Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

C lover

The biolock scanner hummed as it read my palm print, its blue light casting an ethereal glow across my skin. Even after five years on Nexus Prime, these daily security protocols still felt foreign as a constant reminder that I wasn't on Earth anymore. The diplomatic headquarters' lobby stretched before me, a cathedral of chrome and crystalline surfaces that seemed to reach endlessly upward.

"Good morning, Delegate Belk," the AI system chimed. "You're earlier than usual today."

I managed a tight smile at the ceiling, though I knew the AI didn't need the visual acknowledgment. "Big day ahead, ARIA. Can't afford any surprises."

If only I'd known then how wrong I was about that last part.

I made my way across the lobby, my heels clicking against the polished floor in a rhythm that matched my racing heartbeat. Human and cyborg diplomats moved through the space like separate streams of water, never quite mixing. The tension was real and had been for weeks now, but today it felt different. Heavier.

My hand instinctively reached for the pen in my jacket pocket, fingers wrapping around its familiar surface. The same pen I'd been holding five years ago in Geneva, when everything had gone wrong. The memory hit me like a physical force, and I had to steady myself against a nearby pillar.

The screaming. The flash of weapons. Mitch's body crumpled to the ground. My voice, hoarse from shouting, trying to restore order as the peace talks dissolved into chaos.

"Delegate Belk?" A gentle touch on my arm pulled me back to the present. I turned to find Dr. Chen, one of our senior human representatives, looking at me with concern. "Are you alright?"

I straightened, squaring my shoulders and sliding back into my diplomatic persona like a well-worn coat. "Of course, just reviewing some treaty points in my head. The neural integration clauses are particularly complex."

She nodded, but I caught the flicker of doubt in her eyes. "Indeed. We're all feeling the pressure. The cyborg delegation has been particularly resistant to our latest proposals."

"They have legitimate concerns," I said, perhaps too quickly. Dr. Chen's eyebrows rose slightly, and I modulated my tone. "But I'm confident we can find common ground. That's why we're here, after all."

As Dr. Chen moved away, I ducked into my office, needing a moment to collect myself. The room was exactly as I'd left it the night before with datapads scattered across my desk, holographic treaty drafts hovering in the air, casting their soft blue glow across the space. I sank into my chair, closing my eyes.

"You've got this, Clover," I whispered to myself. "You're not in Geneva anymore. You're stronger now. Smarter." I pulled out my notebook, thumbing through pages of observations and insights I'd gathered over the past months. "You won't let anyone down this time."

The treaty documents floated before me as I activated the holographic display. Hundreds of pages of carefully crafted language, each word a potential landmine in the delicate dance between human and cyborg relations. I'd spent countless nights poring over these texts, searching for the perfect phrases that would bridge the gap between organic and synthetic minds.

My datapad chirped, displaying an incoming message from the Secretary General's office. As I reached for it, the building's AI system suddenly came to life.

"Attention all diplomatic personnel," ARIA's voice echoed through the building. "Please be advised of an incoming priority arrival. Delegate Syntax-7 of the Cyborg Collective will be joining today's negotiations as chief representative."

My blood ran cold. Syntax-7 was a legend in diplomatic circles as brilliant, uncompromising, and notorious for dismantling human negotiators. They said he could process seventeen different negotiation strategies simultaneously while reading micro-expressions with perfect accuracy. And no one had told me he was coming.

The pen in my hand stilled its nervous dance as I processed this information. Outside my office, I heard the buzz of voices rising, human and synthetic alike, all discussing this unexpected development. My datapad chirped again, this time with an urgent message from Goernx:

We need to talk. Before he arrives. Secure location. -G

I stared at the message, my mind racing. Goernx had never requested a private meeting before, and had always maintained strict professional boundaries. Whatever had prompted this had to be serious. The question was: could I trust him?

The Geneva memories tried to surface again with the trust misplaced, warnings ignored, lives lost, but I pushed them back. I was different now. This was different. I had to believe that, or I'd never be able to do my job.

I grabbed my notebook and stood, straightening my jacket. Through my office windows, I could see the morning sun reflecting off the cityscape of Nexus Prime, the towering spires reaching toward the rose-gold sky like mechanical fingers grasping at hope. Somewhere out there, Syntax-7 was approaching, bringing with him who knew what complications to our already fragile negotiations were .

But first, I had a meeting with Goernx to handle. And something told me that whatever he had to say would change everything.

As I headed for the door, my reflection in the window showed my blonde hair perfectly coiled, blue eyes sharp with determination, shoulders back with practiced confidence. The image of a perfect diplomat. But underneath, my heart was pounding with a familiar fear: what if I failed again? What if I missed something, trusted the wrong person, or made the wrong call, resulting in more lives being lost?

The answer came to me in Mitch's voice, a memory from our training days: "The only real failure, Clover, is letting fear stop you from trying."

I took a deep breath and stepped out of my office. Whatever Goernx had to tell me, whatever Syntax-7 was planning, I would face it head-on. Because that's what diplomats do. That's what I do.

The corridors seemed longer than usual as I made my way to the secure meeting rooms, my mind spinning with possibilities. What could be so urgent that Goernx would risk a private meeting? And why now, just before Syntax-7's arrival?