Now that they were out of warp, Oscar took the opportunity to catch up on his email. The main one was a letter to his half-brother in Nashville. It was filled with fluffy and nondescript updates about his current gig, along with a few embedded keywords for Martin. Those keywords decoded into 'All going well, nothing to report so far.' His usual horoscope check hadn't uncovered any covert messages from Martin either, so things Earthside seemed to be going fine.

There was a discreet rapping on his door. Traditionally the Dorarizin used their claws to scratch on doors to request access, but after a few times of nearly soiling himself at the horrible screeching noise Oscar asked them to please knock instead. "Yeah, be right there," he called, and pressed 'Send' before heading to the door.

The colony of Pak'tahl was built like a huge hamster cage, with lots of cylindrical tube-like hallways connecting larger caves. The walls and rock faces were covered with a hard material that looked like plastic but which Oscar figured must be a lot stronger. It was not dark and dank as he'd expected; the walls were colored in soft pastels, the air was clean and fresh, and every so often there would be a built-in screen along the wall that showed some large and expansive scene of nature. So that was nice.

What wasn't nice was the staring. After getting off of the Claw's shuttle he'd received nothing but curious stares from every single Dorarizin they passed. Oscar strode along as if the staring was no big deal, partly because he didn't want to show weakness. The other reason for his striding was that Myyreh was striding right next to him while Jeeves floated on his other side. Having a Kung-Fu Warrior werewolf and a security drone watching your back was enough to give anyone a nice warm and fuzzy sense of protection.

Those in the hallways parted to either side of them, since Captain Rgrarshok was at the head of their little parade. They reached the largest cave yet, one with a garden area in the middle and numerous box-like apartments set into the walls. The space was mostly filled with Dorarizin. Mostly.

Oscar spotted two of the raptor-like Karnakians puttering along the far wall of the cave. One of them snapped its snout around to face their little formation, and its four eyes blinked in surprise upon catching sight of Oscar. It...no, he was able to tell it was a 'she' by this point...she reached over and tugged at her companion's wing-arm, then pointed with obvious excitement at him.

He ignored the raptors for now; as long as they kept their distance, he'd keep his.

A Dorarizin that Oscar recognized as Kergrth-of-Ahrraht came huffing through the central garden. As in his picture, he was a very 'substantial' male; the fasteners on his dark green uniform were putting in a heroic effort to keep everything contained.

"[Captain Rgrarshok! This is an unexpected pleasure!]"

The huge captain gave a grave nod in reply. "[Chief Kergrth. Do you mind if we speak privately?]"

"[That's no problem, my headquarters are nearby...]" The fat Dorarizin did a double-take upon seeing Oscar. "[I say! Is that a...]"

"['That' is a 'he, Chief,]" replied Rgrarshok. "[My latest trainee. I'm sure you won't mind if he accompanies us.]"

The chief made a little bow towards Oscar. "[Of course not.]"

Oscar heard the softest rumbling growl behind him. It was a nearly subsonic noise that said 'back the fuck up' more clearly than the sound of a shotgun getting racked. He turned carefully and saw that the female Karnakian approaching their group. Her feathers were a pearlescent blue color that shone in the soft overhead lighting.

The raptor darted her snout back and forth in quick, birdlike movements as she stared first at Oscar and then at the much larger and closer Myrreh. The bodyguard wasn't exactly blocking the Karnakian yet, but Oscar noted how her legs were flexed and her weight perfectly balanced so as to leap if required. Myrreh gave out another warning growl.

The Karnakian trilled to Oscar as a crest of feathers on its head rose up. "[Greetings, and may your striving for perfection bring you closer to the Great One. I am Tk'Serk, and it is an honor to meet you.]"

Oscar crossed his arms and stared back. Tk'Serk had for sure not been involved with Atlanta, and it was unfair to judge an entire race on the clusterfuck that had resulted from humanity's First Contact. Hell, a good chunk of Karnakians were pacifists anyway. So he'd be polite to the dinosaur but he'd be damned if he was going to be friendly.

Tk'Serk figeted her claws together. "[I am pleased to see a [Human] here, so far from your home. Your kind is truly becoming an interstellar species!]"

