Chapter 4       The Chicago StarBuck was the closest hotel to the University. It also happened to be pretty cheap, which would go over well with Alec's superiors when it came time to file an expense report. He had given Ellen some credits and told her to get something to eat in the lobby restaurant. In the meantime, he had talked with the attendant at the front desk about getting them lodging. The attendant looked up from his computer, "I am sorry, sir. But we only have one vacancy available. A number of guests are scheduled to leave tomorrow, so we'll have more open then." "But I need a place to stay tonight." responded Alec. "I know that, sir. May I remind you that we usually only book rooms via reservations. We are making an exception in your case because of your credentials." Alec had introduced himself as an agent of the H.I.A. on official business and told them that it was imperative they get him two rooms for one night. After a consultation with the hotel manager over the vidphone, they agreed to do what they could. "It is a double room, Sir." offered the attendant. Alec sighed. "Fine, I'll take it." "Excellent." The attendant punched a few buttons on his console behind the front desk. "It will just be a few moments while I check you in."       Alec looked about the lobby. It really was a nice place. The grand staircase at its center stopped just short of the front desk. A large crystal chandelier hung over the main entrance. A number of plush red couches were spread about, giving the place an elegant but cozy feel. The carpets had an elaborate oriental pattern woven into them. Splashes of violet, red, and aqua ran to together in a harmonious mix that Alec found to be oddly soothing. While a few skylights and the large plexiglass front doors added a light and airy touch to the overall effect. The attendant handed Alec the key to his room. They exchanged pleasantries and Alec headed across the lobby to the restaurant on the other side.       In contrast to the lobby, the restaurant - which was called The Black Hole - was dark and bland. It's decor consisted of mostly of black with a touch of white, keeping in with the space theme the name suggested. Alec found Ellen at table in a darkened corner. The significance of the table's location was not lost on him as he sat down. It was situated at the rear of the place. With her back to wall, Ellen was afforded a view of the entire restaurant, including the exit. This gave her plenty of time to assess and react to anything she perceived as a threat. "We're on the third floor." commented Alec. Ellen was busy munching down a sandwich and paused only long enough to nod her head. She took a sip of her drink then asked, "Got my key?" "Yeah." replied Alec. He signaled a waitress and ordered something. Ellen wasn't sure what he said but it sounded French. "So can I have the key, or do I have to sleep in the hall?" "I'll hold on to our key if you don't mind." Ellen put her sandwich down. "OUR key?" "Uh, yeah." Alec ran his fingers through his blond hair and examined his silverware. "Our key, as in our room?" repeated Ellen. "Yeah, they were booked up so I could only get one room." Ellen smirked. "Okay, so do you want the left or the right side of the bed, dear?" Alec gagged on water he was trying to drink and took a moment to clear his throat with a cough. "Its a double. We each get our own bed." "It doesn't have to be that way you know." She gently stroked his hand. Alec hastily withdrew it. "Yes it does!" he said quickly. Ellen giggled. "I guess we'll see then, won't we?" Alec took another sip of water. The night promised to be anything but dull. * * *       "I don't like this Ramon, something stinks." The mountain of a man next to Kaz Takagi nodded in agreement. "It looks like our friends in the H.I.A. are responsible too." They stood in what had once been a working cargo complex. It lay in shambles, albeit the cleanest shambles Kaz had ever seen. Able Squad and Charlie Five went over the entire complex with a fine-tooth comb. The bodies had been removed and taken to the local coroner. When Ramon Longfeather sent a team to inspect the bodies, they found they had disappeared. The exception being the body of the hanger tech that was killed in the blast. The rest of the complex had been swept clean. There was not a drop of blood anywhere, yet there had been bodies. The walls and crates were riddled with holes, yet there was no physical evidence of a shootout. A battle of the type suggested would leave grenade fragments or maybe even spent energy cells behind. And to top it off, there was not a single fingerprint in the entire complex. While it was possible that every one involved wore gloves, the chances of everyone who had been in the complex that day doing so was remarkably thin. Hell, the bathroom was wiped clean and Kaz knew for a fact that pretty much everyone removed their gloves when it came time to use it. Ramon brushed a lock of black