The Treaty of Ten Systems

Adelaide

Adelaide was slightly irritated by the human's lack of communication. She watched as he turned the pages of his book, not looking up, barely acknowledging her presence. Stepping across the room, she performed a brief inventory check but watched him out of the corner of her eye.

"You have a name?" The Voider demanded when she was finished, hovering in the shadows of the room.

"Jason Roberts, corporal for the marines," he replied calmly and turned another page. Adelaide did not allow her irritation to show and waited for the standard question but it didn't come.

"Now you're wondering why I haven't asked about your identity," Jason stated.

"It had passed my mind," Adelaide replied, removing the unnecessary layers of her space suit and fastening a belt around her waist. "I'm known as Adelaide in the standard tongue but if that's too hard for you, Adi is acceptable."

Setting: A Research Lab in Sedrea on Seluza- the Sorences home planet.

Tsormae Neshtac mumbled to himself as he carefully dropped a minute amount of his current project onto the tip of his dagger. He picked up the Pragnira from the cage he’d put it in and pressed the dragger gently against the mouse-like creature’s tail with only enough pressure to break skin. The effect was immediate. The Pragnira was seized by a series of spasms and then went completely still. Its eyes rolled back in its head and Neshtac swore under his breath.

Failure. He stated to the assistant he’d been assigned. He rarely actually noticed the young sorence’s presence when he was working, but each test had to be logged and that was the assistant’s job.

Sir?

The test subject was immediately paralyzed, but that was followed by a quick death. Failure. We want them paralyzed, not dead.

I thought..

That was your mistake.

Yes, sir. The assistant scuttled away quickly as Neshtac dismissed him and turned back to his project.

Neshtac looked over his notes again to find out where he had gone wrong. Gray eyes wondered over the calculations and he made a few adjustments while his assistant returned and cleaned the area he had previously been working in, leaving only what he would need for the next trial. Rather than disposing of what would make a perfectly good poison, the assistant corked the vile, labeled it, and stored it in a cabinet with other failed experiments that had similar effects.

Your superiors, sir, have asked that make sure you remember to eat and exercise your wings. You’ve been locked in here for three days,but the assistant went on heard as Neshtac started measuring out the quantity of Mousnium he would use as the base.

After that, there would be no talking to him. He dissolved the blue powder into a clear liquid, though he refused to tell anyone what the solution was. His eyes brightened as he noted a minor fizzing and then the color changed to foggy white. Two more elements were mixed in, less than a milligram of each. Then his eyes slid to where the assistant had been standing previously. He wasn’t disappointed to find that the younger sorence, along with most of the others who had been milling about the lab working on their own projects, had left. He smiled to himself when he saw that the assistant had cleaned the dagger he’d used earlier. Neshtac quickly applied his new concoction to the tip and pulled out the last test Pragnira. A gentle pressure to break the skin on its tail and the rodent went into a series of spasms before going still. His eyes darted about wildly, but no other muscle in his body moved. Neshtac set the paralyzed Pragnira in its cage and watched the seconds tick by. Forty seconds passed and the test subject still did not move. Excitement, a rare emotion for Neshtac, bubbled up in his chest as a minute passed there was still no sign that the agent was wearing off. At seventy seconds, its tail twitched slightly. By seventy-five, it had regained control of its body once more.

Neshtac quickly wrote down his observations before corking the vile and logging the success. He was placing the vile in pouch at his belt alongside a vile of poison that was always with him when his assistant returned juggling fruits in his arms. Neshtac cleaned his dagger and sheathed it before attaching that to his belt as well. Only then did he relieve his assistant of two of the fruits.

A success I take it?

Of course, Neshtac responded before biting into the fruit, juices running down his chin. Satisfaction reflected in his eyes as others began to return from their meal. Which meal of the day would it be now? he wondered to himself. He gave a gentle flip of his wings and gestured for his assistant to clean take care of clean up while he went to exercise.

