by CR Daems
"We will stop the passes, but I want an inspection of each shuttle coming and going, and a final count of the crew for each Outpost, Valhall, and Lariw registered merchant ship entering and leaving Safort," I said. "Also, the number of passengers arriving and leaving on each merchant."
"Why?" Mintz asked. He appeared to be evaluating his new captain as part of adjusting to his new rank.
"The raiders need replacements for the injured and killed, and to provide them rest and relaxation. It's our task to determine how they are getting them. If Colonel Vogel is right and the crew replacements aren't coming in as passengers on Outpost or its allies' merchant ships, then they must be coming in on other merchant ships, or they are provided by a local group working with or independent of Outpost. We need to establish which as quickly as we can."
"And when we do?" Sergeant Glick asked, smiling.
"We eliminate the problem and go home." I smiled back.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Safort: Old adversaries
As I was getting ready to depart the Lion Heart, a Junior Grade Lieutenant slid to a stop in front of me and saluted. "Ma'am, Commander Jefferie, the Comm Officer, asked me to give you this," he said, handing his tablet to me. "It's from the Chairman of the Safort Upper Committee."
"Thank you, Lieutenant," I said as I tapped on the icon labelled Captain Sapir.
Captain Sapir, welcome to Safort. As you can see, I am again the Chairman of the SUC. As such, I would like a meeting with you tomorrow to discuss your duties. I hope nine hundred hours will be convenient. Chairman Geraldo.
"Lieutenant, please tell Commander Jefferie to confirm my nine hundred hours meeting with Chairman Geraldo."
"Yes, ma'am," he said, saluted, and ran in the direction of the shuttle bay exit. I smiled. As a JG, he was equivalent to a bug under a microscope which was being watched and evaluated by everyone: his immediate superior, officers he came in contact with, the chiefs, and even the crew of his section. Although each Guard had twelve years of evaluation, in the form of a competition, for me it had been a metamorphosis.
I spent the rest of the day organizing the individual teams. Team One, under Sergeant Ganz, was assigned to inspect arriving and departing Outpost and ally merchant ships. Team Two, under Sergeant Glick, was assigned to inspect all other arriving and departing ships. Team Three, under Sergeant Krebs, was assigned to verifying passenger information–destination, reason for visiting, etc. Team Four, under Sergeant Reti, was assigned to the Widow to follow or provide reconnaissance. Lieutenant Mintz would monitor teams One and Two, while I would monitor Three and Four.
That night, I reviewed the information Colonel Vogel's commandos had collected. Whoever had put the information together had been very methodical. He had a large board where the passes where hung, and along the line were the date and times when he or she had signed out. An examination revealed the person's picture could be replaced relatively easily but none appeared to have been tampered with. But…I concluded it would not have been hard to forge a new pass.
A possible scenario: John A leaves with a pass containing his picture and name. Sometime later Joe G returns with a pass identical to John A's, but with Joe G's picture. Since the same person wouldn't be checking the ID, everything would look alright. The next week Joe G could leave the ship, and John A return with his original pass.
I used my Mfi to contact Lieutenant Mintz. A minute later his face appeared. "Mintz, have both your teams set up facial recognition software for the people coming and going. They can use their Mfi to take pictures of everyone without them knowing it, and then compare it to the people coming and going from the ships."
"Sneaky, Captain. I like it." Mintz smiled. "Passes are good but how could we recognize forty or fifty people. All we could do is verify the picture on the pass looked like the person wearing it. Those passes wouldn't be hard to forge."
"My thoughts exactly," I said. "Plus, eliminating the passes may make them more careless." I clicked off.
* * *
Since Geraldo didn't meet me when I exited the shuttle nor at the entrance to the SUC building, I assumed he was still mad at me and determined to show me he was more important than a Black Guard captain. I smiled mentally, enjoying the game. A man in a grey suit did wave at me when I entered the lobby.
