Simon, Colin, Rhona and Byron were grouped around the hologram projector at the centre of the room. On it, there were a series of data sets, graphs, and diagrams.

As Colin finished up his final remark he zoomed in on a chart, “So basically, after back tracking the goods, it looks like the site really does belong to Halcyon or at least one of their subsidiaries.”

Colin quickly followed up by gushing over the NetDive Board, “By the way, the NetDive Board is insane! I literally phased through the system securities in nearly all the companies in the beeline as I tracked the shipment.”

Rhona was a little sceptical as her eyes traversed through the extremely convoluted supply chain, “It couldn’t have been that easy.”

Colin shrugged while clarifying Rhona’s doubt, “Well it was manageable downstream of the chain. But as it got closer to Halcyon, it was difficult to keep track. There were way too many junctions, and Halcyon’s security wasn’t easy to manoeuvre through. Even on this planet!”

Colin then started to search for another file on the projector as he continued, “But in the end, I succeeded. And according to the manifests -” he paused while bringing up a new diagram was into the foreground, “I ran a cross-referencing algorithm and they seem to pertain to manufacturing Mekas. Especially the hybrid quartz granules. Those are primarily used for making concentrated laser weapons. I think they’re working on some sort of energy weapon centric Meka.”

The diagram compared the contents of the cargo manifest with the predicted uses of the items. The algorithm spat out a graph that showed the percentage closeness in its prediction based on published data on the QNet. As the group perused through it, they felt that Colin's conclusion was well-founded and quite convincing.

The new information surprised Rhona. “Wow! If we didn’t know that there was a secret facility out here, all of this would have been dusted under the rug.”

Rhona turned to face Simon who was silent during the entire presentation. “What do you think about this Simon?”

“I agree, the secrecy of such a level is rare to come across nowadays. Well, I guess it wasn’t that clandestine considering our client heard of it,” Simon commented while muffling a chuckle.

Everyone turned to face Colin once again, to which the boy simply waved to indicate that his part was completed.

Simon immediately took over and pulled out a schematic onto the projector. “OK, so Horace and Nathan finished their observation. And on top of a rather extensive layout of the externals of the facility, they were able to obtain a sufficiently in-depth schematic of the internals as well.”

Simon did not fully minimize the schematic, leaving it on the sides so that the others could use it as a reference. He then continued with his piece, “I’ve combed through all the information, and I have managed to come up with a decent plan of action for this job. However, just a word of warning, this will be our hardest job to date. There will be a lot of precision timing and synchronicity required for this job, and it will push each of you to your highest level.”

With that Simon paused and looked at the faces of all those present in the room. As he combed through their expressions, he did not see any form of hesitance. That was good!

Seeing as there were no drop-outs, he declared, “First things first. Rhys and Rhona will be sitting out of this job.”

Rhona nearly jumped from her seat as she retorted, “What? Why? Please trust me, Simon I can handle it, I won’t make the same mistake again!”

Rhona started to beg Simon to give her another chance.

Simon placed his hand on Rhona’s agitated shoulders to calm her down. As his hand touched her, Rhona meekly melted under the assault of his sudden warmth. Simon spoke in a low and gentle tone, “That’s not why. I need one of you to be here with me and Colin. Since Byron will be handling transportation, we will be in a vulnerable position while strapped on.”

Rhona interjected, "I can stay with you guys. But what about Rhys?"

"He'll have to stay at our home base back at the Oasis. In case we need him for something."

Colin was a little unnerved by the comprehensive level of preparation Simon was making, especially on their end here. “Is there a reason for us to be so cautious boss?” He asked.

Colin didn’t understand why they were acting as if a dagger was hanging over their necks waiting to plunge in at any moments. Based on his analysis of the cruiser’s safety systems, it was extremely top-notch. The AI was so responsive that he could swear that it would obliterate anyone who even thought of causing a disturbance. He half-expected the AI to blast him to smithereens for releasing a loud fart. It was that sensitive!

