chsdbacks Chapter 79 Ashes and Numbers
Chapter 79 Ashes and Numbers
In the private workshop of the Black Pearl, Cohen opened his eyes in a chair.
The porthole armor covers were tightly closed. The readings at the Geller position were stable, and the low-frequency hum of the subspace engine was continuous and steady.
He walked out of the workshop. The emergency lights in the corridor cast a dark red glow under his feet, and the veterans on duty from the garrison regiment saluted at the corner.
The airtight door of the bridge slid open. Marcus stood in front of the holographic projection table. On the communications panel, Hera Voss's channel indicator light flashed.
"Captain. The Starspeaker from the Resolute has sent a message. Hera is decoding it," Marcus said.
Hera's hoarse voice came through the communication channel, brief and calm. "Decoding complete. Captain Hawke reports: The convoy has docked, but the loading of immigrants is delayed. The Nest City Executive Yuan is not releasing them; the permits are stuck in the Governor's Office's review loop. Details to be discussed in person."
Liu En did not speak.
"Reply to him: Arrive on time," he said.
Hera responded, and the channel went silent.
The Black Pearl traversed smoothly through subspace. Several days later, the ship's vibration frequency began to change. Sera's voice came through the communication channel.
"Approaching Mandeville Point. Geller Field fully charged. Warp Engine countdown: 60 seconds."
"Thirty seconds. Fifteen seconds. Five, four, three, two, one. Disengage."
The ship shuddered violently. The armored porthole covers rose one by one.
The stars of Amegiddund burn in the distance. The grayish-yellow planet slowly magnifies in the field of vision. The orbital spaceport unfolds in the field of vision—the metallic skeleton gleams with a cold gray luster in the starlight, the berths stretch along the circular orbit, and shuttles glide silently along the track.
Liu En stood at the porthole of the bridge. The outline of the Helsard hive rose from the wasteland, its spires piercing the gray-yellow haze.
Marcus swiped data in front of the holographic projection table. "The port authority has issued an entry permit."
The Black Pearl and the Astral advance along their designated course. The docking supports extend and engage the hull joints. The airlocks open, and air from the Amegiddon spaceport rushes in—dry, cold, carrying industrial exhaust fumes and the distinctive ozone odor of the circulation system.
The lights in the reception room were on. A cauldron at the foot of the imperial statue burned with frankincense, its smoke swirling slowly beneath the dome. Cups and saucers were already set on the long table. Liu En sat in the main seat, with Vera, who had come from the Truth, sitting to his left. Marcus was on his right, and Kara stood by the door.
The airtight door slid open. Hawke walked in, wearing a dark gray uniform, the collar buttoned up, the old scars on his face appearing even deeper under the light. He sat down across from him at the long table.
"My lord. Eleven ships, with a full capacity of nearly three million people. Only a small portion are currently loaded."
Hawke's voice was low and steady. "The Nest City Executive Yuan won't release them. It's not that they won't approve it, it's that the approval process is too slow. Each batch requires the Governor's Office's signature, and only a small number of people are released each day. Our ships are waiting at the berths, and the number of people at the resettlement sites is piling up. When there were hundreds of thousands of people, we could solve the problem by giving the port officials some bribes. But with three million people—the lower-level passage is blocked. The Governor's Office has its eye on this fleet and wants even bigger benefits."
He paused for a moment. "Septimus Urban. Governor of Helsard. He controls the entire immigration approval process. He dares not disregard the documents from the Imperial Executive Council, but he can delay processing them. He wants us to come to him on our own initiative."
Vera put down the data panel. "How big is his appetite?"
Hawke glanced at her. "He didn't say. But he's waiting for the Sage to speak with him personally."
Liu En picked up his coffee cup, took a sip, and put it down. The living room was silent for a few seconds.
He took a sealed box of fine gold from the inner pocket of his robe, placed it on the table, and pushed it toward Marcus. "Call Phyllis over."
Marcus pressed the communication button. A moment later, Phyllis entered, her long dark brown hair tied in a low ponytail, holding a data tablet.
"captain."