"Captain Sapir, Mr. Geraldo asked me to meet you and take you to his office," he said as he approached. "I'm Carlo."
"Thank you, Carlo." I nodded, wondering if his office had changed or he didn't want me wandering the building, or was just part of the game. If the latter, it was wasted on me. I followed Carlo down the same hallway as the last time to the same office. Carlo knocked, heard, "Come," and opened the door for me to enter. Geraldo remained sitting and waved me to a chair in front of his desk.
"Captain Sapir, it is just like old times. As now, I was the chairman and you a captain," he smiled. I nodded, unsure of the point he was making since his position was temporary, and the comparison of our positions meaningless as I was not a citizen of Safort. He continued when I didn't comment. "I wanted to know your purpose on Safort."
"Part of our commitment to your security. I'm here to find the raiders," I said in a normal voice.
"You should be aware that the SUC will be reconvened in a little over two months. When it is, the odds are good that the Jax contract will be canceled, and the alliance with Outpost passed," he smiled. I shrugged.
"My only concern is finding the raiders, those supporting them, and ensuring they are eliminated," I said, still in a normal voice.
"You can't go around killing Safort citizens! We have laws that protect them!" he half shouted.
"I don't intent to shoot any Safort citizens. That would probably be a mercy compared to what the Safort people will demand."
"What makes you think there are Safort citizens involved, and how are you going to find the raiders? Your Jax Colonel certainly hasn't been successful," Geraldo snorted divisively.
"He's used to opposing armies," I said. "As you are aware, the Black Guard is very myopic. Consequently, the raiders won't be hard to find. They can only survive on a planet with help from its citizens, because it's impossible to hide. They need replacements for those killed or wounded in their raids, food, shelter, ammo, parts for their equipment, rest and relaxation for the troops, and a long list of other things. I expect to report my findings at the next SUC's meeting." I realized that my remarks were a compilation of my thoughts over the past twenty-four hours and my suspicion that Geraldo was involved directly or indirectly. His actions when I returned Representative Sharli for the final SUC vote on the Outpost coalition were highly suspicious. He insisted on seeing her alone, knowing bribes and threats against her family hadn't worked, meaning only death would stop her from voting. A kidnapping and subsequent murder would work if it were done in a manner that excluded him from being involved. Had I accepted his offer to dismiss the Black Guard as having completed the contract, it would have made the kidnapping easy and to infer the Black Guard were partially to blame because they were in a hurry to leave. I felt Geraldo was more than a passive participant in the Outpost Coalition debate.
"Careful, Captain Sapir, you do not overstep your authority," Geraldo said while smiling, but it was clearly a threat. "The majority of the SUC are now evenly divided on the Outpost Coalition. Any heavy-handed action by the Black Guard would tip the balance in the Upper Chamber into supporting it."
"As you are aware, Mr. Geraldo, I am very myopic. My only concern is stopping the killing and looting. The Coalition is other people's concern." I rose, gave a shallow bow, and returned to the Black Widow, positive Geraldo was supporting the coalition initiative and was an active participant in wanting to get rid of the Jax. Back on the Widow, I called Mintz.
"Mintz, have someone get the itinerary for all the Safort merchants and their passengers, coming and going, over the past six months," I said into my Mfi.
"You believe the merchants are supporting the raiders?" he ask
ed in surprise.
"Yes. Safort is divided equally in the Upper Chamber, with the richer and more populated states in favor of the coalition. They see the coalition good for business, increasing their profits, and giving them more power. Greed is a very seductive drug."
* * *
I spent the next two days reviewing the information team Two had gathered. It was obvious that a passenger ship, the Hermes’, and a merchant ship, the Iris’, routes and passengers had changed over the year. Traffic to and from Valhall and Lariw had increased significantly.
"Mintz, have someone check who owns the Hermes and the Iris," I said, as Mintz, Ganz, Glick, Krebs, Reti, and I sat a week later discussing the current deployment of the teams and their findings. "I think they are providing the raiders replacements and rotation."
