Max Intel: Melinoe
Chapter 26 - Passage
The three Terrans were surrounded on all sides by Kiz Enclave Municipal Police in tactical gear. Paula, Vika and Agatha did not comply with their demands, they didn't move or separate as the Ornalith Police Officers screamed at them over leveled firearms.
They braced for assault.
The Terrans were Ambassadorial staff with diplomatic immunity and under most circumstances such immunity would have protected the Terrans from any confrontation with national authorities: unfortunately, that status had to be communicated via rational exchange precluding extreme physical engagement, authorized or not.
Astrid's thoughts suddenly entered Agatha's mind, *Pull Vika and Paula in close.*
So Agatha did and a glossy lavender sphere formed around them. Four advancing Officers tried to seize them manually, only to be obstructed by the impenetrable barrier. Inside Astrid's bubble it was very quiet, with only the heavy breathing of acute stress so Agatha pushed calm into her wives.
"What the actual fuck?" Paula asked.
Vika looked at Paula, "We were set up."
Agatha nodded, "Logical conjecture, I agree."
Paula looked at Agatha, "Did you tell Max and Joon yet?"
Agatha surveyed the half-dozen confused and frustrated Police Officers testing the Barrier. "Indeed, I was instructed to prepare a full diplomatic response in case this escalates."
"How does this escalate?" Paula looked incredulous.
Vika replied, "They could start shooting at us."
Paula blinked, "Well, that's just mierda!"
Vika put her hand in Paula's, "We are safe, thanks to Asa-chan."
"I could drop them like I did those ruffians." Paula muttered with a growl.
Vika glanced at Agatha.
Agatha shared a tense look with Paula, "That would only exacerbate circumstances, making negotiations more difficult."
Vika nodded, "Yes."
"Time is in our favor, Leadership is nearly here." Agatha reported.
Paula nodded, "You're right, we can wait."
They did not need to wait long, Max and Joon's train soon slid into the station. The loud electronic noises had ceased, but the strobe effects persisted. A scattered crowd of curious civilian spectators had begun to gather along the perimeter, and was growing steadily.
Astrid and Samira used the crowd to cover their careful exit from the small park, meeting their senior wives at the transit station entrance. Astrid's face was streaked in tears and as Joon surveyed the scene she pulled Astrid into a hug.
"What do we do?" Joon asked.
Samira answered, "Nothing, Astrid's Barrier has changed circumstances dramatically."
Max raised an eyebrow, "Shouldn't we be contacting Nethril or Enclave leadership?"
Samira shook her head, "Only if you want to stay on Kiz for the next twelve hours. I am quite sure a Senior Police Official or Chief will dispatch someone qualified to assess the situation."
Max and Joon shared a look.
"Will that someone be of sufficient authority to negotiate with us?" Joon inquired.
Samira shrugged, "I don't know, but I bet they will be willing to avoid the mountain of datawork an international incident will create."
Joon was now intimately familiar with that particular summit and had no desire to climb it again.
The Police surrounding the wet lavender sphere held position with weapons trained on it. In just under eleven minutes a heavily armored municipal grav-vehicle came into view and descended close by.
Joon gasped at the size and shape of it.
"Fuckmuffins." Astrid stared wide eyed.
Crowds dispersed as Officers cleared space for the impressively wide vehicle.
It featured two front corner mounted armored ball turrets with heavy weapons, and a large top turret with some manner of artillery. The large vehicle grounded, a thick armored door opened, and three additional Police Officers deployed along with a ranking uniformed Police Official.
Joon looked up at Max anxiously and her Dame Captain nodded with conviction. Max raised an eyebrow at Samira and tilted her head indicating she join Max in parley with the authorities. Samira nodded then stepped up beside her towering wife.
Joon, Astrid and Agatha watched Max and Samira calmly approach the uniformed Police Official. The Ornalith Official wore the rank of Sergeant and turned to face the two approaching Terrans: immediately noting Max's tailored space-black uniform and Samira's cybernetic limbs.
Agatha could sense more confusion bloom.
"Hello, Sergeant, I am Dame Captain Max Anders," She began.
"The Terran Federation Ambassador would like to know the rationale behind the Kiz Enclave Municipal Police harassing her staff?"
The Police Sergeant stood stock-still for a moment, processing Max's words.
"Oh, shit." The Sergeant growled in a deep gravelly voice, then clicked a standard issue comms unit on his uniform rapidly, gaining the attention of every Police Officer on the scene.
The Ornalith glared at the Officers surrounding the Terrans in the lavender bubble. He waved them off with several very specific hand gestures, then pointed a heavy arm and digit into the sky and the dozen or so Ornalith Officers that surrounded the Terrans quickly moved to their vehicles. They turned off the flashing multicolored lights and one by one the seven type-3 Grav-Unit vehicles departed the scene.
The remaining Officers returned to the heavy armored vehicle, retaking stations within, giving their ranking Official privacy. The Sergeant slowly turned to Max and Samira, looking very tired.