hair from his face. "I'm open to suggestions, Kaz." "Hang on a sec, give a pair of binoculars." Ramon handed the ones that had been around his neck. Kaz scanned the area along the roof, settled on a few different sites, each time making an affirmative noise. He lowered the binoculars and handed them back to Longfeather. "Take a look up there, where the ceiling meets the walls." Ramon did as instructed. "What am I looking for?" asked Ramon. "Do you see those small, rectangular, patches about 6 by 8 centimeters?" "Uh, yeah, I got it." "Good. They're a different color than the surrounding wall, a brighter color." "You think the blast had something to do with that?" suggested Ramon. "Added to it maybe, but made it? No, I don't think so." Ramon lowered the binoculars. "So what?" "So that means something was covering those areas for an extended period of time, and was recently removed." "Security cameras." stated Ramon. "Looks about the right size for the mounting most cameras use, doesn't it? And if I remember right, its standard procedure for these places to have them installed - prevents stealing." "So now we have our smoking blaster." concluded Ramon. "Provided they didn't erase it, the security tapes contain everything we need to know." "After the thorough work-over they did on this place, you don't really think they'd be dumb enough to forget those tapes." remarked Ramon. "No, of course not. But at least now we know what we're looking for." Ramon frowned. "We know what, but not where." Kaz smiled. "Leave that to me. I got an old friend in the agency." * * *       After dinner, Alec and Ellen went up to their room. Ellen had not said much since they left the restaurant, and that bothered him. More than anything he wanted to know what was going on inside her head. She seemed like she was kidding with her comments at dinner and it appeared that they came to an understanding back at the university. But Alec was still nervous, he half expected Ellen to jump his bones at any second. On the other hand, maybe she realized that, and was purposely acting the way she did because she thought it was funny. Alec's head began to pound from considering the possibilities.       "You wanna open the door, sweetie?" Ellen's eyes glimmered with mischief. Alec's hand fumbled around in his breast pocket until he came up with the key. "I've got it, and don't call me sweetie." "No problem, honey." Alec paused long enough to give her a quick scowl and then opened the door. The room was a decent size, consisting of one bathroom, two beds, two closets, a couple of chairs with a breakfast table, and a vid screen. Ellen flopped onto one of the beds and let out a deep sigh as she stared at the ceiling. "Now this I could get used to." "A shortage of beds where you're from?" asked Alec. "No, its just more practical to use a sleeping bag, so you can pack up and move out in a hurry." Alec gave an affirmative grunt and sat himself down in one of the chairs. He looked about the room for a second then decided to switch on the vid screen. He pressed a few of the buttons on top of the screen and tuned into a local news channel. Ellen sat up on her bed and removed her gloves and jacket, dropping them on the floor. She started to take off her boots as she remarked, "I need a shower, want to join me?"       Alec wiped his head around, answering with an immediate "No!" Ellen pulled her other boot off. She began to remove her jumpsuit as she entered the bathroom. The shower turned on and Ellen peaked out at him wearing nothing but a towel. She grabbed the handle of the door and began to close it. She left the door slightly ajar. Through the inch-wide gap of the door, Alec saw Ellen smiling at him. "In case you change your mind." she said. Ellen disappeared into the bathroom and Alec went back to watching the vid-screen. As he watched a news report about what happened earlier that day, the thought occurred to him that he could use a shower - a really COLD shower. * * *       As night approached, Kaz and Ramon decided to get their people back up to the Vigilance for the night. Ramon decided to unwind a little and headed to the rec room. He had beaten three of his troopers at arm wrestling and then gotten trounced by Thrax at pool six times when Kaz arrived looking for him. Longfeather quickly, and quite willingly, excused himself from what would have been his seventh loss. "You have something?" "Sort of." responded Kaz, "Remember that friend in H.I.A. I told you about, Alec DeLeon?" Ramon nodded. "Well I just talked with Maggie, and he's not around." "So?" retorted Ramon. "Not around, as in not on Mars, he's here on earth. On a hunch, I checked the records of the landing pad we used. According to what I scanned, a shuttle landed there at the exact time the explosion occurred." Ramon held a hand up, "Let me guess, the passenger manifesto listed one Alec DeLeon on board." "Right. So whatever is going on, he's in the middle of