Kaelen's throat went dry as his hand instinctively flew to his earpiece.
Ordering a violent evacuation of the auction floor was completely out of the question.
The people aboard Project Zero-Transit, even those seated in the general hall, wielded terrifying power.
They represented global syndicates, ruling elites, warlords, and the deepest factions of the medical underworld.
And an intertwined web of interests that blanketed the world's gray areas.
If Kaelen alienated every single one of them...
The empire Project Zero-Transit had spent decades building would collapse overnight.
Just as Kaelen was on the verge of a full-blown panic attack, the synthesized voice echoed in his ear. "Proceed with the exhibition."
Kaelen froze. "C-Commodore?"
The Commodore continued smoothly, "Send the Med-Tech Quarantine team to the stage. Run a live audit."
"Have security form a perimeter around the pod. No buyer is allowed to make physical contact until the audit is complete."
Clearly, The Commodore understood the gravity of the situation.
If they couldn't suppress the crowd, they had to control the narrative.
By initiating a live audit, they could decode Specimen Fourteen's true nature while maintaining the illusion of authority over the auction block.
Verify first. Figure out what the hell this asset was.
They would handle the fallout later.
Kaelen nodded immediately. "Understood."
But he hesitated a second longer. "Commodore, the Med-Tech team... none of them will dare approach that specimen."
A single glance at the telemetry data confirmed this was no ordinary biological entity.
Not to mention the terrifying unknown of what would happen if the creature inside woke up.
The earpiece fell silent for two seconds.
Then, The Commodore issued a new order. "Summon The Panacea."
Kaelen blinked in surprise. "Ms. Panacea?"
"Have her conduct the live appraisal," the cold voice commanded. "I want to know the exact difference between Specimen Fourteen and Specimen Seven."
Understanding dawned on Kaelen. "Yes, sir!"
It made perfect sense. On this entire ship...
There was no one more qualified for the job than The Panacea.
When Specimen Seven had gone rogue earlier, the entire medical staff had been utterly paralyzed.
It was The Panacea who had personally stepped in and neutralized the threat.
Her expertise regarding these bio-weapons vastly exceeded that of any conventional pharmacologist.
Furthermore...
She had just produced a certified S-Rank Neural Repair Serum.
Its efficacy in reversing neurological decay had been unanimously verified by the ship's finest medical minds.
In the entire auditorium, there was no one with a sharper mind for neural pharmacology and handling sentient anomalies.
The Panacea was the definitive choice.
If she could diagnose Specimen Fourteen's condition...
The ship's administration would finally have a foundation on which to base their next
move.
Most importantly, she might be able to spot the underlying connection between Specimen Seven and Fourteen at a single glance.
Refusing to waste another second,
Kaelen motioned to his staff, handed the floor back to the Lead
Auctioneer and power walked toward the VIP suites with an assistant in tow.
The medical personnel were immediately deployed to the stage.
Security adjusted their perimeter, creating an ironclad barrier around the pod.
The Lead Auctioneer spoke up.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the administration has heard your requests We are officially inviting Ms Panacea to the stage to conduct a live, public appraisal."
Seeing that the organizers were
finally taking action-and Canet
upon the legendary Panacea, no less the furious buyers temporarily swallowed therage
They sat back down, choosing to wait.