He bit back words to the effect of No thanks to you, birdbrain, but reconsidered. "Your sentiment is very appreciated," he replied in a flat tone.

The Karnakian bobbed her snout, and with a last somewhat worried glance at Myyreh she turned and trotted off.

Chief Kergrth blew out a relieved breath as the raptor departed. "[Ah, yes. So, if you'll follow me please...]"

The chief's headquarters were a little too nice in Oscar's opinion, although his instincts on what counted as 'luxury' might be way off due to the ubiquity of nanofabrication. Post-scarcity or not, the walls and furnishings of the chief's office seemed more ornate than was required.

Kergrth didn't have a 'desk' exactly. It was more of a work surface set to one side of his office. He sat on his haunches next to it and looked in disbelief at Captain Rgrarshok.

"[You can't be serious!]" he protested. "[If there was any significant Green smuggling going on here then I'd know about it. And the Rrelren pack can't be involved. They're from one of our oldest clans.]" He leaned forward a bit and tried to sound reasonable. "[Besides, [Pak'Tahl's] Dorarizin sectors are my jurisdiction. It'll be easier if you give me what evidence you have and I'll look into it. I know the people around here, I know exactly who to talk to."

The captain's head nearly brushed the ceiling as she stood in front of the chief. "[My team has direct authorization from the Senate to pursue such matters. And I intend to pursue, starting with Hrzharh-of-Azrehs. Where is he?]"

The chief's ears went flat against his head. "[How should I know? He's a law-abiding citizen.]"

Rgrarshok tilted her head as she received a message via implant. "[Ah, never mind. My XO has located Hrzharh. I'll need one of your rooms for the interview.]"

"[It will just be an interview, right?]" Kergrth leaned forward onto his fists with a worried look. "[I have to live here, it can't be anything rough.]"

The captain gave a casual wave of one paw. "[Please, we aren't the Inquisition. I'm sure that everything is just as you say and that Hrzharh's claws are straight and true. I merely wish to give him a chance to explain himself.]"

With more worried looks, the chief escorted them to a spartan room that didn't even have a work surface. Once inside, the captain tapped her chin. "[Yes, this will do.]" She fiddled with the room's lighting controls until there was only one harsh light shining down from above. In the meantime Chief Kergrth shifted from one foot to another.

She turned to him after she was done. "[Thank you, we'll let you know when we're done.]"

He gave an uncomfortable shake of his head. "[Hrzharh is a citizen of this colony. I should be present.]"

"[We'll give you the full, unedited recording of the interview as soon as it's completed.]"

Kergrth looked at her unsmiling face and visibly slumped. "[Very well. I expect this to be conducted according to proper standards.]"

"[Of course.]"

After Kergrth left, the captain turned to the human. "[We have a few [minutes] until our guest arrives. Trainee [Oscar], how would you proceed with this interview?]"

Oscar folded his arms and thought for a bit. "We've got two strategies. We either go for shock and awe, or act like it's no big deal and we're just following up on some weak-ass lead. The first tactic will get them panicky and running around, which should make them slip and give us something more to work with. The second strategy might make them relax and get sloppy."

"[Which would you recommend?]"

"Option one. Drop on 'em like the wrath of an angry god."

The captain gave a half-smile. "[Then we are in agreement.]" She pulled a fist-sized camera drone out of a side pouch and tossed it into the center of the room. It promptly beeped and hovered near the ceiling. She turned and surveyed the space.

"[Let's see...Myrreh, please stand there in the corner. [Oscar], you hide yourself next to her and wait. I'm sure he'll start out aggressive, with some words about speaking to my higher-ups. [Oscar], if he keeps up with that nonsense I want you to speak up and ask about some pointless detail to get him off balance.]"

Within a few minutes, the door slid open and a male Dorarizin strode in as if he owned the place. He wore an embroidered waistcoat and his mottled gray mane was neatly combed. His ears held multiple earrings apiece, which was something that Oscar hadn't seen yet on a Dorarizin. The male clasped his waistcoat's lapels in his paws and started complaining the moment he crossed the threshold.

"[This is all very improper! Are you the captain? I wish to register a complaint...]"

