Unauthorized

ROUTING…

23rwpe4dhqoudquod’nasuajq;eoqp

>> access LTG host\10949-32-1358<<

ENTER PASSWORD: *** CONFIRM PASSWORD: ***

ACCESS GRANTED-YAMATETSU PLTG 10949-32-1358, SOUTH AMERICA

>>access node\10949.283.19.6<<

ACCESS GRANTED - SECURITY SLAVE NODE

>>access surveillance sequence: 0009397<<

ACCESS DENIED - AUTHORIZATION LIMITED TO CLEARANCE LEVEL DELTA 3

>>fsn: 8302 /wuiopsapmd/0009397<<

ACCESS APPROVED

>> download feed\router:\55184.86.73621<<

FILE CAPTURE INITIATED

>>activate video/audio<<

A desk cut from Redwood. It is massive, seamless and cluttered by open manila folders. The man behind the desk has his head bent forward. His thin hair is gray and parted to the left side. A gnarled hand reaches for a lamp. He taps it twice and yellow light falls over the table. The man picks up a document from the folder in front of him. The paper hides his face from view.

>>switch to video unit 2<<

His shoulder is padded and defined by the sharp lines of an Armante’ suit. It blots out most of the display area. Beyond that, his left hand supports a computer print out. Only the first section can be read.

Proteus AG Operational report #3

We’ve managed to infiltrate one of the companies subsidiaries called Raintech. The company produces 12% of Proteus AG’s space flight rockets. They are also researching weather patterns. Their primary research interest is Storm tracking according to Lavenna. As far as Raintech is concerned, the two of us are part of a security team that was transferred from one of the Proteus AG offshore sites.

A buzzer sounds.

“Enter.” The man behind the desk has a strong Japanese accent. His voice is gruff.

>>switch to video unit 5<<

A woman enters the room through a silver door. She is tall, with straight red hair and an angular face. There are gray chairs to either side of her and a bar beside the door. She bows and then crosses the room.

>>rotate video left 30 degrees<<

“Domo arigato Yoshida-san. I am sorry to interrupt you.” The woman is facing the desk. Her hands are clasped behind her. She wears a blue suit that hugs her body. Its skirt ends mid-thigh revealing silver pantyhose and blue heels.

“It is alright Helena. To bother me this late your information must be very important.” The man closes the Proteus AG folder as he speaks. His face is wrinkled and a goatee hangs limply beneath his chin.

“It is important sir. Security has reported a breach.”

>>execute security scan<<

NO SECURITY ALERT HAS BEEN DETECTED

“Bernard?”

“No sir. Whoever is responsible accessed our files and posted a company profile on the net. Everyone was affected.”

“How serious is the damage to our division?”

She clears her throat, “Artemis Biotech was exposed. There were also files on the Shiawese infiltration and Isis-9 but we managed to recover them before the document reached Shadowland.”

“And the company overall?”

“He names people on both sides. He exposes Johnson’s that the North American office prefers to use, key players in the Pacific Rim, and several others. He exposes some people that we didn’t know about.”

“How was this decker able to get so much?”

The woman brings her hands from behind her back and clasps them again. There is a large diamond on her ring finger. “Intel thinks that this was an inside job.”

“And what do you think Helena?”

“Based on the information he gave and the way that he wrote it… I would have to agree with intelligence.”

“So then there is another mole in our division. Find him. Deal with him before he chooses to leak more information.”

“I don’t think this man is a mole sir. Not in our division at least.”

The man behind the table strokes his goatee and settles back. “Explain.”

“The decker used the handle Spiderhawk. According to records, none of our people have ever used that profile. At first I thought it was a random name that he selected but I had data analysis run a pattern buffer on the name anyway. The only solid pattern they came up with was a misspelling of the word shipwrecked.”

The man’s lips turn downward slightly, “You think he is one of the operatives we lost during relocation.”

“Twenty seven agents issued the extraction protocol last year sir. Twelve the year before that. None of the agents were able to step into the light because their profiles had been co-opted. The way Spiderhawk writes it sounds like he’s paying us back for something. Intel says he uses phrases that give them the impression that we left him in the cold, but he refers to the company as if he were still a part of it. Not very many people have that kind of loyalty to Yamatetsu.”

“This man reveals our secrets and you speak of loyalty.”

“Yes sir. He told secrets on both sides. Nothing he said will destroy the company, yet he told enough to expose Buttercup’s faction as well as our own. It was a defense mechanism. He was trying to persuade us to bring him in.”

The man rests his hands on his chin. He is silent for nearly a minute. “You think you know who this person might be.”

The woman nods. Her voice raises slightly and she talks faster, “Nathan Zullo. He was assigned to deep cover operations while you were chairman of the board. His file disappeared after Brian Yao took a position with Renraku.”

“You are sure it is him?”

“I am sir. Nathan led the extraction that brought me to Yamatetsu. He and I were friends. The people he claims to know in the profile are people I am sure he has dealt with. He left a calling card in what he said. He wanted me to know it was him.”

“It could be a setup. Your friend could be a plant by Bernard to figure out what we are doing here.”

“Nathan would never work for Shibanokuji’s faction sir.”

“Are you willing to take that risk?”

“I’m willing to be held responsible for that risk sir.”

“Are you Helena? Because if you are wrong and we find that he is a spy you will die beside him.”

PASSIVE SECURITY ALERT HAS BEEN DETECTED

>>execute graceful logoff<<

CARRIER LOST