NOVEL NEXT Chapter 43: Matter
The days following the confrontation between Fenix and Kai passed with deceptive tranquility aboard the Montclair vessel. While the younger expedition members recovered from their duel and settled into the comfortable routines that the advanced ship provided, two of the veteran team members had dedicated themselves to a far more complex challenge than any training regimen could offer.
Captain Lyralei and Thorne had made Alfred Montclair their primary study subject.
The interrogation began casually enough. Veteran warriors who had survived several expeditions possessed finely tuned instincts for detecting deception, manipulation, and hidden agendas. Alfred's polished courtesy, his too-perfect responses, his mysterious knowledge of vessel operations that transcended normal pilot training - all of it triggered warning signals that experienced soldiers learned to trust above diplomatic protocol.
"Tell me about your family's involvement in curtain exploration," Lyralei had asked during their second day aboard, her tone carrying the casual interest of someone making polite conversation.
Alfred's smile never wavered as he provided an answer that was simultaneously comprehensive and completely uninformative. "The Montclair family has maintained interests in territorial research for several generations. We find that understanding the broader landscape of Human Domain expansion provides valuable strategic insights."
The response was smooth, diplomatic, and almost certainly a lie.
Thorne tried a more direct approach. "This vessel represents technology that exceeds normal Tier Two family capabilities. How exactly did the Montclairs acquire an Ark-class ship?"
"Through careful negotiation and mutually beneficial arrangements with parties who preferred discretion over publicity," Alfred replied, his cultured voice carrying just enough mystery to seem intriguing rather than evasive. "The specific details remain confidential due to diplomatic considerations."
Another non-answer delivered with such polished confidence that it almost seemed substantive.
The pattern continued through dozens of similar exchanges. Every question was met with responses that sounded reasonable but revealed nothing meaningful. Every attempt to pin down specific details was deflected through careful redirection or claims of confidentiality. Alfred submitted to their interrogation with the patience of someone who had been trained to handle exactly this kind of scrutiny.
"He's good," Lyralei admitted to Thorne during one of their private strategy sessions. "Professional quality deception delivered with enough surface cooperation to make aggressive questioning seem unreasonable."
"Military intelligence background," Thorne agreed grimly. "Probably trained by specialists who understand how to maintain cover identity under sustained pressure. The kind of skills that Tier Two families don't typically require unless they're engaged in activities that exceed their official capabilities."
Their suspicions crystallized into certainty as the days passed and Alfred's performance remained flawlessly consistent. No contradictions, no moments of unguarded honesty, no slips that revealed information he hadn't intended to share. Such perfect operational security required training, experience, and backing that placed him far beyond the simple pilot role he claimed to fulfill.
---
By the fourth day, both veterans had reached the same conclusion through independent analysis.
"He's a spy," Lyralei stated with flat certainty during another of their whispered conferences. "Professional intelligence operative, probably embedded with our expedition from the moment the Montclair family agreed to provide transportation."
Thorne nodded grimly. "His mission parameters likely include comprehensive observation of Ackerman family capabilities, assessment of expedition discoveries, and evaluation of anything that could benefit Montclair family interests."
The implications were disturbing on multiple levels. The expedition had been planned as an Ackerman family operation with Montclair support, not as a joint venture subject to outside surveillance and potential resource claims. If Alfred's true purpose was intelligence gathering rather than simple transportation, their entire mission structure had been compromised from the beginning.
"The question becomes: do we confront him directly, or do we adapt our operational procedures to account for compromised security?" Lyralei posed the dilemma that had been weighing on both their minds.
"Direct confrontation risks diplomatic complications that could affect family relationships extending far beyond this single expedition," Thorne replied. "But operational adaptation means accepting that everything we discover will be evaluated according to Montclair interests rather than purely Ackerman objectives."
They chose adaptation over confrontation, though both understood the compromises such choice required.
