Engagement [Book 3: SEKTOR V Trilogy]

Chapter 22: Infiltrating Zeta Reticulon

Chapter 22: Infiltrating Zeta Reticulon

Cairo was nervous, which was more than understandable given the fact that she was a stowaway on a Zeta Reticulon cargo vessel. Of course, the highly toxic cargo that she had with her wasn't exactly helping matters. If the Zeta security officials that were about to board their vessel strictly adhered to regulations, she would quickly be discovered, along with the Zeta-specific death slurry they had with them. Sure, she was "hiding" in a storage container but the use of even the most basic bio-scanner would out her in about 9 picoseconds. Cairo knew she wouldn't stand a chance. Thankfully, the combination of trying economic conditions that existed for most of Zeta Reticulon's citizens, coupled with the fact that government corruption was the rule, not the exception made "going by the book" a rarity, especially when it came to routine checkpoint stops like this. Apparently, a modest "contribution" to each official would, if all went according to plan, allow Cairo and her crewmates to continue on their merry way to the planet's surface. Despite the multiple assurances made to her beforehand, the situation remained tense. Quintavius had gone to great lengths to get them this far and if he had faith so would she.

"It was only days, not weeks...right?" Cairo thought to herself.

The passage of time was now becoming a blur since their last briefing on Earth. Events were unfolding so quickly, that she couldn't keep track. Cairo thought that in some ways this was good and in other ways it was bad. Good in the sense that there was very little time to think about just how incredibly difficult her task was going to be. It was also bad since moving this fast without working out every detail often resulted in sloppiness, which in turn, could lead to disaster. Making matters worse, Cairo knew she was not the only one at risk. All four Hybrids along with their cargo ship pilot, Trace Flireen, had their lives on the line as well. Those same biometric scanners that would easily detect Cairo's lame attempt at hiding in a storage container would also be more than capable of identifying genetic irregularities, such as hybridization anomalies and deadly Zeta-specific death cocktails. Unlike everyone else on board, Trace Flireen, who was the son of recently murdered Zeta Trader Bok Flireen, had little to worry about when it came to genetics. However, his risk was still all too real given the fact that his acts of aiding and abetting known enemies of the State would immediately be considered treasonous. He expected that these low-level government officials would board their ship, take their "processing fee" and be on their way. Given the fluid situation they were facing, all six crew members were feeling vulnerable at the moment.

Even with all this uncertainty, Cairo knew that she had it easier than everyone else. She was visibly out of sight and could easily block her thoughts. Unfortunately, the Hybrids weren't so lucky. Despite being between 94-97% Zetan, none of them were trained to selectively transmit, receive, or block outgoing telepathic communications. As such, just like 99.999% of all Humans, "breeding Hybrids" could still easily be read by other TP-capable beings. Cairo knew this could be a problem and decided to reach out to them telepathically before the Zeta officials arrived.

"I sense and fully understand your fear," she said to them collectively. "Try to control your heart rate by breathing deeply and slowly. Keep your brain continually active, even if you are not being directly addressed. Using the individual repetitive thought process we practiced will also help. Do this and you will be fine. It's also ok to openly think about the "contributions" you plan to offer the officials in exchange for safe passage to the planet surface. They'll be expecting as much so this should help ease any tensions that might arise early on."

Cairo paused in case one of them wished to speak aloud, or think to her individually. Neither occurred. Despite her attempts to calm them she still sensed their lingering apprehension and decided to continue, albeit using a slightly different approach.