Chapter 7: Cat and Mouse

March 30, 2182 AD, Hartmann City, Gloria, Procyon system

“And that’s when you first learned that Agent Olt-mar-rost-kam had been killed?”

Special Agent Mbenge leaned forward in her chair, studying the black lens in front of her. She had been roused from her bed in the middle of the night by a Sunguard lieutenant who had frantically rung the bell beside the door of her small apartment at Merkel Base. That had been four hours ago, four hours filled with interviews and evidence gathering, frantically trying to collect as much information as possible before the trail began to grow cold. Now she was reviewing the case with Coil, trying to piece together what had happened out there on the outskirts of Hartmann City.

An Agent had been killed. And that meant the Sunguard was now teetering on the edge of triggering Codex Vindicta. All that remained was for a Special Agent to give the final word, and the entirety of the greatest fighting force in the history of the four races would prepare to descend into a manhunt on a scale most people could not even imagine.

Once the post-Moreno doctrine of limitless retribution was put into effect, all normal rules of operation would be thrown out the window. The vendetta codex meant any and all resources of the entire Sunguard—not just here on Gloria, but throughout the whole Terran Federation—would be placed on standby, ready for deployment should a Special Agent require their services to solve the murder of a single man.

It was overkill, and it was by design. Not because the life of a Sunguard service member was worth more than the life of a civilian, but because threats against an active member of the Terran Federation’s security force, or against someone close to them, could never be allowed to influence the organization’s application of justice. If the Sunguard were forced to bow to threats or blackmailed into shrinking from its responsibilities, civilians would, in the end, be the ones to suffer. Codex Vindicta existed solely to protect the integrity and independence of the police and the military, for the ultimate benefit of those they were tasked with safeguarding. The response it would trigger was designed to be so fearsome that no one would ever even think of threatening a soldier of the Sunguard in the first place.

In short, the vendetta codex was designed never to have to be used.

Of course, reality was just a little different from theory. This would not be the first time it had been invoked, nor would it be the last.

“Yes, ma’am,” Coil replied, its voice smooth and mostly controlled, though colored by a hint of sorrow. “Special Agent Stoltz called me at 25:18 last night, local Hartmann time, to inform me that he had found the dead body of Agent Olt-mar-rost-kam inside the compound of the human trafficking syndicate the Agent had been tracking for him. According to Stoltz, he appeared to have been shot in the back by the traffickers while infiltrating the compound. I immediately dispatched a forensics team to the location. Despite Special Agent Stoltz’s assertion that Agent Olt-mar-rost-kam was dead, I also dispatched an emergency medical team. Sadly, Stoltz’s assessment of the Agent’s condition turned out to be accurate.

“We lost a good man tonight, ma’am. Please, if there’s any information you need, just ask me.”

“Thank you, Coil. I will. I didn’t know him that well. I only met him a few times, but he seemed to be an Agent with his heart in the right place.”

“He was,” the intelligent computer replied. “I worked closely with him toward the end. I’m sure I know things about the case that will be of benefit to you, ma’am. All you have to do is ask.”

“What was the timeline of events after the discovery of his body?”

“The medical team arrived by suborbital hopper at 25:24, six minutes after I received the initial call from Special Agent Stoltz. The forensics team, on the other hand, had to drive out from Merkel Base and reached the location a little over an hour later, at 00:44 local time.”

“And by that time, the compound was empty, correct?” she asked, trying to piece together an image of what the abandoned factory must have looked like during Agent Olt-mar-rost-kam’s final minutes.

“Yes, ma’am. When the medical team arrived, Special Agent Stoltz was the only living person inside the compound.”

Special Agent Mbenge flipped through the files on her tablet, frowned, and drummed her fingers on the table. Something didn’t quite add up.

“You said the forensics team arrived three quarters of an hour after midnight. When did they leave again?” she asked.

“They stayed for two hours. They wanted to conduct a comprehensive initial sweep of the compound.”

“So they didn’t just examine the murder scene. They documented the factory as well?”

“That is correct, ma’am,” Coil replied. “I find that fact very interesting.”

Mbenge looked up from her tablet and raised an eyebrow toward the intelligent computer’s lens. “What’s so interesting about that?”