it." "And so, the plot thickens." commented Ramon. "Where's Mathison? I got a job for him to do." "Sorry, I had something for him to do first." replied Ramon. "Where is he?" asked Kaz. "I sent him down to the surface with Pellegrino, Poedowski, and Dirk. He intercepted a high level comm message. It said, in not so many words, that what we're looking for is in an evidence warehouse 4 kilometers from the Chicago branch of the H.I.A." Kaz eyed Ramon a second, "You didn't order them to do anything illegal, did you?" Ramon shrugged his shoulders innocently. "All I said was that the tapes were there and it would sure help our investigation if we could get a hold of them." "And I supposed you also pointed out there was a shuttle available." remarked Kaz. "I may have. I'm getting older, the memory - it fades you know." Kaz nodded in agreement. "It does happen. Well, if you should see Mathison, send him my way." "Will do Kaz, will do." * * *       Jared Mathison walked out the front office of the evidence warehouse. He had spent 15 minutes trying to convince the woman at the front desk to let him in. As he walked outside, he turned left and walked a block down the street before he rounded a corner. Poedowski, Pellegrino, and Dirk were waiting for him with the hovercar they had borrowed from the motor pool. "Well?" demanded Pellegrino. "No go, she wouldn't budge." replied Jared. "Great, now what?" asked Poedowski. "Relax, Dave. I never expected her to let me in." Dirk gave Jared a look. "Scouting trip?" "A quick study, Dirk. Yeah, I just wanted a good look at their setup." "So how's it look?" asked Pellegrino. "The girl's behind a desk in front, there's safety glass between her and the entryway. There are two security cameras on the area. Someone going in has to get buzzed in by her. The buzzer unlocks the door to her right. I'm not sure, but I think she's the only one on duty. We get past her and we're in." Dirk shook his head. "I don't like it. Not enough intelligence on the area - we'll get caught - by the security cameras if not by her." "It's one chick, come on!" exclaimed Poedowski. "One chick with a gun, and rifle most definitely in reserve. Remember, we left our weapons on the ship. Not to mention the fact that she's probably sitting right next to the trigger for the alarm." reminded Pellegrino. "In regards to the intel, we aren't totally without means of obtaining it." stated Jared.       Jared reached into the hover car and obtained his satchel of tools. He removed three box-like components and set them on the hood. He opened the back panel of the largest one and hooked up a long black cable. He handed the end of it to Poedowski. It had some sort of clamp-like device at the end. He gestured to a manhole cover. "These places usually run their computer and comm lines through the sewer. Find it and attach this too it." Poedowski looked at him like his head was on backwards. "Me? In a sewer? Forget it!" "Don't be a baby!" replied Jared. "I'm not going into a sewer. I'll lift the sewer cap, but that's it." Dirk gestured to Jared. "Here, gimme it. What's the computer line look like?" "Can't miss it, its big and red."       Dirk lowered himself into the sewer. He stumbled around a bit before he actually found the computer line. He flicked a switch and the cable clamp opened. He pressed it against a large red cable and it closed around it. Its inch long protrusions sank into the wire. "Okay?" asked Dirk. "Got it, you can get out of there now." Jared called down. As Dirk hoisted himself out of the sewer he saw his three companions clustered around the box Jared had set up. He peaked over Pellegrino's shoulder. Jared was typing on a small keyboard he somehow produced. "What have you got?" asked Pellegrino. "27 cameras, alarm, one security station out front." replied Jared "Any other way in?" asked Dirk. "Three side exits, they're all wired though. Tampering will set off the alarm." "Can you disable the alarm system?" asked Pellegrino. "No, its protected. If I try, they'll know." "What about the cameras" asked Powdowski. "Now that, I can do something about." Jared hooked the second box-like device in with the first and switched it on. He typed a few commands and new info scrolled across the screen. He typed the word record and sat back to watch the machine work. "The cameras are low level security. I can't disable them but I can feed them false information. I'm recording a minute's worth of footage from all cameras. I can then loop it and feed it to the cameras so it appears nothing has changed." "Clever, but that stills means we have to go in the front door. That means we still have to deal with the guard." said Pellegrino. "We could distract her somehow." offered Jared. "Assuming we could do that, it would have to be long enough for one of us to get in, grab the tapes, and then get out again the same way. She would probably check the security tapes later and when she sees we're not on them