Lycaon
There was an immediate need to reach the ground floor of Random Play in anticipation of PubSec's arrival, but the stairwell contained a crime scene and a rather large pool of blood. Lycaon, Wise, and Belle went as far down as they could, but Lycaon warned them not to touch anything. The situation seems impassable, but he had a rather straightforward plan to manage it.
Lycaon scooped up Belle around the waist in one arm, and then scooped up Wise around the waist on the other. Wise was notably heavier and bulkier than his sister. Lycaon took a moment to adjust his balance and feel his center of gravity.
"This makes me feel a little… childlike," said Wise, grimacing in Lycaon's one-armed grasp, hanging awkwardly due to his greater height compared to Belle.
Belle grinned across the breadth of Lycaon's chest at her brother's discomfort. "First time?"
Wise gave her a confused look.
Lycaon jumped, both siblings grunting as he landed heavily on the ground floor of the video store. He released them and extended an arm towards the door to Random Play's staff room. "Perhaps we should use that as the venue for the police to-"
"No!" said Belle and Wise together. They looked at each other and back at Lycaon.
"It would be better if they didn't see the HDD set-up," said Wise as an explanation.
Lycaon had forgotten about that. "Of course, Lord Wise. Forgive my short-sightedness."
"Don't sweat it, Lycaon," said Wise with his usual smile. "We can have our interview outside, yeah?"
Lycaon did not want Belle standing outside the front of the video store. There were too many sight lines there to allow her extended exposure. "Yes, but please in the back parking lot under the new canopy, Lord Wise. It will be safer there for Lady Belle."
"Works for me," said Wise.
"Excellent," said Lycaon. "If you do not object, I shall take the lead in speaking with PubSec? I have experience in these matters and it is my traps at issue."
"Yes, Lycaon, that would be nice," said Belle, seemingly relieved to have someone knowledgeable in charge of the situation.
Lycaon checked his golden chained pocket watch. "And shall I order breakfast? Perhaps coffee and chocolate croissants?"
The siblings looked at each other, neither seeming too eager. However, Lycaon had seen many clients in mornings like this one. He knew a bit of comfort would go a long way to settle them.
"I do believe you will find it more welcome than you think. I will place the order. But for now, let us place you in the parking lot now, so as to avoid any police interest in the staff room."
Lycaon led the way towards the back door of Random Play, the siblings following obediently in his wake. He paused at the back door and queried all the silhouette scanners on the rear and sides of Random Play. Five scanners alerted him of differences. Lycaon called up these five images in sequence to his eyepatch screen. Three of the notated changes were birds. One was a cat. And the last was an open window. Lycaon zoomed in on that image but only saw a tired looking woman drinking coffee in her own apartment. Reasonably satisfied, Lycaon opened the back door and stepped out into the parking lot under Ellen Joe's festival canopy.
It was a bit chilly this early in the morning, but there was a quiet sort of peace to be found in an inactive parking lot in New Eridu. There were brief moments of total silence as the city somewhat slept in. Lycaon even spotted some folding chairs. He hadn't asked Ellen for those, but here they were. He took out a palm scanner and checked the chairs for foreign objects and found them clean. He set them up near the back door, where the canopy blocked the view of Belle from above and the various walls blocked every other sightline.
"Please do not wander," said Lycaon to both of them. "Lady Belle, do not leave the canopy. Preferably, do not leave that chair. This is the best spot in-"
"Fine, Lycaon," said Belle, slightly tersely. "I won't move."
Fearing he had perhaps overstepped in his directives, Lycaon dropped the issue and bowed slightly. He withdrew slightly into the video store, setting the silhouette scanners on a minute by minute refresh check. He withdrew slightly to give the siblings a little privacy while keeping the back door of the store open so he could keep an eye on them. It also allowed fresh air into Random Play and it would frame their location to the PubSec officers that Lycaon expected to arrive at the front door at any moment. In fact, no sooner had he radioed for the delivery of coffee and pastries that there was a firm, authoritative knock at the front door of Random Play.
