Chapter 98: Fortress-Sized Headaches and Pre-Teen Scalpers

"Teiro! Over there, next to the fleet. It’s one of those black ones!"

Teiro snapped his attention toward where Etta was pointing, squinting at the clusters of vessels represented on the Radar Screen. He quickly logged the coordinates of the void she’d indicated and opened a channel to the fleet's shuttle.

"RS1 to Alex Fleet. Heads up—you’ve likely got a Stealth Ship creeping in your vicinity. Keep your eyes peeled."

"[...THIS IS ALEX 4. MESSAGE RECEIVED. THANKS FOR THE CATCH. BUT SERIOUSLY, HOW THE HELL ARE YOU SPOTTING THEM? YOU’RE SPILLING THE BEANS OVER DRINKS WHEN WE GET BACK, RIGHT?]"

Teiro flashed a cheeky grin at the communicator and offered a wink. "Sorry, pal. That’s a trade secret."

The operator on the other end stuck out his tongue with an exaggerated "Bleh," gave a mock salute, and terminated the link.

"The operators in Little Tokyo are a hoot... Hey, Marl, how’s the main force looking? Is everything moving according to the script?"

"Hold your horses," Marl muttered. She fished out an ancient-looking mobile terminal and began aggressively tapping at the touchscreen.

This specific terminal, which contained the high-level operational details, was physically air-gapped from BISHOP and every other network in existence. It was the ultimate "low-tech" security measure; no hacker could touch what wasn't connected. Plus, if it were moved too far from the ship, the data would self-destruct. No thieves, no leaks, just pure paranoia.

"Let’s see... yeah. They’re sticking to Plan B," Marl reported. "They’re cutting through the OR727 Star System to loop around behind BA33. Current projected losses are within the margin of error, so no changes for now."

Teiro nodded, looking satisfied. So far, so good. Just as long as no one decides to blow us up in the next five minutes.

"Got it. Smooth sailing, then... hopefully."

He turned his gaze back to the Radar Screen, watching the chaotic swarm of ships drifting alongside the fleet led by the Rising Sun. It was the EAP’s main force, surrounded by a protective shell of over fifty different private security companies—Rising Sun included—all acting as a massive, paranoid bodyguard.

"Is that toothpick the flagship? Which makes those big lumps the Battleships... Huh. That’s a pretty questionable formation. People said the EAP wasn't used to actual warfare, but man, it really shows."

The main body, designated EAP 1, was a massive parade of nearly two hundred vessels. It boasted everything from Battleships to shiny new Light Carriers and a handful of Electronic Warfare Craft. The problem with such a massive, bloated fleet was that it turned with the grace of a beached whale, making it a prime target for a Surprise Attack. That was exactly why they had the patrol groups out front, acting as the galaxy's most heavily armed crossing guards.

"EAP is centered in Little Tokyo; their whole philosophy has basically been 'peace at any price,'" Koume explained, her internal systems humming. "Whether it’s because they’re filthy rich or just polite is a mystery, but they usually just pay people off or make concessions instead of actually fighting."

Teiro let out a dry snort. "How the hell did they survive this long in Outer Space? I hadn't been here five minutes before someone declared war on me."

"The Dingo incident? That was just spectacular bad luck on your part," Marl countered.

"True," Koume added. "But EAP is an anomaly. Geopolitically speaking, they are the Alliance closest to the Empire. That gives them a certain kind of leverage."

"I guess. Rin... or well, Rin’s old man, probably. He must’ve been a wizard at diplomacy. Sure, they ended up with liabilities like Dingo, but look at how much the EAP has grown. It’s insane."

In the Alpha Sector, everyone knew the EAP was one of the big two, right alongside Enzio. For a group with only about a hundred years of history, their rise to power was nothing short of a miracle.

As the three of them chatted on the bridge, Etta hopped down from her operator seat and scurried over to Teiro, grabbing his arm and shaking it.

"Teiro, Teiro! Am I being a good help? Am I saving everyone?"

Teiro looked down at the girl’s wide, seeking eyes and gave a helpless, wry smile. He gave her a big, enthusiastic thumbs-up.

"The best! Seriously, everyone’s super grateful. We’ve made it this far with zero scratches, which is basically a miracle given the number of ambushes we've dodged. You're our MVP, kid."

It had been three days since they left the Shinjuku Star System. They had already run into six different ambushes, but they’d come through unscathed because Etta had sensed every single one of them before the enemy could even power up their guns.

Teiro had been torn about bringing a kid to a war zone, but now he was just thankful she was there. She was the best "radar" he could ask for. Besides, she didn't have anywhere else to go, and she’d practically glued herself to the crew.

"Hehe! Then you have to give me a reward when we get home! Yotta-neesama said if I’m a good girl, I get a reward!"

Etta started tracing little circles on Teiro’s arm with her finger, looking up at him with a mischievous glint. Is she... trying to be seductive? Where did she even learn that? Yotta, I’m going to have words with you.