"It's not easy being an enhanced human," Rick muttered. He absently scratched behind his ear.

"You think that's tough, try being an enhanced dog," replied his companion, Gabe. "People always want to know, 'How come you let them change you?' 'Are you really with that human?' It's even worse with aliens."

Rick smiled at his four-legged friend. "Point taken, Gabe. It's a wonder they let you on the crew roster."

"Hmph," Gabe snorted. "They only did it because they didn't know how else to list me. I tell you, a dog's life is no fun."

They were interrupted by a loud commotion outside Rick's cabin. Someone was shouting. Then a sibilant voice broke in.

"I underssstand your concccern, sir, but I ssshall not require your assistance."

Rick sighed. "No rest for the weary, eh Gabe?" He turned to the com. "Quit making all that racket! I can't hear myself think!"

The voices cut off abruptly. There was a pause, then, "Your pardon, Mr. Seles. We can take our conversation elsewhere."

Gabe put in, "That would be wonderful. Do take care not to slam the door on your way out."

Rick could swear he heard a hissing laugh as the two left the hallway.
**

"Richard Seles reporting, sir." They stood in front of the ship's captain, a stocky older man with medals bedecking his tan uniform.

"Very good, man. You'll be aboard soon enough. In the meantime, you might want to get acquainted with the crew. Dismissed."

Vidol Oratal

"Your room, sir."

Vidol stepped into the small room, narrowing his eyes as he gave it a cursory glance. The room had two beds, the second currently unoccupied. So I am to be sharing my room with the soldier of another race, probably one I fought against. Great.

He thought for a moment. It could easily be any one of the people he'd seen so far. It could be the private from outside...

Now there was a worrying prospect. It wasn't going to be easy serving with this woman. He didn't trust her. He checked the corridor. It was empty. Closing the door behind him, he took out a small communications uplink. Pressing a few buttons, he contacted someone on Kiaspe, the Diosu home planet.

"Seer. I need you to find out all you can on a particular private on board this ship. I believe her name is Yuki Mamushito."

After he finished speaking with the seer, he left the room, setting out to find whoever his roommate was. He found one of the human guards.

"You. Tell me how I find out who the other soldier in my room is."

"I don't know sir. You could find one of the attendants, maybe the one who showed you to your room, or-"

"Where are the attendants?"

"I think there's one or two around here, but there'd be a few in the hold or outside the ship."

Vidol nodded, turning from the guard and setting out to find one of the attendants.

It took Hammer a longer time to get aboard. He had been intercepted by no less than four politicians who wanted to have their picture taken with him. Finally he had broken free and boarded the ship. A sailor took him promptly to his quarters. Most of the crew had boarded, only a few rooms were left unfilled.

Hammer took the one closest to the prep-room. It fit two people, which surprised Hammer. He was used to more confined quarters. Either they were in the wrong area or the designers were more sympathetic to their warriors. Hammer wasn't going to complain, so long as his marines didn't get too comfortable.

He quickly unpacked his things and put it to order. In a few moments, he would have to assemble his marines, but before he did that, he'd have to figure out where that was exactly.

6308/1/1. 15:33. Egon Astral

Egon smiled at his quarters. He was finally aboard. The guards had let him pass without much fuss, perhaps due to his size. He had managed to walk the whole distance to the ship, and was even there in time for the ceremony.

"There'll be a briefing soon, sir," the human who'd shown Egon the way nodded and then retreated from the room. Egon was still trying to form words to thank him; things weren't as easy as they were in the Novarian Navy, not as familiar.

His quarters were compact but practical. For a cabin to house three, it was small but, whilst he waited for his team to arrive, it was spacious for him. He tossed his belongings onto the floor and started to unpack. It didn't take him long. His weapons were already here, transferred without damage so he didn't have them during the ceremony.

