The Trial of Governor-General Franklin Simpson (Semi-Open)

[The Isle of Beithe]

OOC: This roleplay is a spin-off "The Dawn of Independence." See viewtopic.php?f=5&t=451949&p=34778078. This is semi-open, invite only. Please telegram me to join.

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20 OCTOBER 2018

SPECIAL EDITION

FIRED GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF HARVEST ISLAND FACES INTERNAL INVESTIGATION, POSSIBLE CRIMINAL CHARGES
International Community Disturbed by Governor-General's Alleged Use of "Excessive Force"

AUTHOR: Anthony Gordon-Brown
EDITOR: Linda Johannson

As the troubles on Harvest Island continue, the protectorate’s former Governor-General, Franklin Simpson, is facing his own problems back home on the Beithen mainland. After being summarily removed from office by the High Council, Mr. Simpson has become the subject of a federal investigation regarding his actions on Tuesday, 16 October 2018.

Tuesday’s confrontation between Beithen marines and protesters initially resulted in 36 fatalities, 64 injuries of varying degree, and more than a hundred arrests. Late yesterday afternoon, a young woman who had been hospitalized following a gunshot wound to the chest died despite the best efforts of surgeons at Harvest Island General Hospital, thereby bringing the number of fatalities to 37 persons.

Governor-General Franklin was removed from office on Tuesday evening by order of the High Council and subsequently requested to report to Capitol City for questioning by the Federal Bureau of Internal Administration’s Office of Special Investigations. After being promptly arrested upon his return to the Beithen mainland on Wednesday afternoon, the former Governor-General spent a day in federal custody before being released on a $500,000 bond.

Mr. Simpson is presently staying in a hotel in Capitol City. The court has restricted him from leaving the city until the disposition of his case has been finalized. Mr. Simpson has relinquished both his passport and driver’s license into the court’s custody. The National Herald has tried repeatedly to contact Mr. Simpson, but he has refused our interview requests.

The Attorney-General’s office has filed charges against Mr. Simpson in the federal Court of Internal Administration for “Misconduct by a Government Official — Unspecified.” Following the completion of the Federal Bureau of Internal Administration’s investigation of Mr. Simpson’s conduct, the court will decide whether to dismiss the charge or whether to escalate the charge as “general misconduct” or “gross misconduct.” General misconduct can be prosecuted as either a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up 6-months imprisonment and up to $1000 in fines, or as a fifth-degree felony, punishable by up to 18-month imprisonment and up to $5000 in fines. Should the court rule that Mr. Simpson be prosecuted for gross misconduct—a “high crime” under federal code and classified as a first-degree felony that may be punishable by life in prison—the case will be bound over to the High Council. Per the Constitution of Beithe, the High Council has sole authority over the adjudication of all high crimes.

Regardless of the severity of the final charges, should he be found guilty of official misconduct, the former Governor-General of Harvest Island will be permanently barred from holding further government offices, denied federal civil servant retirement pay, lose his right to vote in elections, and may be subject to other social and economic ramifications. In exemplary circumstances, government officials found guilty of misconduct have been stripped of Beithen citizenship and deported from the country.

Elias Autumn, a federal senator from Dover, announced on Thursday that he will be representing Mr. Simpson pro bono. Senator Autumn and Simpson are longtime friends who had served together in the Beithe Navy. Before his career in elected office, Autumn had served five years as a federal prosecutor for the Eastern District and three years as a private criminal defense attorney. As a prosecutor, Autumn had twice battled President Ehrich Kemp in the courtroom during the president’s legal career. Senator Autumn currently serves as chairman of the Senate Internal Administration Committee, as well as vice-chairman of the Senate Justice Committee, and he has voluntarily recused himself from these roles until finalization of Simpson’s case.

A pretrial hearing in the case of Federal v. Franklin A. Simpson has been scheduled for Monday 22 October 2018 at 1030.

The ongoing conflict on Harvest Island and the former Governor-General’s alleged use of excessive force has come under international scrutiny. There have been outcries by some foreign governments for the extradition of Franklin Simpson to an international tribunal. President Kemp has publicly refused to extradite Mr. Simpson, stating that such action would “be in direct violation of the constitution (of Beithe), and furthermore would represent not only a spiritual assault against the sovereignty of the Isle of Beithe, but would also be an insult to the competency and integrity of our federal government -- insinuating that Beithe is incapable of managing its internal affairs with efficiency and jurisprudence.” To appease the international community, however, the president has invited foreign delegates to Beithe to participate as independent investigators of Simpson’s conduct. Thus far, only one foreign government, the Liaoist Federation of Stoklomolvi, has accepted President Kemp’s invitation.

The National Herald conducted interviews with random citizens to ascertain the national public’s attitudes towards the Harvest Island affair and the actions of Governor-General Simpson. Most persons interviewed stated that they support the federal investigation but do not believe Mr. Simpson will be found guilty. A notable minority of respondents vocalized not only adamant support for the prosecution of Simpson for government misconduct, but also advocated for manslaughter charges. Roberta Milligan, a prominent freelance blogger and founding-member of the National Association of Single Mothers, spoke to National Herald reporters on her way to drop-off her ten-month old son at daycare. “It’s an outrage!” shouted Ms. Milligan as she tried to console her crying infant. “People should be allowed to protest freely without having to worry about armed soldiers breathing down their neck! That’s not the environment I want my little cupcake to grow up in! Whatever happened to free speech? This country’s turning into more of a police-state every day!” We also interviewed Mr. “Rusty Shackleford" (he refuses to divulge his real name), the lanky, mustachioed man who always adorns sunglasses and a baseball cap and who frequently loiters outside The National Herald’s Capitol City office, waiting to speak with our reporters. As usual, Mr. “Shackleford” had a unique perspective of the Simpson case and described the former Governor-General as a “hero” and a “scapegoat.” Furthermore, “Shackleford” alleged a “conspiracy at highest-echelons of the federal government.”

[Stoklomolvi]

Ocean somewhere near the Isle of Beithe
0300 hours, overcast skies, fog

The fleet admiral in charge of the escort stood in the bridge, looking towards his destination through a pair of rangefinders. His ship was the largest in the escort fleet, one of ten combat vessels. It was a nuclear battle cruiser, which served as the flagship of the fleet. Together, his ships protected the convoy transport that carried the investigation team that would be looking into the case against Governor-General Franklin Simpson. Intelligence and intercepted transmissions reported that there was hostile naval presence somewhere around the Isle of Beithe, though without more detailed reconnaissance, it was impossible to ascertain the positions of hostile forces. All of the admiral's ships flew the white flag of peace below their Stoklomolvi naval ensigns in hopes that they would not be fired upon. The Stoklomolvi ships were not unarmed, though the admiral had given standing orders to hold fire unless fired upon.

Aboard the convoy transport was Investigator Artyom Ivanov and his team of subordinates. He was in his study, researching the current political situation on the Island of Harvest and the political situation with the rest of the Isle of Beithe. So far, there was no anticipation of any obstructions of justice on the part of the Beithe government or anyone else involved in Simpson's case. He sent a message to the relevant Beithen naval authorities to inform them of his and his fleet's presence.

He hoped for continued smooth sailing until he and his team were able to disembark onto Beithen shores. Under a sullen grey sky which threatened rain, his convoy steamed forward.

[The Isle of Beithe]

BNS Frederick Duman (CVG-308)
Flagship of the Beithe 1st Homeland Fleet
South Pacific Ocean, approximately 120 nautical miles from northwestern Beithen coast.
21 October 2018. 0345.


Aboard her flagship, the Aberdeen-class heavy cruiser BNS Frederick Duman, Admiral Sarah Wilson-McCann (Commander, Beithe 1st Homeland Fleet), sat in the flag bridge and studied the data on her command & control system's console. She had been observing the movement of the Stoklomolvian fleet for a while now, receiving intermittent reports from satellite surveillance and Beithen spy drones and she had been able to roughly-estimate the composition of the Stoklomolvian fleet. She had been closely monitoring the location of the Japanese fleet, as well, but it appeared that they would not be a problem for now: the Japanese activity was confined to the northeast, near the protectorate of Harvest Island.

When the Stoklomolvian fleet had entered radar range of 1st Fleet, Adm. Wilson-McCann had ordered her ships to the enter into the pre-arranged formation. The 1st and 2nd Cruiser flotillas would flank the Stoklomolvian fleet from the west and east, respectively, to provide primary protection for the Stoklomolvians. The anti-submarine and anti-aircraft task forces -- each comprised of specialized destroyers and frigates -- would sail in a protective ring around the cruiser flotillas and the Stoklomolvian fleet. The fleet's various coastal defense diesel-electric submarines would also be on guard, of course.

Adm. Wilson-McCann sent a communique to the commander of the Stoklomolvian fleet, greeting them and assuring that they would receive safe passage into Beithen territorial waters. The Stoklomolvian was informed that Beithe's 1st Fleet would be entering into a defensive formation around them -- and asked that they not be alarmed. The communique ended with notification that, once they had entered Beithen territorial waters, the Beithe Air National Guard would dispatch a helicopter to transfer the foreign investigation team to the coastal city of Newport in Beithe's northwest, from whence a regional jet owned by the Beithen federal government would then transfer the team to Capitol City. Should there be no delays, the investigation team would be in Capitol City by early Monday morning, just in time to meet with Beithe's federal investigators before the pretrial hearing for Franklin Simpson.

[The Isle of Beithe]

viewtopic.php?p=34819934#p34819934

[Stoklomolvi]

[OOC: National demonym is just "Stoklomolvi", if you please. Thanks! Also, I'm going to skip a little bit to landing in Newport to make up for lost time; sorry about the delayed post. Feel free to control my characters a bit until they're at the briefings.]

The fleet admiral sent a notification to Artyom informing him of the Beithen naval presence. Relieved that the Beithen forces would be available to assist the Stoklomolvi naval assets in the event of anything gone awry, Artyom studied the case files in preparation for the hearings and prepared to retire for bed. Between the admiral and the Beithen fleet, the two parties communicated their mutual approaches and coordinated the helicopter landing on the convoy vessel. It was estimated that the Stoklomolvi escort fleet would be able to enter Beithen territorial waters some time after sunrise at its current pace. The 1st Fleet surrounded the Stoklomolvi fleet, lending the admiral some time to coordinate with Artyom the helicopter escort procedure.

Artyom emerged from his quarters aboard the convoy vessel and was greeted by an oppressively bright sun. The skies had cleared up. He and his subordinates had been able to have some comfortable sleep for the first time since they approached the Isle of Beithe, their insomnia largely due to the unpredictable conflict that loomed nearby.

"Sir," said Detective Mikhail with a stiff salute, "the Beitheans' helicopter is due to arrive in around ten minutes. They have asked the fleet admiral to inform us to prepare to leave for the mainland."

Artyom, still rather sleepy, returned the salute. "Very well. Our destination?"

They both dropped their salutes. Mikhail looked at his electronic tablet. "It appears to be the city of Newport, sir."

"Anything of note?" pondered Artyom, fighting a yawn.

"Sir?"

"As in, what should we be expecting after we land?"

"It does not appear that we will be in Newport for long, sir," reported Mikhail, reading from his tablet, "However, Newport is in the wealthy state of Kent, so we should not be expecting any trouble."

Artyom leaned back in his deck chair. "Excellent."

The pair sat on the deck of the convoy ship, enjoying some breakfast tea and biscuits. The rest of the team also started assembling on the deck, partaking in their morning meal while waiting for the Beithen helicopter to arrive. It did not take long for the team to see the helicopter flying overhead. It was quite clear that this helicopter was the one sent by the Beithe Air National Guard.

The group boarded the helicopter together. Naval intelligence indicated that they should have no fear of any hostile anti-air in the area, so the team resumed their morning meal aboard the helicopter. Artyom opted to take a nap instead; he did not like eating while on board flying vehicles. The flight took a very short time relative to the time spent crossing the seas, much to Artyom's relief.

Landing Pad, Newport
Kent, Isle of Beithe
21 October 2018

The Beithen helicopter touched down in Newport and stopped with a shudder. Their next destination would presumably be the Capitol City of Beithe to receive their briefings for the Franklin Simpson case. On the ground, Artyom left the helicopter and leaned on the outer shell.

"Sir, you look a little pale," commented Mikhail.

Artyom groaned and looked away. "Th-that's just your imagination. I'm f-fine."

"Sir, did you grow more grey hairs on the helicopter?"

"You leave my hair out of this!" retorted Artyom. Mikhail smirked at him. "Yes, sir."

Artyom's phone rang. "This is Artyom. Uh-huh. Right. Really?"

Mikhail raised an eyebrow at him.

"Hmm. All right, understood. Yes, sir. Understood." Artyom put his phone away. "Well, Misha, it looks like my superiors have transferred control of the investigative team."

"Sir?"

Artyom shrugged. "We're under the command of Interpol, now. It... really doesn't change much, does it?"

"Hmm..." said Mikhail, before shaking his head "no". "I don't think it does, sir. Shall I inform the Beitheans?"

"Yes, please do so," was all Artyom could muster before returning to bracing against the helicopter. "Urgh, go have Yula make me some ginger tea... please."

Mikhail saluted him. "Right away, sir."

[The Isle of Beithe]

NEWPORT JOINT ARMED FORCES COMPLEX
Newport, Kent, Western District, Isle of Beithe
21 October 2018. 0916 Beithen Standard Time (BTST) / 2116 ZULU

Sub-Lieutenant Brody Robertson, Beithe Navy JAG Corps, was not having a good morning. His rusty, maroon 2003 KIA Optima had struggled to start this morning again, and the AC had finally crapped out, forcing the young naval lawyer to drive along Kent State Highway 16 with the windows down on this characteristically humid morning in coastal Newport. Some loose papers had nearly blown out the passenger’s side window, and as Robertson struggled to save the documents, he’d inadvertently spilled coffee on his shirt. (Fortunately, the Beithe Navy had just transitioned from the summer-white service dress uniform to the winter-blue season, and the sub-lieutenant had his black over-jacket in the car.)

