[b][i]Haven Base[/i][/b]

Theodore was not as young as he looked; if anything, he was chronologically older than Adam, but that wasn't the point. The point was that he had not been berated this way for a long time. It was almost refreshing. But a reply had to be made to his Field-Captain; the latter deserved one.

The response was, "A digital copy is being sent to your commlink; paper copies are being sent to your quarters. As for Ms. Terra Laedo being given so much leeway, that's because I've spent the past month keeping her under 24/7 surveillance; closed-circuit security cameras, though primitive, are hard to decieve or spoof. I've also had a human agent, the Barista Joey Glory, as well as the nurses and doctors and other personnel she interacted with, reporting her activities directly to me; I'll give you their reports as well. Unlike Alexander, I am in a position to continually watch Terra and I've been doing so since day one.

"I have also been collecting corroborating evidence to confirm her words, and of course, conducting medical tests in order to ensure that her brain does not carry any traces of Red-Star programming or brainwashing.

"In short, Terra Laedo is clean and less of a security risk than expected because I and the Counterintelligence Department have spent a lot of time and effort ensuring that was the case," Theodore paused for effect. "But yes, I set a bad example by granting her request without so much as consuting you while you were present. I acted rashly and with my thoughts on the price, not realizing that others won't share my perspective."

A frown. "But here's what I could share; Terra Laedo is a human weapon, but one which Red-Star made the mistake to enhance mentally instead of just physically. She is someone augmented and trained to recognize long-term benefit versus short-term efficiency, yet has a strong moral compass that put her at odds with her Corporation of Origin almost as soon as she was deployed. A blend of emotion and reason, intuition and logic working together in one whole, yet because of that cannot be easily enslaved."

Theodore let a silence linger after that last phrase. "And yet... Even the smartest, most reasonable, most efficient human needs information to act, and I know how to govern the flow of information."

Facing Adam, Theodore said, "You may have a different view of Haven than I have; Field-Captain, but all things are relative, including the merits of Nation-States and Corporations. The risk I am taking is based on this claim: That Haven is a better option for Terra Laedo, and the humans she has included in her life, than Red-Star can ever be despite its superiority in material wealth. That Haven is [i]the[/i] long-term prospect for her and the rest of Humanity and its victory is a worthy cause for her to invest her gifts in."

A breath, "And finally, Terra needs social connections with humans who are not her slaves, social connections that activate her protective instincts and the natural desire for friendship that all non-sociopaths have. I've seen it; Red-Star did not augment a sociopath - They gambled that a thinking and feeling human being would be a better fighter, only to realize that their cause is inadequate for said better fighter."

Yet another pause. "But just so you don't think my argument is purely on faith and emotion, Terra's dossier also carries medical scans of her brain and brainwaves; both her story about being augmented yet having a stronger capacity for social connections than others in Red-Star - other [i]normal[/i] people - is real. And with that, I rest my case."

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