"Is this the Thilku enemy?" Khan asked, doing his best to remain calm.
"Mostly," Mister Cirvags vaguely explained. "They aren't really a species. It's complicated."
Khan couldn't understand much since his senses were useless with holograms. However, he knew a lot about the field. Tainted animals were a topic he almost didn't need to study to master.
Tainted was a status given to any creature or living being mutated by mana. Different species and scientists relied on specific names to split the field into many groups, but one aspect remained constant. The azure color came from the Nak.
"Is this a fifth-generation Tainted animal?" Khan questioned. "Sixth?"
Khan's question used Earth's timeline as a foundation. Five centuries separated humankind from the First Impact, which was enough for multiple generations of Tainted offspring. Six was even too small as a guess, but Khan's estimate had to consider the retention of the azure color.
"Second," Mister Cirvags revealed, shattering Khan's calm. "Some first-generation specimens appear from time to time."
The world around Khan crumbled only to take life again. Every artificial light, smell, or shade carried by the symphony intensified in his senses. The conflicting aspects of his nature reached a new agreement, fusing to create his best mindset yet as he looked at Mister Cirvags.
"Was there a Nak on Cegnore recently?" Khan said, almost unable to believe he was finally asking a similar question.
"Not exactly," Mister Cirvags gave another vague answer.
"Answer me," Khan requested before his last traces of reason reminded him where he was. "Please, sir."
"Why would I?" Mister Cirvags wondered.
"Because I'm asking," Khan exclaimed. He had planned to sound as polite as possible, but his current mental state turned his words into a threat.
"It's bad to have such an obvious weakness," Mister Cirvags scolded, tapping on the desk to retract the holograms. "It makes you easy to use."
Khan's gaze snapped to the empty desk before returning to Mister Cirvags with newfound anger. Mister Cirvags didn't falter at that feeling. He remained impassible as he waited to see Khan's course of action.
The urge to pursue a violent path tried to take over Khan. Except for the hand on Milia 222, that was the closest he had ever gotten to clues about the Nak. They were right before him, but a fifth-level warrior stood in his way.
'Calm down,' Khan cursed, trying to bring order to his boiling mana. 'This isn't the way.'
The curse didn't quell Khan's mana, but he still calmed down, retracting his anger and lowering his gaze in defeat. He didn't care about his disrespect toward Mister Cirvags. He simply didn't like how riled up he got whenever the Nak became part of the equation.
"Don't delude yourself, Captain," Mister Cirvags warned, losing interest in Khan to lean behind the desk. "You aren't difficult to figure out, and you didn't do a good job hiding your goals either."
That didn't come as a surprise to Khan. He had started to reveal his goals to receive offers that could match them. Moreover, his profile was public, and he had attracted enough interest to make higher-ups study him.
Mister Cirvags retrieved a rectangular screen from behind his desk before returning to the couches. He sat down to refill his drink, and Khan soon joined him to abide by the unwritten rules of that meeting.
"We mostly have scientists on Cegnore," Mister Cirvags revealed, throwing the device at Khan.
The gesture surprised Khan, but he still caught the device with his free hand without spilling his drink. The screen unlocked under his grasp, revealing a series of reports that immediately attracted his attention.
Images that Khan recognized accompanied the reports. The device depicted multiple shots of the Tainted creature shown by the holograms with details about its strength. Khan even saw extensive studies connected to those images, and opening a random tab put him in front of sentences he could barely read.
"Did Parver tell you the nature of his condition?" Mister Cirvags questioned.
"Partially," Khan replied, his eyes glued to the screen.
"Apparently," Mister Cirvags announced, "Something contagious infected Cegnore's natives. The Thilku caught it when they discovered the planet, basically switching sides."
"Why didn't they bomb them out of existence?" Khan asked, finally lifting his gaze.
"I don't know the details," Mister Cirvags stated. "It seems that an old commander got infected and requested a warrior's death. That didn't happen, so now the planet is a battlefield."
"I expected the Thilku to ignore the request," Khan admitted.
"Where would their pride go if they lost against their infected kind?" Mister Cirvags asked, clearing Khan's doubts.
"This illness," Khan changed the topic, waving the device. "Is that why you chose me?"
"Delusions, Captain," Mister Cirvags uttered. "You are special, but I've been in this field a long time. I've outlived many soldiers like you."
"I'm more special than others," Khan declared.
"For a third-level warrior," Mister Cirvags added. "And, no, I didn't choose you for your resistance to the illness. A pill can achieve that. You just fit the role and were likely to accept."
Mister Cirvags had never stopped looking at Khan, and he responded with a similar inspection. However, his senses didn't help. Mister Cirvags wasn't using any technique to hide his presence. His mana was simply calm and didn't cause any ripple.
"I thought I had to accept the mission before receiving this," Khan pointed out, lifting the device in an attempt to trigger a reaction in Mister Cirvags' mana. Still, nothing happened.
"You will accept," Mister Cirvags declared. "You are that kind of man."
The inability to read Mister Cirvags fueled the annoyance caused by his words. Khan didn't like how the man thought to have him figured out, and knowing he was right worsened that feeling.
"How long do I have to make my decision?" Khan questioned, suppressing his feelings.
"Until new orders arrive," Mister Cirvags revealed. "Well, until I find new orders to give you."
'Another vague answer,' Khan commented, holding back a sigh with the drink in his hand. He gulped down the booze and remained still for a second before standing up.
