“Lagrange-Echo” Station

  "Lagrange-Echo" isn’t just a space station—it’s a living organism, constantly growing and evolving. In 2259, when the first 600-meter sector launched, it was merely a dream, an ambitious project with no room for compromise. But thanks to the brightest minds, financiers, and politicians, that dream became reality. In its early years, the station grew slowly, like a smoldering ember on the verge of igniting. Yet, step by step, ring by ring, "Lagrange-Echo" came to life. Over fifty-odd years, it transformed into a sprawling cosmic metropolis, drawing in more people, ideas, and technologies. Here, you could find anything—specialists forging metals for new settlements, scientists engineering novel bacteria or taming hyperspace. The station’s streets glowed with screens that pulled your gaze into a future where anything was possible. Streams of people hurried along composite pathways—rushing to work, greeting each other with smiles as if no other world existed.

  But "Lagrange-Echo" isn’t solely a scientific hub. Families come here too—some by duty, some by love, some by business. Alongside them live tens of thousands of technicians, engineers, and support staff, each a vital part of this incredible ecosystem. Around the station, free settlements spring up in orbit, where people chase liberty and change. They bring fresh ideas, making "Lagrange-Echo" a crossroads of cultures and perspectives.

  Space, once silent, has found its voice here. Amid the curves of metal and artificial gravity, between the gleam of ships and the hum of stations, new connections form. No one can say exactly how many live on the station. Estimates, factoring in the belt of free settlements, range from fifteen to thirty-five million. But every number is just a piece of a vast ecosystem shaped by "Erebus."

  "Lagrange-Echo" isn’t just a workplace—it’s a place to live. Here, technology and humanity intertwine, and the ideas born within ripple across the cosmos.

  The bar was packed to the brim. Music thundered from acoustic panels, vibrations rolling through the floor as if the station itself were celebrating alongside them. Light pulses raced across the walls, shifting hues in sync with the beat, while in the corner, a robotic arm poured drinks with surgical precision.

  They sat at a corner table, the darkest spot in this chaos of light and sound. The table’s surface shimmered with projection screens that had recently flickered with ads. Now switched off, they left only a faint glow in the shadows.

  Victoria, leaning back in her chair, twirled a metallic energy cell module between her fingers—a habit when she needed to focus. Her hair was slightly mussed, a dark smudge on her temple from a recently removed interface jack. On her wrist, a built-in controller blinked with a pair of indicators, a relic of long hours tinkering with energy systems.

  “Do you realize what this means?” she said, her voice brimming with restrained excitement. “We’ve got energy that doesn’t need constant oversight. It’s adaptive. We can use it for the expedition to the new system—power stations, and build autonomous bases.”

  Naomi Tikaki sat beside her, slender fingers tracing the rim of a glowing blue cocktail that faintly illuminated the dark. Her cybernetic pupils dilated briefly, processing incoming data—even now, her neurolink fed her information.

  “Only if we don’t overreach,” she replied softly, tension threading her tone. “You know we don’t have the full picture. Sure, we’ve got the reactor, but it’s… new. Experimental. What if it starts acting unpredictably in another system?”

  Jaiville "Jai" Kajura, across the table, snorted and downed his shot of something strong before flashing a grin.

  “You’re acting like we’ve cracked open Pandora’s box,” he said, leaning back, the anodized plate on his forearm catching the reflected light. “We’re not kids messing with plasma grenades. We’re engineers. Scientists. Creators. And we just pulled off a damn miracle!”

  He extended his hand, and a holographic model of the reactor flared above his palm—a miniature version of the beast now pulsing with energy in the station’s depths.

  “This thing doesn’t just give power. It changes everything. We’re not limited anymore. Want a colony on an icy asteroid? Done. Want to explore the depths of an alien world? Go for it. Hell, we could even build new settlements beyond the system.”

  Lea Bancroft let out a skeptical hum. Her cybernetic eyes flickered faintly, adjusting to the bar’s dim light. Arms crossed, her voice was calm but edged with sharp seriousness.

  “It’s not that simple, Jai,” she said. “Yes, we’ve got a new energy source. Yes, it’s more powerful than anything we’ve built before. But you know as well as I do—power without control is a disaster.”

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  “Are you saying we might screw it up again?” Karim Al-Fahri chimed in. He sat a little apart, studying the swirl of liquid in his glass as if calculating how soon he’d want another. An indicator on his temple glowed, linked to a predictive modeling processor.

