Rene gazed around the private entertainment room and the discrete passageway which opened into darkness. Unlike the crass extravagance of the house above it was tastefully furnished. Rather than tile or other flooring, the chamber was bare rock which had been polished to a micron smooth finish. The pale white limestone was shot through with veins of reddish laterite with inclusions of mica which shone like gold. The furnishings were of intricately tooled leather which must have been done by hand at considerable expense. Rene wondered if Armon was more nuanced than the rest of the house suggested or if, in the case of a room that saw as little use as this one evidently did, he had just left the decor to professionals.

“Maybe we could stay here until nightall,” Rene began, thinking aloud rather than formulating a concrete plan. It would be easier to move after dark and it was unlikely that anyone not specifically looking for them would find the entrance.

“I do not advise lingering Sir Rene,” purred Mia in a tone which invited one to linger.

“A group of eighteen individuals has entered the ground floor, they appear to be led by a former employee of my master. I calculate the odds of arson to be high.”

“Are there Gids with him?” Rene asked, his eyes roved the room as he spoke, instinctively scanning the ground he might need to fight on. There was a recessed cabinet at the back of the room which held bottles of wine. He moved to it and opened the door and began stuffing bottles into the backpack he had salvaged from the first aid kit.

“Trade goods,” he mouthed to Solae, in an instinctive soto voce even though logically he knew that Mia could hear him and would not be confused by multiple conversations. He had no idea of Shyshin could even metabolize ethanol, but the rare vintages would certainly be worth something to the sort of interloping traders who they were likely to need to get off New Concordia.

“I am unfamiliar with the term Gids,” Mia replied breathily as if thrilled by a revelation he was about to impart.

“Uhh… local army or police,” Rene clarrified, zipping his pack when he judged he had as much as he could easily carry. Liquid wasn’t light and the glass bottles were heavier than their small size belied.

“No, they appear to be mostly lower class civilians, though several are armed,” Mia replied now that her silicon brain had a frame of reference to make the sort.

“I could probably…” Rene trailed off, he had been about to say he could probably kill eighteen poorly armed and unprepared civilians. The Marine Corp would doubtlessly have approved of his elan but it only took one lucky shot to leave Solae alone and exposed. Furthermore, if even one of them escaped he would carry word to the locals that something was up at Lord Armon’s manor. Worse if they started a fire, the Gids would respond and might accidentally trap them in the corden, they couldn’t afford to wait.

“Mia,” Rene began, he glanced at Solae, unable to articulate exactly what he as thinking or a moment.

“Do you have a… an offsite backup?” he asked tentatively.

“Yes, I back up daily,” Mia responded, her voice losing a little of its sultry playfulness to address so technical an inquiry.

“Can you back yourself up please?”

“I can Sir Rene, but why do you request such a thing?” Rene looked around the entertainment room, imagining it filling with smoke as the manor blazed above it. Mentaly watching the roof sag and give way as the structural members gave way and the whole place collapsed. He had no idea where Mia’s control boards were located but he doubted she would survive such an inferno. The manor had been a refuge and Mia had been… well a friend he supposed, even if it was simply programing.

“I’d rather you not perish if there is a fire,” he explained awkwardly.

“My programing instructions would be preserved…” Mia began but Rene cut her off.

“Please it would make me more comfortable.” There was a momentary silence before Mia spoke again. There was muffled crashing above them, as the intruders began to loot or vandalize. There mindlessness of it annoyed Rene, there was nothing they could carry off that was worth a hundredth of what they were destroying for spite. Then again he had been willing to gun down twenty drunken revelers who no doubt had families and friends for the sake of a few hours of sunlight.

“I have backed myself up Sir Rene, and if it is appropriate for me to do so, I wish you and my Lady Falia every success.”