Robertson’s Optima squealed to a halt just as the helicopter transporting the foreign investigators appeared on the horizon. Waiting near the helipad, two Beithe Federal Marshals—a freakishly large (6’5”), bald man and a petite, curly-red-haired woman—turned their heads; the male officer seemed annoyed, Robertson thought.

“Alright, sailor, you can do this,” Robertson assured himself out-loud. He’d always given himself a pep talk before starting an assignment—and this would be his most important assignment thus far. Only seven months out of law school, Robertson considered it an honor to be selected to assist a foreign investigative team in a case that had made global headlines. The sub-lieutenant’s function would be strictly administrative grunt work, the kind any competent paralegal could perform, but Robertson did not mind.

The helicopter carrying the Stoklomolvis had entered a holding pattern over Newport Joint Armed Forces Complex as it awaited permission to land.

“You didn’t bring the coffee and donuts?” Officer (Senior Grade) Justin Kilgore asked Sub-Lt. Robertson as the navy lawyer approached the helipad. Robertson, who was 5’4” and slightly pudgy, became visibly unnerved by the monstrously sized marshal. Kilgore couldn’t hold his laughter, and suddenly, his stern facial expression shifted to genuine friendliness as he said, “I’m just messing with you, man.”

“Oh, I see; yeah, good one,” Robertson replied, feigning a chuckle.

“Justin loves messing with naval officers, particularly staff officers like lawyers and doctors. It’s due to repressed feelings of intellectual inferiority that are exacerbated by his past life as a brain-dead sergeant in the Highlander’s Brigade,” explained Supervisory Officer Christine Lyman.

“Thanks, Miss Freud. I’m glad you omitted the Oedipus complex this time.” Kilgore rolled his eyes.

The Beithe Navy helicopter approached, and a National Guard airman yelled over the roar of its propellers, “Sirs, ma’am, can you please step back to behind the red lines on the pavement?” He then waved his LED wand at the helicopter and towards the landing zone.

When the helicopter had landed, the National Guard airman opened the door for the Stoklomolvis. He saluted Artyom and Mikhail. (The airman, a 19-year old with barely a year’s service experience, could not remember the rules regarding honorific gestures towards foreign delegates, but he’d figured he should play it safe.)

The Beithe Federal Marshals and Sub-Lt. Robertson gave the Stoklomolvis a few minutes to collect themselves. Artyom appeared to need it.

After Artyom had finished his phone call, Sub-Lt. Robertson walked forward and extended his hand, introducing himself: “Good morning, sirs, and warm welcomes to the Isle of Beithe! Hope your journey has been pleasant! I’m Sub-Lieutenant Brody James Robertson, Beithe Navy Judge Advocate General Corps, Western District Division, adjunct counsel-liaison to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. You can call me either “B.J.” or “Bud.” I’ve been assigned to assist you with navigating Beithen law and judicial precedence—and any other services you may need. How do you do, sirs?”

“And we’re just ghosts,” joked Officer Kilgore. Officer Lyman subsequently elbowed him in the rib-cage.

——
OOC (1): Demonyms are always tricky. For reference, the demonym for Beithe is “Beithean.” The demonymic adjective is “Beithen,” unless you’re referring to an official national entity (e.g., military formation, government agency), in which case we use the proper noun “Beithe” adjectivally.

OOC (2): If you’ve never watched JAG, my reference may be lost on you.

OOC (3): After this initial meeting, we probably should jump forward to the briefings/pre-trial hearing in Capitol City. Let me know in advance if your investigators will be interviewing Mr. Simpson, or if they will be speaking only with Beithe’s federal investigators.

EDIT -- OOC (4): Shortly, I'll submit a compilation of Beithe's government's evidence against Simpson.

[The Isle of Beithe]

BEITHE SUPREME COURT BUILDING
FEDERAL COURT OF INTERNAL ADMINISTRATION
Capitol City, State of Capitol City, Southern District, Isle of Beithe
22 October 2018 0730 BTST

A modest conference room had been prepared for the Stoklomolvi investigators and agents from Beithe's federal Office of Special Investigations.

Special Agent Vincent Walton and Senior Special Agent Ludwig von Olgorf sipped on coffee and chatted casually. In a rear corner stood a man wearing a tacky, yellow tweed jacket over a bright red dress shirt, who smoked from a pipe as he read a novella. The man had not given his name, but to many, he was known as simply "Mr. Donaldson." Neither agent Walton nor von Olgorf knew why this man had been invited, but they instinctively recognized him as Central Security Service agent and knew better than to ask questions.

"What's up with these foreigners getting their noses into our internal business? Agent von Olgorf asked Agent Walton.

"Hmph, don't know and don't care," replied Walton. "Here's a better question for you: what's with this coffee? It tastes like it was brewed through a musty gym sock."

Down the hall from the conference room, Assistant Attorney-General William Stanford looked in a mirror and adjusted his short wig. "God, I hate these things, so itchy" he said aloud. "Makes me dread coming to the Supreme Court." (Beithe's federal Supreme Court and its immediately subordinate courts were the only Beithen courts that still used traditional, British-style court dress.)

Outside the court building, Franklin Simpson and his attorney, Senator Elias Autumn, pulled into the parking lot.

[The Isle of Beithe]

OOC: I’ve realized that I’d mentioned coffee an inordinate number of times in my last two posts. I think it’s obvious what had been on my mind as I’d groggily drafted those posts.

[The Isle of Beithe]

OOC: I figured I'd toss in some background info regarding Beithe's federal protectorates, copy/pasted from my national factbook. Included are two historical cases of protectorates experiencing conflict with Beithe's federal government.

FEDERAL PROTECTORATES OF THE ISLE OF BEITHE

Beithe maintains three federal protectorates: Sunvale Island (population 3,536), Harvest Island (population 64,798), and Westford Island (population 42,856). They are located 43, 67, and 81 miles, respectively, from the Isle of Beithe (“the mainland,” as the islanders call it). Each protectorate is semi-independent, rarely receiving interference from Beithe’s federal government.

Legal Status

Though these small islands had been protectorates under the former Federal Republic of Beithe, their precise legal status had remained uncertain until the formation of the new Beithen government in 1948. The revised constitution described in detail the status and rights of the three islands and their citizens, summarized below.

* All persons born in the protectorate islands are granted full Beithen citizenship, with access to Beithen passports and protection of the federal government of Beithe while travelling abroad
* Citizens of the protectorate islands must pay Beithen federal income taxes, but at a rate of no more than 75% of that established for mainland residents
* All businesses operating in protectorate islands must pay Beithen federal taxes, but at a rate of no more than 75% of that established for mainland businesses
* Protectorate islands are granted protection by the Beithe Armed Forces, and protectorate islands may not form their own military forces
* Protectorate islands will recognize the President of the High Council of Beithe as their head of state
* Protectorate islands are subject to all Beithe's federal laws unless explicitly exempted
* Protectorate islands are granted the right to establish their own governments, and the structure and operation of such governments may be established without input or interference from the federal government of Beithe, so as long as such government does not initiate actions that conflict with Beithe federal law

Over two dozen laws have been passed since 1948 to further clarify the status of the federal protectorates and their inhabitants.


Government

Each federal protectorate maintains its own constitution and set of laws.

Protectorate governments are led by a Governor, who is elected once every four years (except for Harvest Island, where the governor serves for six years). Unlike their mainland counterparts, protectorate governors are not granted absolute executive, legislative, and judicial power. While the specific authority of the office varies between each island, in general the governors are strictly chief executive officers. Harvest Island grants its governor the ability to vote in the island’s legislative body, the House of Commons, but the governor’s vote does not outweigh the vote of other members.

In addition to its internal governor, each protectorate has a Governor-General who is selected by the Beithen federal High Council. Though technically the equivalent of a district commissioner on the mainland, the Governor-General is often regarded as a figurehead on the islands.

Harvest Island and Westford Island each have a unicameral legislature called the House of Commons. The Harvest Island legislature has fourteen representatives from various districts who are elected every 3 years on a rotating basis (i.e., half of the legislature is elected every 3 years). On Harvest Island, the governor is also a voting member of the House of Commons, bringing the total number of members to 15. Legislative actions require at least a 60% vote of approval (9 votes) to become law. On Westford Island, the House of Commons is comprised of 5 members who are each elected every four years, and legislative actions require a majority vote to become law.

Sunvale Island, the smallest of the protectorates, has a 5-member House of Commons like Westford Island, but the legislative body operates differently from the other two protectorates. Members of the Sunvale House of Commons draft legislation, but approval or rejection is determined through direct democracy. Townhall meetings are held at the Sunvale Island capitol building every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. At the end of the Friday evening meeting, a list of proposed legislation is presented. Voting occurs on Saturday afternoons, and the results are announced on Saturday evening.

Military Facilities

The Beithe Navy and the Beithe Coast Guard maintain a shared base on each protectorate island. Both Harvest Island and Westford Island also have a National Guard Base. The National Guard maintains an air strip on Sunvale Island but does not actively station troops there.

Willowick Naval Base on Harvest Island houses the headquarters of the Beithe Joint Expeditionary Command (Pacific & Indian Oceans).


Federal Government Facilities

Asides from the military, the Governor-General, and a group of Transportation Security Service (TSS) agents at each island’s regional airport, the federal government of Beithe does not maintain a permanent presence on the protectorate islands. Each island has a small federal office building whose only permanent employees are the Governor-General, the Governor-General's staff (usually 3 or 4 people), a senior TSS agent, and maintenance and security personnel provided by the Beithen military. The federal building contains vacant offices and apartments for the rare instances of visits from federal government officials.

Relationship with the Federal Government


Federal v. Protectorate of Westford Island (1988)

Since 1948, the self-governing protectorate islands have experienced minimal interference from the federal government of Beithe. Though the Governor-Generals appointed by the High Council may veto any law by the protectorate governments if they feel it conflicts with Beithe federal law, this has occurred only once, when in 1988 the Westford Island House of Commons voted to ban private ownership of firearms. The law was enacted in response to an increase in gun violence on the island over the previous decade. (In one notable instance a year earlier, a man opened fire on a busy supermarket with a modified, fully-automatic AK-47, killing 12 and injuring 2 before turning a .45-caliber revolver on himself. This was a singular event, however, as most of the gun violence on Westford Island was related to organize crime.) The island’s Governor-General, Tobias Smith, immediately vetoed the legislation, arguing that it violated the Beithen constitution, which he claimed specifically granted the right to bear arms. Smith’s action infuriated the Westford islanders. Back on the mainland, the fiercely pro-gun majority was equally infuriated. Dana Wolfe, Governor of Westford Island, pled to the High Council to rule on the matter, but the High Council elected to delegate the case to the federal Supreme Court. The High Council also temporarily recalled Tobias Smith as Governor-General, partially to appease the enraged Westford islanders but also for Smith’s own safety (ironically, he had received multiple death threats).

To the surprise of the public, the Supreme Court ruled 4-1 in favor of the Westford Island government in Federal v. Protectorate of Westford Island. The court ruled, that while the constitution of Beithe permitted the private ownership of firearms, it did not specifically establish gun ownership as an inalienable right. The court’s findings also referenced a section of the constitution regarding the rights of the protectorate islands which stated, “the governments of aforementioned protectorates of the Allied States of the Isle of Beithe shall be permitted the freedom to establish without hindrance all necessary measures to ensure law-and-order within their jurisdiction.” On the eve of the Federal v. Protectorate of Westford Island decision, President Alistair MacDonald publicly stated that he commended the Supreme Court judges for their “rational decision-making, and for their professionalism throughout this controversial affair.” The president also commended Tobias Smith for “displaying the utmost integrity by acting as he’d seen most prudent, despite knowing both the political and personal ramifications of such a decision… leadership—the toughest test of a man’s character—at times means making an unpopular decision.”

Following the court’s decision, Tobias Smith returned to Westford Island to resume his duties as Governor-General. He remained in that office for 18 months and was later elected to the Beithe Senate as a representative from his home state of Lancaster, serving three terms.

Though Federal v. Protectorate of Westford Island has remained the most-notable instance of the protectorate governments coming into conflict with the federal government (and the only instance of a Governor-General using their authority to veto a protectorate government’s legislation), there have been eight cases presented to either the High Council or Supreme Court since 1948, the most recent of which occurred in 2015. In 2017, the Beithe Senate passed legislation that established the Court of the Federal Protectorates, a judicial body subordinate to the federal Supreme Court and which is tasked solely with handling cases related to the protectorate islands and their citizens.


Federal v. Timothy J. Albertson, Jr. (2000)

In addition to controversies over the sovereignty of the protectorate governments, the legal status of its citizens has come under scrutiny. In 1997, a 43-year old Harvest Island native who had been living in Sheffield, Sydney for thirteen years applied for a government job and was subsequently arrested for failing to meet his military service obligations under the National Conscription Statue of 1972. (Under the 1972 law, natives of the protectorate islands were exempted from conscription requirements unless they permanently relocated to the Beithen mainland.) The man contested the charges but was found guilty by a jury. After multiple appeals, his case escalated to the federal Supreme Court in 2000. In Federal v. Timothy J. Albertson, Jr., the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favor of the defendant, stating that the National Conscription Statute was too vague regarding “permanent” relocation to the mainland. Four months later, the Beithe Senate approved a revision to the conscription statue which defined permanent relocation to the Beithe mainland as “three years of uninterrupted primary residency, excluding verifiable time spent as a full-time university student.” The act included 5 pages of additional detail.

