Axis crossing, p.14
Axis Crossing, page 14
“What would be the purpose of the pretense?” Lemil asked.
“Enthusiastic cooperation easily accommodates the SADEs’ possible purposes,” Knut opined.
Elisabeth regarded Doell. She said, “I think you’d better have a conversation with Ricardo and see what he can do to control shuttleport access manually. No computers involved.”
“We might be overreacting here,” Doell managed to say. To his consternation, he faced such overwhelming disdain for his remark that he quickly retreated. “However, if this is the general opinion, then I’m appointing this group in charge of future contact with the SADEs. Harlyn, you and your team will devise the strategies, but I require a majority of my department heads to approve your plans before you enact them.”
With that, Doell rose, rapped the table with a knuckle, and marched out.
It was hard to tell who was more astounded by Doell’s pronouncement. However, one individual wasn’t surprised.
Knut occupied the seat at the end of the table. His head was down, and he was chuckling. “Why is it the highest among us often have the least courage and compassion?” he asked.
“Excuse us,” Jeffrey said to Harlyn. Then he motioned to the other senior employees, and they huddled in a corner. After a brief consultation, they returned to the table.
“We’ll make this simple,” Jeffrey said. “Harlyn, you tell us what you want to do, and we’ll approve it. That is unless it’s too crazy to contemplate.”
“Even then, we might consider it,” Elisabeth added.
Harlyn regarded the department heads, and she started laughing. When puzzled faces started to display annoyance, she waved a hand in an apologetic gesture.
“Sorry,” Harlyn said. “What you don’t know is that I was ready to invite Miriamal planetside. I was totally taken by her.” Pointing at the team, she added, “These individuals doubted her. They convinced me of her subtle subterfuge. So, essentially, they will be telling all of us what needs to be done.”
“Now that we’re amicably bonding,” Sherilyn said. “I want to know who was responsible for bringing us here.”
“It’s partly my fault,” Saran replied. “My department keeps files on the top personnel at other corporations. Weeks ago, Doell came to my office, which was a rare thing, and he demanded a list of the best metallurgists and geological specialists on other planets. I gave him the information, but I swear to you I didn’t know why he wanted the names. Truth be told, I didn’t want to ask.”
“Which begs another question,” Dan interjected. “Why isn’t X-Ore using its own specialists?”
Jeffrey’s deep chuckle was harsh. “I was looping from Delhart to here. My partner works for CenGas, and she has our two girls. About that time, I received an emergency message that an anomaly was detected exiting from the Satchel wormhole.”
“I’ve never heard of Satchel,” Erin said.
“An explorer captain detected the wormhole, and it bears his name,” Patty explained, “but it’s never been investigated. We don’t know where it goes.”
“Besides, it pulses,” Lemil added, “which is never a good thing for dependable looping.”
“Anyway,” Jeffrey continued, “the moment the anomaly was identified as a foreign ship, Doell bypassed my second in command and went directly to my three specialists. What he said to them I don’t know. What I do know is that four days later the three of them missed the weekly meeting. While searching for them, my number two discovered they’d emptied their local accounts. Searching the transport logs, he found out they were aboard an Axis-ship, which had passed the wormhole boundary. They’d booked passage to Naiad.”
“That explains our presence,” Timor said, “but the timelines don’t mesh.”
“Understandable,” Ricardo said from the doorway. “Pardon the interruption, but Doell said this group wanted to speak to me.”
Ricardo was mildly surprised by the chuckles that greeted his remark. He grinned in reply, waiting for an explanation.
“Come in and take a seat, Ricardo,” Harlyn invited. “Join this band of unfortunate individuals, who’ve been set adrift by our fearful leader.”
“I take it that Doell didn’t want to deliver the message personally,” Ricardo said. He sat next to Knut.
“We’ll get to that in a moment, Ricardo,” Elisabeth said. “As head of flight control, you can best answer Timor’s query.”
“You’re trying to figure out how there was time for Doell to target your families, send the commander and troops to your planets, and return before the alien ship entered our system,” Ricardo suggested.
“That’s exactly my quandary,” Timor said.
“Then my answer might enlighten you about our alien visitors,” Ricardo replied. “When the ship exited the Satchel wormhole, it didn’t change course for many weeks.”
“Pardon the interruption,” Lemil said. “You should know that the mouth of that particular wormhole is far beyond our outer debris ring.”