she'll know something is up." pointed out Pellegrino. "Besides that, we don't even know where the tapes are in there." reminded Poedowski. "Not true." replied Jared. He stroked a few more keys and schematic of the building appeared on his screen. He then used a few tricks Colleen Marsh taught him to search one of the unprotected databases and learn the lot number of the tapes they were looking for. He then requested the location of the lot in question and a glowing red dot appeared on the screen. Jared rummaged around his satchel and removed a hand held data pad. He used a small red wire to connect it to the mainframe of his large black box. He hit a few more keys and downloaded the file to the data pad. "Whoever goes in will take this with him." "Where did you get this stuff?" asked Dirk, referring to Jared's equipment. "Sorry, trade secret." replied Jared. "Reminded me never to get you mad, I might wake up one morning to find I was demoted to private." remarked Dirk. Jared smiled. "This still leaves us with a few problems." noted Pellegrino, "We need to distract the guard for a long time without making her suspicious. We can't tamper with the cameras that are on her without fingering ourselves, but then again, no one can sneak in if we don't." "We're screwed." concluded Poedowski. Dirk looked about the area as the others continued to converse. The warehouse was isolated from the other buildings around them. He noted that there was bar across the street and half a block down from the warehouse. It was called 'The Pirate Base'. Jared had passed it on his way to meet them. It gave Dirk an idea. "How many cameras are on the guard?" "Two, one on the ceiling behind the guard, the other on the ceiling behind anyone in the office." replied Jared. Dirk did some thinking then asked another question. "If the alarm is set off, and then someone opens one of the side doors, will they know if it was ever opened?" Jared tapped a few keys before answering. "The security system only records what set it off initially." Dirk gestured with his hands expectantly, "So?" "If you shut it behind you, they would probably never know." answered Jared. "Can you tamper with all the cameras except the ones on the guard?" "Sure." said Jared. "You got a plan, Dirk?" asked Pellegrino. "Yeah, and I think its crazy enough to work." * * *       Ellen walked out of the bathroom with one towel wrapped around her body and another around her head. Alec had removed his underarm holster, jacket, and tie. He wandered into the bathroom without a word and retrieved Ellen's clothing. He stuffed them in a red plastic bag and placed it near the door. "I called the front desk and arranged to have your clothes laundered." said Alec. "How considerate, what am I supposed to wear in the meantime? Or won't I need clothes?" Alec gestured toward her bed. "I ran across the street and bought you some pajamas. You can change in the bathroom." Ellen wandered over to the bed and picked up a pink top with white trim. "Pink is not really my color, but thanks." "You're welcome." replied Alec as he pointed toward the bathroom door. Ellen gave him a coy smile and took the pajamas into the bathroom. A minute or two later she emerged wearing them. There was a knock on the door. Alec answered it, it was a man from the cleaning service. Alec handed him the red plastic bag and he was gone. Ellen took the opportunity to stretch out on her bed and watch the vid-screen that Alec left activated. Alec returned to the table, picked up a packet of green pajamas he had purchased for himself and went into the bathroom. A second later he poked his head out to make sure Ellen was still on her bed. Then he shut the door and locked it. From the bed Ellen heard the distinctive sound of something being dragged over to the door and wedged up against it. Ellen giggled, she had spooked him good.       When Alec finished his shower, he neatly folded his clothes and placed them in one of the closets. He sat down in the same chair he had been in before and stared at the vid-screen. Ellen got up from her bed and sat down at the table across from Alec. "So, now what?" she asked. "Now, we sit back and relax until tomorrow." "Sounds boring." replied Ellen. "We could do something more...exciting." Her tone was slightly suggestive. The routine was getting tiring for Alec, so he finally decided to confront it head on. "Why do you things like that?" "Like what?" said Ellen innocently. "You know what." stated Alec, his voice firm. Ellen laughed lightly. "I guess its because the way you react is funny. Its been a long time since I had anything to laugh at." "Look, I realize you haven't had it easy, so I'll let what you've done so far slide. Just knock it off, okay?" Ellen nodded. "Sure, if you sleep with me tonight." "What!?" Ellen held her hands up. "Hey relax, it was just one last little jib I had to get out of my system!" Alec looked at her questioningly. "Is that it? No more, right?" Ellen