Captain Rgrarshok stood to her full height, and she ducked her head down. The overhead lighting cast her face into shadow. The sight was enough to make Hrzharh stop speaking and backpedal a bit. His back ran right into Nrgalh's chest, since the XO now blocked the only door into the room.

Rgrarshok unsheathed a claw and pointed it at the drone hovering overhead. "[Hrzharh-of-Azrehs, you are now being recorded. I have just sent the authorization for this investigation to your implant. Do you question its authenticity?]"

Hrzharh rallied quickly, Oscar would give him that much. "[N...No, it's just that I was in the middle of an important business transaction when your colleague accosted me!]"

"[Ah, your business. Let us discuss that business, shall we?]"

He drew himself up as if to subconsciously match her posture. "[Yes, let's! I have nothing to hide. I promise you that I'll be making a full complaint to your superiors...]"

Oscar figured that this was a good moment to start with the distracting. "Captain, may I ask a question?"

The captain's stormy expression relaxed into mildness. "[Of course.]"

"Does that authorization you mentioned act like what humans would call a search warrant?"

Her mild tone didn't waver. "[Yes. It gives us authorization for searches and for interviews like this.]"

Hrzharh stared at Oscar. "[What...what is that creature doing here?]"

Oscar decided he'd play up the 'clueless yokel from the sticks' angle. He'd been raised in the southern US and he could really thicken up his accent when he needed to. It was a handy way to get a suspect to underestimate him.

He gave Hrzharh a friendly wave. "Aw, don't mind little 'ol me. Just learnin' the ropes 'round here, as my folks say."

The suspect spluttered as the Captain went back into 'predator' mode.

"[Your genetic material has been found on several shipments of Green. Do you have any explanation as to how that might have happened? I'd hate to waste our time chasing after an innocent man.]"

Hrzharh waved a paw. He was clearly agitated and his claws were extended. Oscar noted that his claws were a lot more shiny and polished than those of his own shipmates; that must be another status thing. The human also noticed that the room was now filled with a faint spicy scent. Was Hrzharh wearing perfume? That was something he hadn't heard of. Maybe it was a Dorarizin guy thing. The gender roles were reversed in their society, so maybe his outfit and demeanor was the doggo version of wearing a slinky dress while sporting a smoky come-hither stare.

"[By the Pale Moon, how should I know?,] he sputtered. "[I have handled many things here, perhaps one particular container which was then used by some miscreant later on.]"

The Captain settled back on her substantial haunches with a small smile. "[Your claws do not appear as one who works at the docks. And your genetic material was found on several Green shipments on widely separated worlds. Are you sure there isn't anything you'd like to tell us?"

A commotion erupted out in the hallway behind the XO, and Ngralh turned himself to face whatever was going on out there. Oscar's translator only caught a bit of a deep female voice haranguing the hapless Chief Kergrth.

"[?error#sn&(error:undefined words)?an OUTRAGE, you hear me? A member of my pack, hauled out of a very important meeting like some common thug!]"

Hrzharh visibly relaxed upon hearing that voice.

"[I can't interfere, they have a mandate from the Senate!]" spluttered the chief.

The newcomer gave a loud huff. "[Honestly, what do I pay taxes for? You there, move out of the way if you know what's good for you!]"

Ngralh looked back over his shoulder with a cocked ear and a half-smile, one that said Do you want me to take out the trash?

The captain shook her muzzle slightly and gestured for the XO to step aside. A dark blue-gray Dorarizin swept into the room. She was wearing an embroidered jacket that was just as ornate as Hrzharh's, and as she entered she fixed the captain with a furious glare.

"[Are you the one responsible for this?]"

Rgrarshok gave a little bow. "[Grawreh-of-Rrelren, I presume.]"

"[I'm going to have your claws, you overgrown...]"

"[You will do no such thing. I have full authorization for this investigation, and if you interfere in this interview I will have no choice but to broadcast that authorization to every implant in this colony. Merely to clear up any misunderstandings, of course.]"

Grawreh snorted. "[A feeble threat, if you think you can besmirch my clan's reputation with such tactics. No, you will either release my denmate now or allow my pack's advocate to be present for this so-called interview.]"