“True,” Ricardo said, nodding appreciatively to Lemil for his clarification. “When the ship did change course, it made a gradual curve that took it many more weeks to close on our star. It was almost three months from the time of wormhole exit to the ship slipping past our outer rim.”
Timor turned his head in both directions to regard the other team members.
“Due to the extreme distance, it must have taken time for the SADEs to become aware of Monart’s activity,” Rachner theorized. “When they did notice the shuttle and Axis-ship activity, they used the slow approach to give them time to study the planet.”
“It also helped them appear curious instead of hostile,” Dahlia added.
“Agreed,” Timor replied. “You don’t want to threaten the lesser beings.”
“What was Doell supposed to tell me?” Ricardo asked.
“To figure out a way to prevent the SADEs from entering the shuttleport,” Elisabeth replied. To Ricardo’s puzzled expression, she said, “I’ll fill you in later.”
“Good enough,” Ricardo replied. “So, who’s in charge of this group?” He eyed the department heads. In turn, they regarded Harlyn.
Harlyn lifted her eyebrows, as if to say don’t look at me. Then she gazed around her at the specialists.
Five team members turned to stare silently at Timor.
Dahlia laid a hand on her partner’s arm and said, “Yes.”
“I think the empty seat at the head of the table is waiting for you, Timor,” Jeffrey said.
12: Arrest Me
NAIAD, GELUS SYSTEM
HOME PLANET
Escher and Ceda spent the first few days aboard the Axis-ship in their cabin. Their excuse to the service crew was that their partnership was new.
Crew members congratulated them, winked understandingly, and were happy to support the couple’s request for extended privacy.
Actually, Escher spent much of the time coaching Ceda on a backstory.
“How long will the trip take?” Ceda had asked.
“A little more than six weeks,” Escher replied.
“Why so long?” Ceda had asked. Her question reminded Escher that Ceda had lived on only two planets, and the first one had been as a child.
“There’s no direct route to Naiad,” Escher explained. “We’ll loop through a string of wormholes, slipping around four systems on our way to the home planet.”
“Well, we can’t stay in our cabin for that long,” Ceda grumped.
“We won’t,” Escher promised, “but we have to practice our story. If in doubt about how to respond, turn the question on those who asked you. People love to talk about themselves. Whatever we do, we must support each other’s version. Another option is to turn the conversation to a different subject.”
To Escher’s surprise, the weeks passed smoothly and quickly for Ceda and him. Passengers found them to be a charming couple, and they were constantly invited to meals, to join games, or to have evening drinks.
Escher had spent time coaching Ceda, only to find that it wasn’t really necessary. She was a natural, easily encouraging people to tell their stories. She’d laugh at their jokes, commiserate with them about their trials, and tease them about the peccadillos they confessed.
Then there were always the nights for Escher and Ceda. For the first time, Escher didn’t worry about leaving Ceda’s domicile early and returning to his parent’s apartment. Ceda didn’t have to shop for food or prepare meals, and she had no apartment to clean. They only had each other, and they made the most of the time.
It came to an end much too early for each of them.
Deliberately, Ceda hadn’t asked Escher what he planned to do on Naiad. She was afraid to learn the details. In her mind, everything she had enjoyed during the trip would come to a halt too soon. Then she’d lose the only person whom she’d ever loved, other than Allie.
The service crew dutifully loaded the clothes aboard a shuttle that Escher and Ceda had packed. They’d purchased new clothes from the myriad shops the Axis-ship offered and had left Racer’s and Paula’s clothes behind.
Their Axis-ship shuttle ended its long journey near an orbital station high above Naiad. Small transports ferried the passengers to the station for security processing. Then shuttles delivered them to their destinations planetside.
Within the station, the cids in Escher’s and Ceda’s hands allowed them to move quickly past the sentinels.
As the couple rode the people movers to their disembarkation gate, Ceda said, “I’ve put this off long enough. Where are we going?”
“Naiad’s capital city is Limnad,” Escher replied. “We’re headed there, and we’ll get temporary accommodations.”
“Then what?” Ceda pursued.
“The following morning, I’ll take transport to Naiad security headquarters,” Escher explained.
Ceda turned to stare at Escher. “Why?” she asked.
Escher found it difficult to meet Ceda’s eyes. “To get arrested,” he said quietly to her.
“Thought so,” Ceda replied. “Then I’m going with you.”
“It would be better —” Escher began, but Ceda halted his words with a finger to his lips.
