The Company

[dr_kromm]

On July 16, we had Bonnie ("Xiang Wen," a.k.a. "Wu Xie Zhi" and "Dot"), Marc ("Anabel Windsor," a.k.a. "Abigail Wilson" and "Vicky"), and Torsten ("Qoqa Ramazanov," a.k.a. "Zoya Petrovna Sidorov").

Time: Saturday, July 13, 2013.
Place: Darmstadt, Hesse.
Last Event: Keeping a low profile for recovery and training.

The Agents' spring and early summer downtime goes well. The injured heal, everyone recovers a little sanity, and there's plenty of time for training in and around helping Schreiber improve security at Darmatech HQ. Schreiber's pal, Heinz, can't stop thanking Qoqa for saving his life, giving her bottles of high-quality vodka while marveling at being sewn up by a real medic, not a vet, this time. Anabel also interacts with the Darmatech crowd; specifically, she has some kind of fling with Ms. Chang. This ends as suddenly as it begins, and appears to be entirely (and predictably!) superficial.

On the second Saturday in July, the team meets with Schreiber to discuss work. The first thing he does is distribute some items of use to the group. Everybody gets a new ID packet: forged passports, matching phony licenses and permits, and the usual debit and credit cards. Schreiber hands Qoqa a small flat of unlabelled, fluid-filled crimp vials as well. He explains that after analyzing the M201 incapacitant carried by the men who attacked in March, Darmatech was able to formulate an injectable specific antidote.

With that done, Schreiber changes the topic to the team's next assignment. In light of the fact that the group's last operation revealed solid evidence of an organization that's unquestionably stalking the Company, Staedert deems it imperative to take action to avoid future trouble from that quarter. As the Agents are the only field operators in direct contact with that enemy, it makes sense that they be the ones to act – somebody has to take point, and risking another squad would reveal more of the Company's assets to the opposition. The question isn't whether the crew's next job involves dealing with that threat, but how they do so.

Initially, the choice seems to be between returning to Florida to go another round with Emerson Tactical Solutions; visiting New Mexico to resurrect the old Omni-Biotech Distribution Southwest lead in Albuquerque, and possibly learn who's manufacturing M201 and other chemical agents for the Company's enemies; and taking a trip to Liberia to ascertain whether Montgomery Swift Jr. knows anything else of value. The Company can't promise strong material support in the U.S.A., though – after the Agents' private war in Wyoming two years ago (almost to the day!), and with possible CIA interest in the group, any action on U.S. soil would have to be low-key. On the other hand, Schreiber promises that substantial financial support wouldn't be a problem, thanks to Sakata's efforts. This remark causes Jili to speak up.

Jili says that during the group's downtime, she had ample opportunity to examine the electronics taken off Deringer's men after the Darmatech attack. The gizmos removed from the security cameras proved to be short-ranged RF transceivers designed to capture signals, record them on native RAM, loop them, and inject them back into the feed. All they need is close proximity to the target device and a small break or even a sharp loop in the cable. Programmable by a specially equipped phone, they can replay unremarkable scenes to cover other activity. While suitably high-tech, every major intelligence service has units like these; they don't suggest a lead to follow. Jili opines that the best thing to do with these gadgets is to keep them for future use.

However, the cell-phone-sized signal interceptor found on the assassins who tried to run down the group with a truck is quite another matter. Jili describes it as "a 1980s-era surveillance van in your pocket," capable of locating and tracking a mobile phone precisely enough "to shoot at it," intercepting calls, and even turning the target into a listening device. Jili explains that there would be no way to block it and still use one's phone; the best countermeasures would be encrypting the message and speaking in code. The device accomplishes all this using unlabeled, cutting-edge microchips that Jili inspected under an electron microscope and found to use a smaller die size than any commercial manufacturer is currently geared up for. Even the battery is unusual; Jili tested it and found its lifetime too long to be consistent with conventional chemistries. In Jili's opinion, the only logical origins would be CIA or NSA R&D.

