{"data":{"id":13236,"title":"A SEPARATE LAW: PART EIGHT","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/comm-link\/serialized-fiction\/13236-A-SEPARATE-LAW-PART-EIGHT","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-links\/13236","api_public_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/comm-links\/13236","channel":"Undefined","category":"Undefined","series":"A Separate Law","images":[{"id":640,"name":"SeparateLawFI4.jpg","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/media\/n6ik8s2agc03ur\/source\/SeparateLawFI4.jpg","alt":"","size":1558749,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","last_modified":"2013-07-18T19:23:20+00:00","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/640","similar_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/640\/similar"}],"images_count":1,"translations":{"en_EN":"Gates waited in the underwater transit tube connecting Nemo Prime with the suburb Stroller called home. That house was too tough a nut to crack on short notice, so he and Seabrook had decided on taking Stroller here.\n\n\u201cGo.\u201d\n\nGates gathered himself and leapt across the tube. He slid on landing, the maintenance stanchion slick with moisture. He barely managed to get his feet under him before a transit pod swept by.\n\n\u201cClose,\u201d Seabrook opined.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d Gates grated.\n\n\u201cTwo minutes.\u201d\n\n\u201cCopy.\u201d\n\nGates set to work. Clearing ten years of seeping ooze was filthy work, but he had to be sure the modules were placed precisely.\n\n\u201cThirty seconds.\u201d\n\n\u201cCopy.\u201d\n\n\u201cTen.\u201d\n\nHe placed the last module and jumped back across. Another slip bounced him off the tube wall. He staggered, the pod nearly raking his back as it hummed past.\n\n\u201cAll right, everything\u2019s in place,\u201d Gates said, hands panic-tight on the rungs.\n\n\u201cGoing live in two.\u201d\n\n\u201cClearing.\u201d Gates put hands and feet on the outside of the ladder, letting his weight drive a rapid descent, retrieval line hissing out from his harness at the shoulders. He stopped at the next maintenance platform, leaning back against the sweating tube wall.\n\nThe problem with taking someone from Navy Intelligence down, Gates reflected, _is that they are already prone to a certain level of justifiable paranoia.\n\nEspecially if, as in Stroller\u2019s case, they\u2019re traitorous scum. Even more so if you want him alive. Easier by far to put a laser beam through Stroller\u2019s heart, harder to keep him alive for questioning._\n\n\u201cLive,\u201d Seabrook said.\n\nThe next private transport pod to pass the magnetic modules he\u2019d placed derailed, missing its transfer point and dropping ten meters down the maintenance shaft in a sudden free fall.\n\nOn-board safety measures kicked in, meant to slow the pod to a survivable stop. Gates stepped from the gantry onto the roof of the still-decelerating pod. Bending, he yanked the emergency hatch up and away.\n\nGunshots echoed loudly in the tube, rounds shattering against the combing and hatch. Frangibles. Sensible in pressurized environments where thirty meters of water would make a tiny hole a massive problem.\n\nGates grinned. Shoot first, eh? Damn fast reactions. He dropped the riot grenade into the pod and slapped the hatch back into place.\n\nThe grenade went off in a series of disorienting flashes accompanied by a warbling shriek that would make a deaf man\u2019s ears bleed. Gates let it go on a few seconds, then threw the hatch open again. When no gunshots greeted him, he jumped into the smoke-filled pod, deactivating the grenade.\n\nHe found Stroller already climbing empty-handed to his feet.\n\nGates dropped a hammer fist into his brachial plexus, gloves discharging.\n\nStroller dropped the gun and grunted, but rolled with the blow, catching Gates on the chest with his opposite fist.\n\nThe punch didn\u2019t hurt so much as surprise. Stroller should have gone down with that first strike.\n\nInsulators.\n\nGates smiled.\n\nBetter this way.\n\nHe snapped a knee up, aiming for Stroller\u2019s face.\n\nThe traitor swayed, grunted again as he took the knee on his upper chest.\n\nGates\u2019 estimation of the other man\u2019s fighting skills went up a notch as Stroller used the power of the blow to help drive himself erect. Stroller had several centimeters and several kilos on him, but was still groggy from the grenade.