"I'm going to say that this has been a terrible mistake," The Sergeant started. "I am unable to state publicly that this mistake was orchestrated by undesirables manipulating law enforcement."
Joon, Astrid and Agatha walked from the Transit station to the lavender sphere which quickly faded away and the crew started hugging. The Ornalith Sergeant noted the public display of affection then continued, "I'm hoping this incident doesn't go any further than us, because I'm already working on a crap day."
Max shook her head, "I don't think we need to pursue this."
The Ornalith nodded to Max, "I hope whoever the Ambassador's staff pissed off is now completely humiliated and has an even worse day."
The Sergeant looked at Max and Samira, "The call was 'Terran Terrorists' if you can believe that shit."
Samira nodded, "An emergency law enforcement response against a target victim under false pretenses."
The Sergeant gave Samira a measured look, "Were you ever on the Job?"
"Detective, U.C.P.D." Samira replied.
The Sergeant smirked, "Lucky Ambassador. I'm gonna give you my contact data, if anything 'happens' to you in Kiz, contact me and maybe we can prevent this kind of thing next time." The Sergeant raised an eye.
Max looked at Samira.
Samira nodded, "Appreciated, I'm Sam Bahjat, the Ambassador's Security Chief.
"Sergeant Budizawik Yaf, Special Operations K.E.M.P., or just... Bud." The Ornalith put out a thick three fingered hand to Samira.
Samira took Bud's offered hand.
Then so did Max.
"Swatted is a weird word," Astrid commented.
Joon and her 'staff' were jogging across the executive pad; Deirdre's cargo bay ramp had just lowered.
Samira grimaced, "It's also a nasty way to ruin someone's day."
Max nodded, "It was unfortunate, but we did make a new contact from the experience."
"Did we completely miss our window?" Joon asked, as she and her wives boarded the Terran Corvette they called home.
Paula paused for a moment, trying to sense the location of Hex she had placed on Rek.
"I don't think so, M'lady, I think Mr. Peu is still in the system."
Agatha thumbed the DNA lock on the cargo bay ramp and door and the entire crew felt Deirdre ascend as the tiny warship's thrusters spun them around.
Max, Joon, Vika, Samira and Paula went to the bridge while three hands of Agatha and Astrid went to change into BDU's. Agatha finally got clearance from Kiz ATC as they left the atmosphere and Deirdre departed the Enclave at an impressive velocity.
Agatha had been looking for a quiet corner in the Xi Piscium system to slip into stealth.
A difficult task in such a busy place.
The closest was a large type-C asteroid just outside shipping lanes. Without a fuss, Deirdre slipped close behind the six kilometer rock and Agatha activated the sensor-baffle suite: the Corvette effectively disappeared. The extremely sensitive passive sensors Deirdre employed were wide open, collecting data and tracking hundreds of ships.
Agatha pulled the ship back around, increasing velocity while keeping maximum stealth integrity. She looked over her shoulder at Max and nodded, "Ready, Captain."
Max smiled and turned her attention to Paula.
Paula swallowed and nodded.
Joon squeezed Paula's hand, "You got this."
Paula smiled nervously, took a deep breath then closed her eyes. She didn't try to force it, but she was under pressure to perform. Paula felt the Fortune on Deirdre, it was like trying to look out past a candle to see into darkness.
She eased her feelings past the brightness of her wives, she was then able to barely sense millions of tiny candles drifting in the void. Paula noticed a thin thread connecting herself to Rek: she studied it. "He's moving away," Paula said softly, "I can feel him, that direction."
Paula pointed at him, millions of miles away. Agatha swung the bow to follow that heading, Paula's arm moved with it, still with her eyes closed, she followed the thread pointing at Rek. Everyone watched on holo-screens as a dozen possible targets were highlighted as Agatha attempted to improve determination of the ship Rek was on by narrowing the gain on Deirdre's powerful passive sensors.
"I think he is on this one," Agatha brought up her feed on the central holographic display.
A bulk freighter, The Ghusmik Urr, appeared on it, nearing the edge of the system. It had a distinctive, three-sided Ornalith hull design.
Agatha calculated its heading, "Course suggests the destination is a nearby system."
"Zig zag..." Vika commented.
"Yes, precisely." Agatha set course to intercept the freighter. "I believe they will utilize that protocol to mask their intended destination." Agatha stated.
Paula now opened her eyes, "I don't know how far I can track him."
"Agatha, can we catch them?" Max inquired.
Just as Agatha was about to answer... The bulk freighter slipped away into hyper-warp.
"I'm afraid not, Captain."
Every human on the bridge felt disappointed. Astrid stepped onto the bridge now wearing BDU's and Samira patted the small space next to her. The Chief Engineer sat next to the Security Chief as everyone edged over to give her more room.
Agatha looked over her shoulder, "I have their course, I believe if we follow it, as we are faster in hyper-warp, we will pass them by. Then perhaps covertly rendezvous with them when they make their course change in the next system?" Agatha smiled, raising an eyebrow.
