"So how are you liking the planet so far, Alnam?" Lawrie asks.

Alnam isn't.

"It's such a shithole," Lawrie goes on without waiting for an answer. "Wait until you see what they call beer here on Telos."

Lawrie's face is both well-groomed and brutish. The more you look at its parts, the uglier each one becomes. The more you look at it as a whole, the more you like Lawrie.

"The clouds don't go away, I suppose?" Alnam asks him.

The RI agent runs his hand through his sleeked-back long greying hair. "Like shit they do. The weather's all fubar. Some military disaster."

They walk through a long tube that connects the spaceport to the cab station. The repulsors of Alnam's trunk glitch out, and Alnam has to push the thing left and right every now and then.

"I hope I'm not taking too much your time, Agent," he says.

"Pffft. I came here as soon as I knew your shuttle had landed. You know, I don't want you to get the wrong impression."

"About the planet?"

"About myself." Lawrie stops. "We both know how it works, Alnam, do we not? You're here to watch me and my boys. But just because our agencies have this... rivalry crap going on doesn't mean I'm a poor host. It doesn't mean we - we personally, you and I - have to be rivals."

Alnam considers his choice of words. "I hope we won't be, Lawrie."

Lawrie's meaty lips slide apart, baring his teeth. "Good then! Alright, let's go visit the crime scene. You mind?"

"I don't. I just ate two hours ago."

Seated next to Lawrie in a cab, Alnam finds out the other man overuses cologne - but not to the extent that would make Alnam hate him.

Lawrie shuts the window to the driver's seat before he starts talking. "Okay, it's a cold case. I know, I know: I'm supposed to swing my balls in front of your face trying to impress you and the 'DS bosses. I'm not going to. The case is shit. There are no leads. Cops here, Alnam, you won't believe the Telos cops. They've fucked up everything they could."

"I do appreciate the honesty, but cannot help wondering why you aren't swinging your balls around."

"As a gesture of goodwill. I want our cooperation to start on a good note."

There must be more to it. Lawrie expects Alnam to reciprocate later? Or is he onto something he'd rather keep inside the Republic Intelligence?

Alnam suspects the latter. Goes with the former.

"As well as to obligate me?"

Lawrie smiles. "Never said I didn't. I mean, I won't ever think of calling in a favor in a less-than-savory way. I know you won't answer it."

The spaceport-issued breathing mask smells of cheap resin and plastic. Hugs Alnam's head too tightly, too. He groans in relief when they enter the embassy.

It's all business-as-usual inside. Courier droids skitter about. Averagely beautiful holographic people recite their endless monologs from datastands: learn about your chance to become a citizen today!

And, of course, the security post is business-as-usual as well. The guard barely raises his head when Lawrie and Alnam go through the metal detector - Lawrie must've been a frequent guest in the past few days.

"The reports say the CCTV was not working," Alnam says as they enter a turbolift. "I find it hard to believe."

"So did I when I just arrived. But it's Telos IV, Alnam. Things don't work here as they should."

"It's a Republic embassy, though. I'd expect better standards from it."

"This fucking planet is a bad influence. I need more and more cafstim by day to keep going. Well, we suspect that the infiltrators had turned the cameras off before flying their car into the building."

"Infiltrators?"

They exit the elevator car. A group of short humanoids hurries past them to catch it.

"There were infiltrators now?"

"The guards who were on duty that night say so, yeah."

"The reports didn't mention it."

"Oh, those must be the initial reports, then. I questioned the guards later."

The alert siren goes off inside Alnam's head. No, Lawrie isn't nice just to win his favor.

"Can I talk to them?"

"Not on Telos. I've shipped them back home."

"You suspect their involvement?"

"I do. You'll find my ideas in my report."

"Along with the protocols of the guards' interrogations?"

"Naturally."

Not a bad move: to make Lawrie worry that Alnam's digging into the attack. Let him put more power into protecting what he wants to protect while Alnam focuses on the clone rumors.

The duratarp covering the hole in the wall bags when they enter the crime scene. Lawrie turns the lights on: four large projectors in different ends of the corridor.

