“I can’t remember the last time I had a good coffee.” Erika shuddered a little as she sipped from the cup.

“I’m told it’s a blend specifically grown on Vaash Prime. They used genetic splicing to mix the coffee beans with the indigenous plant life.” Glen relaxed in his chair, enjoying a dish of smoked mira. The flattened meat was designed to be similar to salmon, a delicacy from earth.

The two sat in a cafe just outside the shipyard, watching the ships go by. Through the glass, she saw hundreds of silver vessels fly across the sky. In the cafe itself, there was a sparse smattering of people surrounding them. Although none could hear Erika and Glen in the private booth, and vice versa. The silencing field added some generated indistinct conversation to keep things comfortable to the ear.

“So why Singh?” She set the cup down and looked Glen in the eye. “I read the man’s bio. Your choice for anyone in the galaxy, and you chose him.”

“Captain Singh remains a hero in many protectorates for his role in stopping the Danubik expansion. The majority will stand behind him. He’s one of the few choices without alienating any of the major powers. No one questions the competence or the leadership of the man. And the Free Exchange benefits from tying our image to him.”

“But it’s more than that.” Erika pushed on. “You had your pick of men for an ambassador to the Andromedans. You chose a soldier. The soldier. That sends a message to the rest of the galaxy.”

Glen raised an eyebrow and smiled. “The Free Exchange wants nothing more than to establish peaceful relations with the Andromedans.”

“And yet somehow every protectorate knows to start building warships.” She furrowed her eyebrows.

Glen shrugged his shoulders and took another bite of his food, his grin widening just a little.

Erika forced a smile back. This was how the Free Exchange always operated. On paper, the Exchange was a simple coalition to organize infrastructure. A polite and humble service maintaining the colossal network of Space Gates and UTN databases. It was the connective tissue that allowed free communication across the entire galaxy. Run by simple servants of the people who wanted to promote unity among the many warring factions.

In reality, the Exchange ruled the galaxy. Pitting protectorate against protectorate in a delicate balance of power that always kept the Exchange in its aloof position. It was a nation that held no planets or systems. A kingdom which had no peoples or property. And yet every man, woman, and child paid their proper dues. The Free Exchange wasn’t a state. It was the order of the galaxy, and no one could live without it.

“There is much more to it,” Glen continued. “Singh still remains a top choice for a captain disregarding how people perceive him. He’s versatile and patient. And if push comes to shove, he’s previously shown to do absolutely whatever it takes to win.”

Erika couldn’t help but give a disgusted look. She had read about the Danubik Wars. She knew exactly what this Captain Singh had done.

“You disagree with our methods?” Glen’s expression became amused as he saw her discomfort.

“My science has been the slave of your tyranny for the past five thousand years. I was raised in worship of your so-called triumph.”

“The eternal order. The perpetual seat of power. A government that cannot be overthrown because it technically doesn’t even exist.” Glen took a slice of mira, waving the meat in Erika’s face before eating it.

“It’s still not utopia. Otherwise, you wouldn’t need men like Captain Singh.”

Glen laughed a little. “Entropy has to be built into the system. You should understand this more than anyone. Protectorates must rise and fall. Humanity must be allowed to destroy and recreate itself again and again.”

“An imperfect and inelegant system.” Erika took another sip. “Could be designed better.”

“The great tragedy of mankind.” Glen took another bite. “How easy it would be for machine automation to handle everything. Humanity would want for nothing. Disease, war, poverty. We could snap our fingers to make it go away.”

“And you understand as well that is not what I’m referring to,” Erika retorted.

This time, it was Glen who shifted uncomfortably in his seat. His eyes falling to his dish as he set his fork down.

“You know, the mira was a bit dry.” He pushed the plate to the side. “At best, a seven out of ten.”

“It’s funny how nothing really changes in the Free Exchange. The aesthetics shift. The language comes and goes. But after five hundred years, I am still sitting in a cafe. The concept of a cafe. The need for a restaurant. The idea; that never changes. Don’t you at least find that boring?”