His Flashbolt. There it was, resting on the room's only table. He walked over and picked it up, checking the cartridges and the loading mechanism. Thankfully, it was in the same condition as when he had given it in; he could find no visible alterations. Also, on the table, there were two pistols. These, he did not recognise and first assumed they were someone else's and sent to him by mistake.

"What's this?" He muttered and peered at the printed sheet. It was paper, and it was detailed with a myriad of marks. On closer inspection it appeared to be human lettering, so he took a seat and began to read.

Vidol Oratal

Even as he walked towards one of the human personnel he was stopped by another.

"Sir? Could you please follow me? The Captain wishes to begin the briefing soon, and has asked me to escort you to the briefing room."

Vidol scowled, eying the human suspiciously. Even after they'd signed the treaty, he still couldn't bring himself to trust them.

"I do not need your help, human."

The man shrugged, turning away even as a wan smile began to form on his face. Vidol thought for a moment, running through what he had seen on the ship so far. He realized, with some embarrassment, that he had no idea where the briefing room was. He thought about his next sentence carefully.

"Actually, I do not know where the...briefing room is. Can you show me?"

The human turned back, obviously enjoying this small triumph.

"Very well, sir. Right this way."

Jason continued to read his book with little expression on his face. He realized his attitude angered his companion so he decided to say something, "How were you picked for this job?"

Adi just took a seat on her bed and refused to answer form a moment before replying, "Why don't you go first?"

Jason looked at her before sitting up and shutting his book, "Very well then. I was part of a small convoy during the end of the war. I was, lets say I wasn't in my right mind and had no idea where I was. Without meaning to I slaughtered my entire company. I was only used after that in the final battle. Lets say this is a way to prove my worth."

Lan paced his room, wondering what he would say at the breifing. He knew what had to be said, but they needed to know him, to trust him. Something that was rather difficult. Trust between the races was already strained and on his ship would be no different.

He eyed his quarters, they seemed so luxrious after his many years on the other ships. It seemed so long ago, yet so fresh. Then it came, he knew exactly what needed to be said.

His door chimed, someone was ringing him, "Enter," Lan muttered, still deep in thought.

"It's nearly time for the breifing," the admiral said from the door, "The delagates have decided to stay and watch, I guess they want to make sure you know what your doing."

"I would like to know that myself," he chuckled, much to his Admirals dislike. "I shall be there shortly." The door slid shut and Lan checked himself in the mirror. Making sure he looked like a captain.

He filed down the hall, head held high, eyes darting from one crewman to another. Checking their ranks and wondering how they got assigned to his ship. This will be a most interesting voyage. I hope we don't kill each other.

Vidol, passed by, following a quick crewman, it seemed like a perfect opportunity to get to get to know another crewman.

Adelaide

"You killed your entire company without meaning to?" I opened my mouth wider to smile, revealing the two sharp incissors that were held there. Jason nodded and looked at me expectantly.

"I suppose I should tell you why I'm here then. It's simple. My race must be represented."

"There are other Voiders," he stated simply. I hesitated before nodding.

"That's right, I suppose, but few are as stable as myself. I have a record for not killing my partners." The man did not flinch. Perhaps he was used to such comments. Instead he asked another question -

"You wasn't chosen for a particular ability then?"

"A good spy does not reveal themself,"

"Then I take it you're not a good spy."

"No. I'm the best."

Major Aeolus Richtor

The Unity was gorgeous. Absolutely amazing. Aeolus, not normally stricken with sudden fits of artistic appreciation, had stood for nearly a minute marveling at the beauty of the ship. It was the perfect hybrid of technology contributed by all of the Treaty Races, nearly a decade in the making. Aeolus walked aboard the ship flanked by two of his men, veteran soldiers who had served with him for two decades and more. The second they tried to walk up the ramp with him, though, the Marines posted to guard the Unity (a wiry human and a scarred sorence) had stopped them. Aeolus was waved through when they took note of his rank, snapping off crisp salutes that he returned sharply. With a final nod to his two companions, Aeolus stepped aboard the Unity.