"You have any theories I should know about?"

Lawrie makes sure the door is sealed before he answers. "In fact, I do. I'm not sure I should tell you, though."

"Is that so? So far, you seemed pretty cooperative, Lawrie."

"I want to be. I don't know if I can rely on you."

Is the RI really trying to recruit him? If so: does it really work this half-assedly?

"Rely on me in what regard?"

"In that you don't run squealing to your patron."

"Ven?"

Lawrie burst laughing. "No," he barks, "the Chancellor. You do know you're supposed to report to him, right?"

"I don't report to the Supreme Chancellor myself."

"Then Agent Ven's bosses do, don't they? So yeah, in a sense, I don't want you to tell good old Onoile what I'm about to tell you."

"Then maybe don't tell me."

"Creator of space, kid, I'm not trying to start a coup here," Lawrie laughs again. "All I want is to deal with this case in a just and lawful manner. Without," he raises his finger up, "any orders coming from up there and hamstringing me. So can I trust you with my, uh, narrative? It's just that, as I have no tangible evidence."

"Thus I have no need to report it to my superiors, is that what you're getting at?"

"More or less."

"Why are you so eager to tell me?"

"My boys are loyal to me, but perhaps their loyalty isn't exclusive."

"Then it's not loyalty."

"Bingo. They're all very ambitious. All want to make a good impression on Director Isard. Whoever makes best..." Lawrie shrugs. "Yeah. I doubt they'll remember all I've done for them if it comes to a confrontation. Look. I want to actually solve this case or at least use it to solve some others that may or may not be related."

"Okay," Alnam says, "but why trust me?"

"You're a gift from the universe. Those guys from Precinct 84, uh, Iyes and Pellori, let me tell you, they told me far more good about you than they told you about me. Like you remained on the force even after your father's speech. If that doesn't tell you where a man's convictions lie, I don't know what does. And I need someone like you. Someone with a head on his shoulders." Lawrie lowers his head and looks up at Alnam from under his eyebrows. "And someone I can trust. Can I?"

Is this a test? Can Lawrie be working for the RDS?

It doesn't matter - for now. Not listening to what he has to say is the only surefire way to fail the test - if there is a test.

Alnam smiles. "I have my duties... but I don't think they include reporting on any conspiracy theories you might have."

"That's all I wanted to hear." Lawrie walks along the corridor. Puts his hand on the tripod holding one of the projectors. "Alright. So as I said, I questioned the guards who were present here at the time of the incident. There are four of them - but you'll find the trivia in my report. Their stories, mind you, align pretty well - but only with each other, not with the reality. And they'd had their opportunity to come up with stories before my arrival. But I think they had come up with them long before that."

"You think they are on the attack?"

"What other conclusion am I supposed to make? The cameras are off at the time of the attack. Turns out somebody has not only turned them off, but also deleted an entire day's worth of footage."

"But the cameras were running before?"

"Like I said. Both events - the shutdown and the deletion - happened at the same time. Well after hours."

"When nobody but the guards was at the embassy?"

"Uh-huh."

"So what do they say? I figure I won't find everything in the report."

"Why, I put everything in there as well. Just not my conclusions. But let's spare you the wait. They say, all four in perfect unison, that there was somebody else inside the building that night."

Alnam can feel Lawrie expects him to ask questions.

So he does. "Who?"

"A Devaronian. Can you imagine that? They say the speeder flew in as soon as they discovered him. Of course, no signs of any Devaronian have been found, so I guess he must have left in that speeder. Convenient, eh?"

"Any... suspects?"

"There was a Devaronian visa applicant at the embassy that day."

"And?"

"And nothing. He came and he left after the meeting. That's all in the database. The police checked him. Then I did. A good young man. Plans to study cybernetics on Coruscant."

"I don't think that excludes him-"

"What about him physically not being here at the time of the crime? He's got an alibi several people confirm. Have confirmed."

Alnam doesn't like how worked-up Lawrie sounds. What's this about? Trying to cover up for someone?

