The Living and the Damned - Part III
25 Nov 2017Jellicoe
"So what have we got?"Stannis Jellicoe was sitting with his senior personnel in the Resolution's briefing room.
Claude Marsaud, first officer, computer expert and, allegedly, former hacker and net runner, looked up from his various holo-consoles with a slight frown on his face. Whenever Claude was spoken to in situations like this, he invariably gave the impression that he had been interrupted from vital work at a crucial moment just so he could explain the blindingly obvious to complete ignoramuses.
"It all started straightforwardly enough," Claude began. "She was given a ship and assigned a pilot and research assistant. They were studying and cataloguing various plant life and seem to have been making good progress. About a month in they made a stopover in the Inara system, which is where things get interesting; our girl, this Mhera, had a falling out with her colleagues and threw them off the ship."
"What kind of falling out?" Kira asked.
"The other two got together," Claude replied. "It seems Mhera felt like a gooseberry on her own project."
"But one of them was her pilot," Jellicoe put in. "How did she carry on without him at least?"
"This is what could give us a lead," Claude said thoughtfully. "During their stop in Inara she took up with a pilot. When she left, it was with him, heading for the Pleiades to look for Thargoids."
"That doesn't sound in line with her research."
"It wasn't. The terms of her research grant are clear. She might claim that the barnacles fall under it, but it's the kind of thing people say to convince themselves of something they really know they shouldn't be doing."
"That doesn't sound like the woman who's been described to me," Jellicoe said, rubbing his chin in thought. "You knew her, Kira. Could she be impulsive?"
"Never," Kira replied firmly. "She was always so diligent and dutiful. She loved her work, it was never just a job to her. This project was her dream, she'd put so much effort into getting it off the ground, securing the funding."
"So what happened?" Jellicoe asked.
"Love makes fools of us all," Kira replied, holding his gaze until he looked away.
"Her last letter was from Maia," Claude said, breaking the awkward silence. "No sign of anything being wrong, and then... nothing. No more communications and no records of her ship docking anywhere in the bubble"
"The Pleiades is a dangerous place," Vik put in. "We know that well enough ourselves."
"Any distress call logged?" Mira asked.
"Nothing I've been able to find," Claude replied. "But, as we also know, the Ant Hill Mob aren't the best at recording them, so it doesn't mean one wasn't sent."
"I know nobody wants to think this," Harry Soames said, "but it looks like a griefer attack. Most likely she's dead."
"It does seem most probable," Jellicoe acknowledged, stroking his chin. "And if it is that then there's nothing we can do. But if she is still alive, what are the possibilities?"
"They might just have gone off exploring," Mira suggested. "And she's got so wrapped up in this guy she's not bothered to write anyone since."
"She wouldn't do that," Kira responded. "She's devoted to her family. She'd know how much they'd worry."
"She's already acted very much out of character," Jellicoe said. "I don't think we can assume anything, but if that is what she's done there isn't much we can do. Claude, broadcast an all frequencies message to her just in case. We can only hope she gets in touch with someone. What about any other possibilities we can look into? She wasn't carrying anything valuable; her ship doesn't appear to have been stolen; what else?"
"Slavers," Vik said. "Small, unarmed ship with a young, inexperienced pilot'd be meat and drink to them."
"Have you been able to dig up anything on this pilot she hooked up with?" Jellicoe asked Claude.
"Nothing. His first name is Luke and he's young, twenty two. But that's all we know, and it just isn't enough to identify him."
Jellicoe sat back and ran a hand through his hair. "I'd like to speak to the two colleagues she binned, and dig up a bit more on this Luke, but I don't think we have the time to waste. Claude, can you hack the Obsidian Orbital logs, even the hidden ones?"
Claude nodded looking affronted.
"Alright,” Jellicoe continued. “Find out exactly when Mhera was there and get everything detail you can about anything she did while she was there. Then go through the logs. See if you can find anyone else who was there with a record for multiple murder without motive or slave grabbing."
"And if you find any?" Kira asked.
"Then we tip them upside down and see what falls out."
Maia System, Deep Space
“I've run the checks three times," Claude reported later. "Only one name fits either parameter; Danny Swift."
"Wonderful," Jellicoe replied, his voice loaded with irony.
"Who's Danny Swift?" Kira asked.
"Danny Swift is a nasty, gutless little nobody who makes a living off people who can't shoot back. He specialises in smuggling, theft and slave raiding. He'll sing like a canary as soon as we put the screws on him."
"But?" Kira prompted.
"Danny might not have any balls himself, but some of the people he works for are another kettle of fish entirely."
Huge thanks to Stryker Aune for letting me write this about a search for one of his characters and Jemine Caesar for correcting my frankly appalling grammar and punctuation