Project Prometheus Ch. 57 - Teaser (Patreon)

“You ladies get all the searching done that you wanted?” Alex enquired.

“That, we have! You know it pays to know where to go to look for the exact look you want, right?” Natalya asked her man.

“I know, and I’m grateful for the help! Still getting used to how the galaxy works and all!” Alex replied with a grin as he finished adjusting his jacket.

The man smiled at his outfit, looking like the perfect merchant navigator. He and the rest of the crew of the Darkstrideragreed to forgo any semblance of USA insignias. While some of the galaxy knew about them and had allied with their new initiative, there were those who would sabotage them given the chance. The powers that be would not take kindly to a new player on the block, who they would be hard pressed to contend with, if they continued gaining ground as they had.

While he was eager to see their new initiative gain more allies, Alex knew they had to be prudent in who they told. So far, they had been lucky with the UCW defense force and the people of the Abandoned Frontier. Both parties owed him and his crew a great debt and they could be trusted to keep things quiet. The only thing that worried him was the Takharian warlord, Arcann Saubath.

The man had been a sleeper agent of the Tosh’Kanthi Collective and there had been some chatter Jaesa had picked up about them. Nothing major, but there had been some movement and things changing out in the galaxy. Assets had been shifted then vanished, as though the Collective was going into hiding. That suited Alex just fine, as the Collective retreating like that was a good thing.

Maybe Saubath had his own agenda in mind? The Takharian had struck Alex as someone who was more than he let on. That could have been his allegiance to the Collective or something else. Whatever it was, the man had dropped off the map, but he would keep an eye out for him should he ever resurface.

“Hello? Earth to Alex? Are you there?” Kasumi asked him, waving her hand in front of his face.

“Sorry. Spaced out there for a sec,” Alex replied.

“What were you thinking about, babe?” she wondered.

“Potential problems in the future. Notably those who got away in both Veldhern and Prodosia encounters,” Alex sighed.

“Don’t worry too much about it, sweetie. Jaesa’s on it and making sure that if anything pops up on the waves, we’ll hear about it,” Shazza told him as she ambled up next to him.

“Not to mention that Talon’s called in a few favors to keep watch on the darker sides of the omniweb. Sawyer or Saubath get mentioned out there in passing, we’ll know,” Natalya reminded him.

“Yeah, I know. I still worry, all right? It’s in my nature,” Alex replied with a smirk.

“How about we give you something else to worry about?” Korsa asked as she strode up with the rest of the crew in tow.

“Oh? Like what?” Alex wondered.

“Like who’s going to be ravaging your ass after the night is over? You know the effects a well-tailored suit has on a woman,” Kasumi told him.

“Fair enough! Everyone ready to go?” Alex asked.

The entire crew was there dressed in casual clothes, and all nodded. As one, they all walked to the exit point of the Darkstriderand debarked as quickly as possible. Once they were clear of the ship, they made their way to the station proper, flagging down multiple cabs for the lot of them. The cabbies were told where to go and after around twenty minutes, the entire crew was on the ground in Ohnakhla Plaza in the Skolahzza district of the station.

“Ah, dear captain Sunara! Glad to see you arrive!” came the jovial voice of Dagan Min.

“Hey there Dagan! Sorry for the wait!” Inari apologized as she finished paying and tipping the cabbies.

“No need to apologize, dear lady! It was a bit early, and we were all a bit peckish, so we got something to eat while we waited!” Dagan grinned as he finished what looked like a bagel.