In Case of Fire

Bertrand Malloy is a seasoned Terran ambassador stationed on the remote world of Saarkkad IV, a key source of the biochemical medicines that keep Earth’s war effort alive. From his high‑rise office in the Terran Embassy, he watches the endless star‑filled void and feels the weight of a conflict with the alien Karna looming beyond. At fifty‑nine, Malloy relies on a lifetime of diplomatic skill and a few haunting memories to navigate a job that is as politically delicate as it is vital.

His new staff are far from ordinary: each has been reassigned because a psychological quirk makes them “unsuitable” for regular duties, yet somehow useful in this alien court. One is consumed by paranoid suspicion, another freezes at any real choice, and the rest each bring their own eccentricities to the table. Malloy must balance their idiosyncrasies with the rigid, invisible hierarchy of Saarkkad society, all while keeping the precious drug supply flowing to a galaxy at war.