Page 105 of Galactic Sentinels: Vol. 1
“Pfff, what does he think I am? I’m way past the age of foolishness!”
“Really?”I reply, amused.
Wingo lifts his head, clearly offended, and trots off to find Ileana.
For the next hour, I go through the profiles of everyone captured in the area since the offensive began. Ileana had already sorted most of the cards. Onorio thinks she may have made a few mistakes.
I don’t say anything when I come across Prax’s file—the Sadjim who was there the day of the sale. Ileana didn’t have time to explain their relationship in detail, but I know he was one of her two sellers. He hadn’t endorsed the sale, though. He even offered to give up everything he had to free her. And in the end, he did—he’s the one who removed the lethal collar during our escape. I owe him a lot.
But it’s a different story when I see the file on the two human brothers—Rick and Nick.
They’re the ones who led me to Vagantu. Without them, I might still be wandering the galaxy, searching for my partner. I remember they offered me other women first. They’re not exactly evil, but they’re definitely lacking basic morality. Selling or buying intelligent life…
“That one,” I say to Rob, pointing to the file.
“He was caught on a ship with another guy,” Onorio adds. “Their file’s here too. They claimed they’d just dropped off a friend and left. Said they hadn’t bought or sold anything.”
“Wow. Looks like they were more careful this time. But let’s be honest—if they’d come across Ileana, they probably would’ve put her up for sale.”
“They’re brothers,” I explain. “They deal in illegal goods and people. I don’t think they’re the worst out there. They just go with the flow.”
“I see. Maybe a short-term stay in a sensitization unit would be good for them. What do you think?” Onorio asks.
“An awareness unit?” I repeat. “Not sure what they do there, but I’ve heard it works well for Humans. Some kind of program that makes them take responsibility for their actions. Brain reconditioning, basically.”
The words send a chill down my spine. I didn’t realize the Confederation used methods like that.
“Oh no, it’s not what you think!” Onorio exclaims. “It’s more like a guided path—exercises to build awareness. A full psychological evolution program developed by the Polarians. It’s solid. Especially for people like these two, who’ve been swept up by the Coalition without really questioning anything. At the end, those who truly awaken are released and sent to a base of their choice. Those with irreparably damaged psyches are sent to a space prison.”
“Alright. Intensive awareness course for the brothers. I’m not sure it’ll work, but… why not.”
I get back to the files and finish the selection process. No sign of Henri.
Either he wasn’t the traitor… or he left Vagantu before the big wave of arrests and slipped past the interception ships. How can we be sure?
“Are all the people you intercepted in the base included in the files I just reviewed?”
“Yes, of course,” Rob replies. “You had the same files as Ileana. Even the ones she already cleared. Why? Oh, and by the way—your colleague mentioned that the Coalition head passed away.”
“I can confirm that. He was on a light craft, just a few meters from us, hovering above the water when he got swallowed by an aquatic monster. No one survives that.”
“That’s… good news, right?”
Is that really the case? That’s a good question. If we’d gotten our hands on Noviosk, we could’ve interrogated him—maybe even uncovered the identity of the traitor who slipped away, or learned more about the other Coalition leaders scattered across the galaxy.
“I’m just surprised,” I say. “So… there were no Confederation members caught in your raid?”
The two men look at me like I’ve grown a second head. Did I just say something stupid?
“What exactly do you mean?” Rob asks. “All the agents assigned to the operation were there, of course!”
“Sure,” I reply. “But take me, for example. Or Ileana. We weren’t assigned to this mission, and yet we’re here. And our faces weren’t in the database I just reviewed.”
“That’s normal,” Onorio says, giving me a look like I’m a slow learner. “You’re victims of the Coalition. And more importantly, you’re members of the Confederation.”
“So let me get this straight,” I say slowly. “All Confederation members who got caught in the net were automatically cleared?”
Onorio glances at Rob, then back at me.
