Rook Nine

Rook Nine (he insists on the number) is a drone tech who tags coolant aisles on Orchard Ring with a logo nobody commissioned — a chess rook inside a nutrient ring. Security calls it vandalism. The packers call it art. Director Merrow calls it a spoiled protein week.

He flies custom tagger drones in hydro sectors after lockdown. Fast, smug, never cruel — just bored on a ring that smells like wet lettuce and ambition.

The logo is union-adjacent protest, not gang graffiti — overtime cuts funded executive bonuses while packers worked double shifts. Rook wants a hearing, not a chase. Catch him without breaking drones and Merrow might drop charges if the crew brokers face-saving charter theater.