Presidential Visits

Since 1948, there have been only three presidential visits to the federal protectorates. President Alistair MacDonald visited each island in 1967 and again in 1985. President Ehrich Kemp visited Harvest Island in 2011 following a typhoon that devastated the island and resulted in 257 fatalities.

[The Isle of Beithe]

After the formal introductions, Sub-Lieutenant Robertson informed the Stoklomolvi investigators that a room had been reserved for them in the Newport Joint Armed Forces Complex's visiting officer barracks. "They're modest accommodations, but I'm sure you won't mind. Please let me know if you need anything. Our flight to Capitol City will be at 0500 tomorrow morning, so I hope you're an early bird. Ha, I know I'm not."

Robertson also informed Artyom and Mikhail that President Kemp had granted them each legal status as Officer of the Court, Honoris Causa, Pro Tempore (“By Temporary Honors”). "Per our constitution, the federal government of Beithe cannot directly submit to the authority of an external entity," the navy lawyer explained, "so this is sort of a work-around that'll give your the privileges you need to conduct your investigation without constantly needing to go through a bunch of red tape. It doesn't grant you the power to perform arrests or carry firearms or anything like that. But it will allow you complete access to all relevant records, the right to interrogate witnesses, and the ability to request motions and subpoenas in the court." Robertson handed both investigators a badge and an official document hand-signed by President Kemp.

Finally, Sub-Lt. Robertson turned over a small pile of documents. "This is just some basic information for you to review. There'll be more when we meet with the agents at the court tomorrow. Oh, and we have two witnesses ready for you to interrogate: Colonel Jefferson of the Beithe Marine Corps 6th Infantry Battalion, the formation assigned to Harvest Island, and a Mrs. Julia Lomond who'd been injured at the protest despite not being an active participant. Of course, You have the right to speak to Mr. Simpson, as well, but you'll need to go through his lawyer.... uh, what was his name again? Oh, right! Autumn. Elias Autumn. Old navy buddy of Simpson. And now a federal senator -- wow, how 'bout that? So, um, if you need anything else while you wait, just give me a shout! Officers Lyman and Kilgore of the Beithe Federal Marshals will be at your service, as well. They're mostly here for your... um, protection. Not that you're in any danger, but we can never be too careful these days, can we? Ha."

Sub-Lt. Robertson had started back towards his Optima when he suddenly remembered something of utmost importance. He quickly ran back towards the Stoklomolvis, who were about to enter the van that would take them to their quarters. "OH! How silly of me to forget, sirs! After tomorrow's hearing, President Kemp has invited you both to lunch at the Presidential Estate! I've been told he has a 'special' matter to discuss."


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DOCUMENT 1: GOVERNMENT CHARGES AGAINST FRANKLIN SIMPSON

Page 1:
https://i.imgur.com/xW8XCQt.jpg
Page 2:
https://i.imgur.com/lzH37Qq.jpg

DOCUMENT 2: GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT FRANKLIN SIMPSON

CITIZEN REPORT (ABRIDGED)

BEITHE CENTRAL SECURITY SERVICE

NAME: Franklin Abraham Simpson
D.O.B: 19 December 1967 (Age 51)
Place of Birth: Village of Blythe, Moorfield, Southern District, Isle of Beithe
Citizenship Status: Native-Born Beithean / Full Privileges
Current Private Residence: 76 Penny Lane, Manchester, Dover, Eastern District, Isle of Beithe 873-531
National Drivers License No.: DVR-74648RT62
Passport No.: 6385-YH-856
Height: 1.70 m. (5’7”)
Weight: 84.82 kg. (187 lbs.)
Hair Color: Auburn
Eye Color: Green
Other Identifying Characteristics: N/A
Education:
* Manchester South-Central Preparatory High School
* University of Southern Beithe – Moorfield, Bachelor of Arts Degree in Mathematics.
* Federal University – East, Master’s Degree in Public Administration
Employment History (Descending):
* Governor-General of the Protectorate of Harvest Island
* Chief Administrative Officer, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
* Advisor to the Beithe Senate Budget Committee
* Auditor-General of the State of Dover
* Senior Budget Control Officer, Federal Bureau of Internal Administration, Eastern District Office
* Budget Control Officer, Federal Bureau of Internal Administration, Eastern District Office
* Corporate Accounts Assistant Manager, Eastern Beithe Mining Association, Inc.
* Surface Warfare Officer, Beithe Navy (Final Rank: Lieutenant)
Marital Status: Divorced (Previous Spouse: Olivia Van Graff)
Children: None

[Stoklomolvi]

[OOC: Forgive me if I mix up any characters; there have been a lot of new characters introduced (how exciting!).]

Flight is at five hundred hours in the morning? thought Artyom. I guess we're not sleeping tonight... He shook his head. Artyom and his subordinates continued listening to Sub-Lt Robertson.

"Thank you, Sub-Lieutenant Mr Bud," said Artyom. He and his men gave a salute. "On behalf of Interpol, and, of course, Stoklomolvi, we are honoured by your assistance and your willingness to cooperate with us to bring the current situation to the most just outcome. We'll be sure to look through all of the documents and information you have provided to us. They are very, very comprehensive and will be extremely helpful in our investigations." They then dropped the salute.

Sub-Lt Robertson then invited them to lunch. Artyom was momentarily surprised. "President Kemp... wishes to have lunch with me?" He glanced at Mikhail, who stared at him blankly. Mikhail subtly raised his eyebrows and gestured towards the ground.

"Gladly! A... special matter, you say? I'm eager to learn what the esteemed President Kemp would like to discuss." Artyom then placed the badge in his jacket pocket, as did Mikhail. They briskly saluted Officer Lyman and Officer Kilgore. They then boarded their van to the barracks.

In total, there were six of them; there was Artyom, the lead investigator, Mikhail, a seasoned detective, Anatoliy, a sketch preparer, Natalya, a forensics expert, Qirui, a recorder, and Yulia, a photographer. Back home, there were a number of specialists online and ready to assist should they be needed. Mikhail noted in his journals that they would likely need the assistance of a psychologist and a Beithen military expert at some point.

"Sir," muttered Mikhail, turning to Artyom, "I do believe that there are suspicious circumstances surrounding the orders passed by Mr Simpson. He seemed... excessively eager to order his men to fire upon ostensibly innocent protesters who had not turned violent at the time."

Artyom sat in silence. Mikhail continued, "I do not think that any purported 'representative of the people' would take such actions without hesitations, sir. Although, it does appear that the man was appointed by the federal government of Beithe." He scratched his chin while reading from some of the prepared documents. "It is as if... their government seeks to appear decentralised."

"What significance does that have, Misha?"

"I think... part of the reason they initially refused extradition, and part of the reason they are being so helpful now, is that they want to maintain plausible deniability. There is no doubt that Mr Simpson is guilty of crimes against humanity. However, if you read this part of the article published by the National Herald," said Mikhail, pointing at a passage from the Beithen newspaper, "you'll note, sir, that only under what appear to be extraordinary circumstances would Mr Simpson face a penalty greater than a year and a half in prison."

"A year... and a half? For the wanton slaughter of three dozen people, and the injuring of over fifty more?!" exclaimed Artyom.

"Shh... calm down, sir," hissed Mikhail. "A year and a half. The punishment scales rather strongly from a year and a half to life in prison... meaning that it is most likely for Mr Simpson to receive a punishment that would not befitting the crime. If Beithen government... well, at any rate, I think... I think we should continue this conversation later." He stretched out his arms and feigned an exaggerated yawn. "Ahh, I am tired and hungry, sir, when will we get to eat?"

Artyom shook his head. "When we get there, Misha. Oh how I would enjoy a nice piece of doctor's sausage right now."

Mikhail nodded enthusiastically. "Some bread, some sausage, maybe some caviar... that would be fantastic, sir."

[The Isle of Beithe]

VISITING OFFICERS BARRACKS, NEWPORT JOINT ARMED FORCES COMPLEX
Newport, Kent, Western District, Isle of Beithe
22 October. 0315 BTST.

A series of documents was slipped under the door to Artyom and Mikhail’s room. Noticing that the lights were still on despite the hour, the deliverer quickly ran away.

The first document was an excerpt from Beithe’s Federal Code of Justice that addressed the punitive measures for High Crimes (treason, gross misconduct by a government official, crimes against national security, etc.). Part of the second sentence was highlighted.

Citizens having been lawfully convicted of High Crimes may be subject to full revocation of their citizenship status or denied specific rights and privileges customarily granted to full-citizens of Beithe. At a minimum, all citizens having been lawfully convicted of High Crimes, though they may be allowed to continue to obtain a Beithen passport at the discretion of the President of the High Council (hereafter referred to as “the President”), will no longer be afforded the protection of the Government of Beithe in personal or professional dealings abroad. Further restriction or revocation of citizenship status may be administered only by the direct written order of the President.

Beneath this document, there were eight photographs taken from a night-vision camera outside of the Harvest Island Governor-General's office, timestamped three days before the incident on Harvest Island. The first seven pictures showed Franklin Simpson and an unidentified man: approximately 50 to 60 years old, bespectacled, average height, with thinning hair but a full beard. Based on the men’s gestures, it appeared as if they’d been engaged in an argument. The last picture showed the barrel of a gun—likely a high-caliber revolver—in the far-left corner, but it was unclear who was holding the firearm. On the back of this picture, someone had written:

“There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact.”

(The quote was from “The Boscombe Valley Mystery,” a Sherlock Holmes short-story written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in 1891.)


----

FEDERAL BUILDING
Protectorate of Harvest Island
22 October 2018. 0400 BTST.

“Hey! Stop!” yelled Beithe Marine Corporal Ian Jones. Assigned as a security guard at Beithe’s federal government building on Harvest Island, Jones had just caught someone in the now-vacant Governor-General’s office. The perpetrator, a pimple-faced male who seemed to be no more than 16 years old, had darted into the hallway – in his haste, leaving a thumb-drive in the Governor-General’s computer. The chase did not last long, as the boy ran straight into a dead end. Jones immediately cuffed him.


----

RUNWAY 3, NEWPORT JOINT ARMED FORCES COMPLEX
Newport, Kent, Western District, Isle of Beithe
22 October. 0445 BTST.


Sub-Lt. Robertson was already waiting outside the government-owned regional jet when the van carrying the Stoklomolvi investigators parked alongside the plane.

“Morning, sirs,” Robertson said groggily. “I hope you managed some rest. There’ll be some coffee and tea on-board should you need any. Our flight’ll be about 45 minutes to an hour. I’ve been told the weather forecast’s looking good this morning, so it should be smooth flying. We’re lucky: the Western District tends to get some nasty storms this time of year.”

Inside the plane, the Stoklomolvis found that it was unusually modest for a government-owned aircraft. The fiscally conservative Beithen government avoided extravagant accommodations for even its highest-ranking officials. The regional jet was a standard CRJ200, one of the earliest models. The only modification that had been made was the removal of the last five rows of seats to allow for more storage capacity. “Plenty of room for any forensic gear you might have!” Robertson commented.

[Stoklomolvi]

[Important characters found in this post. For a short description of each person, check the bottom of the post.]

Investigators' Room, Newport Joint Armed Forces Complex
Newport, Kent, Isle of Beithe
0230 hours 22 October 2018

"...the probable cause, yes," said Qirui, "based on the evidence we have."

"Hmm..." said Artyom, rubbing his chin. "Misha?"

"I agree," said Mikhail. "I think it is possible. At least, the most probable reason we can agree upon at this time, sir. I mean, look at the information. Mr Simpson is the governor in charge of Harvest Island. If anything, one would expect him to be representing the needs of the islanders on Harvest Island. What we have, though, is a governor who serves only the federal government of Beithe. After all, if a representative of a people kills the very people he is representing... sir, I don't think that is natural."

"So you're saying that the federal government of Beithe is responsible for the killings?" asked Artyom.

Mikhail shook his head. "No, I don't think they can be implicated in any way at this time. We simply don't have any concrete evidence of it, sir. But I do have my strong suspicions."

"That does go back to what you were saying earlier on the van," pondered Artyom. "Perhaps... the Beithen government did not explicitly want Mr Simpson to act as he did?"

"That's the part that we don't have evidence for, sir," replied Mikhail. "Qirui has collected all the evidence we have received, and we have absolutely nothing that allows us to accuse the Beithe government of anything. Beithen? Beithe? Which one was it again, sir?"

"Uhm... I think it's... Beithen in this case, Misha."

"Right, the Beithen government," confirmed Mikhail. "As far as we are aware, the Beithen government is doing damage control to limit the effect of Mr Simpson's actions on their international reputation. Which, of course, sir, is not exactly an unexpected course of action to take."

Artyom nodded.

Mikhail continued. "But why, I ask, is that the focus? Or rather, one of the foci? Would the Beithen government, should it truly care for the residents of Harvest Island, not be more concerned about the welfare of the citizens it claims to represent? Why did they add this passage," Mikhail said, gesturing at passage four on the Motion of Request, "when theoretically, the government ought to be more concerned about the damage done to the families left behind. Sir, I think what they say about the Beithen government is more true than they might think."

"What, that the Beithen government is merely a façade of a democracy, and that it is actually the totalitarian regime its opponents claim it to be?" asked Artyom.

"It's possible..." posited Mikhail. "What do you guys think?"

Qirui pondered. Natalya, Masha, and Anatoliy shrugged. "Not really my area of expertise," sighed Anatoliy. The other two hmm'd in agreement.

"Well," said Qirui, "if the Beithen government were attempting to silence its opponents as it has attempted to in the past, this most recent attempt has been a very... unpolished one. I doubt that any government worth its salt would openly massacre its opponents or dissidents and then cover it up. Maybe it was a power play? A demonstration of the strong authority of Ehrich Kemp's National Party?"

The room fell silent. Nobody had enough evidence to counter anyone's arguments. "At this point..." sighed Mikhail, "anything we say will be baseless conjecture." Qirui could only nod slowly. The six investigators sat, in their pyjamas, each one staring at some piece of wall in front of them. They had awoken very early to prepare for the upcoming flight.