After a moment of the two females staring at each other, Rgrarshok turned to Hrzharh. The male now looked quite smug.

"[Hrzharh-of-Azrehs, you are free to go. But we expect you to be available if we have any further questions.]"

He made a mock-gracious bow and turned to his mate. "[Thank you for coming, dearest. I'm sorry you had to do so.]"

As he took her arm, she gave another, more triumphant snort. Her eyes flicked over Oscar and she looked a little puzzled, then recovered and gave the captain a frosty sneer before the pair swept back out of the room.

Rgrarshok watched them go with a little smile on her face. Then she held out her hand, and the camera drone obediently dropped into it. The captain looked up at the chief still wringing his hands in the hallway. "[Chief Kergrth, you will receive a recording of this interview for your own records. We thank you for your cooperation, and we'll let you know if we need anything else.]"

The team's hotel suite sat in what constituted the 'center' of the colony's Dorarizin territory. Apart from a few denpile-containing rooms, the suite had a kitchen/meal area and a large main room intended for relaxation and receiving guests. The latter room now had all of its furniture pushed aside while a new holo-display stood in the center of the largest wall.

Fancy tech aside, the display functioned as something that Oscar was very used to, namely as a 'whiteboard' for putting up data and pictures on the current case. The center of the display showed the portraits of Grawreh and Hrzharh, and below those were pictures of the other members of the Rrelren pack.

Captain Rgrarshok stood to one side with her paws clasped behind her back. "[Engineer Egwreh, report.]"

Egwreh stood and began gesturing. Under her implant's control, one side of the display suddenly showed a huge array of tiny screens. Each tiny screen showed an image of a corridor or common area along even tinier bustling figures. "[Right after we settled into orbit I used our authorization to gain access to the colony's public camera system. Our expert systems are now trawling through the various feeds and correlating any increased activity with news of our arrival. They're also looking for our suspect's faces, so we'll be able to track their movements if any of the Rrelren pack so much as step a paw outside their apartment."

"[Good. Specialist Bgrarh?]"

Bgrarh now stood, and Oscar was pleased to see that he had his deerstalker once more upon his head. In spite of his perhaps-goofy headgear, the big male's attitude was calm and centered now that he was 'on the job'.

"[I've deployed a few sensor drones at key entry points on the docks. They're purely passive at the moment. I want to focus on the containers themselves; each container we found with Hrzharh's [DNA] was of the same type, and so I've set the drones to scan for exactly that container. We can then correlate those with the shipments.]"

"[Excellent. Ngralh, you dig into the Rrelren pack's finances and see if there's any unexplained payments or general strangeness. Doctor Kgrashak, I want you searching the colony's medical history. Someone in the smuggling ring might be using the product on the side. Trainee [Oscar], I want you to dig into the shipping side of things, particularly among the Karnakians.]"

Oscar nodded. "That makes sense. Pacifist or not, they'll be on their best behavior around a human." He regarded the bare expanse of the display and pictured the structure of the smuggling ring. "The product must be coming from the raptor's core systems to here. I'm assuming that it's forbidden to openly ship Green to any Doarizin colony?"

"[That's correct.]"

"I hate to ask the dumb-yokel question, but has anyone in your Empire asked the Karnakians to, ya know, please stop making Green?"

The captain chuckled. "[It would make life so much simpler, wouldn't it? No, there are apparently a few sacred bathing rituals which the [Karnakians] claim must use Green.]"

"So much for that. Okay, so the stuff is coming in on the sly. Maybe they mix it in with other bathing powders. I'll start with the port. I want to get a sense of how much dock-side interaction there is between the two races. Right now I'm guessing the hand-off takes place there."

The Dorarizin portion of the docks showed quite clearly how much Pak'tahl's fortunes had changed. They were a series of huge and interconnected caverns, separated from each other by large vault-like doors. But most were now empty, and only a few held stacks of the giant ingots that constituted the colony's mining output.

The dock manager for the Dorarizin section of the docks was a sour-tempered male named Zergarh-of-Arzerghr. His sour mood was probably due to having to put up with Oscar's questioning. The human felt a little sympathy for the guy, but only a little.