“When you turn yourself in to security, what do you think the agents will do?”
“They’ll track my journey,” Escher said. Then it hit him. The agents would notice that he’d traveled with a companion, who had the Paula Palbrute identity, and they’d start a search for her.
Ceda’s eyebrows tweaked when she saw recognition sweep across Escher’s face. “How long do you think it will take them to locate me?” she asked.
Escher knew his rear end should be kicked. He’d been so busy figuring how he could convince security to help him that he’d failed to consider the potential ramifications of his plan. “Tunnel focused,” he heard his sister accuse him.
“That’s why I’m going with you tomorrow morning,” Ceda said with finality.
The couple’s shuttle deposited them in Limnad. They checked into modest accommodations and enjoyed a final night of freedom on Racer and Paula. In the morning, they packed their belongings, placed them in a public storage locker, and took underground transport to Limnad’s security headquarters.
The human activity and multiple transport lines were imposing, and the impending encounter caused Ceda to stagger. Escher reached out a hand, and Ceda gratefully clasped it.
The couple took an elevator to the building’s lobby. The voluminous space was ringed by virtual assistants, which gave Escher an idea. They joined a long queue. When their turn came, Ceda and he advanced to the next available assistant.
“Citizen, please slide your cid under the scanner,” the assistant requested. When Escher complied, the assistant continued, “Thank you, Racer Deeming. How may I assist you?”
Rather than respond to the question, Escher said, “Interrupt. Admin request. Identify processor.”
There was a slight pause in the virtual image before the assistant replied, “Admin authentication required.”
“Security clearance limited to a specific series of processors. Identify processor,” Escher objected.
“Processor is from the MN-18 series. Final opportunity to submit authentication,” the assistant said.
Escher knew two things simultaneously. Failure to respond correctly would have agents swarming the lobby, and Ceda and he would be harshly treated for trying to hack a virtual assistant. The other thing he knew was that the MN series was known for its security faults, which is why corporations abandoned the Naiad manufacturer and adopted their own advanced LH series.
From a pocket, Escher slipped out a small hard case. He opened it and selected what appeared to be a cid. “Scan for authentication,” Escher said, placing the chip on the panel.
“Authentication approved, Escher Talons. How may I assist you?” the assistant responded.
Escher held a lengthy conversation with the assistant. At the conclusion, he said, “Return to discussing Racer Deeming’s business.”
“Citizen Deeming, how may I assist you?”
“Cid theft,” Escher replied.
“This is a serious crime, Citizen Deeming. Do you have proof of this theft?” the assistant asked.
Escher deposited Ceda’s cid and his on the panel. Within seconds, doors slid aside, and two agents rushed out and took Ceda and him into custody.
As Escher suspected, Ceda and he were separated. He was searched and everything he had was confiscated. Then he was placed in an interrogation cell.
The Naiad judicial system had advanced to the state that security agents were removed from the interrogation process. Agents’ inherent biases had been proven beyond doubt.
A projection appeared across the desk from Escher.
The extremely lifelike male said, “I’m your interrogator, Citizen Deeming. You may call me Samuel.”
“Hello, Samuel,” Escher replied politely.
“Why are you in possession of three cids?” Samuel asked.
“Have you identified the cids?” Escher asked.
“In this format, Citizen Deeming, I ask the questions and you answer them,” Samuel said sternly. “Do you understand these conditions?”
“Interrupt. Admin request,” Escher said. Then he read off the complex code he’d given the virtual assistant. His hope was that the MN series processors were in use throughout security headquarters.
“Administration access approved,” Samuel replied.
Then Escher interrogated Samuel about the status of the two cids that had been confiscated from him. As expected, security had identified one — his, but not Ceda’s.
An agent, who was overseeing multiple interrogations, called to his supervisor, “We’ve a problem in cell eight.”
“What is it?” the supervisor inquired, stepping behind the operator and peering over his shoulder.
“The interrogator is in interrupt mode,” the agent replied. “If I didn’t know better, I would say the suspect is questioning Samuel.”
The supervisor advised the senior agent on duty, a captain. In turn, he sent Lieutenant Stacey Caballero to investigate.
The lieutenant swiped her cid across the panel to a secure room overlooking the interrogation cell. After she stated the reason for her monitoring the conversation, she was granted access and slipped into the room.
“Monitoring in progress,” Samuel stated, as required to inform an administrator.
