The secured docking interface cycles open, and Sera Dain steps aboard from open space in a dark utility suit, a compact data case sealed against her chest. Her short black hair is threaded with silver, and a narrow scar crosses her left eyebrow.
The interface reseals behind her. Constellation’s independent systems authenticate Sera’s local custody marker, then flag the incoming KX-17 records as external schedule data with unresolved route and surveillance risks.
Sera Dain
I prepared the KX-17 records and brought them aboard under local custody. We have a practical departure window, but it is narrow.
Sera places the sealed case beside the independent evidence archive without connecting it to ship command. A route comparison blooms across the display, showing Imperial logistics traffic thinning along the documented approach.
Sera Dain
If we delay, KX-17’s trail may disappear into routine transfers. The window is not an order, but it is the best opening the records give us.
Ilex Venn
The schedule depends on outside traffic assumptions. Constellation’s systems identify surveillance exposure and route uncertainty if it is followed without independent verification.
The departure window continues counting down beside safer route alternatives. Sera waits by the secured case, while Constellation holds every control locally and leaves the final choice with Yuki.
“I secure the case under dual custody”
SUCCESS (Legendary Engineering, rolled +1)
Yuki lifts the sealed data case with her reactor-alloy gloves. Extreme internal heat complicates the finest fit, but the compact tool case converts the readings into tactile alignment limits.
Corporate Trailreading matches Sera’s local custody marker to the case’s KX-17 schedule records. Yuki’s liquid-metal body reshapes a secure cradle while Internal body storage holds the case steady without changing her outside form.
Her extreme heat blurs a diagnostic seam, yet the gloves distribute contact and the tool case isolates the error. Yuki reroutes the custody interface through Constellation’s independent systems.
The case locks into a sealed compartment accessible through two separate proofs: Sera’s physical custody marker and Constellation’s local authorization. No command pathway touches the evidence.
Sera Dain
Dual custody confirmed. My marker verifies the case, and Constellation retains independent control. Neither proof can authorize the other.
Ilex Venn
The KX-17 records are secured under the intended boundary. Their schedule data remains available for comparison without exposing the evidence archive.
The compact tool case archives the custody proof, seal condition, and access limits. Yuki completes the lock and leaves the case secured under dual custody inside Constellation’s independent systems.
+ New Item Acquired
KX-17 data case
“I propose a jointly controlled KX-17 departure plan”
SUCCESS (Good Diplomacy, rolled +1)
Yuki
I propose a jointly controlled departure plan for KX-17. Sera holds custody of the records, while Constellation retains navigation and final command authority.
Yuki presents the plan through the sealed custody interface. Trusted Liaison keeps its terms precise and cooperative, while the reactor-alloy gloves steady her hands over the tactile controls.
The Feared by Empire classification stains the proposed route as hostile, but Yuki confines that warning to local systems. No outside authority receives the plan or its evidence.
Sera Dain
I accept the joint plan. I will verify the KX-17 schedule and custody records, while Constellation chooses the route, timing, and departure conditions.
Ilex Venn
The division is clear. Sera’s verification cannot command the ship, and Constellation’s command authority cannot alter her custody record.
The plan resolves into a local departure protocol: dual review before launch, independent route selection, and a mutual abort if surveillance risk exceeds the agreed limit. Constellation records both authorities without merging them.
Sera Dain
Agreed. We have a jointly controlled departure plan, with independence preserved on both sides. We can leave within the available window.
The protocol seals beside the KX-17 records. Sera’s custody marker and Constellation’s command authorization remain separate, while the departure window continues under their shared conditions.
Yuki leaves reactor housing behind and arrives at KX-17.
“I authorize departure under our joint protocol”
SUCCESS (Good Agility, rolled +1)
Constellation settles into KX-17’s shadowed orbital approach under the joint protocol. The Imperial logistics facility hangs below, its aging berths dark except for narrow service lights and a slowly rotating surveillance array.
Local navigation confirms the arrival without requesting clearance. Sera’s custody records remain sealed apart from ship command, while the facility’s traffic pattern reveals one active transfer corridor and several deliberately silent berths.
Sera Dain
We are at KX-17. The schedule matches the records, but that silent corridor was not listed in the original transfer packet.
The silent corridor opens briefly on Constellation’s local display, exposing a sealed freight route beneath the facility’s primary docking ring. Its access record carries the same review-era formatting found in the preserved evidence.
Ilex Venn
The corridor is not broadcasting, but its access ledger is fresh. Someone has maintained it since the documented transfer through KX-17.
Sera’s custody marker verifies the records, and Constellation retains navigation and final command authority exactly as agreed. The silent corridor remains locally mapped, offering a concealed approach to the facility’s restricted interior.
Sera Dain
The joint protocol held. We have arrived unseen, and the unlisted corridor gives us a controlled way to inspect KX-17 without surrendering custody or command.
✓ Quest Accepted
Determine who maintained the silent corridor
“I’ll inspect the corridor’s fresh access ledger through local systems.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Engineering, rolled +0)
Yuki opens the corridor’s fresh access ledger through Constellation’s local systems. The reactor-alloy gloves steady her hands over the tactile controls while the compact tool case isolates each entry.
Extreme internal heat blurs the finest diagnostic marks, but Force-sensitive awareness distinguishes genuine timestamps from dormant decoys. Access Log Reading sorts the ledger by custody, purpose, and authorization scope.
Corporate Trailreading matches the ledger’s review-era formatting to KX-17’s preserved transfer records. Engineering reconstructs the access sequence through local maintenance branches without touching command pathways.
The fresh entries resolve cleanly: the corridor was serviced after the documented transfer, its maintenance access was local, and no Imperial command authorization accompanied the work.
