Chapter 3 #2
When she finally returned to life, it was to find her employer had reported her missing and her inbox filled by increasingly terse messages from Ryan. The last of which had threatened a personal visit should she not report in immediately.
She’d learned to be careful after that. Ryan’s wrath wasn’t to be taken lightly.
As punishment, he’d sent her on several back-to-back missions that had kept her busy for months. It was nearly a year before she saw her sanctuary again.
There was also the fear lurking at the back of her mind that if she ever slipped too deep into this state that she might not come back.
Gus didn’t know if her ability to commune on an unheard of level with the organisms around her was a product of her lineage or if it was something the Tsavitee had added during her time at the camps. There was no one she could ask since she didn’t remember where she came from.
Careful observation of the Tuann hadn’t clarified matters either.
If there were others like her, she hadn’t been able to find them.
A discordant note disturbed the harmony. The trees and flowers picked it up, unease sliding through their previous happiness.
Gus hunted for the source of that concern, questing down well-traveled neural networks.
Humans, and likely Tuann as well, didn’t understand how interconnected biomes were.
In her experience, forests possessed both the singular consciousness of individual organisms and the shared one of the many.
They shared information and experiences on a much more sophisticated level than most realized.
Titan wasn’t an actual forest, but its many gardens and green areas functioned much like one, passing information the same way.
The trees brought her news of strangers.
Like Gus but different.
Disturbed, Gus pulled herself out of their song. Her extremities tingled unpleasantly, like a limb that had fallen asleep, as sensation returned.
Gus barely noticed as a troubled frown took over her face.
The forest may not have known what those strangers were, but she did.
There were Tuann on Titan. More than just the two she had stashed in her greenhouse container.
“Why are they here?” Gus mumbled.
For that matter, who were they? House Roake? Had Kira already found her way here?
If that was the case, she could offload Caius and Anandra before she’d even finished her chai.
If it wasn’t Kira, she had bigger problems.
Titan was Gus’s territory. Given to her by Ryan and made her own after humanity’s last war with the Tsavitee. The forty-three knew better than to come here without an invitation. Such a faux pas would be considered a challenge. Not just to her authority—but to Ryan’s as well.
Worried, Gus headed upstairs to her office.
In total, the complex held three levels.
The main one where the living area, gardens and her workroom were located.
The second level was split between her bedroom and office.
She was rarely in the latter, only clocking into her dock administration job when needed.
The third and last level was home to her fourth greenhouse.
That was where she kept her most precious treasures.
Those plants that would earn her an immediate life sentence in prison.
She was so paranoid about anyone discovering them that the greenhouse’s entrance was hidden behind a trap door located in her ceiling. It was protected by a series of biometric locks that required not only a fingerprint and voice scan but a breath analysis as well.
The system was the best money could buy. The only thing better would be those built and designed by the Great Tuann Houses. House Kashori, in particular. To obtain her security system, Gus had to tap into a few black market contacts.
It had been worth it though for the peace of mind.
She doubted even a Tuann or Haldeel would be able to circumvent it. They might be able to brute-force the door open if they knew it was there but hacking it would be impossible.
Maybe Jin could.
But he’d never have occasion to visit.
Technically, the Nakawa orchid should have gone into this fourth greenhouse, but she’d felt the conditions of the night garden were more conducive to its survival.
Like every other room in her home, Gus’s office was filled with plants. They covered the bookshelves she’d installed on all walls but one. Their soft grow lights illuminating the dark like a beacon of safety and normalcy.
Gus’s normalcy.
In one corner was a low couch that Gus had spent many a comfortable hour ensconced in. A lamp hung over its back and a cozy looking blanket was carelessly flung over one end.
Gus headed for her desk in the opposite corner, against the only bare wall. She seated herself and rested her hands, palm down, on it. The sensors embedded in its surface were soundless as they read her body’s bio signature.
It only took moments for them to verify her identity and give her access to the system.