Simon instructed Colin in a matter of fact tone, “The only way to survive in this line of work is to have two pairs of eyes on your back, and two more pairs hidden on the sole of your feet and the top of your head.”

Simon spoke up in an irritated tone, “Anyways enough with these irrelevant questions!”

Colin and Rhona scooted further into their seats to reduce their presence.

Simon then continued, “According to my analysis, the most optimal way to infiltrate the facility is through the regular transport vehicles that frequent the location. Based on the data sent by Nathan and Horace, there is a regularly scheduled transport at these respective times. Now, since this damn planet doesn’t have a proper day-and-night cycle, we cannot use the cover of darkness to increase our chances of success. Based on experience, I ballparked the usual times when shift changes are slotted into generic security protocols. And so we will be using the shipment time that falls during the evening time slot since it is closest to an expected shift change inside the facility.”

Simon waved his hand across the projector and another diagram expanded in front of everyone. “The transport vehicles are fully automated, which means that we can infiltrate it once it enters uncontrolled and unmonitored territories. Gaiter Goods has a third-rate security system on its transports, it will be easier to hit compared to Arc E&B.”

Simon highlighted the checkpoint near the facility’s ground entrance and continued. “Entering the facility will be quite difficult. The first checkpoint runs a thorough scan for any biological lifeform that is not registered under the facility’s database. But Nathan was proactive enough to plant a backdoor in the checkpoint system using the Spyder. Therefore Karina, who will be in the transport, should be able to pass through unhindered.”

In saying so Simon pulled out the spec sheet for the scanning system and began going through its details. Although Byron and Rhona weren’t knowledgeable in this field, the discussion served as a way for them to become deeply intimate with the plan.

This was one of Simon’s mottos. Even if a member was weak at or not fluent in a particular skill or task, they still needed to be involved in the discussion so that there was a sense of congruence between everyone. For instance, while Byron was responsible for handling the group’s ride, he still took part in discussions where Simon went through software systems and hacking. This way, during the time of action, Byron could react proactively based on his own observations instead of waiting for someone to give him a signal. Such preparation is most suited if the scenario veers out of course in an unplanned way.

Once Simon wrapped up on the first checkpoint, Colin raised a question, “If there’s already a backdoor, shouldn’t the rest be easy?”

Simon acknowledged that question and pulled out a superficial schematic on the facility’s cybersecurity, “I already tried. It seems there is a significant level of compartmentalisation within the facility. While the checkpoint has access to the database, it is only in the form of a lookup. And I know what you’re thinking ‘just highjack that pipeline!’ But no, the hardware they’ve used physically blocks any form of two-way communication. If we want to break into their core systems, we need to hit it directly.”

Byron followed up with another question, “Why bother entering through a transport if the first checkpoint allows Karina to enter unhindered?”

“The second checkpoint’s why,” Simon said while swiping towards the checkpoint closer to the building. “To enter the core of the facility, we need to move through the second checkpoint which happens to have an extremely thorough non-sentient entity net. It only allows registered non-sentients to pass, and completely shuts off passage to isolated biological lifeforms. If by chance it recognises an unregistered transport or unmanned vehicle, it activates the facility’s security systems. So even people from inside the facility can only exit if they use a registered vehicle. I looked up why they couldn’t fuse the two checkpoints, and it seems that they’re using tech from two different corporations here, so the patent’s are restricting them from attempting it.”

“Wow! So even with all this secrecy, they’re still scared of the UPA?” Byron exclaimed sarcastically, which received a low chuckle from Rhona.

“The Spyder couldn’t infiltrate beyond the second checkpoint, so we will be going in blind after that point. But following entry, Karina’s primary objective will be to gain a foothold into the facility’s system so that Colin and I can get inside. Once that is done, things should become easier for us. Karina can use the same method that she used to enter the facility to exit it,” Simon clarified.

