Even Stars Go Cold

Chapter 10 - Black On Black

First appearance of High Eagle.

Valeria Medway's eyes flitted across the three holovids, finding it was becoming both easier and harder to do the job.

On one side was the fact that there were fewer candidates, so the numbers were easier to manage; on the other, she knew more about the circumstances than before - and this left her with a difficult choice.

Medway had lost her children and her husband in the massacre of 2170. Losing her family could have broken her - most certainly, it shattered her heart - but she chose to fill the void with her work. It would never replace family but it was all she had, and better than nothing at all.

The idea of going through the whole dating game again held no appeal for her. She felt old and world-weary. All her affection had been spent on her family. When she looked in the mirror, she could no longer see what anyone might find attractive about her rotund features, where once she might have been considered at least handsome. After a while, though she could not say when, she stopped looking - it was no longer important to her from the perspective of a life partner.

What really drew her focus and energy was the idea that the disasters that had befallen Mindoir were preventable; and she worked extremely hard towards achieving that goal.

The whole situation disturbed her psyche. She had known that Director Emile Grover had sanctioned the program, of course; until the meeting at VocadPharma she had not had an inkling of how far Project Phoenix went, or what it entailed. Although she had the highest iridium security clearance, she had not had cause to be read in; the program was strictly on a "need to know'' basis.

Grover, his hands seemingly full of other issues, had devolved much of his responsibilities to his assistant. He was less present around the office, mostly checking in through flatvid calls and emails.

It was a promotion without title or pay, and it felt to Medway as if a target was being painted on her back. If anything were to go wrong, even though she had come to the game at the last minute, she felt sure she would be held accountable. It was in her interests to be in the best position to protect herself from any potential fallout; ensuring the program worked was no small part of that.

Countering all that was the assistant Director's discomfort about the way the whole thing had been set up. It only grew as she unearthed the history leading to the situation in which she and the colony on Mindoir now found themselves.

–*--

To understand the present, Medway had to go back decades - nearly a century.

With her newly extended access, she had delved deep to learn the backstory of Project Phoenix, the operation for which she was now responsible. It made for quite the disturbing review.

Before the end of the twenty-first century, genetic engineering of Human subjects began in earnest. It operated on two levels: direct modification and eugenics. While on the face of it they were noble goals for the advancement of the species, the methods and motives thereafter became questionable.

Some individuals considered themselves more enlightened than anyone else. These were certain bureaucrats, corporate leaders and scientists who came together in a perfect storm. Nudging Human development along seemed acceptable, to those with wider understanding of the potential hazards from the black of space.

The Protectorate Program, the public facing aspect of the operation, was the subject of huge investment; largely on the back of public support. The various National Administrations talked up the need for defence spending, vigilance and the need for all citizens of Earth to go offworld. No-one wanted to be left behind when it came to exploiting the riches of the solar system or merely escaping Earth's failing ecosphere. This built a case for dipping into the various tax-payer's purses, but it was still very much fragmented, and exploration of the Sol system was limited by national efforts.