"Okay," he says, "but I'm sure there are more than one Devaronian on the planet."

"Oh yeah? Wanna guess another populous species of Telos IV? I'll give you a hint: all the four guards belong to it."

"Surprise me."

"Human. They're all Humans."

"I'm not sure I'm following you, Lawrie."

"It's the work of Humanocentrists."

Oh no, Alnam thinks.

"What makes you think so, apart from the guards' race? So far, it doesn't sound all that convincing."

"Where do I start? A shitty story: check. A shitty story blaming a filthy non-Human: check. This happening on a planet the biggest hindrance for which integrating into the Republic is how many filthy non-Humans live on it? Check. Three of the four guards being COMPOR members? Check."

"What's that have to do with anything? Also, I'd really appreciate it if you stopped making me sound like a Humanocentrist any time I question your theory."

Lawrie laughs. "Sorry, Alnam. I do get carried away, what can you do? You see, this is why I don't want this to reach the Supreme Chancellor."

"Why? Do you really think he's going to put your investigation to an end just because of some COMPOR members?"

"Well, it's his pet organization, isn't it? It's not about these three individually. It's about COMPOR as a whole. Bad publicity, you see. Wouldn't be the first time something like that is hushed up. Yeah, don't be so surprised. A shitton of COMPOR members are also members of some, uh, more obscure communities."

"But not all of them."

"Granted. These three aren't."

Alnam wants to leave at this point. The planet is bad enough, but this blind crusader is its real jewel.

"Just like you want your agents to be," Lawrie continues. "Clean records. Didn't prevent at least one of them from spewing the Ab Hominist agenda on the Holonet, by the way - we've checked. Two out of the four arrived on Telos just this year."

"What are you getting at?"

"They want Telos under the Republic."

"Sounds like a shit investment of power."

"Not as shit as if the Seps get it, right? There's a war, Alnam. You take everything you can just so that your enemy can't."

"Not very patriotic of you to try and stop it."

"I'm a patriot alright. But I don't forget my other duties either. My duties as a sentient. As a person. If the Republic can benefit from committing some atrocious fucking shit like they did on Coruscant, I'll do what I can to prevent it. Fuck, don't you think this makes me a bigger patriot than all the talking heads like Praji?"

Oh yes, Alnam has thought about it.

He has thought about it a lot.

"Alright," he says. "I can respect that. Okay. You think it was a false-flag operation. A sound theory so far. But let's remember what they teach you in a law school: the absence of contradicting evidence doesn't equal the presence of confirmatory evidence."

"I told you so from the get-go, didn't I? All I have is conjecture, but my conjecture is pretty damn powerful. Ask anyone." Lawrie walks over to the broken wall. "You see, our boys, the guards - they aren't part of any Humanocentrist party, if you don't count COMPOR as one. And that's exactly what smells funny. If a COMPORist doesn't belong to something more or less bearable and non-speciest - like the Human Cultural Union or the Militarist Party - then he likely belongs to something else. A party that's not officially registered as a party."

"You mean..?"

"The Human Party of the Republic."

"Is that the one with an alien leader?"

"That's the Corellian branch. It stayed afloat thanks to that when the main one was banned. They exploited that Hwok fellow. He was probably not all there. Well, some disenfranchised," Lawrie puts that in air quotes, "flocked to it. Others didn't bother. Just kept referring to themselves as proud members of the HPR. My bet is on the latter. It's a family thing, you know. From father to son and so on. So it's very fucking suspicious our guards are not members of a not overtly anti-alien party."

Alnam plays with his breathing mask. Tries to adjust the strap.

"I suppose you didn't tell me all this just to entertain me," he says. "In fact, I suppose you will now ask me for help."

Lawrie turns to him. "You aren't wrong. I'd like to enlist your help with a little more than just not spreading my theories where they shouldn't be spread."

"I'm all ears."

"Look, I'm hog-tied here. My boys are going to sing as soon as I start veering ever so gently from the path the RI expects me to take. Therefore, I can't go into certain districts and talk to certain people without doing some spy banthashit. You, on the other hand, very much can."