Oscar, along with his entourage of Myrreh and Jeeves, stood next to Zergarh on a balcony that overlooked the huge expanse of the in-use dock. Oscar had to step up on the lower crosspiece of the balcony's railing to get a proper look. The rocky ceiling had a surprisingly familiar-looking gantry crane that ran the length of the cavern. Far below, a hulking Dorarizin dockhand held a blocky controller, using it to lower the cable that held the crane's claw-like clamp. The clamp settled onto a flat ingot of metal that was a long as a schoolbus. After walking around the ingot to make sure it was set, she pressed another button on the controller and the clamp clicked around the huge and matte-gray bar. After a press of a different button, the entire mass began to rise into the air.

"[I'm telling you, if there's Green smuggling going on it's not through these docks.]" Zergarh paused to turn and yell at the worker far below "[You're pulling it up too fast!]"

The dockhand spread her arms in the universal gesture which said Why you gotta break my balls? But she did slow down the ingot's ascent.

Oscar pointed at a far wall. "So the Karnakians have their docking facilities through there, correct?"

"[Yes, it's completely separated from ours by [thirty meters] of solid rock. We do seismic scans every [month] to make sure nobody's trying to get cute and dig themselves a tunnel.]"

The human regarded the rising ingot. "You set up the docks that way in the beginning?"

"[It's standard when there are any joint Dorarizin and [Karnakain] facilities. Green smuggling has been going on for a long time.]"

By now the ingot was at Oscar's eye level. The dockhand grabbed the dangling cable from the gantry and started towing the load over to the closest stack.

"So everything shipped to and from this side only goes to Dorarizin space, right?" he asked. "The Karnakians must have a similar setup on their side."

"[You got it. We split up the metal output equally, and they ship their half from their docks.]"

"Hmm." Oscar leaned over the railing more to follow the dockhand, and he sensed Myyreh tensing behind him at his slightly more precarious position. Oscar ignored her worry as he regarded the crane assembly. "Interesting."

Zergarh's eyes narrowed. "[What?]"

"Oh, just that you use cranes instead of some fancy anti-gravity rig. Plus she's using a manual control for the crane. You guys have those brain implants, I would have thought that they'd be easier to use."

The dock supervisor shook his snout. "[Cranes don't drop a [metric ton] of metal on your head if the power cuts out. And as far as implants...yes, they're easier but this is a dangerous environment.]" He pointed in a direction at ninety degrees to the Karnakian docks. "[Two bulkheads in that direction is [Pak'tahl's] surface, which is at death pressure. Most controls around here are manual only. Anything that can be interfaced via wireless can in principle be hacked.]"

Ti'Etka, the Karnakian in charge of the other docks, had sky-blue feathers and the usual sunny disposition of his race. In contrast to his sour Dorarizin counterpart, the raptor seemed delighted to be interviewed and took great pleasure in showing Oscar around his bailiwick. The layout was an exact mirror image of the Dorarizin docks, with both docks separated by a thick wall of solid rock.

"[This is where all incoming shipments from Karnakian space are scanned and sorted,]" he said. The Karnakian gestured with one wing-arm at a square portal big enough to pass a battleship. At the moment a large wheeled crate was outlined in a network of red lines as it trundled slowly through the opening. Several Karnakians trotted through the portal as well in both directions, and they all gave Oscar curious head-tilts that made them look like huge downy-feathered puppies. Puppies with way too many razor-like teeth and the wrong number of eyes.

"What do you scan for?" asked Oscar.

"[The standard types of contraband. Weapons-grade fissionables, unlicensed portable tesseracts, masers above a certain power output...and, of course, Green feather-dust.]"

"Everything and everyone goes through the scanner, I presume."

"[You presume correctly. Every bit of cargo and personnel coming off of a Karnakian ship is tracked via cameras to ensure that they are put through this machine. There are no exceptions.]"

Oscar nodded. "Well, it seems you run a very tight ship, as we humans say. Does that phrase translate?"

Ti'Etka fluffed out his chest feathers as his crest rose. "[Yes, I take your meaning quite well. I thank you.]"

The team reconvened at the hotel suite several hours later. Oscar started with what he'd found at the colony's port.