Which is why mention of Sakata triggered Jili's report. In her opinion, anybody who has done the things that Sakata claims to have done would have the wherewithal to properly analyze and even reverse-engineer the signal interceptor. At a minimum, he could work toward giving the Company such technology, which could only help the Agents' efforts. Even better, he might be able to leak it to the commercial world, which would certainly turn up the heat on Deringer's people! ("What do you mean, you lost the secret device we loaned you for illegal, off-the-record black ops, and now Samsung is selling it?")

After listening to what Jili has to say, the rest of the team agrees: It's time to visit Sakata. Schreiber concurs, noting that a side-trip to bring Sakata into the loop seems like a logical step to take before going back into harm's way. He says that he'll arrange the meeting and associated travel at once. With that, the meeting adjourns.

On Sunday morning, Schreiber summons the team again. He reports that he spoke with Sakata, who agreed to meet with the group . . . in Stockholm. Asked about the location, Schreiber relates that Sakata apparently did some sort of fancy threat analysis and concluded that Stockholm would be the optimal choice. There are a few quips that it seems more likely that he was on vacation there. At any rate, the flights are already booked for Monday morning. Seeing another long series of trips – and doubtless trouble – in their future, the Agents decide to go out on the town for the night.

The morning of July 15, the Agents get up early enough to drive to Frankfurt in time to catch the 07:10 nonstop to Stockholm. Staedert loans them Vinnie for the drive, but this marks the first venture into the field for the streamlined team: Anabel, Jili, Lev, Klas, Paul, Qoqa, and Wen. All seven board the plane without any problems stemming from their false ID. The flight goes well, reaching Arlanda at 09:10.

Almost immediately after the Agents stroll into the arrivals area at the airport, Paul and Qoqa spot one of Sakata's "ninja" doing a credible job of looking like he's drinking mineral water and reading a paper, not waiting for someone. However, Paul also notices a man in a suit doing an equally good job of following the ninja! Paul mentions this to the others, adding that from the mysterious man's bearing and technique, he's probably some kind of policeman. Paul urges the group to hang back and act casual until he has investigated further. Taking Wen for backup, Paul moves in while the other five sit down at a nearby café.

As Paul and Wen draw closer, Wen manages to make brief eye contact with Sakata's ninja. She takes the opportunity to subtly sign that he has a shadow. On spotting the man in the suit, the ninja moves off, trying to shake his tail. However, it's obvious to Wen and Paul that the suspected cop is too good at this game – the ninja can't lose him.

At this stage, Wen decides to intervene. Holding her phone in front of her as if texting, and her breakfast in the other hand, she walks directly toward the suit-wearing stranger, doing an excellent job of looking oblivious and capitalizing on her slight build (and Darmatech cosmetic surgery) to come across as a self-absorbed teenager. The man is so preoccupied with his quarry that he doesn't see Wen coming. The two collide dramatically and end up on the floor in a tangle of coffee-soaked limbs. By the time that's sorted out, the ninja is nowhere to be seen.

Wen extricates herself as gracefully as possible, helped by the fact that the man in the suit is more concerned with getting eyes on his target than arguing with some kid about spilling coffee on him. Paul quietly leaves the scene to rejoin the others. Along the way, he spots another of Sakata's people signaling to the team, so when he reaches the group, he gets them moving toward the second ninja. Wen catches up along the way. Switching to Japanese, just in case, the Agents ask the ninja why his colleague was being followed, but the ninja has no idea.

The second ninja escorts the team to the parking area, and up to a pair of limousines. He explains that his associate won't risk returning here, which might jeopardize the meeting; thus, he'll need someone to drive one of the vehicles. Paul is happy to volunteer. With Anabel, Lev, and Qoqa driving with the ninja, and Jili, Klas, and Wen following in Paul's car, the group hits the road.