Immediately, Escher leaned into his chair, crossed his arms, and ceased his conversation with Samuel.
Stacey waited for Samuel’s next question. Wondering why there wasn’t one, she requested a visual of the cell, citing an interruption in the interrogation.
The monitor displayed a suspect seated quietly, and the interrogator image frozen.
“Replay interrogation to date,” requested Stacey, attempting to identify what had happened. She heard, “Admin authentication required.”
The request confused Stacey. However, she acquiesced and passed her cid across the viewing room’s panel. “Admin access not granted,” came the reply.
Using her slate, Stacey contacted the monitoring department to relay the problem. Within a few minutes, a supervisor appeared and used her cid to reset the panel.
“The panel must have failed,” the supervisor said, intermittently eyeing Samuel’s frozen image.
“And your interrogator’s frozen,” Stacey pointed out.
“Saw that,” the supervisor replied. “Who’s being questioned?”
“That’s what we’re trying to find out,” Stacey said. “He came into the lobby and confessed to possessing multiple cids.”
The supervisor halted running the panel through a software diagnostic routine. “How long ago?” she asked.
“About thirty minutes ago,” Stacey replied, frowning. “Why?”
A quick call to the supervisor’s department produced a display of the lobby on the room’s monitor. At her request, an agent shuttled the vid until he found the suspect and his companion in the lobby.
“Thought so,” the supervisor said, watching the vid replay. “Per our legal requirements, security can’t be party to the conversations between assistants and citizens until complaints are verified and cases made.”
“What are you watching?” Stacey asked, as the supervisor requested the vid to be played at three times the normal speed.
“Assistant conversations don’t take this long,” the supervisor remarked. “Besides, the assistant isn’t talking. It’s listening to your suspect.”
Having an idea about the problem, the supervisor ended the panel’s diagnostic program and requested a playback of the interrogation. Her admin authentication was requested, and her cid failed.
“Well, that answers that,” the supervisor said, turning to face Stacey. “There is no panel malfunction. Your suspect has hijacked our network’s admin level. I believe an interview with him is in order.”
A few minutes later, Escher was seated in Captain Johann Stegmeir’s office.
“It’s a major crime to hack security administration servers, Citizen Deeming,” Johann said, after introducing Stacey and himself.
“Allow me to tell you a story,” Escher said.
“Enthusiastic cooperation easily accommodates the SADEs’ possible purposes,” Knut opined.
Elisabeth regarded Doell. She said, “I think you’d better have a conversation with Ricardo and see what he can do to control shuttleport access manually. No computers involved.”
“We might be overreacting here,” Doell managed to say. To his consternation, he faced such overwhelming disdain for his remark that he quickly retreated. “However, if this is the general opinion, then I’m appointing this group in charge of future contact with the SADEs. Harlyn, you and your team will devise the strategies, but I require a majority of my department heads to approve your plans before you enact them.”
With that, Doell rose, rapped the table with a knuckle, and marched out.
It was hard to tell who was more astounded by Doell’s pronouncement. However, one individual wasn’t surprised.
Knut occupied the seat at the end of the table. His head was down, and he was chuckling. “Why is it the highest among us often have the least courage and compassion?” he asked.
“Excuse us,” Jeffrey said to Harlyn. Then he motioned to the other senior employees, and they huddled in a corner. After a brief consultation, they returned to the table.
“We’ll make this simple,” Jeffrey said. “Harlyn, you tell us what you want to do, and we’ll approve it. That is unless it’s too crazy to contemplate.”
“Even then, we might consider it,” Elisabeth added.
Harlyn regarded the department heads, and she started laughing. When puzzled faces started to display annoyance, she waved a hand in an apologetic gesture.
“Sorry,” Harlyn said. “What you don’t know is that I was ready to invite Miriamal planetside. I was totally taken by her.” Pointing at the team, she added, “These individuals doubted her. They convinced me of her subtle subterfuge. So, essentially, they will be telling all of us what needs to be done.”
“Now that we’re amicably bonding,” Sherilyn said. “I want to know who was responsible for bringing us here.”
“It’s partly my fault,” Saran replied. “My department keeps files on the top personnel at other corporations. Weeks ago, Doell came to my office, which was a rare thing, and he demanded a list of the best metallurgists and geological specialists on other planets. I gave him the information, but I swear to you I didn’t know why he wanted the names. Truth be told, I didn’t want to ask.”
“Which begs another question,” Dan interjected. “Why isn’t X-Ore using its own specialists?”