\n\nMaximizing his limited advantages, Gates threw a combination at Stroller, pressing him hard in the limited space of the pod.\n\nThe traitor managed to get a grip on Gates\u2019 arm, drove an elbow into his bicep.\n\nIt was Gates\u2019 turn to grunt. A following forearm clipped his head, making stars come out.\n\nGates swayed back, pulling his nearly-limp arm free before reversing direction and driving a head-butt into Stroller\u2019s face. He felt teeth snap under his forehead and knew Stroller was unconscious even before he sagged to the floor.\n\nBlood from his forehead dripping onto Stroller\u2019s jacket, Gates bent and slapped the restraints on. The heat-activated memory-metal restraints quickly expanded to enfold the man\u2019s wrists, cinching them tight together before creeping around his waist to connect in front. Gates clipped Stroller\u2019s restraint to his own harness.\n\n\u201cTwo minutes.\u201d\n\n\u201cCopy.\u201d Gates pulled Stroller tight, stood up, and promptly staggered sideways, a wave of dizziness threatening to make him puke. He worked on it a moment, figured he wouldn\u2019t puke if he moved sideways to get under the emergency opening, and eased over.\n\nHard-headed I might be, but damn, I won\u2019t do that again. Swallowing bile, Gates set himself, muttered, \u201cClear us.\u201d\n\n\u201cCopy.\u201d\n\nThe retrieval line went taut, started hauling them in. Gates bashed his shoulder on the hatch combing, and he had to pull one of Stroller\u2019s broken incisors out of his forehead, but aside from that the extraction went smoothly.\n\n\nLess than two hours later Gates stood across from Stroller\u2019s unconscious form, administering a shot. He closed the medical case but left it on the table between them, not because he thought it would be successful \u2014 most Navy Intelligence types had some familiarity with interrogation techniques \u2014 but because the threat was often more useful than actual violence, medical or otherwise.\n\n\u201cMrph \u2026\u201d\n\n\u201cStroller, wake up.\u201d\n\n\u201cUh?\u201d\n\nHis vital signs were good. He was awake. Not fully aware, but awake. The drugs would loosen Stroller\u2019s hold on courage, but there was a limit to their effectiveness. Dulling the mind could lead to a lack of recollection. So Gates decided to lay out a story for the traitor; to play a character Stroller would find easy to believe.\n\n\u201cYou pissed off the wrong people, Stroller.\u201d\n\nStroller groaned, lisped, \u201cWh-What?\u201d\n\nGates slowed his delivery, pasted a wide grin on his face. \u201cYou pissed off the wrong people.\u201d\n\nThe lisping reply tried for cold anger, came out sounding plaintive: \u201cYou\u2019ll let me go, you know what\u2019s good for you: the Navy comes down on those that hurt their own.\u201d\n\nGates hid a sigh of relief. First mistake. Never, ever open your mouth to say anything during an interrogation but your name and rank. This is going far easier than I\u2019d hoped. \u201cCome on, Stroller, the Navy doesn\u2019t give a fart in a spacesuit about you. You left their protection when you started working with us. In fact, they\u2019ll probably applaud our removing you, once we make it clear you broke faith with them.\u201d\n\nStroller looked confused, \u201cUs?\u201d\n\n\u201cOur employers, of course,\u201d Gates said, keeping the big smile in place. \u201cWell, in your case I suppose I should say: former secondary employers.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t know what you\u2019re talking about,\u201d Stroller lisped past his broken teeth.\n\nGates snorted. \u201cYes, you do. The ones who\u2019ve padded your accounts quite nicely. You know, the ones set up in your daughter\u2019s name.\u201d Gates read the bump in Stroller\u2019s vitals when he mentioned that little bit of data. He made a mental note to thank Seabrook.\n\n\u201cThoo \u2026 So, what did they tell you I did?\u201d\n\nGates laughed, \u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter, really. See, all this consolidation, all the groups under one roof? It couldn\u2019t last. There\u2019s a split in the organization at the system-wide level, and I\u2019m on the winning side. You are not.