R.T.M - Return To Mother

3 - Oseser

Unfortunately, that was yet to be seen. Many were still fearful of the Syndicate's wrath to barter with a station that had already rebelled once, and rumors had never stopped discussing a second coming. There were also the select few who wished nothing but harm on the station and its inhabitants. Oseser's eyes cut across to one of the elevators that had been shut down temporarily. Red tape blocked it from people's usage and the glass doors showed the burnt skid marks of an elevator that had been disconnected from its line. Of course, the common public had been told it had been an accident but the rumors had continued to circulate. The Rabid had a hand in the murder of four people who had been unlucky enough to be riding the elevator that day. Oseser, because of his clearance and standing amongst the council as lead floor manager for the M.O.T.H.E.R project, knew that was the hard truth of the matter.

Some of the more religious types whispered that it was Mother demanding respect from them and they should turn their eyes to her in these hard times. Others said it was the Rabid's way of telling them that Mother was being viewed as a false god, and this was their retribution for it. Neither idea had any supportive evidence and thus the council dismissed them entirely whenever brought up. Oseser scratched out a note on the back of the paper attached to his clipboard for MiKy'el to busy himself cleaning off the message and perhaps a derogatory remark in his file for not having done it sooner. They hardly needed rumors of that getting back to the UF for them to send an investiga- support team.

If they had been lucky enough to receive any visitors, the first person they would come to meet was a cake of a woman; who sat at the desk that was painted golden that matched the elevators, trams, and trim of the room around them leading up to the top of the Operations. The rest of the room was painted in a lovely white gold to contrast its brightness. The desk had monitors behind the counter's lip for only the woman to see. Images flickered past inside every room and hallway around Operations, acting as a security hub for this room as well now the responsibility of vigilance was not solely on their security force. She also was the switchboard operator and mass secretary. How the woman managed, he would never know- and it was the reason she had stayed in her position so long. It was also unfortunate that the one elevator that had been tampered with was one of the very few that didn't have a camera assigned to it. Oseser had found that odd, but the chief of security, Beltha Jeldin, had promptly told him to keep his nose out of her area since she didn't make comments on how he was running his side of the station. Not that she had the authority- they were equals in the eyes of the Syndicate.

Hundreds of people were flashing ID cards to the front of their elevator or tram doors that scanned them and let them through. Even if they weren't high-level employees, they were still required to do this now. If they hadn't been scanned, he wondered if the people in the elevator that had been killed by the Rabid would have been identified at all. It helped keep track of all the personnel on the station in case of an emergency. If a situation ever did arise, that system alone would have a complete roster of who was in what section of the station at any given moment. It was an absolute marvel at some of the things that happened on the station so far; but the only thing the extra added security had done so far was ruin eight marriages since it was installed. He walked up to the desk, tapping it lightly with his knuckles for the woman to turn around, "You called, Vanilea?"

The woman looked up at him with a warm smile, "Good morning, Doctor Oseser! It's a pleasure to see you up and about to so early." Oseser raised an eyebrow, checking his watch to see that it was almost six, and realized he had been working through the night again. Vanilea continued on, gathering packages that had his name on them. She was a very pale individual, and he couldn't help but think again how her parents must have had a very sick sense of humor. Her lips were bright pink and contrasted with her pale blond hair that came off her head in waterfalls on both sides of her wide shoulders. Her make-up was in the tone of pink, orange and red; so much that he resisted the thought of her being one giant strawberry. Despite her alarming make-up and talkative nature- he didn't mind Vanilea. Her polite and cheery personality never seemed to falter around him as many people's did; either out of fear or respect for being the floor manager to Mother or-. "-Also your new assistant is here! I'm surprised she isn't following you now, Sir."