“Yeah?” Joan asked, scanning to either side to see if anyone was coming. “How do suggest I go about doing that?”
“You have always proven quite savvy with an ability to find your way through locked doors, Ms. Shengtu.”
Joan chuckled. The corridor remained clear of pedestrian traffic. She casually moved to one of the vacant store units. She tugged on the door, which was locked with a simple physical keyhole, no computer encryption or anything. All it would require was a quick pick. It’d be just like old times with her and G.O.D. working together.
She scanned the hallway once more before reaching into her bag and producing two thin metal lengths. She inserted them into the lock and tweaked the picks until she heard a clicking sound. “Less than thirty seconds, pretty good, huh G.O.D.?”
“Your fourth fastest time by my records, Ms. Shengtu.”
“I’ll take it,” Joan said. She stepped inside and secured the door behind her.
The abandoned shop loomed in shadows, an emergency light in the corner and a few broken racks on the walls. A single, unlit terminal protruded from the back corner. “How do we know if this is live?”
“If it is not, I can walk you through the process of reactivating its link.”
Joan moved to the terminal and pressed her thumb to the on button. The terminal made a protesting noise as it booted up, displaying the Regency BioTech logo. She held her handtab to the screen and her integrated system linked into the system.
“Downloading. Stand by.”
“Standing by,” Joan said wryly. What else could she do?
Several moments passed, a loading icon appearing the screen, followed by a data transfer of thousands of files scrolling across the terminal’s display. Joan didn’t know exactly what information G.O.D. was extracting from the system, but trusted the AI to do what it needed.
“I have good news, Ms. Shengtu. It appears your target is on planet, perhaps even on this station. There is a coded channel entitled—”
The room flashed red and a siren blared. Joan covered her ears from the painful noise. “Dammit!”
“It appears I have triggered an alarm system, Ms. Shengtu.”
“Obvious much?” Joan asked. Her handtab showed that the information upload wasn’t complete, but she had to act fast. She jerked her wrist away from the terminal and hustled to the door. “Gotta get out of here before security arrives. I hope there’s no cameras.”
“I detected none online in the station architecture files I downloaded for this sector. I recommend proceeding with caution.”
“Doing my best,” Joan said. She cracked open the door to scan the hall. People walked by but didn’t act as if they cared that an alarm was sounding, too absorbed in their conversations. She slipped out and shut the door behind her, then walked down the corridor as if she were casually shopping, being careful not to let her eyes betray her worry.
Two armored with a black sash and white lettering that said “Trade Federation Security” rushed into the corridor. They had combat helmets and holovisors that shielded their eyes. One approached Joan.
“May we see your ident, miss?” The security officer said.
Joan stopped where she was at. Remember to breathe. Act like nothing’s wrong. That’s the important part. She gave a little smile toward them and held up her handtab. “No problem,” she said.
The officer scanned the handtab with his visor, which chimed. He took a couple of steps back and conferred with his partner. “Share data,” he commanded to his visor unit.
“Huh,” the other officer said.
Having been to prison already, and a military one at that, Joan had enough familiarity with security antics to not be afraid. Even back home in the Star Empire, she’d had no support once her parents died. This situation was no different.
“Joan,” the AI said in her ear. “My quarantine subroutines are breaking down. I’ve analyzed the data and it does appear Commodore Zhang is aboard the station. She is located—“
A high pitched shriek sounded in her ear. Joan instinctively brought her hand to her head as if that would stop it, even though the sound originated in her internal implant. Her movement drew the officers’ attentions.
The first officer came closer to her. “Is everything all right ma’am? Did you see anyone who looked suspicious running down the corridor?”
“Bluetide!” Joan shouted the emergency shutdown protocol that the council had placed within G.O.D.’s programming.
The sound stopped. The relief that provided dwindled quickly as the security officers loomed over her, heads tilted toward her with curiosity.
Joan winced, trying to recover from the buzzing that remained. “Sorry, ear implant mod is malfunctioning,” she said, rubbing her ear. G.O.D.’s program did deactivate as promised, or at least quieted down. Joan tried to put on a small smile. “Ahh, but I didn’t see anyone running down the corridor. Just a couple that was getting a bit too touchy.”
“Had an implant malfunction myself a couple weeks ago. All my music skipped for about a week. Was terrible,” the officer said.
His partner chimed in, “We received an alarm in this area, could be a false one. But if you remember anything at all?”
Joan shook her head a second time.
“Okay then. Your ident checks out. Sorry to disturb you,” the first officer said. He motioned to his partner and both headed for the store where Joan had just left.
When her back was to them, Joan let out a deep sigh of relief. That had been close. Security had very good response times on this station, something worth noting for the future. That was good information. Speaking of which… “G.O.D.,” she said softly, walking a little faster than she normally did to distance herself from security. “Reactivate AI. Still with me?”
Silence lingered about her.
“G.O.D.?”
Joan held up her handtab, hitting the mute function to turn it off. The shrieking was gone, thankfully, but she still heard no response. Had G.O.D.’s subroutines broken down that far? She grimaced as the feedback returned in echoing waves. Finally she tapped in a command to disable the ear unit completely.