Lycaon glanced at Belle and Wise. They both were looking at him. Lycaon lifted an eyebrow at Belle. Belle's eyebrows rose in momentary confusion, but then she nodded. With permission so granted, Lycaon went to the front door of Random Play and opened it while taking up the most butler-like stance he knew how to take. Perhaps that stance, in contrast with the visual appearance of a video rental store, was what set the police force slightly off their balance from the get go.
"Welcome, officers, to Random Play," said Lycaon in his most formal tone. "..The finest choice for rare cinema in the district. I wholeheartedly welcome your timely arrival in this urgent matter."
The police blinked at him for a few seconds.
"A- And you are?" said a black-haired female officer at the front of the group. She was tall and athletically built with obvious feminine curves that were highly accentuated by the form-fitting nature of her police uniform. Her amber eyes traveled Lycaon's form up and down quickly, and Lycaon recognized it as the appraising review of a fellow professional.
"Von Lycaon. Of Victoria Housekeeping."
"Victoria Housekeeping, I know the org. The traps were yours?"
"Yes."
"You set them in defense of your principal?"
"Yes."
"I see. Then please stand aside, Mr. Von Lycaon. My team will examine the premises. I trust you have not moved the body?"
"It is as it fell."
"Good. Thank you for following the regulations." The police woman waved forward a team of people in hazmat suits and carrying baskets of various looking medical implements. Everyone had a camera around their neck. They filed forward and Lycaon stood aside to let them into Random Play.
"I am Superintendent Third Class Zhu Yuan of Public Security," said the leader, speaking over the heads of the passing forensic team easily due to her height. As the last of them passed, a second PubSec officer stepped forward, previously hidden due to her smaller stature. Lycaon blinked at a familiar face.
"And this is my partner, Constable First Class Qingyi," said Zhu Yuan.
Qingyi smugly winked at Lycaon in a way that Zhu Yuan would not see and bowed politely. "Thank you for your cooperation, sir."
"Y- yes, of course," said Lycaon, surprised by Qingyi's sudden appearance and confused by her apparent subordinate status in her relationship with Zhu Yuan. Something was afoot, or this was Qingyi's current cover, or something. Lycaon regained control of his face and decided to go along with the story being presented to him.
"I need to ask you and your principal some routine questions," said Zhu Yuan. "May we enter, as well?"
"By all means," said Lycaon, opening the door even wider to reveal Belle and Wise in their chairs outside the parking lot door. "They are taking the air to the rear of the establishment. We are all expecting you and are prepared to fully cooperate."
Zhu Yuan's eyes flickered back and forth and the curve of her mouth frowned slightly. Lycaon kept his own expression serene, but he became slightly worried by the lead officer's reaction. She looked suspicious of something, but she entered and Qingyi followed. Qingyi gave Lycaon a pointed look as she passed him, but Lycaon was not sure what message he was supposed to take from it. Was Qingyi wanting to keep her earlier involvement with Belle and Lycaon secret from Zhu Yuan? Were they allies? Enemies? Lycaon had no way of knowing and so resolved to say as little as possible.
Belle's eyes also widened in recognition of Qingyi, but she said nothing as Zhu Yuan and Qingyi took up positions in the parking lot and began asking Belle and Wise basic identifying questions and then about the dead man. Both revealed that they had been asleep when it happened and only Lycaon knew anything about it. Lycaon answered Zhu Yuan's basic questions about the approach of the intruder on his sensors and his decision to activate the traps. He transmitted the data he recorded of all the events to her palm computer.
Meanwhile, Qingyi looked placidly pleased with herself and had her hands behind her back and said nothing at all.
"Von Lycaon," Zhu Yuan was saying, as if to herself, typing away at a tablet computer. "Von Lycaon. Victoria Housekeeping. The H.I.A. has you here with a S-Tier combat rating. Did you know that?"
Lycaon inclined his head slightly in response to Zhu Yuan's suddenly intense gaze. "I am flattered, but I doubt I deserve such regard."
Zhu Yuan gave him a dubious look and then made a soft grunting noise. She began to type away at the palm tablet. In Lycaon's experience, this was the end of the interview. All the plain details were given and now it was but a matter of the busy forensic team inside to confirm no unexpected findings from a self-defense booby trap fatality.