extended her right hand, "Here's my hand on it." Alec shook it. "Alright then, that's a load off my mind." "So." replied Ellen. "So? So what?" asked Alec. "You mind answering a few questions for me?" Alec paused a second, unsure if this was a lead in for another embarrassing comment. "Sure, go ahead." Ellen took on a very serious look. "How did I die?" Alec sighed deeply. "That's a long story." "We have nothing else to do." pointed out Ellen. "True, you better get comfortable then. I guess I should start at the events surrounding the Mars rescue mission. It was a big mess, we were grossly outnumbered. Any sane man would never have excepted the assignment. But I figured, 'Hey, it never stopped us before, why should it now'......" * * *       Dirk, Pellegrino, and Poedowski left Mathison by the hovercar and entered The Pirate Base. Dirk made sure the doorman would know when they got there by asking him for the time. Not much more than a sleazy bar, The Pirate Base featured a decor similar to any other. The exception being that all employees dressed as a member of the Pirate Clans. The waiters greeted everyone with a hearty 'argh', some wore eye patches and others went further by brandishing a fake hook on one of their hands. If Hallas had come along, he would have found it insulting, to say the least. Then he would have started a fight. Dirk and his two companions made their way over to the bar. Pellegrino tried not laugh when the bartender asked, "Argh, what'll you have mates?" Vince ordered a soda for Dirk, a beer for himself and a hard mixed drink for Poedowski. Each downed the drink he was given, making sure that those around them could see them do it. Dirk bought the next round and they left the bar. They found a seat in the corner and sat down. Every few minutes either Dave or Vince would head to the bar for a refill. Dirk would then inconspicoulsly slip into the bathroom and pour out the drinks they purchased. To everyone around them, it appeared that Poedowski and Pellegrino were getting pretty drunk - Poedowski being the worse off of the two. Just to insure the no one had any doubts. Poedowski pretended to shakily get to his feet, wobble over to the bar, and try to order another drink with his severely slurred speech. "Gwime nother!" The bartender decided to lose his accent. "Sorry buddy, you've had enough." Pellegrino appeared behind him. "Don't worry, I'll take care of him." "You're not much better off." retorted the bartender. Pellegrino smiled sheepishly, "That's true, but that's why we brought him!" He lazily pointed to where Dirk was sitting. "You sure you can handle these two?" asked the bartender. "I'll definitely find out." The bartender laughed. Poedowski turned to Pellegrino, "Youz own mi fro tha las wound!" "No, I bought the last round." replied Pellegrino. "Dih nawt!" "Did too!" Poedowski looked like he was ready to debate the point but suddenly covered his mouth and tried to wobble over to the bathroom as fast as he could. Dirk sprang to his feet to help, still holding his soda. "Look out everyone, he's gonna blow!" yelled Pellegrino. He laughed as Dirk appeared to help Poedowski into the bathroom. There were three stalls and a couple of wall urinals inside. Dirk and Poedowski headed for the middle one and disappeared inside. Dirk closed the door to the stall and Poedowski kneeled over the toilet bowl. The other occupants heard the sound of retching, followed by the splashing sound of vomit hitting the water in the bowl. Or at least that was what it sounded like. If anyone could see inside the stall, they would have noted Poedowski over the toilet making the sounds of retching and Dirk pouring out the soda he brought with him. After a few minutes, Poedowski got to his feet and Dirk pretended to help him out of the bathroom.       While Dirk and Poedowski were in the bathroom, Pellegrino polished off the beer he had and left the bar. He looked a little shaky on his feet. The bartender tried to stop him, but Vince told him he was just going to catch a hovercab back to base. So he let Vince go. Vince staggered out of the bar and across the street. The bouncer watched him go, then went back inside. With no one observing, he straightened out and briskly made his way to the door of the warehouse. Jared Mathison was waiting near the entrance, out of sight. "How's it going?" "So far, so good. Remember, you've got 2 minutes once you're inside." "I know," replied Jared, "I was the one that told you the police response time for this place." Pellegrino nodded and slipped back into his drunken characterization. He sauntered into the entrance way of the warehouse. The woman behind the desk had brown hair and blue eyes. She wore a blue long sleeved shirt with a red vest. She had a sidearm holstered under her left arm. Pellegrino couldn't quite see her legs but her pants looked blue. Vince found her rather attractive which was good, as it would make his job easier. The