Out of Character:
The monitor turned on, and the black screen turned to static. White snow cast a glow on the small room for a moment, but it was soon replaced by a scene of a large room with a high ceiling, pillars adorning the walls and large, metallic desks separating two groups of diplomats. One group was wearing black robes with crimson stripes, indicative of The Theocratic Empire of Salvar, and the other group sporting white robes with green crosses, a telltale sign of The Republic of Raiaera. The drow and humans on the Salvaran side were in a heated argument, while the high elves of Raiaera tried to calm them down.
The space station, located in neutral space between all of the nations, held the meeting site for diplomatic negotiation. There was only one warp gate into the dead, single-star system, and it was guarded by cruisers from all of the nations, filled to the brim with inspectors and soldiers. No communication devices were allowed in the station, nor were weapons or any unauthorized items. The diplomats were there alone to discuss matters of high security, the information so sensitive that the the only cameras allowed to record were old, analog video devices that would only later reach the eyes of the galactic leaders.
Tensions between Salvar and Raiaera had reached a head over the skirmishes along their border worlds. With the discovery of an advanced form of terraforming, many planets that were previous uninhabitable were now able to support life, and the nations were quick to plant colonies on any they could find, causing old rivalries to flare up among the people. There were also the Preservations; luscious green planets in Raiaeran space with rare species that Salvar claimed could be homes for Raiaerans in their planet ships instead of attempting to grab up all of the colonies. Raiaera also had issues with the rapid deployment of new battleships in Salvaran airspace, claiming that the empire was gearing up for war.
These issues, among others, were being discussed at the highest level, with hopes of a solution that avoided bloodshed. Already most of the galaxy had been rendered desolate by past conflicts, and the rest of the nations would not tolerate new aggression. Whoever started a war would find themselves alone in the universe.
The monitor started to artifact, the images on the screen being distorted slightly, and then it returned to normal in time for a scene unheard of in diplomatic relations: Violence. The Salvaran diplomats, without any seeming enticement, assaulted the Raiaerans.
A man pressed a button next to the monitor and it turned to black once again. He was a representative of The Galactic League, which was an organization dedicated to facilitating peace between the nations, decorated with medals and enforcer of security in this neutral space. He wore a gray military uniform, a beret, and various electronic devices were wrapped around his middle-aged ears, feeding him status updates from around the system. The room was filled with monitors, wires, and chairs, although nobody was using them, the only light from a dull fluorescent lamp on the ceiling.
In a gruff voice, he said, "You can imagine how the rest of that went. A bunch of bodies and blood stains, not a single one of them left alive." The displeasure in his voice was evident. Across from him stood two individuals, one of them not quite alive in the technical sense.
Designed for archeological excavation and identification, R-series Type X56 'Rhythm' was an android with short, messy white hair and a purple jumpsuit. The irises in his bright green eyes fluctuated in size, tiny numbers and graphs appearing in them with a set of tiny lights. Having incredible observational and deductive skills, he was repurposed to a more investigative role, assigned by The Galactic League to handle high priority detective work for all of the nations.
He stood with arms crossed and a bored look on his face, sighing before saying, "Is that it? A bunch of diplomats decided to beat people to death?"
A voice came from his side, "Rhythm? Diplomats generally wouldn't hurt a fly, you know." Wearing a typical gray shirt and pants with a white overcoat, this man was Rhythm's partner, Dorian Sesthal, descended from one of the few survivors of the destruction of planet Sesthal from a particularly gruesome war. He had medium length black hair and deep blue eyes, and despite being the human, he was the more mild-mannered of the two.
"Unless that fly happened to be wearing a white robe with a funny accent. Is there anything else you have on this, General?"
The General slammed his fist into the monitor, "Take this seriously, android! The very faith in the competency of the League is in jeopardy thanks to this! Somehow these murderers got out of this space station without a ship, and now they're nowhere to be found in the entire system!"
"Without a ship?" asked Dorian.
"The embassy vessel is still docked. We've searched every inch of the station, and they're gone. We haven't released any information to the nations yet, but you can imagine the shitstorm."
"Boring," Rhythm yawned, an function wholly intentional since androids did not need to yawn. "Ejected themselves into space with some propulsion, probably reached the star by now. You dragged me out here all the way for this?"
Dorian raised a brow, "Is that really your conclusion."
"Unless I'm allowed to actually investigate the crime scene instead of looking at an altered video, sure, why not."
"Altered?" wondered the General.
"There's a few breaks in the video, hardly noticeable, where some time passes. Could be a few seconds, or a few hours. Or the whole thing could be a red herring and the recording just sucks. Either way, I want to see the damn bodies."
"No way they're letting you get anywhere close to them. They've already been removed from the scene."
"Very professional," quipped Rhythm. "And how did you idiots let the Raiaerans be the first responders, anyway? Isn't that your job?"
"The Raiaeran ship was the closest to the scene."
"Why were they already in the area? Did they know something was up?"
"I don't know... wait, I'm getting a message." He pressed his hand to his ears and nodded, and then his jaw hung loose from his face. "This is... it can't be..."
"What is it?" asked Dorian.
The General shook his head, "They found the Salvaran diplomats... in a detention center in Raiaeran airspace. All dead."
Rhythm smiled, "Okay, now I'm interested in the case."
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