“One would think the first thing a forensics team looking for criminals who had just fled the scene would do would be to gather any genetic evidence they could find,” Coil explained. “Skin fragments, hair, body fluids. Anything that could help identify the perpetrators.”

“You’re saying they didn’t?”

She was genuinely confused now. Surely they had. If they hadn’t, what else had they been doing there the whole time?

“What I’m saying, ma’am, is that there is no file containing their findings stored in my memory.”

Special Agent Mbenge sighed. That was unfortunate. It didn’t help to have a standard operating procedure if people didn’t follow it. When this was over, she would have to speak with the forensics department about that. But for now, assigning blame wasn’t important. They had simply made a mistake, and now it was up to her to find ways to compensate for it.

“Well, no use crying over spilled milk. What’s done is done. Please redeploy the forensics team and give them specific instructions to collect anything they find that might be of interest to us.”

“I already did that the second I discovered this discrepancy,” the intelligent computer said without even the slightest hint of pride or indignation in its voice. “Unfortunately, I’m afraid it will do us very little good. The crime scene has already been released.”

She felt her jaw drop.

“It has been what?”

“When the forensics team had finished their investigation, the Sunguard soldiers watching the site were given permission to leave as well. The factory has now been sitting unguarded for an hour. By the time the forensics experts arrive there again, the traffickers will have had two full hours to clean the scene.”

Coil was right, she realized. If the cartel they were up against was as organized as they seemed to be, they would likely already have contingency plans in place for this exact scenario, complete with high-pressure bleach or acid sprinklers and gamma-ray sterilizers ready to be activated at the press of a button. Given two hours of uninterrupted time to eliminate any evidence, little, if anything, would remain to tie them to the scene.

“Who gave that order?” she asked.

“I’m sorry, ma’am. I truly am. I don’t have that information. I wish I could tell you more. I’m sure, given the right question, I could give you something that could help you solve this case. All… you have to do… is ask.”

In her mind’s eye, Mbenge could almost see Coil winking at her. The intelligent computer was behaving very strangely this morning, she thought. Perhaps it was time to move on and interview another subject, letting Coil process its grief in private. But she had been dreading meeting the next person on her list all morning.

* * *

“Eric, let me first express my deepest sympathies. It’s been an ordeal. Losing a partner is something that should never happen. I’m glad you’re all right.”

He looked shaken, sitting there on the other side of the table in his wrinkled gray Special Agent jacket and gray Special Agent pants. The red stripe running down the sides of his arms, torso, and legs was dirty with clay and soil, and his once-shiny black boots were speckled with red blotches whose origin she was far too familiar with for comfort.

She wore that same uniform. The same unadorned jacket, pants, and boots. Her clothes bore the same wrinkles as Eric’s, though hers came from being roused in the middle of the night rather than from a mission gone horribly wrong.

The only difference between them was that her uniform was clean, and his was not.

“Thank you, Elizabeth,” he said, his voice shaking slightly. “It’s been a night I will remember for as long as I live, and for all the wrong reasons. Agent Olt-mar-rost-kam was exemplary. Losing him will be felt throughout the Sunguard.”

“I’m considering whether or not to invoke Codex Vindicta,” she told him. “Technically, the case obviously fulfills the requirement. A member of the Sunguard has been intentionally killed.”

“Obviously,” Stoltz replied. “The doctrine is there for a reason. But that doesn’t mean we should automatically invoke it. It gives us a tool to find his killer, yes, but if that tool causes more harm than good, using it might be the wrong choice. As Special Agents, we wield almost unchecked power. That means we need to be especially careful to use that power responsibly. And in my opinion, the vendetta codex is about as far from acting responsibly as we can go.”

“I agree, for the most part,” Special Agent Mbenge said, nodding slowly. “I take it you’ve decided not to invoke it, then? Me, I’m still undecided.”

Given that their roles were identical, any Special Agent could make the decision to invoke Codex Vindicta. It was part of the authority they all wielded. But practically speaking, those not connected to the case were highly unlikely to do so. After all, anyone unfamiliar with the details would be reluctant to make Federation-altering decisions based on incomplete knowledge. But she and Stoltz knew those details, so either of them might.

