Youssef at Work

The silence in the virtual conference room was a sterile, heavy thing. It was a space designed by committee, reflecting a dozen different aesthetic sensibilities and achieving none of them. Polished chrome surfaces bled into holographic wood grain, and the air itself, though nonexistent, felt filtered and cold. Youssef, Minister of the Exterior for the Terran Empire, maintained a patient smile, a carefully constructed mask of diplomacy he had worn for most of his adult life.

Across the table, the Zelvora representative, who was sitting in silence listening to Youssef, finally spoke.

“The security of the wormholes is, of course, a matter of shared interest,” the representative’s voice chimed, a sound like wind through crystal shards. “My government has authorized the redeployment of our security fleets. They will be in position within the standard rotation.”