John Torvald, one of Commander Zhang's aides was waiting patiently for him as he finally made it back to his office. "Were you able to locate him?" Zhang asked.
"Yes, sir," the aide said. "He's in a cantina at the outskirts of the underworld. I've asked Colonel Lyn to extend our invitation"
"How soon can he get here?"
"Whenever you wish, sir," the aide said. "He said he would be at your disposal whenever you wanted him."
"Good," Zhang said. "Inform him that I want him ready in five hours."
"Yes, sir." The aide hesitated. "Do you want the order logged, or does this qualify as a private trip?"
"Log it," Zhang said. The Senate might be unhappy when they find out about this but Zhang was going to do things strictly by the book. "Order from Commander Zhang," he continued, hearing his voice drop into the tone he always used for formal orders and reports. "Preparing transport for Colonel Lyn and her team. Destination: Avaros. "
"Purpose: Threat investigation of a synthetic life form found several days ago in the outer system."
"Yes, sir," the aide said briskly. His voice was studiously neutral, giving away nothing of his own personal feelings on the matter.
***
Taisen was quickly coming to the realization that the Earth that he remembered was not the same as the one he was now on. The planet's rugged beauty was of a sort that appealed to the hedonistic side of human nature and had drawn the wealthiest of many species as well as those with nothing seeking fortune.
Sitting at the back of the land cruiser, Taisen felt exhausted. The nostalgia that overwhelmed him on his return to Earth had worn off leaving him dissatisfied with the state of the blue planet.
There were times, Taisen thought distantly when it was good for a man to contemplate the relative stability of the United Nations. It was a chance to appreciate all that the UN provided, and all that it stood for: order, security, power, and culture. It was an island of calm amid the sadistic alien species out there. Most people will never know how close they came to nuclear annihilation or enslavement at the hands of the Akkadian Empire.
The threats hadn't always been this prevalent and severe. Once, at the dawn of human space travel, it had been difficult to move between any of the stars even to travel within the Solar system. But then, a millennia ago, the first contact was made between the Akkadian empire and the lowly isolated planet of Earth. The Akkadians, a technologically superior race had found Earth but instead of enslaving the humans, they sought to use them differently. Humans were skilled in trading, commerce, administration, and industry which the Akkadian Empire needed but found beneath them as they sought to expand their influence across the universe. Humans from Earth ran industries, supply chains, banks, and factories, and ran them well. Before long, they earned the right to breed with the Akkadians and mingle their bloodlines.
But that reliability and co-mingling was a two-bladed knife. The Akkadians and Humans had different ideological views. Humans wanted a democratic, republican, and civil-libertarian political structure while the Akkadian Empire attempted to impose greater control. The result was a series of explosive civil wars.
Taisen knows that there are dangers out there in the darkness. Hidden worlds, and tyrants who sought conquest and destruction. One of those evils had apparently now set his sights on Earth.
***
Colonel Lyn's personal shuttle left the hangar early the next morning. Apart from Taisen, Link, and Ensign Alita, the passenger list included three navy troopers.
As the shuttle continued upward, Taisen watched the gridlines of impulse lift vehicles weave their packed way between the towering buildings, doing their intricate dance as they headed for a thousand destinations.
The pilot eased them into one of the higher lanes, one that seemed reserved for military vehicles. They were close enough now that Taisen could pick out specific landmarks that brought back memories. There was the Royal Imperial Academy, where the UN's elite trained for the army and navy. A place that he was very familiar with. He had spent a large chunk of his adolescence there.
Beyond it and to the east was one of the industrial areas, with tall towers spewing superheated wastewater vapor high into the atmosphere. In the distance beyond that he could see an open area that was far below the tops of the surrounding towers, yet still many levels above the actual planetary surface. A landing area, most likely, probably for elite politicians or larger military vessels. He spotted the top of the UN Senate Building in the other direction.
***
They were headed directly to the UN Star fleet command but Taisen himself didn't look frightened, or even concerned. All Alita could see in his face was that maddening confidence of his.
Maybe Colonel Lyn hadn't told him where they were going or maybe she'd told Taisen everything and the Marrakech simply assumed that whatever their destination, he would have things under control.
Alita turned back to her display, the old stories of Marrakech raiders and their military power echoing through her mind. As far as she had been able to ascertain, that whole culture and society had been lost from UN records for centuries, maybe even millennia. Now, suddenly, they'd reentered history by repairing the Starforge and having vital knowledge about the threat from synthetic life forms.
Was Taisen's level of confidence unique to him? Or were all the Marrakech like this?