The interior of the ship was every bit as magnificent as the exterior. The ceilings were high to accommodate the towering sorences, yet wide to accept the ganeshans' shoulders. The craftsmanship was simply amazing. Aeolus did not allow himself to be distracted once inside, though, following the Private that escorted him to his room quickly, working his four arms carefully to maneuver his equipment out of the way of others trying to get by.

"These are the crew's quarters, Major Richtor," the Private was saying. "Yours is at the far end here, next to..." He checked the data pad he was holding, searching for the name.

"I'll figure it out, I'm sure. Thank you Private," Aeolus said softly, stepping forward.

"You're welcome, sir. Would you like a brief tour?"

"No, thank you. There will be an official tour and much training before the day is over," Aeolus said.

The Private laughed and Aeolus smiled lightly, his primary eyes sparkling.

"Thank you, Private. That will be all." Aeolus saluted crisply and the Private snapped to attention, then strode away after the Major lowered his hand. Aeolus stepped into his quarters and set his things on the lone cot in the room. There was no weapons locker to be found, so he assumed his equipment would be moved to a more secure location later.

He took a moment to familiarize himself with the room--personal computer, environmental settings, security...basic. Nothing overly complicated. Flashing his security badge at the scanner on the wall next to the door, he locked the door as he stepped out. He headed back down the corridor, taking a left and a quick right to get back to the center of the ship, where the Bridge and Briefing Room were located.

He passed many crewman along the way, most of them human, each one snapping off a quick salute to the Major as they strode purposefully by. Eventually the Ganesh reached the central chamber of the ship, a massive room that served as the Bridge. Dozens of people had gathered here, all of them eager to see the technology and meet their crew mates. Tensions were high, however, with pointed glares being shot between races while segregated cliques of beings stood with stiffened shoulders. Aeolus sighed. The war was over. So many people did not seem to understand that war was business, not personal. It was fought because it was necessary, to some extent...not because it was desired. At least, not in the case of the Treaty races. There were those that killed for the sheer thrill of it. They were the true enemy. Aeolus prayed this would be a giant leap forward for the Alliance.

The Major thought carefully a moment, then stepped toward the small group of Ganesh that had gathered near one of the communications consoles. He was relieved to see that three humans stood among the Ganesh, for the humans had been their closest allies since the end of the war. Aeolus held no ill will for the humans--during his time with them as a prisoner of war, he had been treated compassionately, even kindly. He recognized one of the Ganesh as Corporal Ranier Breaker, whom he had served with nearly a decade before. Aeolus placed a hand on Breaker's shoulder and said, "Welcome aboard, Corporal. Seems you've gotten a promotion since the last time I saw you."

Breaker turned his head to regard the Major, then immediately snapped to attention. "Sergeant--Major Richtor! I did not know you were aboard the Unity."

Aeolus smiled and nodded, then saluted to the other crewmen before him. "I hope everything is proving satisfactory so far?"

All of them grinned and nodded enthusiastically. Everyone was excited by this new marvel of hybrid technology.

Aeolus nodded with a smile, then clapped Breaker on the shoulder once more before turning away from the group to meet some of the other crewmen. Out of the corner of his secondary eyes he saw the human coming, saw the bottle in his hand slip from his grasp. Aeolus reached out with one of his lower arms and snatched the bottle from the air as it fell, swiftly handing it back to the human.

"Wow!" He said. "I am so sorry; I'm a bit of klutz today--all the excitement and such."

"Don't mention it," Aeolus said, looking back to the crowd of people.

"You're...Don't--don't tell me. You're a Major General Right?" Aeolus looked back to the human and smiled.

"I'm Major Richtor--Aeolus, please--have we met before?"

The human shook his head "Not to my knowledge.".

"Okay," he nodded. "And you are?"

