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There were also large oceans, but none were connected to each other. Rather, every body of water on Huxley was surrounded by land. Some fauna and flora flourished on the planet, though all forms of life receded slowly as the colonists drilled it out cycle after cycle, year after year, decade after decade.

The settlements themselves were varied in nature, and hosted countless corporations and profit-focused entities. There were probably a dozen such corporations per settlement, and they all worked together to mine out the planet itself.

Despite the majority of them in strict competition with each other, they held a tenuous peace between them. There was certainly much more profit to go around, as long as they all held to the armistice.

Any who didn’t respect the rules were immediately removed from the planet, and their access revoked. Not by any nations, of course, but rather by the corporate cooperative that lorded over the planet itself.

Though there were smaller private enterprises in the mix, their influence was far diminished compared to the larger corporations. Simply, those with deeper ledgers enjoyed greater freedoms with their drilling.

For the most part, things were stable between everyone regardless of profit disparity. Any disputes were settled by the corporations’ lawyers, and any offenders were swiftly booted off the planet.

Even more interesting, both Federation and Hegemony companies existed on the planet. And due to the collective corporate power that existed on the planet, ensured that their respective governments and navies stayed out.

.....

Armed conflict endangered profit margins, and that was unacceptable on Huxley. As a result, great amounts of money flowed in just the right directions, and kept the entire system clean and clear of either government.

While most of the rest of the colonies were deeply bloodied, the entire Purgatory system found relative peace. A tense one, but it was peace nonetheless.

Despite the lack of open hostilities between companies, they still kept themselves armed to the teeth. Every single corporation and organization on the planet not only had in-house security guarding their properties and claims, but also hired out mercenaries to bolster their numbers.

Often, heavily armed soldiers accompanied by powerful drones patrolled their corporate grounds, or their sections of the quarries that surrounded. The more powerful ones even had tank regiments and mecha squadrons to guard their properties.

The quarries themselves were split up into quadrants, with each quadrant claimed by one of the many corporations within the settlement itself. As long as they stayed within their assigned zones, there were no problems.

At the quarries, multiple teams from the different companies were at their assigned quadrants. They operated the various drones and machines as they dug further into the ground. Some pulled ore right out of the quarry’s “bowl” itself, though most dug tunnels at the bottom to get right at the richest veins further below.

And they all employed all manner of machinery to get at the minerals, from monstrous omnitronium tunnelers to handheld plasma drillers, and everything in between. Heavy antigrav load lifter drones floated out of the many tunnels, filled with juicy loot in their bellies.

They floated in constant streams in and out of the quarries, either filled with much needed supplies going in, or valuable raw ores going out. The ones headed out often hovered straight into the settlement, and brought their goods to whatever warehouse they were tethered to.

Some made their way straight to the other side of the settlement, at its robust star harbor. There, multiple cargo cruisers and frigates sat on various landing pads, and waited until they were filled to the brim with precious raw materials.

Off to the side, a passenger shuttle touched down on an incoming landing pad. Sterilized, compressed air shot out of its outer vents as it depressurized its internal cabin. Then, after a few moments, its rear ramp lowered and let its passengers out.

Among the dozen or so were Amal, Claire, and Kali.

They stepped out of the shuttle, and looked at the settlement all around them. All they saw were hardworking people diligently working their lives away. And everything was incredibly dusty due to all the drilling, so most people wore rebreathers or facemasks to keep the stone dust out of their lungs.

The trio quickly followed suit the moment a dust storm whipped up, and fine stone dust started to whirl all around them. Claire suddenly found her scalp itchy as her hair was utterly bombarded.

They quickly walked through the settlement and began to walk to the center square – their destination was somewhere on the other side of it. As they did, they marveled at how different most of the buildings were to each other.

The buildings in most settlements seemed almost homogeneous, and shared their simple designs with each other. But this settlement was clearly an exception to the rule. These buildings were defined by their parent corporation’s aesthetics, and so the settlement was dotted with a dozen different building types, designs, and colors.

It made it all look rather motley, if not chaotic.

Every corporate district had its own market center, mechanics alley, headquarters, and so on. It was almost as though there were a dozen different settlements all mashed together. Their citizens also proudly wore the colors and logos of their parent companies, and only a few were neutral in their attire.

The trio certainly felt the competitive nature of the settlement in the air – it was thick enough that they felt physically slowed by it.

