Port Casper

Chapter Eight

Maud Van Decker strolled across the Martian surface. She hummed a popular tune, her hands clasped loosely behind her back. Before her, Planitia Dome silently received and surrendered craft of many sizes. People and cargo zipped back and forth under the shining hemisphere. Activity centered on the trading floor, the common area, and the spokes leading to the lift-off pads. Elevators soared fifty stories above the city.

Today, Maud toured the territory surrounding Planitia. Tomorrow she would take another look at its primary spaceport. Her future. Once she had enough saved and sufficient patents hidden away, she would emigrate to the red planet. Away from Port Casper, away from Cloister Eleven.

Her ptenda chirped, its sound nearly lost in the thin Martian air.

"Protector Van Decker, CEO Varghese is on channel for you."

"Encrypt. Red 12-34. Off," Maud said.

Mars dissolved around her as she stepped off the 360-walker pad. She ignored the view outside and trotted across her office. Of the fifty large displays on the wall, one held her attention. She sat down at the desk and migrated the link to the local viewscreen. She saw an image of the CEO of ITB, absent-mindedly rubbing his immaculate beard.

"Yes, Mr. Varghese," she said.

"Good morning, Maud. Had breakfast?" Tadi Varghese's high Hindi accent ran deep. It was rare for high-ranking gene addicts to use anything but their native tongues when speaking to employees, but it was evidence of his trust and respect for Maud, his chief of security for a hundred and eight contracts, that he spoke English. Maud felt no reciprocal trust, but she was good at acting the part of loyal servant and company drone.

"Yes, sir. Good morning sir. I have had breakfast."

"I need you on a detail with me, today."

"I'll have a team ready, Mr. Varghese. What's your departure point and time?"

"No, Maud. Just you," he said with a sly smile. "We're leaving as soon as you arrive at Bay Two. I have an appointment this morning and I want to talk to you about something, but not here in the building. Bay Two, Maud."

The screen flickered and displayed the ITB company logo.

"Damn," she said.

Maud leaned back in her chair and brought steepled hands against her pursed lips. Her eyes moved to the phasewave on her desk, nestled in its tactical holster.

She wondered what the old man wanted to discuss this time. She didn't need more micromanaging of her covert missions. She strained enough finding loopholes in the Cloister Act. And finding fresh recruits to keep things moving forward.

Maud looked at the local display. She had a few minutes to spare. She waved her hand to the right like she was batting a fly and banished a data record from the display while another took its place.

"Wilmer, Darrel, 13324-Epsilon. Idaho Cloister Fourteen. Graduate Rank, 6th Percentile, Graduation Date..." Her computer showed the stats of the recently accepted contracts, thirteen in all. She had to choose which would be ramped up and brought inside the circle, or placed on strategic assignments that would keep them ignorant but useful. She waved off Wilmer's profile in the middle of the readout.

"MacDaniels, Yvonne, 089908-Alpha, California Cloister Three. Graduate Rank, first, Specialist Psych-Op..."

Maud interrupted the display. "Save that one for later."

She continued to scan: "Contract history. Ironclad Security, 3 and 3, extended 18 months. Chrono Form, Inc., 3 and 6 extended 6 months." She batted another fly.