Code Enforcement: Wetware

Humans: we're truly an apex invasive species, at least in this solar system. We get just about everywhere. If one were to plot the human activity in the Jovian, a few things would become apparent. The primary clusters would be on the surface of Callisto and under the ice of Ganymede, of course. Secondary and tertiary clusters would stand out in orbit; the public stations and private habitats circling Jupiter's moons. Between all of these, imagine a web of pulsing lines connecting these nodes, tracing the route of vessels. One could call them the arteries and veins and capillaries of the Jovian. Or perhaps streets and highways, or nerves and signals, or circuits and current. There are plenty of metaphors; pick your favorite.

However, if you look hard enough, with sufficient granular detail, you might also find a few oddities that defy easy explanation. One of these is a wandering statite on the fringe of the Jovian system. The term means 'static satellite', or a roving habitat not in a fixed orbit. This one is a single-person life-pod sprouting a number of crablike appendages and large sweeping sheets of piezoelectric fabric. Smaller than a true permanent station, the small mobile habitat lacks a fusion engine entirely. There are some small liquid-oxygen rockets attached to the structure for maneuvering, but the large sheets are its primary means of propulsion.

Travel by magnetic sails is nothing new; it's cheap and easy, if somewhat slow to accelerate. However, it's stealthier than just about any other mode of travel. You aren't nearly so constrained by orbital mechanics, and there's no hot engine plume lighting the craft up in infrared. You can coast in zero-G or accelerate; you can even spin to simulate gravity. You can maneuver with barely any EM emission. And right now, this manned pod wanders silently between Ganymede and Callisto's orbits, with instruments mostly pointed inward.

It might not look impressive, and it lacks weapons entirely, but this is the most notorious pirate base in the Jovian. Oh sure, laugh if you want; the sole inhabitant is a portly wirehead who never hurt a fly. And that's not only because there are no flies out this far. The master of this station is a man in his mid-forties, with the look of someone who needs more sunlight. Jax is pale and heavily augmented, with synthetic eyes and a bald dome riddled with largely custom implants. His hygiene is sporadic, he has a unique personal odor, and his fingers, lips, and teeth are stained yellow from overusing stim-sticks.

And he's a shameless gambler, net-runner, and thief. The habitat, built piece-by-piece, is a reflection of its owner. It's made of components stolen or extorted from others. It steals inertia from the Jupiter's magnetic field with its magnetic sails. It steals energy from the field-aligned currents in the Jovian magnetosphere. And of course, the dozens of antennae and dishes and receivers steal information, the most valuable of all.

The owner clearly thinks so. Traffic from the transmitter just restarted after a period of silence, with some new login information. One spoofed admin profile has been shut down, but nobody said it was his only one. For his part, Jax is plugged into his console. Literally, a cable links from the processor into the jack in the back of his head. It's a little gauche, honestly, but even top-tier wireless augments can catch interference in the electro-magnetic soup of the Jovian. This time, however, the augment catches a ping intended for the man.

The owner smiles, exposing yellowed teeth as he reaches up to tap his implant and opening a channel. "Ay, if it isn't a Sparrow tweeting in my ear! What's shaking? How are-"

"Spare me, Jax, you slimy little tunnel-snake. I know what you did to Mel," says a sharp, tight voice. There's a lightspeed delay of a few seconds, but she manages to cut him off.

Jax's grin widens. "Don't know wha you mean, my birdie."

There's a pause before the response. "Don't even start! You got her wrapped up in your mess with the Gaians. You sent her in blind, hoping she'd fix it for you. Starless skies, you pointed her right at the League like a weapon!"

Though the link isn't visual, Jax shrugs. "Now, now, I didn't even hire her at first, dovie. A sailor was the client; it was a legit case you asked me to send."

"You sent her a case you knew was related to the Gaian takeover of admin!"

Putting up his feet, Jax rolls several new ore bids through his overlay and pings out a few higher ones. "Ayyiyi, I didn't tell her to go to Ganymede to hunt them down herself, love."