Suddenly, some documents appeared under the door. Mikhail stood and picked up the documents and placed them on a table in the middle of the room. The group gathered around the table and studied the papers.

"What does this highlighted segment imply?" asked Qirui.

Artyom stood up. "It seems to almost imply... that Mr Simpson, should he be convicted of a 'high crime', would be open for an assassination, and the Beithen government would not even care. What if that's the point? They want him to take the blame...?"

"That is... a pretty bold statement, sir," said Mikhail. "Still... I cannot argue that that is not a valid line of reasoning, based on what this highlight seems to indicate."

Natalya put down the pictures. "I think... based on these photographs, that the real Mr Simpson may either already be dead, and the one being paraded around is an impostor, or that he is being framed." She chopped her hand in the air for emphasis.

Mikhail blinked twice. "An impostor...? Framed?"

"Yeah, I think it is a possibility that he is not the actual person responsible for the massacres. Look at this last photograph," she said, flipping it over. "Someone was using a firearm of some kind... and this photograph reads, 'There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact'. The obvious fact that we know in this case is that Mr Simpson is responsible for the deaths of the islanders. What if he's not?"

Mikhail studied the first few pictures. "Who is this bespectacled man? Sir, do you know?" he asked, turning to Artyom.

Artyom shook his head. "I've never seen any photograph of a Beithean with a beard and glasses. None of our records have many photographs, actually. We'll need to ask them for photos of other high-profile government officials."

Natalya continued, "It may be the man in the photograph who was performing the framing, as well. But we don't know for sure. We do have some small pieces of this puzzle, but we'll need more to get anywhere."

"Right," said Artyom. "Misha, could you try to dig up some photographs of important peop—"

"I'm on it!" said Yulia, searching for Beithen government records on her tablet. She immediately went for the most obvious possible candidate.

"Right, Yula, you're on it," came Artyom's reply. "Hmm... if Mr Simpson was coerced... this information could change the nature of this investigation. We would be forced to investigate the Beithen government itself, which means that any friendliness on their part is now suspect."

"Indeed, sir," said Mikhail. "They may be guiding us to see a scenario from a perspective they have crafted, to deflect suspicion. However, if they suspect that we suspect something, sir, we will most certainly be impeded in our investigations. I suggest we exercise caution, sir. Do not use the information we have gleaned from these documents in our investigation until later."

Artyom nodded. "I concur. Anyone have any other objections before we prepare to leave?"

Everyone in the room stayed silent.

"In that case, break now," ordered Arytom. "Return to your rooms, get dressed, and get ready. We don't want any further undue suspicion on us, like from Kilgore and Lyman. Who knows what they're thinking about us."

The group dispersed.

Investigators' Room, Newport Joint Armed Forces Complex
Newport, Kent, Isle of Beithe
0446 hours 22 October 2018

Natalya and Yulia were already unpacking their equipment into the aircraft.

"I thank you again, Sub-Lieutenant Mr Bud," said Artyom. "I hope the weather stays as good as it's forecast to be! I know all too well the troubles of flying under turbulent conditions..." he added, shuddering as he did so.

Mikhail smirked. "Don't worry, sir. I'll have that ginger tea and dimenhydrinate ready for you."

"You better, Misha. Actually, get me that dimenhydrinate now, I think..." replied Artyom. He then turned to Sub-Lt Robertson. "At any rate... I think we shall settle into our seats as soon as possible. We wouldn't want to tarry and miss the hearing."

[Characters introduced on the Interpol side so far:
Artyom - taller man, late thirties, no facial hair, neatly maintained hair (maybe too neatly maintained), average build, Caucasian features
Mikhail - average height, early thirties, no facial hair, lean build, Caucasian features
Anatoliy - average height, early thirties, moustache, average build, Caucasian features, glasses (myopia)
Natalya - short, late twenties, average build, Caucasian features
Qirui - shorter than average, early twenties, no facial hair, lean build, East Asian features, glasses (myopia)
Yulia - taller than average, early twenties, average build, Caucasian features, glasses (myopia)
All characters are assumed to be wearing green military uniforms (black ties, combination caps) unless otherwise stated.]

[The Isle of Beithe]

BEITHE FEDERAL AIR FLIGHT 33
Just Outside Capitol City, Isle of Beithe
22 October 2018. 0530 BTST.


As promised, the flight between Newport Joint Armed Forces Complex and Frederick Duman International Airport in Capitol City had been smooth.

Sub-Lt. Robertson tapped Artyom on the shoulder and then pointed out the window. The sky was cloudless, and the sun had just started to rise above the distant Mt. Lomond –barely visible amidst a shroud of morning fog. Capitol City appeared like an island of skyscrapers, starkly contrasting with the surrounding farmlands of the northern Highlands Region of Moorfield.

At approximately 0545, the seatbelts sign chimed and illuminated. On the cockpit radio (the door had been left open), an air-traffic controller announced, “Federal Air 33, priority clearance approved. Runway 14. Approach 3-2-9.” The government-owned jet began its descent.

“I’ll give you a quick run-through of this morning’s schedule,” Sub-Lt. Robertson said. “After we land, a van’ll pick us up and take us to your hotel – it’s on the way to the court. There will be just enough time for you to drop off your belongings. We’ve booked four rooms.” (Artyom and Mikhail would each get a separate room, and the other two rooms would be shared by the forensics team.) “We also have a decently sized conference room reserved.”

The robotic voice of the plane’s Ground Proximity Warning System called out the altitude. “500…”

Robertson spoke louder. “So, I imagine you’re all probably hungry,” he continued. “So am I! There’ll be some food in the van as we’re on the way to the court…”

“100.”

“Once we’re at the court, we’ll meet the investigators, and they’ll hand over an evidence packet…”

“50.”

“And whenever you’re ready, you can talk to---” Sub-Lt. Robertson stopped talking when he noticed that the runway was now visible. “Oh, excuse me, I always hate this part.”

“20… 10….”

Robertson pushed his back against his seat and gripped the seat arms. When the plane finally stopped, he wiped his forehead and said, “Where was I? Oh yeah! So, we’ve got the two witnesses available for you whenever you’re ready. After the hearing, you'll head to lunch with President Kemp. Unfortunately, I won't be there for that! Above my pay grade, I guess, haha. And then you can either go back to your hotel, or if you'd like, I can get us a flight to Harvest Island. Just let Officers Lyman and Kilgore know your wishes. Oh, and welcome to Capitol City!”

---
 
BEITHE SUPREME COURT BUILDING
FEDERAL COURT OF INTERNAL ADMINISTRATION
Capitol City, State of Capitol City, Southern District, Isle of Beithe
22 October 2018. 0800 BTST.


Special Agent Vincent Walton and Senior Special Agent Ludwig von Olgorf rose to greet the Stoklomolvi investigators. The man in the tweed jacket did not move, however; he merely glanced up from his book and studied Artyom and Mikhail for a few seconds.

On the table, there were nearly 300 pages of documents, which included statements given by protestors, onlookers, and Beithen marines, as well as crime scene photos taken by the Harvest Island Police Department. Pictures of each person killed during the Harvest Island protest had been posted on the conference room’s western wall. Sub-Lieutenant Robertson turned pale at this sight – yet he couldn’t avert his eyes. He walked up to the photos and read the names. Robertson cried when he read the last name:

SOPHIA WHITE – Age 12

Robertson hadn’t known that the youngest victim was only a child. It did not surprise him that The National Herald had omitted this detail.

“Fois dhut,” * Robertson whispered softly.


* Scottish Gaelic for “Rest in peace.” 

---

PRESIDENT KEMP’S OFFICE, HIGH COUNCIL BUILDING
Capitol City, State of Capitol City, Southern District, Isle of Beithe
22 October 2018. 1029 BTST.


President Ehrich Kemp stared at a memorandum, pretending to read it, and tapped a pen incessantly against his desk. He was lost in thought.

“It’ll be over soon enough... should’ve been decades ago, should’ve never started perhaps. No one could have known back then—could they? It’s gotten so far out of hand... I’m the President, and even I can’t stop them! But that was always the plan. They couldn’t have known back in the 50s—maybe, maybe they could have if they’d taken time to think it through. Jesus, what I’ve inherited! Even MacDonald didn’t know—if only, he would’ve ended it... The Party would’ve listened to HIM. But no, it’s the hard way for me...”

Kemp’s phone buzzed, alerting him to the time: 1030. The pre-trial hearing for Franklin Simpson was scheduled to begin. The president wished he could attend—not out of curiosity, because he was sure of the pending result, but out of longing for the courtroom. After all these years, the court still felt like his home, and lately, he had wished that he’d never entered politics.

“Defend Simpson or prosecute?” Kemp pondered as he imagined an alternate reality where he’d still been a lawyer. “I would prefer to prosecute, of course... but the challenge of the defense is undeniably enticing...”

Pacing the room, Kemp continued in his daydream: it was his way of distracting himself from the feeling of dread that had begun to consume him.

But the president could only distract himself for so long. Suddenly, the feeling was overwhelming. Kemp’s head started to pound, and he felt a tingling in his left arm. He walked to his desk where he pulled an unmarked pill bottle from the top drawer. After downing two large, oval-shaped blue pills, President Kemp leaned against the office’s only window, resting his head on the cold glass.

There was a knock on the door. “Enter,” Kemp said, already knowing that it was Prime Minister Stephanie Reinholdt. They had a “conference” scheduled.

Reinholdt frowned as she entered and saw the president’s current state. Shutting the door behind her and locking it, she approached Kemp and asked softly, “The migraines again, dear?”

Kemp grunted in reply.

“They always hit you when you start worrying too much. Simpson and the Harvest Island affair?”

“Aye, bonnie.”

“Inviting the foreign investigators—are you sure this is the wisest approach?” Reinholdt asked as she rubbed the President’s shoulders.

Kemp laughed. “Stephanie, you of all people?”

“Don’t play dumb with me, Ehrich: you know precisely what I mean. Sure, I’m ecstatic about the chance to finally break the country out of its comfy little shell... but under these circumstances? Let’s just forget for a second the inevitable schism within the Party—think of the personal ramifications! Not just to your career but your safety!”

“You’re letting your emotions cloud your judgment, Madam Prime Minister,” Kemp replied as he gently removed Reinholdt’s hands from his shoulders and turned to face her. He winked, and Reinholdt could not stop herself from blushing. “Bonnie Stephanie, what would I do without you? Don’t worry about me and take a moment to think this through. You know as well as I do that this is like a game of chess. They thought they’d had me cornered with this whole Harvest Island affair—and very nearly they did. Surely, they’d thought a dozen or more moves ahead, but ah, so have I. And of course, I couldn’t have done it without you, flower. This INTERPOL business is the wild card they never would’ve have expected, and now they’ll be scrambling to counter, and in their haste and confusion, a slip-up is near-certain.”

“Really, Ehrich, a wild card? I thought we were going with a chess analogy, not poker,” Reinholdt teased. Kemp responded by gripping her waist and kissing her passionately.

[The Isle of Beithe]

TELEVISED BROADCAST – GLOBAL NEWS UNLIMITED (GNU)
Protectorate of Harvest Island
22 October 2018. 0830.


“This is Nicole Campbell reporting from Harvest Island,” said a tall, blonde-haired reporter. Behind her, the Children of the Cause were beginning to disperse.

“Less than half an hour ago, the armed band of masked Harvest Island citizens who had been camped-out near Willowick Naval Base for the past five days, began to leave. It is uncertain why this group, which calls themselves the Children of the Cause or the People’s Militia of Harvest Island, have suddenly decided to end their standoff – and it remains a mystery as to what their motive had been in the first place. GNU has tried repeatedly to speak with the group’s leader, who calls himself the Father of the Cause, but he has refused to speak with any reporters. Though GNU was not on-scene when the Father ordered the Children to disperse, we have been able to obtain footage captured by a Harvest Island resident who’d been watching the standoff from the balcony of his home.”


The broadcast cut to grainy footage that had been taken from the camera of a cheap cell phone. The Father spoke to his Children:

“My Children! It is time for us to depart now. Return to your homes! It is not yet time. Soon, soon, my dear Children, but not today and likely not tomorrow.”


The broadcast now switched to a male reporter at a desk. “Thank you, Nicole,” he said. “The already bizarre situation on Harvest Island certainly has gotten more baffling. One cannot help but wonder what, if any, relation this event has to today’s pre-trial hearing for Franklin Simpson, the former Governor-General of Harvest Island who has been accused of misconduct for his use of Beithen marines in response to a protest by Harvest Island secessionists last Tuesday – resulting in a conflict that caused 37 fatalities, numerous injuries, and many arrests.”

The reporter switched topics. "The Ministry of Justice has announced that serial killer Leopold Braun escaped from Lancaster Federal Prison late last night…”

[The Isle of Beithe]

Beithen Characters

Sub-Lieutenant Brody J. “Bud” Robertson

Affiliation: Beithe Navy JAG Corps (legal division).
Role: Legal aid and general escort for the Stoklomolvi investigative team.
Appearance: Late 20s. Small (5’4”) and slightly overweight. Military-cut auburn hair, clean-shaven. Pale skin with freckles. Bespectacled (thick military-style, black-rimmed glasses). Wearing blue navy dress uniform (Beithe Navy’s uniforms resemble the uniforms of the Royal New Zealand Navy which are like the modern British Royal Navy’s uniforms).
Miscellaneous: Seems nervous most of the time and fidgets a lot.


Officer First Grade Justin Kilgore

Affiliation: Beithe Federal Marshals. (Btw, an overview of Beithe’s federal law enforcement community can be found here: https://www.nationstates.net/nation=the ... id=1123743 )
Role: Security guard assigned to protect Stoklomolvi investigative team.
Appearance: Late 30s. Tall (6’5”), heavily muscled. Bald and clean-shaven. Wearing a conservative black suit over a white collared shirt and a yellow tie. Carries a Sig-Sauer P226 service pistol.