"And your boys won't notice?"

"How will they? You don't have to communicate with them. I do. They'll have no idea what you're doing. It's like a vacation for you - you just have to watch us doing our job. Ever been an observer before? No? Let me tell you, it's actually a vacation. You're supposed to watch what the other agency is doing, but naturally, they can't give away their insights. So you just chill. And this planet isn't the best place for that. So, Alnam: are you ready to help the Republic stay the Republic?"

.

.

.

Two holostickers flash on the glovebox in front of Alnam's eyes. Core? No more! says one. Honorary Stupidity Donor, says the other.

The driver manages to find his way to Coruscant City - despite that.

Alnam has to admit: Coruscant City looks the part. He never frequented the lower levels of the real deal - not even during his patrol years - but he can notice the similarity.

"Wanna know what I think?" the Advozse driver asks and immediately says, "I think all o' you lot are pansies. In the Big R, you know. All you've is, what you call it, Core problems."

"There are places in the capital compared to which this," Alnam nods at the bright signs the speeder flies past, "is heaven."

"Ah, so what, you tell me? This? Pansy district. Have it easy here."

Alnam remembers Lawrie. "Were you living in the Republic - on Coruscant, you know - they would've deported you."

"Deported me? To do what?"

"Because your home planet supports the Separatists. It's strict like that on Coruscant."

"Yes!"

"Yes. You have it easy around here. Your compatriots from Coruscant would think you're a pansy - so easy you have it here."

"Yes! You're all racist, too."

Alnam meets the contact at a bar called Kiffa. This must be a fancy-pansy place around these parts: it has an airlock, so you don't have to wear a breathing mask to get there from a speeder. Alnam isn't thrilled. With the mask, if he fucks up, it's his fault. With the airlock, it can be the driver's, the engineer's, the safety compliance inspector's.

He knows he won't like the bar from the moment he enters. What's with all the flashing lights? Is it a middle school party?

He sees nobody who'd match Krev Devin's description inside. Thinks about checking in the bathroom. Decides not to. Not the guy he needs to catch off-guard.

He sits down at one of the - many - vacant tables. Sends the waiter droid away. He's not buying anything in this place - if their music taste is this poor, Alnam doesn't want to imagine what the drinks taste like.

The music and the flashing start to really, really get on his nerves by the time he sees the contact walk in.

Alnam watches him. Yes, that's the man: a real big guy. Nose broken a few times. Ears, too. Alnam watches him as he takes out his comlink. His own comlink goes off, and he salutes Devin.

The big guy comes to the table.

"So you are Krev Devin," Alnam says.

"And you must be from the RDS."

"I'm afraid I am." He stands up to shake hands with Devin. "Vad Alnam."

He watches the big guy real close. If there's anything good in what Father did, it's how it lets you judge people when you say your name.

Devin's reaction is something else. Alnam would expect such from a career politician with a dozen news cams watching him, not from a Telosi lowlife.

"What, like..?" Devin says.

His hand still levitates somewhere not so close to Alnam's.

"Yes, like that Alnam," Alnam says. "You will be dealing with this one, though."

Devin tries to smile. "Sorry, I don't mean any-"

What's his fucking problem?

"What you think about my father's opinions does not concern me."

The contact's hand finally reaches Alnam's. Great - all fucking sweaty. Alnam sits down and wipes his palm on the flap of his overcoat.

He sighs. With a contact like this, he'd be better off on his own.

"Well," he says, "I have some good news for you. There's not much I'll be needing from you."

Devin blinks. "Sorry?"

Alnam doesn't like how blank his stare is. Is this Devin on something?

"I'm essentially on a vacation here as, I've been told," Alnam says, "so I won't take too much of your time. Hopefully. Trust me, I hate it when people waste my time, so I won't be wasting yours. At least, not too much of it." He smiles, but Devin doesn't smile back. "I don't have too much to do - the attack case is investigated by the RI. I'm just an observer. The head detective has some ideas he would like me to check, though. That stuff is pretty out there, if you ask me. Seems like he's investigating ten other cases at the same time and it hasn't been good for him, so he came up with some conspiracy nonsense. Still, I have to check it, I guess."