The pause again. "No, but you didn't tell her you were also being blackmailed until after she left Argus station."

He pulls up a series of bank accounts and flicks them to the wall. Several financial institutions hold tens of millions in credits, and he selects a smaller one. "Ah, well, had to have a reason to back out, yah? Get away while the heat is on; plus, I left her the tools to fix it."

"You left her to clean up your mess!"

"Not true! The League was gunning for you too, Sparrow. My sweet little birdie, she was cleaning up for you just as much as me," he adds, writing out a wire transfer to Melody Cruz, but leaving the amount blank.

"You didn't tell her that. But I bet you knew Mel's application was denied, and why. You had admin access, after all."

"Nothing to do with me, dovie. Just collate data."

"Then collate this, because here's the new play. Unless you want the entire Jovian to hear about your little 'backdoor peeking' in admin, and how you used it to game the markets for your friends in the mining co-op, you're going to reimburse Melody for all of her expenses incurred while pursuing your goals."

Jax mutes himself, chuckling for a moment, then nods and unmutes. "Ah, ay, you're squeezing my figs pretty hard, Sparrow, but I can pay. Anything to keep up goodwill."

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"Good. Three-hundred thousand credits."

He grins, but Jax emphasizes his cough and sputters over the ping. "Wha? You loony?"

"Nope. But Melody spent ninety thousand on medical care, and we'll call it an even hundred with meals and replacement clothes and incidentals. And say, round up another fifty thousand for fuel, docking fees, repairs, and my time, plus depreciation on the Chimera. Then you can add another fifty thousand to compensate her for her expertise, time, and trouble on a potentially lethal job."

The pudgy man writes out the total, grin widening. "Hmm, well, expensive, but that's only two hundred."

"And another hundred thousand for being a lying jackass, and for buying our silence! Otherwise, we can tell the whole Jovian what went down and see how much the co-op loses in the fallout. I'm thinking they could lose millions, easy."

There's some heavy tsking from the man. "Asking so much, Sparrow, even if she did good work."

"She did phenomenal work, and you know it! Pay up and do it before we dock at Io. Otherwise, I'll dump the info wherever I can. And since you don't have admin access anymore, I bet you can't scrub it."

"Whoa, hey, lovie, no need to play that way! My figs are bruised enough, birdie, I'll pay my dues. Pricey, this Dame of yours, but a job is a job. Jax pays his debts."

"Eventually, when he can't find a way to wiggle out of them." Jax snorts, prompting a growl from Sparrow. "The credits better clear in three days, or you'll wish they had."

Jax submits the wire transfer and leans back in his gaming chair. "Ayiyi! My figs are so sore, I won't be able to sit for a week! Nobody squeezes like you do, my little Sparrow. But the credits will be there, dovie."

"Good! And if there's any fallout, I expect a heads-up. Don't leave us twisting in the wind, or I'll twist your figs right off."

Jax snorts, closing down the channel and flipping open a new one. This one is also purely verbal, with a gruff-voiced man answering immediately and skipping small talk. "Jax, what's the word?"

"I got it all taken care of, just as promised. My side of the bargain is fulfilled."

"And for ours, the transfer is being approved. Five million, and worth every credit. I'm in awe you managed to take down the League's entire Jovian operation at once."

"I hired a good contractor. Fast and effective; it sends a message to anyone eyeing me up," he adds, crossing him arms behind his head. "The co-op should be in for some good days..."

Jax is still smiling when he gets a ping nearly an hour later. "Ah, Dame! I'm glad you called; congratulations are in order, yah?"

There's a moment of silence. "You're the one who should be congratulated. Your plan to have me do your dirty work went perfectly," she adds softly. There's no visual feed; the PI also seems inclined to keep this conversation verbal.

"Aww, Dame, don't take it so personally! I spoke with your partner a little while ago; I feel so sick about the situation that I'm wiring three hundred thousand over to you; a nice big bonus."

The lightspeed delay seems to linger. "I'm sure Sparrow had something to do with that."