\u201d\n\n\u201cSystem, only? Then I\u2013I can be of use, run coverage for you, same as I was doing for Whittaker. I\u2019m not his, by any means. Who is it you\u2019re working for, Chambliss? He knows me, knows the quality of my information.\u201d\n\nFiling the names away, Gates shrugged, \u201cYou aren\u2019t making much of a case for yourself.\u201d\n\n\u201cI \u2014\u201d\n\nGates waved a languid hand, \u201cWe have our own sources, ones that we can rely on that aren\u2019t just working with us to save their hides. Besides, I was told to find out what you know and dispose of you if you proved a threat to the new, improved organization.\u201d\n\nFear lit in Stroller\u2019s eyes. \u201cI\u2019m no threat.\u201d\n\n\u201cI was given wide latitude to decide that. You were not. And see,\u201d Gates smiled again, \u201chere\u2019s the thing: no one said anything about how I dispose of you,\u201d a caress of the medical case, \u201cso I thought I\u2019d play a bit before getting to that point.\u201d\n\nStroller swallowed. \u201cWhat?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do so like my little games,\u201d Gates said, opening the case and grinning into it like a pervert presented with his favorite perversions.\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll give you the local leadership, where they live, who their mistresses are, all of it, if you\u2019ll just let me work for you.\u201d\n\nGates didn\u2019t bother to look at Stroller. \u201cWe already have the names of those we need to take down, it\u2019s how we found you.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnything!\u201d\n\nGates pretended to consider that, eventually shrugged. \u201cNo, I don\u2019t think you know anything sufficiently important to make me give up on the one thing that makes my job so much fun.\u201d Gates reached into the case.\n\n\u201cThe top leadership, all of it, from every system! They\u2019re gonna be on a ship at the end of next month!\u201d\n\nToo easy, I had thought Navy Intelligence was made of sterner stuff \u2026 Gates let his anger show, left his hand in the case.\n\n\u201cThe White Stag, a corporate liner, that\u2019s the ship!\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd why would my bosses not know about that?\u201d\n\n\u201cTurner just announced it, the message traffic showed up in my monthly packet. I hadn\u2019t yet forwarded it to anybody. You can confirm it, easy!\u201d\n\nGates let his lip curl, \u201cReally?\u201d\n\n\u201cReally. Hadn\u2019t you ever wondered how your people were able to coordinate with outside organizations without Advocacy pukes tripping to it? It\u2019s me, man, I\u2019m the one handling the information, so you can\u2019t kill me. I\u2019m too important.\u201d\n\n\u201cTell me everything, then I\u2019ll decide if you\u2019re worth keeping alive.\u201d\n\n. . . to be continued","de_DE":"Gates warteten in der Unterwasser-Transitr\u00f6hre, die Nemo Prime mit dem Vorort Kinderwagen verbindet, der nach Hause gerufen wurde. Dieses Haus war eine zu harte Nuss, um kurzfristig zu knacken, also hatten er und Seabrook beschlossen, den Kinderwagen hier zu nehmen.\n\n\" Los.\"\n\nGates sammelte sich und sprang \u00fcber die R\u00f6hre. Er rutschte bei der Landung, die Wartungsst\u00fctze rutschte mit Feuchtigkeit. Er schaffte es kaum, seine F\u00fc\u00dfe unter sich zu bekommen, bevor eine Transportkapsel vorbeifuhr.\n\n\"Nah dran\", meinte Seabrook.\n\n\"Ja,\" Gates rieb.\n\n\"Zwei Minuten.\"\n\n\" Verstanden.\"\n\nDie Tore sind in Betrieb. Die Reinigung von zehn Jahren Sickerwasser war eine schmutzige Arbeit, aber er musste sicher sein, dass die Module pr\u00e4zise platziert wurden.\n\n\"Drei\u00dfig Sekunden.\"\n\n\" Verstanden.\"\n\n\" Zehn.\"\n\nEr setzte das letzte Modul und sprang zur\u00fcck. Ein weiterer Slip prallte ihn von der Rohrwand ab. Er taumelte, die Kapsel h\u00e4mmerte fast mit dem R\u00fccken, als sie vorbei summte.\n\n\"Alles klar, alles ist an Ort und Stelle\", sagte Gates, die H\u00e4nde panikfest auf den Sprossen.\n\n\"Ich werde in zweien leben.\"\n\n\"Freigabe.\" Gates legten H\u00e4nde und F\u00fc\u00dfe auf die Au\u00dfenseite der Leiter und lie\u00dfen sein Gewicht einen schnellen Abstieg fahren, die R\u00fcckholleine zischte aus seinem Gurtzeug an den Schultern heraus. Er hielt an der n\u00e4chsten Wartungsplattform an und lehnte sich gegen die Schwitzrohrwand zur\u00fcck.