Dass drove Kinnit into a seedy little house on the outskirts of Techterra and bustled her inside.

The decor was thirty years out of date, and it clearly needed years more maintenance than it had ever gotten, but at least it was relatively clean.

Dass walked into the kitchen, pulled open a drawer, and lifted out a blocky portable console. It unfolded to reveal a security screen. He plugged in his scanner to authenticate, and the screen lit up with exterior views of the house. For a few minutes Dass watched the screen, but the streets outside stayed empty. He tapped in a few commands.

"Okay, the security system is up," he said. His shoulders relaxed. "Looks like we're clear for now. I'll get a notification if anybody starts creeping around out there."

He turned back to Kinnit.

"Do you need anything right now? Are you injured? Hungry?"

"I... I'm fine."

"Okay. Why are you here?" he asked.

"You brought me here," Kinnit responded, looking around the little house.

Dass gritted his teeth.

"No, in Techterra. Why are you in Techterra?"

"Oh." Kinnit cast her eyes down. "I'd rather not say."

Dass gave her a flat look.

"I will say, I am utterly shocked that Grimthorn Stonefist, of all people, puts up with someone like you. You roll into the Navy HQ city with no leave, and no comms or coordination even though you're clearly on some kind of mission, you assault some locals, put my cover at risk which I have been using for almost ten years and now you don't feel like talking about it?"

Kinnit cringed at his harsh assessment. She pinched her lips. Dass was back in his Duroclade shape, but underneath she knew he was still a slime man. Mucilagean. Grimthorn had told her the man was trustworthy. Right behind Admiral Balia.

If she trusted Grimthorn, she had to trust Dass.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't mean for things to turn out this way. I just wanted to talk to you."

"So? Why not go through the regular channels? Grimthorn knows how to get in touch without blowing my cover."

"Grimthorn... doesn't know I'm here," she said softly.

"Ohhhh kay. See, now, I thought this was going to be complicated, but you just made it a whole lot more complicated. What's going on? And why didn't the Navy contact me about your arrival?"

Kinnit swallowed heavily.

"I'm not here on official Navy business," she said, looking at the floor. "In fact, I'm kind of not part of the Navy right now."

"I was afraid you were going to say something like that. Sit down."

Kinnit took a seat at in a cheap folding chair at the table. Dass rooted around in the kitchen and came out with a small bottle and two glasses. He poured a small amount in each glass and pushed one across the table to Kinnit.

She clapped her hands over her nose.

"Is that Terran alcohol? I can't drink Terran alcohol."

Dass sighed and carefully poured it back into the bottle. Then he poured his glass back in, too.

"I was hoping it would help you relax."

"It would relax me a little too much," she said. "You can have some, though. It won't bother me."

"Terran alcohol doesn't actually affect me," he said, shrugging. "My body metabolizes it almost instantly. Unlike you mammal-types, my body is basically 100% liver. I just drink to help put others at ease. It's useful sometimes."

"Oh."

"So. Relax as much as you can manage and tell me what's going on."

Kinnit nodded and took a deep breath.

"The short version is that we had a big operation that was leaked to the enemy. The Oryndrax? Are you familiar with--" Kinnit shook her head. "It doesn't matter. Our plan was leaked and the Oryndrax were waiting for us. We won, but it was costly."

Dass gestrured for her to go on.

"As part of the shakeout, I came under suspicion as the source of the leak. The Navy has put me on administrative leave while they investigate." Fat tears swelled in her eyes, but didn't fall.

"Hmm. Do they have cause to suspect you?"

"No!" she cried. "I could never betray the Imperium!"

"Could you have screwed up?"

Kinnit paused.

"I don't think so," she said. "We have pretty tight opsec on the Swordheart. It's possible, but I don't see how."

"If you'd just said that you hadn't screwed up, I'd be 75% of the way to believing you had. Nobody's as vulnerable to mistakes as someone who believes they're not."

Kinnit nodded miserably.