Supervisory Officer Christine Lyman

Affiliation: Beithe Federal Marshals.
Role: Security guard assigned to protect Stoklomolvi investigative team.
Appearance: Mid-40s. 5’2” and slim. Shoulder-cut light brown hair. Wearing a silver suit over a baby-blue dress shirt. Slightly tanned skin. Carries a Sig-Sauer P226 service pistol.


Special Agent Vincent Walton

Affiliation: Office of Special Investigations (Beithe Federal Bureau of Internal Administration)
Role: Investigator in Simpson misconduct case.
Appearance: Late-30s. 5’11” and slim but muscular. Jet black hair (likely dyed), full beard. Wearing a navy-blue suit with a light-yellow collared shirt with a black tie. Carries a Smith & Wesson .357 Magnum service pistol.


Senior Special Agent Ludwig von Olgorf

Affiliation: Office of Special Investigations (Beithe Federal Bureau of Internal Administration)
Role: Investigator in Simpson misconduct case.
Appearance: Early-50s. 6’2” and a little overweight. Thinning blonde hair, five o’clock shadow. Wearing a tucked-in, red plaid collared shirt, no tie. Carries a Colt .45 service pistol.
Miscellaneous: A native of Beithe’s German-speaking Northern District, Agent von Olgorf has an unusual accent that is a mix of German and Scottish. His accent might be difficult to understand by non-Beitheans.


President Ehrich Kemp

Affiliation: Beithe Federal Government, Beithe National Party
Role: Current President of the High Council of Beithe (Head of State), Director of the Beithe National Party
Appearance: Late 60s. 6’0” and thin. He has been portrayed as tan-skinned in past photos, but lately he appears pale. Silver-grey hair but with a few specks of auburn remaining; mild balding; clean-shaven. Normally wearing a conservative white collared-shirt without a tie and brown dress pants. Bespectacled (thin, gold-rimmed oval glasses).
Additional Information: https://www.nationstates.net/nation=the ... id=1116142


Prime Minister Stephanie Reinholdt

Affiliation: Beithe Federal Government, Beithe National Party
Role: Current Prime Minister of Beithe (Head of Government)
Appearance: Though in her late 60s, appears closer to a woman in her early 50s or late 40s. 5’3” and athletic-built. Curly red hair pulled back into a ponytail. Always wears business casual dress and a skirt. Bespectacled (pink-rimmed Buddy Holly-style glasses).
Miscellaneous: Her accent is distinct from the typical Scottish-sounding Beithen accent. She sounds as if she were from England. This is a common trait among older Beitheans born in upper-class Kent, where between 1900 and 1970, International Standard English previously had been taught in preparatory high schools instead of Beithen Standard English.
Additional Information: https://www.nationstates.net/nation=the ... id=1116373

OOC:

I'll add "Donaldson," Franklin Simpson, and Elias Autumn later. You've probably read Kemp's factbook entry already, but I've cleaned it up some and added new details. Semi-spoiler: there may be some information in there that will soon become highly relevant!

[The Isle of Beithe]

OOC (1): This is my last IC post for the moment. I think I’ve submitted enough information to peak curiosity without actually revealing anything. Sorry for the overwhelming amount of information. Most of what I've posted thus far had been at least partially pre-prepared. Everything will start to come together -- and slow down -- after the pre-trial ends.

OOC (2): A note on Beithen accents – Beitheans from rural communities or lower-class urban communities have the strongest Scottish-esque dialects, so if I start writing their dialogue with an accent, that’s an indication.

---

BNS Kelpie (CSB-043)
South Pacific Ocean
12 nautical mi. from the northeastern coast of Harvest Island / 79 nautical mi. from the northwestern coast of Beithe
22 October 2018. 0245 BTST.

BNS Kelpie was on her first patrol. Considering the international attention on the Harvest Island affair and the recent deployment of foreign naval formations near the Beithen protectorate, the latest of the Mark II models of the MacDonald-class coastal defense submarines had been the obvious choice for this assignment.

Normal for a late October evening off the northern Beithen coast, the atmospheric and ocean conditions were not optimal for most vessels – but not for Kelpie. The sky was overcast and there was dense fog. These conditions allowed Kelpie, a diesel-powered submarine, to remain surfaced without significant risk of visual detection; and of course, the fog would make radar less reliable (not that this would matter, as Kelpie, like all MacDonald-class boats, had been coated with radar-absorbent materials.)

The current conditions were not a nuisance to Kelpie’s navigation or its ability to spot targets. Equipped with forward- and aft-mounted Forward-Looking Infrared (FLIR) cameras that provided a 360-degree view around the boat, in addition to a photonics mast that also included thermographic sensors, Kelpie could easily see through the fog, and the low-light visibility was meaningless.

Commander Chelsea MacCallum, Kelpie’s captain, was in the submarine’s conning tower. Ordinarily conning officer duty aboard a Beithen navy vessel was given to the most-junior officer during the “Moon Watch” (0100-0630), which was also referred to as the “Plebe Watch.” But tonight, Captain MacCallum had trouble sleeping and she figured some time topside would calm her troubled mind. (Back home in Westport, York, her husband had just filed divorce papers and had filed a motion for full custody of their 8-year old daughter.)

MacCallum had just lit a cigarette when Lt. Henderson came to the conning tower. “Captain, ma’am, Warrant Smith has requested your presence in the operations room.”

The captain groaned and tossed her cigarette overboard. “Aye, wits it then at this wee oor?”

“Evidently something unusual detected by the IR cameras, ma’am,” Henderson replied. The captain followed him below-deck into Kelpie’s operation room.

Warrant Officer Smith leaned over a petty officer manning the navigation console.

“Wits hae ye, Johnny boy?” MacCallum asked.

“Take a look here, ma’am,” Smith said as he pointed at the console’s primary display screen.

“I see…. bunch o’ red’n yellow blotches formin’ th’ image o’ ee mid-sized boat, prolly civilian, and ee few men on the deck. Ye may well be showin’ me one them ink blot psychobabble pictures. Tell me mair, Warrant.”

“The IR-sig analysis software has identified it as a Newport Naval Type-45 Trawler, standard fishing boat, but something’s not right…. Look closer, captain.” Warrant Smith pointed at a man on the trawler’s deck who carried some sort of assault rifle.

“So wit?” Kelpie’s captain replied. “There’s nothing illegal or e’en strange about carrying firearms aboard ee fishing boat. Shit, I keep an ole AR-32 on me personal boat.”

“There’s more,” Smith responded. He pointed to a mid-ship, below-deck region of the boat that had a strong infrared signature. “This area is not characteristic of the IR signature for the Type-45. It would seem to indicate some sort of heavy-duty machinery in that vicinity.” The warrant officer then pointed to another area of strong thermal activity and continued, “but the 45’s engine room is over here. What we’re looking at is where the sleep bays usually are.”

“So, maybe theys like sweatin’ they balls off as they sleep? Wit ye implyin’?” Captain MacCallum was getting annoyed.

“Honestly, I don’t know, ma’am, but something…. something’s not right.”

“Bleh. Whitse’er ‘tis, prolly be nay concern tae us. We’ll radio th’ Coast Guard and let ’em handle it, should theys be bored enough. ‘Tis their jurisdiction anywee. But taebe safe, we’ll submerge tae 20 meters and follow for nair.”

[Stoklomolvi]

[OOC: Please forgive me for the delay. For the past two weeks, this post has been sitting at the top of my posting pile, but I was only able to muster enough time over the past three days.]

Beithe Supreme Court Building
Capitol City, Southern District, Isle of Beithe
0804 hours 22 October 2018

Mikhail was diligently reading statements from protesters and the Beithen marines. Artyom was more interested in the photographs, and he saw the chaotic and horrific scenes captured on camera before him for the first time. He glanced towards the where Robertson stood, where the shorter man was solemnly grieving for the victims of the massacre. Artyom too moved over to the wall. There were thirty seven photographs on the wall.

Artyom looked at each one. Young men, old men, young women, and old women adorned the wall. It seemed that the victims were arranged in order of time of death, meaning that the first photograph was the first one to die. All of the people in the photographs appeared to be fair-skinned Beitheans, and based on their names, Artyom noted that almost all of them appeared to be Scots. Nervously, Artyom adjusted his tie, and then adjusted his cap. "KATRINA SMITH - Age 32". "STEPHEN BROWN - Age 24". "STEWART TAYLOR - Age 58". Artyom, in his history as an investigator, has seen hundreds of dead in his time. Still, he couldn't help but tear up at the sight of those on the wall; it gets easier, but it's never easy.

He looked over at the photograph that Robertson was looking at. "SOPHIA WHITE - Age 12". He froze. Twelve years old? But wait... his mind flashed back to the newspaper article published by the National Herald. He pulled the article out of his coat. The article reads, "...a young woman who had been hospitali[s]ed following a gunshot wound to the chest died despite the best efforts of surgeons..." A young woman, the article says. I guess... I guess it's not a lie, but... that's understating it a fair bit, is it not?[/i] Artyom squeezed the bridge of his nose. And yet even still, Simpson refuses to admit his guilt. What's going on here?

Mikhail appeared beside Artyom. "Sir, I have been reading these statements, and..."

"Hm?", replied Artyom, looking over at Mikhail.

"Sir... are you all right?" Mikhail asked.

"Hmm... hm? Oh... oh, yes, I'm fine."

Mikhail sighed. "You have always been a bleeding heart, haven't you, sir?"

Artyom shook his head. "N-no way! No way, Misha, that's not true. I just irritated my eye with something, is all."

"An... odd way to put it sir, but all right." Mikhail coughed. "So, I take it you have been studying this wall, sir?"

"Yes," said Artyom. "There are thirty seven names and ages on this wall. Each of them tells a story to us that we will never fully understand."

"Mm, yes, sir."

"And yet... we must continue on, even knowing that."

"Yes, sir."

"Why don't you have a look?"

"Yes, sir."

Mikhail looked at the photographs himself. Artyom stood beside him, watching Mikhail's reactions to the photographs. Meanwhile, Qirui was taking notes on every item on the wall with Yulia beside him; together, they were compiling an accurate short-hand list of each person and any prominent physical features. Qirui was planning on showing this list to Special Agent Walton after he was done. Anatoliy was busy at the table, looking over statements for any descriptions he could use. Mikhail did not seem to have any real reations of note, to Artyom's lack of surprise.

"Well?" asked Artyom.

"Well, sir, this wall documents before us a tragedy that has befallen Harvest Island and all its residents," replied Mikhail.

"And?"

Mikhail cocked an eyebrow at him. "And... what, sir?"

"Did you notice anything peculiar?"

"Peculiar, sir?"

Artyom sighed. "Misha, you need to grow some heart."

"And you ought to lose some, sir," smirked Mikhail.

"Yes, yes, fair enough, true, yes, but didn't you notice the last photograph and the newspaper article?"

"Hmm..." Mikhail rubbed his chin. "Now that you mention it, sir, did the newspaper article not mention a 'young woman', and not a child?"

"Precisely my point, Misha," said Artyom. "When the newspaper article states 'young woman', the image that comes to mind is of a young adult female who was at the protest, not a child. And what if the child was not even part of the protest?"

"We have no evidence for that," said Mikhail. "The statements make no mention of a child."

"Let's look over those statements you read, then, shall we?"

"Of course, sir."

The two left the wall and joined Anatoliy at the table. Anatoliy looked up at them, nodded, and resumed reading and studying. Mikhail presented one statement to Artyom, made by a bystander.

"Many of the statements say similar things, sir. I have not yet looked at all of the statements, but so far, none are detailed enough to implicate anyone."

Artyom took the statement from Mikhail. Artyom summarised the statement in his mind:

Personal Statement: Joseph Anderson, bystander

We were spectating the protest from a nearby building when we noticed fully armed soldiers had appeared some time after the protest started. The soldiers were ordering the protesters to leave, and made no mention of using lethal force. The protesters threw objects at the soldiers, and this violence from the protesters continued for some time. Suddenly, the soldiers opened fire into the crowd, and chased down fleeing protesters. We were accosted for being near the protest, but were let go when eventually it became apparent we were not part of the protest.

Artyom looked at Mikhail. "This statement reads a lot like the newspaper article that was published in the National Herald."

Mikhail nodded. "A lot of the statements are like that, sir. Some of them omit details, too." He handed another witness statement to Artyom. Artyom summarised the statement in his mind:

Personal Statement: Jillian Murray, protester

We were protesting in the area in front of the capitol building when the soldiers appeared in front of us. They told us to stop protesting, but we weren't going to simply disappear on command. They started shooting at us, and I was arrested a block down the street by a nearby police officer.

Artyom sighed. "Witnesses are notoriously unreliable."

"Indeed, sir," said Mikhail. "From piecing together these scattered witness statements, we'll be able to get a better picture of what really happened. But so far, sir, nothing contradictory has emerged, except omitted details that are painted over in other statements."

Mikhail presented a statement to Artyom. Artyom summarised the statement in his mind:

Personal Statement: Lancaster Taylor, police officer

We noticed that some of the marines adorned gas masks. We figured at first that they’d been prepared to use tear gas or some similar riot-control agent. But no such agents were used.

"So, the marines seemed to have prepared for conflict before even arriving on-scene? Hmm..." Artyom pondered, rubbing his chin.

"Well, sir, it does go along with what we've discovered so far, with regards to what we know about Simpson," commented Mikhail. He pulled out another bystander statement.