"I'll consider the offer, sir," Khan promised, looking straight at Mister Cirvags until the man finally broke into a reaction, which turned out to be a simple nod.
Khan headed for the office's exit but stopped at its edge. A doubt had risen into his mind, and he turned to voice it. "Sir, was this a favor?"
"No," Mister Cirvags said without adding anything. He kept drinking, uncaring that Khan was still looking at him.
Khan gave up on the matter and returned to the elevator room, carrying the device with him. The lift brought him to the roof, where the military ride awaited him.
The driver came out to perform a military salute, but Khan almost ignored the gesture to get inside the car. He had managed to remain calm during the last part of the conversation, but his mana boiled stronger than ever once privacy arrived, especially since the device was in his hands.
'Will I finally get some answers?' Khan thought, struggling to believe a similar moment had arrived. Still, the ringing of his phone disturbed him, and drawing it put him before a crossroad.
The screen showed a name Khan had expected to appear, but the timing couldn't have been worse. Madam Solodrey was calling him, but the other device had Nak-related information. Postponing the conversation wouldn't be the end of the world, but Mister Cirvags' scoldings had gotten under his skin.
'Am I using my desperation to my advantage?' Khan wondered. 'Or is it controlling me?'
Khan had his ringing phone in his left hand and the device in his right. He only had to choose what to prioritize, and either option wouldn't lead to lasting consequences. Yet, that simple decision gained a deeper meaning in his mind.
The issue of compromising himself returned. The device symbolized Khan's ultimate goal and willingness to sacrifice everything else in his life.
Instead, the left embodied Khan's happiness and a future that could go beyond what his desperation had left him capable of imagining. It represented something he didn't want to lose, making him wish to be better.
Seconds flowed while Khan remained in that stalemate. Compromising himself was easy when the Nak were involved, but Monica was the only topic that could make him hesitate. That wait continued until another ring resounded, pushing him toward one of the two paths.
"Madam Solodrey," Khan sighed, mentally exhausted, while holding the phone to his ear.
"Captain," Madam Solodrey's voice came out of the phone. "Master Amelia suggested you could be free at this time. Was she correct?"
"I didn't expect such politeness from you, ma'am," Khan joked. "It must be my lucky day."
"Tasteless as always," Madam Solodrey scoffed. "You make praising you so difficult."
"It is my understanding that the Solodrey family appreciated my work," Khan exclaimed, switching to a more serious tone.
"It is appreciated," Madam Solodrey confirmed. "The Thilku have yet to hand over precise requirements, but the prospects seem to involve a quarter of a planet."
"That must be some lucrative business," Khan commented.
"Indeed," Madam Solodrey agreed. "I took the liberty of involving the descendants who vouched for you and their families in the deal. Of course, they'll get lower shares."
That news took Khan by surprise. Lucian and the other descendants had mentioned their interest in business opportunities, but Khan had obviously prioritized the Solodrey family. Still, Madam Solodrey had taken care of that part for him.
"Thank you, ma'am," Khan couldn't help but say.
"I initially planned to leave something for you," Madam Solodrey continued, "But your debt is too big, and my family will still shoulder the investment risk, so I cut it out."
"You almost had me, ma'am," Khan chuckled.
"Is the reward I sent you not enough?" Madam Solodrey asked. "My dear daughter is worth far more than a planet, even after getting tainted by a mutt."
"I don't appreciate how you talk about Monica," Khan warned. "She is not a currency."
"You wanted my daughter," Madam Solodrey declared, "You got her, along with all the obligations and customs proper of her status. I hope you are not regretting it now, Captain."
"Never," Khan promptly uttered. "Still, I must ask you to use her looks for me only, ma'am. I'll start requesting my presence whenever she has to close a deal otherwise."
That was Madam Solodrey's time to be surprised. Khan's statement had been strangely collected and reasonable. He even accepted to be tricked if necessary.
Nevertheless, Madam Solodrey's education didn't allow her to hint at her surprise, and her reply came after a single silent second. "You should focus on today's date. I expect the entire Harbor to see a happy couple."
"The Harbor will see more than that," Khan promised. "I might break some of your rules. You can't expect a mutt like me to behave with your enchanting daughter at my side."
"Tasteless," Madam Solodrey sighed. "I wonder where I went wrong with my dear daughter."
"I have a few guesses of my own, ma'am," Khan revealed.
"Be silent," Madam Solodrey complained. "I'll close an eye toward some misbehavior, but I'd better not find something indecent on the network."
"That's," Khan hesitated, surprised that Madam Solodrey had given up on the matter. "I'd never dishonor your daughter, ma'am."
"You already did, Captain," Madam Solodrey sighed. "At least you are shaping up to be worthy of putting a real ring on her finger. My husband is harder to convince but won't object if the engagement is profitable."
"Wait," Khan gasped. "Did the Solodrey family decide something?"
"No," Madam Solodrey denied, "So stop asking. Focus on preparing my daughter for Neuria. Her performance will be seen as your responsibility."
'So, she is going there,' Khan thought before making a promise. "You can count on me, ma'am."
"Also," Madam Solodrey added, "You can drop the ma'am in private. If you wish to, you can even use my name."
"I'll remember that," Khan exclaimed, amazed that something similar was happening, "Anastasia."
"Remember," Madam Solodrey repeated. "Only in private. Now, don't make my daughter wait."
****
Author's notes: I hope you like the new cover!
