Much better.

What did you do back there? It sounded like you ripped off some cabinet panels.

That’s because I did force one open. The damn thing’s a little buggy.

Can I get a look at the bottle in your hands?

This ain’t Bitterton— Hey!

Just to be sure… We’ll, colour me surprised. It is water.

You needn’t sound so condescending, Flex.

Amaris Matara.

What was that?

Amaris Matara. The name popped up as well, but I don’t know much about her. In her dossier, it says she’s disfigured and was considered dead for some time before popping up in conjunction with the Cult. But that’s about all. I don’t think you ought to know more, but…

Amaris… I need to think… Oh, I do know more about her.

You do? How?

Well, I told you about Doromis Karion‘s paranoid habit, didn’t I? I hacked into his server farm a long time ago and, despite being paranoid, he never changes the password at all. He also uses it as his log-in to the Steward’s version of the ECCN and the main servers. It’s the name of his last Morphling by the way.

Moron.

Exactly. Good thing is, that I looked all the names of our targets up on his servers. Naturally, he doesn‘t have a lot of intel on them. He hasn’t met them and doesn’t really know they exist beyond the warrants. But with access to the Steward’s ECCN, I managed to gather a lot more information than was made available to us lowlifes.

What you just told me could be considered treason, Scar.

And I know you won’t snitch on me because I will snitch on you for losing your squad like an incompetent Mudswimmer and add a few lies that will get you executed as well.

…

No need to stare at me like that, Flex. Moreover, didn’t you want to get to know more about Amaris Matara?

So go on…

With pleasure! Amaris is a difficult case. While there exist records of her as Morphling, there is a considerable gap between the last time she was accounted for by the census and her reappearance in one of the labour-units. What exactly happened in this timeframe will most likely remain a mystery. Which is a shame since her disfigurement seems to have originated during this gap.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

You aren’t exactly telling me anything new, Scar.

Patience, my dear. So… after Amaris appeared at the labour-units, she immediately tore down the gates and killed the guards there. Still, one of them managed to call for backup and that’s where things get so nasty, even the Empress seems not to want normal Fleet members to know.

Anyway. Reinforcements arrived shortly after and found her freeing the workers. Following protocol, they immediately shot her and thought at least part of the affair done but, by the Void, they were mistaken. Instead of staying down, she stood back up and looked at them. Again they shot her, and neither did she flinch nor did a single sound escape her.

Wait sec, you’re telling me an invalid suffering most likely from frequent infections did manage to kill not only the guards but a whole squad? Scar, the only strange thing, is the fact that she was able to stand on her own. I bet the squad leader was hiding his incompetence by embellishing the story.

I wouldn’t be this fast to place such an easy judgment on the affair, Flex. Besides, the hidden report continued like this:

Being more careful this time around, they sent someone to make sure she was dead. The poor sot they had picked for this didn’t even manage to look for a pulse or get even close enough to her to see anything of note. Out of nowhere, Amaris lost arm reappeared as some sort of shadow, grabbed the moron and crushed his head like a melon.

For real?

For real.

I’m sorry, but this sounds like one of those creepy horror stories some people share on the ECCN.

But that’s what was written in the report. Well, not word for word, but I tell you the truth.

What happened after she killed the idiot?

They tried to shoot her again, but this time she somehow managed to dodge everything. The commander even wrote that it seemed like an entirely different being had taken control of the body and moved it according to its own will. No matter if it was Amaris herself or something that took hold of her doesn’t matter for this story. The result is the same. Nearly 90 percent of the squad and of the reinforcement were killed, and the mission aborted.

I guess she managed to save the workers and made contact with the Cult, as she had been seen among them.

The Cult harbours some peculiar individuals. And if all of this is known to the Empress, I’m honestly flabbergasted that there wasn’t already an airstrike ordered.

It’s quite the conundrum, isn’t it?

Now that I’m thinking about it… Why do you know about Deep Space?

Home of monsters. Not my choice for a vacation.

No, I meant the new Fleet!

I know, Flex. I just wanted to annoy you.

Congratulations, you did. Now answer my questions.

What do I know about Deep Space… Not much. I didn’t even dare to look them up with Doromis‘ logins. But I do know a few rumours floating around the higher ranks. For one, it’s whispered that they aren‘t Menkar but aliens, that fool even the Empress.

I doubt Marconite would employ aliens this way or be even fooled by something like that.

I also doubt that he would be this stupid. Another hushed story speculates that they made pacts with the Void and turned into grotesque monsters, which is why they only have one ship. But I don’t think that they’re monsters, either. Then again, the pact-angle seems plausible. After all, it seems they can each do as one Menkar what usually only a thousand could manage.

Considering what you told me about Amaris Matara, it seems plausible. Still… It makes me wonder how far we can trust Deep Space.

Oh… What’s that?

A call?

Well, I better take it. It’s Domoris.