Agent047
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915 - Suspicion
🕑 Added 2025-05-24 19:34:12 +0000 UTCTo avoid raising alarms, the meeting was wrapped up within just two hours. The leaders agreed that all further detailed planning would be conducted through the long-distance mana communication network in the form of secure documents. Any remaining discussions would be handled through that method to avoid the risk of having all Conclave civilizations’ leaders gathered in one place or being unavailable at the same time without an officially declared meeting.
This decision stemmed from the possibility that enemy spies had already infiltrated other territories, or even some lower-level governments, granting them potential access to sensitive information if such meetings became lengthy or occurred too frequently, especially when they were kept secret from the rest of the Conclave.
Although the complete operation plan had yet to be finalized, one key decision was already made: the operation would begin two months from now. This timeline was chosen carefully, it was soon enough to reduce the risk of exposure, yet long enough to give every civilization within the Conclave ample time to mobilize their fleets and position them at pre-assigned locations before launching a joint counterattack.
………………….
{Sir, all of the Conclave leaders were not logged into the VR during the same two-hour window. Only now are some beginning to return, while others are still offline,} Nyx reported. It was a rare occurrence, rare enough that she deemed it important to inform Aron immediately.
Nearly all of the security protocols used to protect the private star systems or planets belonging to Conclave leaders were wrapped in layers of encryption using quantum entanglement and quantum key distribution. These systems were considered virtually tamper-proof; any unauthorized attempt to access them would immediately alter the quantum state, thereby exposing the breach attempt to the defenders.
Because of this, the Terran Empire had deliberately refrained from spying on the Conclave leaders within those protected VR zones. Their strategy was to wait patiently for the other side to grow complacent and let their guard down before attempting any infiltration.
As a result, the only data they had regarding the leaders in these protected zones was a binary status: whether they were logged into the VR or not. Nothing more, nothing less.
“Has this happened before?” Aron asked, pausing mid-report reading, sensing the potential implications.
{Not once,} Nyx replied, immediately pulling up a chart. {There has never been a time when all the leaders were offline simultaneously. At least ten are always online, regardless of the hour. So either this was a strange statistical outlier… or they deliberately coordinated to meet outside of the VR to avoid surveillance.}
She projected the data onto the screen, a timeline showing leader login patterns across months, clear, consistent, and now broken by this unusual gap.
“Even if it’s just an outlier, we need to have some evidence of it happening. Look deeper into it and see if there’s anything out of the ordinary,” Aron said, tapping his finger lightly against the table, his thoughts already turning.
Several possibilities crossed his mind. It could be related to Dreznor’s situation. Or perhaps it was a meeting to coordinate joint demands on the Empire regarding the wormhole lanes. It might even be an attempt to push for the Empire to join the Conclave… or it could be about something else entirely, something unrelated to the Empire.
{I’ll try to find out if anything out of the ordinary is happening through our little protagonists who are in positions of influence,} Nyx replied, instantly creating a sub-instance to begin investigating.
Aron kept tapping the table, the rhythm steady, his brows furrowed in thought. After nearly a minute, he finally spoke, “I can’t say for sure why, but I have a feeling this is important. If we’re not careful, things could spiral out of our control.”
{If you’re feeling that way, I’ll raise the situation’s priority level,} Nyx said, taking his words seriously. While she and her sister AIs lacked intuition, they had long since learned to trust Aron’s. It couldn’t be explained, couldn’t be calculated, but it had warned them often enough to be taken seriously, even if it wasn't always reliable.
Aron chuckled softly at her reaction, but said nothing to counter it. After all, if he was right, it was better they acted early. And if he was wrong, well, it was still better to be prepared than to have a nagging concern gnawing at the back of his mind.
……………
While Aron and Nyx were discussing, another conversation was taking place deep within the Bilakis Civilization’s capital star system, a member of the Conclave.
Inside a colossal palace that served both as the residence of the Bilakis leader Kumakar and the central seat of his government, a man in casual clothes entered without passing through any inspections. No guards stopped him. No questions were asked. He walked straight toward the leader’s office.
“He is waiting for you. You may enter,” a servant said with a bow, her hand gesturing toward the door.
The man didn’t acknowledge her. He simply pushed open the heavy door and stepped inside, closing it behind him.
THUD!
A dull sound echoed through the office as the man dropped to the ground in a deep prostration, his body motionless as he lay flat on the floor.
“I have a task for you,” Kumakar said without lifting his eyes from the documents in front of him.
The man remained still and silent, showing no reaction.
“I want you to instruct the pirate groups under your control, scattered across various civilizations, to prepare for coordinated attacks on the wormhole gates and the VR network towers. They are to be ready within two months. But they are not to act until I give the order.”
He paused for a moment before continuing.
“Make sure everything is done in secrecy. No unnecessary attention. Their ships should carry the transponder signatures of the civilizations they operate in, but not so perfectly forged that suspicion won’t arise if they’re captured. Make it messy, but not stupid.”
Still, the man said nothing. His prostration didn’t waver in the slightest.
Finally, Kumakar looked up from his desk, his eyes settling on the man.
“As per our agreement, if this mission is completed to my satisfaction, this will be our final transaction. Our deal will be concluded. You may go.”
The moment the words left Kumakar’s mouth, the prostrated body began to wither. Muscles deflated as if all the fluid had been sucked out. Skin shriveled, and the body collapsed into a brittle husk, silent and lifeless.
“It’s as grotesque as ever… but a very useful card for my revenge,” Kumakar muttered, his eyes fixed on the corpse with a cruel, satisfied smile. His plan was finally taking shape. If everything proceeded as he intended, the blow would be devastating enough that the Empire wouldn’t bother with reason. They’d accuse the entire Conclave of conspiracy. Especially since the attacks would coincide with the scheduled deployment of the joint fleets.
He pressed a button on the intercom. “Come and clean the body.”
A few moments later, a team of servants entered silently and removed the corpse, leaving without a word.
Alone once more, Kumakar returned to his documents. This time, the smile never left his face.
Comments
Sol_Invictus(Hail the Terran Empire)
TYFTC!!
Jade
TYFTC!
