recall where from exactly.

"A race that specializes in mining zetacadmin." Alright, things clicked into place. He remembered some appeals to provide them with more funding and resources a few years back. He also recalled that Remus's previous dissertation had attempted some novel applications for zetacadmin to safeguard industrial apparatus in high-temperature environments. Eventually, that proved to be a dead end.

"I take it he hadn't given up that stupid zetacadmin research."

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"That was our observation too, sir." The inspector offered politely, "We found his research material within the asteroid."

"Within?" That was a surprise.

"Yes, the asteroid was converted to a habitable cubicle. It seems that Remus wanted to spend a few weeks close to the mining site."

It wouldn't have been a questionable choice; the Gireth mining centers didn't offer living conditions suitable for humans. But Greymus also kept a tight check on Remus's expenses - and the cost of a habitable cubicle on a hollowed-out asteroid would have been something he noticed.

He flicked through the recent expenses of his son on his own device, and his frown deepened. There was some eye-watering expenditure for a deep space voyage, alright, but also expedition equipment - for three people.

"Was he alone in that asteroid?"

"He was working with another girl from his class - Kiri. But it looks like Kiri met with an accident and decided to postpone her plans. They were attempting to identify a third individual for a group dissertation - but we don't think they actually found one."

Remus going on an exploration all alone - something didn't feel right. And another accident? With all the safety measures that the academy kept in place, this was increasingly suspicious. Greymus was slightly recovering from his initial shock, and his analytical mind was taking over. "In what state was his body found?"

"It looks like the safety and life support system was not adequately equipped to handle the intense solar flares from the star in that system. And a flare resulted in an electrical hazard while Remus was sleeping. A group of miners found him later in the day in a heavily burnt sate and alerted the Protectorate outpost nearby immediately."

"Later in the day..." Greymus tapped his fingers on the desk, "How accurate can the time of death be in such scenarios."

"That is one issue, Senator. Because of the extent of the damage, we can only say that the time of death was within 3–4 days of that incident. It is not possible to be more precise."

"So there was a possibility that he was killed and then dumped in that asteroid?" Greymus found his anger resurfacing. Someone was going to have to pay for this.

"That seems like a very strange way to accomplish this, but we are still not sure what would someone gain from this?" The investigator offered.

That was what was bothering Greymus from the beginning. There was no ransom request. No attempt at coercion.

He flicked through his tablet again, "Can you see if you can locate these suits?" The projection now showed three industrial expedition suites. The total amount was not a fortune for Ortimus family, but it could be worthwhile for some lowly scum.

"Sir, all three of them were found within the asteroid. Remus seems to have attempted to retrofit them with zetacadmin lining."

Another dead-end. Greymus's jaw clenched - he had no idea what Remus was trying to accomplish. It looked like he had deliberately tried to hide his continuation of research, given their heated discussion on its folly over the last summer. But still, he was not convinced.

Why had he chosen such a poorly setup cubicle? Greymus had no doubts about his son's intelligence, or lack thereof. But could he really be that big of an idiot? He would have at least gone through the recommended configurations for the location - the Gireth settlement was remote, but not unknown.

"I want you to keep digging on this case. This girl who was supposed to accompany him. Has her injury been verified?"

"Yes, sir, I saw the medical reports myself. And verified in person. She did have her leg fractured around the same time."

"And how did it get fractured, exactly?" Greymus was realizing that this would drag on for some time now. Either whoever had orchestrated the whole thing was someone incredibly meticulous, or he was chasing phantoms.

"She was experimenting with augmented exoskeletons and an experiment went wrong. She was collaborating with Remus on applications of zetacadmin for strengthening these exoskeletons."

Greymus was increasingly sure that if he heard the word zetacadmin yet again, he was going to smash something.