And when they got to the settlement’s center square, found that they couldn’t actually get to it. Or rather, they weren’t allowed into it. Armed security from one of the corporations turned them away gently.

“Council’s in session,” he explained.

Claire peeked behind him, and saw that instead of a single mayor’s office, the square was instead surrounded by what looked like small embassies. Each one had the logo and colors of every company in the settlement itself.

It looked as though everyone who worked in those offices were out in the square itself. They were in some kind of an open-air gazebo, and seemed to debate each other heatedly inside of it.

They were so loud that even Claire could hear what they were talking about.

The trio instead had to walk the long way ’round to the other side, where their actual destination was – one of the settlement’s many taverns and saloons. Once inside, it wasn’t long before they wandered to the back, where a number of semi private booths were recessed into the wall.

And in one of them, Miko and Xylo sat waiting.

They greeted each other with smiles and hugs and pleasantries as the three joined the two.

“We finally made it,” said Claire. “Took us way too long.”

“But totally necessary,” added Amal.

“It’s good to see you all again,” said Xylo. “Like, really good. Feels like home away from home. Sorta.”

The others quickly agreed.

“Did you achieve what you needed to?” asked Miko.

“We got word out to all of our partners,” Claire began. “Most understood what we’re going through and suspended the contracts painlessly. A few were rather more upset, of course.”

“Toymaker gave us his blessing,” said Amal. “And also introduced a few contacts who have... less lawful backgrounds. For future business, he said. But otherwise, no more contracts from him for a while.”

“Understandable,” Miko muttered.

“How about you two?” asked Kali. “Did you get to do what you needed to do?”

Miko and Xylo looked at each other mischievously.

“Oh, you’ve got no idea,” said Xylo. “We’ll tell you all about it once we get somewhere with more privacy. Right now, let’s get our drink on and celebrate a bit.”

Xylo ordered a round for all of them through the controls set into the table. Nothing fancy, just the standard fermented grain alcohol. They were always easy to source and craft out in the wilder sectors of the galaxy.

A mechanized serving drone arrived a few minutes later with their drinks, and doled it out to each of them.

“We’re meeting up with Freya soon, right?” asked Amal. “I mean, that’s why we’re all here.”

“Not exactly here,” said Xylo. “And not exactly now. But soon, at one of the quarries attached to this settlement.”

“Did you two actually hear from Freya, though?” asked Claire. “Was she the one who said she was here, or was it from that Lucifer person?”

“The secret communique was sent without identifying information,” Miko answered. “And neither of us have directly heard from Freya herself. I’m guessing none of you did, either.”

The others murmured the affirmative. Not one of them had talked to Eva, not since the day she was arrested. This certainly caused them to worry significantly. They had no way to trust Lucifer, and no guarantees as to hir promises. But they had gone to great lengths and gotten this far – they were resolved to see it all to the end.

“We can always hunt Lucifer down and kill her,” said Kali, “if it turns out she betrayed us.”

“I do not believe it will come to that,” said Miko. “But I agree.”

~

It was a couple of cycles later, just as night hit its peak, when the Ravens had to make their move. Most of the settlement was sleeping, or at least drunk in a watering hole somewhere. The streets were relatively barren, save for the few patrols all around, or the random stumbling drunkards singing into the starry sky.

Each of the quarries were also patrolled, but much more heavily, and by well-armed and armored units. Though they kept watch over their respective quadrants, they spent most of their time in the center, at the bottom.

It wasn’t as though they weren’t doing their jobs – they were commingling with the other corporate security teams. Technically, that was what they were hired to do – keep an eye out against their competitors.

But instead, they befriended each other. They shared stories, booze, and time as they watched over the quarry itself. At least, they watched the bonfire in the center as it warmed their bones in the chilly night air.

Not that they were too worried about anything happening at all. They were secure in the knowledge that no-one was going to ruin the peace. Too much profit was at stake for that. And since their guards were lowered and vision narrowed, they never even saw the Ravens as they dashed between shadows.

The different corporate security forces simply laughed as they drank and talked and boasted while the five of them slunk into one of the tunnels.

The entrance area was roughly cut, and all manner of digging equipment was strewn about. Blocks of stone and ore that had been cut out were piled to the side, ready to be lifted out or broken down.

A thick layer of stone dust covered the ground, and all manner of footprints could be seen scattered everywhere.

Xylo zero’d in on the exact meeting coordinates she had, then had her DI path out the closest route. Then, with her pistol out at the ready, scouted ahead as they delved further into the dark mineshaft.