Five minutes later, the apartment security finally arrived. Edmund and Merrion handed the intruders over to them, briefing them about how the struggle had gone down. The security team had attempted to take Edmund and Merrion into their custody as well, but a quick display of their Fleet Investigation Division credentials put a stop to their efforts. There was no doubt that this was not merely a simple case of attempted robbery. This warranted a serious investigation. But for now, Edmund and Merrion had to concentrate on their current mission. Before that, they would need to deliver the evidence they had collected themselves, as Edmund had a suspicion that if he were to entrust it to anyone else, there might be further complications.
For Merrion's part, she retrieved her dried clothes from the dryer, changing back into her outfit in the toilet. Edmund withdrew a clean long-sleeved shirt and pants from his cabinet, changing in the room. He prepared a small bag, stuffing it with a spare set of clothing and toiletries, throwing the bags of evidence inside as well. Once they were both ready, Edmund and Merrion donned their armour and weaponry, slung their bags over their shoulders, and headed for the Doyle.
---
Inspector Zora sat in her office, leaning forward with her head resting in her palms and her eyes closed. Before her was Edmund and Merrion, a scene that had repeated in the days before today. She sighed, as Edmund informed her about the encounter earlier in the morning, rubbing her temples in disbelief at the blatant boldness of those crooks.
Zora: "I can't believe that you were actually attacked."
Edmund: "Neither can I. What the hell's going on, Zora? Why the hell did we get jumped at my apartment, first thing in the morning?"
Zora: "I don't know, not yet at least. We're holding the intruders aboard the Doyle now and we're going to do whatever it takes to drag any useful intel out from them."
Edmund: "What about my –"
Zora, as if anticipating his inquiry, raised her hand out towards him.
Zora: "I'm aware that your apartment was also wrecked. Considering the circumstances, I've managed to clear out a 2-man bunk for the two of you to share. Given how boldly those crooks were acting, the Agnes is no longer safe. Until further notice, consider that bunk your new home."
Zora saw the look of relief on Edmund and Merrion's faces. Considering all they had been through, it was normal that for now would they only be able to be at ease within the safety of the Doyle. She saw the travel bag sitting atop Edmund's lap with an abnormal bump at one end and gestured towards Edmund.
Zora: "Now, onto further discussion. That bag, hand it over."
Edmund looked down and handed the entire bag over to Zora.
Zora: "Not the whole bag. That bit there, I know you stashed an evidence carrier inside."
Nothing escaped her eagle eye. Edmund unzipped his bag and retrieved the bags of saliva swabs, as well as the handheld tool that was used to unlock his apartment door earlier, securely contained within two plastic bags. Zora, upon seeing them doubly bagged too, raised an eyebrow.
Zora: "Double-bagged? What gives?"
Edmund: "The perp we got this tool off spat on the inner one. I wiped it off on him, then put it inside the outer bag later."
Zora: "Disgusting. The plastic of the inner bag's distorted as well."
Edmund: "Don't mention it."
Zora: "That wasn't a compliment. What's this supposed to be?"
Edmund: "Some kind of modified communicator, by the looks of it. It's got the form of the default communicator model, but there's some extra bits bolted on the outside. The perps used it to unlock my apartment door, even when it was set onto the panic mode. Broke through in ten seconds, give or take."
Zora: "A cutting tool, then?"
Edmund: "The door wasn't physically breached. Some kind of electronic hacking, I reckon."
Edmund saw Zora's face immediately scrunch up upon him mentioning 'electronic'.
Edmund: "Something come to mind? Know anyone who could provide such sophisticated tools? Could it be…the same people who interfered with the cargo terminal's security footage? The door camera outside my apartment was also interfered with, which allowed them to catch me off guard."
Zora: "I've got my suspicions, but I can't be sure. Not until we're done interrogating the intruders. Who provides your apartment's electronic systems? Argyros Industries? We'll need to contact them, considering –"
Merrion: "– s'cuse me, ma'am."
Zora was suddenly interrupted by Merrion's small voice. She noticed that Merrion always quietened down when she was in her presence, as if she was intimidated to speak normally.
Zora: "You don't have to be like this around me, Detective. I'm only a superior, not some respected elder."
Merrion: "– right, I'll try."
Merrion cleared her throat and raised her volume slightly.
Merrion: "I took some closeups of the intruders earlier, as well as the crime scene."
