In the Halls of the Administration

During the Second Reform, Gyraci astronomers in orbit above Mehkiaz turned their telescopes towards a star system previously obscured from the Gani system by another star.

At the time of the system's discovery, Triani VI was on the far side of its parent star and there was not enough time to observe the system in totality from Mehkiaz. As a result, the Gyraci Stellar Commonwealth was only interested in the system for the mining and production possibilities, to replace Gani II, which had recently begun developments towards becoming a population hub.

When the wormgate connection was finally established shortly after the signing of the Adherency Document, Congruency science vessels had a chance to fully examine the system without the issues of stellar obstruction. The prospects were awesome, for they had found not only two terrestrials ripe for mining, but a super-terrestrial with nearly identical atmospheric composition and gravity to that of the Gyraci homeworld of Gyrakarr.

Attention was diverted from Gani II to this new world, and the first Kerhian administrator was elected to lead the colonization effort. It was several years before infrastructure in the system was deemed sufficient and transitioning to Triani VI was permitted for the public.

* * * * *

The ship was safely positioned in geostationary orbit above Triani VI, its escort continuing orbit to the other side of the world as two frigates peeled away from the planetary defense fleet to replace them at the wormhole array. A small squadron of gunship landing craft had been waiting near the space elevator, prepared to ferry the crew planetside.

The landers were elegant in appearance and reasonably complex in function, combining various Gyraci manufacturers' ethics to create formidable aerospace vehicles. On their bellies were four thrusters mounted on the ship by ball-turrets, capable of a wide range of motion and positioned in a rhombus pattern, with one fore, one aft, and one to either side. This arrangement, long with several other ball-turreted slugthrowers, gave the teardrop shaped craft an almost pincushion appearance.

They docked with the frigate belly-side out, extending atmospheric tubes to connect with the airlocks. Marines floated through the hatches, sweeping the surrounding halls before allowing the crew to float through the tubes and fasten themselves in the landers' seats. The crew was divided up among four landers, with one more offloading a skeleton crew to replace them.

The crew and their escorts sat in silence on the gunships as they departed planetside, anxiety finally overwhelming many of them.

When the craft landed, the crew stepped off and found themselves on the upper levels of the Triani VI central administration building, a large structure of white and red with domes and pillars all around. A medical team was waiting to treat the captain, and while they were, Llaga spoke with one of the administrator's courtiers, pointing out certain crew members before returning the group.

At last, the administrator herself arrived, a slightly pale Gyraci whose voice was soft and whose eyes made demands. A dozen marines were escorting her, standing a few meters to either side. She made eye contact with no one but the Vathari, stopping barely two steps away.

"What is your name?"

"I am Olaron Valmar, of the Vathari Communate." He said to the Gyraci who had spoken, one who held the stance of leadership.
"I came to know your people on the planet Crathon, when a ship jumped into its atmosphere and crashed on a nearby shore. I went to their aid, and befriended them. My people repaired the ship, and lifted it into orbit, allowing the ship's crew to activate the ring."

"Now, I come as a visitor to your world, in the hopes that the friendships I made on a storm-wracked wasteland will give rise to the triumph that is the bond between nations that exist in peace together among the stars. I am honored to have the chance to speak these words, especially in the language of a people so different, yet so similar, to my own."

"Olaron Valmar, I am Tiaret of the Setif family, present administrator of Triani VI. I am pleased, honored, and humbled to be the one to welcome you for all of the Congruency today." Her words were rehearsed, carried by a voice higher pitched than the Gyraci Olaron had met on the ship. She seemed less enthusiastic than Oran or Llorem had been, but less nervous as well. Calm, not grudging or xenophobic.

Her tone changed with the greeting formalities out of the way, and the corners of her mouth stretched back a moment in what the Vathari would know as a Gyraci smile, however queer the sight. "An accident planted the seed of friendship that bloomed in the storm, but I feel the mishap will only bring our civilizations closer. May we share the stars together like loure and teszet, Olaron."

And with those words, the party departed from the landing pad, led by Administrator Tiaret, with the Gyraci crew bringing up the rear and Olaron, Oran, Llorem, and Llaga in the center of the formation. On either side, the group was flanked by guards, with most of their numbers near the administrator. They wore rigid ballistic vests, cut off at the shoulders and abdomen, dyed yellow. The soldiers' heads were protected with blue facemasks, leaving the back of the head exposed, and their necks were likewise vulnerable from the back, with a long segmented plate covering the front. The last of their seemingly light armor was wrapped around their thighs, with the same visual texture and structure of the vests, and plates not dissimilar to the neck guards on the Gyraci's pelvises.

Beyond them, on either side, most of the city could be seen. Closest to the building on which the party stood, the landscape was dominated by rectangular white buildings with red outlines, topped with domes and supported with ornate pillars. Further out, the horizon became more industrial, with shipping yards for both land and air, simple military barracks dotted along the low walls surrounding the city.