\n\nDas Problem mit dem Nehmen jemand vom Marineintelligenz unten, reflektierte Gatter, _ist, dass sie bereits zu einem bestimmten Niveau der gerechtfertigten Paranoia anf\u00e4llig sind.\n\nBesonders, wenn sie, wie im Fall des Kinderwagens, verr\u00e4terischer Abschaum sind. Umso mehr, wenn du ihn lebend haben willst. Es ist bei weitem einfacher, einen Laserstrahl durch das Herz eines Kinderwagens zu schieben, schwieriger, ihn f\u00fcr Fragen am Leben zu erhalten._\n\n\" Lebe\", sagte Seabrook.\n\nDie n\u00e4chste private Transportkapsel, die an den von ihm platzierten Magnetmodulen vorbeif\u00fchrt, entgleiste, verfehlte ihren \u00dcbergabepunkt und fiel zehn Meter in einem pl\u00f6tzlichen freien Fall in den Wartungsschacht.\n\nEs traten Sicherheitsma\u00dfnahmen an Bord ein, die die Kapsel auf einen \u00fcberlebensf\u00e4higen Halt verlangsamen sollten. Tore traten von der Portalbr\u00fccke auf das Dach der noch verz\u00f6gernden Gondel. Er beugte sich und zog die Notfallluke hoch und weg.\n\nSch\u00fcsse hallte laut in der R\u00f6hre, Runden zerbrachen gegen das K\u00e4mmen und die Luke. Frangibles. Sinnvoll in druckbeaufschlagten Umgebungen, in denen drei\u00dfig Meter Wasser ein kleines Loch zu einem massiven Problem machen w\u00fcrden.\n\nGates grinste. Schie\u00df zuerst, ja? Verdammt schnelle Reaktionen. Er lie\u00df die Aufstandsgranate in den Tank fallen und schlug die Luke wieder ein.\n\nDie Granate ging in einer Reihe von desorientierenden Blitzen los, begleitet von einem tr\u00e4llernden Schrei, der die Ohren eines tauben Mannes zum Bluten bringen w\u00fcrde. Tore lie\u00dfen es f\u00fcr ein paar Sekunden los und warfen dann die Luke wieder auf. Als ihn keine Sch\u00fcsse begr\u00fc\u00dften, sprang er in die mit Rauch gef\u00fcllte Kammer und deaktivierte die Granate.\n\nEr fand heraus, dass der Kinderwagen bereits mit leeren H\u00e4nden auf die F\u00fc\u00dfe kletterte.\n\nGates lie\u00df eine Hammerfaust in seinen Plexus brachialis fallen, Handschuhe entluden sich.\n\nDer Kinderwagen lie\u00df die Waffe fallen und grunzte, rollte aber mit dem Schlag und fing Gates auf der Brust mit seiner gegen\u00fcberliegenden Faust.\n\nDer Schlag tat nicht so sehr weh wie die \u00dcberraschung. Kinderwagen sollten mit diesem ersten Schlag untergegangen sein.\n\nIsolatoren.\n\nGates l\u00e4chelte.\n\nBesser so.\n\nEr schlug ein Knie hoch und zielte auf das Gesicht des Kinderwagens.\n\nDer Verr\u00e4ter wiegte sich, grunzte wieder, als er das Knie auf seine obere Brust legte.\n\nGates' Einsch\u00e4tzung der Kampfk\u00fcnste des anderen Mannes stieg um eine Stufe an, als der Kinderwagen die Kraft des Schlages nutzte, um sich selbst aufzurichten. Der Kinderwagen hatte mehrere Zentimeter und mehrere Kilo bei sich, war aber immer noch von der Granate angeschlagen.\n\nGates maximierte seine begrenzten Vorteile und warf eine Kombination auf den Kinderwagen und dr\u00fcckte ihn hart in den begrenzten Raum des Pod.\n\nDer Verr\u00e4ter schaffte es, Gates' Arm in den Griff zu bekommen, fuhr einen Ellbogen in seinen Bizeps.\n\nGates war an der Reihe, zu grunzen. Ein nachfolgender Unterarm schlug seinen Kopf und lie\u00df Sterne herauskommen.\n\nGates schwankte zur\u00fcck, zog seinen fast schlaffen Arm frei, bevor er die Richtung \u00e4nderte, und fuhr einen Kopfsto\u00df in das Gesicht des Kinderwagens. Er f\u00fchlte, wie Z\u00e4hne unter seiner Stirn schnappten und wusste, dass der Kinderwagen bewusstlos war, noch bevor er auf den Boden fiel.\n\nBlut von seiner Stirn tropfte auf die Jacke des Kinderwagens, Gates beugte sich und schlug die Fesseln an. Die hitzeaktivierten Memory-Metall-Fesseln dehnten sich schnell aus, um die Handgelenke des Mannes zu umh\u00fcllen, sie festzuklemmen und um seine Taille zu kriechen, um sich vorne zu verbinden. Gates hat die Fessel des Kinderwagens an seinem eigenen Gurtzeug befestigt.\n\n\"Zwei Minuten.\"\n\n\" Verstanden.\" Gates zog den Kinderwagen fest, stand auf und taumelte prompt seitw\u00e4rts, eine Welle von Schwindel drohte ihn zum Kotzen zu bringen. Er arbeitete einen Moment daran, dachte, er w\u00fcrde nicht kotzen, wenn er sich zur Seite bewegen w\u00fcrde, um unter die Not\u00f6ffnung zu kommen, und entspannte sich.\n\nIch bin vielleicht hartgesotten, aber verdammt, ich werde das nie wieder tun. Galle schluckend, stellte sich Gates auf, murmelte, \"Befreie uns\".