_Halreed Costacurta

_Planet Caldinus I / General Duvalle Military Hospital - Parking Lot / Inside CIB Custom Hover-van

Cigarette smoke slowly wafted inside the vehicle. Halreed Costacurta watched in silence as the plumes lazily drifted up with pursed lips and narrowed eyes - his brows knitted in worry.

He put out the half finished stick and tossed it into the covered tray built under the dashboard. He then reached into his pocket and fished out an encrypted comm device. He pulled up the only listed contact it had on the screen and made a call.

The other end picked up almost immediately.

It was a woman with long, lustrous ocean blue hair. It flowed gracefully down creamy shoulders, which were exposed due to her style of dress. She wore a bewitching smile which rivaled that of Halreed's unruly subordinate, and perhaps easily surpassed it as well.

"Why, hello there Hal. What seems to be the matter?" asked a melodious voice which came from the stunning visage. Halreed stared fixedly at the image on screen with a neutral expression.

"Just one question." he began. "Was it you who baited those 'pirates' out?"

The beautiful woman's smile deepened. "Why would you think that?"

Halreed drew a deep breath and composed himself. He always had to, whenever he talked to the woman on the other side of the screen. She gave off a strange sense of intimidation, despite her angelic countenance. 

The only other woman Halreed saw this quality in was his subordinate, Nightingale. In her case, it was mostly due to her time spent in the battlefield while serving in one of the best mercenary corps which operated within Confederation territory. This was before she had joined the CIB.

But the woman he was speaking over the comm with right now was different. 

She held a storied career and a preeminent status.

She was the step-daughter of the current Grand Archon, and had built a vast business empire which ended up spearheading many industries within the Confederation. When she later married the Confederation's richest man, their combined assets towered over the rest like an unassailable giant. 

She was Selena Vaughn Elmeth - arguably the most powerful woman within the entire Solaris Confederation.

The influence she commands is immense, and even a casual comment from her could either let one directly ascend to the heavens or plunge deep into the bowels of hell.

"That incident was highly irregular. There's no way they could have pulled it off without some help from this side. And they wouldn't risk making such a big move just to cause some friction within the upper ranks by acting like murderous terrorists. Just what did you have the Kestrel transport?" Hal probed.

"One of the [L.D.F.] relics in our possession." Selena flatly replied.

"Are you fucking out of your damn mind, Selena?!!!" Hal exclaimed in anger and disbelief.

The [L.D.F.] relics held extreme significance for both the Solaris Confederation and the Greater Arcthanius Emperium. Conflicts regarding their custody was one of the main sources of animosity between them. 

To use one as bait just to lure out a hidden hostile force lurking within Confederation territory was pure folly; if not downright crazy.

"I needed to know how far they've gone regarding the integration of knowledge and technology from the 'outer' plane to this one. It seemed like a perfect opportunity to do so." 

"And besides, it also dealt a blow to those old goats hankering for a reduction in the military budget and the resumption of negotiations with the Emperium. Just one or two [L.D.F.] relics don't really serve much purpose to us anyway, so I just went and put one of them to good use."

She explained it all so naturally, in a calm and serene voice with a slightly singsong lilt. It was as if all the lives lost didn't even matter to her at all.

Halreed was left speechless. 'You damn heartless demoness!' he inwardly cursed.

"Why are you really so agitated, Hal? This isn't like you. An event like this is nothing compared to what the [War Drakes] had done years ago." Selena probed back. Hal's face twisted in a grimace.

"Oh, I see." Selena smirked. "You're mad about Natsume's son, aren't you? You're such a worrywart. I did make sure to send in some insurance, so he should be okay though. Is there anything wrong with him? Just tell me, and I'll make sure to arrange for whatever he needs." 

"SELENA!!!—" Halreed screamed in rage.

"What is it, Hal?" Selena asked as she continued to display a bewitching smile - seemingly unperturbed by the sudden outburst.

Halreed clenched his teeth in frustration at her apparent nonchalance. 

"Look, Leena. I've known the kid since he was in diapers. He might not remember us much, but we've always kept in touch with each others families after the Drakes disbanded. Brothers and sisters in life and death. It was the same then, and it still is now!" 

"I don't know what kind of shit you got Max and Natsume involved with. I don't know how Ryuu got mixed up in it as well. I felt there was something going on, but I didn't pry because Max didn't really say anything, and I respected that. But look at what fucking happened! YOU GOT THEM KILLED!!!"

Halreed's eyes turned red. He vented all the rage he'd bottled up ever since he received the news of his former comrades death.

"I agreed to work for you because I wanted to find out the truth about what happened to us. I couldn't really let it go, unlike the rest of them. But this is the last draw. If something happens to Ryuu and Rin as well, I swear Leena... No matter what stands in my way, I'll hunt you down and put a bullet right through your pretty little head!" he exclaimed; ending his tirade with a chilling threat.

"...It's been a long time since you actually called me 'Leena', Hal."

"You—"

"Hal." Selena interrupted. Her expression changed to that of grave seriousness. "I've told you the gist of what's to come. What I'm doing is all in preparation for that. So much is at stake here. For 'both' planes."

"I won't make excuses about my methods. But I still need your help. After all this is over, I swear my life is yours for the taking if you want to. That is, if I'm still alive when that point arrives." she implored.

Halreed closed his eyes and took deep breaths to calm himself down. When he opened them again, he saw Selena looking at him while smiling calmly as usual. He clicked his tongue bitterly.

...

"When will you be arriving?" he finally asked, after a short silence which came over the two of them.

"Probably after seventy two standard Confederation hours or so. He should be fully recovered by then." Selena replied.

"Mm." 

Halreed nodded curtly and cut the call. He slumped powerlessly on the driver's seat. 

A knocking sound then came from the side window of the van. It was Nightingale. Halreed quickly let her in.

"How was it?" 

"She's fine. She went downtown to make a call and arrange for her things to be sent over. I left Gibbs and the rest to stand guard. No trace of anyone planning anything nasty so far."

"Mm."

"What's wrong Chief? You look glum." Nightingale asked in concern.

"Too much overtime work." Halreed blandly replied. 

Nightingale looked unconvinced, but chose not to pry further. The two sat in the van in silence.