Protagonists
- Short, Lance - Foreign Service Officer (Γιάννης)
- Miller, Liam (Agent Dave / Jocko) - Naval Special Warfare Group One (SEALs) (Παναγιώτης)
- Lensing, Emma - Professor of Philology (Τάσος)
- Bennet, Wendy - Criminal Intelligence Analyst / Assistant Professor of Criminology (Κωνσταντίνα)
Investigations - Wednesday, May 31st, 2017
The agents meet at their motel before heading to another location in Reno. In the morning, they continue their investigation.
Agent Nikita:
- Contacts Professor Andy White to request a translation of the letters found at the Peña crime scene. He identifies the script as Pahlavi, used in Middle Persian between the 2nd and 7th centuries CE. He is able to make out the words “see” and “daeva.” In Zoroastrianism, a daeva is a rejected god or demon.
- Reaches out to Dr. Iris Hill, a Delta Green consultant, regarding Grbhgrsnh92’s notes. Later that day, she responds with a number of mathematical equations derived from the material.
Agent Locke:
- Visits the local FBI office and identifies the owner of the fingerprints found at the Barraclough murder scene. The prints match Interpol records for Miguel “El Mechero” Castellano, a former member of the BLO cartel in northern Mexico. Castellano was part of a crew led by an infamous killer known only as Santa, named for his white beard. Santa’s crew was notorious for their use of extreme torture and public displays of brutality. According to official reports, the entire crew, including Castellano, was presumed dead in 2012. Photos of all of the crew members are available.
Agent Jocko:
- Experimented with swipe typing on his mobile phone using English, Arabic, and Farsi keyboards. He discovered that Grbhgrsnh (transliterated as Gorbeh Gorsneh) is a Farsi phrase meaning “hungry cat.”
- Called his buddy Ryan, who is working at the Pentagon, and asks for more information on Clyde Mauch and his time during the development of the “Constant Hawk” program. Ryan is more than happy to help. Jocko never realizes that his attempts didn’t go as planned (100 Fumbled roll).
Agent Lance:
Contacts Special Agent Earnest Manning, a Delta Green consultant, rhelpe of the e-mails sent from Grbhgrsnh92. Later in the day it is determined that the message was sent from somewhere within the U.S. and bounced around a dozen servers and spoofed IP addresses to cover the trail. The source identified as somewhere in the Reno area.
Visits Tammy Lynn-Cassidy, the registered owner of the blue Toyota Camry used in the Peña murder. She explains that the car was purchased as a favor for Hernando Roland, an undocumented immigrant who used to work for them when they owned a ranch. Although Roland paid for the car, they registered it in Tammy’s name to help him avoid issues with immigration. According to her, Roland is a good man—honest, hard-working, and undeserving of deportation after nearly thirty years of paying taxes and contributing to the community. After they sold the ranch, Roland also moved into town. He now owns a nearby café called The Caffeine Cantina
A Bad Day at Caffeine Cantina
Being close to the location, Agent Myra drives to The Caffeine Cantina and asks Agent Jocko to meet him there. Jocko grabs Zen and heads out, driving to rendezvous with Myra.
Upon entering the premises, Agent Myra soon realizes that Santa and three of his known crew members are present:
- Miguel “El Mechero” Castellano
- Ángel “El Afiladoro” Estrada
- Valencio “El Puma” Picazo
As Myra attempts to discreetly text Agent Jocko for backup, he is spotted. The sicarios begin to harass him, escalating the situation rapidly.
A deadly shootout erupts inside the cantina:
- Santa is killed instantly when Jocko blows his head off with a rifle shot.
- All three sicarios are injured in the exchange.
- Jocko is fatally shot, but somehow, miraculously, comes back to life.
- Myra sustains minor injuries but manages to escape, dragging Jocko with him and driving off.
- Zen is left behind in Jocko’s car at the scene.
Myra informs the other agents about what happened.
The Prodigy Child
Agent Locke, chewing nicotine gum and relieving stress with a squeeze ball, conducts an extensive search on the names, Anthony Cooper and Radomir Reznik, focusing on their potential connection to Clyde Mauch and Persistent Vigil.
She uncovers that Anthony Cooper graduated from high school at an exceptionally young age and was offered a full-ride scholarship to Stanford. However, before relocating to California, he encountered an Air Force recruiter. The Air Force, eager to secure a steady stream of high-IQ talent, brought him in. As an airman under Colonel Clyde Mauch, Cooper was part of the team that developed much of the foundational code for Persistent Vigil. He left the Air Force in 2013.
Agent Locke contacts Pitzerelli to initiate a clean-up operation at The Caffeine Cantina and briefs him on the discovery regarding Anthony Cooper.