\n\n\" Verstanden.\"\n\nDie R\u00fcckholleine wurde straff, fing an, sie einzuholen. Gates schlug sich mit der Schulter auf die Lukenk\u00e4mmung, und er musste einen der gebrochenen Schneidez\u00e4hne des Kinderwagens aus der Stirn ziehen, aber abgesehen davon verlief die Extraktion reibungslos.\n\n\nWeniger als zwei Stunden sp\u00e4ter stand Gates gegen\u00fcber der unbewussten Form des Kinderwagens und gab einen Schuss ab. Er schloss den medizinischen Fall ab, lie\u00df ihn aber auf dem Tisch zwischen ihnen, nicht weil er dachte, dass er erfolgreich sein w\u00fcrde - die meisten Typen des Navy Intelligence waren mit Verh\u00f6rmethoden vertraut -, sondern weil die Bedrohung oft n\u00fctzlicher war als tats\u00e4chliche Gewalt, medizinisch oder anderweitig.\n\n\"Mr. Ph....\"\n\n\"Kinderwagen, wach auf.\"\n\n\" \u00c4h?\"\n\nSeine Vitalparameter waren gut. Er war wach. Nicht ganz bewusst, aber wach. Die Drogen w\u00fcrden den Mut des Kinderwagens lockern, aber es gab eine Grenze f\u00fcr ihre Wirksamkeit. Den Geist zu beruhigen, k\u00f6nnte zu einem Mangel an Erinnerung f\u00fchren. So entschied sich Gates, eine Geschichte f\u00fcr den Verr\u00e4ter zu entwerfen; einen Charakter zu spielen, den Kinderwagen leicht zu glauben finden w\u00fcrden.\n\n\"Du hast die falschen Leute ver\u00e4rgert, Kinderwagen.\"\n\nDer Kinderwagen st\u00f6hnte, lispelte, \"W-Was?\"\n\nGates verlangsamte seine Lieferung, klebte sich ein breites Grinsen ins Gesicht. \"Du hast die falschen Leute ver\u00e4rgert.\"\n\nDie lispelnde Antwort, die aus kalter Wut versucht wurde, klang klagend: \"Du wirst mich gehen lassen, du wei\u00dft, was gut f\u00fcr dich ist: Die Marine geht gegen diejenigen vor, die ihre eigenen verletzt haben.\"\n\nGates versteckte einen Seufzer der Erleichterung. Erster Fehler. \u00d6ffne niemals, niemals deinen Mund, um w\u00e4hrend eines Verh\u00f6rs etwas zu sagen, au\u00dfer deinem Namen und Rang. Das geht viel einfacher, als ich gehofft hatte. \"Komm schon, Kinderwagen, die Marine macht keinen Furz in einem Raumanzug \u00fcber dich. Du hast ihren Schutz verlassen, als du angefangen hast, mit uns zu arbeiten. Tats\u00e4chlich werden sie wahrscheinlich applaudieren, dass wir dich entfernt haben, sobald wir klargestellt haben, dass du den Glauben an sie gebrochen hast.\"\n\nDer Kinderwagen sah verwirrt aus, \"Wir?\"\n\n\"Unsere Arbeitgeber, nat\u00fcrlich\", sagte Gates und hielt das gro\u00dfe L\u00e4cheln an Ort und Stelle. \"Nun, in deinem Fall sollte ich wohl sagen: ehemalige Zweitunternehmer.\"\n\n\"Ich wei\u00df nicht, wovon du redest\", lispelte Stroller an seinen gebrochenen Z\u00e4hnen vorbei.\n\nDie Tore schnaubten. \"Ja, das tust du. Diejenigen, die deine Konten ziemlich gut gepolstert haben. Du wei\u00dft schon, die, die im Namen deiner Tochter aufgestellt wurden.\" Gates las die Beule in den Vitalfunktionen des Kinderwagens, als er dieses kleine St\u00fcck Daten erw\u00e4hnte. Er machte eine mentale Notiz, um Seabrook zu danken.\n\n\"Thoo... Also, was haben sie dir gesagt, was ich getan habe?\"\n\nGates lachte: \"Es spielt keine Rolle, wirklich. Siehst du, diese ganze Konsolidierung, alle Gruppen unter einem Dach? Es konnte nicht lange dauern. Es gibt eine Spaltung in der Organisation auf der systemweiten Ebene, und ich bin auf der Gewinnerseite. Das bist du nicht.\"\n\n\"Nur System? Dann kann ich dir n\u00fctzlich sein, die Abdeckung f\u00fcr dich \u00fcbernehmen, genau wie ich es f\u00fcr Whittaker getan habe. Ich geh\u00f6re ihm auf keinen Fall. F\u00fcr wen arbeitest du, Chambliss? Er kennt mich, kennt die Qualit\u00e4t meiner Informationen.\"\n\nGates zuckte mit den Achseln, als er die Namen einordnete: \"Du machst nicht viel aus dir selbst.\"\n\n\"\u201cI \u2014\u201d\n\nGates winkte mit schwacher Hand: \"Wir haben unsere eigenen Quellen, auf die wir uns verlassen k\u00f6nnen, die nicht nur mit uns zusammenarbeiten, um ihre Felle zu retten. Au\u00dferdem wurde mir gesagt, ich solle herausfinden, was Sie wissen und Sie entsorgen, wenn Sie eine Bedrohung f\u00fcr die neue, verbesserte Organisation darstellen.\"\n\nDie Angst leuchtete in den Augen des Kinderwagens. \"Ich bin keine Bedrohung.\"\n\n\"Mir wurde ein gro\u00dfer Spielraum gelassen, um das zu entscheiden. Das hast du nicht. Und sehen Sie,\" l\u00e4chelte Gates wieder, \"hier ist die Sache: Niemand sagte etwas dar\u00fcber, wie ich \u00fcber Sie entsorge\", eine Liebkosung des medizinischen Falles, \"also dachte ich, ich w\u00fcrde ein wenig spielen, bevor ich zu diesem Punkt komme.