"If the Green is getting through Ti'Etka's scanner, then the hand-off to the Dorarizin must take place somewhere other than the docks. Or they're somehow sneaking it around the scanner without the cameras catching it. How much product are we talking about per shipment?"

Rgrarshock held out her paws as if she was cradling a loaf of invisible bread. "[The usual shipment size is about so big. Say about [four kilograms] worth. Twenty such shipments per [year] would be enough to supply a significant portion of Dorarizin space. Pure Green is quite potent.]"

"So that's small enough to tote around without raising too much notice. Do they cut it? Er, I mean do they dilute the Green with other inert substances?"

Bgrarh spoke up. "[They certainly do, [Oscar]. Most of the Green samples I've analyzed are at best fifty percent active Green. The rest is usually powdered clay of some sort. And I had a look at the Karnakian dock scanner. Pardon my [Human], but it's a fucking joke.]"

Oscar raised an eyebrow. "Spicy language there, Benny. What do you mean?"

The big Dorarizin gestured at the main display, and several cutaway diagrams of the dock scanner appeared. "[The scanner doesn't have a fine enough resolution. It can detect the general chemical signature of feather-dust, but it's worthless at any more specific identification.]"

Ngralh nodded. "[So all anyone has to do is hide the Green among a shipment of legal feather-dust and it'll slide right on through.]"

"[Exactly.]"

"Would Ti'Etka know that, though?" asked Oscar. "I'm trying to figure out if he's dirty or just clueless."

Bgrarh did the Dorarizin equivalent of a shrug. "[It's possible he doesn't know. This is a commercial scanner unit, so maybe he just fell victim to a good sales pitch.]"

Thus far, Egwreh had sat back on her haunches and watched the others talk. But now she stood, and Oscar had picked up enough of Dorarizin facial expressions to know that the engineer was feeling quite smug.

"[I can shed some light on that. He's dirty.]"

Captain Rgrarshok raised an ear. "[What do you have?]"

Egwreh called up a video on the main display. "[This event occurred just after we notified Pak'Tahl traffic control of our arrival.]"

The center screen now showed a random hallway with two figures at the far end. The camera resolution was good enough to show that one of the figures was Hrzharh. The other was a Karnakian with feathers of a familiar pearlescent blue color.

"I think I know that Karnakian," said Oscar. "She approached us right before we talked to the chief Dorarizin. Tk...Tk'Serk? I think that was her name."

On the screen, the pair gesticulated at each other. There was no audio but it really wasn't necessary. Hrzharh waved his arms about, clearly in the middle of a good old-fashioned freakout. Meanwhile the raptor held up her wing-arms in a soothing manner. Eventually she even reached over and touched his shoulder to try and calm the agitated Dorarizin.

"Oh, Tk'Serk," said Oscar. "You're a dirty girl, aren't you? So much for all that 'Great One' stuff. Looks like he's flipping his shit and she's telling him to stay frosty. But what does this have to do with our chipper dock supervisor?"

Egwreh chuckled. "[Ti'Etka is her clutch-mate. They're siblings.]"

The team looked at each other, and Oscar couldn't keep the grin off of his face. "Jackpot."

Rgrarshok held up a paw. "[Now, let's not celebrate before we bring the prey to ground. Ngralh, what does the Rrelren pack's finances look like?]"

"[They receive a portion of the profits from the colony's output, since their family is one of those who put up the capital to start it in the first place. But about [ten years] ago, their income started to dwindle along with the metal shipments. They did not adjust their spending to match and as a result they're in debt up to their ear-tips. That so-called 'business' meeting that Hrzharh mentioned was actually renegotiating the terms of one of their larger loans. Interestingly their debt has started receding in the last [two years]. I'm still tracing where the new income is coming from, but I think we all know the answer to that.]"

"[Keep at it.]" The captain stabbed a claw at the screen. "[And also look into that [Karnakian's] finances. [Tk'Serk] must be getting a cut of the proceeds. Bgrarh, I want you to give the XO a paw with that.]"

Oscar pondered the screen as the captain added pictures of the Karnakian siblings above the central photos of the Rrelren pack. She connected the two family groups with a line and a question mark, then added another line above the raptors leading to another question mark.

