The grand observation salon aboard the Sovereign Aurora was quiet, hovering high above the twinkling festival lights of the Taichu Astral Hub.
Through the curved panoramic crystal windows, the twin moons cast a soft silver glow over the starlight promenade. Down on the surface, the joyous music of five billion celebrating citizens drifted up through the atmospheric dampers like a gentle murmur.
Lin Mo stood at the head of the polished obsidian conference table.
Around the table sat thirteen people who had stood by Taichu through every trial: Su Wan, Chu Lingxiao, Grandma Chen, Little Guo’er, Tie Niu, Dr. Gu Qinghe, Shen Qiaoqiao, Master Lu Jian, Xing Yao, Old Granite, Elder Mo, Admiral Kui, and Qin Haoran.
Qin Haoran sat at the far end of the long table, his hands folded neatly in his lap. He checked his wrist-comm every thirty seconds, making sure his moral score had not dipped below 81.5. He was wearing his best formal suit, though the cuffs were still slightly worn from earlier street-cleaning inspections.
Old Granite had taken a high-speed courier shuttle from Planet #44 just to make the meeting. His stone hand rested heavily on the table, still smelling faintly of fried wontons and machine oil. Beside him, Admiral Kui sat with his heavy sea-coat unbuttoned, his rough salt-and-pepper beard twitching as he examined the holographic star charts.