Glen’s eyes met her look again. “Personally, I find it cozy.”

“Oh, come on,” Erika tutted. “Show some backbone.”

“With you, I’m perfectly content to play the coward.”

She shrugged her shoulders and gave a disappointed sigh. “I need to find a more exciting man.”

“Singh will be exciting enough. I promise you. As for your duties…” Glen produced a tablet from his briefcase and pushed it over to her. “Some guidelines as well as some backup should things get too out of control.”

Erika picked up the tablet and glanced through the lists. “It’s rather hands off, don’t you think?”

“You know how we operate.” Glen replied, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “The proper sabotage is in place should Singh get out of hand. The man has clearly changed a lot since his glory days. With your training, it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“So I hold the knife to Singh’s back. Who did you choose to hold to mine?”

Glen snorted with laughter. “You think there’s anyone in the galaxy capable of that?”

Erika studied Glen’s face. The wiry man somehow retained a babylike face which spoke of a hapless bureaucrat. Not thin enough to be athletic, yet not fat enough to be obese. His complexion was that of a man in his mid-twenties, but for some reason Erika actually wanted to believe that was his real age. Even his clean-shaven face carried a few nooks where the razor cut the skin. He was unequivocally the least threatening man she had ever met. And that’s what scared her more than anything.

She glanced down at her cup. There was still a good portion of the steaming hot coffee left. Erika pushed it forward a little and looked back up at Glen.

“You know, I thought I would spend the rest of eternity in that icebox.” She changed the subject. “Trapped in that nightmare.”

Glen’s eyes flitted with concern. “I’m told the experience without brain stimulation is somewhat frustrating. But you understand why we couldn’t give you artificial dreams, too much of a security risk with your skillset.”

“Do you know what it feels like?” Erika looked at him with pained eyes, reclining back in her chair and putting her hands on her lap. “You’re suspended. Somewhere between nothingness and consciousness. Just aware enough to know you’re dead. It’s hell,” her voice shook a little.

“I am truly sorry you went though that.” Glen leaned forward.

She quickly reached for the again for the cup, but her hand knocked it over. The steaming coffee spilled on the table and splashed onto Glen’s lap. To her utter surprise, the coffee continued uninterrupted. The liquid caused the man to jump back as it burned him through his pants. Glen shot up from his chair and began patting himself down.

No gravity shield. No personal protection. Erika thought, shocked. The man really sat himself down in a booth with her without any sort of defense. If she wanted, she could take the metal knife he had been using and kill him right there and then. Just like that.

Glen paused, and his gaze slowly met hers with a grin spreading across his face. “You had me going there with that sob story. What was that? Some sort of test?”

Erika merely gave an innocent smile back. “I better be going. I still have some cargo manifests to sign off, and it’s going to be a long day tomorrow.”

She spent the next four hours double checking the cargo lists. The loading area was an elongated glass tube which connected the ship to the dry dock. Going back and worth were drones carrying boxes which were checked over by various crew members and sent on their way.

The metal crates all turned into a grayish blur as Erika conducted the final inspection. Nothing too spectacular jumped out at her from the data pad as she signed her name by each item. Most of the cargo was simple redundancies: manifold tubes for the gravity drive, barrels of various kinds of wiring, and repair sealant for the hull.

Most of the other major materials were dedicated to the artificial greenhouses on the lower decks. If something happened to either the stasis pods or the gravity drive, then the produce would be the last best chance at survival.

Erika sighed. Just as she had gotten out of the icebox, in a few weeks she would be going right back in. The Space Gates could only accommodate about sixty percent of the journey. The remaining distance would have to be done the old-fashioned way. She hadn’t looked at the exact time they would need for transit; she didn’t want to.

“First time going into deep space?”

