Emergence (Fox Meridian Book 5) Read online

  The morning had been fairly hard. Terri had come over to give them a load of detailed background on the technology they had available. It was probably overkill and they had all looked a little shell-shocked at the end of it, but both Fox and Terri felt it was useful to know a bit more about the inner workings of the equipment. However, Fox had scheduled in something a little more fun to finish up with.

  ‘I know you’re all checked out on basic firearms,’ Fox said when silence fell, ‘but we have two sidearms we’re using as standard and neither of them are what you’re used to. So, here we are at the firing range. I’m going to go through the weapons, and then you’ll get to try them out yourselves. You’ll want to fully familiarise yourself with both, because they both have their uses.’

  Stepping up to a table on which there were several guns of two types, Fox picked up a sleek-looking pistol with a broad ‘muzzle’ featuring two small openings. ‘As a standard weapon, I suggest carrying this. It’s an electrolaser, a wireless electric shock weapon. It’s relatively legal in all jurisdictions, especially if the lethal mode is locked out. As with more conventional shock weapons, it can kill someone by accident, but the general result of a good hit is incapacitation. On a full-power hit, your target’s heart will seize and they’ll likely die unless treated quickly by a paramedic.’

  Fox walked up to the firing line and took aim at a mannequin android around twenty metres down range. Not bothering with the heads-up sighting, she simply eyeballed it and fired. There was a sharp crack as the twin invisible beams fired and a high-voltage pulse danced down the ionised channels. The droid collapsed to its knees almost immediately.

  ‘Humans tend to jerk about more,’ Fox said. ‘It’s a little more satisfying than hitting a machine.’ There was a rumble of laughter. ‘Effective, but not without problems. High humidity tends to cause the charge to leak away, and fog or smoke can diffuse the beams too much to be effective. Don’t aim for the face because the beams do cause minor burns and will damage eyesight. Centre-mass is more effective anyway. Any questions?’

  ‘How many shots?’ Keen asked.

  ‘You’ll get a good thirty charges out of a standard magazine, a lot less on lethal mode.’ When it seemed that no one else had anything to ask, Fox put the pistol back on the table and took a different one out from where it was holstered in the small of her back. ‘This one is a little different and its biggest disadvantage is that it’s not in production yet. This one is mine. Jackson Martins built it for me to test out and it works, and we’re rolling it out to the investigation division because it’s got a lot of different uses. But you are using what amounts to a prototype. Be aware of that if you plan to use one of these as a standard weapon.’

  ‘Well, yeah,’ Keen said, ‘but it’s a prototype built by Jackson Martins…’

  Fox grinned and walked up to the firing line. ‘There is that.’ At her command, a paper target dropped from the ceiling about ten metres away. ‘At close range, this functions like a normal pistol, except that the launch mechanism is electromagnetic.’ She raised the pistol and fired off three rounds, punching three holes in the target’s chest. ‘Normal load is a ten-millimetre, high-velocity projectile. You’re probably going to kill someone if you double-tap them. One round should put most targets down. If you want a less lethal option…’ She aimed at the android again as it got to its feet, fired, and it was knocked over backward. There was something which looked vaguely like a small cowpat stuck to its chest. ‘High-kinetic impulse, less-than-lethal rounds. Yes, I stacked this magazine for this demo. Be warned, I’ve used these on someone who didn’t want to give up and we had to get him medical treatment for internal injuries.’

  Stepping sideways, Fox looked down the range to where another mannequin had been set up thirty metres away. ‘At longer range, you have another option. I admit this is easier for me to use because I’m ex-military and I was trained on guided missiles, but…’ In-vision, she got a lock indicator for the target, then she moved her aim off to one side and fired. A few metres out, the projectile began to stream white vapour as tiny rocket motors engaged, and the little missile curved through the air to hit its target. The mannequin dissolved into nothing as the explosive round blew it apart.

  ‘Shit!’ Keen yelped and there were several other similar exclamations as bits of plastic drifted down to the ground in the distance.

  ‘Yes,’ Fox said, ‘that was a ten-mil, infrared homing micromissile with an explosive warhead. Have a really good reason for needing to use one of those, and make sure you’ve got some distance. I can tell you from experience that being too close to one of those when it goes off stings. However, you can deliver any of a range of warheads out to a klick with reasonable accuracy if you learn to use the homing system. And you only get the standard rounds to practise with.’ She looked over at Keen and added, ‘Seven-round magazines, which is another disadvantage.’