He watches Devin. The man's got strange eyes: you can't tell if he's being attentive or having an out-of-body experience.

"Okay," Devin says. "How can I help you with that?"

Alnam considers it for a second. Can he trust this "contact" with anything at all?

"A rundown on the local Human supremacist groups would be nice - and probably enough."

"I don't really know about any such groups. I'll ask around, sure, but I don't think there are many."

It's hard to tell with this one, but now he seems honest - or honestly confused as to what he's doing here.

Weird - if Alnam had to imagine a Human supremacist, Devin would be the first type to come to mind.

Alnam takes a breath. "That's all I need. As I said, I don't want to overexert you, Mr. Devin."

"It's fine. I'm paid for it."

"So am I," he shrugs. "But tell me: do you know anything about the RI investigation?"

He puts some hope into it. Better to be a contact for two agencies than one, ain't it?

"Can't say I do," Devin says.

Disappointing, but not unexpected.

"No? Maybe you can find something out? I'm interested in what Agent Lawrie is up to."

"Agent Lawrie?"

By now, Alnam knows he should've disregarded the contact and done everything on his own.

"Yes," he says patiently, "from the Republic Intelligence."

"Fine. Okay. He's a pretty big fish, huh? Should be easy to, uh, to... to find out what he's... what he's up to."

Yes. He's a g-head - that's for sure. Does the RDS have any contacts who aren't? Probably spent all his payment on a couple of dozes. Decided to wait with taking one until after the meeting? Makes sense. No wonder his mind isn't here.

"I want to know," Alnam says slowly, "if he is doing anything he is not supposed to be doing as a part of his investigation."

"Like... taking bribes - that's sort of thing?"

"I'm thinking more in terms of poking his nose where there's no reason to poke it. He can have a hidden agenda with a bogus investigation to divert the attention from it."

"Makes sense. I'll look into it."

"Tell me if that causes any unforeseen expenses, Mr. Devin."

"I'll be sure to."

"I mean it."

"You hired me, not that Lawrie fellow. Don't worry, I won't be switching allegiances."

You see? He's not that bad, this Devin fellow. Some synapses are still in working condition.

"I see we understand each other," Alnam says. "Can you fly me to my hotel?"

And no more lectures on geopolitics and pansies on the way back, please.

The big guy gets up with exaggerated readiness. "Sure thing. Uh, just wait a couple of minutes, okay? I need to use the bathroom."

Does he need his doze here and now? Apparently so. Just fucking great.

Just Alnam's fucking luck.

While Devin's away, Alnam wonders if it's a sane idea to involve him in the Lawrie affair - or at all. His junkie radar is going off.

Obar proved quite useful. Didn't screw up. Granted, nobody was actually following him that day, but he didn't mess anything up anyway. And Obar is a certified junkie - unlike Devin.

Alnam almost laughs.

Well, if anything, using Devin is good to throw Lawrie off his tail - if the need arises. This is how it's gonna look: a slow RDS operative recruited an even slower local to spy on a Human-scared RI operative. Nothing out of the ordinary. If Lawrie discovers something like that, he's not going to suspect anything else.

What about the second assignment? The actual one? No leads on that one. Maybe he can check the company responsible for the relay, but how long are they going to take determining where the signal came from? Even if the data hasn't been deleted, it's gonna be months if not years until they find anything. The senders will've relocated by then - if they're amazingly stupid senders and haven't relocated yet.

Meaning: you're stuck with Devin.

Alnam conjures up a counterargument: Devin is unstable. Devin is a junkie. Better to find someone else who knows the Telosi underworld.

Whom, though? Devin is at least RDS-vetted. Republic-vetted, really, but Ven deemed him trustworthy enough.

Counterpoint: if he even bothered to run a check on this guy.

Alnam did. Absolute jackshit in the databases - but he's sure Ven has access to other, better databases. He'd be willing to give a lot for just a look at those. Or at his old CorSec one - which doesn't cull entries marked DEAD after five years of the people of interest being DEAD. He can't believe this Devin has no prior history with law enforcement. There's simply no way.