Erika turned to the man, who had suddenly appeared at her side. He was stocky, with long brown hair. His cheeks sat plump on his face, though Erika noted a more muscular build. The grey and black uniform sat nicely on his handsome frame.

“Not exactly, no,” Erika politely responded. “I’ve gone over the crew manifest. You’re Lt. Commander Klyker. Is that right?”

The man extended a strong hand. “And you’re Commander Therese.”

She smiled and shook the man’s hand. “Please, just call me Erika in private. I’ve never been too used to working in a military environment.”

“Really?” Klyker raised an eyebrow. “Your bio said you did three separate tours.”

“I’ll rephrase that. I’ve never liked working in a military environment.” Erika corrected herself. “Too much hassle. Too much procedure getting in the way of actual work being done.”

Klyker nodded a little in agreement. “There is that. But I appreciate having a clear chain of command. It keeps things nice and simple. By the way, Mr. Tannis told me to report to you on our weapon systems.” He lifted a small grey tablet to Erika.

She gently took it out of his hands. “Did he now?”

Klyker merely gave a stiff smile back.

She ducked her head and looked over the pad. Tannis knew better than to think that she needed an assistant. But then, what was this? The man he had chosen to watch over her? But at a first glance, Klyker didn’t seem to be the type for that kind of scheming. She could easily tell just from his demeanor there wasn’t much more in that brain besides military tactics and naked ambition.

A reminder then. Klyker was clearly like most men churned out of the academies of Central Fleet. He would support the Free Exchange in anything to bolster his own career. With him in place, there was a guard set to make sure Erika didn’t do anything too unorthodox. Such as turning traitor for the Andromedans. The Free Exchange always liked contingencies.

“Everything satisfactory?” Klyker asked with a curt tone. From the look on his face, she could tell he was impatient to get on with it.

Erika promptly handed it back. “It’s not enough. Not by a long shot.”

Klyker coughed, his eyes glancing from the data pad to the laser turret about twenty meters in length just outside the glass tube. “That’s not enough?”

She followed his eyes to the turret and sadly shook her head. “We should be sending a fleet of ships, not just one. The Andromedans could have anything waiting for us.”

“I think you might be worried a little too much.”

Erika shook her head in response. “Tell me, do you know what a divergent variable is?”

“A what?” Klyker leaned in, pointing his ear towards her.

She looked around, trying to find a good example before pointing towards the gravity drive near the back of the ship. “Think about it like this. We base most of our technology on the control of gravity. Everything from our FTL understanding to our life support systems takes this into account. More than that, our civilization is built on this pillar of physics. The Free Exchange could not exist without the control of gravity. Imagine if that wasn’t there.”

“And these Andromedans might not have gravity drives?” Klyker nodded, trying to follow.

“More than that, our visitors could have based their civilization on a completely different technological premise. They have spent three thousand years in complete isolation from us. Three thousand years to develop on a completely different path. Instead of the control of gravity, they might have developed the technology to fold dimensions. Their ships could travel through different layers of spacetime for all we know. Do you understand what I’m trying to say?”

“What we’re facing is completely unknown,” Klyker caught on as they watched the crates being boarded. “They could have weapons which completely nullify ours. We might not even be able to defend ourselves.”

“We’re somewhat of a test,” Erika told him. “If the Free Exchange sends a battlefleet—and the Andromedans are superior to us—then the Exchange just placed itself in the losing end of a war. Best send one ship as a scout vessel to remain neutral while keeping its forces in the rear.”

She saw his eyes flicker with a moment’s concern. Let him stew over that. See how loyal he is to the Free Exchange now that he knows they’re using us. She herself wasn’t too mad about that fact. Tannis had told her as much up front. That was all part of the risks if she wanted to have her way.

“There’s one other thing you should be worried about,” she added.

“Oh?”

Erika turned to him. “It’s not just weapon systems and FTL drives that could be different. There’s three thousand years of development apart from us. It might not even be a matter of technology anymore. There could be anything waiting for us at that beacon. Anything.”