Chi-Young sat in the command chair on the bridge of the Mandrake. The usual night shift crew sat at their stations, but instead of being relieved himself he had stayed late to monitor the situation. Besides, he found the view from the bridge soothing; the rapid flybys of the structures that made up the lanes and the slow monotony of in-system travel. He needed a calm mind most of all now, they couldn't afford to get this wrong.

With Marcus' message now in hand, and the Caxian government approving the plan, things were ready to begin. He felt a growing sense of dread about what would happen when the central Alliance started sniffing around the ship. It would be even messier than they already were but that couldn't be avoided, not to have any chance of success.

The increased attention made him worried about what would happen to Marcus. If he was in command, he would have transferred him to another loyal ship, but Allison wanted him to stay around because he had something to contribute, though Chi-Young didn't know what. He figured Chase must have had her reasons for selecting him, and Hamasa for not killing him, though he hoped not because they were running out of time.

Irrespective of what happened to Marcus, he would need to prepare for when the Mediators began investigating the ship. He wondered how long it would be before one arrived; diffusion messages took time, which gave him the opportunity to make sure Marcus had his cover story straight.

Chi-Young made a new cup of tea and eased himself back into his chair. He began drafting the message that would go out with the next ledger dump.

We have confirmation from Prime Minister Damsen that Caxis are ready to support the Independent Systems Coalition. Our assets are in place across the fleet, ready for deployment. The operation must now move onto the next phase.

The intelligence gathered to date all points to the Halcyon refinery as the facility that prepares the material for the development of the gravity bomb. This is the first target our forces need to attack to begin phase two.

You are to proceed with this operation and pass this message to the rest of the leadership.

He read the message back twice before he decided it was acceptable, but he hesitated before encrypting and storing it in the ledger. Chi-Young couldn't shake the memory of Garrick trying to get into the detention centre and then following him and Marcus through the ship. He couldn't go to the Admiral again, not after last time. While the evidence was circumstantial, Chi-Young believed Allison placed too great a value on Garrick's loyalty to the Admiral. Personal history only went so far.

The damage was done now though, with Garrick firmly established on Jansen's ship. Eventually he would find out the truth about Jansen. They would just have to rely on Hamasa's presence to stir things up on the Phoenix Rises.

All he could do now was send the message and wait.

It would be a nervous few weeks.