Zora: "The photographs of the intruders are unnecessary since we have them in our custody now but send them to me anyway. Same for the photos of the apartment."
Merrion: "Understood, ma'am."
Merrion's communicator beeped, followed by Zora's. A few quick gestures, and the photo of the apartment was projected upon the wall to Zora's right.
Zora: "Damn, where'd that hole in the floor come from?"
Edmund: "I did it. Had to get some leverage to get the two who tackled me down off me. Don't know how, but it felt like one of them drained all the strength from my muscles."
Zora scrunched up her face once more upon hearing Edmund mention that one word, drawing Edmund's notice. She rapidly flicked through the photos of the intruders, one after the other.
Zora: ""Drained", you say? Did you get a good look at who did it? Which one was he?"
Edmund: "…that one."
Zora: "…hmm, he does look on the young side. Doesn't look like he's received any extensions, yet."
Edmund nodded in agreement. People aboard the Fleet could get life extension therapies to allow them to easily live past a century, much like he had. Such treatments, however, were dependent on being useful and contributing towards the Fleet in whatever way they could.
Just like in any natural ecosystem, aboard the Fleet there would be those who fell through the cracks of society into its dark and forgotten underbelly. Those people formed the criminal gangs and underworld that eked out a survival in the bowels of the larger ships, in forgotten maintenance corridors and access tunnels. Naturally, as those forgotten by society, they were not subject to its laws and restrictions, but could neither benefit from its advances either. Their presence caused troubles for the common folk, but as long as a hull breach was not caused or vital systems were not compromised, the ruling class and Admiralty were content to let them be.
Edmund: "What's the deal though? A young and dumb criminal. They breed like rabbits, away from the regulations of the Admiralty. Live fast and die faster. I should know."
Zora: "Yeah, well recently there's been an uptick of such cases of young criminals with anomalous 'abilities', and frankly, it's worrying. Well, that's not our problem right now. Jeyga has completed the decryption of the 'message' Omar sent you. You should receive it….now."
Zora flicked her fingers in the air in Edmund and Merrion's direction, and both their communicators chirped at the same time. She then leant back in her chair, resting her head in palms intertwined.
Zora: "Looks like Omar provided us a tip-off. It seems there's some internal faction issues within the Void Mambas, and that they have rogue elements operating outside of their captain's orders. The message says that whoever stole the cryocasket yesterday will be attempting to transport it today away from the Mahoney."
Edmund: "Damn it Omar! Why didn't you just tell me this yesterday?"
Zora: "From what you told me about your meeting yesterday, it sounds like he might not have trusted everyone present in the hideout to not leak the information. You know what would happen to him if he were found out to be cooperating with a detective, much less the FID."
Edmund let out a weary sigh.
Edmund: "We'd lose our contact on the inside."
Zora: "Exactly. We'll just have to make do with this for now. Detectives Edmund and Merrion, head down to the Mahoney and intercept these rogue Void Mambas at the cargo terminal. Get as much information out of them as possible."
---
Travelling from the Doyle over to the Mahoney via tether tram and passing through the main pedestrian walkways of the Mahoney took Edmund and Merrion about an hour. As they approached the cargo terminal, they heard the sounds of loud crashes and bangs echoing through the wide space.
Merrion: "Damn it, they got here before us!"
Edmund: "Double up, kid! Weapons free!"
The two detectives withdrew their Verdicts from their holsters and rushed into the cargo terminal. In the distance, the noises of conflict grew louder. Edmund gestured to Merrion with his left hand, pointing towards a glass-walled booth hanging from the ceiling.
Edmund: "See the gantry console? Go up there and get a bird's eye view of the situation."
Merrion: "B-but-"
Edmund: "GO! There's no time!"
Merrion dashed into the distance towards a caged ladder that was connected to a series of catwalks which provided safe passage into the gantry console room. Simultaneously, Edmund dashed forward towards the source of the noises, taking cover behind the numerous cargo frames present and moving from cover to cover in a trained fashion. As he drew closer, he began to distinguish between the individual shouts and grunts coming from the fighting.
There were several large doors at the aft end of the room with the word <
Edmund holstered his Verdict and withdrew his stun gun instead. Quickly, he ran up to the thug grappling with the dockmaster and jammed his hands in between the two of them. With a guttural grunt, he pried apart the two of them, sending both the dockmaster and the thug stumbling backwards, distracting him long enough for Edmund to jam the sparking contacts of the stun gun into the thug's exposed flesh.