The gunship lifted off as they entered the building, the smell of exhaust only reaching the rearmost members of the Gyraci parade as the large doors closed behind them. The halls were unusually silent, and as they walked, pairs of guards would slow their pace enough to fall to the back of the group, and upon looking again, one would see that crew members were missing. Oran and Llorem remained silent until another pair of guards began to slow, and the two saw no one behind them.

Glancing at each other, the pair of Gyraci stopped abruptly, and the guards did as well, turning to face them.

Olaron marveled at the Gyraci city. The architecture followed the same principals that Vathari structures did -he doubted that the Gyraci could alter physics, of course- but the ways they were executed were more artful, detailed, even for such practical buildings as offices. He pegged this to a more diverse design lineage, after all, the majority of architecture in the Communate ultimately descended from the practical and efficient structures built by the waning civilization of their ancestors. As the Vathari spread and grew they had added their touches, but in the end, the influences remained.

As the group was led into the entrance hall, Olaron began a more detailed inspection of the structure as they walked, and it was not just a visual one. From just the sounds of his feet on the hard floor, Olaron could use the reflections and vibrations of the sounds to map the room, picking out objects of interest while also discerning the different sounds each individual foot made from the others. He was careful, however, to turn his eyes and head about as he looked closely at features he found of interest. A darting and memorizing approach would be more efficient, but he did not want to risk alienating his already quite alien hosts.

It was with this rather inconspicuous sonar that he noticed the dwindling of the crowd behind him, without having to even spare a glance back. Indeed, he thought it possible that the Gyraci assumed he hadn't noticed, given how absorbed he appeared to be in the hall's design. He turned to Tiaret the moment he felt Oran and Llorem stop with a pair of guards.

"Administrator" He paused, in part for effect. "Is there something amiss?" He gestured slightly behind him, shrugging a shoulder towards Oran, Llorem, and the now empty hall.

"Not at all. Why do you ask?" Tiaret turned, her loose fit clothing swishing just above the marble floor. Her hands disappeared behind her when she faced Olaron, brushing against the outer layer of silk as she reached into a hidden pocket disguised by the design of her robes. The two guards closest to her had slightly uplifted the barrels of their rifles in their tensing, while the ones behind Olaron moved between him and the two civilians.

The Gyraci rifles had a bullpup design, with most of the mechanisms close to the stock, leaving the barrel largely untouched. A rectangular magazine was loaded into the rifle from the back, sliding into a hollow at the top. Below the loading mechanism, the stock was mostly structural, with a large battery port on the underside. The main grip was built into the stock, designed to accommodate the large hands and dual thumbs of the Gyraci, with another grip a short distance up the barrel. The barrel itself was smooth and round, only broken up by the grip and long rectangular protrusions that ran along the sides to serve as heat radiators.

These rifles, while thin and uncluttered in design, were large and fearsome to even the Gyraci wielding them, with a butt to barrel tip length of over a meter.

"Administrator, I am unfamiliar with your culture, so do realize that I mean no offense in what I am to say."
"Among my people it is customary to greet a guest with openness and hospitality. For most of this visit I believe you have presented both qualities in excellent form. However, the events which occurred in this hall leave me with some doubt. I have observed in full detail the steady removal of personnel. Additionally, the actions of Oran and Llorem seem consistent with what I have documented of nervous behaviors among your species."

"If this is a simple misunderstanding, I will let this incident pass. Yet, due to its deviant, and indeed, deceptive nature, I feel it prudent to request a high threshold of proof that I am mistaken. From my position, these actions seem quite threatening, and I am bound by Communate law to voice these concerns, Administrator Tiaret."

Silence followed Olaron's words, and everyone seemed tense except the Gyraci administrator and the Vathari diplomat. 

With a bob of her head, Tiaret turned, her hands dropping from the pockets before Olaron could see it. A moment later, the Gyraci guards in their yellow vests left Oran and Llorem, stepping quickly to join the administrator. Oran and Llorem themselves stood still until Tiaret called out without turning or stopping.

"If you intend to join us, it would be wise to keep up."

A short walk later brought them to their apparent destination. A pair of large doors, rich red and wooden, blocked their path until Tiaret gestured and the doors swung open, seemingly under her will. The room was made of the same white stone as the rest of the building, occupied by the same dark, wooden furniture, with the same domed ceiling as the hallway intersections. The key difference was the scale. The room was massive, large enough to fit a Gyraci fusion generator comfortably within. The design was practical, as well. The acoustics allowed a well projected voice to carry easily through the room. Intricate chairs were placed carefully around the room in front of small desks, all of it arranged in a semi-circle facing a single raised desk made of red and white marble. 

The administrator seated herself at the desk, and the guards stood off to the sides of the first row. Tiaret gestured to the desks closest to hers and waited as the Gyraci seated themselves, looking to Olaron as they did.