Jeffrey’s deep chuckle was harsh. “I was looping from Delhart to here. My partner works for CenGas, and she has our two girls. About that time, I received an emergency message that an anomaly was detected exiting from the Satchel wormhole.”
“I’ve never heard of Satchel,” Erin said.
“An explorer captain detected the wormhole, and it bears his name,” Patty explained, “but it’s never been investigated. We don’t know where it goes.”
“Besides, it pulses,” Lemil added, “which is never a good thing for dependable looping.”
“Anyway,” Jeffrey continued, “the moment the anomaly was identified as a foreign ship, Doell bypassed my second in command and went directly to my three specialists. What he said to them I don’t know. What I do know is that four days later the three of them missed the weekly meeting. While searching for them, my number two discovered they’d emptied their local accounts. Searching the transport logs, he found out they were aboard an Axis-ship, which had passed the wormhole boundary. They’d booked passage to Naiad.”
“That explains our presence,” Timor said, “but the timelines don’t mesh.”
“Understandable,” Ricardo said from the doorway. “Pardon the interruption, but Doell said this group wanted to speak to me.”
Ricardo was mildly surprised by the chuckles that greeted his remark. He grinned in reply, waiting for an explanation.
“Come in and take a seat, Ricardo,” Harlyn invited. “Join this band of unfortunate individuals, who’ve been set adrift by our fearful leader.”
“I take it that Doell didn’t want to deliver the message personally,” Ricardo said. He sat next to Knut.
“We’ll get to that in a moment, Ricardo,” Elisabeth said. “As head of flight control, you can best answer Timor’s query.”
“You’re trying to figure out how there was time for Doell to target your families, send the commander and troops to your planets, and return before the alien ship entered our system,” Ricardo suggested.
“That’s exactly my quandary,” Timor said.
“Then my answer might enlighten you about our alien visitors,” Ricardo replied. “When the ship exited the Satchel wormhole, it didn’t change course for many weeks.”
“Pardon the interruption,” Lemil said. “You should know that the mouth of that particular wormhole is far beyond our outer debris ring.”
“True,” Ricardo said, nodding appreciatively to Lemil for his clarification. “When the ship did change course, it made a gradual curve that took it many more weeks to close on our star. It was almost three months from the time of wormhole exit to the ship slipping past our outer rim.”
Timor turned his head in both directions to regard the other team members.
“Due to the extreme distance, it must have taken time for the SADEs to become aware of Monart’s activity,” Rachner theorized. “When they did notice the shuttle and Axis-ship activity, they used the slow approach to give them time to study the planet.”
“It also helped them appear curious instead of hostile,” Dahlia added.
“Agreed,” Timor replied. “You don’t want to threaten the lesser beings.”
“What was Doell supposed to tell me?” Ricardo asked.
“To figure out a way to prevent the SADEs from entering the shuttleport,” Elisabeth replied. To Ricardo’s puzzled expression, she said, “I’ll fill you in later.”
“Good enough,” Ricardo replied. “So, who’s in charge of this group?” He eyed the department heads. In turn, they regarded Harlyn.
Harlyn lifted her eyebrows, as if to say don’t look at me. Then she gazed around her at the specialists.
Five team members turned to stare silently at Timor.
Dahlia laid a hand on her partner’s arm and said, “Yes.”
“I think the empty seat at the head of the table is waiting for you, Timor,” Jeffrey said.
12: Arrest Me
NAIAD, GELUS SYSTEM
HOME PLANET
Escher and Ceda spent the first few days aboard the Axis-ship in their cabin. Their excuse to the service crew was that their partnership was new.
Crew members congratulated them, winked understandingly, and were happy to support the couple’s request for extended privacy.
Actually, Escher spent much of the time coaching Ceda on a backstory.
“How long will the trip take?” Ceda had asked.
“A little more than six weeks,” Escher replied.
“Why so long?” Ceda had asked. Her question reminded Escher that Ceda had lived on only two planets, and the first one had been as a child.
“There’s no direct route to Naiad,” Escher explained. “We’ll loop through a string of wormholes, slipping around four systems on our way to the home planet.”
“Well, we can’t stay in our cabin for that long,” Ceda grumped.
“We won’t,” Escher promised, “but we have to practice our story. If in doubt about how to respond, turn the question on those who asked you. People love to talk about themselves. Whatever we do, we must support each other’s version. Another option is to turn the conversation to a different subject.”