\"\n\nDer Kinderwagen schluckte. \" Was?\"\n\n\"Ich mag so meine kleinen Spiele\", sagte Gates, \u00f6ffnete den Fall und grinste hinein wie ein Perverser, der mit seinen Lieblingsperversionen pr\u00e4sentiert wurde.\n\n\"Ich gebe dir die lokale F\u00fchrung, wo sie leben, wer ihre Geliebten sind, alles, wenn du mich einfach f\u00fcr dich arbeiten l\u00e4sst.\"\n\nGates hat sich nicht die M\u00fche gemacht, den Kinderwagen anzusehen. \"Wir haben bereits die Namen derer, die wir ausschalten m\u00fcssen, so haben wir dich gefunden.\"\n\n\" Alles!\"\n\nGates tat so, als ob er das in Betracht ziehen w\u00fcrde, und zuckte schlie\u00dflich mit den Schultern. \"Nein, ich glaube nicht, dass du etwas wei\u00dft, was wichtig genug ist, um mich dazu zu bringen, die eine Sache aufzugeben, die meinen Job so viel Spa\u00df macht.\" Tore griffen in das Geh\u00e4use.\n\n\"Die oberste F\u00fchrung, allesamt, aus jedem System! Sie werden Ende n\u00e4chsten Monats auf einem Schiff sein!\"\n\nZu einfach, ich hatte gedacht, dass der Navy Intelligence aus h\u00e4rterem Zeug gemacht wurde.... Gates lie\u00df seine Wut zeigen, lie\u00df seine Hand in dem Fall zur\u00fcck.\n\n\"Der wei\u00dfe Hirsch, ein Firmenschiff, das ist das Schiff!\"\n\n\"Und warum sollten meine Bosse nichts davon wissen?\"\n\n\"Turner hat es gerade angek\u00fcndigt, der Nachrichtenverkehr tauchte in meinem Monatspaket auf. Ich hatte es noch nicht an jemanden weitergeleitet. Du kannst es best\u00e4tigen, ganz einfach!\"\n\nGates lie\u00df seine Lippen kr\u00e4useln, \"Wirklich?\"\n\n\"Wirklich. Hattest du dich nie gefragt, wie deine Leute in der Lage waren, sich mit externen Organisationen abzustimmen, ohne dass Advocacy-Kotze dar\u00fcber stolpern? Ich bin es, Mann, ich bin derjenige, der mit den Informationen umgeht, also kannst du mich nicht t\u00f6ten. Ich bin zu wichtig.\"\n\n\"Erz\u00e4hl mir alles, dann entscheide ich, ob du es wert bist, am Leben zu bleiben.\"\n\n. ... wird fortgesetzt","zh_CN":"Gates waited in the underwater transit tube connecting Nemo Prime with the suburb Stroller called home. That house was too tough a nut to crack on short notice, so he and Seabrook had decided on taking Stroller here.\n\n\u201cGo.\u201d\n\nGates gathered himself and leapt across the tube. He slid on landing, the maintenance stanchion slick with moisture. He barely managed to get his feet under him before a transit pod swept by.\n\n\u201cClose,\u201d Seabrook opined.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d Gates grated.\n\n\u201cTwo minutes.\u201d\n\n\u201cCopy.\u201d\n\nGates set to work. Clearing ten years of seeping ooze was filthy work, but he had to be sure the modules were placed precisely.\n\n\u201cThirty seconds.\u201d\n\n\u201cCopy.\u201d\n\n\u201cTen.\u201d\n\nHe placed the last module and jumped back across. Another slip bounced him off the tube wall. He staggered, the pod nearly raking his back as it hummed past.\n\n\u201cAll right, everything\u2019s in place,\u201d Gates said, hands panic-tight on the rungs.\n\n\u201cGoing live in two.\u201d\n\n\u201cClearing.\u201d Gates put hands and feet on the outside of the ladder, letting his weight drive a rapid descent, retrieval line hissing out from his harness at the shoulders. He stopped at the next maintenance platform, leaning back against the sweating tube wall.\n\nThe problem with taking someone from Navy Intelligence down, Gates reflected, _is that they are already prone to a certain level of justifiable paranoia.\n\nEspecially if, as in Stroller\u2019s case, they\u2019re traitorous scum. Even more so if you want him alive. Easier by far to put a laser beam through Stroller\u2019s heart, harder to keep him alive for questioning._\n\n\u201cLive,\u201d Seabrook said.\n\nThe next private transport pod to pass the magnetic modules he\u2019d placed derailed, missing its transfer point and dropping ten meters down the maintenance shaft in a sudden free fall.\n\nOn-board safety measures kicked in, meant to slow the pod to a survivable stop. Gates stepped from the gantry onto the roof of the still-decelerating pod. Bending, he yanked the emergency hatch up and away.