Savage tech was something that every faction wanted. And the factions that discovered those potential leaps were likely to see a hundred years of field dominance based on a successful research application alone. People killed for that, and they paid a lot of money to the best at killing to get that killing done. Getting anywhere near a Savage artifact increased your chances of dying violently based on that factor alone.
And valuable? How much would you pay to live forever? To jump across the stars at near instantaneous speeds, making the hyperdrive look like a whip and buggy? Print synth like cheap plastic? Those and a thousand other rumors and myths had been linked to Savage artifacts in all the years since those freaks had hauled themselves out of the great sub-light darknesses between the stars. And where the rumors and myths were saying what might be possible should one be found, they were also pointing at all the leaps galactic government and corporate firms had made using Savage research and tech to attain dominance.
The next person to unlock Savage tech to find whatever the next great leap was, courtesy of some found data drive receivers from one of those old Savage-era hulks the legions used to storm and burn… would live like a modern-age pharaoh for every day of the rest of their lives. Wealth beyond imagining was the starting point. After that the galaxy’s edge was the limit.
Fact.
“Savage artifacts?” clarified Bowie in the silence of the briefing location. His voice almost incredulous, just enough of a hint for someone to get rattled, but not enough to cause a fight. No one said anything but the tension was a thing that could be felt and probably not cut.
Reiser nodded. Clearly, he was uncomfortable. That was because he was smart. Or at least smart enough to know when they were both dealing with something very dangerous.
Bowie moved on. He knew they were expecting him to up his price in the next few minutes now that the big reveal… had finally been revealed. Savage artifacts demanded price renegotiation upward by a factor of one hundred. That was just industry standard for those who did the cloak and dagger part of getting. The fact that Jack said nothing and moved on meant he wasn’t bargaining with them. They’d pay him that rate.
He knew it.
And they knew it now.
“You want me to hit the museum and access the vault. Fine. No problem. Then I give you the all clear and you remove the artifacts. Fine. Again no problem. Is that correct?”
Reiser cleared his throat and ran the route access, starting over from what looked like an elevated insertion point on the roof.
“You’ll come in from above in a glider we’re going to release from a dropship. You flew the AN-16 during the Kasselgrov Insurgency two years back, right? That’s part of your skill set, right, Jack?”
Bowie nodded.
The roof of the museum expanded out across the display.
“The koobs check the roof every thirty minutes as of the last LP/OP update. They don’t maintain a constant presence due to zhee snipers currently operating a few blocks to the west. That may change in the next twenty-four hours as the counter sniper teams go to work in those neighborhoods. That’s why we need to do this right now, my friend.”
“Why not use the front door? They’re just koobs… Blast your way in, blow the vault, and take what you want.”
Bowie was pretty sure there was a good reason why that wouldn’t work, but he asked his question anyway. For one, he wanted to hear their answer. And two, asking would serve to remind them why he was so essential when it came to accepting his rate of pay.
Reiser seemed annoyed. But he went on to explain.
“Koobs are maintaining an inner security ring, established thanks to the high-tech gadgets of Team Nilo. This site is considered sacred because of the Kublaren antiquities located on the top two floors, and our contractor teams only got a cursory look at the vault access sixteen hours ago before we were not-so-politely asked to leave their ‘holy site.’ We also had to install their security perimeter and prove it wasn’t hackable by us. That perimeter prevents all access and can only be deactivated from within. The one moment we have to access the museum comes when a koob guard walks the roof. Take him out and we can enter through the rooftop access and get in the building. Closing the door will restore the perimeter security integrity. The koobs inside will be alert but they’re on guard duty. The objective is a point of honor, Jack. To them. They detect the slightest bit of external access and they will sound the alarm and every koob in the district will surround the building, ready to go all war on everyone not frog. Team Nilo personnel too. As the ruling tribe, the obligation to protect the shared heritage is higher than any alliance or loyalty you can think of, even tikrit. Mainly all of this is because of some ridiculous feathered headdress one of their ancient kings wore about a thousand years ago when we were fighting the Battle of Sor in the Nordheim Nebulae against a Savage fleet. They have no clue about the vault below. Or at least most of them don’t. They just know not to touch it.”
“Then whose vault is it?” asked Bowie.
“A competitor of Mr. Nilo’s who thought he could hide some artifacts out here on Kublar during the troubles with the Republic. Made a deal with the Kublarens to fund the museum’s construction in exchange for vault installation. It’s a no-go area for the koobs and, like I said, we’re anticipating some sophisticated bot