  ‘Well, yeah, but it fires bloody missiles!’

  Fox laughed. ‘There is that. All right, there’s a selection of weapons here and plenty of targets. Try both. Helen and I will be here to advise you.’

  It was a rather interesting exercise. Everyone did try both weapons: the pistol was novel enough, but the electrolaser was a ray gun! The Europeans and the Brit looked like they would stick with the lasers. The Americans appeared to be sticking with the projectile weaponry, but Ray Rogers said he would carry the stun weapon as standard because the local watch in Topeka was standardising on them. Keen was going for bullets, big surprise. Fukui seemed a little unsure and was alternating between the two.

  ‘You seem to be undecided,’ Fox said as she watched the Japanese girl switch back to the laser weapon.

  ‘I am,’ Fukui replied. ‘I could easily get the permits for a firearm or a lethal-mode electrolaser. I feel using a stun weapon as standard should be the better option, but it is highly likely that any situation where I might need either would be sufficiently life-threatening to warrant lethal force. Crime in Japan is like that. It is often very civilised, but when it is not, it is vicious.’

  ‘If your file is correct, you’ll be good with the electromag pistol. You’d just need to learn to use the homing system. And there is a smaller version of the electrolaser you could use as a backup piece.’

  Fukui flashed Fox a smile. ‘That is a most interesting compromise. Practical. This is where your experience shows, as does my lack of it.’

  Fox shrugged. ‘I just thought of it myself. Sometimes having a problem to solve is the best way to find a good idea you should have thought of the answer to already.’