Personal Statement: Gregg Alberts, bystander

I had escaped the crowd and hid behind a parked car on Main Street. I remember a marine chasing a young man down the sidewalk. The soldier ordered the man to stop, and the man complied but then reached into his pocket. The soldier fired. The man dropped the object he had pulled from his pocket. It was not a firearm. I could not tell what it was; the object was small, and I was too far away.

"The statement doesn't seem to mention whether the man fell or not," said Artyom.

"Yet another statement that omits details, sir," said Mikhail. "Here's one with some detail we haven't seen yet." He presented the statement to Artyom.

Personal Statement: Robert Ross, protester

I had joined the group in shouting at the mainlanders who had come to put an end to our protest. “Mainland swine go home!” we chanted. The situation got out of control so fast. Someone tossed a glass bottle at a marine. Others joined in throwing objects. One woman even tossed her [witness omitted detail]. I did not condone this behaviour. Such childish antics do not help our cause. When the shots began, I laid flat on the ground and placed my hands behind my head. I was arrested a minute or two later. After handcuffing me, the arresting marine struck me in the gut with the stock of his rifle.

Artyom sighed. "Seems that our marine friends are pretty violent even against people who have already submitted."

"What can you expect, sir?" Mikhail shrugged. "They already went in with gas masks, assault weapons, and armour. These aren't policemen. Why were there no policemen?"

"That's a good question, Misha. Surely, in most circumstances, the first ones on a scene like this one would be police."

Mikhail and Artyom continued poring over the statements. Qirui appeared to have finished with the wall, and had surreptitiously joined the pair. Artyom noticed first.

"Find anything interesting, Qirui?" asked Artyom.

Qirui shrugged. "Some of the photographs were a tad puzzling, I'd say."

"What do you mean?" responded Artyom.

"Well, the backs of the photographs have timestamps printed on them, and the time of submitted photographs ranges from around twelve hundred thirty that afternoon during early stages of the protest, to around fourteen hundred that same day, giving us a time range of about... three and a half hours."

Artyom nodded and motioned for him to continue.

"Within those three hours," said Qirui, "a fully armed and ready Beithe Marine Corps battalion was reported to have arrived at the scene. The photographic evidence we have indicates that the local police in the area were not the first to respond to the scene. In fact, we have no evidence that the local police were involved with the protests at all until the Beithe military was called in. Look at this photograph here," he continued, pulling out a photograph taken by one of the protesters of the soldiers.

"Look at how many of them there are," said Qirui, while he pointed at the group of armed men. "Easily over a hundred visible in this picture alone. In this photograph, there's almost as many soldiers as there are protesters."

Mikhail peered at the photograph, and there was a distinct glint in his eye. He nodded at Qirui, who raised his eyebrows. When it registered in Qirui's brain what Mikhail meant, he too nodded his head to Mikhail and Artyom. Artyom sighed, knowing what the two were thinking. Artyom stood up and walked over to one of the Beithen special agents.

"Agent Walton, if I may," started Artyom, "may I ask you some questions regarding the crime scene? Namely, where were each of the bodies initially found, and by whom were they found? Who gave the order to the marines to open fire? Were any of the protesters armed since before the protest began?"

Federal Building
Harvest Island, Beithe
0914 hours 22 October 2018

Natalya had left the main group to investigate the area where some incident involving a teenage boy was reported earlier that day. In fact, she never even left Kent. After unloading her equipment onto the aircraft, she was quietly informed by Sub-Lt Robertson of the situation, and she then informed Artyom that she would catch up with him at another time. The Beitheans arranged a transport for her, and she arrived at the federal government building later that same morning. After being debriefed by Beithen government officials at the scene, having presented her security credentials, she then began her investigation.

Since there was no violence at the scene this time, Natalya merely looked for anything out of place. The hallway showed little sign of a struggle, and the Marine Corporal who had apprehended the suspect was still on scene being questioned by local authorities. Nobody else was in the hallway, which was cordoned off as the scene of the crime, and the office of the former Governor-General Franklin Simpson was as still as can be. Natalya donned a pair of thin gloves. She then walked around the room, looking for anything that appeared out of place. Everything in the room had a layer of dust settled upon it over having been left alone for more than a week. She took photographs of every nook and cranny that she could of the room before deciding to touch anything. To her, everything seemed normal; the bookshelves were undisturbed, documents untouched, and the computer unused. Even lifting a document from the desk would leave a very, very faint dust outline on other documents below.

Actually, was the computer untouched? Upon closer inspection, it became plainly evident that there was a flash drive in the Governor-General's machine. It did not appear to be old, nor did it have any dust on it like the other objects in the room. Using some aluminium powder, Natalya took photographs of any fingerprints on the drive so that she could compare them at a later date. Having done that, she then examined the machine for any signs of tampering.

Hmm, there will be no way to tell if the computer has actually been turned on with the drive inside it. Unless...

She peered into another USB port on the machine. Nothing looked out of the ordinary; there was no dust inside it. She sighed. Pondering, she decided to take the flash drive with her. She removed the flash drive, placed it into a transparent bag, and placed the bag into her forensics tool-container. With her arsenal of photographs and the flash drive, she was reasonably confident that she found basically everything that needed examining.

Upon leaving the building, she flagged down Corporal Jones, who was still nearby. "Mr Jones! I would like to ask you a few questions regarding the scene of the crime as you encountered it earlier this morning, if you have the time?"

[The Isle of Beithe]

OOC: The evidence is going to pile up quickly, but it'll gradually become more specific.

Also, if you see the abbreviation "PHC" used in any evidence, this is standard Beithen government shorthand for "President, High Council" (i.e., President Kemp).

---

Beithe Supreme Court Building
Capitol City, Southern District, Isle of Beithe
Between 0800 and 0830. 22 October 2018.

Sub-Lt. Robertson got his emotions in check and began reviewing the evidence alongside the Stoklomolvis. His job was not to assist with the investigation, but the young JAG officer couldn’t contain his curiosity – a curiosity that had begun to seem increasingly morbid. Robertson had seen crime scene photos during his criminal law courses at the University of Sheffield, but it had been easy then to repress an emotional response; that had just been academic, but the reality hit him now, and the name ‘Sophia White’ continuously consumed Robertson’s mind.

Though they were disturbing, the photographs and witness reports revealed nothing substantial. Robertson looked at his phone to check the time: 0822, nearly two hours before the hearing would begin – far too little time to thoroughly review all 300 pages of evidence.

One question nagged at Robertson’s mind: why was there no video footage of the protest and the subsequent violence? “Hundred of photographs taken after the fact,” he thought, “but not a single video. This day-and-age, with cellphones everywhere, you’d think someone would’ve taken a video.”

…

Replying to Artyom’s questions, Special Agent Walton said, “Harvest Island PD called in their CSU right after the shooting ended. Jesus, the local police were pissed. This didn’t enter the news, but a shootout almost occurred between Harvest Island PD and the marines!”

Walton flipped through one of the piles of evidence and found the initial reports by the Harvest Island Police Crime Scene Unit. “Hmm, let’s see,” the agent began. “Most of the victims had been found on the main courtyard of the Harvest Island Capitol Building – that’s where the protest had taken place. One victim, however, Oliver Stephenson, age 28, had been found on the sidewalk about 300 meters away from the courtyard, near an alley between two stores on Centreville’s main street. Based on the position of Stephenson’s body, it appears he’d been heading west, towards the downtown market district. I’ll see about getting a map of Harvest Island’s capital, if you think that’ll help. Also, we’ll want to see if we can find the exact marine who’d pursued and shot Mr. Stephenson. Maybe I’m paranoid, but something seems off there, don’t you think?”

Walton handed Artyom the police reports. He had placed on the top a document that he believed the Stoklomolvi investigator would find especially interesting. The document was not an official report; rather, it was a personal statement provided by a Harvest Island PD first responder, Officer Henrietta Dobbs.

Personal Statement: Officer Henrietta Dobbs, Harvest Island Police Department

Officer McKnight and I had been on routine patrol when dispatched to the capitol following reports of shots fired. We arrived as uniformed mainlander marines were arresting civilians. Bodies everywhere. People bloodied, beaten, screaming. It was like a war scene.

I’ve always prided myself on my professionalism and calm under stress, and I’m somewhat ashamed to admit it, but I lost it. I approached a marine and yelled in his face: “What have you done?” He pointed his AR-33 towards me and asked me to step back. Unafraid, I’d moved my hand towards my piece when McKnight grabbed my arm. I spit on the mainlander and walked off.

The worse of it came when I saw a young girl, middle school age, screaming and writhing in pain. The lass reminded me of my dear Julie: fair-skinned, silky black hair, face of a cherub. My heart sank. She had been shot in her right leg as well as the thorax, GSW likely to lung area. A man had come to her aide and used his coat and shirt to tourniquet her leg and place pressure on her chest. He was pleading to the girl to remain still, but the poor darling was in agony. I ran over and helped the man hold the girl still, told her that the paramedics would be here soon and that everything would be okay. I asked her name, and she replied weakly, “Sophie.” I’d asked Sophie if her mother or father were around, and the girl gestured with her head towards a woman, about 10 meters away, who’d been shot directly in the head.

Sophie had lost a lot of blood. The man and I—I never did ask his name—kept talking to her, trying to keep her awake, but she was unconscious when the first ambulance arrived.

I don’t agree with the protestors about Harvest Island seceding from the mainland. Not sure if I agree with true statehood either. I’ve never cared for politics. All I know is, that until now, Harvest Island had been near-paradise—peaceful. Thirteen years in PD, and I’ve only seen one homicide ever and only a handful of violent assaults, usual just drunken brawls. Nothing will be the same here again. It makes no sense why this has happened.

Once Artyom finished reading the document, Agent Walton said, “Now, as to who gave the order to open fire. Well, as far as we’ve been able to gather, there had been no explicit order. And we cannot determine just who fired first—or why. I don’t know if we’ll ever ascertain this. You could ask all 117 marines, and they’ll each tell you a different story. My best guess? One marine got jumpy and fired, and it set off a domino effect -- maybe other marines thought that the initial shot had come from a protester. This wouldn't be the first time such has occurred, but it's all speculative at this point. Perhaps Colonel Jefferson can help you more. The colonel should be here soon. I understand his flight got delayed. Weather’s been awful off the northeast coast lately. Also, there’s no indication that any protester had been armed—hey, didn’t you read the transcript of my initial interview with Simpson, right after his arrest? I believe we’d covered that topic.”

Noticing Artyom’s confused expression, Special Agent von Olgorf looked at Sub-Lt. Robertson and asked, “He did gits z’ transcript, ja, Lieutenant?”

Robertson blushed and fiddled with his glasses. He felt confident that this document hadn’t been given to him, but he couldn’t be sure, and this wouldn’t be the first time that he’d misplaced an important document. “Um, well, I don’t recall that being in the packet I’d been given.”

Agent Walton glanced at the man in the tweed jacket. Frowning, he wondered if the CSS agent or one of his colleagues had been responsible for the missing document. Fortunately, Walton and von Olgorf had been prepared for this possibility.

“Don’t worry, I have another copy right here,” Walton said. He pulled folded papers out of his pants pocket and handed it to Artyom. “There are also some photographs that should’ve been with your preliminary evidence.” The photographs presented by Walton were identical to the ones that had been given to the Stoklomolvis at Newport Joint Armed Forces Complex.

Transcript of Interview between Agent Walton and Franklin Simpson upon Simpson’s Arrest on 17 October 2018
[(W = Walton; S = Simpson)

W: Date is 17 October 2018, time 1619. This is Special Agent Vincent Walton, Federal Bureau of Internal Administration, Office of Special Investigations, Federal Badge Number 442-6368, on the record for Case 18C217. Sir, can you state your full name, date of birth, and most recent occupation for the record, please?

S: Franklin Abraham Simpson, 19 December 1967. Governor-General of the Protectorate of Harvest Island – not anymore, of course.

W: Let the record reflect that suspect’s identity has been confirmed through fingerprint records. Mr. Simpson, do you understand the charges against you, sir?

S: I do.

W: You’ve been read your rights, correct? You understand, of course, that you are entitled to have counsel present? Do you wish to wait for a lawyer?

S: No, no, I guess I’ll speak to you.

W: Alright. Please stop me at any time should you change your mind. Mr. Simpson, do you confirm, that on 16 October 2018, you ordered the Beithe Marine Corps 6th Infantry Battalion to disperse a group of unarmed protestors?

S: I don’t deny this.

W: Sir, could you speak without the double negation? I have a pet peeve for such half-answers. Now, do confirm that you ordered Beithen marines to disperse protestors on 16 October?

S: Yes. I confirm this.

W: Had the protestors threatened violence before you issued this order? Either verbally or through gestures?

S: No.

W: Then why did you issue the order, sir?

S: I had my suspicions.

W: Could you elaborate?

S: I’m not at liberty to discuss. I’m sorry.

W: My security clearance is Top Secret Tier I-Alpha. I can provide you with the appropriate documentation to verify, if that will help.

S: Even your clearance level is not high enough.

W: Huh, is that so? I’ll follow up on that. Let’s move on for the moment. Why utilize heavily armed Marine Corps infantry? Why not just call in the Harvest Island Police SWAT?

S: You know what? I think I’ll wait for my lawyer now.

W: Alright, alright. Hold on a second. Could I just ask one or two more questions? Different topic, promise.

S: Okay, maybe. Depends.

W: Let the record reflect that Mr. Simpson contingently has agreed to continue to speak to me without counsel present. I’m now showing Mr. Simpson a photograph of an UNSUB, late middle-age to early senior-age, Caucasian, glasses, light-brown hair, balding, and prominent facial hair. Sir, do you recognize this individual?

S: I… maybe, the photograph is taken from an odd angle, and it’s blurry. The photographer should consider a different career.

W: What about this man? I’m now showing Mr. Simpson an official government photograph of Abraham Jacob Potter, former Assistant Minister of Security, current federal fugitive.

