Ghost Fragment: Old Russia
SABER GREEN this is ICE MINARET. We have your launch. Com check.
/ICE MINARET this is SABER GREEN we read you. Lattice is tight. Com secure. Abort advisory check?
Check is all nominal. You are now on internal power. SABER GREEN, please human-verify your payload status.
/Acknowledge human verification request. The words are RIGOR, APEX, SKYSHOCK. I will repeat the payload status now: RIGOR, APEX, SKYSHOCK.
Those are the words, SABER. Human crosscheck complete. Fly safe.
/Copy your last, MINARET. We are go for final count.
We affirm, go payload, go flight, go final count.
[interruption: masked voice]
Yes, it's RIGOR. Yes, I believe that's correct. Yes, it is, uh, it is an antimatter payload, a strategic asset. Specifically? Ah, I believe it's an annihilation-pumped caedometric weapon.
[masked voice]
Yes, it's covert, it's under SECURE ISIS. We have good confidence in the vehicle. We are not scrubbing civilian launches or clearing the range. Public inferentials would catch that, it's a security risk.
/Six at a hundred. Here we go.
Godspeed, SABER. You're all nominal here.
[masked voice]
We both know where the order came from.