Petals of Titanium -- My Life as a Mecha Setting Bridge Bunny Quest

OoC: Very short update this time just due to certain things needing to be decided in a certain order. Still took me a week, though : p


Alpha Sphere, Anchiale Station

"This is a surveillance deadzone," Lieutenant-Commander Milo Owusu explains, taking a sip from his recyclable coffee cup. Barely contained within it is a towering monstrosity of whipped pseudo-cream and flavoured syrups, supposedly with milky coffee lurking somewhere at the bottom. You're not about to criticise someone for their taste in caffeine delivery, but it's not quite your speed.

You glance around the space. It's a little alcove between two builds, jutting awkwardly off of an outdoor seating area. The space is honestly too narrow and too cut off from the open air to be entirely comfortable, but some enterprising soul has stuck a small table and two chairs in it, leaving just enough room to squeeze past.

"The camera that's supposed to see the area is blocked by a planter," he continues, "and the noise coming out of that noodle shop around the corner covers anything other than a shout."

You frown, tentative. "Shouldn't you tell someone about this?" This feels a little too close to telling someone else how to do their job for your comfort.

"I did," he says, mildly. "Two years ago. I was first sent to this posting in order to evaluate the security of the station and draft a report on improvements. They fixed the really egregious problems, but some things got lost in the bureaucratic shuffle, or weren't deemed economical. I checked this morning -- still hasn't been fixed." He smiles sardonically.

"So, your job here is done, sir?" you ask, unable to prevent a slightly sardonic edge from slipping into your voice. You would have normally, but perhaps it's the irregularity of the task and his conduct or just being out of uniform. You picked up a cheap sundress from a print-on-demand store the day before -- the breeze on your shoulders and legs feels particularly nice in Alpha's climate, which you find subtly warmer than the unfinished Beta Sphere. Fortunately, Owusu takes no offense.

"Frankly, yes," he says. "I can only bother station intelligence so much with this, short of convincing my superiors back on Titan to burn good will and political capital on something this low level. I've got a lot of independence, but neither the Lord Mayor of Anchiale nor Lord Admiral Sikes actually answer to me. I'm the byblow of an extinct house, so I don't precisely have the family name for that. I used to joke to Glory that we should switch careers, except that intelligence work would just drive her crazy after a week." He explains this in such a self-effacing, casual manner that it's hard for you to feel truly awkward about the seemingly personal admission.

Except… just when had Lori become the poster girl for Imperial classism in the ranks? Maybe it was nothing new and you are just hyper aware of it at the moment. "She told me she hates it when you call her that," you say, staring at your own, already empty cup.

"She says that, but she's used to it from me. Someone has to keep her humble." His easy smile slips slightly and you find yourself the subject of a close examination, his features going from openly gorgeous to mysteriously beautiful. It's not suspicion, quite, so much as intense interest. "Have you told her anything about our dealings?" he asks. "She tried to warn me off from dragging you into anything dangerous, the other day."

Dammit. "No," you say, hurriedly. "She saw you talking to me that first time at the docking bay -- she asked, but I told her it was nothing I could discuss."

He nods. After one last searching look his features relax again, seemingly taking you at your word. "Either way, I see you're on a first name basis with our resident countess." Is he… smirking? "I don't think I need to ask -- I know her type by now. Anyway, what do you have for me?"

You're sent reeling for a moment. You stare, torn between embarrassment, mild indignation, and an unproductive urge to press him for details of exactly what sort of type you conform to. His tone and expression make whatever it is feel downright indecent. Intolerable man indeed. You pull yourself together, though. The small talk portion of the meeting is clearly over:

"The underlying message, once I've cleaned up all the encryption, looks extremely similar to the code I intercepted near Phoebe," you say. There's no point in being delicate about it. "Not exactly the same, I don't think, but the same lineage."

"A lineage that originates with the Divine Navy," he says, looking grimmer than he ever has in your experience of him.

"It was also definitely being beamed out into space," you add, feeling almost guilty. "The beam's too tight to be directed at one of the stations around Iapetus."

"Send me the directional data you've pulled, and I'll try to find a source at least." He abruptly takes a hearty slug of his sugary, milky drink as if it were a stiff glass of spirits. It's got so much imitation dairy that it's probably too lukewarm to burn his throat, but you still wince. "I hate being right," he says, looking utterly crestfallen.

"I'm sorry, sir," you say.

"No, no, none of that," he says, tone brisk once again. "I asked, you answered. How long do you think you need to crack the message itself?"

"It's hard to say, sir," you admit. "Weeks, maybe, to get the whole message. It takes time, on my own. Is there really no one else you can have working on this, sir?"

Owusu sighs, scratching the back of his head as he considers how to respond. "I could, but I don't actually know where the leak is, internally. I don't have enough information yet to be able to act decisively enough to disregard it." He smiles again a little ruefully. "Unless you know how to get a secure message to Princess Daystar that you know she'll listen to."

You stare. "The princess?"

"Yes," he says, "I'd at least know she's trustworthy in all this. It's her head up on the block if her great uncle ever takes over the system, and I can even somewhat reliably expect she'd keep it to herself while she's here. She and the local administration do not precisely see eye to eye -- she's a little too enthusiastic about certain reforms for their taste."

You realise he's joking. As far as you know, the moment Daystar departed the Night Lily she disappeared into whatever sort of top level briefings and meetings an imperial princess engages in after the trip she'd just returned from. If a Lieutenant-Commander with the SRI can't reach her, you certainly won't be able to. But, if the princess is trustworthy, maybe there's another option…

"With this much, I can try making some quiet preparations," he offers. "I can convince a few people to increase security in places, without getting into specifics. Keep up the good work, Ensign North."

The meeting ends quickly after this, with the two of you going your separate ways. You're headed back in the direction of the elevator up out of Alpha Sphere, wondering if you should do what you're now considering. You haven't spoken to J6 since departing the ship, but you do have a hope of contacting her to arrange a meeting. The princess being trustworthy or not aside, you're well aware that the abilities the strange guardswoman displayed before, processing data rapidly through direct neural link, would greatly speed your efforts if she agreed to help you.

Do you keep playing things close to the chest, or reach out to a potential asset who you know likes you, at least a little?

[ ] Contact J6 to ask for help.

[ ] Keep it to yourself. Security is more important than speed.