S: Might’ve seen him on the news? Why?

W: Did you receive a report from the CSS, on or around 10 October, alerting you to Potter’s suspected presence on Harvest Island along with a copy of his federal arrest warrant?

S: I get a lot of reports; can’t say I remember them all.

W: I feel that you’d remember this one. And you know what? I’ll let you in on a little secret: both photographs I’ve shown you are the same man. Hard to tell at first glance – here, look closer. Potter sure looks like hell now, doesn’t he?

S: Enough! Look, didn’t I ask for my lawyer? I’m not saying another word until he gets here!

W: Very well, sir. End recording.

…

W: Personal notes. Special Agent Walton, 17 October 2018, 2149, Case 18C217.

Suspect Simpson has retained counsel, one Elias Autumn, senior Senator from Dover. Autumn's been vacationing in Northshore and will arrive in Capitol City mid-morning tomorrow.

Emergency arraignment conducted via video, Simpson waived right to counsel’s presence and pled Not Guilty to the unspecified misconduct charge. Bond set $500,000, 20%. Simpson’s ex-wife paid the bond, being processed now, and he’s likely to be released in the morning.

Contacted the Attorney-General’s Office. Request submitted for a subpoena to force Simpson to reveal all classified knowledge. I’ve been informed that the request has already been denied! Blocked by CSS. PHC notified but somehow even he can’t override the block. Strange. This has never happened before.

Field agents on Harvest Island have attempted to access Simpson’s computer files, but heavy encryption has been used, not the standard government encryption but military level – why? Computer to be transferred to FBI Central Lab for decryption and analysis. I’ve been informed of a possible delay of transfer due to current weather conditions off Harvest Island’s coast.

Notes from earlier interview:

* Simpson exhibits queer body language. Avoids direct eye conduct. Noticeable tremor in the left hand. Blunted affect.

* Simpson speaks without stutter or other signs of nervousness. In fact, little to no emotional indicators in his speech. Seems inconsistent with his body language. Not nervousness perhaps, maybe anger -- angry with his current status? Suspect’s final statement did show anger. He’s attempting to maintain his composure but failing. Shit, if only he hadn’t requested an attorney, I could’ve cracked him!

*Simpson is lying about Potter. We have photographic evidence of a meeting between the two. Electronic records confirm that the CSS communique to the Harvest Island Governor-General’s office had been received and read. Interesting how Simpson became angered when I revealed the man’s identity.


At the bottom of the transcript, Walton had handwritten an off-the-record comment:

A protectorate’s Governor-General is supposed to be just a figurehead. Personnel file shows Simpson has spent a career as a paper-pusher, a finance guy. Why did he even get assigned as Governor-General? Nothing about this case adds up neatly. I strongly suspect that Simpson is involved in some sort of clandestine activity – further suspected now after the CSS block on the subpoena request.

----

Federal Building
Harvest Island
0917. 22 October 2018.

As Natalya was exiting the building, a Beithe FBI forensics team was entering to secure Simpson’s computer. After an initial analysis by Agent Zachary Williams, the computer would be transported to the FBI Central Forensics Laboratory in Capitol City. Natalya was informed to meet Agent Williams there upon her return to Beithen mainland.

Agent Williams yawned and said casually to another agent, “This better be worth it, making me wake at the ass crack o’ dawn to catch a flight to Harvest Island.” He plugged an external hard-drive into a USB slot on Simpson’s computer and powered-on the device. Williams mumbled to himself as he carried out a series of tasks: “Too easy… booted right to the external instead… Okay, start-up BIOS Bandit… bam, past the first security layer… into the hard drive… Okay, scan… Like they said, military-grade encryption… Weird. No mind to that…. Military-grade like they said, but not the highest level… Easy crack – for me at least, ha… I love these internal affairs cases. Perps never give thought to the master key. Alright! Drive decrypted. Unless there’s also hidden compartments, of course… We’ll have to get this to Central for that. Now, let’s see what we can see…”

“Anything good?” asked the agent accompanying Williams.

Agent Williams’s eyes widened, and suddenly he yelled, “Get that foreign lady back here immediately! Holy shit!”

…

After finishing a debrief with his CO and the Harvest Island PD, Corporal Jones had gone outside for a cigarette. He heard the distant sound of sirens, gradually becoming louder, and then saw three ambulances and five Harvest Island police cruisers speeding down Main Street. "Looks serious," the corporal said out loud.

Jones heard a woman call his name and turned to see Natalya. “Hello, ma’am,” Jones said warmly. “Questions? Sure, what’s up?”

---
OOC: If you're a giant nerd like myself and want to know precisely what just happened above with Simpson's computer: Simpson's entire hard drive had been encrypted, and to access it, one normally would be given a password prompt upon the computer's power-up (before the operating system loads). However, the Beithen government places a backdoor in its standard-issue computers, beginning with a code in the computer's BIOS, that if an external hard drive with corresponding code is present, the computer will boot from the external drive instead. The ext. drive also includes a program that Williams then uses to deactivate the initial password authentication and thus boot the system normally. Subsequently, Williams is able to decrypt everything on the hard drive's main partition using a hidden admin account and a master key known only to certain members of the Beithen law enforcement community.

[The Isle of Beithe]

Map of Downtown Centreville, Harvest Island

[The Isle of Beithe]

Beithe FBI Central Forensics Laboratory, IT Division
Capitol City, Southern District, Isle of Beithe
Approximately 0900 to 1045. 22 October 2018.

Aaron Phillips, a junior FBI cyber-forensics technician, had been tasked with tediously sifting through known websites on the so-called “dark web” operated by Beithen political activists and terrorist organizations. The goal was to uncover any information directly related or potentially related to the 16 October 2018 conflict on Harvest Island, or the current activities of the Children of the Cause. Phillips regarded this assignment to be “just another dead-end job for plebes,” as he’d moaned to a colleague working next to him.

“Eh, could be worse. At least you see some entertaining stuff on those sites sometimes—creepy as f**k, but still entertaining. They got me reviewing 2-thousand pages of bank statements, credit card bills, and income tax returns for this fraud investigation.”

“Thrilling,” replied Phillips.

He had already reviewed every website on his list. The obvious first choice had been the principal website operated by the Children of the Cause, but not surprisingly, the site had vanished. Next, Phillips searched various message boards frequented by the Children, but the boards were silent.

In a desperate last effort, Phillips decided to check sites run by Beithe’s more prominent political dissidents. Upon visiting “The Neo-National Herald,” a blog maintained by Traditionalist Party founder Harold Stewart, the FBI technician finally unearthed information related to the Harvest Island affair. “Jackpot!” he exclaimed.

Phillips skimmed through the long, rambling article until he came across a video, reportedly shot shortly after the Beithen marines had opened fire on the Harvest Island protesters. The video’s quality was astonishing: like footage from a documentary, Phillips thought. “Definitely not filmed from a cell phone.”

The recorded scene was chaotic: frightened citizens running into each other and confused-looking marines chasing them down while shouting orders. Several people were tackled by the marines and handcuffed. Phillips heard gunshots amidst the screams, but he did not actually see anyone firing.

It was disturbing to watch, but Phillips saw nothing that provided clues to what had occurred on that afternoon of 16 October. He watched the video over again, hoping he’d overlooked some subtle detail.

On his third view, Phillips noted what sounded like voices on a radio, starting about 20 seconds into the video. He paused and went back to listen again: definitely radio chatter. He opened an audio enhancement program, and after 20 minutes of trial-and-error, Phillips was able to hear clearly some of the radio conversation between the Beithen marines.


“Suspect Alpha spotted…. Sidewalk… Main Street, headed west.”

“…. the girl! … watch your aim!”

“Suspect down!”

“….located… mother shielding….”

“Watch your aim! Watch your aim!”

“F**! F**k!”

“…. Idiot!”


Phillips listened five more times but could not make out further dialogue. He spent another 45 minutes searching for additional clues.

Towards the end of the 3-minute video, an unusual-looking marine came into partial view. Contrasting from the other marines, he (or maybe she) wore an M40 field protective mask. Phillips zoomed in and noticed something else that was different: this marine’s uniform did not include rank insignia or unit identification.

At 1045, Phillips phoned Agent Walton, but the call went straight to voicemail. “Damn, that’s right, the court hearing!” he complained. He would attempt to call Walton again later. Next, Phillips called Agent Williams, who was currently on Harvest Island investigating a break-in at the Federal Building.

[Stoklomolvi]

Beithe Supreme Court Building
Capitol City, Southern District, Isle of Beithe
0844 hours 22 October 2018

Artyom nodded to Walton. "So," said Artyom, "it looks like the Harvest Island police force is just as much in the dark as we are, I see. Someone high up in central must really be enforcing silence pretty effectively in the Beithe Marine Corps, I must say."

Walton presented Artyom with the police statement. Artyom stared at it for a while. Someone actually saw the girl die. How was this not reported on the first day? Instead, the news of this happening was delayed by four days. He pinched the bridge of his nose. He listened to Agent Walton describe the shooting situation, but was indeed confused; he had not received any such transcript, neither did anyone in his party. After Walton gave the transcript to Artyom, Mikhail sidled over and read the transcript alongside Artyom.

The two men stood in front of the evidence table, reading. As this transcript was the first time either man had ever actually read a first-hand account of Simpson, they were especially fixated on Simpson's behaviour throughout the transcript. As Walton noted, Simpson definitely appeared to be more calm than what one could normally expect a person to be in his situation. Mikhail noted that based on his own theory, Simpson is behaving exactly as expected; if Simpson was merely a scapegoat for the massacre, not the perpetrator, then it would be far more natural for Simpson to behave in the semi-frustrated manner he did.

Mikhail turned to Agent Walton. "Mr Walton, you do have quite the method of questioning." Mikhail nodded. "I must say, even if Simpson thought he was holding back as much information as possible, his behaviour tells quite a bit about him. Artyom, sir, what say you?"

Artyom was still reading the transcript. "Hmm..." he pondered, "I think... well, I'm not sure what to think yet." Before he reached the bottom, Artyom looked up.

"As far as the shooting is concerned, however, I do find it possible that the perpetrators of this incident, whether those include Simpson or not, or whether it's even multiple people or not, could have included agitators in the crowd. After all, based on witness statements..." he continued, pulling out the statement by Robert Ross, "...the situation devolved very quickly. People were throwing objects at the marines. That's never a good development in a potentially very chaotic situation. It would be trivial for someone in the crowd to fire a single bullet, whether that bullet is aimed into the sky, at the ground, or just to the side somewhere."

Mikhail nodded in agreement. "Sir, I do believe that we must inquire how many bullets were fired that day." He turned to Agent Walton. "Mr Walton, do you have records for how many cartridges were expended at that time? If you have figures, what we can do is examine the crime scene again. Examine the shooting victims, examine the bodies of those who were killed, examine the surroundings for any stray bullets, et cetera. In addition, in doing so, we will be able to match the bullets we find, if any, with the characteristics of weapons fired by the soldiers. The goal here, I would imagine, is to find a deviant bullet; that is, a bullet that does not appear to have been fired by any of the marines at the scene. Admittedly, if all bullets and unspent cartridges are accounted for, and the marines are the ones to blame for starting the incident, then we will not gain a huge amount of leverage here, but I believe it would be useful information nevertheless. Data, data, data, we cannot make bricks without clay.

"Since, with that information, we can also most likely determine who shot Mr Stephenson. As I recall, all members involved in the shooting here were Beithen marines, meaning that their standard issue armament would be the five point five six by forty five millimetre NATO cartridge fired from standard AR-33 assault rifles. This calibre of firearm would, I believe, under most circumstances, such as the one surrounding the shooting, result in the bullet being lodged in the victims, meaning we would find the bullet in the body of Mr Stephenson. As I had been saying earlier, collecting the forensic evidence on all rifles involved, and all cartridges and bullets involved, would lead us to find the exact person responsible for his slaying, assuming that he did in fact possess the rifle to which he had been assigned."

Mikhail's talking speed was increasing faster, and Artyom, familiar with this, resumed reading the bottom of the transcript. He noticed the off-hand comment at the bottom of the page.

Artyom was silent for a moment. As Mikhail talked to Walton about the crime scene, Artyom's mind was spinning. After what seemed like ages, Artyom raised his hand to get their attention. "Agent Walton," said Artyom, "how many people have seen this transcript? Is this transcript considered to be top secret? Your comment on the bottom of the page here, how many people have seen it?!" Artyom raised his right arm straight up.

Mikhail turned to Artyom, startled. "Sir, please cal—"

"Misha, if someone who is involved in the other side of the case notices that comment, they may start destroying evidence!" Artyom slammed the table.

"W-what?" stammered Mikhail. He immediately tried to adjust the evidence to what it looked like before.

"If the perpetrators, excluding Simpson, notice that investigators are suspecting foul play, or some involvement from the powers that be, or if somehow anyone outside the investigation catches wind of this, whether it be through some leak, or something else or something," said Artyom, pointing at the transcript, "and there is indeed involvement in here that is around Simpson, then we're going to be in for a hell of a time from the prosecution."

Artyom coughed and wiped his hand on his suit. "My apologies, Mr Agent Walton. I don't mean to suspect that the esteemed members of your legal system would perform such actions. But, in my experience, cornered criminals are dangerous criminals; threatened criminals are dangerous criminals. I don't know what the criminals in this case are capable of, so I'm merely exercising caution in the face of the unknown." He bowed to Walton and saluted him briefly after. "Forgive my outburst, please."

Federal Building
Harvest Island, Beithe
0918 hours 22 October 2018

Before asking anything, Natalya adjusted her tie. She held a 45-degree bow for around a second before straightening up, and held a salute to Corporal Jones. "Forensics Investigator Natalya, investigating into the matter of Governor-General Franklin Simpson on behalf of Interpol." She dropped her salute and grinned at Corporal Jones. "Also with official permission since I'm a subordinate of Investigator Artyom, granted temporary honours by the Beithe government."