The thug screamed in a surprisingly soprano voice inconsistent with his threatening appearance as the electricity coursed through his body, rendering his bulky musculature into a convulsing jelly as he collapsed to the ground with a mighty thud. Edmund quickly glanced over to the dockmaster, who wordlessly recognized him in an instant.
Leaving the first thug to the dockmaster to restrain, Edmund methodically broke-up and incapacitated the next thug-dockworker pair in a similar fashion. Somehow, the remaining three thugs became keenly aware that the odds were getting turned against them and attempted to disengage. With impeccable ease that clearly showed that they were hardly serious, they quickly took down the remaining three dockworkers and attempted to flee the scene.
Three loud gunshots echoed out through the wide-open space one after the other. The sounds were in such quick succession that Edmund was barely able to discern the individual shots. Sparks issued forth from where the bullets had struck the floor of the cargo terminal, leaving small dents in the floor plating. All three shots had landed right before the fleeing thugs, stopping their escape for just an instant as they dove for cover behind the nearby cargo frames, giving Edmund enough time to intercept and disable each of them with his trusty stun gun.
Turned into unconscious piles of flesh, limp and drooling, the thugs were easily restrained and bound by the dockmaster and the one still-conscious dockworker.
Derrick: "Where's the girl that was with you before?!"
Edmund: "She's up in the gantry room! The gunshots from earlier were probably from her!"
Derrick: "Did you get them all?"
Edmund: "Looks like it!"
There was a loud warning siren sound that blared through the cargo terminal three times, followed by a rumbling mechanical sound. While Edmund talked with the dockmaster, the other dockworker dragged the unconscious thugs over to a nearby cargo frame and bound each one to the netting inside.
Edmund: "What's that noise?"
Derrick: "That's the airlock warning alarm. We were prepping a cargo pod for transfer to the Tainah, and just as the airlock closing procedure was engaged, we got jumped again by thugs! What the hell is going on, Detective?!"
Edmund shook his head sadly.
Edmund: "We're just as clueless as you are. We'll call for backup to take the thugs away. You should get your men some medical attention for now."
Derrick: "Already on it. I'd like some answers eventually, Detective. If this keeps going on my men won't be able to do their jobs safely, and I won't be able to keep this operation running smoothly."
Edmund: "I understand your concerns, dockmaster. Please rest assured that we'll do our best to stop the cause of these attacks. If you don't mind, I'd like to go through the security footage immediately. It might help us find out more about these attackers."
Derrick: "Do whatever you want, Detective. It's not like I can say no anyway, y'all will just send in a warrant and get the footage regardless. Just like yesterday." The dockmaster, together with his still-awake subordinate, stomped off towards their unconscious colleagues with looks of annoyance plastered upon their faces.
---
Merrion deftly made her way up the caged ladder and crept along the catwalks into the gantry room hanging from the ceiling. It was well-concealed, given that she hadn't noticed it in their previous visit to the cargo terminal. The glass windows in the room were mounted on sliding panels, allowing them to be slid open and close as necessary. The lights within the room were off, further increasing the concealment afforded to her from this vantage point. Several video panels linked to security cameras in the vicinity displayed live footage. Merrion watched the panels briefly, noting how the footage being displayed was incongruous with the actual scene playing out before her eyes.
Merrion (thinking): More electronic interference?
With her Verdict at the ready, Merrion slid open the glass windows and watched keenly. As the remaining three thugs tried to make a break for it, she readied her Verdict and fired off three rapid-fire shots, deliberately aimed to miss them. She watched with satisfaction as the three thugs dove for cover and were incapacitated, one by one. Once the fight was over, she saw Edmund talk to the dockmaster for a while before heading towards the caged ladder and joining her up in the gantry.
Edmund: "Good shooting."
Merrion: "Thanks."
Edmund: "Alright, let's check out the security footage –"
Merrion: "It's all no good. It's just like in your apartment this morning. Something interfered with the recording. On the monitor, it just displays a static, unchanging image."
Edmund: "Damn it. Looks like we'll have to obtain the footage and send it for analysis again."