"Clever," Ganz said. "Everyone is watching the shell with Outpost, Lariw, and Valhall colors, and ignoring the ones with Safort colors."
Mintz called Sergeant Polak on his Mfi. "Polak, I'd like you to find out who owns the Iris and the Hermes. When you do, copy the Captain and me." He looked to me and I nodded.
This week the merchant ship, the Silver Rabbit, registered to Lariw, arrived," Ganz said. "We inspected the crew list and recorded their faces unofficially using our Mfis and had our cameras identifying the faces of those coming and going. All matches good so far." He snorted. "No wonder they were so cooperative. Probably laughing at our backs when we left."
My Mfi buzzed as we were eating. I listened as Ganz talked. "Thank you, Ganz," I said and nodded as I disconnected. "Ganz informs me that the Iris and the Hermes are owned by a company. Both ships were purchased after the meeting at Outpost proposing an alliance. The company name is the Progressive Traders and its owners include the current chairman of the SUC, Mr. Geraldo."
"What does that mean for teams One and Two?" Sergeant Click asked.
"Continue what you are doing," I said. "We want them to think they are winning the slight-of-hand game they are playing. Having identified how the raiders are getting in and out of Safort, you can provide teams Three and Four with departing individuals to follow. I suspect the wounded are transported on the Iris. When we want, we can have the Lion Heart intercept the Iris in space where no one will know we are onto them. If we are lucky, the raiders on Safort have a home base where they store their shuttles and rest."
"Won't they know something happened to the Iris when it fails to arrive at its designation?" Sergeant Krebs asked.
"Yes, but not what. It could be a bad jump, pirates, an accident… Those instances are rare but not unknown. I would prefer to wait until we are ready to close in on the raiders before intercepting either of those ships." I gave a short laugh. "I will have to thank Mr. Geraldo for reminding me Safort is divided on the issue of a coalition and there are many who would condone murder to win."
The next week was slow as we awaited the arrival of the Iris and Hermes. It was frustrating as we did not have anyone to follow until those ships arrived on Safort with replacements. At least, that was my current assessment of the situation. If I were wrong… Just then my Mfi buzzed with a message from Mr. Geraldo.
Captain Sapir,
I need to talk to you about an urgent matter. Meet me at my office as soon as you can.
Chairman Geraldo
I notified Chief Ericson and he and his crew were on board and ready to go as I arrived at the shuttle pad.
"Where to, ma'am?" Master Sergeant Peters, the navigator, asked as I entered.
"The SUC headquarters building. Sorry for the short notice, Peters. Chairman Geraldo appears in a hurry," I said, taking a seat in the first chair. He nodded and entered the crew’s cabin. Less than a minute later, the shuttle rose and began accelerating skyward. I was lost in thought, wondering what Geraldo wanted, when the shuttle banked a hard right and the acceleration pushed me back into the seat.
"Ma'am, we have two fighters on our six with systems hot," Sergeant Christin, the ECM operator, said. "They haven't given a challenge, but they appear to be trying to target us. Any orders?"
"You are cleared to destroy them if they fire on us," I said, hoping giving them a chance to fire first wasn't a mistake, even though I had been told the Widow was capable of defending itself against missiles. I guess I was going to have to get acquainted with all of the Widow's features as our future assignments will require using it to transport clients and Guards, if we survive this encounter. I had to assume that crewing the Widow was a plum assignment only given to the best marine crews.
"They fired," a voice said, as the increased acceleration pushed me harder into my seat. "Two off course… Lasers got the other two… Missiles away at bogey one. Missiles away at bogey two, and immediately afterward the chatter of the shuttle's 50 mm autocannon. "Bogey one on fire… Bogey two exploded," followed by hoots and mixed comments. "All clear, Captain. Estimated arrival time is eight minutes."
I now knew what it felt like to be a client. He or she was sequestered as the fight raged around him or her, but could do nothing except wait to see who won. It seemed like only a minute later and we were touching down on the landing pad. I rose and walked into the crew cabin.