She turned and pulled out her tablet. "As for questions... I'm sure you've been asked plenty of questions by others already, but... since I'm not those others, I'll just have to repeat what they've asked! From the top here, let's see... right, so what time do you say you encountered the perpetrator of the unauthorised entry?"

On her tablet, she had noted down a series of questions to ask Corporal Jones:
Questions to ask officer involved

• What time was the unauthorised entry committed?
• How many guards were on-site?
• How was the unauthorised entry committed?
• Is there a history of break-ins like this one?
• What behaviour did you notice? Was he agitated, scared, calm, etc?
• Did you notice the suspect bringing anything? Take anything? Leave anything? Crime was a burglary?
• Was there any suspicious item on the suspect's person?
• Any known motive for the unauthorised entry?

[The Isle of Beithe]

Beithe Supreme Court Building
Capitol City, Southern District, Isle of Beithe
Approximately 0900. 22 October 2018.

To Artyom’s inquiry regarding the bullets fired during the Harvest Island incident, Agent Walton replied, “I don’t have precise figures, but I’ll make some calls to see if we can figure that out. What I can confirm, however, is that thus far all victims autopsied were hit with a 5.56. I believe only half, or a little less than half, of the victims have been autopsied, though. Harvest Island’s ME is likely overwhelmed, and the damned weather’s delayed our ability to get some backup over there.”


…

The Beithen investigators were disturbed by Artyom’s outburst. Grinning, Agent Walton crossed his arms while Agent von Olgorf coughed and motioned with his eyes towards the man in the corner, who had put down his book and now watched the investigators hawkishly.

“Until now, only Agent von Olgorf, Mr. Stanford (the prosecutor), and I have been privy to this information, maybe President Kemp as well” Walton replied to Artyom’s question. “And to be safe, I’d personally mailed the transcript to Lieutenant Robertson along with the other preliminary info.”

There was a knock on the door. “Enter,” Agent von Olgorf said. A court officer opened the door and announced that Colonel Jefferson had arrived.

“Thank you, please tell the colonel we’ll be ready in a moment,” Walton informed the officer. He turned his attention back to Artyom and Mikhail and asked, “So, anything else you want to go over before we talk with the first witness?”

Sub-Lt. Robertson suddenly spoke up, to everyone’s surprise. “Hey, I actually thought of something, sirs! That talk about accounting for all the cartridges got me thinking.” Robertson fiddled with his glasses. “Um well, every marine involved was supposed to give a statement, right? We have 117 statements. That number seemed off to me, so I checked and the 6th Marine Infantry Battalion, Rifle Company Bravo has 125 marines assigned to the unit. I mean, it might be nothing—maybe the other eight were on sick call, but…”

---

Federal Building
Harvest Island, Beithe
0918. 22 October 2018.

Corporal Jones crushed out his cigarette and awkwardly returned Natalya’s salute. As an enlisted marine, he was not used to being the recipient of a salute. Jones smiled and answered the Stoklomolvi investigator’s questions, hoping his answers would be helpful.

“The time of arrest was precisely 0403, ma’am. It was a quick pursuit, so I’d estimate my detection of the break-in no more than 5 minutes earlier. I’d been on my routine patrol route through the office suites. Just me in this part of building, ma’am, Private Whitesell patrolling the living areas, and four others working the exterior.”

After I’d made the arrest, I radioed into Willowick and they dispatched Harvest Island PD. While we waited for the local authorities, Private Whitesell, Sergeant Koch, and I started canvassing the area for clues to how the little guy got in the building—I say little, because get this, perp’s only 13 years old! Well, it was a massive waste to check for broken windows and the like, ‘cause it turned out the answer was on the kid.” Jones blushed and continued, “In my haste, I must’ve not patted him down thoroughly enough. Kid had a key-fob badge stuffed in his underwear—which he was happy to share only after the locals arrived. Swiped it from his mom’s boyfriend who is a part-time custodial worker here. Funny thing is, to get past the building’s main lobby, you also need a pass-code in addition to a badge, but kid wouldn’t say how he’d gotten that.”

“History of break-ins? No, never—not inside the facility at least. Couple people’d snuck onto the grounds before and vandalized the place. Last Unity Day, some miscreants TP’d some trees, and we caught one punk midway in the act of spray-painting the Harvest Island flag on the lobby door. We've increased security since then.”

“Kid was real funny. Nervous for sure, little shaky, but trying to put on a macho facade. Refused to talk at first. He broke when the local PD arrived, though. I think what got him was that one of the cops recognized him, was a neighbor of his. Even got scared enough that—well, let’s say we had to fetch a mop to clean the mess from the floor. Kid—what was his name? Oh right, Arthur Thomas—well, Arthur opened up a wee bit. He admitted to trying to break into the computer in the Governor-General’s office. What he wouldn’t say, however, was why. As far as we could tell, he didn’t succeed with his plan; I’d caught him just in time. Other than the key fob he’d use to gain entry and that USB he’d left in the computer, all we found was a small pocket knife. There’s no evidence that the kid took anything either. The computer was his sole target. Apparently young Arthur has a RAP sheet: two times he’s been suspended from school for hacking into his school’s system to fix his grades, and late last year, he’d been caught attempting to hack the Harvest Island Office of Public Health & Vital Records—got a month-and-a-half in juvie and 5 years’ probation for that.”

After Corporal Jones finished answering Natalya’s questions, a Beithe FBI agent frantically appeared. “Excuse me, miss, but Agent Williams has requested your immediate presence. You’re not going to believe what we’ve found!”

---

OOC: The crime scene on Harvest Island is still cordoned, so there is still a chance to search for physical evidence such as spent ammo.

[Stoklomolvi]

Beithe Supreme Court Building
Capitol City, Southern District, Isle of Beithe
0910 hours 22 October 2018

Mikhail shook his head. "Sir, you are in friendly company. Do not worry so much." He pat Artyom on the back. "As far as bullets go, I would say that we should arrange a time for either a Beithen investigations team, or possibly our team, to investigate the crime scene."

Artyom nodded to Mikhail, and then addressed Agent Walton. "Understood, Mr Walton. As long as information security is in place, we... er, I won't worry about it." Before he could respond to Agent Walton's question, however, Sub-Lt Robertson voiced his thoughts first. He turned to Robertson.

"Hmm..." Artyom wondered, rubbing his chin. "Eight missing statements out of one hundred and twenty five? That's quite significant, I'd say. It means that over six percent of the statements are not present. I think you have an excellent point, Sub-Lieutenant Mr Bud. Misha?"

"Indeed," said Mikhail. "If the one hundred seventeen statements we have right now do not tell us sufficient information, then it is only prudent to inquire what the other marines would have said, if they would say anything at all. In fact, owing to our current dearth of information on the matter, leading us to the situation where we may need to dig in the realm of firearm forensics, a single one of those remaining eight statements may be exactly what we need. If it were up to me, I would argue that we should spare no expense in bringing those eight statements to light." He tapped the side of his forehead. "Refusal to testify is evidence all its own, after all.

"As far as where there is anything else... I do not believe I have any further issues with the current state of affairs. Sir?" Mikhail asked Artyom.

"Well, being that I don't see an issue with the transcript at this point, and that there does not appear to be any major issues anyway, I'd say we can move on to talking with Colonel Jefferson. Is Julia waiting somewhere for us?" Artyom asked of Walton.

Federal Building
Harvest Island, Beithe
0930 hours 22 October 2018

Natalya was jotting down key points from Corporal Jones's statement into her tablet, and the entirety of his words were being recorded. POI added: teenager's mother, teenager's mother's boyfriend, and delayed local policemen, thought Natalya. A Mr Arthur Thomas... haven't heard that name before. She nodded as she listened, but in her mind, the fact that this boy has had a record of cyberattacks... I wonder how much of it was legitimately cracking security and how much was social engineering? The reality of the situation is that this boy was an objective-driven kind of miscreant... he broke into the building after all. Which means that if social engineering had worked, he wouldn't be here. Franklin Simpson probably didn't divulge anything to him, if the boy had made any attempts, that is. Curious case, this Simpson. I wonder, is the Thomas boy really connected? Maybe he's just upset about what happ-

Natalya's mind was jerked backed into the present by both an unexpected guest and a startled corporal. "Gah! Agent W-Williams?!" she stammered. I thought he wanted to rendezvous on the mainland, not here! "Right, on my way!" She turned back to Corporal Jones.

"Mr Jones, your cooperation is greatly appreciated!" She tilted her head and smiled. "All the information you have obtained... will most definitely be beneficial to our investigation. Oh, by the way, with your permission, I would like to preserve our conversation just now" —she patted her tablet— "in the form of a recording on this tablet."

The agent urged her once more. Natalya made a few quick bows. "Sorry, sorry! Mr Jones, if you need me to delete the recording, just let me know. Looks like I gotta run!" She quickly followed the agent back into the building.

[The Isle of Beithe]

Beithe Supreme Court Building
Capitol City, Southern District, Isle of Beithe
0915. 22 October 2018.

The Beithen investigators agreed with their Stoklomolvi counterparts’ assessment. Agent von Olgorf announced that he’d make a call to Willowick Naval Base’s personnel office. With a list of all marines assigned to the unit that had confronted the Harvest Island protesters, the investigators could cross-reference the names against the provided statements.

As von Olgorf exited the room, Colonel Jefferson entered.


WITNESS INTEVIEW #1: Colonel Nicholas Jefferson – Commander, Beithe Marine Corps 6th Infantry Battalion


“I didn’t know how to respond when Governor-General Simpson gave the order,” Col. Jefferson began. “It’s not my job to question orders, but it didn’t make sense, and before I executed Simpson’s order to dispatch my men, I’d consulted Lieutenant-Commander Bolton in the base’s JAG office, to assure myself about the legality. Commander Bolton told me that use of the Beithe Marine Corps for civilian law enforcement is permitted under…shit, what was the word? Exigent circumstances. I’d had to look that one up in the old Webster’s.”

Sub-Lt. Robertson interrupted. “Bolton wasn’t wrong per se, sir, but he forgot to tell you that such orders can only be issued by a District Commissioner or the High Council President.”

“No, no, Bolton, did explain this to me,” Jefferson continued. “He said that technically a protectorate’s Governor-General holds authority equivalent to a District Commissioner on the mainland. He did caution me, though, that this was treading along unprecedented territory.”

“Did Governor-General Simpson provide verbal or written justification for the so-called ‘exigent’ circumstances?” asked Special Agent Walton.

“No, sir. In retrospect, I should’ve asked. Not sure it would’ve done any good, though.”

“What do you mean?” Walton queried.

“I suspect that whatever motivated Simpson, he was going to keep it a secret. He seemed off. Really shaky, sweating. His speech was—I guess, you could say he’d been almost rambling. You want my honest opinion? I think Simpson thought he was in over his head.”

Colonel Jefferson patiently awaited further questions.

---

Federal Building
Harvest Island, Beithe
0930. 22 October 2018.

Shocked yet also excited, Agent Williams looked as if he’d inadvertently discovered the Holy Grail in his cupboard.

“You won’t believe this,” he said to Natalya, his eyes still fixed upon the computer screen. “I was just doing a preliminary check to ensure the computer hadn’t been tampered with, and soon as I get to Simpson’s desktop screen, I see this!”

Williams pointed to a folder in the middle of the screen named “READ ME NOW.” Inside the folder, there were six Word documents, sequentially named “Ev1” through “Ev6,” as well as a document titled “National Herald.”

Williams explained, “Shitty thing is, most of the files are corrupted -- possibly the result of an error during decryption. We’ll have to get this back to Central for me to attempt a recovery. But what’s in the readable files—wow, it’s weird enough by itself, but what the hell it’s doing on Simpson’s computer is the bigger mystery. Look for yourself.” He opened Ev3.docx; the document was an e-mail transcript from 21 years ago.

TO: Field Commander C. McLean
FROM: Officer First Grade K. Jeffries
DATE: 16 March 1997
SUBJECT: Sussex Governor Kemp
SECURITY LEVEL: Top Secret Alpha-1-Zeta

The internal investigations conducted by Governor Kemp of Sussex have been a nuisance to platoon ops for too long. Risk of exposure highly likely. Request recommended action.

---

TO: Officer First Grade K. Jeffries
FROM: Field Commander C. McLean
DATE: 16 March 1997
SUBJECT: RE: Sussex Governor Kemp
SECURITY LEVEL: Top Secret Alpha-1-Zeta

Donaldson consulted for further action. Standby.

---

TO: Officer First Grade K. Jeffries
FROM: Field Commander C. McLean
DATE: 18 March 1997
SUBJECT: RE: Sussex Governor Kemp
SECURITY LEVEL: Top Secret Alpha-1-Zeta

Proceed per procedure 20-B. Further instructions to be delivered verbally.

---

TO: Field Commander C. McLean
FROM: Officer First Grade K. Jeffries
CC: [REDACTED]
DATE: 29 March 1997
SUBJECT: RE: Sussex Governor Kemp
SECURITY LEVEL: Top Secret Alpha-1-Zeta

Procedure 20-B executed successfully.

Next, Agent Williams opened Ev4.docx, which was also an e-mail transcript but more recent.

TO: Lieutenant V. Fischer
FROM: Officer Second Grade G. Griffon
DATE: 03 August 2017
SUBJECT: Madden
SECURITY LEVEL: Top Secret Alpha-1-Zeta

Target elimination unsuccessful. Permission to re-engage?

---

TO: Officer Second Grade G. Griffon
FROM: Lieutenant V. Fischer
CC: [REDACTED]
DATE: 03 August 2017
SUBJECT: RE: Madden
SECURITY LEVEL: Top Secret Alpha-1-Zeta

Negative. PHC suspicions too high.