Sensitive discussions were moved to locations where Alfred's enhanced senses couldn't monitor conversations. Strategic planning sessions excluded specific details that could compromise expedition security. Most importantly, any discoveries or intelligence gathering would be filtered through careful consideration of what information could safely be shared with someone whose loyalties ultimately served different masters.
"We treat him as a professional colleague whose presence we acknowledge but whose agenda we don't fully trust," Lyralei concluded. "Polite cooperation without operational transparency."
"And we make sure the younger team members understand the situation without creating unnecessarily hostile atmosphere," Thorne added. "They need to know their conversations might be monitored, but they don't need to feel like they're operating in enemy territory."
---
The briefings that followed were subtle affairs conducted through careful conversations that never directly accused Alfred of deception while making the expedition team aware that discretion had become a survival skill.
"Remember that we're guests aboard a vessel provided by family allies whose interests don't necessarily align perfectly with ours," Lyralei explained during what appeared to be routine expedition procedures review. "Information security becomes crucial when multiple parties have stakes in mission outcomes."
Maya, whose reconnaissance training made her particularly sensitive to surveillance concerns, nodded with understanding that required no further explanation. Gareth and Elena exchanged glances that suggested veteran recognition of political complexities that complicated straightforward military operations.
The younger team members took longer to grasp the implications, though Fenix's enhanced awareness eventually detected the subtle tension that had developed between the expedition's leadership and their supposedly cooperative pilot.
"Alfred's watching us," Abel concluded after several days of observing interaction patterns that didn't quite match normal courtesy protocols. "Professional surveillance rather than casual interest."
Kai's reaction was more direct. "Should we be concerned about hostile intentions?"
"Not hostile," Lyralei clarified carefully. "But not entirely aligned with our objectives either. Think of it as\\... competing interests that require careful navigation."
Jully's strategic mind immediately grasped the broader implications. "Any discoveries we make will be evaluated according to multiple family priorities rather than purely Ackerman benefit."
"Exactly. Which means we proceed with professional competence while maintaining appropriate discretion about sensitive information."
The conversations continued in this carefully coded manner, establishing security protocols without creating the kind of paranoid atmosphere that could compromise team cohesion or operational effectiveness.
Alfred, for his part, gave no indication that he was aware of their growing wariness. His courtesy remained impeccable, his cooperation continued without obvious limitation, and his operational competence as vessel pilot never wavered. Whether this represented genuine obliviousness or professional maintenance of cover identity remained impossible to determine.
---
The strange equilibrium of watchers watching watchers continued for the remainder of their journey through the Curtain's alien expanse. The expedition team maintained polite relations with their pilot while carefully limiting the information they shared in his presence. Alfred continued his flawlessly professional performance while pursuing whatever intelligence gathering objectives had been assigned by his true employers.
Both sides understood the game being played. Neither side acknowledged it directly.
The Montclair vessel continued its steady progress toward coordinates that would place them at the edges of Viraldean Temple territory. Through crystalline windows, they could see the Curtain's landscape growing increasingly alien with each passing day. Structures that defied conventional understanding of physics, weather patterns that followed geometric rather than atmospheric principles, and occasional glimpses of creatures that belonged to no classification system developed by human scholars.
They were entering territory where human authority provided no protection, where survival would depend entirely on their individual capabilities and team coordination, where mistakes would be measured in casualties rather than learning experiences.
In such an environment, questions of surveillance and competing family interests seemed almost trivial compared to the immediate challenges of staying alive long enough to complete their mission objectives.
Yet the political undercurrents remained important because success would bring opportunities, discoveries, and resources that could influence family relationships for generations to come. The expedition might determine not just whether they survived to return home, but which families would benefit from whatever knowledge or artifacts they managed to secure.
Alfred's presence ensured that the Ackerman family would need to share those benefits whether they preferred to or not.
---
The equilibrium shattered on their sixth day aboard the vessel when Alfred's voice echoed through the conference room's communication system with an announcement that transformed relaxed travel into urgent preparation for the challenges ahead.
