Both Khan and Ambassador Abores had a lot to gain from their alliance. Their career could get to the next level if everything went according to plan. However, a few differences existed.
Ambassador Abores couldn't immediately gain benefits from the alliance. Actually, he would have to pressure Lord Exr to plan a meeting before even hoping to achieve his goals.
Instead, Khan could only wait for the time being, but that didn't mean standing still. If the plan were successful, he would inherit Ambassador Abores' current position, which required heavy studies and preparation.
Those studies couldn't happen overnight. Khan would be too late to the party if he started as soon as the plan succeeded. He would have to begin to prepare immediately to hope to be ready for that new job.
The negotiations had that purpose. Ambassador Abores couldn't move without Khan, which made him vital to the plan. Khan could exploit his position to get benefits in advance, which was exactly what happened.
Khan seized a few bottles from the canteen, returned to his room, and settled behind his interactive desk. The Ambassador had sent vital information during the meeting. Still, a single glance at the menus told Khan that he had heavily underestimated the amount of work he had to do.
Tens of reports, summaries, notes, and more became available to Khan's genetic signature. That info didn't only involve Neuria. It went over the Thilku as a whole and contained many personal opinions that Ambassador Abores had written down as he gained experience.
'This is a treasure trove,' Khan exclaimed as awe spread inside him.
Khan had completed the Harbor's advanced classes and had gone through Professor Parver's special course. He was no stranger to intricate studies digging deeply into multiple topics. However, Ambassador Abores' notes went above and beyond that, showing the difference between him and a scout.
'I'll need a month to review all of this,' Khan realized, skimming through the various labels on his interactive desk to check how many pages each file had.
Khan had already suspected that, but the agreement confirmed his guess. He wasn't ready to be an Ambassador. His general preparation and natural inclination for that job were extraordinary, but he lacked the knowledge and attention to detail of someone who had been in the field for years.
The issue didn't discourage Khan. He had just gotten his hands on knowledge and classified information far beyond his reach. Only excitement could exist inside him, but tackling the problem required a plan.
'I can ignore anything beyond Lord Exr for now,' Khan decided. 'Ambassador Abores will continue to be the sole connection with the Global Army, so I can skip that too.'
Ambassador Abores' tasks involved reporting to the Global Army and conveying the intricacies of the investigation. He basically had to convince the higher-ups at home that his presence on Neuria was working as intended, and Khan didn't have the connections or reputation for that role.
'Later,' Khan thought, sorting through his pile of files. 'Later. No way I'm studying this now. This is definitely last.'
It took a whole hour, but Khan eventually completed the first step. He had arranged the files according to necessity, creating multiple groups to make his studies easier.
Of course, that precision didn't come from Khan's messy character. Monica had spent weeks engraving that approach into his brain. It wasn't anything special, but it still added some needed discipline that could save a lot of time.
Khan instinctively tried to refill his glass, only to discover it was already full. The rearrangement of the notes had kept him so focused that he had forgotten to drink, but that didn't escape his mind now that his studies were about to begin.
'Serial number,' Khan thought, bringing his drink to his mouth while his free hand moved toward a bright label, 'Factory, dock.'
Ambassador Abores had come to Neuria with a plan that didn't entirely come out of his brain. The specialists on the Harbor and his superiors had given directives that had greatly helped put pressure on Lord Exr, and Khan planned to follow the same path.
Weapons had serial numbers. Criminals would obviously avoid marking them when possible, but the bomb was different. Something like that required specialists, classified equipment, and more, which got in the way of a secret production.
Things would have been different with a secret factory, but the Thilku Empire was too strict in those fields. The criminals had removed the serial number from the bomb, but its remaining marks had told the Global Army that its assembly had gone through official channels.
That knowledge had forced Lord Exr to open the factory and share data that confirmed its involvement with the bomb. Khan had initially labeled the information as useless, but Ambassador Abores' notes revealed a far different truth.
Due to the serial numbers, the Empire knew where its weapons went. The security around bombs was even stricter, so the eventual absence of one item couldn't go unnoticed. The criminals could only do their best to hide its movements and disappearance, but those actions left a trail.
Ambassador Abores' plan involved exactly that. He knew the Thilku were aware of the missing bomb and wanted to handle the investigation privately. However, his accusations and knowledge could force Lord Exr to involve the human team in the process since it would appease the Global Army.
'The next step is to find inconsistencies with the shipments,' Khan read on the notes. 'The missing serial number led to a factory, which will point at one of the stations in the seas.'
Ambassador Abores noted down considerations after describing that strategy. He was confident finding the actual criminals was impossible. Yet, the guilty station had to have traces of corruption, which could make the plan advance even further.
'A station,' Khan thought, interrupting his read to refill his drink. 'I might be able to find something if Lord Exr lets me interrogate the workers.'
That hope was slim. As far as Khan knew, Mister Chares' organization could have smuggled the bomb years ago. Moreover, months had passed since the incident. The Thilku criminals still in the station would have probably disappeared by now, but that was the only trail Khan could follow.
'I guess the Empire's strictness helps,' Khan thought, slowly sipping his drink. 'I can't imagine the workers having much freedom with Neuria still in construction.'
Khan wouldn't have had that opinion in the past, but his mission in the Thilku district kept his hope alive. There was a good chance a few criminals could still be in the involved station. Finding and incriminating them was the only problem.
'Well,' Khan scoffed, moving to the next file. 'Ambassador Abores has to convince Lord Exr first. I don't see him granting us access to the station so easily.'
Lord Exr's offer gained a different meaning when Khan thought about the issue. It was impossible to stop the Global Army from getting to the station. Yet, the presence of a less experienced Ambassador could lead to a few mistakes that would decrease the price of eventual reparations.
'That can't be, can it?' Khan wondered. 'Amox and Lord Exr think I'm a shaman. I'm probably more dangerous than the Ambassador on the field.'
Another idea arrived. Maybe, Lord Exr wanted Khan as the Ambassador precisely because of his senses. That could give the Thilku an excuse to keep Khan away from the field and restrain his troublesome abilities.
'I need to make my presence on the field mandatory,' Khan considered.
Most of Khan's thoughts involved pure speculation, which was part of the job. Preparing for any eventuality would make him ready for every unexpected situation, which could be the difference between success and failure.
Khan moved to the next file and read it from start to finish before continuing his studies. The basics were easy to grasp, but the real power was in the details. He wouldn't be able to explain the validity of his requests to Lord Exr without them, and the mission wouldn't go forward in that case.
Ambassador Abores had to use the same approach to get to the factory. He had relied on details only specialists could know to force Lord Exr's hand, and Khan would have to employ something similar to get deployed.
The initial excitement for the amount of knowledge in the notes slowly waned as the interactive desk continued to show holograms. Yet, a different emotion arrived when a pattern became clear, generating a curse that made Khan wear a cold face.
'That bastard,' Khan cursed as he let go of the drink and used both hands to move through the menus faster.
Countless lines ran through Khan's eyes as he skimmed through most of the notes again. He tried to be slightly thorough at the time, but the approach only confirmed his suspicion.
'I didn't expect him to be this petty,' Khan sighed.
The notes had everything except for a specific topic. They didn't describe Lord Exr's character at all, and their absence left a void in that otherwise thorough knowledge.
The issue was impossible to miss because someone had removed it on purpose. Ambassador Abores had chosen not to share what he had learned about Lord Exr. He didn't leave any advice for Khan, which was understandable.
'Ambassadors are as valuable as their connections,' Khan recalled something he read during his lessons in the Harbor. 'How they built them is a professional secret. I guess Lord Exr isn't too bad as my first since he's a fellow soldier.'
