Chapter 163 Insecure

• “I think I finally have the answer.”
• The only sound in the Data Center was the quiet whoosh-whoosh of the circulation fans in the wall opposite the open door. Tall magenta cylinders lined one hewn rock wall, with a bank of screens and terminals along the opposite; there was seating for twenty-four operators, but Falling-Leaf was the only one present on Shift Three at the moment. Her grey eyes widened when the realization hit her, and one hand patted her forehead instinctively in surprise. Her hair was silvery-blonde which she kept trimmed to a length of six inches…any more would interfere with helmet-wear when she did Topside inspections on the Tycho Dome. She sub-voced the Second’s name and her transceiver implant sent the signal to her mate.
• “Green-Fawn, Answer Request, Level Orange-2.” That designation would tell him that the matter was important, but not an imminent threat or concern for the residents of Tycho Deep, as the subsurface warren was named. The name had come from the early deep-water ocean settlements on the continental shelves, and was adopted by the communities that lived off-planet. Space stations had proven to be unreliable and provided insufficient protection to their inhabitants for long-term living—and so been among the first fully-automated posts in the Three Worlds. She sat up straighter when the chime in her ear went off.