guard looked up from a book she was reading. "Can I help you?" Pellegrino straightened himself and sauntered over to the desk. "No, but maybe I can help you." There was a wide but narrow portal in the glass through which identification or official documents could be passed. Above it was a small circular hole that the guard on duty could speak through. It was clear that the guard could smell the alcohol on Pellegrino's breath as he spoke through it. "You're drunk." she said flatly. Vince gave her an offended look. "I may have had a few tonight, but I'm not drunk. Actually I was on my way back to base when I saw you in here." "Is there a point to this, because I'm going to have to ask you to leave." replied the guard. "I'm getting there. Anyway, I was walking home and then I saw you. And I thought: Why is such a pretty lady all alone tonight?" Vince flashed her smile. "She's working, go away." was the reply. "Could you at least tell me your name?" Pellegrino leaned on his side of the glass, giving his best pleading look. "Its Alexis. Okay?" "Alexis, what a nice name." replied Vince.       Dirk did his best to make it appear that he was dragging Poedowski over to the bar. He sat him on a chair and looked around, pretending to be nervous. He signaled the bartender. "Where's the other guy!?" The bartender explained that he left already. "Which way?" asked Dirk. He already knew of course, but he needed to play the part. Poedowski was doing his best to play his, he grabbed two empty beer bottles and tried to suck nonexistent beer out of them. Dirk took a look at one of them then turned back to the bartender. "Don't worry, they're already empty." "I don't envy you tonight, buddy." Dirk helped Poedowski to his feet, "Yeah, me neither." He escorted Poedowski from the building, empty beer bottles still in hand. Dirk propped Poedowski up outside the building and talked with the bouncer about where his other companion went. "Hey, don't look now but you're about to lose another." The bouncer alluded to Poedowski, who was staggering across the street. "I'll catch him, now did you see the other guy?" The bouncer turned his gaze back to Dirk. "Yeah, he was heading in the same direction last I saw." "Thanks." replied Dirk as he broke into a run after Poedowski. He heard the bouncer wish good luck from over his shoulder.       "You are persistent, I'll give you that." said Alexis. "You're worth it." replied Vince. He had completely abandoned his drunken state and was doing his best to charm Alexis. She pointed a finger at him. "You don't even know me." "I'm trying to change that." He flashed her another smile. "I must be nuts, because you're actually starting to sound charming." Her face began to soften, with just a hint of a smile. "Come on, let me take you out." offered Pellegrino. "In case you haven't noticed - and I'm guessing you still haven't - I'm working." "All night?" "I get off at 1:00 am." Vince offered his hand through the glass portal. "I'll wait for you. Come on, what do you have to lose? I'm unarmed, you clearly aren't, even if I was stupid enough to try something you got the upper hand." Alexis eyed him a moment. "I..." At that moment, a large man burst into the office, clearly very drunk. Alexis stood up as Vince turned around. "Youz owe me a wound!" Pellegrino looked angrily at him, which he really was. Poedowski was supposed to burst in and disrupt him, but he picked what Vince considered the wrong moment to do so. "I already told you, I don't owe you anything!" Poedowski steadied himself and threw a punch, he still had a bottle in each hand. Pellegrino easily dodged it. As Poedowski wound up for his next, Dirk ran into the office. "Break it up! Break it up!" He yelled and tried to put himself between the two. Poedowski spun around for a swing at Dirk. Dirk stopped the blow with a simple block of the forearm. Poedowski's arm stopped, but the bottle he was holding continued on its original trajectory. It slammed into the camera behind Dirk and shattered. The camera spun around on its stand. Now pointed directly at the wall, it was functional but useless. Alexis pulled her sidearm, "That's enough!" Pellegrino delivered a swift kick to Poedowski's back. Poedowski responded by turning on Pellegrino. Dirk jumped on his back. While Poedowski struggled with Dirk, Pellegrino dealt with Alexis. "Don't shoot him! He's a friend, a REALLY drunk friend, but still a friend!" Alexis lowered her weapon, "Well get him under control then!" "Right!" Pellegrino turned back to Poedowski and Dirk. He looked at Dirk. "What should I do?" "Hit him with something!" replied Dirk. Vince looked about the office. "With what?" "Your fist! Hurry!" Vince shrugged and delivered a hard punch. Unfortunately, Poedowski didn't receive it, Dirk did, in the face no less. His grip on Poedowski loosened as he mumbled, "Not me!" "Sorry!" yelped Vince. Poedowski used the moment's distraction to grab Dirk by the uniform around his shoulders. He gave a quick whisper, "Ready?" "Do it!" Dirk whispered back. With an exaggerated groan, Poedowski threw Dirk off his shoulders, through the plate glass and onto Alexis. They landed in a tangled mess, covered in glass fragments, behind the desk.       