\n\nGunshots echoed loudly in the tube, rounds shattering against the combing and hatch. Frangibles. Sensible in pressurized environments where thirty meters of water would make a tiny hole a massive problem.\n\nGates grinned. Shoot first, eh? Damn fast reactions. He dropped the riot grenade into the pod and slapped the hatch back into place.\n\nThe grenade went off in a series of disorienting flashes accompanied by a warbling shriek that would make a deaf man\u2019s ears bleed. Gates let it go on a few seconds, then threw the hatch open again. When no gunshots greeted him, he jumped into the smoke-filled pod, deactivating the grenade.\n\nHe found Stroller already climbing empty-handed to his feet.\n\nGates dropped a hammer fist into his brachial plexus, gloves discharging.\n\nStroller dropped the gun and grunted, but rolled with the blow, catching Gates on the chest with his opposite fist.\n\nThe punch didn\u2019t hurt so much as surprise. Stroller should have gone down with that first strike.\n\nInsulators.\n\nGates smiled.\n\nBetter this way.\n\nHe snapped a knee up, aiming for Stroller\u2019s face.\n\nThe traitor swayed, grunted again as he took the knee on his upper chest.\n\nGates\u2019 estimation of the other man\u2019s fighting skills went up a notch as Stroller used the power of the blow to help drive himself erect. Stroller had several centimeters and several kilos on him, but was still groggy from the grenade.\n\nMaximizing his limited advantages, Gates threw a combination at Stroller, pressing him hard in the limited space of the pod.\n\nThe traitor managed to get a grip on Gates\u2019 arm, drove an elbow into his bicep.\n\nIt was Gates\u2019 turn to grunt. A following forearm clipped his head, making stars come out.\n\nGates swayed back, pulling his nearly-limp arm free before reversing direction and driving a head-butt into Stroller\u2019s face. He felt teeth snap under his forehead and knew Stroller was unconscious even before he sagged to the floor.\n\nBlood from his forehead dripping onto Stroller\u2019s jacket, Gates bent and slapped the restraints on. The heat-activated memory-metal restraints quickly expanded to enfold the man\u2019s wrists, cinching them tight together before creeping around his waist to connect in front. Gates clipped Stroller\u2019s restraint to his own harness.\n\n\u201cTwo minutes.\u201d\n\n\u201cCopy.\u201d Gates pulled Stroller tight, stood up, and promptly staggered sideways, a wave of dizziness threatening to make him puke. He worked on it a moment, figured he wouldn\u2019t puke if he moved sideways to get under the emergency opening, and eased over.\n\nHard-headed I might be, but damn, I won\u2019t do that again. Swallowing bile, Gates set himself, muttered, \u201cClear us.\u201d\n\n\u201cCopy.\u201d\n\nThe retrieval line went taut, started hauling them in. Gates bashed his shoulder on the hatch combing, and he had to pull one of Stroller\u2019s broken incisors out of his forehead, but aside from that the extraction went smoothly.\n\n\nLess than two hours later Gates stood across from Stroller\u2019s unconscious form, administering a shot. He closed the medical case but left it on the table between them, not because he thought it would be successful \u2014 most Navy Intelligence types had some familiarity with interrogation techniques \u2014 but because the threat was often more useful than actual violence, medical or otherwise.\n\n\u201cMrph \u2026\u201d\n\n\u201cStroller, wake up.\u201d\n\n\u201cUh?\u201d\n\nHis vital signs were good. He was awake. Not fully aware, but awake. The drugs would loosen Stroller\u2019s hold on courage, but there was a limit to their effectiveness. Dulling the mind could lead to a lack of recollection. So Gates decided to lay out a story for the traitor; to play a character Stroller would find easy to believe.\n\n\u201cYou pissed off the wrong people, Stroller.\u201d\n\nStroller groaned, lisped, \u201cWh-What?\u201d\n\nGates slowed his delivery, pasted a wide grin on his face. \u201cYou pissed off the wrong people.\u201d\n\nThe lisping reply tried for cold anger, came out sounding plaintive: \u201cYou\u2019ll let me go, you know what\u2019s good for you: the Navy comes down on those that hurt their own.