Dr. Hanson raised her head, looking directly at Raynor. "If possible, I would like to temporarily remain on the Hyperion. My expertise and research capabilities might be of help. Furthermore, you won't stop here for your next move, correct? I have heard of 'Raynor's Raiders.' You are not the type of people to turn a blind eye to a distress signal."
Raynor and Matt exchanged a glance. Matt gave a subtle nod.
"You're right, Doctor," Raynor sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "We really can't just leave things be. Matt has already received at least three new distress signals coming from different fringe colonies. The Swarm's advance is simply too fast; many places haven't even had time to organize an effective defense."
"We need to help more people evacuate," Matt added, pulling up a data pad on his wrist. "But resources are a realistic constraint. Space, supplies, and medical capacity on the Hyperion are all limited. We must prioritize colonies that still stand a chance of being saved, and our actions must be highly efficient."
"I can help optimize the evacuation protocols, particularly regarding the medical and bio-protection segments," Dr. Hanson said immediately. "Additionally, my research into Swarm behavioral patterns might help predict their primary offensive focuses, allowing us to bypass their main forces and buy time."
Valerie took note of all this silently. Civilian evacuations, the Swarm's advance, the Dominion's retreat—this information was vital. She needed to report this to Osiris immediately.
More importantly, Dr. Hanson had decided to stay. This provided an excellent, ongoing opportunity for contact.
"If the doctor requires a temporary lab or research equipment, the Far Star Alliance might be able to provide some assistance," Valerie offered at the right moment. "Our security team carried along some portable analytical instruments. While they cannot compare to a formal laboratory, they are a bit more advanced than basic equipment. Consider it a small token of support for our collaborator."
Dr. Hanson looked toward Valerie, the wariness in her eyes lessening slightly, replaced by a touch of gratitude and anticipation.
"Then I am most grateful, Miss Valerie. Any assistance with equipment will accelerate the research process."
"Additionally," Valerie mentioned, seemingly in passing, "the doctor noted earlier that the Swarm is launching simultaneous offensives across multiple colonies. I wonder if you have noticed whether they are targeting specific locations? For instance, regions rich in a particular mineral, or areas possessing unusual ruins? Our company needs to evaluate if the Swarm's attacks possess specific patterns or objectives during our risk assessments."
The question was posed naturally, fitting her persona of conducting a "risk assessment." In reality, however, Valerie was testing whether Dr. Hanson knew anything more regarding the "artifacts" or similar Xel'Naga relics—the very things Raynor and Tychus were searching for.
Dr. Hanson pondered for a few seconds before shaking her head.
"From current observational data, the Swarm's offensives do not appear to have an explicit resource-driven orientation. They consume all organic matter and reshape the environment to suit themselves. If I had to say, densely populated colonies are indeed priority targets because biomass resources are abundant. As for specific ruins... I have no relevant reports."
She paused, adding: "However, the Swarm's movements occasionally manifest a baffling sense of 'purposefulness' that does not entirely resemble simple predation. This warrants further study."
Valerie nodded, refraining from pressing further. Information needed to be gathered slowly.
The brief exchange drew to a close. Dr. Hanson went to assist the medical team with the casualties, Raynor and Matt headed to the bridge to chart their next move, and Valerie returned to her temporary quarters.
She locked the door, activated her encrypted communication device, and reported the situation to Osiris.
"Dr. Hanson has confirmed she is staying on the Hyperion. She possesses high-level biological expertise, has deeply researched the Swarm, and harbors a strong interest in Earth sphere technology. Following your directives, I indicated we could provide partial biotechnological materials to establish a connection."
She paused slightly, continuing her report: "Raynor team's next operational direction is to respond to distress signals from other colonies to conduct civilian evacuations. There is currently no definitive information regarding the location of the next artifact fragment. Dr. Hanson appears unaware of this. I will continue to observe and attempt to acquire relevant intelligence from Raynor or Tychus."
Shortly after, Osiris's reply came through. The instruction was concise and definitive: "Maintain the current contact strategy. Provide Tier-1 non-core technical materials to Dr. Hanson and observe her reaction. Continue monitoring Raynor team's movements; artifact fragment intelligence remains the priority. You may appropriately utilize Dr. Hanson as an information channel, but exercise caution."
Attached along with the reply was an encrypted data package. After Valerie decrypted it, she found it contained summaries and partial structural principles for several biotechnological documents.
She scanned through them quickly—these technologies did not strike her as particularly earth-shattering. They primarily focused on efficient gene-sequencing algorithms, rapid simulation of specific protein structures, and the design of a cell-culture scaffold based on nanofibers.
Just as Osiris had stated, the level was "ordinary," yet the concepts were somewhat novel, differing from the tech tree commonly seen in the Koprulu Sector.
Valerie organized these materials into a briefing file that appeared professional but did not touch upon core secrets, storing it on a data pad.
She walked over to the simple workstation inside her quarters and began planning her next moves. Dr. Hanson was a valuable lead that needed to be maintained and deepened, while Raynor and Tychus were the keys to the artifact fragment intelligence, requiring patient waiting for an opportunity.
As for herself, she had to continue playing her role as the "Far Star Alliance Commercial Representative" well on this vessel full of variables, all while gathering more information about this sector, the Swarm, and those mysterious relics for the Eternal Seeker.
The Hyperion sailed smoothly through the starry sea, carrying survivors as well as individual secrets and purposes, charting a course toward the next battlefield requiring rescue.
Two days later, the Hyperion was en route to its next target colony—an agricultural world named "Tarsonis."
Life aboard the ship had gradually fallen into a temporary, stable rhythm. The civilians were settled in expanded living quarters, and Dr. Hanson and her assistants had partitioned off a small area on the medical deck to serve as a temporary laboratory. Although there was a dedicated research lab on the ship, Dr. Hanson had not moved in yet because it still required tidying up.
Valerie selected a relatively quiet period, brought along the organized data pad, and arrived at Dr. Hanson's temporary lab.
The laboratory space was small, comprised of a few mobile workstations, an old-fashioned biological microscope retrieved from the ship's cargo hold, and some foundational reagents and sample storage cases.
Dr. Hanson was hunched over the microscope, observing a sample collected from an Agria casualty's clothing that was suspected to be Swarm spores. Her two assistants were off to the side recording data.