"I'm Erik Undulaker. Glad to have met you--I remember every news organization showing countless pictures of you when you were released as a POW." Aeolus looked the human with renewed interest at the mention of his capture. "I can't imagine how awful that must have been."

"Sure you can," the Major chuckled. "It was like staying at a military base. Not all that bad, I swear." Then Aeolus realized he had seen the man before. "Aren't you a doctor?"

"I am, indeed."

"Yes, I saw you at the ceremony in your lab coat. You were actually on the stage, weren't you? Must be an important one."

"Important?" he laughed. "Don't kid yourself--the only people who get put on stages during ceremonies are those most in need of suffering. So what brings you here?"

"Same thing that brings you here, I suspect. I'm the best my race has to offer, in my field." Aeolus said.

"What is that, exactly?"

Aeolus shrugged. "For lack of a better word, soldiering."

"Soldiering?" Undulaker asked. "What kind?"

"All kinds," Aeolus said. "Only an idiot or a researcher would restrict themselves to one kind, and I'm not sure there's any difference in the two."

The man grinned. "Well, I happen to be an idiot. My status as a 'Researcher' is still pending evaluation, though."

"Oh?" Aeolus said with a chuckle.

The two made small talk for a few minutes, then Undulaker excused himself and strode away. Aeolus waved absently, then took a step toward a group of humans. Before he could take another, though, the voice of Rear Admiral Kahrmov came over the ship's communication system.

"Attention, crew members of the TSS Unity--This is Rear Admiral Karhmov, Alliance Navy. Any crewman that has not gathered on the Bridge please do so now for a short briefing. Repeat, all crew members not currently on the bridge, please make your way here now for a briefing."

Aeolus smiled. Time to get under way.

Vidol Oratal

Vidol snapped to attention, saluting the captain as he stepped out of his room. Even as he waited for the human's response, he appraised the captain, wondering what kind of man he was. Is this man a warrior or a puppet for the politicians? Is he even worthy of being saluted?

The man radiated the authority of a captain, but there still seemed to be some kind of uncertainty in him. The captain sighed as he noticed the Diosu's careful evaluation of him.

"At ease, soldier."

Vidol relaxed and began walking again, virtually ignoring the captain.

"How're you finding the ship, lieutenant?"

The Diosu's eyes narrowed on the captain for a moment before he replied, trying to find the right words.

"It is...good, sir. Comfortable but secured."

The captain smiled.

"I think you mean 'secure', lieutenant. Have you met your room mate yet?"

"I'm not sure if I have a room mate, sir."

"Attention, crew members of the TSS Unity--This is Rear Admiral Karhmov, Alliance Navy. Any crewman that has not gathered on the Bridge please do so now for a short briefing. Repeat, all crew members not currently on the bridge, please make your way here now for a briefing."

The captain glanced over at Vidol.

"That would be us, then."

Erik slipped into his quarters as the low roar from below grew louder. The slim door slid behind him, and the noise from outside was gone. He sat down at his desk and opened his computer.

"This is Yuki Mamushito, would you like to be my friend?"

What the hell? Erik opened the message and read it several times. He called up a server and groaned when it lagged. "Damn it," he said quietly, touching his ear piece. It buzzed in his ear as it tried to connect.

"Yes?"

"Undulaker here," he said, clicking around the server. "Check to see if there's a leak in the database."

"We're already on it. There's a massive leak over an unsecured network."

"Attention, crew members of the TSS Unity--" the voice suddenly crackled through the built-in speaker in the room, "--this is Rear Admiral Karhmov, Alliance Navy. Any crewman that has not gathered on the Bridge please do so now for a short briefing. Repeat, all crew members not currently on the bridge, please make your way here now for a briefing."

Erik tapped his finger against the desk before saying slowly, "Is Server 8 still hidden?"

"Yes sir."

Erik nodded, unsure if it was worth mentioning or not. "Where does it seem to be coming from?"

