The service hatch spits Jade Blue and Marshal Dax Orin into the Velvet Mile’s spill of neon and rain. The maintenance passage widens into a narrow lounge corridor, where holograms ripple over wet chrome and velvet panels. Ahead, a woman leans beside a private door, waiting like she owns the air.
Tala Quen
You took the long way. I was starting to think the Syndicate had better timing than you.
Tala Quen’s violet skin shimmers under the ads. Her gaze flicks once to Jade’s hand, then to Dax, then back to Jade, measuring the distance between a secret and a mistake.
Marshal Dax Orin
If you know what she’s carrying, say it fast. We’re not here for a tour.
Tala Quen
Relax, Marshal. If I wanted trouble, you’d already hear it coming. I know only this, someone in the Syndicate is paying hard for that wafer, and someone else is paying harder to see who touches it.
She taps the door panel. It blooms open on a lounge washed in blue light, with a drink cart, mirrored walls, and a security veil humming behind the glass.
Tala Quen
Come in, Jade Blue. We can trade noise for answers, if you’re not afraid of the price.
✓ Quest Accepted
Trade with Tala Quen for information regarding the Syndicate and the wafer
✓ Quest Accepted
Determine the identity of the Syndicate member paying for the wafer
“Step into the lounge and demand she name the Syndicate member paying for the wafer.”
SUCCESS (Mediocre Diplomacy, rolled +0)
Jade steps through the doorway without lowering the pistol, and Tala lets her in with a half-smile. Dax stays at the threshold, watching the corridor like he expects it to turn on them.
Jade Blue
Name the Syndicate member paying for the wafer.
Tala Quen
Direct. I like that. The name attached to the money is Silas Veyr. The name attached to the fear is harder to own.
Marshal Dax Orin
Veyr. Of course. That bastard keeps his hands clean by moving everyone else’s dirt.
Tala crosses to the drink cart and pours nothing, just lets the glass catch the blue light. Her smile thins into something sharper.
Tala Quen
If you’re chasing Orpheus, Silas is one of the doors. Not the only one. But he is the one who pays on time.
She turns back to Jade, relaxed enough to invite a deal, precise enough to make it feel expensive.
Tala Quen
Sit, and I’ll tell you what the ledger really flags in Nova Meridian.
Quest Complete
Determine the identity of the Syndicate member paying for the wafer
“I sit down and ask Tala what the ledger flags.”
SUCCESS (Mediocre Diplomacy, rolled +1)
Jade lowers herself into the chair with the pistol still in hand, calm and deliberate. The lounge falls quieter around the small scrape of metal on floor plating.
Tala Quen
Good. That ledger flags a relay node on Nova Meridian, a private intake called Orpheus Annex. It is where shipments get broken into names, debts, and disappearances.
Marshal Dax Orin
Orpheus Annex. I hate that this is exactly the kind of place they would use.
Tala sets the empty glass down and folds her hands, studying Jade like a client and a problem at once.
Tala Quen
Silas Veyr uses it to keep his books clean. He also uses it to move people who cannot afford to be counted.
Tala Quen
If your sister touched that chain, her trail goes through Nova Meridian. Not maybe. Through.
Dax looks from Tala to Jade, his jaw tight, but he does not interrupt. The answer hangs there, sharp and useful.
Tala Quen
So, Jade Blue, do you want the access point, or the name of the banker who pays for it?
Quest Complete
Trade with Tala Quen for information regarding the Syndicate and the wafer
Skill Upgrade: Diplomacy Mediocre→Fair
Quest Complete
Investigate the Orpheus connection in Nova Meridian
Skill Upgrade: Diplomacy Fair→Good
“I ask Tala for the name of the banker paying for it.”
SUCCESS (Good Diplomacy, rolled +1)
Jade Blue
The banker. Name it.
Tala does not blink. She lets the silence stretch just long enough to feel purchased, then reaches for a thin black card on the drink cart.
Tala Quen
Marek Sulo. He clears the money before it reaches any Syndicate ledger, which makes him useful and miserable.
Marshal Dax Orin
Sulo. I know that name. Nobody sane likes owing him.
Tala turns the card between her fingers, and a pale holo-thread blooms above it, a banking sigil wrapped around a transit code.
Tala Quen
He works out of Nova Meridian, lower finance stack, under corporate supervision that pretends not to see him. He will have the access logs, if you can get him talking.
Dax finally steps away from the doorway, one hand braced against the wall as if the room has shifted under him. The name lands hard, but he keeps his voice level.
Marshal Dax Orin
If Sulo is laundering this, then the Annex is only the surface. Jade, that means somebody built a whole second spine under the accounting.
Tala slides the holo-card across the table toward Jade, calm as ever, her eyes never leaving Jade's face.
Tala Quen
Take it. If you want the banker, you start with his door.
✓ Quest Accepted
Confront Marek Sulo at the Nova Meridian finance stack
+ New Item Acquired
Holo-card with transit code
“I snatch the holo-card from the table and tuck it into my jacket. Then, I stand up and signal Dax that it is time to leave this lounge.”
SUCCESS (Great Agility, rolled +0)
Jade Blue snatches the holo-card cleanly off the table and slides it inside her jacket. The glowing code disappears against the dark fabric as she rises in one smooth motion.
She gives Dax a sharp, silent signal toward the door. He catches it at once, straightening off the wall and reaching for the room's exit.
Marshal Dax Orin
Now. Before Tala decides to make this expensive.
Tala Quen
You move quickly, Jade. I like that. It saves us both time.
Tala's fingers tap once on the drink cart, amused but measuring. The lounge lights hold steady, but the holo-card's absence leaves a small, sharp void on the table.
Marshal Dax Orin
We are leaving. If you have something else, say it now.
Dax shifts to Jade's side as if to escort or cover her, eyes flicking to the doorway. Tala does not block them, but her smile thins a fraction.
Tala Quen
Take the card and go, then. But if Marek Sulo asks who sent you, remember I offered you the shorter path.
“I head for the exit to reach Nova Meridian.”
SUCCESS (Great Agility, rolled -1)