"What happened?" I asked as all four smiling faces turned toward me.
"Two Mach 2 fighters appeared from the direction of the SUC headquarters where their army and air force bases are located," Chief Ericson said. "They made no attempt to communicate with us, their weapons systems were hot, and they were attempting to target us. I turned away to make them chase us since we could easily outrun them, and it made their autocannons useless and slowed their missiles approach. They fired four air-to-air missiles. Sergeant Ellison easily destroyed them, and Sergeant Christin returned fire with our missiles and 50 mm autocannon."
"And we won," Christin said. "Again."
"When we get back to the Lion Heart, I will treat you to whatever you want to eat and drink at a restaurant of your choice in exchange for you educating one ignorant Black Guard on the capabilities, strengths, and weaknesses of the Widow," I said to smiles. "I made my decision to wait until they fired based on not wanting to be accused of being the aggressor without knowing the threat I was placing us in."
"Your order to let them fire first was a good call, Captain, as their air-to-air missiles top out at Mach 3, which means we could outrun them unless they were launched close to us and we were traveling under Mach 3. Then it would depend on other factors like the effectiveness of our ECM and Sergeant Ellison. In this case they were behind us when they fired, and we were already at Mach 3, so we could have outrun their missiles or easily destroyed them with our lasers."
"The offer stands. It's always good to let the other party draw first, but only when the risk is understood and low. I would prefer not to guess when it came to Jax lives. For now, let's return to the Lion Heart."
I had no sooner returned to the Lion Heart, then I had a call from Mr. Geraldo on my Mfi. His face looked stressed and his voice was an octave higher. "I just heard your shuttle was attacked. I want you to know I had nothing to do with the incident."
"The message came from your office requesting an urgent meeting," I said, wondering whether he was being truthful or just covering his ass. "Since that was an act of war against the Jax, I would like an investigation and the guilty parties identified by the next SUC meeting. The Jax Committee will want to know when it considers its response." I disconnected and wondered what the Outpost-Safort coalition for the alliance would do now. Stopping the raids may not produce enough votes to eliminate the Jax security contract, but continuing them may expose them, now that I had been thrown into the mix. I had thwarted their attempt to eliminate me or to at least disrupt the investigation. So logically, I could expect more raids and attempts to distract me. I went to bed looking forward to the return of the Hermes tomorrow and the Iris two days later.
* * *
"The Hermes will dock at the Safort space station today at one hundred hours. The manifest lists two hundred and five pas
sengers from Haven, Chance, Lariw, Kaycia, and Valhall," I said to the assembled team leaders, the Widow crew, and Lieutenant Mintz. "I would like several individuals dressed as typical travelers to join the line of departing passengers, and mingle with them as they collect their luggage." I looked around the group to see smiling faces, knowing I frequently used Guards in disguise on my assignments. The troops appeared to enjoy my disguise parties. "Unless I'm wrong, as many as twenty of the passengers are replacement raiders. So, the objective is to determine large groups, from five to ten I would think, as they would not want to draw attention to themselves and may choose separate modes of travel to get to their meeting's destination. When they identify likely groups, they are to get the information to Lieutenant Mintz. He and I will determine assignments for the teams. Any questions?"
"How are we going to follow them?" Sergeant Reti asked.
"I have rented or acquired a number of skimmers, military shuttles, and ground vehicles. They will be assigned to individuals or teams as we select the targets to be monitored. Remember," I said, looking around the room at each individual, "the objective is to find their shuttles, not to engage them. If you believe they have identified you as following them, contact Lieutenant Mintz, and terminate the surveillance. Depending on how they are traveling, we could possibly use the Widow or the Lion Heart to follow them. Regardless, I don't want them to know we are onto their method of operating. It is critical that we terminate the raiders before the next SUC in just over a month."
Before the meeting ended, we decided that four individuals from Team One would provide the Guards to mingle with the departing passengers.