Alexis couldn't see what was going on but she heard the larger man yell "Youz turn now!" There was the sound of someone getting hit and then another bottle flew through the air with a crash somewhere behind her. In the meantime, the man on top of her was trying to get off her, all the while apologizing for his friends behavior.       Dirk took a moment to make sure the bottle connected with the second camera, disabling it like it had the other. Then he slowly started to get up. "I'm really sorry about this, they were my responsibility, I'm so sorry!" "Get off me!" yelled Alexis. Dirk spied Jared silently sneaking into the office. He had a small brown bag with him. He was waiting by the door to be buzzed in. Pellegrino and Poedowski decided to quickly end their 'fight'. Poedowski threw a wild punch, which Pellegrino dodged and countered with a punch of his own to Poedowski's stomach. Poedowski moaned like he had gotten the wind knocked out of him, belched, and fell over. Dirk, in the meantime, reached onto the desk with his right hand in order to pull himself to his feet. He noted a small red button on the surface and purposely placed his palm over it as he hoisted himself up. Jared waited for the distinctive buzzing sound, then tried the door. It opened. He noiselessly let himself into the next room, closing the door behind him. "What's that noise?" said Dirk. "Your hand must be on the door lock release, move it!" "Oh" said Dirk. He moved his hand and steadied himself. He offered a hand to Alexis, "Here, let me help." "You've done quite enough already!" Alexis got to her feet, grabbed her weapon and stomped her foot on a floor button near her desk. Alarm bells went off as she pointed the gun at Dirk. "Everyone stays right where they are until the police get here!"       Jared checked his data pad and bolted down the hall. At its end, he took a left then a right. He stopped in front of a case full a tapes. The lot he was looking for was on the third shelf, so that narrowed the search some. Each tape could hold 12 hours of footage, give or take an hour. So Jared knew he was looking for two, maybe three, tapes. He had a minute thirty left when he had looked over half the shelf. Just when he thought he might not make it, he found the two tapes he needed. He stuffed them in his bag and ran for the nearest side exit. The alarm was blaring all around him, so he paused while exiting only long enough to make sure the door closed behind him. Once outside, he took up a leisurely pace back to the hovercar. Once there, he unlooped the security cameras and disconnected the link to the building's computers. He then stuffed his equipment and the tapes in the trunk. As he got in the hovercar to start it up, police enforcement e-frames flew by on their way to the warehouse. * * *       "So let me get this straight, this Elt..." "Half-Elt" interrupted Alec. "Whatever" continued Ellen, "This guy betrayed his command, saved planet Chaos, and indirectly saved you?" "Yep." "And in the following month, Ellen Wright was killed during an Elt suicide attack that covered their baseship's escape?" "Also correct." added Alec. "And this...guy went on to join your squad and help end the war?" "Uh-huh." Ellen raised an eyebrow. "And you trusted this guy?" "With my life, I still do." Ellen dismissed the notion with a wave of her hand. "There's no way I could trust an Elt, Half-Elt, or whatever the hell he is." Alec chuckled lightly. "You better learn to if you want to go home." "Is there something you're not telling me?" Alec suppressed a smile, "He is Professor Sterling." * * *       Police Lieutenant Johnson was assigned to deal with Dirk and his cohorts. He appeared mildly amused with the night's events. He reviewed the tapes and got a good look at the fight before the camera's got taken out. He also made inquiries at 'The Pirate Base'. The bartender and a few patrons confirmed their story, which seemed perfectly logical. Three friends decided to have a little fun on the town. It got out of control, even though the sober one tried his best to stop it. Although, just to be safe, the guard and three exo-jockeys were brought to the precinct for questioning. The large one said he really didn't remember what happened too well. Considering the number of drinks the bartender said he drank, Johnson thought it was amazing he could remember anything at all. The smaller one with the long hair gave a story that matched what was on the tapes. Although, he did seem to over-estimate his chances with the guard. Dirk gave a story that matched the others, though he was obviously pleading for leniency considering he had tried his best to stop it. The guard was a little upset over the incident. She had already reported it to her superiors. They, in turn, contacted Johnson. Johnson managed to convince them to drop all charges on the stipulation that they would pay for the panel's replacement. Now all he had to do was talk to the three perps and convince them to take the deal.       