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Chapter 7: Arian Rumors
“…but the money trail through Mexico is so diffuse that financial still can’t lock down a connection to drug lord Paloz Arronquez. However, I believe that we are looking for too much of the cash flows, information from Drayson leads me to believe that the recent crackdown on the drug trade has increased money diverted to bribes.” Cadmus finishes, turning a page in one of his three open paper folders.
“So we still can’t move against the Chileans,” Ignatio asks in more of a tired statement.
“No,” the young analyst confirms. “But with increased American activity around Columbia and Peru, I don’t think that we’ll need to concentrate as hard on Chile.” He pages through the leftmost folder. “Fortunately, there has been progress on the Chilean-Chinese smuggling.” He clicks the laptop centered before him and the projector advances to a stock photo of a chinese cargo ship in dry dock. “This ship has ‘verified’ Chinese markings, but it’s been spotted far off its registered course by Indonesian and Australian patrols. It’s also registered as carrying Chinese-made automobile parts.”
A sergeant sitting a few places down the table circles the ship’s name in his notes and taps his pen against the cargo manifest. “What is so odd about that?”
“Chilean companies get the majority of their parts from routes through Argentina and Peru.” Cadmus answers with calm authority.
Ignatio turns a page in his binder and reads for a moment. “And captain Nakamura recommends that we leak their status as smuggling black-market goods to the local naval groups, both acknowledged authorities and the local riff-raff. What do you think?”
Cadmus’ eyebrows rise. “I think it’s a brilliant idea. It will lure in enough legitimate authorities that the cargo ship will either dump its illicit materials or be caught in the act, and more of the illegitimate powers that we’ve been trying to track down will come out of hiding to snatch it for themselves.”
Murmurs of agreement echo up and down the table, and the commandant pages through the few remaining sheets in his binder. “Is that all we have?” Various ‘yes, sir’s emanate from around the conference room, and Ignatio closes his binder. “Then that’s it for today, gentlemen. Dismissed.”
Cadmus starts collecting his folders in a rapid scramble that draws a smile from Ignatio’s face. He calls, “Lieutenant,” just as the boy closes the laptop.
One of the last personnel leaving the room looks over his shoulder with a pitying look and whispers, “Poor kid always has to stay.”
Ignatio remains seated as he looks at the flustered boy. “Hurrying down to the technicians again?”
The boy swallows nervously and tries to straighten his stack of folders, averting his eyes. “Umm, sir…actually, I met someone while I was online Sunday, and since things have been going well lately, with your permission…” He trails off at Ignatio’s laughter, and thinks’ he’s overstepped his bounds. He snaps to a rigid position of attention. “Sir-!”
The commander interrupts, fighting down his laughter. “You’re certainly the productive young man. I ordered you to get some rest and relaxation just to get your mind off your work and you’ve already started meeting people. I’m proud of you, Cadmus. You’ve grown. Now calm down, you don’t have to ask to use your own free time. Go ahead.”
The analyst nods, finishes gathering his papers, and steps out. He nearly walks into a sergeant heading towards the conference room.
“Sir.”
Cadmus nods in polite acknowledgement. “Sergeant McAllister. Is this about the shipping with the ‘Do?” he asks using the shortened name the team is using to refer to the smuggling ship.
The sergeant in a crinkled uniform nods. “Yes, sir. We extracted another two confirmed sightings and the team is still trying to track down those possible submarines that Taiwanese Intelligence think they spotted.”
“That worries me,” Cadmus states absently, already recalling the data to his head and starting to cross-check it and try to form new connections like a computer. While he does this, he continues, “The Americans haven’t sent us any hints and the Japanese Navy is usually diligent about sending us information.” He seems to finish his train of thought, because his facial expression takes focus and he looks at the sergeant. “If adding another person will help, do so.”
McAllister nods in acknowledgement and the two part ways, the lieutenant completing an uneventful walk to his quarters. He sets his things down on his desk and promptly logs into his computer.
A new email appears from a company that does some of the legwork for Vodesko, the message has more information and orders about analyzing a relatively new target: Entar 3147. They came to him a few weeks ago wanting him to use his analytical skills to be sure she isn’t ‘possibly unstable’ – in other words, a threat to them. He gives an obligatory scan through it, ready to delete it when he spots a line printed at the bottom of the message: ‘Reward will include June dissemination information of the Brokkan plant’, and the promise of more information after receiving the results.
Some people may be uncomfortable with spying on others, but Cadmus has done it his whole life. In many senses, he was designed and born for it. What charges his motivation now is the promise of information, it may even confirm the rumors that genetically engineered people like him came from the Brokkan plant, which would be another step in piecing together his origins and what he’s really supposed to be.
He hacks through a security net too meager to give him much trouble, and looks through computer activity. Knowing plenty of the ‘dangerous people’ himself, he doesn’t see any familiar port addresses, so he closes down and looks back at his email to find forwarded messages from his Arian account. After deleting a couple useless messages from Megalith Inc., he finds one from another player he found on a forum before logging off on Friday.