"[So this is what we know,]" she said. She paused and her upper teeth rippled outward and back into place, a little tic that in a Dorarizin indicated deep thought. Oscar shivered a bit as his hindbrain yelled once again that he was in danger, he was standing way too close to an apex predator and he should run...

Rgrarshok pointed at the incoming line from the top. "[The product is hidden among normal feather-dust. It gets scanned through and logged...there must be an indicator of some sort that says which dust shipments are the 'loaded' ones. Tk'Serk or Ti'Etka take out the hidden packages of Green and carry them out of the Karnakian docks. Then they meet up with one of the Rrelren pack for the exchange.]" Her claw moved to the line connecting the two families.

"Exchanging money for product," mused Oscar. "Then the Rrelren pack ship it out from the Dorarizin docks. We know the general structure of the smuggling, but proving it is gonna be harder."

"[That's correct,]" said Ngrarl. "[We'll need to determine who specifically is involved in shipping the Green back offworld.]"

The captain turned to Doctor Kgrashak. "[Did you find anything?]"

"[In the last [year] there's been three suspected cases of Green abuse,]" replied the doctor. "[One tested positive for Green and was sent to the core worlds for rehabilitation. The other two passed the blood test, but that might have been because they were warned of the test and stopped dosing.]"

"[I'll wager our illustrious police chief had something to do with that warning,]" said Ngralh.

"[Perhaps,]" said Rgrarshok. "[Doctor, please work with Egwreh and see if you can correlate either of those two suspected Green users with Hrzharh.]"

Oscar cleared his throat, and the captain turned with a little smile on her face. He didn't think it was mocking, or at least he hoped so. "[Yes, Trainee?]"

The human motioned at the center pictures. "Hrzharh's DNA was all through those Green shipments you uncovered. I agree he's a dirty boy. But the others in the pack might also be involved to some extent."

"[True. I still need to do a formal interview with Grawreh, so I'll handle her.]" She turned to regard the display. "[As for Kergrakh, the Beta...XO, I want you to interview her.]"

Ngralh nodded as the captain nodded towards Oscar. "[Trainee, I want you to look into Zreshak, the pack's Gamma. She's apparently a scientist or engineer of some sort. There's a chance she's not involved with her pack's criminal activities.]"

"Do you want me to do a formal questioning, or make it more of a chat?" asked Oscar.

"[Hmmm, keep it more of a chat for now. Make sure you have a drone with you to record it, and keep the drone visible. We don't need them claiming entrapment.]"

She turned to address the room in general. "[We'll all need to be very careful around the Rrelren pack. By now every member of her pack will have a camera drone of their own for recording any interactions with us.]"

A few minutes later, they'd determined that both Kergrakh and Zreshak were currently at a type of establishment that translated to a 'scent club'. Before Ngralh and Oscar could be dispatched to 'chat' with them, the rest of the team found another interesting tidbit of information.

"[Rgratz-of-Arznor,]" said Egwreh as she pulled up a picture of a sleepy-looking Dorarizin. "[Suspected of Green use but tested negative. His most consistent employment is in running odd jobs for one Hrzharh-of-Azrehs.]"

The captain grinned, but this was more of a predatory rictus than an expression of happiness. She cracked her knuckles. "[Good work,team. This changes our plan. Grawreh's off at police headquarters...complaining about us, no doubt...so in the meantime I'll go find Rgratz and see if I can get him to turn on Hrzharh.]"

"Do you want me there for that?" asked Oscar.

"[No, I want you and Ngralh to stick with your assignments. Things are going to happen fast now, and I want to keep tabs on all of the Rrelren pack.]" The captain nodded towards Myyreh. "[I don't need to tell you to watch over [Oscar] carefully. And Trainee, you'll need to be careful as well. This colony is full of Dorarizin who haven't gone through the same training that we have. They'll move faster than they should around you, and that could be dangerous.]"

Oscar twitched in surprise as Myyreh settled one of her paws on his shoulder in a comradely manner. "[Don't worry, Captain. He's a pretty dodgy little guy. But I'll still watch over him like a pup.]"

The human wasn't sure if he should be flattered or offended by Myyreh's words.