Page 36 of Human Reclaimed
“Whatever it is, we’ll handle it,” I said, surprised by my own use of “we.”
The security center doors slid open and Tegan’s tall form materialized immediately, his face drawn tight with concern.
“Thank god you’re here. We’ve got a situation.” He beckoned us to his workstation where three screens displayed long-range scanner data.
As the images became clear, my stomach dropped. A fleet of at least five vessels—ugly, cobbled-together ships bristling with weapons—clustered near the Kuiper Gate at the edge of the solar system.
“Pirates,” I breathed.
“A whole damned fleet of them,” Tegan confirmed, his fingers racing across his console. “Long-range scanners picked them up an hour ago. They’re organizing and refueling. Based on their current position and typical approach vectors…”
“How long?” Rune’s voice was steel.
“Six days. Maybe less.”
The room tilted slightly. Six days. My mouth went dry.
“That’s not enough time,” I said, the strategic part of my brain already calculating. “The perimeter improvements, the shield harmonics—we’re weeks away from full implementation.”
Rune slammed his fist against the console. “Dammit! We need more time.”
I steadied myself, years of battlefield crises kicking in. “We’ll have to fall back to Operation Eclipse—the evacuation contingency.”
“The bunkers near the eastern caverns aren’t built yet,” Tegan reminded us.
“Then we build them. Now.” I pulled up the colony schematics on Tegan’s center screen. “We need wet-climate bunkers, basic but secure. If we mobilize every available worker…”
Rune’s hand found my shoulder, squeezing once. “We need to brief Helix and Aeon.”
The walk to the council chamber passed in tense silence. My mind raced through calculations—resources needed, personnel requirements, and defensive positions. This wasn’t just a strategic exercise anymore. These were real people—people I was starting to care about.
The council chamber’s spiraling roof gleamed in the sunlight, making the building shine like a beacon. The two guards nodded as we approached, stepping aside.
Commander Helix looked up from her desk as we entered her office, Aeon beside her reviewing something on a datapad.
“This better be important to interrupt our resource allocation meeting,” Helix said.
“The pirates,” Rune stated flatly. “A fleet is approaching. Six days out.”
Aeon’s datapad clattered to the desk. “How many ships?”
“Five that we can confirm,” I said, stepping forward. “Heavy weaponry. We don’t have time to finish the defense improvements.”
“We need to implement Operation Eclipse immediately,” Rune added.
“The cavern bunkers aren’t built,” Helix said, echoing Tegan’s earlier objection.
“Then we build them.” I moved closer, planting my hands on her desk. “We need to start the construction of wet-climate bunkers near the eastern caverns immediately. We’ll need every available worker and round-the-clock shifts.”
“And if we divert those resources?” Aeon asked.
“If we don’t, and those pirates breach our current defenses, you’ll have casualties.” I met his eyes directly. “Those bunkers are our insurance policy.”
Helix and Aeon exchanged looks of silent communication.
“She’s right,” Rune said, stepping forward to stand beside me. “Based on her service record and what I’ve seen from her these past three days, Captain Reed has never made a strategic error. Her evacuation plan gives us the best chance of protecting everyone.”
Something warm unfurled in me at his words. He trusted me. Completely.