"Grimthorn thinks it was just to get me out of the Navy. He thinks the leak came from Commander Ordren's office, but I don't know if that's just because he's mad at Ordren."

"Could be, but Grimthorn's got pretty good instincts." Dass leaned back. "So that's all a fine story, but it doesn't explain why you're here."

"I'm here to investigate. I need to find evidence that I didn't leak the plans to the Oryndrax."

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"You are optimistic, aren't you? And you're not letting Grimthorn know because...?"

"He would stop me. This way I can help him, and he doesn't have to worry about me."

"I take it back. I can see why he likes you. You both have the same stubborn, bone-thumping-dumb personality."

"I'm not dumb!"

Dass raised an eyebrow.

"Usually," she amended with a blush.

"Okay. Last question. Why were you looking for me?"

"I was hoping you could help. Grimthorn said you were trustworthy, and I need help."

"I lied. I have more questions. One, really. Why should I help you?"

Kinnit's mouth fell open.

"I--" She paused for a long moment. "I thought you'd want to help Grimthorn."

"Maybe I do. I'm just wondering why I should help you."

"Grimthorn wants me back by his side. Helping me helps him."

"Oh, I don't doubt he wants you back with him." Dass' gave her a calculating gaze. "I just don't know if that helps him."

"I-- I'm a good helper!" tears stood in her eyes. "Just look at my record!"

"Okay, okay, stop that. I know your record, I already went through it all before I even picked you up. Grimthorn does need you. The idiot." He sighed. "I'll help you, but you have to help me."

"I'll do whatever it takes!"

"Okay, first rule of negotiation, don't ever say that. You have to at least pretend that you're going to hold out."

"Sorry."

"And don't apologize. Look, I'll help you with your investigation, but I need you to work for me. I need you to go undercover."

"Isn't that what you do?"

"I can't, in this case. I'm too well known. Dass is too well-known."

"Can't you just, you know..." She stuck out her tongue and squished her face with her hands.

"Rude. It's not that easy. Shifting into a new shape takes time and practice. You think it's easy moving around like I've got bones and muscles? It takes extraordinary focus and discipline. If I slip and my arm grows three inches, how do you think people would react? Look at how you reacted. I'd never make to my truck before a mob burned me to a crisp."

"Oh."

"Plus, I want a female agent for this. I never got the knack for female shapes."

"Are you male? I thought sl-- Mucilageans were sexless."

"We are, but female shapes are complicated. People pay a lot more attention to them. If a male looks blocky or distorted, nobody really notices."

"I guess that makes sense." Kinnit thought for a moment. "Well, if I can help you, I'll do it." She stuck out her hand. Dass shook it firmly. Now that she knew a little more, she marveled at how realistic Dass' hand felt in hers. There was nothing in the feel of it to suggest that it was only hand-shaped by force of Dass' will.

"Okay. Good. Now, to get the information you want, you'll probably need to infiltrate CenCom at some point. For my task, I'll need you to infiltrate the Electroveil Collective. Either way, you're going into deep cover. You'll need a new identity. Your name is no longer Kinnit, and you're not a Kobold."

"Got it."

"We'll work you up an identity later. You need to get rid of anything incriminating. I'll get you a clean scanner. Yours will have to be destroyed."

Kinnit flinched but nodded.

"I can do that," she said.

"No, I'll do it," Dass responded. "It needs to be done right. Oh, and your Navy uniform. We'll have to burn it. I have an incinerator in the back yard."

"No!" she cried.

"Eh?"

"I... don't want you to burn my uniform."

"Why not?"

Kinnit thought about mentioning how she'd had to get it custom-fitted, how it would be destroying Navy property, how it was disrespectful to the Navy if the Imperium, but in the end she decided to just tell the truth.

"It's important to me."

Dass groaned.

"I can't believe this. You are going to get yourself killed. Then you're going to get me killed, when Grimthorn finds out I helped you. Why am I helping you again?"

"You need me to infiltrate the Electroveil Collective?"

"Right, right." He sighed. "Well let's get started training you."