Edmund gestured towards the gantry door, and together, the two of them returned to the ground floor of the cargo terminal. Just as they did so, medical teams and the local security teams operating aboard the Mahoney arrived. The medical teams attended to the unconscious and wounded individuals on both sides, while the security teams secured the aggressors, ready to take them into custody.
Edmund and Merrion walked up to the security team leader and flashed their credentials.
Edmund: "Please ready a secured transfer for them to the Doyle. We're taking them into our custody for further interrogation."
Security Team Leader: "Understood, Detective. By the way, one of them has awoken. Maybe you'd like to ask him some questions now?"
Edmund: "Wouldn't hurt. Thanks."
---
Tied up securely inside the cargo frame to the composite netting was the first thug that Edmund had incapacitated. As they approached him, Merrion spoke in a hushed tone.
Merrion: "Didn't we see him yesterday, right?"
Edmund: "Yeah, we did."
In the earlier scuffle, there hadn't been enough time to stop and scrutinize each individual thug involved in the fight. With the time now available to him, Edmund realized that this specific thug was the same one who had been guarding Omar in the Void Mamba hideout when he and Merrion had visited him. Specifically, this was the same thug who had bruised Merrion when Omar booted them from the hideout. He grinned upon seeing them approaching, exposing a mouth filled with yellowed teeth.
Yellowed-Teeth Thug: "Look who it is. It's the same fidders from yesterday. Nice to see you again."
Edmund: "I assure you that the feeling isn't mutual. Did Omar send you?"
Yellowed-Teeth Thug: "HA! "The boss doesn't have the time to do that. After you left yesterday he skipped town and went elsewhere, leaving me and the rest here. You sure gave him a fright!"
Merrion: "What do you mean by that?"
Edmund regarded Merrion with a look of slight surprise. He hadn't expected her to step up this quickly.
Yellowed-Teeth Thug: "Oh? The little fidder girl can speak after all! Looks like moaning in pain when I gripped you yesterday isn't all you're good for!"
Edmund gritted his teeth, half-contemplating roughing up this thug further. He heard the sparking of a stun gun, but it wasn't his. Surprised by the sound, he glanced over to see Merrion standing with her own stun gun at the ready, contacts arcing with blue-white sparks and the faint smell of ozone in the air. There was a resolved look upon her face, something that he hadn't seen before.
Merrion: "I can do more than just moan. Who sent you? Answer quickly, I saw you collapse earlier, and I'm willing to make that happen again."
Edmund watched as the thug flinched momentarily, seemingly recalling the earlier experience.
Yellowed-Teeth Thug: "Screw it, he didn't pay me enough to keep quiet. You'll want to look for Anant."
Merrion: "Who?"
Edmund saw another sleazy smile spread itself across the thug's face as he glanced over to look at him.
Yellowed-Teeth Thug: "Ask your big boy over there, girly. I hear they have some history together. I'm not telling you anything else unless you perhaps…convince me?"
Edmund (thinking): Are all the Void Mamba gangers these days sleazy slimebags?
As that thought crossed his mind, along with a momentary impulse to kick him across the face, Edmund's eyes widened with momentary surprise as Merrion stepped forward, still gripping the stun gun.
Merrion: "Here's your convincing."
With a transparently faked sweetness in her voice, Merrion drove the stun gun back into the thug, shocking him into unconsciousness.
Edmund was at a loss for words. All he could do was stand there, blinking in surprise at this sudden ferocity coming from Merrion. While her actions paled in severity and harshness to what he was capable of or had done in the past, seeing her actually do something like this was rather shocking for him.
Edmund: "Are…are you okay?"
Edmund looked over to Merrion, standing before the unconscious thug as she inhaled and exhaled deeply. It was difficult to see, but Edmund was able to discern that her hands were trembling ever so slightly.
Merrion: "Haah…haah…I – I'm fine…whew…how do you do it so calmly?"
Edmund: "Do what, exactly?"
Merrion: "You know, the bad cop thing that you mentioned. I was – was trying to imitate that. I almost broke from the nervousness halfway in, when he looked at me in that – that way, urgh."
Edmund: "It gets easier the more you do it, just like everything else in life. Though, I have to say, I didn't expect you to start now after over a year. Colour me…surprised. In a good way."
Edmund didn't realize it, but it was clear for Merrion to see. There was a smile of approval spreading itself across his face, softening his gruff features in a subtle manner that only a detective's eagle eye could notice.