To Escher’s surprise, the weeks passed smoothly and quickly for Ceda and him. Passengers found them to be a charming couple, and they were constantly invited to meals, to join games, or to have evening drinks.
Escher had spent time coaching Ceda, only to find that it wasn’t really necessary. She was a natural, easily encouraging people to tell their stories. She’d laugh at their jokes, commiserate with them about their trials, and tease them about the peccadillos they confessed.
Then there were always the nights for Escher and Ceda. For the first time, Escher didn’t worry about leaving Ceda’s domicile early and returning to his parent’s apartment. Ceda didn’t have to shop for food or prepare meals, and she had no apartment to clean. They only had each other, and they made the most of the time.
It came to an end much too early for each of them.
Deliberately, Ceda hadn’t asked Escher what he planned to do on Naiad. She was afraid to learn the details. In her mind, everything she had enjoyed during the trip would come to a halt too soon. Then she’d lose the only person whom she’d ever loved, other than Allie.
The service crew dutifully loaded the clothes aboard a shuttle that Escher and Ceda had packed. They’d purchased new clothes from the myriad shops the Axis-ship offered and had left Racer’s and Paula’s clothes behind.
Their Axis-ship shuttle ended its long journey near an orbital station high above Naiad. Small transports ferried the passengers to the station for security processing. Then shuttles delivered them to their destinations planetside.
Within the station, the cids in Escher’s and Ceda’s hands allowed them to move quickly past the sentinels.
As the couple rode the people movers to their disembarkation gate, Ceda said, “I’ve put this off long enough. Where are we going?”
“Naiad’s capital city is Limnad,” Escher replied. “We’re headed there, and we’ll get temporary accommodations.”
“Then what?” Ceda pursued.
“The following morning, I’ll take transport to Naiad security headquarters,” Escher explained.
Ceda turned to stare at Escher. “Why?” she asked.
Escher found it difficult to meet Ceda’s eyes. “To get arrested,” he said quietly to her.
“Thought so,” Ceda replied. “Then I’m going with you.”
“It would be better —” Escher began, but Ceda halted his words with a finger to his lips.
“When you turn yourself in to security, what do you think the agents will do?”
“They’ll track my journey,” Escher said. Then it hit him. The agents would notice that he’d traveled with a companion, who had the Paula Palbrute identity, and they’d start a search for her.
Ceda’s eyebrows tweaked when she saw recognition sweep across Escher’s face. “How long do you think it will take them to locate me?” she asked.
Escher knew his rear end should be kicked. He’d been so busy figuring how he could convince security to help him that he’d failed to consider the potential ramifications of his plan. “Tunnel focused,” he heard his sister accuse him.
“That’s why I’m going with you tomorrow morning,” Ceda said with finality.
The couple’s shuttle deposited them in Limnad. They checked into modest accommodations and enjoyed a final night of freedom on Racer and Paula. In the morning, they packed their belongings, placed them in a public storage locker, and took underground transport to Limnad’s security headquarters.
The human activity and multiple transport lines were imposing, and the impending encounter caused Ceda to stagger. Escher reached out a hand, and Ceda gratefully clasped it.
The couple took an elevator to the building’s lobby. The voluminous space was ringed by virtual assistants, which gave Escher an idea. They joined a long queue. When their turn came, Ceda and he advanced to the next available assistant.
“Citizen, please slide your cid under the scanner,” the assistant requested. When Escher complied, the assistant continued, “Thank you, Racer Deeming. How may I assist you?”
Rather than respond to the question, Escher said, “Interrupt. Admin request. Identify processor.”
There was a slight pause in the virtual image before the assistant replied, “Admin authentication required.”
“Security clearance limited to a specific series of processors. Identify processor,” Escher objected.
“Processor is from the MN-18 series. Final opportunity to submit authentication,” the assistant said.
Escher knew two things simultaneously. Failure to respond correctly would have agents swarming the lobby, and Ceda and he would be harshly treated for trying to hack a virtual assistant. The other thing he knew was that the MN series was known for its security faults, which is why corporations abandoned the Naiad manufacturer and adopted their own advanced LH series.
From a pocket, Escher slipped out a small hard case. He opened it and selected what appeared to be a cid. “Scan for authentication,” Escher said, placing the chip on the panel.
“Authentication approved, Escher Talons. How may I assist you?” the assistant responded.
