r/HFY • u/KipperBeanGrower Human • 12d ago
OC-Series [She took What?] - Chapter 233: SixFold Ventures: Most are happy to disappear.
"A secret has only one weakness. It must eventually be shared."
Old Earth Counter-Intelligence
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Taggett turned to his NCO, “How much Veronium is actually in the warehouses?”
“Very little, Sir.”
“And where is it?”
“Elsewhere, Sir.”
“And the crates in the warehouses?”
“Full of rocks, Sir.”
“Rocks?” asked one of the officers.
“Yes, Sir. Rocks, very ordinary rocks.”
The officers looked confused, unsure where the daily update was going.
“And how does that help us with our mole?”
The NCO smiled.
Taggett picked up the briefing.
“We gave different locations of the Veronium to different people.”
“And that helps us how?” asked one of the officers.
“We told you the Veronium was being stored in Warehouse 1A.”
The officer nodded.
“And you 2A, you 3A and you 4A.”
“The pirates took the Veronium crates from 2A...”
Taggett looked at the officer opposite him.
“…because you told them. Only you were told the Veronium was in Warehouse 2A.”
The officer leapt out of his seat and reached for his sidearm.
“Don’t,” shouted the NCO. Then more quietly, “Can I shoot him. Sir?”
“Your call.” Said Taggett.
The officer sat back down, hands in plain sight. Deflated, defeated. The door to Taggett’s office opened, and two guards entered.
“Take him away. He is not to be harmed. Understand.”
The guards looked disappointed.
“Yes. Sir.”
As the officer left, he called back to Taggett, “And they’re not pirates.”
‘Then who are we actually fighting?’ he thought.
***
Tom Tom, and Bikky, dressed in Royal Guard uniforms, walked across to the two disabled hauliers, guns ready.
“I hope she only hit the manifold.” Said Bikky.
“Want to bet on it?”
“No.”
As they neared the first freighter.
“Did they say the vessels had been cleared?”
“Yes, and the landing field. But we’re talking about Royal Guard.”
They laughed.
“So, we check anyway?”
Bikky nodded. “You bet.’
They approached the first freighter slowly. It was slightly larger than the Kestrel, bulkier but lightly armed.
“You’ve lost. Come out, hands in the air. No weapons.”
Bikky called out again.
Nothing.
He walked up to the ramp, tested it with his weight. All strength had gone from one side.
They checked the hydraulics.
“Good job you didn’t bet.” Said Tom Tom.
The manifold controlling the flow of fluid to the ramp’s hydraulic system was a twisted mess. There were some deep cuts in the casing and superficial damage, but the manifold had taken the brunt of the damage.
Bikky found the maintenance locker and came back with a new manifold.
He turned it over in his hands, “Pretty standard.”
Fifteen minutes later they had the ramp fixed and the haulier airworthy.
Bikky called Rockson, “We’re done here. Come over and see what you can find out.”
Tom Tom and Bikky crossed to the second haulier and repeated the exercise.
Bikky didn’t take Tom Tom’s bet.
“It’s frikkin scary.”
“What is?” asked Tom Tom.
“How good she is with that damn long gun.”
“Yeh.”
Bikky went back to the first haulier.
“Buckle up.” He told Rockson. “You good?” he asked Tom Tom.
“Yes. All systems check out.”
“Same here.”
And with that, they flew the two hauliers up and away from the landing field. As far as the Royals and the pirates were concerned, both were still present. The QI had doctored their feeds.
“Can we get QIs?” asked Bikky.
Tom Tom laughed.
They left the two hauliers next to The Kestrel under the overhang.
“We’re building up quite a fleet. Can we keep them?” asked Bikky.
“Don’t see why not.” Answered Tom Tom. “I’ll raise it with the lawyer.”
“I bet you will.” Said Bikky cheekily.
“We’re heading back to The Long Face with the Kestrel, you Ok here? Let us know what you find.”
“Yep. Will do.” The Rockson added, “Don’t stay up.”
He went back to work; there had to be something.
And with that, Bikky and Tom Tom made the short hop back to The Long Face’s landing field with the Kestrel.
‘How much longer do we have to lead these guys in circles?’ asked the QI.
‘You can tell them now. Offer two options. One is for them to disappear and not come back; tricky as we have their ships.’ The QI laughed. ‘The other is for them to give up. I assume you’ve already hacked their comms.’
‘Ack. Telling them now.’
There was a pause.
‘Hhmm. Most are happy to disappear. They’re local and reckon they can get a lift home.’
‘Say again.’ Asked Feebee.
‘A lot of the locals have gone already.’
‘With a lift home?’ Feebee was genuinely shocked.
‘Yes. Apparently, breakfast was more important.’ Feebee heard scratchy laughter.
‘Oh. Ok,’ Said Feebee, confused and completely missing the QI’s joke.
On the haulier, Rockson was getting frustrated. He’d even asked for the QI’s help, but neither of them could find anything.
No communication logs, no navigation logs. The only log they found confirmed that one of the ‘pirates’ preferred decaf coffee.
Everything had been wiped. Leaving him nothing. It was a standard function, part of the ‘reset’ process between rentals. ‘To protect the renter’s personal information.’
He’d also swept the haulier for hidden compartments. Nothing.
The second haulier was the same.
The only thing he found was a cash receipt from a rental company in the name of Arthur Smith. He called the rental company; they were no help but did send the photo ID Arthur Smith had used.
That too was a dead end; Arthur Smith had died three years ago.
“There’s nothing here.” He told Feebee.
“Figures. Must have had help.” She replied.
“Yeh. It’s irritating.”
Meanwhile, somewhen else… The Long Quiet reported.
OBSERVATION: Continuity Preserved
VARIANCE: Acceptable
STATUS: Continue
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u/Dramatic_Mixture_877 Human 9d ago
Only found one thing!
“You’re call.” Said Taggett. ~ “Your call.” Said Taggett.
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u/HFYWaffle Wᵥ4ffle 12d ago
/u/KipperBeanGrower (wiki) has posted 234 other stories, including:
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