Massive Disaster 4 - Interlude II

VI.

The logo turned on its axis, the captive nebula of holographic projection points bright, sleek and stunning in an electric blue hue. A silent perpetual motion, the stylized symbol of the revolutionary young corporation, revolved in the air above the elegant silver of a podium bearing the same imagery.

The events of today were one of special note, the first major announcement from the company itself, since the attack on its headquarters on the colonial planet Arkadia IV. Many throughout the galaxy were wondering exactly what this rumored ‘special announcement’ could be, and a large subset among those many were hoping the genius inventor heading the company was finally making a foray into more… offensive innovations.

Dozens and dozens of reporters from all across the galaxy sat quiet in the room, eagerly waiting for the press release to commence.

Each one of them had questions ready, soundbites to clip, and stories to spin; their own individual employers having their own agenda and idea of what made news. Regardless, it was more than clear (especially from the daggers several were shooting rival pressers) that none of them were going to miss the chance for a new story like this.

Definitely not one that had a major chance in spiking the tech market.

After what felt like hours of waiting, movement on the stage had the members of the press sitting up straighter. A few seconds passed, the spotlights adjusting, and a woman stepped out from the left side of the stage.

A human woman in a black pantsuit, young enough that she stood out as odd; her skin was a light shade of caramel that the lighting from above seemed to flatter, the specific harsh blue of before diffusing as it shone down on her. All corporate confidence and control, her walk to the podium was completed in several long strides, a datapad in her hands, as she crossed the chasm towards the gathered reporters. Small as she was, the woman still managed to present the perfect picture of poise, a faint smile on her lips.

Many familiar with VI recognized the face, and for those who didn’t recall her name, they didn’t have to wait long at all. The holographic logo floating high above her head shifted, a chyron with her name and title sliding in front of the large blue letters.

NINA HERRA - Chief Communications Officer

"There is no benefit in isolation. No individual can survive on their own and no colony or settlement can thrive without communication. For too long," her expression shifted, jaw tightening as she stared out at the gathered press and drones broadcasting this across a dozen extranet channels. “Independent colonies scattered throughout the Attican Traverse and within the Terminus Systems have been exactly that. Isolated.”

The COO leaned forward slightly, hands gripping the edge of the podium. “The usual line is what you’ve all heard; ‘this is the price of freedom’. The cost of standing on your own, the price of being outside the shadow of the Citadel.”

Herra shook her head, brown hair bouncing with the motion as she stared out over her glasses, the blue tint of the lens making it clear they were of VI make. "A price you no longer have to pay.”

The hologram above her shifted, one hand rising into the air as both the eyes of the press and the lens of the drones tilted upwards to take in the holographic image of a gleaming, silver satellite rotating slowly against the black of space. “Victory Innovations is proud to announce our latest and greatest leap forward in galactic communications, the ‘VI-Connect’ Initiative.”

Luminous, electric-blue lines of light erupted from the central hub of the satellite, a nervous system for a body politic that had none before. Those lines expanded out throughout a map of what seemed to be the Traverse, each one connecting dozens of colony icons, ultimately forming a patterned web of blue light that expanded outwards to show…

The spinning VI logo once again.

“Mr. Victor's breakthrough in quantum entanglement communication, the QE-Connect, has seen a resounding success in both testing an implementation,” her expression drifted upwards from severe professional to smiling spokesperson. “It is now, especially in times of rising threats to specific colonial systems, that Victory Innovations is choosing to offer every independent human colony a chance to join a new network. A human network.” 

The words hung in the air as her smile only brightened. “Instantaneous communication with no chance of interception and direct connection to other colonial systems; encrypted end to end with VI-grade security protocols. No being left out in the cold without calling for help, no more inability to speak and see your family and friends lightyears away; No. More. Isolation.”

A turian rose from his seat, the alien’s polished mandibles and even more polished suit, both his actions and his appearance making it very clear that he wasn’t the type to ask for permission, let alone forgiveness. “Valerius Tancicus, Citadel News Network. Your words and the actions of your company seem a direct challenge to the Citadel's authority and a flagrant violation of the Citadel Communications Accord ratified after the First Contact War. Is this so?”