“No, I think that would be taking the investigation a step too far, at least for now,” Special Agent Stoltz said. “To be honest, I don’t see this as a threat to the Sunguard. Agent Olt-mar-rost-kam, despite his exemplary conduct—and I mean no disrespect here—was not important enough to us that his murder risks affecting how we operate.”

She considered that for a moment.

“I’m not so sure that’s true, Eric,” she finally said. “After all, we’re sitting here right now, discussing his death, you and I. Two out of only a hundred Special Agents are now tied up investigating the murder of one of our own instead of being out there, protecting the citizens of the Terran Federation.”

“Well, you may have a point there,” Stoltz admitted with a nod. “Still, I think we need to be careful. Obviously, you have the authority to do whatever you think is right, Elizabeth. But as for me, I’m not going to invoke Vindicta. I’m sure of it.”

She could respect that, even if she didn’t agree with his reasoning. That was part of the point of having multiple Special Agents operating with independent authority, unbound by jurisdiction. They didn’t all have to agree on everything. As long as they all had the best interests of the citizens of the Federation at heart, at least one of them would, sooner or later, make a decision that benefited them all. And if any of them did the opposite—made a ruling that turned out to be detrimental to the Terran Federation—the others would simply overrule it.

It was, in a sense, a form of democracy. Trust was placed in the idea that, as a group, they would act in the best interests of the public. No one was perfect, of course, but together they served as checks on one another’s power. Naturally, the system assumed that everyone acted in good faith, even those that by mistake made bad decisions. But it went without saying that this was true. They were Special Agents, after all. Their loyalty could never be in question.

“All right,” she said. “But you won’t override me if I do?”

Stoltz shrugged. “Probably not. I can’t make any promises. We’ll see how things develop from here.”

“Fair enough, Eric. I understand where you’re coming from. We both want what’s best for the Terran Federation.”

“Of course.”

“There’s one thing I was wondering if you could shed some light on, though,” she said, careful not to offend her colleague. “Coil told me the Sunguard team guarding the site was dismissed after the forensics team had finished its initial investigation.”

“I heard. It’s a travesty. Olt-mar-rost-kam deserved better than that.”

Special Agent Mbenge nodded. She agreed, wholeheartedly.

“So the order to release them didn’t come from you?”

Stoltz looked up at her, his face filled with righteous indignation.

“Of course not!” he protested.

“Do you know who did?”

“No idea,” Stoltz said after a moment of silent thought. “There must have been some misunderstanding. Perhaps they thought the release of the forensics team meant the soldiers could leave as well.”

It made sense, Mbenge thought. Military units getting their orders mixed up wasn’t exactly unheard of, despite their professionalism. That was why the Sunguard used intelligent computers for coordination. Any orders given would eventually be relayed with digital precision and then logged and recorded, making it possible to audit them afterward, should the need arise. Even when orders were issued verbally, an intelligent computer would always synchronize the order log with them.

For a brief moment, the memory of Coil’s earlier cryptic statements and strange behavior surfaced in her thoughts. Something nagged at the back of her mind.

Something about that log…

She brushed the thought aside. After all, Coil had explicitly said that it had not relayed the order to release the soldiers.

Suddenly, she froze.

No, that’s not quite what the intelligent computer had told her, she remembered.

It had only said that it didn’t possess any information in its memory about who had given the order. But it had never denied relaying the command in the first place.

Because Special Agent Elizabeth Mbenge had never asked whether it had.

Author's Note

The story you're reading is one of many set in the Lords of the Stars universe I've been creating over the past 30 years, where familiar characters and places reappear, and new favorites await discovery. Check out my profile to explore more stories from this universe.

While The Wolf Reforged is entirely standalone and can be read without any prior knowledge, I think you'll also enjoy Scorched Earth, Wonders From Beyond the Sky, and A Game of Wolf and Mouse which are prequels to this story, and Twilight Duty, Guardian of the Wolf, and Conscience of Steel, which are sequels.

Visit the official Lords of the Stars blog for more information about this hard sci-fi universe: https://lordsofthestars.wordpress.com

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