Liu En pushed the sealed box of adamantite in front of her. "Static field generator. A creation from the Great Crusade. The Valancius family has a trading office in Amegiddon. Go find them and sell it for funds."
Phyllis opened the lid, glanced inside, and closed it again. "Ms. Silver, I'm already familiar with Wandering Harbor. I'll take care of it right away."
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"Go."
Phyllis put away the sealed box and turned to leave the living room.
Hawke continued, “My lord, new people are arriving at the settlement every day. News travels fast in the lower hive; the news that Garros has domes, jobs, and rationed housing has spread throughout the lower levels of the hive. We don’t need to recruit them; people are already lining up for kilometers.”
"How many people?" Liu En asked.
"Tens of thousands of people are arriving every day. And the number is still increasing. The resettlement sites are already overloaded, and food and water have to be diverted from the port. If we don't let more people onto the ships, we won't be able to hold out for long."
Liu En did not speak.
Vera picked up her coffee cup and took a sip. "We'll have to talk to the governor sooner or later. Once Phyllis has the funds in place, I'll go find Urban's people. The Nazari name is quite prestigious in Amighadoton; he'll have to do us a favor."
Phyllis went to the Valancius family's guild office at the Helsard Spaceport that very day. Ms. Silver happened to be there—her fleet had recently resupplyed at Amigiddon and was still there. Phyllis explained her purpose, and Ms. Silver, after examining the stasis field generator, immediately contacted three buyers.
The transaction was completed the following day. The gold-sealed box was replaced with a data card. Phyllis took the data card back to the Black Pearl and handed it over to Liu En.
"Ms. Yin said that this thing is worth enough on the black market to bribe the approval process in half of the Nest City. This is the amount after deducting her commission," Phyllis reported the figure.
"Is that enough?" Liu En asked.
"Enough. More than enough."
Liu En handed the data card to Vera. "Go and talk to her."
Vera took the data card and put it into the inner pocket of her robe.
That afternoon, she used the Nazari family's connections to find the governor's chief of staff. The negotiations didn't drag on too long. Urban's asking price was high, but Vera negotiated and settled on a price. The money was exchanged, and the approval process, which had been crawling overnight, became incredibly fast.
The chief of staff relayed a message: The governor's office has agreed to expedite the approval process. Two hundred million slots. More than that won't do; it would impact the assets of the nobles of the capital.
Two hundred million. Liu En remained silent upon hearing this number.
Hawke, leading eleven ships in his fleet, began recruiting immigrants across the various levels of the Helsard hive. Long queues formed at the settlements, with administrative sergeants and Hawke's clerks working day and night to register, conduct medical examinations, and allocate cabins. Each batch of fully loaded transport ships slid out of their berths and headed towards Garros—without waiting for all ships to depart together. So far, this route was relatively safe; the Truth's escort would later operate along this route. The most important task at present was recruitment and expansion, a plan agreed upon at the last reception. They would continue until full, with families accompanying them.
Crew recruitment and garrison expansion began simultaneously. Marcus drafted a list outlining the positions needed for the Black Pearl and the Truth—engineering, communications, navigation, damage control, gunnery, and logistics. Armageddon had no shortage of manpower. Retired naval crew members, merchant sailors, veterans of the Hive City Defense Force, and survivors of the Deep Nest gang wars—as long as the pay was right, people were lining up to join.
Kara led several veterans to conduct interviews at a temporary recruitment point at the spaceport. Each person followed a set procedure: identity verification, physical fitness test, and skills test. Those who passed received immediate employment notices, and their families were directly added to the immigration list. In less than a week, 50,000 people were recruited. And many more were in the queue.
Recruitment has only just begun. The target of 200 million immigrants remains on the list, and the expansion of the crew and garrison is far from reaching its goal. The eleven-ship convoy is at least operating between Helsard Spaceport and Garros.
Liu En stood at the porthole of the bridge, looking at the steel outline of the Helsard hive city. The spires pierced the gray-yellow haze.
In the reception room, Hawke was reporting on the latest shipment figures. Vera was flipping through a data board beside him. Marcus was drafting a plan for recruiting the next batch of crew members.