  ‘I am pleased to be the source of a good idea. And I’ll keep practising with both.’

  ~~~

  ‘Fox? You in here? Oh! Shit, I didn’t know you were changing.’

  Fox flashed Helen a grin and finished pulling her dress on. ‘You’ve seen me naked before, Helen.’

  ‘Not in an office. It’s different. No idea why, but it is. Everything’s ready for this thing. I’m going to get changed myself.’

  ‘Right. I need to go see our currently resident VIP about a stalker.’

  Helen frowned. ‘Nishi Sakura?’

  ‘That’s the one. Charlie Iberson came to see me last night. Said Sakura received an email from some guy calling himself Minotaur and it seemed like it was bad, but Sakura and her agents are ignoring it. Kit did some checking and it looks like it might be a problem, so…’

  ‘Good luck persuading them. I’ll be back when I’ve got myself dolled up.’ Helen turned to leave and then stopped. She turned back, frowning. ‘I feel like obsessive fan and Minotaur should be ringing some sort of bell.’

  ‘Oh?’

  ‘Yeah… It’s not coming to mind though. I’ll give it some thought.’

  ‘Let me know.’ Fox slipped on her heels, decided she was ready, and headed out behind Helen to take an elevator up to the top of the tower.

  The doors opened and Fox found herself looking at a man and a woman, both in the sma
rt, dark-blue tunic and slacks of Palladium security personnel. The woman recognised her even before her ID was processed, but both nodded politely as she stepped out of the elevator. Fox returned the nod and continued down a short corridor. There she turned right toward the group of suites where Sakura had been housed and made it as far as a small antechamber before she was stopped.

  ‘What are you doing here?’ The speaker was a man who had had far too much bodysculpt work done. He was, probably, naturally quite tall, though Fox’s heels gave her several centimetres of height advantage. Everything else looked like it had been modified one way or another. Muscle grafts, sculpted nose, jaw, and cheeks, smoothed skin with an artificial tan… His eyes were a reflective blue never found in nature, and his blonde, dreadlocked hair looked like most of it was extended.

  He went on before Fox could say a word. ‘No, no, no! No fans! Those idiots at the elevator should have turned you around. I don’t care who you are. Out. Out!’ Kit supplied a name for the artificial features as the man reached for Fox’s arm, which was the only thing that stopped her punching him. Instead, she braced herself as he tried to drag her backward, and he gave her an annoyed look when he could not move her.

  ‘My name is Tara Meridian, Mister Palomino,’ Fox told him. ‘I’m with the idiots at the elevator. I’m here to talk to Miss Sakura.’ Kit was supplying the fact that this was Sakura’s manager along with a name.

  He covered embarrassment with irritation: another feature which did not endear him to Fox. ‘Why didn’t you say so? I–’

  ‘Because you didn’t give me any chance to. Please let go of my arm.’

  Palomino took a step back. ‘Nishi is busy. What is it you wish to talk to her about?’

  ‘You’re the manager assigned to her by the Independent Music Channel, is that right?’

  ‘I am.’ His spine straightened as he said it.

  ‘Then I’d like to talk to you as well. Miss Sakura should be expecting me.’ Fox set off through the reception area, heading for the room directly opposite the entrance corridor and leaving Palomino to trail behind her.

  Palomino did not like that. ‘Nishi isn’t expecting anyone. She would have–’

  He stopped as the door opened before Fox got to it and Iberson took a half-step out. ‘Fox. Thanks for coming. Nishi’s… not exactly happy, but she’s going to listen to what you have to say.’

  ‘She shouldn’t be disturbed,’ Palomino said. ‘If her performance is–’

  ‘Shut up, Wally,’ Iberson snapped, and Fox saw the better-known face of Charlie Iberson emerge as ice-cold eyes glared at Palomino.

  ‘I thought his name was Brett,’ Fox queried silently.

  ‘He changed his name to Brett Palomino about a year before joining IMC,’ Kit replied inside her head. ‘Prior to that, he was Wallace Booth. Miss Iberson clearly knows about his original name.’

  ‘Apparently.’ Aloud, Fox said, ‘I think Miss Sakura’s performance may suffer more if she’s attacked by some obsessed fan. I’d like to discuss the situation, determine a strategy, and handle it. That should put her mind at ease more than ignoring the situation, don’t you think?’

  Iberson was already turning to lead the way into the suite’s reception room. ‘Welcome to the Big Top, Fox.’

  ‘Sorry?’

  ‘The circus that is the media business. Lots of glam and glitz hiding the peeling paintwork and rotten foundations. Marie hasn’t had to deal with it all yet, and she seems like a pretty grounded girl anyway, but she’s going to have to learn to put on a brave face when she wants to cry, and be nice to people she wants to stab in the eye.’

  ‘Doesn’t seem like you do.’

  ‘Oh, I really want to stab Wally in the eye, but I haven’t. Yet.’ She walked through another door on the far side of the little lounge and into a much larger room. ‘Tara Meridian, meet Nishi Sakura.’

  The singer-songwriter got to her feet as Fox walked in, regarding the newcomer shrewdly and with a hint of annoyance. She was a couple of inches shorter than Fox, quite long in the leg. The legs were obvious thanks to a pair of very short shorts, and added to by heeled sandals. She was slim, fairly flat-chested, but her body was toned and fit, supple. She was, in some ways, more handsome than beautiful, but certainly attractive with sharp cheekbones, a narrow pointed chin, and a full mouth. She had a cap of short black hair, dark eyebrows with an intriguing arch to them, and her eyes were a warm hazel-brown.