There was a long silence on the other end. "I think it's coming from somewhere on the ship."

Erik closed his computer and stood up, knowing what had to be done. "Check the system leak against Yuki Mamushito's computer."

"Yes sir."

"I have to go now," Erik said, glancing to his holographic clock. "If you find something under Mamushito, report it to the appropriate authorities."

"Yes sir."

Erik ended the call and briskly walked out of his room and down the staircase to the bridge.

It was clear to Lan that Vidol did not particularly care for his captain, but it was time to prove that the treaty could work, that the many races on the ship could coexist and live in harmony. The entire crew packed a small space, looking around and waiting. Lan joined the Admiral who watched the crew mingle.

"They're all yours now," Karhmov stated, "You have a big task ahead of you."

"I think I can handle it," Lan took a spot overlooking the crew, his senior staff standing behind him. Everyone fell silent, saluting the captain.

"At ease," Lan called over the crowd, "Welcome to the TSS Unity. Today we will be starting our new mission, to protect the Treaty and the Alliance of the Ten Systems. Many of us have faced some of the most terrible mistakes ever made, while others come fresh and unaware.

"This will not be an easy voyage and I ask nothing less of you then one-hundred percent of your effort. If you feel you are unable to work with those of other races the exits are still open. I will not tolerate hostility among my crew, you either work together or you will be leaving. Today is a new day, a day to start fresh and look past the exterior and see the people you will be working with from now on. Today, we work together as one crew. You are no longer a human. you are no longer a Ganesh or Sorrence. All of you are crew members of the TSS Unity.

"That being said, take your stations and prepare to depart." A single Yes sirechoed through the ship as the crew scrambled.

Receiving no reply from Erik, Yuki sighed, "He's not there or is very very rude to not respond. It cannot be helped."

Yuki accessed the CPU panel of her computer through its software. Clicking CPU Overlock on the sudden rush filled her with delight as it roared to life. Every happy critter bouncing around on her icons and jumping through the ethers suddenly waved goodbye as they warped out. The colors started to fade, the videos in the background went black. All of a sudden a black screen came up with image of a skull laughing.

"Controlled release reversal. Spike."

The skull rolled its eyes as Yuki entered in the command: Undo

Sadly, the laughing skull sighed and faded away. Yuki's computer started to flicker as she uploaded the virus to the military mainframe. Upon injection into the system the silent virus immediately started to update of its own accord, attacking the graffibots and nullifying their changes and rampant use.

Messages were sent out from Yuki to high ranking officers that read as followed:

System Attack Neutralized. Uploaded viral code was countered by my Spike virus. Spike will clear itself of the system in three minutes. Temporary lag spike is possible for infected areas, this will last for under five minutes. Unresponsive administrative access gained through Erik Undulaker's terminal at an unusual access level. A full scan shows Erik Undulaker's unresponsiveness during the middle of an attack to be lacking and negligent. Suggested action: Temporary termination or investigation into trojan or backdoor. System is loaded with thousands of various backdoors, all secured by Spike.

~Sorry for the inconvenience, Yuki Mamushito

Yuki smirked to herself as she took countermeasures for when she would be investigated for this. Her computer clock jumped back to various dates as large files started to copy and paste themselves throughout her computer, overwriting evidence of her role to the glorified efforts she took with swift, but not instantaneous action.

The screen to the computer came back up with happy faces that gave Spike's total of viral code deleted. Military computers were always the best toys to play with, outdated and predictable they held great security flaws that are known only in the underground world. The whole event was child's play, a mere game that failed to entertain Yuki. Worst of all, as she put her computer into watch mode, she growled, "Briefing? I hate war room briefings, but bridge briefings..."

Grumbling to herself she made way for the bridge as ordered: Even if Erik tried to blame me, it would be too late. Surely, that daddy's little man is first in line for everything and could never understand the game. You just lost the game.