Contamination

[Zayne Carrick]

Why it's always the worst case? Why doesn't fate favour me lately? Ye, the Riemann delayed Wilde reinforcements, probably sheer luck, but keeping an eye on boy might reap benefits. But how much time did it bought? A day? Two? Well, probably enough to request reinforcements, but how would that look? Siegfried the Wildeslayer is scared of one cruiser, which is supposedly a system away from here, while having the best ship in army with full compartment in his disposal? I would become laughting-stock on next Council meeting. And I'd rather be dead, than laughing-stock.

Certainly, now that cruiser is easy target but I just can't move Yggdrasil away from Tangier. But if I'll do nothing... worst case scenario - in 30 hours Yggdrasil will be rammed by cloaked cruiser and simultaneously Wilde on planet would launch everything they got their hands on, damaged Yggdrasil won't be able to intercept all enemy craft. And I would get a chance to say hello to firing squad, if I'll survive the battle.

Unpredictable...

Right, maybe I get someone else to do my dirty work. The question is - who.
Kassel? The order has to go through Brigadegeneral. No way.
Freeport 5 zoners? The only thing they can do is call Order for help. Too long. No way.
Corsairs? May work.

"Assemble fighter squadron"

"Listen up, pilots, I have a difficult assignment for you. You're to travel to B6 in Omega-41"
"Isn't it where that regular Riemann disabled Wilde Cruiser"
"Indeed"
"And how are we supposed to deal with it?"
"You don't. Your path would lie in listening-in distation of Casablanca base. When in proximity, you, Lieutenant Ludewig will transmit your orders to squadron. And your orders are to escort disabled BDM cruiser, which has decided to defect to hessians to the safety of Dresden system. Make sure your talks were intercepted. Dismissed."
"It will be done, Director"

Dossier of Casablanca's administator suggested that he was rush hothead, so he might indeed fall to this. If Loki, the god of deception is on my side today, corsairs might not even discover that they've destroyed Wilde cruiser. And if they would discover it will make no difference whatsoever.

Still, the time is very short.

"Get me Viking on the line"

"Viking? I need a status update now! What? I don't care about those odinforsaken absorbers. Where's Dr. Engel? I DON'T UNDERSTAND THE SEVERITY OF SITUATION? NO, IT'S YOU WHO DON'T UNDERSTAND. I NEED RESULTS ON THE GROUND. AND I NEED THEM YESTERDAY. I'D RATHER TURN THIS FACILITY INTO DUST THAN LET THE INFECTEES TO CARRY THEIR PLAN"

Suddenly, Siegfried realised that he doesn't know what plan the infectees are carrying. At first it seemed as they're simply trying to escape with bunch of new hosts. But involvement of cruiser suggested that they might have a grander scheme. It's illogical to risk a cruiser to help few hundreds of hosts to escape.

"I need all Dr. Engel's works, starting with most recent ones."