"Miss Belle," said Zhu Yuan. "How is it that this intruder came to your home, where you run a second-hand VHS shop, with apparent intent to do you harm? Why would he have a motive to do such a thing? And in a similar vein: how are you able to afford the services of a S-Tier member of an organization like Victoria Housekeeping?"
Her amber eyes leveled at Belle. Behind Zhu Yuan, Qingyi's expression changed into one of concern and she gritted her teeth slightly. Lycaon could do nothing but watch. He could only speak if spoken to.
Belle blinked and smiled uneasily. "Uhhhh…."
Zhu Yuan's eyes narrowed. "Is that a difficult question to answer, Miss Belle?"
"Superintendent," said Qingyi suddenly. "If I may: I happen to know Miss Belle's situation. I think her reticence is reasonable."
Zhu Yuan looked down at her subordinate with surprise. "You do? How is that, Constable?"
"We juniors pick up gossip easier, as you know," said Qingyi. "The fact is: Miss Belle is a soapland masseuse with… government clientele. She's not permitted to reveal herself, but political opponents of her clients may believe she knows important secrets. So: Miss Belle's discrete clients bankroll the bodyguard here. To keep their activities safe. And Miss Belle, too, of course."
The parking lot was silent. Belle and Wise's mouths opened in shock. Lycaon carefully maintained a neutral face. It was a somewhat silly fabrication, but there was some of the truth weaved into it. Government secrets. Government privacy. Political motives for the dead man. Dark money. All the classics. And Qingyi had put down the scent of Zhu Yuan's superior chain of command- and no intelligent cop, whether corrupt or incorruptible, tackled that without good reason and lots of evidence.
"I- don't-" sputtered Belle. "I'm not-"
"You're not at liberty to discuss it, I know Miss Belle," said Qingyi, stepping forward and leaning towards Belle's face. "NDAs and all that. But massage is a traditional and honorable skill! And just because your workplace happens to require you to perform your services in a bikini, while lathered in various oils- it doesn't make your art any less respectable."
Belle paled slightly, but closed her mouth with a click of teeth.
Zhu Yuan sniffed in a way that seemed to indicate she disagreed with Qingyi's evaluation of soaplands and she gave Belle a mildly judgmental look, under which Belle blushed furiously but made no further objections.
Finally, Zhu Yuan sighed and tapped a finger thoughtfully on her personal computer, looking with concern at Qingyi. "Another of those, is it?"
"I'm sure of it," said Qingyi, spinning back to look at her 'superior', her long pigtails swinging about wildly with the motion, almost slapping Wise in the face. "We'd only cause ourselves grief by digging any deeper. Soaplands are legal. It's not technically sex work. But who knows which married big-whigs might get nervous if we sniff around their favorite pair of magical hands?"
Zhu Yuan frowned deeper, but she seemed to be thinking deeply about Qingyi's words. Then a forensic team member appeared at the door and flashed a hand sign at Zhu Yuan. Her expression softened to neutrality.
"Well," said Zhu Yuan with a sigh, putting away her pad, "It seems everything is as you say, Mr. Von Lycaon, Miss Belle, Mister Wise. That's all the questions I have. I thank you for your cooperation."
She bowed slightly to them. Then she looked again at Lycaon. "My duty here is finished. But before I leave, would you mind a more personal question, Mr. Von Lycaon?"
Lycaon was at a loss. What personal business could Zhu Yuan have with him? "You may, Superintendent. How might I be of service?"
Zhu Yuan put a casual hand on her hip and regarded him evenly, her amber eyes searching his body in a curious way. "I also have a S-Tier combat rating with the H.I.A. It's rare to meet another. I would like to spar with you sometime. When are you off duty?"
Belle
"I would like to spar with you sometime. When are you off duty?"
Belle blinked as this slightly scary, alarmingly sexy police officer put a hand on her muscled hip and thrust out her big ass and asked Lycaon on what sounded like a date! Belle had just swallowed Qingyi's fiction about Belle working at a soapland and Belle had faced down Zhu Yuan's obvious judgment.
The hell she was going to sit here and let this… this... bitch flirt with her bodyguard, too!