As Joan moved down the halls, sounds swelled of corporate citizens talking and doing commerce, mixed with soothing background music piped into the promenade. Joan gave one glance back over her shoulder and disappeared into the crowd of shoppers.
* * *
Nothing of note occurred outside her team’s apartment door. No security following up, no signs of any struggle. Joan took another careful glance behind her when she strode down that final corridor. The likelihood of her being followed was slim, but one could never be too cautious.
Her apartment door slid open when it recognized the electronic signature on her handtab. Yui and Trian sat on the couch, datapads in front of them as they combed over information.
“A small skirmish between the Trade Federation and Martine Star Empire forces in the Alpha Ceti system. Nothing unusual in the reports there. Oh, hey, the spaceport news has reported Regency BioTech is about to receive three dozen Megahauler class ships they recently commissioned from Premier Aerospace Cargo Enterprises. They’re almost ready for launch. The company claims they’re going to hit the colonies with shipments of last season’s bodymods to try to force a cultural integration. I’m not sure how this helps us, but it’s good intel at the very least for when we get back.” Trian said to Yui then looked up. “Hello Joan.”
Yui gave a little inclination of her head toward Joan. “What’s up? You look like you were just caught stealing from the ship’s armory.”
The door closed again behind her. Joan bit her tongue so she wouldn’t rip Yui a new one before walked over to the couch and leaned on the arm. She looked pointedly at Trian, ignoring the other woman. “I just did a little reconnaissance of the station. Lot more people here than I would have expected. I broke into a small vacant shop off the main promenade, and—”
“You what?” Trian asked, sounding panicked.
/> Joan held up a hand, palm facing toward him. “Listen to me for a moment.”
“Did you just get caught stealing from the armory?” Yui asked. She sounded serious.
“No, not at all. Security was close, but I didn’t risk us. My AI suggested that I link with the system so we could extract information from the Regency nets in a location that can’t be tied to us. It sounded like a good idea,” Joan said.
“I agree with Ms. Amitosa that this sounds to be a foolish plan,” Trian said.
“I’ve never had a problem before with G.O.D.’s advice, no reason to start doubting him now.” Joan crossed her arms.
“You haven’t worked with a team like this in a long time, ensign. So what happened?” Yui said.
Joan took a deep breath, trying not to become too defensive. She’d taken initiative, something she’d done dozens of times in her post-military career. But that was the problem with people on the inside, people who worked for governments, took ranks or titles. They could never understand what it was like to have to trust no one. In order to get anything done, she had to take initiative herself. “G.O.D., my AI that is, confirmed through sources on the nets that Commodore Zhang is on planet, perhaps even being held on the Central Office itself.”
That shut Yui up. She stared at Joan for a long moment.
“Confirmed? Can you tell me what the AI found?” Trian asked, breaking a moment of silence.
“Yeah, confirmed,” Joan said. “But, I can’t tell you exactly what he found. He’s back to having issues with his program matrix. Went completely dark on me. I couldn’t get more. I set off an alarm and had to run pretty quickly to save my skin.”
“So, you did get caught?” Yui asked.
Joan shook her head. “No, I’m safe. We’re safe. I made it out before anyone could see that I did anything.”
Both Yui and Trian watched her with worry and scrutiny in their eyes before Trian shook his head. “Here, sync your handtab with my pad. I’ll look into the data. Hopefully the info your AI extracted is still there and not corrupted.”
Yui frowned, but something changed in her eyes when she looked at Joan. “Good work, ensign. Didn’t expect you to be one to gather information. Figured I’d have to be the one to take all the risks.”
“Thanks,” Joan said with a little smile. Had Yui just complimented her? As if the last few minutes hadn’t been shocking enough. “What’s next?”
“Next,” Yui said. “We get you ready for this party tonight.”
The dreaded party. Joan made a face. “Look, I’m good at gathering information, hiding, finding things. This party, I don’t think I can do that. Maybe you two should go and I can see if I can get more information on where the Commodore might be held?”
“That’s exactly why you need to go,” Yui said. “We’re not going to stumble upon the Commodore. We’re going to need higher level access to encrypted data, unless your AI magically stumbled upon a workaround.”
Trian looked down at his datapad as information scrolled past, separating into various files. He tapped through, scanning quickly. “Station security protocols, patrol times and shifts. This is all very good information. It looks like your AI did well, Joan. I must agree with Ms. Amitosa, though. We need more. Corporate schmoozing is our safest and most reliable plan.”
Joan scrunched her nose, but decided not to argue further.
“Huh…” Trian said, tapping the datapad several more times. He hit the same sequence again, brow furrowing.
“What’s wrong?”
“Well, the data you extracted is here, and on your handtab. However, reviewing your files, there’s no subfolder for your AI program. It’s gone.”
Joan panicked. “Gone? What do you mean?”
Trian frowned, brow furrowing in confusion. “I’m not certain. Whatever happened, your AI appears to have been erased.”
