Kordut was many things. Sneaking aboard the bulk freighter Ever Golden, he became something else entirely.

A traitor of the highest order.

His pedigree was not made for treason: kin of noble lineage, esteemed researcher serving the Ministry of Science, co-creator of the nanite formulation for his people, the Pree. Loyal servant and ally of the Provenance, his government.

He decided to betray it all a cycle ago.

Toiling away in the research facility, buried within a refinery orbiting a gas giant to avoid prying eyes, he experienced a profound shift of perspective; he’d chosen the wrong side. The depth and strength of the epiphany were so absolute that he risked the entirety of his existence to right the wrong he’d helped create.

In a twist of bitter irony, he had his project to thank for that.

For thirty days, he readied his escape. Studied the loading procedure of freighters as they came and went. Hid a prototype version in his luggage. Prepared supplies for a life on the run.

He thought he would have more time, but then the news arrived; the Commonwealth—an intersystem bureaucracy formed of representatives of the advanced races—was preparing to dispatch a diplomatic fleet to his homeworld of Preemona to vote on the charter.

A vote Project Fidelity had been designed to defeat.

The one hundred elected regents of the Provenance would decide whether to make the Pree full and permanent members of the Commonwealth. In the eyes of the noble ruling class and their Preservationist allies, ratification would undermine their control, subjecting the Pree people to the growing power of bureaucratic overlords and alternative philosophies of governance.

Facing the threat of irrelevancy, the Provenance enlisted the aid of Kosmogenic—the Commonwealth’s shadowy nemesis—to defeat the vote and doom the Commonwealth. Through the partnership, Project Fidelity was born.

Kordut’s only hope was to expose his sins to the leadership of Acculturation—the anti-Provenance movement. Born in secrecy, his creation would also have to perish in it, for its revelation would rip apart the Commonwealth, plunging the known galaxy back into the chaos of isolationism and conflict.

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When the Ever Golden was underway, he emerged from hiding, startling one of the cargo technicians. The captain stormed into the bay and was surprised to find a distinguished older Pree awaiting him.

Kordut offered his cover story; a low-level admin, he had kin in ill health and was denied leave. He simply wished to break his contract early, but his refinery supervisor was an unfeeling ass.

The captain eyed Kordut and his luggage. The traitor politely reminded the crew that to return him meant answering pointed questions about their involvement in Korbut’s unauthorized departure. In reality, it meant his death, and likely that of the crew.

Kordut admitted he’d put them in a bad spot but flashed a hefty payment for the trouble. All he desired in exchange was a single transit contract as a lowly cargo technician.

Fortunately, the captain accepted it without further questions. It was an easy payday, and there was nothing of concern about the older Pree. Only in horror vids would he turn out to be a serial killer, escaped android, or a contract assassin out for one last job. It helped Kordut’s cause that the captain himself had a shady past and had booked many similar contracts to escape trouble of his own.

The Ever Golden delivered its wares to a deep space research facility, loaded up containers of samples and processed materials, and then made for the Tri-gala system channel.

It was there, seven billion kilometers from the local star, that the system’s channel region existed.

The torus-shaped zone served as a pseudo-gateway to the superluminal passageways—channels—connecting distant points in space. Points that existed in, and moved with, star systems across the galaxy. The discovery of this pseudo-network—its origins mysterious and still debated—effectively granted faster-than-light travel to any sentient capable of building the ships to access it.

Powering its displacement drive, the Ever Golden pierced through the metaphysical threshold of spacetime to enter the channel.

Ten days later, the blocky conglomeration of metal, composites, and ceramics blinked into existence in the Nibryn system, appearing in the void where nothing had been before. The nearest ship was a million kilometers away. A freighter that arrived a day prior and already burned hard toward Sanctum, Nibryn’s channel station. The same destination as the Ever Golden, where he planned to meet with Acculturation couriers.

Kordut knew his absence from the facility would’ve been noticed by then. Once they discovered his empty quarters and missing prototypes, his intent would be clear. The Ministry of Security would deploy operatives to apprehend him and recover the stolen prototype.

Sixteen hours after returning to normal space, the freighter neared Sanctum. As the ship docked at one of the station’s cavernous bays, the captain told Kordut to stay out of sight. He could clear customs once offloading was complete. The captain needed to deal with the surly dockmaster first.

Bots and cranes slid the containers and pallets into the station’s interior for processing while the techs oversaw the work. The captain soon stopped by the galley to inform the traitor it was okay to debark.

But when he stepped into the compartment, it was empty. The traitor had already left.