So he's got Devin to do all the dirty work: Humanocentrists, Lawrie, the GAR rumors. Devin's loyalties: questionable. Everyone else's on this planet: even less certain.

His only hope: that Devin believes his promises and doesn't get swayed by Lawrie - that is, if Lawrie catches him.

Otherwise, it's gonna look reeeeeal bad for the RDS. No special Fete present for Alnam, most likely.

Alnam gets up to stretch his back. Devin takes his sweet time in the bathroom. When he finally reappears in Kiffa's main room, Alnam can't tell if he's had his doze. Well, probably? What else could he do for so long?

They descend into the parking lot. These are all roofed and force-fielded on Telos IV. Beats wearing an air mask or going through an airlock.

"Is this really the best bar around?" Alnam asks.

"I just said it was nice enough."

"Well, not to my taste."

"You can say most of Telos is acquired taste."

Alnam can't argue with that.

"Where are you staying, Agent Alnam?"

"The place is called Maroon Dawn."

Devin hems.

Alnam waits for a good moment to speak about the GAR rumors - not when they're flying at a high speed. He doubts the junkie can process one activity that well, let alone two.

But Devin beats him to the punch. Asks him if he needs some girls.

"No, I don't think so," Alnam answers.

"Boys?"

Alnam puts a smile on his face not to sound too rude: the big guy is a big guy. "Oh please, fuck off, Mr. Devin."

The big guy guffaws.

Alnam goes for it. "There's one more thing."

"I don't know about that."

"I'm also tasked with investigating some rumors here. Propaganda on the Holonet."

"What's next? An investigation of Telos's ecological problems?"

"Don't get me wrong, I don't like this line of work one bit. But whatcha gonna do?"

"I mean, propaganda on the Holonet? What else is new?"

Great - another lecture. Now from a junkie.

"Ah, this piece is supposedly extra nasty. Something about the GAR. Something about mind control or something."

Alnam's seen those Holonet discussions: they didn't really talk about mind control, but he seriously doubts Devin knows what a lobotomy is.

"We don't have any GAR presence," Devin says. "Part of our agreement with the Republic."

"The misinformation apparently comes from Telos, though."

"Oh yeah? Then your best bet would be to go to the planetary executive office. No reason for them not to cut the feed. You know - a bad idea to go against the Republic. No one here would do that."

That's surprisingly smart for Devin.

"I'd prefer to keep it all hush-hush," Alnam says. "Who can tell what happens if I go to the officials? Well, nothing hush-hush, that's to be sure. They'll probably want to use it to gain, you know, some goodwill with the Senate. Probably each a with different faction, while they're at it. No thanks."

"I'll keep my eyes peeled."

"How about a more proactive approach, Mr. Devin? Let me put it this way: my travel allowance is really outstanding. Tried to return the excesses, but they told me it was easier to spend them than to go through all the procedures."

"That's all good and nice, but no promises, Agent. I'll ask around. I know some people who might know something about the Holonet and such."

Isn't it just great? Alnam promises himself to bring up the quality of the RDS contacts with Ven. He'd prefer the next one he has to work with to have at least some knowledge about the case Alnam's fucking investigating.

"So how come you serve in the RDS?" Devin says all of a sudden. "No offense, but with a family like yours..."

Alnam can't believe he didn't mishear it. "I don't really want to talk about it."

"Oh, okay."

Everybody - everybody - he met has always danced around the topic of his Father. Always since the manifesto.

Guess people on Telos IV are more outspoken.

"I used to work in the CorSec before," he says for some reason.

"Where in the CorSec?"

Huh. Maybe this is a thread to Devin's past?

Alnam probes it. "Precinct 84. That's in Fobosi, generally speaking, but the precinct borders are all messed up."

"Oh, that CorSec? I thought you meant the Corellian Sector."

Well, whatcha gonna do?

He gets out at Maroon Dawn.

"What a waste of fucking time," he murmurs as he walks into the lobby.