“Mr. Tancicus, thank you for the question. It’s always a pleasure to hear from the Citadel’s finest even when they speak without being called on.” Even as she said it, though, the smile didn’t reach her eyes, gaze locked firmly on the Turian. “But let me be clear: the Terminus and Traverse are not part of the Citadel’s territory. After all, that is the cost of being a colony. Whatever the Citadel feels is a challenge to their authority can be argued and discussed until everyone is tired of the topic, but what we all know for a fact is that out here they have none.”

Her words sent a ripple through the press corps, murmurs loud enough to reach the mics on the camera drones; in density, if not in specificity.

“We at Victory Innovations, believe in the opinions of our founder, Chief Research Head and CEO… specifically, that every colony and settlement has the right to speak and be heard; instantly and securely,” Herra continued on as Tancicus took his seat again, the turian clearly displeased. “There is no challenge to the Citadel because the Citadel is not here to be challenged. VI does not see how the Council can see empowerment of territory it makes no attempt to control as a threat.” The COO tilted her head, gaze turning to a human raising her hand in the crowd. “Yes, you.”

“Anya Sharma, Traverse Today,” a dark-skinned young woman in a simple fitted bodysuit rose to her feet, staring down at her recording omnitool, “Ms. Herra, the people will want to know, what are the terms? A revolution in communications like this… what’s the catch, especially for more established colonies like Elysium or Nueva York?”

“Well, of course, everyone in the frontier understands that there’s no such thing as a free lunch, right?” Ms Herra answered back, smile still on her face. “What we’re looking at regarding contracts are decently straightforward, largely transparent and available for public review on our extranet site as of right… now.”

The blue lines above twisted and turned once again as she raised a finger skyward, a simplified infographic showing a planet with one of the previously shown satellites orbiting around it. “VI’s hardware, our transmitters, receivers, infrastructure and the high-grade security to protect it… all of that will be provided on our end and on our dime, even down to installation, maintenance and upgrades. All of it. In return,” the smile brightened a little more as the woman leaned forward, “our partnered colonies provide our corporation and headquartered planet exclusive resource and trade agreements. We are a business and we want to do business. It’s just in our interest for our clients to stay alive, healthy and functioning.”

“You talk of ‘human networks’!” A third voice barked out from the back; severe, harsh, and accented in a particular way, very few were surprised as they turned their heads to see a gruff-looking batarian being the one to bellow out. Four eyes stared toward the stage, all of them at once glaring down at the young woman in collective judgement the way only Batarians could deliver. “What of the batarian colonies? The volus settlements? Are they not also ‘forgotten’ by your Citadel?”

“An excellent point.” The COO didn’t miss a beat. “Phase One of our initiative is focused on the human colonies of the Traverse, later to expand into the Terminus. It’s a matter of logistics, of compatible infrastructure, and most importantly… cooperation. These colonies have agreements with ours or are working toward such. While Victory Innovations would like to see a connected galaxy, it must be understood that we are not a charity. We are first, and foremost, a business. However, Victory is for everyone.” 

The smile shifted to show a grin, wider and more dangerous than the simple spokeswoman smile as she showed teeth. "Patience. We’ll get to you.”

– o – o – o – o – o – o – o –

‘NEXUSFLOW’ - Citadel Social Feed]

• @ValeriusTancicus_CNN [✓]

  • Outright defiance, disrespecting standards and order. Direct and unprecedented affront to the means and methods of stability keeping the galaxy intact. Open and deliberate insubordination should be met with open and immediate retribution.

  • @CouncillorTevos_Official [✓] [REPLY] 

    • While the Citadel Council acknowledges the enthusiasm surrounding this development, implications of sedition and aggression are not to be tolerated. We ask all parties to steady their responses as the matter is under review.

  • @Sira_Kallene [QUOTE]

    • Who’s reviewing it? Please, the human said what she said. You can’t try and review a matter you don’t have authority over. Kinda respect it, though.

• @HumanityFirst_HQ

  • A human org doing what needs to be done. What the lazy ALLIANCE could NEVER: putting humanity FIRST. Human tech, human network, human worlds! Time to cut the cord! #VIConnect #HumanityFirst #TerraFirma

• @DrAlenya_L’ion

  • Fascinating technology, undeniably so. A clear paradigm shift even, if the specs I’m seeing are in any way accurate. Expecting to reach parity with this development any time soon would be unlikely. However, deploying it as a privatized, species-specific network is deeply troubling to galactic unity. A dangerous precedent.