Kivi can presumably find anyone anywhere, but it helps to have a general
idea of where they are. If their targets had run off to hide in Croatia, for
instance, she probably would have never found them unless someone tipped
them off to this fact. Fortunately, her SD6 team is not the only interested
party. Investigators from multiple departments have been looking into the
bombing of the former Balance of Power studios, and they do not believe that
the culprits have managed to get out of the city. They’re still in New York,
and as long as she doesn’t get distracted again, Kivi can take it from
there. That’s not all the other investigators found.
A small group known as the Weighers of Justices have claimed responsibility
for the attack. This is a new organization; so new that organization is a
strong word to use for them. They say that they’re loyal to Solomon Powers
and his legacy, and were retaliating against Leona’s legal killing of him,
and her takeover of his microsovereignty. They’ve not released names, or
shown themselves on camera, so this could all be a red herring, but Kivi and
the other members of her team don’t care. Understanding motive is not part
of their job descriptions. They just have to find these assholes.
It’s called a Pyramid Whelm. In a standard square or rectangular building,
two members of the tactical team will take up positions on corners diagonal
from each other. This allows them to watch for escape attempts from all side
doors. A third member will take up a position on the roof, in case someone
has some way out via helicopter or wingsuit, or something like that. When
the main door of any given building is breached by two more tack team
members, anyone hoping to evade capture will usually instinctively move to
the back. The final two team members will be waiting for them at that exit.
This is the most efficient use of a seven-member team, but it is a scalable
tactic. A group totaling fourteen can double up on each position, or spread
across a larger area, depending on necessity, threat level, and resource
inventory. A single-family home can probably be contained with a single
team, but an abandoned bulk store, for example, may need some extra people
to cover all bases, but the same vaguely pyramidal formation is used in
either case.
Before the Whelm comes the recon, which is when a single person, or maybe
two people, attempt to gather as much information about a target location as
possible before anyone else goes in. This is especially useful in urgent
cases such as this, but it’s also risky if a security system tips the
targets off to the oncoming containment. That’s what Kivi is supposed to be
doing right now at that abandoned bulk story. But she’s not just doing it
for her team, because they’re not preparing a Pyramid Whelm today. This is
called a Deluge Configuration. It’s basically when every able-bodied law
enforcer in the area comes out, and dominates a target location. This has
become such an important case, despite the fact that no one was severely
hurt, that everyone wants a piece of it. Leona Matic has her detractors—case
in point, the bombing—but for the most part, she’s become very popular.
People want to see the bad guys go down for this, so every department has a
strong incentive to get it done quickly, and unambiguously.
Kivi does not feel the same way that everyone else does, and she knows that
neither does Leona. That’s why she’s going to secretly convert the recon
mission into a capture mission. She does not have the training or experience
to take on all these guys on her own, but she’s doing it anyway, because
it’s the safest way to go about it. It’s also the most rational, or maybe
it’s more that a Deluge Configuration is an insane tactic. First of all,
these people are bombers. This whole structure could be rigged up with
explosives, which would put hundreds in needless danger. Secondly, when you
have this many people who don’t even know each other, it would be incredibly
easy for the suspects to slip away in the chaos. She refuses to let that
happen.
As Kivi is double-checking her count of the suspects, Paula crawls up to
her. “What are you doing here?” Kivi whispers. “You’re supposed to be
hunting for underground exit points.”
“You think I’m going to let you do this alone?”
“It’s my job. I’m the Spotter.”
“Yes, but you’re not just spotting, are you? You were just about to go in
alone.”
How does she know that? “What makes you say that?”
“I could see it in your eyes. Maybe I should be the Spotter.”
Kivi frowns. “The Deluge—”
“Is the dumbest thing that some guy with a computer keyboard came up with
two hundred years ago. There’s a reason that the SD6 has never employed it
once, because it doesn’t work. We’re surgical, that’s the whole point of a
seven-person tack team.”
The Technician, Hurst crawls up to their position on the catwalk. “Hey, are
we doing this, or what?”
Right behind him are Corolla, Hartwin, Klein, and Alserda. Now the whole
team is here. “Are you mad?” Kivi asks their leader.
“No, you had the right idea, just the wrong tactic,” Alserda says. “We’re
doing Hermit Crab Formation,” she orders.
“I’m not familiar with that one,” Kivi says.
Lieutenant Klein looks between Kivi and Corolla. “You’re in back.”
“Because I’m the newest?”
“Because you’re the smallest,” Alserda clarifies.
Hermit crabs live in shells created by other organisms. When one specimen
grows out of its shell, it has to find a new one. So what they’ll do is get
in a line next to each other, and trade shells one right after the other. In
this case, Hermit Crab formation dictates the largest member of the tactical
team approach the targets in front, hopefully giving the impression that
there is only one person about to attack them. As soon as the targets see
that an enemy is coming, and the tactical advantage of the ruse is lost, the
crabs in back will break formation, and begin the attack using whatever means
necessary and authorized. Despite the fact that two people on the team have
never done this before, their technique serves them well. All bombing
suspects are apprehended without anyone firing a single shot.
Once it’s over, Alserda conducts a brief interrogation in an attempt to
ascertain whether there are any impending attacks. This is when they learn
the truth. These guys never cared about their former boss, Solomon Powers.
There was a vault in the sub-basement, which they robbed. The explosion was
just to cover their tracks. They refuse to say where the money is, though.
“That isn’t our problem,” Paula advises Kivi.
Kivi turns away, realizing that she’s right, and feeling a sense of relief
in this truth. She’s not responsible for detecting clues, extracting
confessions, or prosecuting crimes. She finds people; that’s it. What
happens afterwards is out of her hands. Then again, that was Leona’s money.
Maybe Kivi is responsible for recovering it after all.
