Freyr nodded, mulling things over while taking another long sip of water. 

It scared her to death, not knowing who was pulling the strings. Her work on the Cradle over the past decade had given her a glimpse of how labyrinthine the corridors of power on Outremer. But it felt like ever since the jewel in her adopted home planet’s crown had woken up, some kind of long-arranged plan had begun to unfold. People were saying one thing to her face, and then doing completely the opposite.

Looking at Vreta, Dr Lang realised that she did trust him. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that every Rothian she’d met was reading from a script - at least at certain times. The Rahn’Saki had looked like they were wearing a mask at their first formal conference. The lack of discord among their lizard friends troubled her.

Freyr watched Vreta continue talking while she mulled things over, only half listening. Then, an encrypted message popped up on her neural net through the cruiser's distribution network. It was from Masgard Xandrus - her eyes clouded over while she accessed it.


[hider=Message]
[i]Hey. 

Glad to hear you’re awake. Did you get my get-well-soon gift? Pretty much the entire government wants to talk to you. I’ve told them you need time, but i don't know if i can stall them for long. Let me know when you’re ready to face them.

M[/i]
[/hider]


Freyr closed down her neural interface and sighed. “It seems I am in high demand.” She contemplated the prospect of getting back to work, and immediately got the imprint of a voice whispering in her ear, and her face submerged in water. Her heart began pounding in her chest, and Freyr’s next few breaths were fast and juddery. Then all of a sudden it was gone.

“I don’t know…if I can face working today. How is my team? How is, erm, Wallace? She was there before I passed out. With those two masked people.”