SECTION I: FOSTER

CHAPTER
ONE

0720 HOURS, JUNE 5 2541 (MILITARY CALENDAR) / SOL SYSTEM,
WASHINGTON DISTRICT, LUNA

The ash was still clearing when Officer Barker arrived. He was an ONI man, a member of the Office of Naval Intelligence, obvious by the careful and precise stitching in his formal suit Oddly it appeared to show no ONI logo, possibly an undercover agent, Emmut decided. Not all ONI men wore suits but in a district such as Washington the most formal that people could get away with wearing was maybe a good silk shirt or patched denim jeans. If that was what the expected dress attire then Barker couldn't be undercover. Time in the Washington slums had made Emmut more aware of working-class culture, however this also restricted his skills when it came to learning. Like he, the people of Washington weren't known for their intellect. They weren't a bad people and were united in a combination of multicultural contribution. The Arts played a large part of the beauty of Washington. With Arts came wealth, wealth which would be eagerly spent on to food to feed the starving families of the seller. This wealth would be traded with the UNSC for military grade rations. All these trades took place at the UNSC Embassy within the district – or more, they once took place within the district. Now all transactions would surely cease.

It was quite a tyrannical strategy, the UNSC would cut off main food supplies to the colony with the help of Earth's Government. After raising the taxes for a few years they opened a trade exchange. Free money, the people funded the war effort. And it was easy to supply the people with food, the UNSC just sold they rations left over from the 2400s. This money ultimately helped fund the war against the Insurrection or against the Covenant. Emmut had heard all this from the townspeople. He had learned also, that not all lived in poverty and famine within Washington district. The 'Innies', as the UNSC called them, often came and left scars on the moon's colonies. But it was understandable considering the way the military had treated the civilians here. But Emmut was no Insurrectionist, he had to assure himself. This time they had gone too far. There would be no recovering from this attack.

Emmut has an officer of the law, this allowed him to push past crowds easier. This was his favourite part of the job. He had very little power, true, but it was enough to keep him satisfied. He had come in a Genet, police grade. He'd upgraded the Genet when he was stationed in Sydney Colony. There, if one was to leave their car for ten minutes out in a street a brick would indefinetly fly through the window. Upon turning you'd find a man would have broken in, hotwired the car and was already half way down the road and out of town. Sydney was hell. That incident had nearly happened to Emmut but he had hit the thief with his handgun. He pistol-whipped only once but it was enough to knock the hooligan to the ground. Emmut had never fired a gun, but no one needed to know – especially not Officer Barker.

"What have we got here?" Barker asked when Emmut had successfully pushed through the crowd men, women and children.

"Well, a bombing it appea–"

"That was rhetorical." He interrupted, rudely. "Clearly it was a bombing, the dust hasn't settled yet and there is still a hint of Propane in the air. It has cleared somewhat which suggests…" He waved his hand toward Emmut, propositioning him to finish the statement.

Emmut searched for the answer but it failed to come to him. He couldn't let this ONI man show himself the more intelligent. ONI personnel were stubborn and pompous, especially those in suits.

"…that people have driven through here?" Emmut opted. Surely that made sense. If people drive down this road often it would break up the gas particles…or something. Surely that's correct.

"Incorrect." Emmut slumped, defeated. "But don't fret, there will be plenty of opportunities to redeem yourself." There was no need for patronising. "The dust has not cleared, it is still thick. This shows that very little, of anyone, have driven down here."

Emmut wafted away the dust but it did no good. The clouds of gold were far too thick.

"The scent is fading." Barker continued. "It happened several hours ago."

Emmut had already known that, the time of the incident was recorded in the incident report. Officer Barker knew that, and he knew Emmut did too. He just wanted to appear as though he knew everything. How childish.

"Then how come dust is still here?" Emmut questioned in a tone so harsh it sounded as though he was interrogating the Officer. Barker smiled, he was getting a reaction.

"Good question." Barker turned away and faced the thicker clouds in front of him. "Considering there is no breeze on Lunr colonies there shouldn't be much of a spread of dust clouds." It was a valid point, but Emmut could rebut the observation.

"Yeah, but if it happened hours ago as you suggested it should at least spread out rather than just stay in this street." But Barker was not stunned.

Barker began to walk through the thicker clouds rendering him invisible to Emmut. Still Emmut found the snooty man leaning over a small shard of metal. The metal had blacked in some areas and was alight with a small fire.

"That is the question." A question that likely he already knew the answer to. "Note this broken piece of titanium. Part of the bomb, no doubt. It's built Insurrection style. Innies often bolt small sections of titanium casing over the actual explosive. It tears apart and breaks through the propane tanks to explode."

He knows his bombs. Maybe he's an Innie, Emmut played.

"I know." Emmut lied. But his companion saw right through it.

"I'm sure you do." He said mockingly. The man stood, he was much closer to Emmut now and he clearly established his height by pulling his shoulders back. Just another way he showed power over Emmut. The man looked again at Emmut through his dark shades before turning and wandering further into the thick, dark clouds.

"The Propane bomb is the ideal explosive. It's quick to make and effective if you have the right materials." He arrived at a puddle of black fluid. This too was on fire. It reeked of blood and made Emmut want to gag.

Barker continued. "The ideal bomb for a UNSC trade house, no?" That was obviously rhetorical. "While effective, it is also incredibly unstable. And it appears that our two bombers failed to wire it correctly before it exploded."

"So they succeeded in destroying the embassy but accidentally died in doing so." Emmut concluded.

"Clearly." Emmut squinted, he really wanted to throw a fist at this man before him. "This is bad, the bomber will become Martyrs. They'll inspire more attacks on Government property, possibly even civil property."

"Do we have an ID on the bombers?" Emmut asked.

"Forensics have identified the remains of a man and a woman. Faces need to be further analysed. It was messy, but the bastards got what was coming to them." Barker replied.

That must have been hard. But surely there'd be nothing left of them. Especially if they were charred by Propane. Odd, he thought, that they were only burned. Propane was known as the heavy explosive, not something used to melt the target. Emmut would've suspected something else perhaps. Then the penny dropped. It had to be made from an explosive that could set fire to anything, like titanium and blood.

"You said Propane?" Emmut asked excitedly.

"Yes, why do you ask?"

"The Insurrection usually steal from the UNSC, so there are plenty of resources they could choose from." Emmut smiled, now he was owning the game. "Propane doesn't splatter or burn, it explodes. Napalm burns. The bomb was designed to burn the targets with Napalm."

Barker didn't respond, but Emmut knew he was staring at the puddle of burning blood. This time Barker didn't talk, this time he was stunned.