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Grimthorn strode down the broad, cold halls of the Cryptographer's ship, following the pale young handler.

"Right this way, Admiral."

The young man led him into one of the conference rooms. A tall, shadowed Cryptographer stood behind the low, round table. The young man walked around to stand beside the Cryptographer.

Grimthorn had a pounding headache. He'd spent the last few days ruthlessly containing his fury, and being in the presence of a Cryptographer filled his mind with unreasonable terror, nearly overwhelming his capacity for rational thought.

The effort of forcing his face smooth was almost beyond him.

The Cryptographer chittered in its strange language. The young man-- translator now, Grimthorn supposed-- began speaking.

"It is surprising for you to contact us, Admiral Stonefist. We did not foresee this."

"Yeah, you guys didn't foresee a lot of stuff. But now I need your help."

The Cryptographer spread its talons and skittered more.

"We are aligned in purpose," the young man translated. "Tell us what you need."

Grimthorn put his knuckles on the table and leaned forward.

"I need your help to kill a man," he said.

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Kinnit-- no, she was Tazrika now, she had to remember that-- Tazrika walked down the street.

She wrapped her new personality as tightly as she held her tattered cloak around her. The hood was up, but the sides were flared out so she could maintain at least a little peripheral vision.

Tazrika and Dass were in a new safehouse closer to the center of the city. Dass had sent her out to get a few groceries. He claimed he was sending her out so she could get some practice walking around and living in her new identity, but she suspected he was using that as an excuse to make her do all the errands.

She was keeping her eyes up. There were a few blocks to the nearest grocer, but she was certain that someone was following her. It looked like a lizardman. He wasn't especially subtle.

Her breath starting to come in gasps as she sped up a little. She was nearly to the grocer.

The lizardman darted forward and stepped in front of her. Tazrika jerked to a stop and opened her cloak, exposing her claws.

She took him in at a glance, and suddenly didn't like her chances in a fight. He was tall, nearly as tall as Grimthorn, though much leaner, with flat, ropy muscles. His skin was emerald green and looked tough. His triangular head tilted as he gazed down at her. His mouth was full of yellowed sawblade teeth.

Tazrika's mind went back to Dass' lessons.

"When in doubt, you bluff," he'd said. "Confidence will get you out of more scrapes than a blaster."

Tazrika mentally set herself.

"What do you want?" she snarled.

"Hey, you. You're one of us, aren't you?"

Tazrika sneered.

"I'm no lizardman. I'm a K-- a Gripple."

"Aw, no, don't be like that, little hatchling. All I meant is that you're an SS. The good kind."

"What do you mean 'good kind?'"

"The kind that shreds up Terrans."

Tazrika backed away slowly, her teeth bared, ready to bolt.

"I don't know what you mean."

"You sure? Rumors say a short thing fitting your description tore up three Terrans over in the Old District. Put 'em in the hospital. One of 'em's gonna be eating through a tube for the rest of his life, is what I hear."

She pulled her hood more tightly around her face and shrank from him.

"That wasn't me."

"Hey, hey, no fret, I'm not MP. I won't turn you in. I'm with you. Mega respect. If you can take on three Terrans and come out on top, you're a mad terror."

He sidled closer to her and dropped his voice.

"You're not alone," he said. "There's others that feel like you do." He looked around and dropped his voice lower. "Come to warehouse seventeen in Rusthollow Quarters, in the industrial district, if you want to know more. Tell 'em Krassik sent you."

Before she could do more than look confused, the lizardman backed up, turned, and walked off in a fast shuffle.

----------------------------------------

Dass' jaw was clenched as Tazrika finished relaying her encounter with the lizardman.

"Ohhhhh kay," he said. "Okay." He rubbed his eyes. "It's alarming that they were able to find you so quickly."

"Sorry."

"There's a gap in our opsec. That's for me to figure out." He sighed and looked at her. "You realize we haven't started yet, right?"

"What do you mean?"

"Girl, you've just been invited into the Electroveil Collective. The operation starts now."