Simon then pulled out a collage of images and scans, as well as transcripts of conversations recorded by the Spyder and displayed it on the projector. “Based on patterns and information I could glean through the Spyder’s scans, the Mekas being developed are kept behind a dual-layered security system, so getting in will be tight. And logically speaking, unless we siege this facility, we won't be able to retrieve a Meka prototype from within.

According to the client, if we are unable to get a Meka prototype, research material and data pertaining to its development will also suffice. So while the three will be going in blind, if the job becomes too difficult, our primary directive is to hit their databanks and then bounce.”

On that final point, Rhona muttered, “But that would mean the reward will be less…”

Simon nodded in agreement and concluded with a confident tone, “Again! We aren’t professionals in this field. We’re just a group of amateurs with above-average expertise. They can’t possibly expect us to overturn the secure facility and get out with a machine as conspicuous as a Meka.”

And with that, the group dispersed. Once the planning stage was completed, the next step was preparation. It was Simon belief that research, planning and preparation are the most important stages in any job. His modus operandi was derived from an old Chinese proverb:

“Know the enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles, you will never be in peril. When you are ignorant of the enemy, but know yourself, your chances of winning or losing are equal. If ignorant both of your enemy and yourself, you are certain in every battle to be in peril.”

With all the information the group gathered, Simon was confident that he knew the facility like the back of his hand. Except maybe the core. But to combat that, he had full confidence in the triplets’ ability to adapt to the situation. While it sounded callous of Simon, over years of working with his siblings he had learned to be less hands-on with them.

In the beginning, there were several clashes when Simon micromanaged their every action. There would be many arguments in which one of the triplets would assert that approaching a situation differently would be superior and more efficient. Initially, Simon maintained apprehension. But after a few jobs, he started to witness the improvement when doing certain things his siblings’ way.

On top of that, he also found out that his siblings were far superior in specific tasks compared to others. So in the end Simon maintained a stance that if his siblings happened to comment on the way something was being done, it was better to just let them handle it.

With regards to this job. Simon wasn’t banking on them being able to exfiltrate a Meka without raising any alarms. So he negotiated with the client and settled on simply extracting data. Although the pay was cut in half this way, it was still substantial.

Rhona was facing a dilemma. Ever since her failure that day, her confidence was completely shattered. It wasn’t too difficult to recover, for most people. But it was different for Rhona because she was reprimanded by Simon.

It was no secret to the group that Rhona had a crush on Simon. But it appeared as if Simon was the only one who didn’t know. Whether it was intentional ignorance or due to Simon’s lack of EQ, or quite possibly both, no one could really tell.

And so, since that day, Rhona had been trying to get back on Simon’s good side. Little did she know that Simon had already dropped that whole kerfuffle from his mind. He was actually expecting Rhona to fail. After working with the group for a long time, she had become arrogant and overconfident.

Simon gave her the responsibility to coordinate that mission with the knowledge that she would make a mistake. He didn’t actively orchestrate it, but it was equivalent to giving a toddler a pair of scissors to cut papers into predefined sizes. If the toddler managed to accomplish the task, great! But if instead, the toddler stabbed itself, it would know not to mess around with sharp objects again in the future. It was a learning experience… Well, that’s what Simon believed.

Anyways, at the current stage, Rhona was a little on edge. Simon had not once, but twice brought up the need to be prepared and cover their backs. Her paranoid self was freaking out! She didn’t know if those comments were meant for her to make some arrangement, or were simply thrown out in the passing to keep everyone ready.

During the past few days, she had been stuck on the fence on what to do.

After a long internal debate, Rhona steeled herself and logged onto a particular online shopping site. After scrolling through the different sections, she accessed the page she was looking for.

She then added the product to the shopping cart and moved on to the check-out page. She gritted her teeth and waved an imaginary goodbye to the savings in her bank account, and finally clicked purchase.

The site then indicated that her purchase would arrive in 0.5-1 business days.

As soon as she clicked buy, a heavy weight was lifted off of her. She then psyched herself up saying that at least she was now prepared. She didn’t want to be caught in a compromised position again, and especially not in front of Simon.

She feared her amorous heart couldn’t take another hit.