[Fic] A dangerous game, chapter 9 (end)
Title: A dangerous game
Rating: T
Summary: Games aren't so much fun when someone dies; but is Jazz really responsible or is someone else playing games at Iacon Academy?
Warning: one more death and we're done!
Prowl sat perfectly still, waiting patiently while several others applied solvent to the adhesive tape and gradually got it to loosen. Lighttouch had toned down his pain sensors so he was sitting in relative comfort in spite of the dents and scratches that covered the length of his frame, and the medic had shooed out Brass, insisting that he could not be expected to make any report until he was freed and medically cleared, so he had time now to sit in peace and think.
There was much to think about.
Slimline had still been kicking at him when the door had opened and an Enforcer had stepped in. Before the Enforcer had time to react, before Prowl even had time to speak, she had done something totally unexpected: she had immediately reached into her subspace, pulled out a rifle and used it on herself.
Why had she not used it to threaten him, he wondered uneasily. Why did she have it with her, if not for that reason? And why act so instantly, without any moment for thought?
The most likely answer was as disturbing as the questions: she had been gamed to react that way if she was approached by an Enforcer. No doubt it was a protection policy for Icon; given what she had said, she could implicate him, and if Icon knew how unstable she was then he would need to ensure she was never in a position to give him away.
That theory could never now be proven, he knew. From the chatter of those around him, he knew that Jazz had destroyed Icon's terminal. So with Icon staying silent and the evidence gone, the cause of Slimline's death would always remain an unsolvable mystery. Jazz had apparently also destroyed his own terminal, and no doubt the evidence they had collected had been lost too.
Why? he fretted. Why had Jazz done it? Did Jazz truly want to protect his friend, so much that he would leave himself as the prime suspect? What Icon had done was horrific and needed to be addressed, not ignored. Jazz was not stupid and he was clearly appalled by the use Icon had made of his software...
His software. Several pieces fell into place and it all suddenly made sense.
Jazz felt partially responsible for Veneer and Piper's deaths because he had engineered the software which made this terrible crime possible. Even if Icon was able to be properly punished - and there even Prowl had his doubts, given the way the nobles could sway the judiciary here in Iacon - someone else might make use of it. So Jazz would want it gone, even at the risk of letting Icon go free.
The result would be that Jazz would remain the prime suspect; there would be nothing to link Icon to the crimes he had committed. That was wrong, and yet what would make it right? Perhaps keeping online gaming a secret would stop it spreading out to where a more dangerous hardened criminal element could discover it.
"Prowl?"
He refocused and found Lighttouch frowning at him.
"Were you dropping into a freeze then?" he was asked, the medic reaching out to connect a data cable to help him.
The others were all gone and his wrists and ankles were free of restraints, he realised belatedly. Only Lighttouch and Brass were here now, the commander waiting impatiently to the side.
"I'm fine." he assured the medic. "In fact, I haven't had a freeze the entire time I've been here."
Strange to think, but it was true. He set that fact aside for later analysis and focused on the commander.
"I'm ready to report, sir."
"Only for three breems." Lighttouch told him sharply. "Then we need to get you to a clinic and get those injuries seen to."
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Alright, Brass, he's all yours."
The medic swept out, closing the door, and Brass pulled up a chair.
"Prowl."
"Sir."
"It seems you've had an eventful few orns."
"Yes sir."
Brass consulted some notes on a datapad.
"The femme who was attacking you, who was she?"
Prowl hesitated, surprised that his commander did not already know, then realised that this was just normal debriefing procedure: get all of the details individually from each source so that nothing was overlooked.
"Her name was Slimline. I knew her back in Praxus." He paused, then said what she had revealed. "She claimed that she was the one who caused the incident there that nearly cost me my life."
That was certainly a new piece of information, and the commander looked at him sharply.
"Do you believe the claim?"
"It is difficult to be sure but yes, I believe she had both motive and the will to carry the action through. I had caught her cheating on an important test and informed her so that she could confess before I approached the tutors."
He was just about to say that it was almost the same situation here that had cost Piper his life, but held back on that. If he was right that Jazz had taken the blame to keep online gaming a secret - and thus stop anyone else from trying it - then it was better not to make this more complicated than it needed to be.
"And her attack on you now?"
"She has remained paranoid about my arrival here, seeming to believe that I have followed her. Today, however, she was particularly upset that she couldn't find Jazz and blamed me for his disappearance."
"Why would she blame you?"
"I spent some time talking to him yesterday." Prowl said blandly, musing inwardly that that was quite an understatement but determined not to give any indication of that. "She tried initially to convince Jazz that I was in some way an undesirable acquaintance, and was distraught to find that after talking to me he did not share her opinion."
"I see." Brass said in a brisk tone that suggested that he had further questions but was aware that time was passing. "So, on to Jazz. We have him in custody."
"There is no need." Prowl said firmly. "There is no evidence that he was involved in either death."
"You said he threatened you."
"He was protecting his lover." Prowl explained. "He did not realise how unstable she was, any more than anyone else did."
"We have a witness who is willing to testify that Jazz was involved in some kind of illegal programming activity."
Prowl chose his words with care.
"After an in-depth investigation into Jazz's activities I can say with confidence that none of his actions broke any law. Nor did he take any direct action which led to the death of any other mech."
"And indirectly?" Brass asked, alert to the phrasing.
Prowl held his commander's gaze evenly.
"It is well known that he did not like Veneer and that he had a contentious relationship with Piper over a period of several vorns after a foolish prank in his first vorn studying here. That said, it is equally well known that he has worked alongside Veneer on various assignments without allowing that animosity to influence him, and that he has taken classes under Piper every vorn of his study so far and has remained within the top quartile in terms of academic achievement. His grades this term were similarly high. There is no clear motive for him to have acted at this time."