  “Not us,” Lea replied, leaning forward slightly. “Humanity. History’s shown time and again that when we get tech this strong, we eventually find a way to turn it against ourselves.”

  Aisha Kabir raised her glass, the silver implants at the base of her neck shimmering faintly.

  “Then maybe it’s time to change that,” she said with a slight smile, through her eyes held something deeper. “Maybe this time we don’t repeat the old mistakes. We’ve got a shot to do it right.”

  Silence settled over the table for a moment. Even Jai, poised for another burst of enthusiasm, held back. They all knew this project wasn’t just a reactor—it was a leap into a new era.

  The quiet lasted only a couple of seconds, but it was enough for everyone to feel its weight. Something intangible hung in the air—the realization that this was just the beginning.

  Victoria broke the silence first. She twirled the energy cell module again, as if testing its balance, then looked at the others.

  “Alright. We did it. The reactor works. The question now isn’t what it can do—it’s who’s going to steer it.”

  Lea raised an eyebrow, her implants glowing softly as they analyzed Victoria’s tone.

  “What do you mean?”

  Victoria leaned forward, her voice dropping but gaining gravity.

  “We all get it—this reactor isn’t just a tech upgrade. It’s the backbone of the upcoming expedition. The one heading into the new system.”

  Naomi set her glass aside, her pupils widening as she tapped into extra neurolink interfaces.

  “You mean they might send us?”

  Jai grinned and slapped the table.

  “Of course! Who else would handle it better? We need people out there who know the system inside and out.”

  Karim nodded quietly, his analytical implant blinking.

  “The question is who exactly they’ll send. An expedition to a new system isn’t just a science mission—it’s politics, strategy, security. And not everyone will be thrilled if key specialists vanish from here for years.”

  Aisha smiled, her silver implants glowing softly.

  “You think we’ll get a choice?”

  Lea frowned slightly.

  Adrian Braun sat a bit apart, cradling a glass of amber liquid. The bar’s neon panels reflected in his eyes, and his voice carried the faint weariness that follows big wins. He didn’t seem rattled or ready to make bold claims.

  “The selection’s already underway,” he said, staring at the ice in his glass. “IRIS will announce their picks soon.”

  Silence fell over the table again. Jai stopped fiddling with a sensor module, Karim cut off his data feed, Naomi leaned in. They all knew this was coming, but now it felt like a starting line.

  “And you’re saying you don’t know who they’ll pick?” Aisha tilted her head, her eyes glinting with optical implants.

  Adrian gave her a look—the kind from someone who’d already made up his mind.

  “I’m saying the launch is set before year’s end. The committee’s wrapping up their assessments. Soon we’ll know who’s running the ship’s engineering systems.”

  “Come on,” Jai smirked. “We’re not idiots. It’s obviously you.”

  Sabina nodded, twirling her glass.

  “It’s a no-brainer. You’ve led the project, you know the reactor’s capabilities better than anyone, and you’ve worked on fuel systems longer than any of us.”

  Karim leaned forward.

  “The question isn’t whether they’ll pick you—it’s whether you’ll say yes.”

  Victoria stayed quiet, but only because she agreed. Braun had been her father’s friend, and if anyone was going to lead the charge into an unknown system, it was him.

  “You knew this from the start, didn’t you?” she finally asked, leaning back in her chair.

  Braun gave a faint smirk.

  “Not exactly from the start. It crossed my mind that if we pulled this off, it’d open the door to something bigger.”

  “And you’ll agree?” Aisha narrowed her eyes.

  “It’s under discussion.” Braun took a sip and set his glass down. “IRIS will make their call soon.”

  The bar was thinning out. Some finished their drinks, others said goodbyes, leaving holographic tabs flashing briefly on tables. Robotic servo mechs cleared glasses silently, memorizing patrons’ habits for next time. Victoria lingered at the counter, lazily stirring the ice in her glass. She watched Naomi and Sabina chat by the exit, Aisha gesturing to Jai as if sketching logic diagrams in the air. Karim shared a brief look with Braun—both grasping something beyond what was said aloud.

  “Don’t stay too late, Vic,” Braun said, brushing her shoulder as he passed.

  She nodded without looking. He left, and soon the door slid shut behind the last of her colleagues. Now it was just her and a few random regulars, hunched over their interfaces, lost in personal data worlds. Victoria took a sip.