The container wall her desk was facing became a giant screen. The bottom right hand corner displayed the dock security feeds she had pinned for easy access.
Gus scanned them to ensure there was no suspicious activity before turning her attention to other matters.
As much as she itched to hunt down the Tuann who’d invaded her territory, Gus knew that the endeavor would ultimately prove fruitless.
She had neither a location nor time frame in which to start her hunt.
There were thousands upon thousands of feeds throughout Titan. Reviewing them would take months.
There was no guarantee she’d recognize the Tuann in question either. They’d most likely come in disguise, making finding them that much more difficult.
With a groan, Gus opened the chat application she’d created upon her arrival on Titan.
For all that she was a hermit, no Tuann could exist in true isolation.
It went against their nature. That held true for Gus as well.
Moreover, Ryan sent her here to fulfill a specific task.
Part of that had to do with keeping an eye on Kira and Jin and making sure they didn’t do anything too stupid.
Like launching a two person war against the Tsavitee.
The rest had to do with Titan itself. The station was more important than anyone in the Consortium realized. For starters, it was the biggest source of salvaged Tsavitee tech anywhere. Not to mention home to several influential criminal groups.
On Titan, there was a saying, “Everything flowed through its docks, eventually.”
The person who controlled Titan controlled the Consortium who needed the raw resources provided by the local mining colonies.
Ryan wanted that person to be him.
Or, more accurately, his proxy.
With that in mind, he’d sent Gus here.
To fulfill his expectations while also staying true to her hermit-like tendencies, she’d been forced to create a network of minions to carry out her will.
She called them minions, but really, they were her lieutenants. Individuals she found useful enough to maintain superficial contact with.
Gus shot off a quick message.
Kyle,
There are people on Titan who don’t belong. Find them.
Vague, but Kyle was smart. If Tuann were on Titan, he’d digitally hunt them down for her.
Gus took a sip of her chai before settling in to check what else had been happening on Titan while she was gone.
There were several messages from her supervisor that Gus ignored.
She was sure the port master would love to fire her for all the “vacations” she took.
Unfortunately for that woman, Gus had a little something called job security.
Until she decided otherwise, this job was hers.
No matter what objections or grievances were filed.
Gus scanned through the news boards, interested to learn that the local military detachment had gotten a new commander while she’d been away.
When she found out who it was, Gus let out a low whistle. “You’re a long way from home, Rear Admiral Jace Skarsdale.”
Until recently, Admiral Skarsdale had been something of a poster boy for the Space Force.
The loss of his mentor seemed to have affected his standing, however.
It appeared his enemies had finally found something with which to unseat him; and they were so desperate to get rid of the thorn in their side that they’d sent him all the way to Titan.
If Gus had been more like her siblings, she might have been curious enough to go see what that something was.
As it stood, she couldn’t bring herself to exert the effort.
Gus kept reading, switching over to the gossip threads when she got tired of news articles. People didn’t realize how much you could learn from a stranger’s chatter. Rumors held truths dressed up in pretty lies.
Case in point, the closure of several prominent station businesses. Many of which were nebulously connected to Gus. Either because their owners were in her network or because she’d financed their opening.
Whatever the case, Kyle should have flagged this in the weekly update he sent her way.
Gus found it strange that he hadn’t. It could be that he’d thought it unimportant. Businesses closed every day on Titan. A few more would hardly draw notice. He was also unlikely aware of her stake in the businesses in question.
Maybe that was why he’d overlooked it.
Before she could investigate further, a message notification arrived.
Gus stilled as she saw who it was from. “What does Ryan want from me?”
The mission she’d just finished should have bought her a few months of peace and quiet.
Reluctantly, Gus opened the message and immediately wished she hadn’t.
I am coming. See you soon.
Simple and to the point. Containing neither salutation nor signature to point to its sender.
The message’s brevity was a giveaway, however.
Ryan had sent this. Two weeks ago, Gus saw as she checked the time stamp.
“Shit,” she cursed, sitting back.
For all she knew, he was on Titan already.