"And how do you interpret his vandalism towards his computer terminal and also that of the student Icon who has also claimed Jazz bears responsibility in the deaths?"
"Jazz and Icon were both involved in a gaming club which Jazz recently left. He had written some proprietary software which he and Icon were using, and I understand there was some contention between them as to the use of it. Beyond that, I do not have enough evidence to make a judgement on what may have occurred."
Jazz felt dazed as he walked out into the corridor. Was he truly free?
When he had come online he had been in the private ward of a medical clinic. A medic had come and scanned him and informed him that he was now properly charged and fuelled, and had shown him to a small waiting room. A long, tense joor later an Enforcer had arrived to escort him out, but instead of going to the local station he had been taken back to the Academy and told to stay in his room until he was summoned. That summons had finally come the next morning, but again not to the station, just to report to a meeting room.
Inside he had found the stern Enforcer commander from the previous orn who had reprimanded him strongly for the damage he had done to Icon's computer, then walked out, leaving Jazz with a specialist who asked many questions about his programming knowledge. He was initially concerned that they wanted to know about gaming, but it soon became obvious that the technician was only interested in his thorough job of the data destruction on the terminal.
When that was finally over, he was dismissed without anyone mentioning the deaths that he had supposedly been arrested in relation to. Finding himself in the corridor, the door swishing closed behind him, he wondered if he had totally lost touch with reality. What had happened while he had been offline?
"All done?" someone asked him.
He looked around and found Prowl standing nearby.
"What the frag was all that about?"
"Checkdigit is very impressed with you." Prowl responded, gesturing for him to walk with him.
"Seems so. But you know what I mean. What happened while I was chargin'?"
"As there was no evidence of foul play, the investigation has ended." Prowl said, then glanced at him anxiously. "Did someone tell you...?"
"'Bout Slimline?" Jazz finished hoarsely. "Yeah. An' if you're thinkin' it, yeah I think he made her do it."
"But we can't prove it now, can we?"
"Nope."
They stood in silence, staring over the balcony down at a small garden three floors below.
"One thing I don't understand." Prowl commented eventually. "You destroyed his terminal, but all he needs to do is talk to someone else about what he was able to do, and they might start down the path you feared just as successfully as if you had let the trial go ahead."
"Ain't gonna happen."
"You seem very sure."
"That's cause I am."
Prowl considered that for a moment, then looked sidelong at him.
"You gamed him."
"My computer's broken, remember? There ain't even a base unit left in my room."
As though that would stop Jazz from going to another room and using a different computer, Prowl mused, remembering the mech arriving in his room through the ceiling.
"Nevertheless, you managed it."
Jazz sighed.
"Once I saw how he was doin' it, I could replicate it. I gamed him an' ev'ryone else here who ever gamed anyone, an' they ain't gonna remember a thing about it. As soon as they start thinkin' about it, their memories'll skip t'somethin' else."
"Everyone except you."
"Yeah well. Ain't quite brave enough t'game m'self. Besides, if I thought of it once, I might think of it again; better if I remember how it went wrong, too. So I guess you'll jus' have to arrest me. I've done some pretty bad stuff, after all."
"Perhaps. There is an alternative to arresting you."
"What?" Jazz scoffed. "Lettin' me kill myself? Sorry, mech, I wanna live."
"Have you ever considered joining the Enforcers?"
"Doin' what?" Jazz choked.
"Not as a common officer, but as an undercover agent." Prowl clarified. "Jazz, you are a mech with many dubious skills but also with a good spark. We could use someone like you to help catch those whose morals are less well developed. Right now you cannot complete your qualifications here; you've said as much yourself. As an Enforcer you would have training and support, and be able to use the skills that you clearly have in abundance. Skills that are very hard to come by."
"An' they'd really have me? After all this!"
"After all what?" Prowl asked lightly. "The worst thing you've done is destroy some data, which is precisely what has Checkdigit so impressed. He would be verey interested in you, should you choose to change career. Also, I would speak on your behalf. While I am still young, I have some influence with the Praxian Commander. Not that you must come to Praxus; I simply believe it would be better for everyone if we made use of your talents."
The offer was so incredibly unexpected it left Jazz speechless. Prowl seemed to understand and held his peace while Jazz tried to grasp the concept. Here he was, effectly involved in two murders, having nearly gotten Prowl killed himself, and he was being offered a future so different to the one he had spent all night thinking about.
"There's another alternative." Jazz pointed out after a moment, unable not to mention it. "You could have me wiped. Start over completely."
"If that is what you prefer." Prowl said neutrally.
Jazz shook his head. It wasn't what he wanted at all, simply what he had concluded he was going to face.
"An Enforcer." he muttered. "Never even considered bein' somethin' like that."
"It will require hard work, but I believe you will do well."
"An' maybe see more of you?"
"Highly unlikely." Prowl shook his head sharply. "Other than this one exception, I expect to spend most of my career shut away in the tactical centre."
Jazz tilted his head towards him. With all the so-called friends he had just lost, he was not going to be walking away so quickly from the one mech he thought he might actually be able to trust.
"We'll see each other around." Jazz assured him. "Count on it."
"So is that an acceptance of my offer?" Prowl asked.
"Officer Jazz." Jazz murmured, then laughed. "Well why not. Come on, mech. My life's been totally insane so far this vorn, why should it stop now? Just one thing, though."
"What is that?"
"You get t'tell my creators I'm givin' up bein' an ambassador for walkin' a beat!"
End.