"Don't be like that, Dame. It's a fair deal all 'round. Ol' Jax makes sure his friends are paid."

"My name is Mel Cruz. And don't pretend we're friends. You set me up."

"Ayiyi, so angry! You feeling sore at ol' Jax? I'm so ashamed, yah, but ask around. Jax makes good, even your partner'll say-"

"Stop. It's not cute, and this isn't a game. Knock that off and listen."

Jax's augmented eyes shine red as he sits straighter. "I'm listening," he says calmly.

This pause seems longer than mere lightspeed delay. "Sparrow and Lucy were being targeted by the Gaians. You held back vital information and played games to get the best outcome for yourself. I have no doubt you made a small fortune on this whole fiasco, and you used me and my partner to do it. Let me be clear; as far as I'm concerned, you're an unreliable asset. You don't want me to upgrade you to 'threat'."

"I'm not a threat to anyone, Ms. Cruz," Jax says without accent.

This silence is definitely longer than the lag. "I was Code Enforcement; I know the score. Information is a weapon in the right hands, or the wrong ones. You used your knowledge to make me and mine take the risks. You ran and let the situation on Ganymede play out, then swept in to exploit the chaos. You're a gambler, an opportunist, and a liar. You don't care who dies as long as you profit. But that's just business, so I can let that go."

"I'm glad to hear it." He leans back in his seat and pulls out a stim-stick from the pack at his elbow.

"But you used Sparrow. You left her and her family exposed to danger. And you made her think you were a friend, that she could trust you. You manipulated and exploited her for your own benefit, and she doesn't even realize how badly you played her. And she never will, because you're going to disappear from her world."

He pauses with the stick between his fingers. "Is that a threat?"

The silence drags out. "Only if you make it one. You don't contact her, don't direct work to her, don't respond to her pings. If you do, I'll assume you're a threat, and I don't tolerate threats against the people I love. I eliminate them."

His fingers twirl the stim-stick in his hands. "You might find that more difficult than you expect."

"Think about the past few days, and what happened to everyone who's threatened her. And think about what else you might have to lose; secrets that you wouldn't want spread."

The man pauses, tilting his head. "Fine, you've bought me out. Your silence, and she won't hear from me again," he adds gruffly, before placing the stick between his lips.

"Great, but there's one more thing; people died. Three civilians in the raid at Trojan Whores and two on Argus station in an act of sabotage. You're going to cover their costs; funeral, medical, and otherwise. And you're going to make sure their families are taken care of."

The small stick falls from his open lips with a sharp intake of breath. "That's expensive, Cruz. Millions, at least."

The lag seems to lengthen. "You'll make it all back soon enough, if you haven't already. You're a gambler, right Jax? Tell me; are you feeling lucky? Do you want to roll the dice with me? Do you think you'll win that game?"

Jax is still and silent in his seat. "…I'm sure I can find a way to write off some charitable work. But in exchange, I get the same deal; you disappear from my world. I don't like people who threaten my interests."

"Good. I'll be checking up on them from time to time. As long as nothing untoward happens to any of them, it's done. I sincerely hope never to hear from you again."

The man's eyebrow twitches. "It's been a rare privilege, Dame. One I'd like never to repeat."

Jax closes the channel, teeth clenched. He re-opens the previous one.

"Jax, calling me back so soon?"

"Yeah, change of plans. The contractor is proving to be a loose end. I'm pinging you their info: leak her involvement in the Europan affair to our contacts among the corps with big Jovian losses. Lots of rich pricks on Earth lost money over it and want blood."

There's a whistle on the line. "Oof, you soured on her quick."

"The opposite; she soured on me. But she took it too far," he adds, his synthetic eyes dilating to absorb radio-wave frequencies as he lowers the back of his chair. Staring out the transparent skin of his habitat and closing the channel, Jax watched the waves in the magnetic field curl and loop. His lip peels up to show yellowing teeth. "You think you can extort protection from me, Dame? Let the corporations eat you. I'll never have to repeat the privilege again."