"Right, a reward," Teiro said, completely unfazed by the attempt at 'allure' because, well, she was a child. "How about this: when we get back, you can eat your weight in ice cream. I’ll even whip up my world-famous special sesame ice cream for you."

He patted her head affectionately. Etta pouted, her cheeks puffing out.

"Nooo! I’m not a baby! A reward means like... a dazzling night of— Oh, wait, sesame ice cream? That does sound yummy."

"Yeah, yeah, save the 'dazzling nights' for when you're older. We’re hitting the drive point. Get back to your seat before you get tossed across the room," Marl interrupted.

Etta made a face but scurried back to her seat with a "Fine, okaay!" Teiro shot Marl a quick "Thanks" and began the final checks for Overdrive.

"Whoa... look at that. It’s practically a finished product. This might actually work."

Once the Overdrive ended, a massive Floating Fortress filled the main screen. It was their Anti-Enzio Defense Base. From a distance, it looked like a colossal, jagged ball of iron, but a closer look revealed a labyrinth of docks, factories, and enough turrets to core a planet. Twenty percent of those guns were Rising Sun-brand Railguns, and Teiro had already sent a small army of technicians to keep them humming.

"It is approximately seventy-five percent complete, Mr. Teiro," Koume reported. "The primary delay involves the installation of the Mobile Armored Facilities."

"The Mobile Armor? You mean those giant iron bricks with engines glued to them?" Teiro asked. "They look stupid, but I guess they make pretty good shields. Maybe we should park a few around our station?"

"Don't even think about it," Marl snapped. "They’d block traffic. Plus, someone would steal them immediately. They’re made of high-grade alloys and they’re literally designed to be towed away. They’re catnip for thieves."

Teiro conceded the point with a nod. The Mobile Armor blocks were thirty-meter cubes of plating equipped with basic Shield Generation Devices. Usually, they were slaved to the fortress's computer, but you could remote-control them from a ship if you had the codes. Marl’s right. A pirate with a decent cargo hold could just snatch one and vanish.

"Wait, is the fortress glowing?"

Teiro leaned in, squinting at the monitor. Koume’s lights flickered in confirmation.

"[SCHEDULED: OVERDRIVE ACTIVATION IN 80 HOURS.] It is moving toward the current front lines. Due to its extreme mass, the spool-up time is significant. Our mission is to secure the destination and ensure the fortress doesn't warp into a face-full of mines."

"Wait... we can warp the entire fortress?" Teiro gaped.

"Well, yeah," Marl said, sounding bored. "There’s a limit, obviously, but anything up to a small station can jump if you have enough juice. Though it’ll suck every Drive Particle out of the surrounding space for a while."

"Space is weird," Teiro muttered, shaking his head. Just when he thought he was getting the hang of this universe, it threw a warping continent at him.

He hopped out of his seat to double-check the mission parameters on Marl's terminal.

"So, we secure Space Superiority and prep the zone for the follow-on units? Does 'prepping' mean we’re on space-garbage duty?"

"Probably. Debris, mines, the works," Marl said.

"Ugh, what a drag... Oh wait, we have a princess who’s a pro at finding 'treasure.' Maybe I should’ve brought more Minesweepers. Or can we just blast the mines with a Beam?"

"Mmm, maybe. But if we disarm them properly, we can reuse them. Or sell them."

"Sell them? Who's buying used space mines?"

"Everyone! Right now, EAP is paying top dollar for hardware."

Teiro sighed and slumped his shoulders. "I love this capitalist hellscape. I just checked the Star System Auction, and it’s flooded with mines. Wait—is this for real? There’s an eight-year-old on here buying a Beam Mine. What is he going to do with that? Is he blowing up his school? That's a bit much for a playground grudge."

"He's not going to use it, Teiro," Marl sighed. "He’s probably a Reseller. They buy low on one market and sell high on another without ever actually touching the physical item. They live on the market boards."

Teiro stared at her. "So you're telling me there's an eight-year-old day trader out there flipping weapons of mass destruction? That is terrifying. Don't we have regulations against scalping? I mean, I know we're traders, but still..."

"Regulation? Heavens, no!" Marl looked at him like he was crazy. "Resellers keep the market stable! Small companies like us thrive because of them. If they weren't around to arbitrage the prices, the mega-corps would just dump their stock and crush us all."

Teiro shrugged. On Earth, "scalper" was a dirty word involving guys in trench coats outside a stadium. Here, apparently, they were the backbone of the economy.

"I've been a President for a while now, and I still don't understand half of how this galaxy works... Oh, hey, looks like Bella and the crew have arrived. That’s Lyza’s transport ship trailing them."

He pointed to the new signatures warping into the sector.

"It’s been a while since the whole gang was in one place," Marl noted with a small smile.

"Yeah," Teiro replied, his grin returning. "The company’s getting so big that everyone’s always off on their own missions. It’s nice to have an excuse to get together."

He thought about how busy they’d all been, and his smile turned a bit wry. He tapped the console to execute the incoming Beacon Program and settled in to prepare for the meeting.

[BEACON PROGRAM: SYNCED]

Alright, time to see if we can actually survive this mess.