Captain Mariska Holmes tugged at the collar of her dress uniform, pulling the itchy fabric away from her neck for a moment. "Damn thing. It would be so much easier if HQ would just let us wear our ship suits everywhere."
"Agreed." Yralla, Mariska's First Officer, was possibly even more uncomfortable than her captain. Vollarians prefered to go naked, to such an extent that it was almost a joke. "It's times like these that I wish that there were more Vollarians in the Fleet, and fewer Humans." She glanced at Mariska and winked.
"Vollarians wear clothes, sometimes."
"True, but we do it for practical reasons. I wouldn't go naked in freezing temperatures. But this," She waved her hand at the black uniform with it insignia and brightly colored ribbons. "This is ridiculous. Why you would cover yourself up and then pretend that it's for decorative purposes is a Human custom that I'll never understand."
The lift stopped, doors opening to reveal an observation deck.
"Though to see wonders like this I guess I can take a little discomfort," Yralla said, breathlessly.
Armstrong Station was a cylinder twenty kilometers long. Half a million people, from two dozen species, lived there. Mariska and Yralla were at the northern cap, having just arrived at the Fleet docks. They had a view of the entire station. A bright sunline lit the open space, bathing the fields and towns that dotted the surface in perfect illumination. The interior was the sort of green that you would never expect to see in space. The green reserved for forests and crops. Armstrong had plenty of both, it was self-sufficient and grew enough food to export luxury goods to nearby worlds. It was one of the crowning achievements of Human engineering.
It was also the headquarters of the Galactic Council Fleet.
"Quite a view, isn't it?" Mariska paused at the railing for a moment, her eyes picking out people flying near the sunline, taking advantage of the lack of gravity there. Finally she turned, heading for their destination. "Come on, we have an appointment."
High Admiral Murchison's office was located in an anonymous building near the port. Mariska and Yralla were escorted in by a junior officer. They came to attention in front of the Admiral's desk and fired off snappy salutes.
"Captain Holmes and First Officer Yralla, of the GCS Astarte, reporting as ordered, sir." Mariska held her eyes a foot above the Admiral's head, as protocol dictated. But she couldn't help but notice that they were not alone in the office. A slim woman with dirty blonde hair was sitting in the corner, wearing the robes of a Council bureaucrat.
Murchison returned their salute, and gestured to a pair of chairs. He was a large man, powerfully built. Getting older, but still intimidating. Murchison had made his reputation putting down pirate fleets in the Omega Cluster. He was known as a warrior and a leader.
"Captain, First Officer, let me begin by congratulating you on the exemplary work that you've done in responding to the recent outbreak of genetic terrorism. The Astarte and her crew have been involved in more of these incidents than any vessel in the Fleet, and I'm confident that not all of our crews would have handled the situation as well as you did."
"Thank you, sir." Mariska spoke evenly, but she felt pride for her ship and crew welling in her heart.
"Don't thank me yet. You've proven that you're competent, that just means that I'm going to ask you to do more." He turned to the woman in the corner. "This is Inspector Svetlana Zhang, of the Council Bureau of Investigation. She's been working this case from their side. CBI believes that they have a lead, and they'd like you to participate in the hunt. Inspector?"
Inspector Zhang leaned forward, letting Mariska get a good look at her. She had dirty blonde hair falling down to the middle of her back, tied in a loose ponytail. Her green, almond shaped eyes drew Mariska's gaze lower, to the inspector's high cheekbones and lush lips. Mariska realized that she was staring, and broke away. But not before she saw a small smile grace the inspector's lips.
"I agree with the Admiral that you've performed well in these situations so far. That's why I asked for you." Her voice was strong and melodical. "I think that prior experience will be essential going forward. This is our suspect."
She tapped the data pad sitting in front of her and an image appeared on the office's wall screen. It was a woman, a Tauran woman. She had the crimson skin and yellow eyes that were common to her species. The mass of black hair on her head was actually swept back quills. The image looked like it had come from an official document, like an identification badge.
"This is To'varra Kashto. She is a Tauran genetics expert, and suspected biological terrorist. She's one of the galaxy's leading experts on trans-species sexual transmission. She's also a dangerous religious fanatic and cult leader."
Yralla stirred in her chair. "What religion?"
Zhang's lips twisted into a small grin. "Her own. She made it up. Kashto became obsessed with the idea that the genetic differences between species were just artificial. That it would be possible to breed one true people from all the species of the galaxy. She acquired a few followers." The Inspector tapped her pad again, and the image shifted to Kasto address a few dozen people, most Humans and Taurans. "Some of her followers are very wealthy. And they set her up with private labs and the sort of equipment most geneticists only dream of. That got her on CBI's radar, so we tracked her. And then a year ago, we lost her. She disappeared."
"What does this have to do with the attacks?" Mariska asked.
"Kashto has a stated desire to alter every Council species so that we all become one perfected race. To her, sex is a weapon, a way to inject your targets with the genetic information that will change them. We think she's trying out different methods, seeing what works best." More tapping, the various different creatures that they had fought appeared on the screen. "Dry runs, if you will."
Mariska nodded. "So what do we do?"
Murchison spoke up. "The Inspector will join you on the Astarte. Your patrol route has been modified to take into account Kashto's possible location. You'll narrow it down, and then take her in. Questions?"
