Page 72 of Stars At Dusk

Most of Eden II’s residents were ensconced in their air-conditioned domains or using their lap pools to their full advantage.

Earlier, the air had been even more warm and muggy, with starlight beating down on the city. The pavement and buildings radiated heat, adding to the excessive warmth and discomfort. Most had dressed in light, airy clothing, and if they ventured outside, nabbed bottles of water or other refreshments to keep themselves hydrated.

Despite the heat, Eden II on a Sunday was a vibrant and lively place, with music, laughter, and the sounds of people enjoying themselves at picnics and outdoor activities filling the air. Breeze seekers packed all available parks and outdoor spaces. Water games were wildly popular. Fleets of ice cream air trucks and floating food carts had done a brisk business as people downed mountains of chilled refreshments and treats. Only when the dome above reduced the brightness to an evening filter did the myriads of Edenites outdoors slowly return to the cool refuge of their homes.

Kage, Xion and Kainan sat in the rooftop clubhouse at 498, sucking down a late afternoon beer. In shorts and nothing else.

They’d finished a few rounds ofkapotraining, had a dip in the pool to cool down and were now working through The Sable Group’s weekly security logs and reports.

Kainan leaned back in his chair. ‘When did Mirage intercept this?’

‘Last night. It’s like listening to child’s play. Amateur at best.’

‘The voices?’

‘Megawatt Blondie and someone I’ve since come to learn is a man called Faron Rinnax. Also Rhesian. His identity is confirmed only by his voice print. No recent identifiable photo is available. According to Mirage and Sysnet, he was once the System’s youngest, brightest investment trading star. Barely ten years later, Rhesian authorities convicted him of laundering and money racketeering. By the time he was caught, Rinnax had accumulated a fortune by betting on corporate takeovers with inside knowledge of the deals. He avoided serious jail time by cooperating with authorities and informing them of the financial crimes of his fellow traders. He’s reinvented himself by taking over as MD from his father at Rinnax Forge. They’re the publicly listed Rhesian shipbuilding components company I told you about. It turns out Ruben, AKA Megawatt Blondie is related to him. They could be brothers, could be cousins. Not sure.’

‘And they’re trying to come after us?’ Xion scoffed.

‘Specifically after Harlow’s research and her xentium tech,’ Kage confirmed. ‘Mirage has identified several phishing attacks focused on information ex-filtration over the last few months. This foray included a vast network of thousands of IP addresses originating from Rhesia and Rinnax Holdings. Mirage has some of the most effective defence mechanisms with ultra-responsive detection and response capabilities, so she’s managed to deflect all threat actors.’

‘And their attacks have been at the behest of their so-called benefactors?’ Kainan said.

‘Naam. They can try all they want,’ Kage scoffed. ‘We’ll be more than ready for them.’

‘The benefactors he mentions. Who are they?’ Xion asked.

‘Not sure. It sounds like they have some link to the Rhesian throne, meaning they have to be quite senior in either the Rhesian government or the royal house. That doesn’t bode well for King Auban or us if he is, in fact, clueless about their existence. We need to dig deeper,’ Kainan replied.

Kage nodded. ‘Will do; I’ll work with Mirage on finding as much as I can ‘bout these so-called sponsors.’

‘I’ll focus on security at Skylab and monitor movements,’ Xion offered.

‘Santebrother. The pawn they mention?’ Kainan probed.

‘’Tis a worry,khosi,’ Kage said slowly. ‘Best I can do is leave a breadcrumb trail and see who nibbles.’

‘Do it.’

Harlow

Harlow finally hit her stride on her project.

Waves of intense focus revved her flow. She felt energised, and solutions were coming hard and fast. She’d become so completely absorbed and engaged in the Proto-XE outcomes that time seemed to stand still. It was a powerful and transformative experience, making her highly rate her time at Skylab.

That flow was characterised by a day like today, packed with tiny but goal-shifting breakthroughs that ramped up her excitement in the project. However, this only meant that Harlow and her team celebrated their breakthroughs by working harder.

Harlow had tried to kick her team out hours ago, and they’d all demurred, choosing instead to keep slugging away. Late into the night, they persisted unceasingly. Harlow reluctantly let them stay, knowing their generous overtime pay and the rewards of the project’s success would more than make up for it.

Harlow and Bassam huddled around monitors tapped into various dynamometers in their lab’s rocket engine test bench.

‘What’s the fuel efficiency like now?’ Harlow asked, her mind pumped, but her body said otherwise. Evidenced by her red, raw eyes.

‘Still concerning,’ said Bassam Lin, the team’s propulsion expert, pushing his spectacles higher on his nose. ‘We need to do more tests on the specific impulse of the combustion material and rerun them for the different ignition, burn-in and switch-off phases.’

‘OK. Let’s rerun it, Bassam,’ Harlow said. We need better numbers on the dynamic characterisation - from the natural frequency, range-ability and adaptability.’

‘Is this the first draft rule?’ The typically quiet-spoken Bassam teased. ‘Or the 201st draft rule?’

---