Escher held a lengthy conversation with the assistant. At the conclusion, he said, “Return to discussing Racer Deeming’s business.”
“Citizen Deeming, how may I assist you?”
“Cid theft,” Escher replied.
“This is a serious crime, Citizen Deeming. Do you have proof of this theft?” the assistant asked.
Escher deposited Ceda’s cid and his on the panel. Within seconds, doors slid aside, and two agents rushed out and took Ceda and him into custody.
As Escher suspected, Ceda and he were separated. He was searched and everything he had was confiscated. Then he was placed in an interrogation cell.
The Naiad judicial system had advanced to the state that security agents were removed from the interrogation process. Agents’ inherent biases had been proven beyond doubt.
A projection appeared across the desk from Escher.
The extremely lifelike male said, “I’m your interrogator, Citizen Deeming. You may call me Samuel.”
“Hello, Samuel,” Escher replied politely.
“Why are you in possession of three cids?” Samuel asked.
“Have you identified the cids?” Escher asked.
“In this format, Citizen Deeming, I ask the questions and you answer them,” Samuel said sternly. “Do you understand these conditions?”
“Interrupt. Admin request,” Escher said. Then he read off the complex code he’d given the virtual assistant. His hope was that the MN series processors were in use throughout security headquarters.
“Administration access approved,” Samuel replied.
Then Escher interrogated Samuel about the status of the two cids that had been confiscated from him. As expected, security had identified one — his, but not Ceda’s.
An agent, who was overseeing multiple interrogations, called to his supervisor, “We’ve a problem in cell eight.”
“What is it?” the supervisor inquired, stepping behind the operator and peering over his shoulder.
“The interrogator is in interrupt mode,” the agent replied. “If I didn’t know better, I would say the suspect is questioning Samuel.”
The supervisor advised the senior agent on duty, a captain. In turn, he sent Lieutenant Stacey Caballero to investigate.
The lieutenant swiped her cid across the panel to a secure room overlooking the interrogation cell. After she stated the reason for her monitoring the conversation, she was granted access and slipped into the room.
“Monitoring in progress,” Samuel stated, as required to inform an administrator.
Immediately, Escher leaned into his chair, crossed his arms, and ceased his conversation with Samuel.
Stacey waited for Samuel’s next question. Wondering why there wasn’t one, she requested a visual of the cell, citing an interruption in the interrogation.
The monitor displayed a suspect seated quietly, and the interrogator image frozen.
“Replay interrogation to date,” requested Stacey, attempting to identify what had happened. She heard, “Admin authentication required.”
The request confused Stacey. However, she acquiesced and passed her cid across the viewing room’s panel. “Admin access not granted,” came the reply.
Using her slate, Stacey contacted the monitoring department to relay the problem. Within a few minutes, a supervisor appeared and used her cid to reset the panel.
“The panel must have failed,” the supervisor said, intermittently eyeing Samuel’s frozen image.
“And your interrogator’s frozen,” Stacey pointed out.
“Saw that,” the supervisor replied. “Who’s being questioned?”
“That’s what we’re trying to find out,” Stacey said. “He came into the lobby and confessed to possessing multiple cids.”
The supervisor halted running the panel through a software diagnostic routine. “How long ago?” she asked.
“About thirty minutes ago,” Stacey replied, frowning. “Why?”
A quick call to the supervisor’s department produced a display of the lobby on the room’s monitor. At her request, an agent shuttled the vid until he found the suspect and his companion in the lobby.
“Thought so,” the supervisor said, watching the vid replay. “Per our legal requirements, security can’t be party to the conversations between assistants and citizens until complaints are verified and cases made.”
“What are you watching?” Stacey asked, as the supervisor requested the vid to be played at three times the normal speed.
“Assistant conversations don’t take this long,” the supervisor remarked. “Besides, the assistant isn’t talking. It’s listening to your suspect.”
Having an idea about the problem, the supervisor ended the panel’s diagnostic program and requested a playback of the interrogation. Her admin authentication was requested, and her cid failed.
“Well, that answers that,” the supervisor said, turning to face Stacey. “There is no panel malfunction. Your suspect has hijacked our network’s admin level. I believe an interview with him is in order.”
A few minutes later, Escher was seated in Captain Johann Stegmeir’s office.
“It’s a major crime to hack security administration servers, Citizen Deeming,” Johann said, after introducing Stacey and himself.
“Allow me to tell you a story,” Escher said.