Chapter 18
An Affair to Remember
Regency BioTech Central Office—Gala Hall, Mars
Local Date February 12th, 2464
The Gala Hall had flowing streamers that extended from three levels into a domed ceiling that revealed the wondrous starscape of Mars. Tall columns lifted the eye toward that focal point. A spiraled stairway led up to two tiered balconies that hung over the main floor. The room had been designed to open into a transparent semicircle, to give the experience of someone seeing the night sky from the actual dome on the surface.
Dario had been on tours of the Gala Hall several times in his life. The first time he’d been invited to a company event had been as a child. He’d been warned under no uncertain terms that he had to be well behaved, which meant quiet and out of the way. It had been before his ocular implant surgery, so he didn’t have a way to tune out and entertain himself as he could later in life.
Now, however, the “good behavior” warning Mr. Anazao had given him meant something different. Dario would be expected to act engaged with the important people here, to glad-hand.
A lot of architectural thought had been given to the design of the space, accentuated by the stage. Screens and tables had been set up for the unveiling of the new product line. The serving staff hovered, wearing all black as to fade into the background. Only a few of the corporate attendees had arrived thus far, including Dario, who signed in at the front table several moments before.
His assistant, Jake, stood three tables ahead of Dario, speaking with someone from corporate whom Dario didn’t recognize. He hadn’t had a chance to speak with Jake about what he’d seen at the underlevels factory. This wasn’t the time or place to open up those discussions.
Jake, having no sense anything was wrong, waved to Dario, motioning him over. “Dario, have you met Emre Baker? He’s in our corporate fleet division and has some really interesting stories.”
“No, I haven’t,” Dario said cautiously, but made his way over. He shook Emre’s hand. “Nice to meet you, Dario Anazao.”
“Kostas’s kid?” Emre said. The man had a facial structure mod that brought his face to a single point, with a tuft of baby blue below his bottom lip. “No, that’s not fair. You’re not a kid at all. I’ve worked with your father for decades. He’s the bane of my existence, you know.” His words held a teasing laugh.
Dario released his hand. “Oh yeah?”
“Yeah. Do you know how much it costs to acquire Trade Escort vessels? Those weapons and armor don’t come cheap, and they’re so necessary.”
Jake shook his head. “Emre’s actually seen Blob combat and survived.”
“I’m sure that must have been frightening,” Dario said, giving a polite smile. His eyes flicked to Jake hoping to communicate that he wanted to talk to him, but Jake was intent upon Emre. Something with the man caught his interest.
“It was. We’re talking about six months after the loss of the T.F.S. Defender.” Emre launched into what Dario was sure would be a long story.
* * *
Joan stared at a woman in the mirror who looked nothing like the person she had always considered herself to be. This woman had a fashionable dress, accenting her proportions in a flattering manner, while maintaining a modest decorum. When she turned to inspect her side, the dress shifted color from a reflective silver to a deep purple—what was called a “living fabric” by the shop she’d bought it from. It sensed heat, mood, and lighting to convey appropriate color schemes. Joan had never worn something so decadent in her life.
Then there was her hair, circling with curls and standing up on her head with two ornamental hair sticks holding the ensemble in place. Yui had found a hairmod shop on the promenade that both genetically modified her hair and provided the beautiful design itself. The same shop painted her cheeks a sparkling red.
She looked like a model, or a doll. It was unbelievable.
“You’re half-presentable, ensign,” Yui said, stepping to her side and surveying her.
Trian looked over from adjusting his thin tie. “I think you’re stunning, Ms. Shengtu.”
“I don’t know.” Joan would have flushed if her face hadn’t already carried that crimson coloring. “I feel fake.”
“Everyone in this corporation’s fake. You’ll fit in just fine,” Yui glanced to the Joan in the mirror, close to her side and gave an approving nod.
“Yeah, well, they might notice that I’m a fake-fake,” Joan shook her head.
“Doubt it, they’ll be self-absorbed. If anything they’ll want to get to know your hair and clothing designers—and you can give them that information truthfully since you found them with me,” Yui said brightly.
“I break into things. I can manipulate computers, AIs, security systems. I can pilot and I can even shoot. Isn’t this your wheelhouse, Trian?” Joan peeked over her shoulder. A single curl of her hair bounced and brushed against her cheek. “Oh no, did I ruin it?” Joan asked, moving her hand toward the curl.
Yui slapped her hand away. “No, that’s supposed to be there. It gives you an innocent quality as long as they don’t look into your thieving eyes. Don’t touch.”
Joan had become used to Yui’s ribbing at this point that it hardly bothered her anymore. She would find a way to get her back at some point. It’d have to be something good, something very funny.
“There’s been studies, Joan. A woman is much better at extracting information from the majority of the male population and vice versa. Having us both attend doubles the odds of us finding someone to work with us on the inside, or slip us information by mistake,” Trian said.
“Should have sent Yui.” Joan sucked in her bottom lip. It bothered her that this situation made her lose her confidence, but recognizing the fact and getting rid of the feeling were two different matters.
“Can’t,” Yui said, and all too gleefully.
“Her relationship with Mr. Dylan could cause problems if they ran into each other,” Trian clarified.
That left Joan as their only option. She stared back at the phony reflection of her, putting on the best smile she could before nodding with determination.
Star Realms: Rescue Run Page 13