Dirk, Poedowski, and Pellegrino were put together in a room where they waited to hear their fate. It was a plain room, consisting only of a table, chairs, and a two-way mirror. Johnson stopped outside the door and checked to see if anyone was in the observation booth. No one was. He entered the room. "Hello Tony." Dirk's face lit up as he heard his name. He sprang to his feet and shook Johnson's hand. "Derrick, how are you?" Pellegrino and Poedowski exchanged looks. "Derrick and I used to be partners, back when we were beat cops." Derrick pulled himself up a chair and sat down. "Well, Tony, you and your friends got yourselves into a bit of trouble tonight." Dirk sat down and let out a deep sigh. "Yeah, I know." "And I know you. I know that whatever you were doing there tonight, you had a really good reason, right?" Pellegrino and Poedowski suddenly got nervous, Johnson's tone suggested that he saw through their plan. Dirk stared eye to eye with him. "It had a purpose, an important one." Silence hung in the room for a few seconds. "That's what I thought. I talked with someone from H.I.A. They've agreed to drop all charges if you pay for the safety glass you broke." Dirk removed a scrap of paper from his pocket and handed it to Johnson. "That's the name and vid-number of my Lieutenant. You tell the people at H.I.A. to call him. He'll get them the money they want." Johnson nodded and put it in his pocket. He stood and shook hands with Dirk. "Well then, you're free to leave. Have a nice night."       The three of them walked out of the station to where Jared was waiting with the hovercar. "Man, I thought we were dead." commented Pellegrino. "So did I," added Poedowski, "it sounded like he saw right through our story." "Probably because he did." replied Dirk. Three heads spontaneously spun towards Dirk, demanding an explanation. "You guys aren't the only ones to have bumped heads with H.I.A. Derrick and I did on a number of occasions. We've used similar scenarios to get our hands on confiscated evidence." "So you knew he would be on duty tonight, and would let you go?" asked Jared. Dirk shrugged his shoulders. "I wasn't 100% sure on it, more like 98." Pellegrino gave him a nudge of the elbow. "He's a sly one." "So, we can go now?" asked Poedowski. Jared signaled them to hop into the hovercar. As Pellegrino was about to, he spotted someone. He turned to Jared, "Just a minute, there's someone I've got to talk to." Jared looked over his shoulder, the guard from the warehouse was coming out of the precinct. "Forget about it, she's not interested." Pellegrino straightened his hair and smiled. "We'll see about that." * * *       Kaz and Ramon stood near the observation port of Hanger 3 on the Vigilance. They had received word from Mathison that his group had completed their mission successfully. They were presently en route to the ship. A familiar siren rang as compressors sucked the air out of the hanger bay. The outer doors opened and a shuttle came into view, rising from the planets surface. It slowed, entered the hanger, and gently came to rest. The massive hanger doors closed and the compressors worked to reestablish an atmosphere. Kaz and Ramon took the stairs down to the hanger floor to meet the disembarking passengers. They stood at attention and saluted. A salute that Kaz and Ramon returned. They looked tired and smelled horrible. Kaz sniffed the air. "Have you been drinking?" Poedowski looked around awkwardly for a moment then answered. "Just a little, sir." Ramon reached for something on Dirk's shoulder. He grasped it between his thumb and forefinger. "Is this glass?" "Yes, sir. Um, on the subject, Lt. Takagi you can expect a call from the H.I.A., seeking reparations." Kaz gave him a hard stare. "What makes you think exofleet is going to clean up your mess?" Jared coughed, "Excuse me. But we were under orders, sort of, at the time. Sir." Pellegrino held a small brown bag, he offered it to Kaz. "We did get what you asked for, Sir." Kaz took the bag and noticed a scrap of paper that had fallen out of Pellegrino's pocket. He scooped it up. There was a vid-number and some writing on it. Kaz read aloud from it. "Call me soon, Alexis." Pellegrino hesitantly raised his hand, "Uh, could I get that back, sir?" Kaz handed the paper over to him. He exchanged glances with Longfeather before asking. "I don't want to know how you got these tapes, do I?" "Probably not, sir." answered Dirk. "I think," began Longfeather, "that the fleet will be more than happy to take care of things for you." "This time." added Kaz. He opened the bag. "Now then, let's see what we've got." On to Chapter 5