"Excuse me, Officer!" said Belle sharply, her hackles rising as she butted into the conversation before Lycaon could frame his own response. "Von Lycaon is always on duty with me. He has more important things to do than to be the metric of your combat abilities, Officer. Now, if you are finished here, I kindly ask that you leave my residence!"
Zhu Yuan looked at Belle with a degree of shock and surprise. Wise stared at her with a gaping mouth. Qingyi's mouth was tight like a clam, holding back some sort of deep amusement. But Lycaon- Lycaon gave her a glance and a small grin from the corner of his mouth.
Lycaon cleared his throat in the silence, a soft growling noise. "As my Lady Belle says, Superintendent. So long as I am on commission, I am never off duty. Not even for a moment. I must decline the invitation."
"I- I see," said Zhu Yuan, apparently off balance and seeming confused at the undertones of the situation. "Well, perhaps some other time, Von Lycaon."
"Perhaps," said Lycaon in such a non-committal way that Belle's heart thumped in victory.
But victory in what? She'd just so rudely addressed a rather high-ranking police officer! Hardly a smart choice for a small-business owner!
Zhu Yuan departed with some final, awkward formalities.
Qingyi followed her, and as she walked, she looked back at Lycaon and Belle and gave them a mocking little salute. "I'll be in touch if I find anything out about your piecemeal friend. Be safe."
The forensic team left, too, taking the body with them. At about the same time, a delivery of coffee and pastries arrived. Lycaon politely but firmly suggested Belle and Wise go into the staff room to eat and relax while he deep cleaned the morning's kill zone.
Random Play stank of blood and death, but not so much in the staff office. Belle had wanted to go down the street to the coffee shop, but just a short walk two doors down was apparently utterly abhorrent to Lycaon's vision for her personal safety. With one assassin already dead and the apparent surety of more to come, Belle decided to not press the issue and she went where Lycaon wanted her to go- at least while he cleaned up last night's mess. And after he had her back in that little confrontation with Officer Sexpot.
"So, what is this data you have in your head?" said Wise, as they polished off their breakfast.
The food and coffee was actually quite good. Lycaon apparently knew of a great bakery close to Sixth Street. Belle had never heard of it, but a quick web search found it to be only a couple blocks away. Belle wondered if that place also employed a Tin Man android or if organic employees made it.
"I don't know, actually," said Belle, frowning as she held her disposable coffee cup near her nose, allowing the steam to rise from the drinking hole and tantalize her sense of smell. She loved the smell of hot coffee. "But somebody does. Several somebodies. It's Ether Dawn stuff, I'm sure it is."
"Well- why don't we have Fairy take a look?" suggested Wise.
That was a rather obvious idea. But something about it made Belle pause. One of the few entities that could possibly create an A.I. like Fairy would be a secret government research project just like the Ether Dawn project. And there was always the strange deal with Fairy's user agreement that would trouble the back of Belle's mind until the truth revealed itself.
Still- vague suspicions did not seem a good enough reason to avoid using their biggest asset in computing when there was a foreign file inside Belle's brain that could kill her by.. What, exactly? Overwriting her brain's natural programming for breathing, or something? Belle didn't exactly know, but she wasn't inclined to disregard the findings of Dr. Ray at Scott Outpost. That woman hadn't seemed the type for conspiracy- just a straight-shooting scientist, such as they could be on the frontiers of their own understanding in their field.
"Fairy, are you familiar with OldKnott file types?" said Belle into the air of the staffroom. The A.I. was surely listening to them. Fairy was always listening to them.
"Affirmative," said Fairy immediately.
"Would you be able to use our HDD-VR headset to survey the file in my brain?"
"I would need to disable several key safeguards which are considered mandatory for the safety of organic integration with the HDD, Belle," said Fairy. "At your request, I could disable the safeguards."
Belle looked at Wise. Wise looked at her. He seemed worried and he shrugged his shoulders, as if to say 'It's your call.'
Well, it was either try it, or sit around and be entirely at the mercy of Qingyi and Scott Outpost.
"Do it, Fairy," said Belle after a deep breath. "And would you please isolate yourself from the Inter-Knott? I don't want any accidental leakage."