\u201d\n\nGates hid a sigh of relief. First mistake. Never, ever open your mouth to say anything during an interrogation but your name and rank. This is going far easier than I\u2019d hoped. \u201cCome on, Stroller, the Navy doesn\u2019t give a fart in a spacesuit about you. You left their protection when you started working with us. In fact, they\u2019ll probably applaud our removing you, once we make it clear you broke faith with them.\u201d\n\nStroller looked confused, \u201cUs?\u201d\n\n\u201cOur employers, of course,\u201d Gates said, keeping the big smile in place. \u201cWell, in your case I suppose I should say: former secondary employers.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t know what you\u2019re talking about,\u201d Stroller lisped past his broken teeth.\n\nGates snorted. \u201cYes, you do. The ones who\u2019ve padded your accounts quite nicely. You know, the ones set up in your daughter\u2019s name.\u201d Gates read the bump in Stroller\u2019s vitals when he mentioned that little bit of data. He made a mental note to thank Seabrook.\n\n\u201cThoo \u2026 So, what did they tell you I did?\u201d\n\nGates laughed, \u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter, really. See, all this consolidation, all the groups under one roof? It couldn\u2019t last. There\u2019s a split in the organization at the system-wide level, and I\u2019m on the winning side. You are not.\u201d\n\n\u201cSystem, only? Then I\u2013I can be of use, run coverage for you, same as I was doing for Whittaker. I\u2019m not his, by any means. Who is it you\u2019re working for, Chambliss? He knows me, knows the quality of my information.\u201d\n\nFiling the names away, Gates shrugged, \u201cYou aren\u2019t making much of a case for yourself.\u201d\n\n\u201cI \u2014\u201d\n\nGates waved a languid hand, \u201cWe have our own sources, ones that we can rely on that aren\u2019t just working with us to save their hides. Besides, I was told to find out what you know and dispose of you if you proved a threat to the new, improved organization.\u201d\n\nFear lit in Stroller\u2019s eyes. \u201cI\u2019m no threat.\u201d\n\n\u201cI was given wide latitude to decide that. You were not. And see,\u201d Gates smiled again, \u201chere\u2019s the thing: no one said anything about how I dispose of you,\u201d a caress of the medical case, \u201cso I thought I\u2019d play a bit before getting to that point.\u201d\n\nStroller swallowed. \u201cWhat?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do so like my little games,\u201d Gates said, opening the case and grinning into it like a pervert presented with his favorite perversions.\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll give you the local leadership, where they live, who their mistresses are, all of it, if you\u2019ll just let me work for you.\u201d\n\nGates didn\u2019t bother to look at Stroller. \u201cWe already have the names of those we need to take down, it\u2019s how we found you.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnything!\u201d\n\nGates pretended to consider that, eventually shrugged. \u201cNo, I don\u2019t think you know anything sufficiently important to make me give up on the one thing that makes my job so much fun.\u201d Gates reached into the case.\n\n\u201cThe top leadership, all of it, from every system! They\u2019re gonna be on a ship at the end of next month!\u201d\n\nToo easy, I had thought Navy Intelligence was made of sterner stuff \u2026 Gates let his anger show, left his hand in the case.\n\n\u201cThe White Stag, a corporate liner, that\u2019s the ship!\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd why would my bosses not know about that?\u201d\n\n\u201cTurner just announced it, the message traffic showed up in my monthly packet. I hadn\u2019t yet forwarded it to anybody. You can confirm it, easy!\u201d\n\nGates let his lip curl, \u201cReally?\u201d\n\n\u201cReally. Hadn\u2019t you ever wondered how your people were able to coordinate with outside organizations without Advocacy pukes tripping to it? It\u2019s me, man, I\u2019m the one handling the information, so you can\u2019t kill me. I\u2019m too important.\u201d\n\n\u201cTell me everything, then I\u2019ll decide if you\u2019re worth keeping alive.\u201d\n\n. . . to be continued"},"links_count":0,"comment_count":51,"created_at":"2013-08-29T00:00:00+00:00","created_at_human":"12 years ago"},"meta":{"processed_at":"2026-05-09 01:09:38","valid_relations":["images","links"],"prev_id":13234,"next_id":13238}}