"Attention expedition members," his cultured tones carried across the ship's interior spaces with mechanical precision that suggested formal notification rather than casual update. "We are currently twelve hours from the Viraldean Temple's territorial boundaries. I recommend using the remaining travel time for final preparations and equipment verification."
The words hit the assembled team like cold water, washing away the comfortable routines and casual interactions that had marked their journey through the Curtain's protective boundaries. The relaxed atmosphere that had allowed them to recover from training injuries, develop team relationships, and process the implications of their changing family dynamics evaporated in the face of approaching reality.
Twelve hours until they would transition from passengers aboard an advanced vessel to operatives in hostile territory where their survival would depend entirely on preparation, skill, and the kind of teamwork that could only be tested under life-or-death pressure.
"Final equipment checks," Lyralei commanded, her voice shifting from diplomatic courtesy to military authority with the ease of someone who had guided teams through similar transitions seventeen times before. "Medical supplies, weapons maintenance, communication systems, emergency protocols. Everything gets verified twice."
Elena immediately departed for the infirmary to conduct comprehensive inventory of healing potions, surgical supplies, and the specialized medical equipment that could mean the difference between recoverable injuries and permanent casualties.
Thorne headed for the armory to perform detailed inspection of explosive charges, barrier generators, and the various technological solutions that his demolitions expertise might require during temple exploration.
Maya disappeared toward the vessel's sensor array to gather final intelligence about their destination's current status, recent activity patterns, and any environmental changes that could affect their approach strategies.
Gareth began the systematic equipment checks that would ensure his defensive capabilities remained at peak effectiveness when called upon to protect teammates whose survival might depend on his ability to absorb punishment that would kill lesser fighters.
The younger expedition members exchanged glances heavy with anticipation mixed with concern. Their comfortable journey through the Curtain was ending, and what awaited them was unknown territory defended by creatures whose capabilities had eliminated previous expeditions through methods that remained poorly understood.
Kai's hand drifted unconsciously toward his axe as he processed the reality that his newfound Expert+ capabilities would soon face testing against opponents who wouldn't withdraw when overpowered. Real combat with permanent consequences rather than training exercises where defeat meant education rather than death.
Abel's analytical mind was already working through tactical scenarios and contingency planning that their briefings had only addressed in theoretical terms. The difference between studying expedition reports and actually implementing the strategies they described was about to become devastatingly apparent.
Jully gathered her specialized equipment while mentally reviewing the strategic preparations that could provide her teammates with advantages in environments designed to neutralize human tactical doctrine through raw superiority and territorial knowledge.
Fenix remained motionless for several heartbeats, processing the implications of Alfred's announcement through enhanced awareness that detected subtle changes in everyone's emotional states and stress responses. The team that had been developing comfortable relationships during safe travel was transforming into a military unit preparing for combat operations where individual survival would depend on group coordination.
---
The final preparations began immediately as the expedition team dispersed throughout the vessel to verify equipment, review procedures, and mentally prepare for challenges that would test every assumption about their capabilities and limitations.
In twelve hours, they would discover whether months of training, careful planning, and advanced equipment were sufficient preparation for exploring ancient ruins that had been specifically designed to eliminate intruders who underestimated the commitment required for successful temple exploration.
The comfortable phase of their expedition was ending. The dangerous phase was about to begin.
Behind them lay the relative safety of human civilization and the political complexities that marked family relationships within established territorial boundaries. Ahead waited the Viraldean Temple, its guardians, and whatever secrets had been deemed valuable enough to justify the risks that previous expeditions had died attempting to overcome.
Alfred continued his duties as vessel pilot with the same professional competence that had marked their entire journey, but both he and the expedition team understood that his intelligence gathering mission was entering its crucial phase. Whatever the Ackerman family discovered during temple exploration would be observed, evaluated, and reported according to Montclair family interests that remained hidden behind diplomatic courtesy and flawless operational security.
The watchers and the watched were approaching the moment when surveillance would become secondary to survival, though questions of who would benefit from whatever discoveries emerged would remain relevant to family relationships that extended far beyond this single expedition.
If they survived long enough to make such questions matter.