Though the monitors stapled to their exoskeletons displayed neutral emoticons, the two Kiric lean forward as they watch the scene on the wall monitor. "And these are all the beings deemed appropriate for our mission?"
"Given the parameters you provided," nods the prison officer, a human with an implanted visor. "And the pool eligible for the program at this time. You understand why we wouldn't transmit full details of our prisoners, I hope."
The two aliens turn to each other and exchanged a series of gurgling noises. "Very well. You can identify them for us, please?"
He nods. "The quadruped there, it calls itself 'Seven.' A synthetic combat unit from an unknown civilization.
"Combat unit? It has integrated weapons?"
"And how. Arrested for the murder of dozens on a fringe rock called Baldur Terminal. When picked up, it seemed to have no memory of what happened, and it's been compliant and pretty much dormant since we've held it. But its offensive systems are no joke."
The Kiric gurgle to each other again. "The adult human there?"
"Sebastian Burrell. Trained as a soldier and an officer under a now defunct Insubordinate Power. Pretty high in their chain, if record serves, though after their collapse he turned to piracy. Got a lot of military experience, both space and planetside, political experience too. Slippery, by all accounts. A bit of a Mindweaver, too."
"And the R'talis there?"
"Name of V'ralis. A rather accomplished Mindweaver-"
Something like '.' appears on their monitors. "Genuinely? We had heard rumors..."
"Yes. I understand this one's a bit of a celebrity in R'talis space. He is at your disposal. And as previously discussed, no need to worry about him turning his abilities against you."
They gurgle to each other again. "The small human?"
"Lilith Hartmeizner. Bit of a weirdo, that one. Hijacked a malfunctioning space colony and turned it into an uncontrolled automated harvester. Wrecked a valuable eco-moon. Got quite a knack for machines and programs, particularly drones."
"Excellent. And the talkative one?"
"Cascadia Alentrussel The Third. Daughter of a minor spacecraft mogul. She's got a real way with people, in a predatory fashion. And that's without counting her Mindweaving. Pretty scary, if you ask me. Not a bad ground pilot, either, if her rampage in an exoskeleton is anything to go by."
"You sure she is properly motivated to assist our endeavor?"
"Leave that to us. Now, the big guy there. Combat synth."
"A second one?"
"Yes. Earthling construction, though. Blackvoid PMC. Turned to larceny after SolFed no longer needed his services. Good at operations in space and onboard, built like a wall, and yet still one of the stealthiest combat operators you'll find. Got a good understanding of his own internal workings and electronics in general."
"What is that small creature?"
"A Martlon. This one known as Spar Ki of The Thread Rider. Comes from a traditional society of space scavengers. Quite a capable engineer and technician. Not what I'd call 'galactically-aware,' or your best combatant, but I'd say he could get a ship that'd been through a coronal flare to come back online. Can take pretty much anything apart, too."
The two take another few moments to survey the lineup of prisoners, and the text blocks that flared up around the bottom of the monitor. "We believe their talents will be more than adequate for us. Though the concentration of Mindweavers is concerning. You mentioned a safeguard?"
"Of course. Allow us to demonstrate..."
About a minute after all 7 prisoners were lined up in the featureless white room, a door slides open from the side opposite their entrance. Through it steps a dark-skinned human woman, 5'9" in height, wearing the standard grey uniform of SolFed, her black hair tucked up beneath an officer's cap. She stands with her hands clasped behind her back, eyes slightly narrowed as she casts them up and down the line exactly twice. The human guard stands to attention.
"Listen up. I am Major Ada Kazemi. And I will be your parole officer."
Author
Topic: Errant Space - Adventures in a turbulent galaxy (INTO THE BIG BLACK) (Read 7317 times)