MED WARD - BINETH HEALTH FACILITY - MOON BASE
It began with a ringing—then that familiar, annoying hum. It woke her up.
Plukett shot upright, instinct kicking in. Her first reflex was a fist—cracking into the jaw of an Auto-Med bot, sending it crashing into the sterile wall. Another bot froze mid-motion.
"Please, remain calm," it announced.
Plukett blinked. Her senses adjusted. A spotless, white medical bay. Vital signs hovered in holograms overhead. Her wounds? Gone. Laser-stitched to perfection, not a scar in sight. Except for one.
Her fingers grazed the blade-mark on her shoulder. Still there. A reminder. A warning.
She exhaled. Safe—for now. But not for long. He was coming.
The sliding door hissed open. Four ASM4s—Bineth's elite security drones—entered in formation, followed by the man himself:
General Hein Spade.
Director of Corporate Security and Containment at Bineth Globals. The man behind every clearance protocol, every lockdown, every "containment event." He was the reason Retributor Guilds flinched at shadows.
Mid-40s, silver-blonde hair in a rigid comb-back, a square jaw to match a square head. His blue-tinted shades never came off. Big nose. Thin mouth. A face only corporate nightmares could love.
Atsumori once called him "the devil's henchman." And if even Atsumori tread lightly around him, it meant something.
Spade wore a matte-black tailored suit. Clean. Efficient. Gloves always on. Smiles never present.
He didn't speak right away. Just waved. A flurry of holos shimmered to life. Footage: the crash. The attack. Four commandos. Plukett fighting the aug-commando Spyder. Every angle recorded.
He said nothing. Watching. Waiting.
Plukett shifted in discomfort.
"Before we go at this... can I get a cigarette?" she asked.
"No. Cigarettes are bad for you," Hein replied, voice flat.
"So is getting stabbed." She pulled one out anyway. Lit it.
He didn't flinch.
"I'm going to ask you a few questions," Hein said. "You will try to answer them truthfully. Bio-scans are active. For your sake, I suggest honesty."
He waved again. A different feed. Her visit with Dr. Lovelyn. They entered together. Minutes later, Lovelyn left alone.
"Why are you here?" Hein asked.
Plukett hesitated. Lying could cost her. Truth might be worse. This wasn't a man you deceived easily.
"I'm investigating a murder."
"Whose?"
"Cynthia Baflin."
"Who the hell is Cynthia Baflin?"
"Wife of Steven Baflin. Former Bineth scientist."
A beat. Was he pretending not to know?
"Who authorized this investigation? Atsumori?"
She paused again. Atsumori stayed far away from Spade, and she knew it.
"Not exactly. A month ago, one of our clients—LIDOS—reported the death of a scientist. Ian Cole. Also former Bineth. Close ties to Steven Baflin... and his wife. I was sent to talk to Cynthia. But someone else got there first. Different reasons, maybe."
Hein didn't interrupt. Her vitals spiked—barely. Not enough to trigger the deception protocol.
"And Dr. Lovelyn? Friend of Steven's too?" Hein asked.
Plukett nodded, forced a grin.
The story was forming. If she played it well, she could protect the others—and get Hein off her back.
"Why were you on that route?" he asked. "How did you know it existed? It's classified. Restricted. Who gave you that intel? Why engage?"
"Wrong place, wrong timing but Bad guys so don't really care for schedules," Plukett replied with a shrug. "I was out. Found a blockade. Picked a fight. Hero moment. Spontaneous, I guess."
"Bineth isn't on your cards, you said," he pressed.
"Not really. But I was bored."
She wrapped a thermal sheet over her half-naked form. Hein didn't look away. Not once. This wasn't a man, she thought. He was… something else.
"Since your arrival on Moon Base," Hein continued, "have you been in contact with anyone else—aside from Dr. Lovelyn?"
Trap question.
"Yeah. My ex," she said. "Great guy. Stalks me. Terrible communicator."
Her vitals stayed even. Hein studied her.
"I'll ask again," he said. "Have you been in contact with anyone else?"
Something flickered in his expression—fatigue or a feint?
"My conscience," she said with a grin. "Talks to me a lot lately."
Silence.
"The team you fought out there… you're lucky," Hein said coldly. "You've got one hour to leave Moon Base."
He turned. Walked out. The ASM4s followed.
Outside, he spoke into his comms:
" She knows something, Don't let her out of your sight. "