Aureli Botanni's Arc

Chapter 1 of 3

Aureli Botanni stood at the edge of the half-built marketplace, watching a ship descend through the contested zone's flickering boundary markers. The vessel was small, unmarked, and landing without clearance. Aureli's antennae curled slightly inward. No one came here by accident. The stranger emerged carrying an ornate chest. They set it down between stacks of building materials and opened the lock. Inside, dozens of luminous plants glowed soft green against the darkness. The stranger gestured to the collection, then reached beneath the display and drew out something wrapped in black cloth. When the cloth fell away, Aureli's breath caught. A shadow rose. Petals formed from shifting darkness, impossibly delicate. It shouldn't exist outside the Veiled Gardens, and those had been destroyed three generations ago. Aureli stepped closer. The marketplace needed rare specimens to draw traders from all twelve systems. This single plant could anchor everything. But sulfurous green mist curled at the edges of the landing zone, threading between the construction frames. Aureli recognized it from briefings. Combat smoke. The kind that preceded boarding actions. The stranger's smile never wavered. Aureli looked at the shadow rose, then at the mist creeping closer. They turned back toward the half-built greenhouse where their own seeds waited in careful rows. The decision had already been made. "I'm not interested," Aureli said. The stranger's expression flickered. The ship's engines began to hum. Aureli walked away as the vessel lifted off, taking the impossible flower with it. The mist dissolved as quickly as it had appeared. The marketplace would grow without bait.