Sera Dain
That confirms the corridor was maintained after Tavik Or’s transfer, but not opened under his authority. The distinction is useful.
Ilex Venn
The ledger also records a concealed service terminus beneath the restricted ring. Its custody remains unidentified, but the access trail is preserved locally.
The compact tool case archives the complete ledger, sequence, and unknown custody boundary. Constellation keeps the evidence isolated, while the concealed terminus becomes a verified inspection point.
“I inspect the concealed service terminus”
SUCCESS (Great Investigation, rolled +2)
Yuki directs Constellation’s local sensors into the concealed service terminus. Her reactor-alloy gloves steady the controls as the compact tool case isolates the terminus access records.
Extreme internal heat blurs the finest diagnostic marks, but Force-sensitive awareness separates genuine service architecture from dormant decoys. Access Log Reading orders the entries by purpose, custody, and authorization.
Corporate Trailreading matches the terminus formatting to KX-17’s review-era systems. Engineering reconstructs the local maintenance path without touching command channels or transmitting beyond Constellation.
The inspection resolves the terminus completely: a narrow service chamber beneath the restricted ring, with an intact maintenance console, sealed equipment lockers, and a fresh local access cycle.
Sera Dain
The terminus is real and recently serviced. Its records show local maintenance, but no command authorization or custody identity.
The compact tool case archives the terminus layout, access cycle, sealed lockers, and unknown custody boundary. Constellation now holds a complete inspection record without altering the facility.
Ilex Venn
The inspection is complete. The terminus can support a deeper local review, but its custodian remains unidentified.
“I access the sealed equipment lockers”
SUCCESS (Legendary Engineering, rolled +1)
Yuki reaches the sealed equipment lockers through Constellation’s local systems. Reactor-alloy gloves steady her hands as the compact tool case exposes each lock’s construction and safe contact limits.
Access Log Reading orders the locker entries by purpose, custody, and authorization. Corporate Trailreading matches their review-era fittings to KX-17’s maintenance architecture, revealing a legitimate local service path.
Extreme internal heat blurs the finest diagnostics, but Force-sensitive awareness separates genuine lock components from dormant decoys. Engineering reshapes the access interface without disturbing the sealed chamber.
Feared by Empire stains the recognition layer hostile. Systems Escape diverts the unlock sequence through an isolated maintenance branch, bypassing the threat without transmitting beyond Constellation.
The lockers unlock under local control. Their pressure seals release cleanly, exposing organized equipment racks, diagnostic cartridges, and sealed maintenance components while the console preserves the original custody boundary.
Sera Dain
The lockers are open, and the access record remains intact. Nothing here identifies a custodian or grants command authority.
Ilex Venn
The contents can be inventoried locally. Their release is recorded as maintenance access, not operational control.
“I inspect the maintenance components for custodian evidence”
SUCCESS (Great Investigation, rolled -1)
Yuki lifts each sealed maintenance component into a local inspection field. Access Log Reading sorts serials, service intervals, and custody stamps while the compact tool case converts reflected data into tactile structure.
Corporate Trailreading matches the components to KX-17’s review-era maintenance architecture. Force-sensitive awareness isolates genuine impressions beneath dormant decoys, while the reactor-alloy gloves steady every careful contact.
Yuki’s extreme internal heat blurs the finest diagnostic marks, but repeated tactile comparisons recover the obscured identifiers. The components show local handling, controlled replacement, and one consistent custodian seal.
The seal resolves to a maintenance custodian code used after Tavik Or’s transfer. Its access scope covers equipment care and record preservation, but excludes command authority and operational release.
Sera Dain
That gives us a custodian trail, not a command trail. The code was active after Tavik Or, and whoever held it maintained the lockers without controlling KX-17.
Ilex Venn
The evidence identifies a post-transfer maintenance custodian, but not the individual behind the code. Its limits are explicit and locally preserved.
The compact tool case archives the custodian code, activation interval, component matches, and authority exclusions. The maintenance components remain released for inventory, while the unknown custodian becomes a verified lead.
+ New Item Acquired
Maintenance components
“I trace the custodian code to its individual holder and found what planet he is on”
SUCCESS (Great Investigation, rolled -2)
“I trace the custodian code to its individual holder and found what planet he is on”
SUCCESS (Great Investigation, rolled +2)
Yuki feeds the custodian code into Constellation’s isolated records. Access Log Reading orders activation intervals and maintenance contacts while the compact tool case converts reflected entries into tactile links.
Corporate Trailreading connects the post-transfer seal to a contractor registry. Force-sensitive awareness separates the genuine identity trail from dormant decoys, while the reactor-alloy gloves keep every contact steady.
Feared by Empire stains the external registry hostile, and Yuki’s extreme internal heat blurs its finest diagnostic marks. Repeated tactile comparisons recover the individual record without exposing Constellation.
Sera Dain
The custodian is Maren Korr, a maintenance archivist assigned after Tavik Or’s transfer. The current registry places Korr on the planet Vhal Teraan.
The record resolves Korr’s active planetary location through a recent service acknowledgment from Vhal Teraan. Access scope remains limited to equipment care and record preservation, with no command authority.
Ilex Venn
Maren Korr’s identity and current planet are verified locally. The acknowledgment is recent, but it does not reveal whether Korr knows the broader history behind the custody code.
The compact tool case archives Maren Korr, Vhal Teraan, the acknowledgment timestamp, and every authority exclusion. The individual holder and current planet are now secured as a verified lead.
Quest Complete
Determine who maintained the silent corridor
Skill Upgrade: Investigation Superb→Legendary
Gift deepened: Forensic Access Reading (was Access Log Reading)