  She might have been a little annoyed, but Sakura was Japanese: politeness was an instinct. She executed a short, formal bow which Fox copied. ‘Miss Meridian, I am afraid that you have made a wasted journey. Charlie’s concerns are… unwarranted.’

  Iberson had moved to a position beside Sakura, far enough away that Fox knew there had been an argument. Iberson’s face twisted a little: annoyance, frustration. ‘I have sufficient evidence to suggest they are not,’ Fox said. ‘Palladium has moved to a higher alert level. Security has been tightened and will remain that way unless I can verify that there is no threat.’

  ‘Over one email?!’ Palomino burst out. ‘That’s ridiculous! How can you–’

  ‘No. I haven’t seen the email. The fact that it was sent to Miss Sakura’s personal address supports my position, but it’s the LifeWeb posts by the same man which cause me concern. He’s a hacker. Not, perhaps, the greatest ever, but certainly very good. He’s obsessed and has violent tendencies. He warrants closer scrutiny.’

  Sakura frowned. ‘Please, sit down, Miss Meridian.’

  ‘Nishi,’ Palomino began. ‘You shouldn’t be stressing yourself over–’

  ‘Sit down, Brett. We will hear Miss Meridian out.’ Palomino sank onto a chair with an exasperated expression on his face. Sakura waited until Fox had taken one of the sofas before sitting down opposite her, and when Iberson sat down beside her, she shifted a little closer. Some of the argument was forgiven at least and Fox saw Iberson’s eyes brighten a little.

  ‘Miss Iberson seems quite infatuated with Miss Sakura,’ Kit commented silently.

  ‘She does,’ Fox replied, but her attention was drawn to the appearance of a petite avatar with oriental features dressed in a short, kimono-styled dress.

  ‘Misaki,’ Sakura said, ‘these LifeWeb posts Miss Meridian has referred to?’

  ‘I identified the sender of the emails, Minotaur, as a LifeWeb poster named BeastOfKnossos, Nishi-sama.’ Misaki had a stronger Japanese accent than Sakura did and tended to affect a vaguely submissive posture, but she had to be an infomorph of some sort. ‘That LifeWeb account was blocked from posting after it was used to troll several other posters who left negative comments about your work.’

  Sakura nodded. ‘That’s my policy, Miss Meridian. If people want to criticise me, I don’t stop them so long as they remain civilised about it. I won’t tolerate trolls, whether with me or against me.’

  Fox nodded back. ‘Good policy, if you ask me, but Minotaur kept sending emails, yes?’

  ‘That is correct, Miss Meridian,’ Misaki said. ‘I filter both LifeWeb posts and fan emails for Nishi. I only bother her with them if I feel her input is required. For a personal reply, for example.’

  ‘You don’t follow through on potential threats, however.’

  ‘IMC have staff evaluating such issues. I am not required to.’

  ‘My PA did. Kit, would you explain what you found, please?’

  Kit appeared in her formal outfit, adjusting her glasses as she resolved in everyone’s vision fields. Her tail flicked a little and Fox saw Sakura’s eyes widen. ‘Of course, Fox,’ Kit said. ‘Minotaur, posting as BeastOfKnossos, threatened that he would “erase” a user with the account name Musikkritiker, a German national who went on to post several times on his own page regarding the difficulties he was having. His banking credentials were revoked, twice, without his knowledge. His posts on a number of private music websites, along with his accounts on those sites, were deleted.’

  ‘But nothing on LifeWeb,’ Palomino said. �
�After all that scandal about LifeWeb’s security, your hacker didn’t get in there.’

  Kit looked over at the manager. ‘Minotaur’s campaign against Musikkritiker happened to coincide with that scandal, Mister Palomino. MarTech bought out LifeWeb and instituted systematic upgrades in security just before the BeastOfKnossos account was blocked. Musikkritiker uses MarTech’s European internet service provider. I was able to confirm an attempt by someone to cancel his service around that time. The false data was detected and the matter reported to the German police, but the attack could only be traced to America. No one was identified as the attacker.’

  Returning her gaze to Sakura, Kit went on. ‘Then there is the matter of your personal address being used. We understand that there are very few people who know it.’

  ‘Maybe twenty,’ Sakura said. ‘I trust all of them.’

  ‘There are twenty-two, Nishi-sama,’ Misaki said, ‘since you gave it to Charlie-sama.’

  ‘So that’s twenty-two places he could have hacked to get the information,’ Fox said. ‘Though my money’s on someone at IMC. Minotaur was likely looking for information on the concerts, unreleased music, or personal information he could use.’

  ‘Now wait a minute,’ Palomino growled.

  ‘It’s nothing personal. He will have put a lot of effort into infiltrating your network and there’s no such thing as absolute security. But why did you switch to Palladium for your security at these shows on such short notice?’

  ‘That was my fault,’ Sakura said. ‘I added the Tokyo gig at the last minute. It’s the first time I’ve been back to Japan since… Well, since I left. IMC didn’t think they had the right kind of resources in Japan and it seemed stupid to contract Palladium for just that one date.’

  ‘Okay. Look, this could be nothing. The guy could be a crank and no real danger, but I don’t think you should ignore this. I’d like the emails Minotaur sent via IMC and the one he sent direct to Miss Sakura. We’ll go through and analyse them. Kit’s pretty good with abnormal psychology. Once the threat is assessed, we see where we go from there. If he sends any more emails, I want those too.’