"That would limit my processing capabilities significantly, Belle."
"Well, I don't want you to be processing things in my mind, Fairy. Just analyze what you can see."
"Belle," said Fairy, her robotic voice somehow taking on an exasperated tone. "Analysis is a form of processing-"
"Just do it, please, Fairy!"
"Yes, Belle. It is done. Safeguards disabled. I am isolated inside the network of Random Play. Please activate the headset."
Belle shared another look with Wise. He looked worried, but he got up to help her with the HDD headset. In a few moments, they had it on her. There were no screens to look into. HDD-VR acted directly with the human mind.
"Connecting," said Fairy. "I can boost processing capability by disabling your visual U.I., Belle."
"Fine, Fairy. Just tell me what you can find out," said Belle, her world dark in the headset.
There was a brief silence in the room. Belle heard the faint sound of Lycaon wringing out a mop.
"Foreign file located," said Fairy. "Compressed Size: roughly 400 terabytes. Encrypted decompression is ongoing. Estimated Decompressed File Size: 2.8 petabytes."
Belle took in a breath. That sure sounded big. "How much data can a human brain hold, theoretically?"
"The direct translation between computer storage and the storage of the organic human mind remains in scholastic debate," said Fairy. "However, if I may: the positronic brains of cyborgs and androids regarded as legally sentient are roughly 1 petabyte in capacity. My own core programming is 1.5 petabytes."
Belle logged that little factoid about Fairy away in her mind. Where was she storing all that? Random Play didn't have anywhere near such an absurd amount of data storage. And- why did Fairy sound so damn smug even with that monotone voice of hers?
"So you have about three brain's worth of data in you, Belle" said Wise's voice in Belle's darkness.
"Plus the brain I was born with," said Belle.
"No, your brain has gotta only be like 0.2 petabytes, tops. So just three brain's worth."
Belle couldn't help but laugh at her brother's childish joke. "Yeah, yeah. Very funny. Fairy. Can you do anything with the file? Can you get it out of me?"
"The file is constantly in an accessed state during its decompression cycle. It cannot be moved or deleted. And I should remind the user: manipulating data within an organic matrix should not be attempted without suitable hardware and medical supervision. Such an operation has only succeeded three times, and based on your current situation, Belle, you are the third of those three."
Belle swallowed. So Dr. Ray was more on the frontier of the field than Belle had thought.
"If you had access to the Intra-Net, Fairy," said Belle. "Could you do it?"
"Yes. Cracking the encryption would add time, but it is theoretically within my capabilities."
Belle took in a breath. Was there hope of Fairy getting her out of this mess, after all?
"Project estimate?"
"Processing Duration: Four-hundred-thirty-seven years, two months, and five days. Estimated Cost in Commercial Electricity at current rates: Sixty-seven million denny."
Belle heard Wise let out a low whistle. Belle silently agreed. Yeah, so much for that idea.
"What if you had the cypher for the encryption?" said Belle.
"That is impossible to attain," said Fairy. "Such a cipher would only exist in a hardware component within a computer system I am not compatible with."
This was hopeless. Belle pushed the disconnect button and pulled the headset off her head. Wise was watching her with a concerned expression.
"So much for that idea," said Wise.
"Yeah, but it was worth a look," said Belle. "I guess I'm stuck with going to Scott Outpost for the professionals to deal with it."
Wise didn't respond. They both looked thoughtfully off into space, sharing a similar expression.
"Per prior instruction," said Fairy into the silence. "I need to inform you both that I observed and traced Inter-Knott activity of the PubSec mobile unit that was used by the responding officer."
Belle looked at Wise. She'd told him that Fairy shouldn't be allowed to mess around with government computer systems like that. It was too risky!
BUT: then she herself had gone off and hacked into a government computer system and caused their current dilemma. Belle decided to not admonish Wise or Fairy on this point. Not… just yet.
"And you found something?" said Wise, lobbing up the begged-for question that Fairy seemed to enjoy receiving.
"Yes, when the identity of the deceased reached the PubSec network, a responding trigger program activated itself and sent a signal outbound to another system. A system within a Hollow."
Belle and Wise looked at each other.
Well, now. What could that be about?