From: BlueSurfer
To: Draco
Subject: Arian Rumors
The email details a few stories too prolific to be called simple rumors, and contains attachments with news articles that plausibly seem to support them. Audio anomalies like a low tone accompanied by inverted or missing textures, bleeding weapons, maddened PKers, melting areas. All of them connected to mysterious player deaths and, in a few rare instances, comas. Cadmus is about to close the last tab when he suddenly notices a familiar name on one of the articles.
“…Freeman was found by neighbors in his apartment building in a comatose state with weak but stable vital signatures. Medics arrived and unplugged his cranial cord – a device that connected a cybernetic implant just behind his left ear to the computer – and Freeman immediately flat-lined. Despite their best efforts, medics were unable to resuscitate him and doctors have been unable to conclusively explain his death, but suggest that it was likely that a static charge built up in the cord leapt into his implant and the charge protector failed.”
Cadmus scoffs. I have an implant like that, the charge would have to leave a visible mark if it was strong enough to overpower the built-in circuit protector. No such mark appears in the high-definition picture in the news article. The analyst’s computer beeps, warning him of a new email, and he checks the new message to discover a note from Akemi. I’m late!
Draco appears in the same gate room he first saw when he first logged in. Akemi and Aubrey aren’t right there waiting for him, but he is late. A ‘twongg’ sounds, indicating an incoming whisper line that Draco enables.
Akemi begins excitedly/Draco! You’re finally here! We waited for so long for you. I was worried.\\
His stomach starts to sink. Great, now I feel guilty. /I’m sorry, I had a meeting, and some more investigating… \\ The Blade Weaver pauses. He definitely feels a strange need to talk about what he’s doing though he never needed reassurance before. Whatever was required to complete the mission was what you did, simple as that. He backs up and sends/I’m sorry. I had a meeting and a few new job requirements came up. Where are you?\\
Akemi walks around the corner and waves, a smile breaking out across her face. Draco can’t help but get caught up in her energy and gives a meek wave back. The two step out into Dol Durma, greeted immediately by the wide city square filled with NPC and guild shops. Aside from the guild shops, nothing has any items that might have interested them and since they looked just a day ago they skip past.
The two new players weave through the square, Akemi leading the way to Aubrey. Stalls fall by and the streets with event locations and other city locations begin to pass until they reach a small cobblestone square by the east gate. The female looks around, a little perplexed. “Where is he? We were going to meet Aubrey and go adventuring.”
Draco watches another player run past, completely ignoring them, and hesitantly states, “I’m fine with this.”
Akemi seems to miss what he says, because she squeaks, “Oh, but don’t you think that more people make it more fun?”
Draco’s eyes immediately narrow in bitter memories. “Where two gather, need makes cooperation. Where three gather, want makes betrayal.”
“Now that isn’t a positive outlook at all!” Akemi snaps back with such fervor that he takes a step back, his own conviction shaken.
He looks at her as if trying to decode her posture. “Do you truly think that the human spirit is naturally good and that the many can be aimed at lofty ideals?”
Akemi blinks and looks straight at Draco, as if he asked how to add two plus two. “Of course I do. I’m not a very good actor, so I just do things the same all the time. Real life, Aria, it’s the same to me.”
“You don’t live in the real world,” Draco states coldly.
“Don’t tell me about the real world and the trash in it! I have to clean up the world’s worst, every day I’m the one who makes the decision to…” She stops her heated tirade, breathing heavily with a wild look in her eyes. “I’m sorry, I try to keep that life and this one separate.”
Something inside Draco seems to shrivel at her melancholy change of attitude. “No, I should be saying I’m sorry. I…there are a lot of things I have to do in the real world that most people don’t…” He sighs. Damn, and I can’t even talk with her about what exactly I do. “I don’t have any help.”
Akemi turns her gaze at him, and though there is some pity, she has a look of sad understanding that makes Draco feel weak.
“I apologize for my absence. There was a real-money scam I had to break up,” calls Aubrey’s voice.
Draco, suddenly furious, is only partially successful in locking down his expression before a snarl escapes. Akemi merely looks surprised. Confused, Aubrey asks, “Did I interrupt something?”
Siumltaneously, Akemi gives a half-hearted and slightly unsure, “No,” and Draco shouts an overly emphatic “No!”
Aubrey lets a subdued smile slip out and states, “Then I suppose we should all get going?”
Still fuming and doing his best to hide it, Draco sends a text message. /Could you have been either five minutes earlier or ten minutes later?!\\
The older swordsman quite sensibly remains looking ahead, though his eyebrow twitches before replying/Would you prefer if I show up earlier or later?\\
/Later.\\
Aubrey is openly surprised and Akemi, having been left out of the private conversation, is extremely confused. She looks back and forth before asking, “Did I miss something?”
…